Three deserving candidates have landed on the ballot for our 2012 Summer Internship Campaign.

We received a slew of applications — and we did our due diligence on each candidate before choosing the finalists. We checked out their résumés, watched their video “cover letters” and conducted interviews, either in person or via video chat.

Now, it’s your turn to weigh in. We’re asking our Facebook fans to help select our next summer intern.

From 8 a.m. Monday (April 23) through 5 p.m. Friday (April 27) , our three finalists will flex their marketing muscle and social media savvy to earn the most votes over at The Fast Horse Experience on Facebook. The candidate who tallies the most votes will land a three-month internship at Fast Horse. Simple as that.

We would gladly welcome any one of these three finalists as our intern. Each has impressed us with his/her creativity, initiative and personality. But, instead of telling you about the individual greatness of each candidate, we have pushed them into full campaign mode with an opportunity to write in their own unvarnished words why they deserve our summer internship.

So, take a moment to learn about our 2012 Summer Internship Campaign finalists. Then, swing over to our Facebook page and cast your vote. Help us select the candidate you believe will strongly contribute to our work and culture for the next three months — and beyond.

Nate Brennan

#VoteNate4FastHorse

I’m usually pretty terrible at selling myself, so you can imagine I had a few reservations about how well I’d do in an internship campaign that called for just that.

I’m generally pretty reserved and I’ve always found it a bit cumbersome to explain myself or why I deserve something. Sure, I’ve been in charge of a newspaper, landed a gig blogging for a summer at SPIN Magazine, wrote a ton for SecretsOfTheCity.com and produced all those online articles about new restaurants and shopping in Edina for Mpls.St.Paul Magazine‘s website. I also do web design, shoot/edit video, don’t care about the Oxford comma and taught myself entire Adobe Creative Suite. Yadda, yadda, yadda. I know mine is just one of billions of stories in the world,

But get me starting talking about my work and you’ll have to force me to shut up. (If you need help, my girlfriend could give you a few pointers.) You ever see that scene in Hot Fuzz where Simon Pegg tells Nick Frost his girlfriend left him because he couldn’t shut off? That’s me, but replace police work with creating content like blogs, videos and amusing PhotoShop’ed images that really stick with people. Because above all, that’s what I’m most passionate about, moving people to laughter, tears and contemplation.

I’ve been out of college for about a year now and normally I’d be looking for something more than internship. But I realize how rare this opportunity is and I plan on seizing it because I wholeheartedly believe in Fast Horse’s ideals, style and mission. I feel I have all the traits of a successful “pony”–a good sense of humor, a passionate work ethic and a naïve hope for humanity and the betterment of our world—and I’m prepared to work my tail off to prove it.

Xoxo,

Gossip Girl Nate Brennan

 

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Tim Holtz

Killin’ it for Fast Horse

Recently, a colleague dropped some philosophical knowledge on me: “thou shall not kill, but thou shall kill it.” After laughing for a minute, I realized how true these words are in my life and how they are more suitable to describe my work philosophy than, “Get ‘er done.”

Jumping into everything with two feet has really helped me live by this mantra. No matter what project I encounter, I not only work to “get ‘er done” and “get ‘er done right,” but I spend the time needed to kill it.

I’ve had a yearlong PR internship for the University of Minnesota and a marketing internship working on a soon-to-be released mobile app. I’ve built great relationships with local reporters and had stories get millions of views all over the world. I’ve developed video storyboards and built effective market strategies. In short, I’ve been continually challenged to step outside my comfort zone.

So, why do an awesome mantra and a couple of jobs make me the perfect person for Fast Horse?

Through these experiences, I’ve learned that I constantly desire a challenge and always look to learn something new. I’ve learned that I’m determined, and have a continuous drive to succeed. This is why my ideal job is one that enables me to think outside the box, constantly learn, adapt to new situations, and is at a place where working hard is fun.

Fast Horse brings all of this – and then some – to the table, and its track record speaks for itself: It says that creativity is key, and that if you push yourself and the team, any agency, no matter the size, can compete. And that’s why I’m competing to be the next Fast Horse intern.

Think I killed it? Throw a vote my way.

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Courtney Rose

Why do I deserve the gig?

Fast Horse and I are a great fit, like chocolate and peanut butter. We’ve had a great first date and this internship is our chance to go-steady for a while, with the possibility of falling in love down the road. Sharing the same interests, love for marketing, and thrill from creativity, we’re a match made in….Minneapolis!

This internship is like recruiting a new member for a team, they have to fit with the team and be interested in the organization as a whole. They need to be able to add to the crew with great insight and hard work, not just be another busy body within a sea of traditional interns.

That is where I fit in, a non-traditional individual that mixes old school with the new and youthful, the traditional approach and the innovational. I am an extravert, honest and blunt, who is not afraid to speak her passionate mind. As I am the perfect lassie to challenge Fast Horse, Fast Horse is the perfect posse to challenge me.

New experiences teach us lessons that cannot be substituted and that also develop an adventurous, unmatched edge. I bring a unique background with a wide range of experiences, like breaking away from the comfort of family and venturing to the unknown town of Buckhannon, WV for college. Risk-taking is part of the thrill of life, something that sets us both apart from the average.

Unique in each of our own ways, I bring a different perspective not yet included in this company’s mixing pot of talents. Our first day had a hint of awkwardness but I think it is about time Fast Horse and I had our second date with a committed relationship to follow, don’t you?

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To vote, visit our 2012 Summer Internship Campaign page on The Fast Horse Experience on Facebook.