Tanner

Since we can write about whatever we want to for this week, I'm going to talk about my dog, Tanner. One day, instead of going to the Clemson football game, my boyfriend took me to Anderson and surprised me by getting me a Golden Retriever puppy. We spent the whole afternoon buying supplies and toys for the dog and the rest of the day playing with him. At first, he was very scared of everything and would always want to hide under the bed or in his crate, but he is a lot better now.
Tanner has a beautiful, gold coat and sad little puppy eyes that make me want to melt when he looks at me. He has one white spot on the top of his nose and really, really soft ears that I love to pet. He loves to play catch with his tennis balls and take long walks. He likes to play with all other animal friends that he meets and wishes that he had a permanent play mate, since I am in class all day. He loves to get attention and is very jealous when someone else is getting more attention than he is. We have been trying to teach him some tricks, but so far he has only learned to "sit." Tanner helps to relieve my stress and is always a lot of fun. I love my dog!

Cover Letters

The use of a cover letter is very important when trying to provide information about yourself to possible employers. These articles on cover letters give a lot of good advice about how to write a proper cover letter. One article discussed how cover letters are limited in value because they are only read after the employer has found interest in a resume. The article also says that the cover letter should not be about you but should be about the company. The second article discussed when you should use a cover letter. Your cover letter should be specific and personal and identify what you can do for the company and what the company will need to do to buy your product. It's important to write a basic cover letter structure, but don't send the exact same letter to each company.

I'm not sure if I agree with the Postscript Technique article. I've never heard of anything like this before, but then again, I don't know much about cover letters. It seems kind of weird, though, to use a P.S. in something professional like this.

The most helpful part of the tutorial, for me, was the Cover Letter Checklist because it was brief, concise, and got to the main points of what's important when writing a cover letter. I think that I will review this checklist when I am writing my cover letter for my mock interview.

I also thought that the article about the Testimonial Cover Letter Technique was really neat. I think that it would be much more beneficial to employers to hear about how great you are from someone who knows you rather than from yourself. If I had a testimonial, I would use it in my cover letter for my mock interview.

Interview Articles

The first article that I chose to read to help me with my future interviews was "How to Deal With Interview Stress." I thought that this article would be really helpful for me, personally, because I worry and stress way too much about stuff. The article provided a few simple techniques that can help to calm the nerves before and during an interview. The author says that you should not arrive to an interview too early or too late. Arrive about ten minutes before an interview so that you don't have time to sit and worry, but you're not so late that you're racing in the door. The author says that another way to relieve stress is by visualizing yourself succeeding in your interview situation which will give you confidence for when you are in the real interview. It's also very important to stay relaxed while in an interview. To achieve relaxation you should breathe deeply and slowly, speak slowly and pause for breaths often, and remember to smile! Finally, if you find yourself in a panic during an interview, just pause for a second, take a deep breath, refocus, and remind yourself that you can do this.

The second article that I chose to read to help me with future interviews was "How to Answer the Toughest Interview Questions." The first tough interview question is "Where do you see yourself in five years?" The best way to answer this question is to talk about your values. Discuss things that are important to you professionally, but don't get too detailed about your specific career plan. Prepare in advance for the "salary question" and decide on a range before an interview. When an interviewer asks you why they should hire you, make sure that you are confident and honest about your abilities, but try not to come off as boastful. The author also says that you can prepare for this question by practicing in front of the mirror. If an interviewerer asks you the "seemingly silly question" like "If you could be a fruit, what kind would you be?", don't panic! Remember that there is no "right" answer to these types of questions. The author says that interviewers usually ask these questions simply to see how you react under pressure and handle the unexpected. It's not important what type of fruit you pick, just choose one that helps you to appear favorable.

I thought that both of these articles were very helpful and provided great advice for the interviewing process. I will definitely have to think back on this information before my mock interview!

Persuasive Communication

I decided to compare and contrast Martin Luther King, Jr.'s, Letter From a Birmingham Jail with President Bush's State of the Union Address, specifically where he speaks about education. President Bush first builds his ethos in his speech when he says, "I was proud to work with members of both parties: Chairman John Boehner and Congressman George Miller..." He then uses pathos when he makes comments that evoke laughter. President Bush uses logos in this speech when he talks about what needs to be done. He says that "We need to prepare our children to read and succeed..."
In Martin Luther King, Jr.'s, Letter From a Birmingham Jail, he builds his ethos when he writes about how he "has the honor of serving as president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference..." He uses pathos when he tells "his fellow clergyman" that they are "men of genuine good will and that their criticism are sincerely set forth..." He uses logos in his letter when he talks about the four basic steps for any nonviolent campaign. Martin Luther King, Jr. intertwines the ethos, pathos, and logos really well in this letter, which is what makes it such a great piece.
I didn't think that the guest presentation was very persuasive at all, so I can't really compare it with President Bush's State of the Union Address or Martin Luther King, Jr.'s, Letter From a Birmingham Jail.


http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/01/20020129-11.html