ethics

This week's discussions on ethical matters made me realize several things. First of all, the vague nature of the diction revealed a naive side of me. Secondly, I learned the importance of principles and one's own ethical standards in the workplace. 

My own ethical principles are based on the lessons I have learned growing up. Influences would include my friends, family, organizations, and academics. The importance of ethics to me is really based on the future. The questions that I consider before completing a task consist of things such as: how will I feel about this matter in a week, would I be willing to openly talk about this later, or how will this shape the opinion of me by people who I consider important?

Miscommunication!

While working as a bank teller over a summer, I witnessed a miscommunication between a customer and an employee. The dilemma arose from 'noise' in the environment. The customer was on her cell phone, the employee was multi-tasking, and the environment was ripening for an error to occur. The employee posed a question to the customer, who responded promptly. Unfortunately, the response was simply offered without any thought. After the tasks were completed and the cell phone call was ended, the customer became upset that her business was not done correctly. Of course, it was an easy fix, and promptly corrected, but it was very evident to me that miscommunications are easy to do. Whether it is body language or vocal language, any one party's inattentive nature can create problems in the communication cycle. 

portfolio

As a continuation on a previous topic, I would like to say that I enjoyed Erin's presentation of administering first aid. Her background in the subject made it rather interesting, and her knowledge on the subject was evident. Additionally, I think it was probably one of the most useful presentations. It very well could save a life!

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I have some experience with an online portfolio. Freshman year, it was a requirement to create an e-portfolio for both English and Architecture. The assignment produced a piece of work that I am embarrassed to reflect back upon. I created the layout and pages in Microsoft Publisher. The quality was shoddy and the design makes me cringe as a fourth year architecture design student. 

I have learned a lot of the years, especially through Architecture 401 (portfolio class). I hope that the layout and design skills from that class will assist me in creating a 'work' that will be worthy of my business writing documents. I look forward to what I will gain from working with an online portfolio this time around, and I hope to be happy with the project three years from now!

in-class_presentations

Whether I am giving or simply listening to an in-class presentation, I typically cannot honestly say that I enjoy them. However, when students are allowed to select their own topics things become much more interesting. So, I must say that I have thoroughly enjoyed the variety and content that has been presented through this assignment. If I had to pick three favorites, it would be tough, but I think the finalists would include: Kenneth, Scott, and Andrew.

Kenneth's presentation about the Boykin Spaniel definitely tops my favorites. The detailed history and information showed true interest by the presenter. Not to mention, it was also interesting to me. To top it all off, he brought his own Boykin Spaniel as a prop. 

Scott's look at the Jetlev-Flyer was also an interesting topic. The best thing most likely was the randomness of the topic. It was something that most of the class, if not all, had never heard of. I appreciated the discussion he provided about opportunities and price. Nice work. 

Lastly, I found Andrew's presentation of the Allman Brothers to be interesting. The best part of his presentation was the true interest and compassion you could tell he possessed for the topic. When a presenter truly appreciates and takes pride in their topic, it shows and becomes that much more interesting to the audience. 

The entire class has done a great job so far. Kudos also go to the presentations on Locks of Love, Laughter, and Jaguars. I look forward to giving my own this week!

the_cover_letter

The cover letter is an important aspect of any application or resume. I gained some experience with cover letters last semester as I began applying to graduate schools. Looking back, after examining the website, I definitely found some areas of improvement. Hopefully none of my mistakes will result in letters of rejection. 

A few things about the website that I found helpful were the checklist and the reality section. The checklist reminded me that my letter was possibly too long. However, one thing that I did not include, but am not worried about is a postscript. I see this addition as unnecessary. If your main focuses are presented in the beginning and recapped in the end, I'm not sure an added emphasis for a third or fourth time is warranted. Otherwise, I will definitely be consulting this website in the future. I also look forward to finding out what others thought of the information provided. 

client_visit

This week we had the first visit from our client: the Healthy Campus Initiative. The client expressed many possible approaches for the semester-long project, though the important goals are reaching students, and promoting health, wellness, sustainability, and social justice on Clemson University's campus. This seems like a very open and exciting project for our group. I am convinced that our client will be pleased with the result. 

After the client visit on Monday, I was absent from classes on Wednesday and Friday for a field trip. I am ready to return to the group in order to listen and learn about any group decisions made thus far and the direction of the project. I have full confidence in their ability to move forward and respect for their decisions. After all, I chose to work with them. 

job_interview

A job interview can be very stressful. The need to make the right impression is crucial and can lead to simple mistakes by the candidate. 10 Biggest Interview Mistakes is a website that helps to avoid these mistakes and can increase your ability to land the position. Personally, I find the tips to be quite helpful. Though I have held two separate jobs, I have never participated in a formal interview. I know this will not happen again. So, any and all tips are certainly welcome pieces of knowledge.

For my first real interview, I plan to practice fielding questions. I also will aim to research and gain knowledge about the company. As for the stress and anxiety of the situation, I have a feeling that a good night's sleep, breakfast, and a workout will go a long ways in conjunction with practice and knowledge. I truly believe these elements will be helpful in preparation for the interview, along with one last reminder from 10 Biggest Interview Mistakes. 

Good luck!