I present to you a post by our interns, Jessica Seagraves and Heather Green, who you can meet here. They are absolutely talented and wanted to share a recent SSG experience with you. Hope you enjoy!

A couple weeks ago, we traveled to Macon, Ga., with Lauren Locher to spend the day with Mutual of Omaha’s Aha Moment Tour, a client we have been working on since the first day of our summer internship.  We were excited to see first-hand the story we have been learning so much about.  Plus, we got to spend the 3-hour car ride getting to know each other better and swapping stories!

We quickly found the site upon spotting the large, 34-foot silver Airstream trailer that is the Aha Moment Tour “mobile television studio.” We were able to meet all of the team members and experience the early morning frenzy of setting up a new tour stop.  While tour producer Jessica Henry was running around preparing for the first guests to arrive, we helped another crewmember, Natalie Webb, set up the registration area.  It was only 11 a.m. and already, it felt like it was 100 degrees outside—fans were a must.

The crew driver, Gary, told us that the truck they drive to pull the trailer has over a million miles under its belt. Holy cow! It’s literally a legend.

We also got the chance to meet and get to know six guests who came to record their “aha” moments, and personally hear their stories. It was interesting to see some guests prepared with a story to share and others racking their brains for the right words to say. Before we left we were lucky enough to tour the trailer and sit in on a guest recording her very own “aha” moment.

We later grabbed lunch at none other than Chick-fil-A, a See.Spark.Go hot spot, but our final stop on the trip was Lane Peach Orchard where they pack and distribute the most delicious peaches we had ever tasted. We could not leave without indulging in their homemade peach ice cream. What can we say? We are weak! So, with full tummies, we headed back to Athens. Of course, all that talk of ‘what will we do when we grow up’, accompanied by lots of laughter and some philosophical discussions made one of us (Heather) a little sleepy on the way home.

All in all, we were so excited to meet an SSG client face-to-face and we can’t wait to see what other adventures the summer holds for us here at See.Spark.Go!

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You can follow Jessica Seagraves and Heather Green on Twitter for more updates on their internship at SSG. Be on the lookout for future posts by these girls!

Each semester and summer we are so fortunate to have incredible interns in our office. We love being able to develop our interns and even more, to learn from them! Now that the school year is over and summer has officially started, we have two wonderful interns to introduce you to. They both have awesome talents and personalities that truly add to our office and we couldn’t be more thankful to have them on board.

Meet Jessica Seagraves and Heather Green, two rising seniors at the University of Georgia.

Jessica, born and raised in Marietta, Ga., is a Public Relations and Political Science major with a contagious positive attitude. After returning from a semester of interning for Congressman John Barrow in Washington D.C., we are thrilled to have her in the SSG office.

Fun facts about Jessica:

• She had the incredible opportunity to study abroad in Bejing, Shanghai and Xi’an.
• She is passionate about photography and learning the technical aspects of her camera.
• In fact, the best gift she ever received was her DSLR camera.
• Her dream job is to be the First Lady of the United States of America .
• If First Lady doesn’t work out, she would love to own a bakery.

Heather, a native of Hiawassee, Ga., is a Public Relations major who is never seen without a smile on her face. She previously interned with the Georgia Club in Athens and learned quite a bit about event planning. We are thankful she has decided to stay in Athens for the summer to intern at SSG.

Fun facts about Heather:

• The coolest place she has ever traveled was Ireland, with a remote part of Belize as a close second.
• She actually experienced a 7.1 magnitude earthquake when in Belize. (yikes!)
• She loves Mexican food – specifically cheese dip.
• Her parents own Hightower Creek Vineyards in her hometown.
• Her dream job would be to have her own talk show, but her PR dream job would be to work in an hospitality and entertainment public relations agency.

Now that you have met our new summer team members, be on the lookout for some updates from them in the future!

Guest blog post by SSG’s very own digital engagment expert, Rebekah Coons:

Have you ever finished a workday a better person than you began? The SSG team had one of those days a few weeks ago.

For the past 7 months, we’ve had the incredible opportunity to join forces with Chick-fil-A Leadercast and engage with leaders worldwide through social media. Chick-fil-A Leadercast is a one-day leadership event that reaches over 85,000 leaders across the globe through a live event in Atlanta, Ga., broadcasted to over 600 host sites.

Each year, a line-up of world renowned leaders share the peaks and valleys of their leadership journey and challenge their audience to settle for nothing less than radically influencing the world around them.

This year was no exception, the blockbuster line-up of speakers included: John Maxwell, Seth Godin, Sir Ken Robinson, Suzy Welch, Frans Johannson, Alison Levine, Muhtar Kent, Erin Gruwell, Coach Mack Brown, Dan Cathy, and Dave Ramsey. We knew the day of Chick-fil-A Leadercast would be exciting as we were tweeting, posting and live blogging to over 85,000 people worldwide! However, what we didn’t anticipate was what we would absorb from ‘sitting at the feet’ of world-changers for a day.

It was incredible to share ‘real time’ reflections from the sessions but at the same time we found ourselves gleaning so much from Chick-fil-A Leadercast’s ‘friends’ and ‘followers!’ Why did we leave better people than when we arrived? Check out some of our ‘lessons learned’ from the day and you will see why:

• “Successful people position other people well in the organization…instead of positioning themselves.” – John Maxwell
• “The problem with thinking inside the box is it’s really dark in there. It is at the edge of the box (not inside or outside) where the magic happens.”– Seth Godin
• “With imagination you can anticipate the future”.” – Sir Ken Robinson
• “Everyone has a story. There is power in telling your story.” – Erin Gruwell
• “Your values are like your fingerprint. They are the legacy you want to leave.” – Suzy Welch
• “If you don’t teach leadership everyday, your worst behaving employee may be your best ‘leader.’” – Coach Mack Brown
• “Fear is okay, complacency is what will kill you.” – Alison Levine
• “What are you going to do with the dash between the dates on your tombstone? It matters deeply what you do with your dash.”– Dave Ramsey

You can join the Chick-fil-A Leadercast leadership conversation on Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin!

Today marks the day of the first Aha Moment Tour stop of the season in Waco, Texas. We are so excited to hear the incredible ‘aha moments’ the team will surely capture over the course of the summer. They will be traveling to 25 cities across the nation, ending in Salt Lake City, Utah, in September. The tour has hardly started and the crew has already visited The Church Under the Bridge, eaten at a few delicious local restaurants and met the people who truly make the city of Waco a unique place to live and visit.

This is the third year that Mutual of Omaha’s Aha Moment Tour has hit the road across the country in search of real stories from real people. We will be updating you along the way, but be sure to check out the tour site here and follow the crew on Twitter. Oh, … And make sure to stop in to tell your aha moment if the tour comes to a city near you!

Hi everyone! Lauren Locher here – the newest member of the See.Spark.Go team! I’m excited to be updating you on the whereabouts of our team, exciting news about our clients and Athens life in general.

Since January, I have been fortunate enough to learn a little bit about each of the incredible clients we work with. I have had the opportunity to dive into their stories and find out really what makes them tick. However, I have realized that the best way to learn is to see the action live!

About a month ago I attended the Boosterthon Fun Run at New Prospect Elementary in Alpharetta, Ga. and was absolutely amazed. As my first official Boosterthon experience, I loved being able to see the unbelievable Boosterthon team interact and encourage each of the students in a special way. With awesome amounts of enthusiasm, the team teaches a 9-day fitness, leadership and character program in the schools, culminating in a fundraiser fun run to raise about 75 percent more money than traditional fundraisers. Wow!

The Boosterthon team with New Prospect students.

As I walked into the school’s fun run, I saw tons of kids with huge smiles on their faces, running around the Boosterthon Speedway, receiving high fives from friends and family members. Despite the rainy weather outside, causing a quick change of scenery (the fun runs are typically held on the school’s track and field), the Boosterthon Fun Run still went off without a hitch in the school’s gym.

Students running the Boosterthon Speedway!

I absolutely loved seeing the way that teachers were able to participate with their students, through decorating the school, engaging with the students and wearing Boosterthon attire on the day of the fun run. You can tell that the program truly allows the school to create a positive and engaging community!

Overall, my first Boosterthon experience was a huge hit and I can’t wait to attend another fun run! I’m excited to see Boosterthon [CTW]!

This is a special guest post by our friend and colleague, Jessica Henry.

As the Tour Producer of Mutual of Omaha’s Aha Moment Tour, Jessica has been working out of our Athens office as she prepares for the nationwide tour to capture and share America’s aha moments this summer. She has also helped us spread the word about Matchstic’s incredible new space and lives to blog about it. Check out this story in the Atlanta Business Chronicle, too.

I love telling Matchstic’s story. For years, the East Atlanta branding company operated out of a blue house that contributed to their company culture just as much as the team within. There were things about the culture of a home that seeped into the way Matchstic went about their business. Things like having a full kitchen and dining room.

The Matchstic team, who regularly has meetings over a home-cooked breakfast, is slowly becoming known for their trademark process which includes “Brands ‘N Eggs.” As Matchstic moved into a new office space recently in a very open, industrial building, they brought with them the very team member who made them who they are today: the kitchen.

Not just any kitchen (or a makeshift break room for that matter). The industrial kitchen has been fleshed out to host a mega office party, like the Brands ‘N Eggs Open House Matchstic had Friday, April 8. More than half of our See.Spark.Go team spent the morning enjoying a conglomerate of breakfast foods, some Octane coffee, and the company of more than 50 local business leaders.

A kitchen in the entrance of a brand identity house seems a bit odd, but it’s totally them. Matchstic has built a company culture and reputation around the meal table (literally and figuratively). In helping brands establish their identities, I love how these guys and gals have stayed true to their own.

How is your company culture defined? Is there a structural or relational component that you couldn’t live without?

Come on in! (Photo courtesy of Matchstic)

As you may remember from our post on Passion 2010, our team at SSG is fortunate enough to begin the year telling the story of a global awakening for university-aged students called Passion Conferences. From Jan. 1-4, 2011, we jump-started our year with over 22,000 students and over one thousand volunteers, all coming together to worship and experience life transformation.

Something that was absolutely incredible was the way students completely reached and exceeded the original goal of Passion 2011′s Do Something Now campaign. Throughout the 4-day conference, students had the opportunity to impact lives throughout the world by donating to 10 different non-profit organizations. With an original goal of $470,000, college students blew that number out of the water by giving over $1.2 million dollars to the causes. In addition to that total, over 18,000 towels and 80,000 pairs of sock were donated to the Atlanta homeless.

Leaders at Passion 2011 in Atlanta included Louie Giglio, Frances Chan, John Piper, Andy Stanley and Beth Moore as well as sixsteps recording artists Chris Tomlin, David Crowder*Band, Charlie Hall, Kristian Stanfill, Christy Nockels and others.

Passion 2011 does not stop there, however.

In fact, our team has been in Ft. Worth, TX all week for part 2 of Passion 2011, along with 10,000 more university students and leaders. If interested in learning more, check them out here.

You can also follow Passion Conferences on Twitter at @Passion268 or liking the Facebook fan page at Passion 268Generation.

Stay plugged into our blog for updates on Passion 2011 in Ft. Worth!

Quite a few awesome things have happened at the See.Spark.Go office since we last posted. Not only have we moved into a new office (more on that to come!), but we also have two new interns for the semester!

I introduce to you our two wonderful new ladies: Maureen Flaherty and Hannah Springston.

Maureen, a Peachtree City native, is currently a senior at UGA, majoring in Public Relations. As an executive board member of Relay for Life, Maureen has been involved with many organizations on campus. Even though she is busy preparing for graduation, we are so thankful for her eagerness to jump into See.Spark.Go from the start of the semester. We love having her personable, hard-working self in the office.

Fun Facts about Maureen:

• She lived in Germany from age 2-5.
• Her MacBook was the best gift she has ever received.
• She swam with the whale sharks at the Georgia Aquarium.
• She has traveled to 17 countries, but her favorite place she has visited is Tuscany.
• Her “dream job” would be as a dolphin trainer at Sea World, but her PR “dream job” would be to work in PR or special events for a resort or luxury hotel, or to work in the entertainment industry.

Hannah, born and raised in Buford, Ga., is currently a junior at UGA, majoring in Public Relations. Clocking in at 4 feet 11 inches, Hannah is full of energy and always willing to learn. Like Maureen, Hannah loves to travel and had the opportunity to study abroad with Global LEAD in Greece. As our resident chef, she always brings delicious treats to share in the office.

Fun Facts about Hannah:

• Her dream destination is South Africa and/or Bora Bora.
• Her favorite food is cheese, and we hear she makes a mean mac & cheese.
• She bungee jumped 28 stories into the Corinth Canal in Greece – it was “intensely terrifying but a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
• She sang opera in high school.
• Her “dream job” is to own her own lifestyle PR firm in either California or the Southeast.

So, you can see that our interns are pretty impressive. Both claim that one of their favorite parts of interning with SSG is being a part of our team, but we are even more thankful that they are here! We can’t wait to share with you some of the awesome things they are doing!

Recently, I asked our summer interns, Anne Mitchell + Hannah Adams, to write a blog post on why college juniors, seniors or recent grads should intern at See.Spark.Go. I was THRILLED to see their response! If you’re interested in interning at SSG, email me with your resume at brittany [at] seesparkgo.com.

Reason #9: Athens

This one speaks for itself. I mean really, who wants to drive all the way to ATL during football season!

P.S. Lots of UGA blood in the SSG family.

Reason #8: Big agency experience – small firm relationships

One thing we’ve noticed/come to LOVE in our time here at SSG is the agency’s ability to incorporate business and great relationships into their work.

As an SSG intern you’ll have the opportunity to work intimately on big name national accounts and be included in decision-making processes. You’ll get an inside look at what goes on in meetings with the movers and shakers of the PR world, not to mention great guidance and friendship with your fellow colleagues.

Reason #7: Creative reign

Every skill you bring to the table will be used in your time at SSG. Every SSG intern gets an invite to brainstorming sessions and your input is always welcome and appreciated. Trust us – It’s AWESOME to have people who listen to your ideas and actually even use them from time to time!

Reason #6: You’re part of the team

You won’t be just making copies or fetching coffee here at SSG (though trips to Chic-fil-A and Jittery Joes aren’t uncommon). At SSG you get thrown straight into the fire, in a good way of course!

As an SSG intern you’ll be doing some of the same things as the head honchos and getting real world experience with really great guidance and leadership. You’ll learn the secrets they don’t teach you in school!

Reason #5: Prime Location

This office is what we call ‘primetime locale.’ You are within a mile of 2 Chic-fil-A’s, Five Points Deli, Barberitos, Panera, and Hannah and my personal favie- Publix (home of the pub sub for the uneducated sandwich eater). Occasionally we take office trips to Last Resort and Yoguri. Just sayin’.

Reason #4: The Other Intern

Over the course of this summer, Hannah and I have shared an obsession with Diet Coke, a weirder obsession for The Bachelorette (don’t get us started on Jake & Vienna) and most of all a love for SSG. We hope the next crop of interns is as lucky.

Reason #3: Carson

If you’re lucky, you might catch this little snuggler in the SSG office. He’ll probably try to get you hooked on Dinosaur Train and he LOVES to play in photobooth.

Reason #2: Expanding your network

As SSG interns we learned quickly that owners Brittany & Andy know any and everyone in town/the Southeast, probably the country. We’ve literally never been anywhere with them where they didn’t know someone. Naturally, they are great people for you to know as well!

Reason #1: Brittany aka ‘boss lady’

Co-owner, Brittany, is undoubtedly the best part of the SSG internship experience. Of course we chat about all things PR, but we chat about the celeb gossip, The Bachelorette and life in general too. Truth be told, we couldn’t have thought up a better mentor ourselves. We hope you’re lucky enough to meet her too!

Last week, SSG attended the Chick-fil-A Leadercast as a guest of our client, Booster. The speakers were phenomenal, the entertainment was mediocre (kidding – Booster was responsible for the entertainment and did an incredible job!), but the insights…the truth that each and every component of the day offered was remarkable and worth repeating. Daily.

Here are a few of the nuggets I took away:

On Leadership…

“Leadership is who we are in all areas of our life, every role, every relationship.” – Connie Podesta

“Talent is God given, be thankful. Praise is man given, be humble. Conceit is self given, be careful.” – Tony Dungy

“You can’t take anyone to higher ground, until you find common ground. Leadership is influence. Influence requires connecting.” John C. Maxwell

On Success…

“Greatness is not a function of circumstance – it is a matter of constant choice and discipline.” –Jim Collins

“Starbucks didn’t reach store No. 5 until they were 13 years old. Most ‘overnight successes’ are 20 years in the making.” – Jim Collins

“Success, born of hubris (arrogance) leads to failure.” – Jim Collins.

“The signature of the greatest executives we studied is their humility.” – Jim Collins

“You have to be working for more than your financial bottom line. Every enduring institution has an answer to this question: what would be lost if we disappeared?” – Jim Collins

“Great companies are built on a purpose beyond making money and a set of core values that are unshakable. Purpose ahead of success. If we lose our values, we lose it all.” – Jim Collins

On building a team…

“The right people are on a mission and they don’t write better stories, they make the story better.” – Jim Collins + Mark Sanborn

“We hire ambitious people. The most important job you have is the job you’re doing.” – Ed Bastian, Delta CEO

“Employees take care of your customers, so take care of your employees.” – Ed Bastian, Delta CEO

“If you treat people like they’ll do something great, they’ll do something great.” – Jim Goodnight, SAS CEO

On inevitable change…

“We’re schizophrenic to change: part of us wants it, part of us doesn’t. And if you don’t like change, don’t have kids.” – Chip Heath (ha!)

“Positive change comes from focusing on what’s working and doing more of that.” – Chip Heath / When’s the last time you asked, “What’s working?”

“Providence follows the prepared mind.” – Steve Uzzell

“To the 6 questions of journalism—who, what, when, where, why and how—add this: are you sure? Making sure you know what you know is the key to being prepared.” – Steve Uzzell

Brilliance…

Dr. Ben Carson, pediatric neurosurgeon, was utterly brilliant and closed the day with powerful teaching. Learn about his scholarships at http://carsonscholars.org/.

And I’ll leave you with this pic of our friend John Maxwell wearing Booster’s fancy red Converses on stage!