Most sophomores, juniors, and seniors in college understand. Yes, you want to go back home for the summer and work at the same grocery store you've worked at since high school. You know the people, you know the hours, you know that the work won't be too intensive. 

But your professors and business professionals at your school keep telling you to get out, get experience, and have things for your resume. The experience of course is invaluable, take it from this intern. But here are four reasons to really convince you that you should spend your summers learning from the rest, rather than going back into your comfort zone. 

1. You Learn SO MUCH

I'm not exaggerating at all. I was an inbound marketing intern this summer, and I've taken marketing classes at school. And while I've been taking business classes for two years, I learned so much more from the team at 5j. That's not a knock against my school or any other school - but when you're learning things in theory and learning things in practice, of course it's going to be different. Now, I have real world knowledge about the subject. Not only will this knowledge help me in my classes for my upcoming college career, but it'll also be a huge help if I go into the industry. 

2. The Hours Aren't That Bad

As a college kid, you may have one or two classes a day, a work study job or who knows what else. But a lot of students have time in the day to take naps, do homework, whatever you want to do. The prospect of a 9 to 5 can be scary, especially when you know that the hometown grocery store will schedule you for a five hour shift just four days a week. Not only does this schedule prepare you for what you'll most likely experience when you graduate and get a job, but getting up consistently around the same time you would for class in the fall makes it easier to adjust when you get back to school. The hours of a full time job really aren't that bad, I promise. 

3. The People You Work With Are Amazing

At least in my experience, the people at a professional job come with so much more professionalism (who would've guessed)? How many high-schoolers still work at that grocery store too? High-schoolers typically come with more drama than adults. The people that I worked with at 5j I'd like to think were especially awesome, from baby days to painting days at the office, 4th of July parties and an end of the summer send off, to just little fun moments at the office like laughing over a funny article. 

4. You're Not Going To Want To Leave

While it is nice to go back to school and get back into the routine of classes and see my friends, I wish I had more time to learn at 5j. Not only did I get to work with a small company who taught me real world knowledge, but I also got to learn along a great co-intern, Taylor. When you take on an internship, you're going to be proud of the work you accomplished over the summer, or fall, or whenever your internship is. Trust me when I say you should make finding an internship a priority - not because everyone tells you that you need one, but because you're going to love it.