The Intern Diaries (S2E8): Choose Your Fighter

Turn off your [insert preferred gaming console here] and plug into Week 8 of the Hightower Internship Program! These interns must have special powers because they have been flying through this internship far too quickly for my liking – the office is so much more *fun* when they are around. This week was especially entertaining, with lots of bonus games to power-up their career learnings and celebrate big wins. Loading time is up; keep reading to join our Mario Party (8, of course).

Anyone Up for Tic-Jack-Toe?

Or are you more a Jackbox gamer? The first lunch-and-learn of the week was with – you guessed it – someone named Jack! This time it was Managing Director of Operations Jack Boyle. From what I heard, the lunch-and-learn was better than winning a fishing competition on Animal Crossing. Another Jack (this time Jack Hughes the operations intern) said, “I thought Jack did a really great job of explaining work-life balance and how he can maintain a great career without sacrificing other valuable assets to his life. It was a very great example of holistic well-th!” If you’ve ever played Overcooked, you know how challenging time management can be, so we’re glad they got some valuable perspectives on personal and professional growth.

Trust Dance 2023 Edition

…Arguably better than its predecessor Just Dance? The second lunch-and-learn of the week featured not one, but FOUR major players from the Trust team. Hightower Trust Company made its debut in 2022, so it still feels like a new and exciting expansion pack to all of us. This version came with tons of opportunities for our interns to learn about the inner workings of the business, one well-choreographed step at a time!

We asked one of the Hightower Trust interns what the experience was like, as an insider, of course. No longer a backup dancer, Kristopher Swerigan, shared, “It was nice for our department to get to present itself. Trusts aren’t really something that many people think about or even know about, so the other interns asking a lot of questions and seeming engaged was cool to see.” You know how it feels when your closest friends still have no idea what you do? This is, like, the opposite that. We hope you all Just Dance your way into better workplace understandings!

The Greatest Game Ever Played: National Internship Day

You best believe we went final level of Candy Crush crazy (presumably, I’m still stuck on level 70) for National Intern Day. Our corporate team was hyped up for this day and it was jam-packed with fun and prizes all day long to celebrate our most popular characters. Here’s how it went down:

Level 1: Breakfast of Champions.

Level 2: Raffle Prizes

Level 3: Happy Hour

The happy hours in New York and Chicago were really the perfect endpoint of the day. Chicago interns and their managers went to a ping-pong bar in the city and things got competitive in no time. Tournament winner, and financial planning & analysis winner, Sam Randman said, “I had a great time. It was really cool to play with a professional player from Poland!” (We had a pro show us how it’s done, but that didn’t stop me from getting humbled in every match I played.) Hightower New York interns adopted the same gaming spirit with a rousing bowling match! It’s safe to say everyone had fun and you all get virtual participation ribbons from me.

& Even Some Volleyball! [Real life, Not Wii Sports]

Another very cute moment this week was an impromptu beach volleyball gathering after work. Chicago is blessed to have some great beaches along Lake Michigan that aren’t too far from the office for a post-work hang. A group of interns bumped-set-spiked and bonded along the way!

Wow! We’ve been as active as my Sims on 5x speed! I hope you all enjoyed playing the Hightower Game of Life this week with us. Tune in next week to see what the interns are moving the needle on with their dynamic synergies.