In life and in business, we’re faced with tough situations where there is no clear-cut answer. A week into my first high school relationship, I learned that the woman I had begun to date had withheld that she would soon be moving away. Her father took a job out of town and was left with a tough decision: Do I end things now and miss out on two potentially good months of a relationship, or give it a shot?
As I learned through hiring my first intern this summer, internships are a lot like soon-to-end high school relationships: They can be rewarding, but also challenging, time consuming and a little awkward for both parties.
Also read: 20 signs you should quit your job
Because I’m a glutton for punishment and willing to make mistakes in order to learn from them, I jumped into an internship relationship before I was ready, just as I decided to date the woman who would soon move far away.
I’ve learned from both of these mistakes, and while I’d love to give you relationship advice, I’ll stick to sharing lessons I learned first-hand and through peers and mentors on hiring an intern for your startup or small business.
Here are six things you should consider before saying “you’re hired.”
1. Define why you need an intern
I knew I was too busy to handle all of my daily responsibilities when I started looking for an intern, but I didn’t consider all of my options or question my assumption that an intern would be the best short-term solution. It may seem obvious that you’re seeking an intern to get help with your business, but what help are you looking for, why is an intern the best fit to provide this help and what type of intern will fill this role (paid, unpaid, for-credit, etc.)? “The same position with a different why could attract very different people with different career goals,” says internrocket CEO Michael Somers.
2. Think about your primary motivation
Understanding why you need an intern will help you detail the position and properly vet candidates based on what their motivation for applying is. Knowing why a candidate wants to be a part of your team can be as important as their skillset and work ethic. Does he or she want to learn how to start their own business, learn more about your industry or just collect a paycheck? “Why are you interested in this internship?” should be your first or second question when interviewing an intern, but it’s something I failed to ever ask. I focused on my needs with the business instead of digging into their reasoning as to why they wanted the internship.