Just today, as I was reminscing about all I've done this summer, I thought to myself "hoooly cow! Time flew right by! Has it really been a year already?!"
Today is my last day at Douglas College and, as you can probably tell, I'm having a pretty hard time accepting it; it feels like I started school just yesterday. During my time at Douglas, I learned quite a bit about myself. I discovered my interests (Philosophy, English, Teaching), acquired some valuable life long lessons, and even made future plans. To me, school is so much more than an "educational facility"; it's a way to find yourself. Thus, I'm excited to continue school, move on to the next chapter in my life, and discover what lies ahead of me.
Tutoring was also a very rewarding experience. I got to meet so many awesome people, help students out, and really make a difference in people's lives. There's something so fulfilling about knowing that you've helped someone out; I think it's what we, as humas, aim for in life.
I wish you all the best of luck in the future and leave you with this:
"Try not to become a man of success. Rather become a man of value" -Albert Einstein
Take care! :)
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Thursday, August 9, 2007
The Keys to a Successful Interview
Photo courtesy of http://www.acetheinterview.com/images/timemachine.gif
Why is it the word "interview" can always leave people shaking in their boots? For some reason, when interview time rolls around the corner, many of us find ourselves in this situation. For me, personally, such a feeling usually seems to go away halfway through the interview; still, I always wished there were ways to cure my anxiety beforehand. Fortunately, I came across a website that outlines how to better prepare yourself so that an interview will run along smoothly. Here were some of the helpful tips that were offered:
1. Be prepared and confident
2. Write down and practice possible interview questions beforehand
3. Don't talk too much
4. Be enthusiastic and positive
5. Make eye contact
6. Dress to impress (and to make you feel confident!)
7. Bring up a weakness [this helps you set a goal for yourself]
8. Don't be afraid to ask the employer questions
9. Show you are listening attentively
10. Face the feedback [you may hear upsetting feedback from your interviewer, but just use this positively and take note of what you can do differently next time]
There were other tips as well, but I found these ones the most important. For more tips on how to succeed in job interviews, please visit http://www.interviewtips.org/job-interview-tips/job-interview-tips-1.html
One of the things I liked most about this website was the fact that they also included what not to do during an interview. Here's what they had to say:
1. Don't give a weak handshake [this tells the employer that you are uninterested or lack confidence]
2. Don't talk negatively about past employers
3. Don't use 'verbal ticks' such as "umm," "like," and "you know"
4. Don't ask about vacation time, benefits, or salary during the first interview
Overall, I think the keys to a successful interview are summed up in 'to do' tip number one: be prepared and confident. If you're prepared, the employer will see your organizational skills and abilities to work diligently; if you're confident, he or she will see that you are not afraid of a challenge and will do whatever it takes to get the job done. Together, I believe these two ingredients can create a recipe for employment!
What do you usually do [or try not to do] during an interview?
1. Be prepared and confident
2. Write down and practice possible interview questions beforehand
3. Don't talk too much
4. Be enthusiastic and positive
5. Make eye contact
6. Dress to impress (and to make you feel confident!)
7. Bring up a weakness [this helps you set a goal for yourself]
8. Don't be afraid to ask the employer questions
9. Show you are listening attentively
10. Face the feedback [you may hear upsetting feedback from your interviewer, but just use this positively and take note of what you can do differently next time]
There were other tips as well, but I found these ones the most important. For more tips on how to succeed in job interviews, please visit http://www.interviewtips.org/job-interview-tips/job-interview-tips-1.html
One of the things I liked most about this website was the fact that they also included what not to do during an interview. Here's what they had to say:
1. Don't give a weak handshake [this tells the employer that you are uninterested or lack confidence]
2. Don't talk negatively about past employers
3. Don't use 'verbal ticks' such as "umm," "like," and "you know"
4. Don't ask about vacation time, benefits, or salary during the first interview
Overall, I think the keys to a successful interview are summed up in 'to do' tip number one: be prepared and confident. If you're prepared, the employer will see your organizational skills and abilities to work diligently; if you're confident, he or she will see that you are not afraid of a challenge and will do whatever it takes to get the job done. Together, I believe these two ingredients can create a recipe for employment!
What do you usually do [or try not to do] during an interview?
Thursday, August 2, 2007
May the Summer Begin!
Yesterday (Wednesday August 1st) was probably one of the most exhilarating days of my life. Yep, you guessed it. It was the last day of summer classes!
Ironically, I don't regret taking summer courses. Whenever I told people I was in school for the summer, they just looked at me and said, "Are you serious?" However, I think going to school in the summer was a pretty wise idea for several reasons:
1) I would have been pretty bored if I wasn't in school. All my friends were working full time, so I wouldn't have gotten a chance to hang out with them anyway.
2) I'm all caught up now. Going to school gave me the chance to keep up with my 30 credit-per-year plans so I can graduate on time.
3) I feel like I accomplished something. Even some of my friends admitted they couldn't wait to go back to school in the fall; they were all getting bored and feeling "purposeless."
4) It will be easier to get back into "school mode" in the fall. If I were playing and working all summer, it would be pretty difficult to give that up and start school again.
5) I met some pretty interesting people along the way. I made new friends and we all got through the semester together.
Of course, a part of me wishes I could work full-time all summer and save up some of that so-called "money" I've been hearing so much about. On the other hand, someone once said to me, "You have your whole life to work, don't worry so much about that right now." I guess you can't really put a price on education, can you?
Ironically, I don't regret taking summer courses. Whenever I told people I was in school for the summer, they just looked at me and said, "Are you serious?" However, I think going to school in the summer was a pretty wise idea for several reasons:
1) I would have been pretty bored if I wasn't in school. All my friends were working full time, so I wouldn't have gotten a chance to hang out with them anyway.
2) I'm all caught up now. Going to school gave me the chance to keep up with my 30 credit-per-year plans so I can graduate on time.
3) I feel like I accomplished something. Even some of my friends admitted they couldn't wait to go back to school in the fall; they were all getting bored and feeling "purposeless."
4) It will be easier to get back into "school mode" in the fall. If I were playing and working all summer, it would be pretty difficult to give that up and start school again.
5) I met some pretty interesting people along the way. I made new friends and we all got through the semester together.
Of course, a part of me wishes I could work full-time all summer and save up some of that so-called "money" I've been hearing so much about. On the other hand, someone once said to me, "You have your whole life to work, don't worry so much about that right now." I guess you can't really put a price on education, can you?
Thursday, July 26, 2007
School Sweet School
Picture courtesy of http://academic.cuesta.edu/acasupp/as/images/boystudy.gif 
Just last night as I was making dinner, a lady called from the School Board and asked if she could survey me. I normally don't do phone surveys, but since it was for educational purposes, I reconsidered. As she was asking me questions, I began to really think about my answers. She started asking me whether I thought high school gave me a better idea of what I wanted as a career and if it provided me with "lifelong skills." I agreed with the lifelong skills tidbit, but not so much the former.
When she asked why, I told her that many of the subjects I discovered I was interested in, such as Philosophy and Archaeology, are not offered in high school. I understand that there are perfectly legitimate reasons for this (there is a shortage of teachers, too much money will be spent on wages, etc.), but I feel that schools are capable of further helping students plan out their career paths. So far, I've spent one year trying to figure out my career plans and yet, I'm still not sure what I want. Indeed, one of the main purposes of post-secondary is to show students their options; however, I believe that highschools can do more to help minimize the time students spend planning out their career paths.
Here are some of my recommendations:
1. Provide a better variety of classes. Usually, high schools only offer one or two classes per field. They should aim to provide a better selection of classes so students may discover their interests more easily.
2. Encourage seminars. Many colleges and universities send representatives to high schools to persuade students to apply to their institutes. I think these post-secondary institutions should also provoke professors and students of various departments to travel to highschools to explain the fields they are in and what kinds of things they teach/learn.
3. Instigate a better work experience program. At my high school, I had no idea what was available to me in terms of work placement opportunities. I think teachers should create a questionnaire of some sort that determines a student's interests and matches them with an appropriate work place that corresponds.
Do you think these could work? What are your recommendations?
When she asked why, I told her that many of the subjects I discovered I was interested in, such as Philosophy and Archaeology, are not offered in high school. I understand that there are perfectly legitimate reasons for this (there is a shortage of teachers, too much money will be spent on wages, etc.), but I feel that schools are capable of further helping students plan out their career paths. So far, I've spent one year trying to figure out my career plans and yet, I'm still not sure what I want. Indeed, one of the main purposes of post-secondary is to show students their options; however, I believe that highschools can do more to help minimize the time students spend planning out their career paths.
Here are some of my recommendations:
1. Provide a better variety of classes. Usually, high schools only offer one or two classes per field. They should aim to provide a better selection of classes so students may discover their interests more easily.
2. Encourage seminars. Many colleges and universities send representatives to high schools to persuade students to apply to their institutes. I think these post-secondary institutions should also provoke professors and students of various departments to travel to highschools to explain the fields they are in and what kinds of things they teach/learn.
3. Instigate a better work experience program. At my high school, I had no idea what was available to me in terms of work placement opportunities. I think teachers should create a questionnaire of some sort that determines a student's interests and matches them with an appropriate work place that corresponds.
Do you think these could work? What are your recommendations?
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Lions & Tigers & Ligers -Oh My!
For some reason, I've been hearing fascinating information about animals recently. First, I heard about that frozen mammoth (the one I was talking about in the post before this), then my Philosophy teacher was telling my class about apes and how a team of scientists are now fighting for "ape" rights. Apparently, these scientists believe that apes have the same capabilities as humans because they, too, can communicate with other apes and humans. They also believe they have the same capacities for emotions. Thus, the scientists are trying to pursuade others into believing that apes can actually fit into our everyday society as do humans. My teacher told us there was a video about this; once I find out what it's called, I'll let you know! photo courtesy of http://animalradio.com/Liger.321.jpg
I already found the ape thing pretty interesting, then, just now, I heard about a new species of animals called 'ligers.' Ligers are the offspring of a lion and a tiger (as shown in the above picture). This was a total suprise to me; I've never heard about them before! So, of course, I let my curiosity get the best of me and decided to do some research. As it turns out, there's another species of animals that a lion and a tiger can produce: a tigon! According to Wikipedia, when a male lion and a female tiger mate, they breed ligers; when a female lion and a male tiger mate, they breed tigons. Pretty cool, eh?
p.s. I hope you like the colour scheme! ;)
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Mammoth Alert!
Yesterday I read one of the coolest articles ever and, amazingly, it had nothing to do with protesters or celebrities re-entering rehabilitation facilities. Instead, it unfolded a story about the discovery of a frozen baby mammoth in Northern Siberia. The mammoth was said to be only 6 months old when he died, but the carcass is apparently between 10,000 and 40,000 years old! Sure, discoveries like these are made quite frequently, but how often is an ancient animal found almost completely intact? Hardly ever. Apparently the the body was kept in immaculate condition due to the protective shields of permafrost. However, although the mammoth's "trunk and eyes [are] virtually intact and [there's] even some fur remaining," the mammoth was missing two things: his ear and his tail (which were most likely "bitten off" by another animal). According to scientists, this discovery will help researchers understand the climage change over the past centuries. The baby mammoth is currently being shipped over to Japan for further studies.Isn't that absolutely fascinating? I always found issues like that astounding, especially when it comes to dinosaurs. Lucky for me, I'm taking a course about dinosaurs next semester (I can't wait!). Maybe one day they'll uncover the body of a dinosaur; one can only hope!
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,288975,00.html
Thursday, July 5, 2007
Transit Etiquette
Usually I'm not the one to complain or get annoyed easily, but lately I've been noticely a lack of courtesy and respect from passengers using public transit. Just this morning I encountered a very hostile young man (probably in his late 20's or early 30's) on the skytrain while commuting to work. I'm not exactly sure what happened to make him uneasy, but let me tell you, he was not a happy camper. I think it was because he and another fellow (probably in his mid 40's) had previously argued about who took who's seat. At least, I think that's what they were fighting about. But anyways, the two men parted and took a seat in different areas; the other fellow sat in the middle and Hostile Man sat in the far end of the skytrain, just across from me. Suddenly, Hostile Man began ranting and raving to himself for a good 10 minutes, using vulgar, obscene, and highly inappropriate language. Now don't get me wrong, swearing I can handle, but I've never heard someone publicly rant as atrociously as Hostile Man.
As I looked around the skytrain, I noticed all the passengers tense up in discomfort. Finally, Hostile Man's stop was next, so he got up (still ranting) and waited by the doors. Then (this is the fun part), he decided to use me as his catharsis pole. Next thing I know, Hostile Man is rudely directing his offensive murmurs towards me; he even started making personal attacks, commenting on my "Little Miss Trouble" t-shirt and reciting things I never want to be repeated again. So what did I do, you may ask? Nothing. What could I do?
So, you see, I direct my point to all you choleric crazies out there: When taking public transit, please have some respect for the people around you.
Mind you, I'm not just talking about unbecoming verbal manners, I'm talking about physical manners too. Here are a few courtesy guidelines that I think would make the transit environment better if followed:
1) Remove your backpack. No one likes to get getting knocked over by a backpack when someone turns around.
2) Give up your seats to the elderly. This one is just common courtesy; it's simply a matter of respecting your elders. Plus, don't you feel bad when senior citizens who can barely walk come onto the skytrain and there's no seats available for them? (That's right, I'm using the guilt trip!)
3) Don't talk so loud on your cell. Let's face it; sometimes we really really really need to talk on the phone. That's fine, but remember that there's other people around you who really don't want to hear about how Amanda's in a dilemma because she can't find her red pumps.
4) Don't take up too seats unless you absolutely have to. Does your jacket really need its own chair? Didn't think so.
5) Watch where you're going. We all have places to be and things to do, but rushing will only get you to wherever you want to go a few seconds sooner and anger the people around you.
Thanks for listening to me vent; I found this very soothing. And I didn't mean to sound cold or mean or anything like that; I just have a dream that the world could be a happy place for everyone!
As I looked around the skytrain, I noticed all the passengers tense up in discomfort. Finally, Hostile Man's stop was next, so he got up (still ranting) and waited by the doors. Then (this is the fun part), he decided to use me as his catharsis pole. Next thing I know, Hostile Man is rudely directing his offensive murmurs towards me; he even started making personal attacks, commenting on my "Little Miss Trouble" t-shirt and reciting things I never want to be repeated again. So what did I do, you may ask? Nothing. What could I do?
So, you see, I direct my point to all you choleric crazies out there: When taking public transit, please have some respect for the people around you.
Mind you, I'm not just talking about unbecoming verbal manners, I'm talking about physical manners too. Here are a few courtesy guidelines that I think would make the transit environment better if followed:
1) Remove your backpack. No one likes to get getting knocked over by a backpack when someone turns around.
2) Give up your seats to the elderly. This one is just common courtesy; it's simply a matter of respecting your elders. Plus, don't you feel bad when senior citizens who can barely walk come onto the skytrain and there's no seats available for them? (That's right, I'm using the guilt trip!)
3) Don't talk so loud on your cell. Let's face it; sometimes we really really really need to talk on the phone. That's fine, but remember that there's other people around you who really don't want to hear about how Amanda's in a dilemma because she can't find her red pumps.
4) Don't take up too seats unless you absolutely have to. Does your jacket really need its own chair? Didn't think so.
5) Watch where you're going. We all have places to be and things to do, but rushing will only get you to wherever you want to go a few seconds sooner and anger the people around you.
Thanks for listening to me vent; I found this very soothing. And I didn't mean to sound cold or mean or anything like that; I just have a dream that the world could be a happy place for everyone!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)