Reflection On Reading Assignment #3

For college students like us in M COM 320, chapter seven is going to be the most useful chapter in our student manual.  At our age we are constantly looking and applying for the right jobs and positions that will catapult us into the career of our dreams.  Take myself for example. In just the last year I have applied for scholarships, undergraduate majors, jobs, internships, study abroad programs, and volunteer positions.  Knowing how to properly fill out and submit a proper resume and other job application materials can do wonders for students like us.  Chapter seven gives us great advice on how to properly fill out a resume, succeed in an interview, interview others, and even how to prepare follow-up and recommendation letters.    

In the section about resumes, I really liked what it said about the traditional chronological resume format and listing the more impressive sections first.  My own personal resumes have had no structural format to them; I would just throw words on paper.  Listing the more impressive experiences and accomplishments first will help us to catch the attention of the reader before they get bored and lose interest.  It's definitely something that I am going to apply to my current resume. 

With little to no knowledge on how to properly fill out a resume, my resume looked pretty similar to the resume below!  Well, maybe not that bad.  But now that I have read chapter seven, and made a few changes to my resume, I feel like I'll have a much better chance of success when applying for jobs and other positions where a resume is requested.  The following is an example of what not to do...  

Reflection On Reading Assignment #2

This weeks reading assignment covered a few basic grammatical topics, but its main focus was on composing a professional business document in a clear and organized manner.  The grammatical rules that were covered in the appendix for this weeks reading assignment were much easier concepts to grasp than last weeks.  The readings covered topics like capitalization, numbers, and tense.  I found I actually remembered these topics from elementary school and junior high.  This made for a much more enjoyable grammar lesson, leaving me feeling somewhat smart, rather than dumb and uneducated. 

What stuck with me most from the business side of things, was the idea of using OABC (Opening, Agenda, Body, Closing) when composing business documents.  I remember learning about three of the four components, but I never learned how to include an agenda.  I found this to be very useful.  In fact, today I had to write up a proposal for an experiment that I was going to be doing in one of my biology classes.  I found that using the agenda as a part of the format for my paper made it not only easier for the reader to follow my experimental design, but also for me to write out the experiment.  It was much easier for me to gather my thoughts and put them into writing.  When the agenda is prepared properly, there is a much greater chance the reader will grasp the main concepts of your message as he/she reads through the body of the paper.  I am definitely going to make OABC apart of my writing from now on, I can already see what a difference it makes.     

            

Reflection On Reading Assignment #1

When it comes to school, most people have specific subjects they prefer to study. For me, science and math have always been my favorite subjects. Likewise, people also seem to have subjects they hate studying. Again, for me, English has always been the one subject I hate studying. The last thing I want to do with my time is write an essay or learn grammar. I absolutely hate grammar! While reading todays grammar assignment I remembered what it was I hate about grammar so much.  I hate all the rules!

In English there are so many grammatical rules that make writing difficult and hard to master.  I have always felt that the rules of grammar are arbitrary.  Someone somewhere must have decided that we will do things a certain way, and that's just the way it is.  However, I realize English is also my worst subject, and that is probably why I hate English so much.  I am naturally very competitive, so struggling at something makes me want to veer away from it. Hopefully, by the end of this semester, I will have improved my grammatical skills and gained a greater appreciation for writing.  It is obviously a skill I lack, and one that will benefit me for the rest of my life.  Being able to express yourself and your ideas in exactly the way you want, can be a powerful tool not only in business, but in life.   

If you are like me, when it comes to learning grammar a good place to start would be the 3rd grade. Unfortunately we can't go back in time, so if you're in the same boat,  here is a daily blog I found that gives daily grammar lessons (dailygrammarlessons.blogspot.com). Check it out, it's a good place to start.