Final Blog

Future Business Writing Students:

I'd like to explain a little to y'all about how to be successful in Ms. Rogers' class. It is important to attend class on a regular basis. There is a lot of material covered that is very beneficial for future use. Also you are expected to work in a group setting so this is a good opportunity to learn your strengths and weaknesses. You will be working with people who think differently than you and its a good experience to see how other people evaluate situations differently and then you learn to come together and make a final product. This is a pretty technology based class. You learn about blogging and have to be somewhat computer savvy to create a website to post one of your portfolios. Its not too difficult to do, but it is important to go to class because it all explain there and if you are having problems they will be answered. I recommend absorbing the things you learned because they will definitely benefit you in the future.

Will C

Reflection

Working on the client project as a group has been a good experience so far. It really shows the different qualities and abilities that people have. It is always nice getting a different perspective and having people who think of things in a different way. I think that the best part of the project would have to be the cooperation that has happened with the group. I think the biggest challenge is probably meeting outside of class because everyone has a different schedule and sometimes its difficult to get everyone together at the same time. In the future I would like to make sure that there can be cooperation and effective group work skills. I am really pleased that so far I have not had any really issues with reliability of my group and we always get our tasks done in a timely manner.

Dual Coding Theory

The image presented uses the dual coding theory as a part of its advertising campaign. First it presents an image of a locker room and what appears to be the exit to a football field. I gathered it was a football field since its a Nike football ad. This is similar to the exits you see in popular football films and they usually have something written above the exit. In this case, 'practice like champions' is written above it. This gives a sense that its a practice locker room and that Nike is the gear used by many professional football teams. I feel like the 'we believe' is not a part of the picture, but a text box added to the picture. This would imply that Nike believes that using their product makes one 'practice like champions' and in a real game Nike's products will make them champion athletes. The visual gives football players something to relate to when practicing, while the verbal portion which I would consider to be the words inspire the consumer that Nike's product is the product of champions.

Miscommunication

This past summer I worked construction in Greenville. It was a lot of hard work, but overall a good experience. I had several times at this job where miscommunication was an issue. The main reason for this miscommunication was because I was working with many Hispanics, few of which spoke English. Back in high school I took several Spanish classes, so understood some Spanish. However, several times one of the guys would try to tell me to do something and I was unable to follow what they were saying. One of the main things that was miscommunicated was when one of the workers was trying to tell me how to tie rebar to make a footing for a building, and I did not do it correctly. We had to then untie and retie it to make it meet regulation. I suppose miscommunication could have been prevented if I had taken the time to further inquire if I was doing it right, or maybe if I knew just a little more Spanish. Overall, I learned to inquire further if I did not fully understand something. I have since done so, and really have not had an issue with miscommunication since then.

Mock Interview

I did my mock interview this past Wednesday. I think I was a little nervous once I was in the chair. I noticed I was talking a little faster than I usually do and was a little short with my answers. I had one question about my greatest accomplishment to date, but I feel like I handled the question rather well. I did not feel as prepared as I wanted to. If I were do do this again, I would give examples to go with the questions that were asked so that I could be in more control of the interview and the interviewer would know a little more about me. Overall, I learned a few tips about formatting my resume a little better, and a few tips about how to better address questions. I think it was a pretty valuable experience that will help benefit me in the future.

Favorite Presentations

I really liked Adrienn's presentation on how to properly open and pour wine. I thought that it showed some useful skills that I will probably use later in life. I learned a fair amount of how to properly open bottles of wine. I also liked how she included a guide to which wines to drink with different foods.

I liked Mark's presentation of the Chevy Volt. I thought that it was a good presentation and showed a sensible alternative to the current fuel crisis and it was affordable. I thought he listed the facts and specs of the car rather well.

I also thought Chelsey's presentation on South Africa was pretty interesting. I have never been to South Africa, but would like to go one day. I'm glad she included facts about the World Cup in 2010. I would love to go over there and see some of the matches.

Financial Crisis?

As a financial management major here at Clemson University I'm concerned about our economy and the current financial crisis that is happening with AIG and Lehman Brothers. My main concern now is whether or not I should continue to study finance or try to switch majors before it is too late. I have heard several stories about finance majors not being able to get jobs upon graduation and it is becoming a growing concern to me. I would like to know that I have some sort of ability to get a job upon graduating. I also feel like the state of the economy will be greatly influenced by who is elected into office. I really hope that I am able to get a job, and that the economy turns for the better so that I will be able to know that given I qualify I will be able to get a job.

Cover Letters

I found these articles to be pretty beneficial to writing a cover letter. I really liked how it explained that one should 'sell the benefits' rather than your 'features'. I previously thought that the best thing to do was talk about your accomplishments, but now I have a better understanding that you should tell the company about how you will benefit the company and that it is more likely that they will show interest. I also liked the part that talked about follow up contacts. Also I'm glad to know references are not important initially. I have always tried find references before applying for a job, but now my main focus will be on selling my attributes.

I found the postscript section to be most beneficial and a technique I will likely employ in future job searches. A hand-written P.S. definitely adds a personal touch.

Interview Skills

Mastering the Interview

In this article it gave that the main things to remember is the 3 P's. Preparation, presentation, and perception. It seems obvious that one should prepare for interviews and practice answering questions, and that they should dress appropriately for their job. These were some of the things I already knew from previous experience and other sources. However, the thing I found most useful was the responding to a question with a question and how this way you can not 'waste time' and seem more credible. I have experienced several times where I have had to come up with an answer and it was embarrassing. But now I realize that I can question the interviewer and that way buy some more time and have a better understanding of what they are asking me.

An Interview Strategy: Telling Stories

This article discusses some of the methods of competency-based interviews where the employer is looking at your accomplishments and real-life situations that will give them a better understanding of how you will be and asset to the company. I have gone into a few interviews and had a story or two for different situations, but I always feel like at some point I have to repeat the stories or do not have one appropriate for a specific situation. This article has taught me to come up with some good stories that would show the interviewer some of my skills in the work place and how I could be a beneficial asset to the company.

Where I'd like to be in 10 years.

In 10 years I would like to see myself retired. I imagine most people would also like to retired and I don't have a plan on how I plan on retiring by then, but that is 'where I'd like to be in 10 years.' The only ways I can see that happening would be for me to win the lottery (which I don't play), have a nice trust-fund that I didn't previously know about, or marry someone willing to support my 'retired' lifestyle.

Although my real 10 year plan is pretty unlikely, I have come up with a back up plan. In this one I would like to graduate college in the next 4 semesters, and then get a job that I actually do not mind waking up to do. At the end of 10 years, I would like to have secured an upper level position in the corporation. I would also like to be married at the end of 10 years, and maybe start a family. For now I just hope to graduate college and figure out what sort of job I would like to have.

Web 2.0

I think that the title refers to how we are so technology based in society that the web controls our lives. And that although we are the ones altering the data, we are the ones who rely on the web and need it. Web 2.0 makes it easier for people to get information they need about the jobs they want and allows employers to get the information of potential employees. It allows the people in the workforce to get and change data instantaneously. Rethinking everything I think makes us have to consider the reliability of this information. I think that we will have to consider all these things in order to make the world work.

Introduction

My name is Will, and I'm a financial management major. I just recently started my junior year and cannot say that I have any regrets in my decision of coming to Clemson. My first two years I rowed for Clemson Crew. Now I am looking at joining the sailing club; I figure they made sails so you don't have to do as much work. I might as well use them.

Some of my interests include traveling, foreign culture, and the water. I love to go outside when the weather is nice and 'bronze'. My father is retired Air Force so I was fortunate enough to have been able to travel around the world. I was born in Japan and also lived in Italy for a few years. Maybe that is what sparked my interest in foreign culture. I wish I was fluent in many languages. I have tried taking Russian, French, Spanish, and Italian. I speak the most Spanish probably, but wish I could speak all of them. Its a small world, I want to be able to communicate with many people.