Advice

When working with a client based project just be sure that you are excited about what you are doing. If you are excited about your work, the client will probably be excited about your work, and you will work harder, and create a more interesting project.

Also, be sure to pick your group members based on attitude, and their schedules. If you work best when the sun is out, pick group members that can work during this time.

Keep a positive attitude, and everything will be ok. Take advantage of the time your have to perfect your resume, get as many critiques as you can, and be sure to take advantage of creating a portfolio that works.

Thanksgiving Break

Thanksgiving break was great. I haven't had a real break since school began, so I really appreciated the time to do whatever I wanted. I didn't get to watch A Christmas Story, but it still wasn't bad. I saw This Christmas, which was pretty good. It made me smile. Overall, not a bad break, and definitely much needed. Time to finish the semester, tie some loose ends, and go to San Francisco for Christmas. Oh, and of course live for today. :-)

Response

I understand why they would want a person to be a better "fit" in companies, but I fear that if they make decisions based on whether or not other employees like them, they are going to lose a lot of good people. Diversity will be an issue in companies that choose their employees this way. Would an international canididate have as good of a chance of being a good "fit" with the company, as a native? Honestly, this procedure scares me. If companies do this to weed out the social misfits, they should also be a aware that more applicates might similiarly weed them out, if they are not offering extremely competitive packages.

Dual Coding

I would like to begin by saying that I don't really watch tv any more. I hardly ever see commercials, so I don't really have several new examples to pull from, BUT I did see an amazing commercial the other day. The Vaseline "Sea of Skin" commercial definitely uses dual coding theory, you can look at it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0YRJQlwXws

The images are striking, interesting, and maybe a little shocking. They were very artistic to me. It also has a very calming voice praising skin, and what it does for us. The person speaking appealed to my emotions/used pathos. It was nice. I don't do much tv, but remembered this commercial because of the images...and that voice. They both worked together. His voice fit the images, and neither would have been as effective without the other.

I believe that this commercial uses Dual Coding effectively. I imagine that it would have been less effective if 50 Cent had been the narrator. That would have just been distracting, and I might not have perused the images properly; I might have even started singing "In the Club." The calm voice, soothing music, and stimulating images worked well together, and definitely helped the audience remember that Vaseline is all about the skin.

I enjoyed that commercial. :-)

Group Work

I normally avoid group work. Previously, I always said that I like all of my successes and failures to be mine, but they never are, right? This experience has taught me that I work harder in groups. I try harder because if I don't do well, it not only effects me, it effects the other people in my group.

We try really hard to collaborate, and everyone has a chance to use their ideas. We actually mesh really well. In order for us to be more successful, I am going to work harder, and take more initiative.

Interview Response

Overall, I think my interview on Monday went well. I was able to answer all of the questions, but I did stammer a little, and I caught myself touching my face. (Today I learned that people normally touch their faces when they are lying.) My cover letter, and resume could have been better, and I really wish that my portfolio was completely done....but are resumes ever done? I also could have came up with a better question, than a question about promotions in the company. Anyway it was a learning experience, and I think that it will make me a little more relaxed when I finally get that interview that will change my life. :-) :-/ :-O

Chicago

Chicago was a lot of fun. Anytime I get to escape Clemson is fun for me. I thought that I would feel small because of all the skyscrapers, but I didn't. It was nice. We went on an architecture tour, saw the ITT campus, and saw Unity Temple and the home Frank Lloyd Wright.

While it was fun doing all that stuff, I was happiest roaming around the city alone, and stopping at random places. Is that odd? My favorite finds were this Asian Café not far from our hotel, the shopping district on Monroe and State, Akira, and a hot dog shop called Giglianos, or something like that, that was absolutely amazing. I want to go back, soon.

Megan's Presentation

I really liked Megan's presentation about color. I have always been interested in the psychology of color, so it was nice to see ideas about this in a nice little outline. The color of the slides, the pictures, and the handout all just fit well, and made her presentation easy to read, follow, and understand.

My Writing Habits (Poetry)

I do not have any writing habits, and I hate schedules. Poetry is one of the few things I can do whenever I want, wherever I want. Since I just write when something jars me, I find myself scribbling on napkins or gum wrappers about the sensuality of eating or the slant of some boy’s eyes. In all honesty, I’m sure I could benefit from structure. Small wads of paper tend to end up in the trash, but I love the freedom of writing when I think I can be profound. So don’t be shocked if you find church programs that have been blessed by the movement of my hands, or if you find a receipt with my ramblings about how America has created a new kind of bondage for its retail loving people. I’m not crazy, but I am insanely attached to the way I feel seconds before I write I poem; and I love the fact that my best work isn’t a result of the level of the sun or the shape of my surroundings. It’s the product the rhythm of my fingers, a quickened heartbeat, and a heightened awareness. It’s a product of me.

This is a little pretentious, but true. I wish everything in my life was this simple and free.

Pretty in Ink and Video Resumes?!?

I really enjoyed the articles about making resumes more fun. The article "Pretty in Ink," definitely caught my eye. It talked about how an unconventional resume could definitely help you catch someone's eye, and maybe even keep it. It talked about a writer, who sent a resume to an employer, that looked like a newspaper....definitely an attention-getter. I really appreciate that kind of creativity because I have always considered resumes formulaic and boring.

Another article that I read talked about video resumes, something I had never considered before. I don’t know if I entirely like the idea of video resumes as much as creative resumes, since they open the door for employers to judge based on physical appearances. I would hope that, that type of behavior would not go on, but we are all human.

Both articles warned about the dangers of using these types of resumes. If you use unconventional resume be sure to avoid doing the following: include things that don’t really matter (i.e. you going to the gym or dancing in your video resume for a job writing for a newspaper), create an unconventional resume for an online posting that requires a specific format, include typos, manipulate text to the point where it’s hard to read, or wear flashy jewelry for a video resume.

All in all, it seems like a good idea to use slightly unconventional methods to presenting a resume, but you still have to be aware of your audience, your medium, and all of things you would normally worry about in business writing.

Quiesha in Ten Years?!?

It is really hard for me to think about what I will be doing in next week, let alone in the next ten years. I don't like to plan. I do know that even though I will be a real adult in 10 years, with bills to prove it, I don't want to loose "me." I don't like to plan, I like awkward moments and awkward people, movies that don't end happily, occasionally causing mischief, painting my nails black, painting, sketching, traveling, and most importantly freedom. I don't want being a responsible adult to be the reason why I lose any of that...and a thousand other things I didn't mention. Ten years from now I might not be an architect. I might not even make it back to grad school. I might not have time to go to bartending school. I might not be a mother. I might not have a "kadrillionbillionzillion" dollars in the bank. I might not help save a few kids in Africa or even in the US. I might not be able to buy my mom a huge house, and my dad that BMW (those are his initials). But, none of these things would really bother me as much as losing me. So, in ten years I want to be happy, and myself. Hopefully, I will be able to get those other things too, though. ;-)

web 2.0

I think this video means that we need to think about the way we communicate a lot more than we are right now. It seems to suggest that one day we might even study this with the same meticulousness that we use to study literature and poetry. It seems to suggest that putting a word HERE instead of

Here…means something (along with its font, sizing, and orientation. This little film seems to contend that many, if not most people who communicate digitally, aren’t aware of this medium’s power to mean. I think Web 2.0 means that people entering the workforce should exploit its power more, and be more aware of what they are communicating. I also believe that people who are already in the workforce cannot ignore its power, and should also try to use it effectively. That said, the title seems to mean that we are entering a new era, and that this is a different type of medium. It isn’t the web that people played with, chatted idly on in the 90’s. It has evolved, and now, so should we.

ABOUT ME!

Hi! My name is Quiesha. I am a student majoring in architecture with a minor in creative writing/poetry. I am from Camden, SC, but I actually live in Rembert. I know nothing about Rembert....more about Camden. I like to laugh, sketch, write, listen to stories, create, discover, and discuss ideas and theories. My favorite color is black, and I wear it often. I love the word rendezvous and extremely random things and people.

Test blog

Don't ask what the world needs. Rather ask - what makes you come alive? Then go and do it! Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.


Howard Thurman
Source: Forbes Magazine (Oct. 2006)