The Proposal

As you post this blog on Sunday night, you should be ready to give your client presentation on Monday, April 20. Remember that you should dress nicely this day (business casual). In addition to our client, we will have other guests this day. A professor from Jordan is visiting the United States to learn about technology in the classroom. He may have questions for you after your presentation. To prepare for this, I'd like you to use this blog to reflect on how technology helped or hindered your group as you completed this project. For example, was your group page in Blackboard helpful? Did you ever use email or some other electronic medium to relay important information to one another. Did you have any virtual group meetings?

Our group page on blackboard was essentially the backbone of my team's work. We were able to submit the work and show it to the group as soon as we were done. It was such an important tool in creating the proposal and really helped us to make a complete product. I am so proud of our proposal and the hard work that my team put into it. Me and the team leader were constantly emailing eachoter back and forth to make sure everything was going smoothly. We also used email to keep eachother informed about meetings and on task in general. However, we found as a team that meeting in person was much more productive than anything virtual because we were able to accomplish alot in a short amount of time. We were able to express our thoghts and concerns much quicker than a virtual meeting could. I thoroughly enjoyed this project and hope all goes well on Monday when we present to Jennifer.

Ethical Principles

Reflect upon the examples that we have discussed. What did you learn from this? How would you explain your own set of ethical principles as you prepare to enter the workforce or graduate school?

I was so disgusted by the memo written for the concentration camps. I cannot believe they would talk about human lives like that, especially children. I had no idea about the Ford Pinto either. That really makes me not want to ever buy a car from that company again. I never thought anything like this would happen here in the US, but apparently it happens all the time. People will be people, selfish and hateful at their best. I hope I never have to deal with any situations like those we discussed.
I have a few ethical principles I find extremely important. The first one is human dignity, everybody has rights and should feel equally valued and worthy. Respect for others is another very important ethical principle that I find important. I feel everyone should be respected until they prove that there is no reason we should show them any respect. Finally, I believe that putting others before yourself is the most important. It is a selfless act and it shows how caring and loving you are towards others. People will respectt you more, the less concerned you become about yourself and the more concerned you become for other and their well-being.

. Blog about one more presentation (given on Monday or Wednesday, depending on snow conditions). Talk about what you liked about this presentation and why you chose it as your favorite of the last group of presentations.
2. Blog about your past experiences with online portfolios. What programs did you use? Was it a good experience or a bad experiences? What do you need to know in order to ensure that you are ready for the portfolio draft due on March 23?

My absolute favorite was the presentation on the five top tropical destinations. It was nice to escape for a little while and listen about these places even if it is for five minutes. Perfect timing also as it snowed two days ago!

My experience with portfolios is nonexistent. I have never done anything like this before though it sounds rather challenging and interesting to do. I like doing things online like this so I can show others what I am doing up at school. Makes other people really appreciate the stuff you are actually doing up here. I need to read about and education myself on how to organize and prepare a protfolio so it will be ready and look professional for you! It sounds interesting since I love organizing! Anyways, better get on that!

Presentations

Select any three presentations that your classmates gave in the last few classes; base your selection on how much you enjoyed the presentation. Write about what made this presentation so enjoyable. What did you learn? What made this person an effective presenter?

I found 3 very different presentations to be rather enjoyable to hear about.

The first one i really liked was Aly's presentation on coffee. I drink more coffee than anyone should and I think it is interesting to hear about. I really like the handout because before I did not know the difference between the choices I had. Although, I still only order regular coffee, it's nice to know. I think what made Aly an effective presenter was the fact that this was not a new subject to her but she was an avid coffee drinker who knew alot about her subject.

The second presentation I liked was Holmes' presentation on aquariums. I liked it because I thought it was to the point but hilarious at the same time. I mean, a fish tank really can be therapeutic and who knew craigslist had them for so cheap? Holmes was an effective speaker because he used humor that appealed to his audience as a whole.

The third presentation I found interesting was the presentation Austin did on sailing. I am from Charleston so I love seeing the boats, although I have only been out a few times it was nice to be reminded of the water and all the boats have to offer only if it was for five minutes. It was a great presentation and I was thinking about joining the sailing club so it's great to know the president is in my class. Austin was an effective speaker because of his knowledge of the sport and the fact that he has firsthand experience with his topic.

For this week's blog, visit this link - http://www.collegegrad.com/coverletters/. Read the advice that is offered about writing cover letters.Do you agree with all of the advice given here? Are the points with which you disagree?Which section of this tutorial is the most useful to you?Is there anything of which you were not aware that you plan to use when you write your cover letter for your mock interview in this class?

I agree with most of the advice here because writing cover letters is something new to me and I think it all the advice is very sound. It is straight and to the point. Making th cover letter specific and personal to the company seems very important because it makes the company feel valued and you didnt just send the letter out to 100 different businesses. Finding out and documenting to the company waht makes YOU different from the others is totally important, because if you are just another face inthe crowd they will most likely forget about your resume or just overlook you altogether. For some reason I was thinking a cover letter would be long and tedious but I am now realizing that it is short and to the point and that makes me feel sooo much better because these people don't have a lot of time to read cover letters and resumes so it makes sense for it to be short and sweet. Last but not least I think the idea of adding a testimonial to a cover letter is a great idea because this proves that you are worthy and will actually do the work you are assigned. I am really glad you posted this because I have been looking for samples and tips to guide me through my first cover letter!

This week, you will have a visit with from our client. Now, it's finally time to get started with the work on the client project. For this blog post, I'd like you to blog about that. What ideas do you have so far? What are your biggest concerns? How are things coming along in your group? What questions do you have for me about how to complete this project?

I loved hearing from Ms. Goree! And am I so thrilled that we are working on something like this that concerns the Clemson student body as a whole. She brought a lot of interesting discussion to our class and I think the very best idea I heard was to persuade Aramark to buy their fruits and vegetables produced by our organic farm because this would be so incredibly beneficial to everybody in the short and long run. My sister works for Aramark at College of Charleston and I have heard some stories about just how strict and unflexible they can be. I hate it when she has to work all week and then on the weekends on occasion. Also, my mom works for a very poor school in North Charleston and she has noticed, like Angie was saying, how the poverty level effects the poor food choices. I wish, that in spite of the fact that these kids are the less fortunate, that they could still have healthy food choices at school. I think this initiative should push past the boundaries of Clemson and try and make an impression on the all the schools in South Carolina by modeling how this change can be brought in a quick, simple and effective way. Then we can model how profound it as had an effect on our students and campus as a whole. If I could have it my way, Clemson would totally demolish Aramark's monopoly on the campus and use our own food system and we would bring in Aramark only when we absolutely need them.
My biggest concern is that we are going to put a ton of effort into this initiative and have very little impact. But what if we don't? Won't it leave us wondering what could've happened? I love the initiative, I think it is a wonderful idea and proposal. As far as things are going in my group, we still haven't met yet but I have a feeling we are going to have lots to talk about because I noticed that every person in my group spoke up and asked questions and gave ideas! Except me, I really have to work on my shyness. If there was one thing I could change, I wish I was more outgoing. Anyways, I can't wait for Wednesday's class so I can talk with them all and discuss all of our great ideas.

Interview Article

Then, respond to the article. Do you agree that these are the biggest mistakes that you could make in a job interview? Have you ever had a job interview? Describe what it was like? What can a person do to be well prepared for a job interview?

I think the mistakes that the article mentioned are some things I would never think of. For instance, never asking dumb questions. I always would have thought any kind of question would show interest in the company. Also, I never would have thought follow up would have been so important. And, a phone interview?? I didnt think those were that common or important.

I have had a job interview. Although, they weren't for any "important, high paying" job. Most of them were just your run of the mill interviews, "When can you work? Why do you want to work here?" So most of my interviews have not been nerve racking at all. They were all very laid back interviews.

I think to be well-prepared for an interview you should always, always practice. Once you have down what you are going to say and can say it backwards and forwards your nerves won't be as bad. Also, arriving early to the interview is a great way to show how responsible and courteous you are. And finally, research the company and don't walk in knowing nothing about the company, seem confident but not cocky.