Post 14: Almost Done
Since I'm almost done I know that I want to do something to show my mentor my appreciation of all the help and time he has given me, but I'm not exactly sure yet and anyways I wouldn't necessarily post it because it should be a surprise and if he just read about it right after I post this, it would kind of spoil it. I haven't even thought about what kind of food I am going to bring to the pot luck but maybe it'll be a dessert because those are always great to eat and I have a taste for something sweet right now so thats what popped into my head. haha.
Today, I met my mentor at a building that I had to go to last week, and took more pictures of it's progress. Then we walked a few blocks over to look at a tenants space so that my mentor and architect could get a feel for what the space was like now before they start proposing what needs to be done/changed. After that, my mentor and I then went to Jack London square because we had to drop off some building drawings which I believe we're for that space. When we got back to the office I saved the pictures taken, and emailed the architect, that is on that project, about pictures that we were taking earlier. I then went to lunch and had a realllyyy good sandwich and wish that I could have two more, even though I got full from the first one. When I came back, I was working on this poetry project that Jen needed help with. So I found out a little bit of information Youthspeaks because Jen is interested in having them come to our school. I then started doing a little bit more work for my WLE project with writing down more information that i want to put into my keynote presentation, and then wrote out how I want to present it all when I finally have my keynote complete. After I complete this blog, I'm going to go talk to my mentor about the interview that I still need to do with Clif bar.
Today, I met my mentor at a building that I had to go to last week, and took more pictures of it's progress. Then we walked a few blocks over to look at a tenants space so that my mentor and architect could get a feel for what the space was like now before they start proposing what needs to be done/changed. After that, my mentor and I then went to Jack London square because we had to drop off some building drawings which I believe we're for that space. When we got back to the office I saved the pictures taken, and emailed the architect, that is on that project, about pictures that we were taking earlier. I then went to lunch and had a realllyyy good sandwich and wish that I could have two more, even though I got full from the first one. When I came back, I was working on this poetry project that Jen needed help with. So I found out a little bit of information Youthspeaks because Jen is interested in having them come to our school. I then started doing a little bit more work for my WLE project with writing down more information that i want to put into my keynote presentation, and then wrote out how I want to present it all when I finally have my keynote complete. After I complete this blog, I'm going to go talk to my mentor about the interview that I still need to do with Clif bar.
Post 13: How my WLE project is going...
In the morning I mostly out of the office. At 10am I arrived and my mentor sent me on an errand to go to a building to take pictures of it's fourth floor which is under construction. The purpose of this is so that Ellis Partners has record/proof of what the space was looking like at that time in case they run into future problems as well as keep track of its progress. I took pictures of the entire space including walls, ceilings, windows, floor space and anything else that was there. When I was finished, i had probably around 70-something photos which I took back to the office and saved to the computer. My mentor then sent me to Kinko's to make copies of drawings for a meeting that we were going to have later on that afternoon. I came back and had to put them in order which took some time because there were several papers and they were huge, and I was trying to do it neatly to avoid messing the papers up [and getting paper cuts]. Next I did a few miscellaneous tasks and headed out to lunch. When I came back from lunch, my mentor, a few other people from the office and I, left for a meeting with potential tenants at a building I had never been to before. It was kind of interesting to see what that looked like because although I have observed meetings with tenants, I had never seen how the whole deal worked with trying to get tenants into a space. My mentor had another meeting to go to after but we were early so we waited until the guy had showed up, we were up on the roof and it was cold and REALLY windy but luckily we didn't have to spend too much time up there.
For my WLE project Im kind of at a halt because the next step I need to take for my project is to meet with Clifbar but they aren't exactly available all the time so my mentor and I discussed it, and we're aiming to meet with them sometime next week because that's basically the last thing I need to do and then I will be ready to start putting everything together for my presentation.
As far as benchmarks go...once i meet with Clifbar, and have the interview my next step will be to organize all of my information and figure out how i want to present it all and put it into a keynote storyboard, which I plan to have done a week after. From then I'm not sure yet because I don't know what type of roadblocks I'll run into but I plan to keep close contact with Morgan and my mentor so that if I need help, I can get it right away in order to complete my project.
For my WLE project Im kind of at a halt because the next step I need to take for my project is to meet with Clifbar but they aren't exactly available all the time so my mentor and I discussed it, and we're aiming to meet with them sometime next week because that's basically the last thing I need to do and then I will be ready to start putting everything together for my presentation.
As far as benchmarks go...once i meet with Clifbar, and have the interview my next step will be to organize all of my information and figure out how i want to present it all and put it into a keynote storyboard, which I plan to have done a week after. From then I'm not sure yet because I don't know what type of roadblocks I'll run into but I plan to keep close contact with Morgan and my mentor so that if I need help, I can get it right away in order to complete my project.
Post 12:Joel Musta Forgot...
So since Joel forgot to post the blog prompt for this week...I'll just talk about what I did today....
I arrived at his office at 10 and immediately started working on an organizing project that took up the majority of the day. I had to print out A LOT of emails, and document files, organize them and create two binders for them. Now it doesnt sound like that would take long but it is when you completely fill two 4-5 inch binders full of paper. First I just printed everything all at once but then realized that that wasn't too smart of me because I ended up having to re-sort everything by which file it was under and because I didnt know where each file began or ended, I had to go on the computer and look at each document so i could compare the pages beginnings and endings. Once I got that sorted, Matt told me what to put on the tabs for when I put everything into the binder and I began to hole punch it all. Everything was finally ready to be put into the binder but then had to go down to the basement to get more documents that needed to be put into the binders and followed the same steps I just mentioned. I then got hungry and it was lunch time so I went to Mcdonalds and got a number 7, & it was pretty good. When I got back to work I created the labels and started putting everything into the binder. When I was close to being done, I realized that the way the tabs were organized didnt look right (and I don't know how to explain that without showing you) so I had to rearranged them but accidentally took out a tab and then two files got mixed with eachother and i couldn't find it in the binder so I had to go back on the computer, find out what the one that got "lost" looked like so I could go through the binder and put the tab back where it belonged. When I was finished with that I printed out the cover pages to both binders. I thought I was done with that project but NOPE...Matt needed me to put in another tab of more papers so I went ahead and did that. Now to most of you, your probably thinking "Man, that must have been boring..." but it wasnt. It got a little tedious when in came to putting in the small tabs and trying to take small stacks to fit through the binder holes but I like to organize stuff, its kinda fun...that probably sounds weird, but oh well. :]
I arrived at his office at 10 and immediately started working on an organizing project that took up the majority of the day. I had to print out A LOT of emails, and document files, organize them and create two binders for them. Now it doesnt sound like that would take long but it is when you completely fill two 4-5 inch binders full of paper. First I just printed everything all at once but then realized that that wasn't too smart of me because I ended up having to re-sort everything by which file it was under and because I didnt know where each file began or ended, I had to go on the computer and look at each document so i could compare the pages beginnings and endings. Once I got that sorted, Matt told me what to put on the tabs for when I put everything into the binder and I began to hole punch it all. Everything was finally ready to be put into the binder but then had to go down to the basement to get more documents that needed to be put into the binders and followed the same steps I just mentioned. I then got hungry and it was lunch time so I went to Mcdonalds and got a number 7, & it was pretty good. When I got back to work I created the labels and started putting everything into the binder. When I was close to being done, I realized that the way the tabs were organized didnt look right (and I don't know how to explain that without showing you) so I had to rearranged them but accidentally took out a tab and then two files got mixed with eachother and i couldn't find it in the binder so I had to go back on the computer, find out what the one that got "lost" looked like so I could go through the binder and put the tab back where it belonged. When I was finished with that I printed out the cover pages to both binders. I thought I was done with that project but NOPE...Matt needed me to put in another tab of more papers so I went ahead and did that. Now to most of you, your probably thinking "Man, that must have been boring..." but it wasnt. It got a little tedious when in came to putting in the small tabs and trying to take small stacks to fit through the binder holes but I like to organize stuff, its kinda fun...that probably sounds weird, but oh well. :]
Post 11: My Mentor
My mentor's name is Matt Wickens and he works for Ellis Partners. His job title is Senior Development Manager, which deals with the real estate of buildings and managing the construction for those buildings. He can have several projects that he is working on at a time and his job is execute business plans for then while making sure it is well in progress. He is also an asset manager so he is also dealing with the budget and money of projects. Everyday is different, sometimes he is in weekly meetings or out at different buildings, working with contractors. More simply, there is a number of things he does day-to-day. Each Wednesday even consists of something different. He is always talking and meeting with people, in and out of his office which is one of the things he loves about his job. He isn't just stuck at his desk, focusing on one thing, he goes to interact with a lot of people and work on a number of things.
He became interested the building of it all because of close family members being in construction, his uncle managed construction, while his father was an electrician and dealt with the hands on side. He became interested in the real estate side while he was working for a contractor, and instead of helping build it, he wanted to own it. He was interested in being apart of the beginning plans, and creating the ideas. His job requires him to have a Bachelors of science in construction of management, which he received from the University of Washington, a good understanding of how accounting and finance, leasing, real estate and marketing all works, so that the company he works for is making the right amount of money without being taken advantage of, its important that he knows how to speak articulately and have a technical and business background. If anyone was interested in this field some advice he gave was that they should take two majors in college, business in finance and construction/engineering so that they understand both sides.
He became interested the building of it all because of close family members being in construction, his uncle managed construction, while his father was an electrician and dealt with the hands on side. He became interested in the real estate side while he was working for a contractor, and instead of helping build it, he wanted to own it. He was interested in being apart of the beginning plans, and creating the ideas. His job requires him to have a Bachelors of science in construction of management, which he received from the University of Washington, a good understanding of how accounting and finance, leasing, real estate and marketing all works, so that the company he works for is making the right amount of money without being taken advantage of, its important that he knows how to speak articulately and have a technical and business background. If anyone was interested in this field some advice he gave was that they should take two majors in college, business in finance and construction/engineering so that they understand both sides.
Post 10: Hours...
I dont have my time sheet with me because I haven't gotten it back from Joel but if I were to estimate, I would say I have around maybe 45-48 hours. In order to make up the hours needed, I will need to stay an extra hour after my 7 hours are up. I will be unable to make up some hours during spring break because my mentor won't be avaliable.
Today I sat in the meeting with State Farm, this will probably be one of the last because everything is pretty much completed so there is no need for anyone to get together anymore. When we arrived back at the office I revised the notes I took and printed them out. For a short period of time, I was sending, scanning and printing various documents for Matt. After lunch, I did more reseach for my project on Clifbar. I really like their company and I am considering trying to intern for them next year. After doing that for a little while, my mentor and I walked to another building for a meeting for tenants for the building I was at last week. It was a long walk but I didn't mind, there were a lot of crazy people walking by but when I arrived, we sat down and got right down to the meeting. I spent the rest of my day here , & it was one of the most serious meetings that I've observed. They were more down to business and didnt make any jokes. In the meeting they were talking about a number of things such as design decisions, security issues, plans, and more. Although this meeting was more on the dry side, it was interesting to compare other projects.
Today I sat in the meeting with State Farm, this will probably be one of the last because everything is pretty much completed so there is no need for anyone to get together anymore. When we arrived back at the office I revised the notes I took and printed them out. For a short period of time, I was sending, scanning and printing various documents for Matt. After lunch, I did more reseach for my project on Clifbar. I really like their company and I am considering trying to intern for them next year. After doing that for a little while, my mentor and I walked to another building for a meeting for tenants for the building I was at last week. It was a long walk but I didn't mind, there were a lot of crazy people walking by but when I arrived, we sat down and got right down to the meeting. I spent the rest of my day here , & it was one of the most serious meetings that I've observed. They were more down to business and didnt make any jokes. In the meeting they were talking about a number of things such as design decisions, security issues, plans, and more. Although this meeting was more on the dry side, it was interesting to compare other projects.
Post 9: Project...
Today, I started my day off in the normal Wednesday morning meeting with State Farm going over any types of bulding changes, any types of issues and discussing what else needs to be done. Previously I was only observing the meeting but has just recently started helping my mentor take notes about what is being discussed in the meeting. We then went back to the Matt's office in San Francisco where I normally begin making revisions on the computer on the notes that were taken in the meeting so that Matt is able to email them out to those who are involved with this project, but because the computer was down, I ran an errand for him, where I had to walk a couple blocks to deliver something. When I came back, I revised the notes. After I finished I was sent on errands to run for Jen & Matt, so i walked to a couple stores and picked up what they needed. When i came back, I went in the dessert drawer, got a snack and we left to go to another meeting at another building a couple blocks away, where I spent the rest of my day. There were subcontractors coming to the building and because Matt is the landlord of that space, he was there to answer questions and show it off.
My mentor and I already have my project planned out for the most part. My essential question will be "How does a company's culture reflect their work environment?" or something roughly around there. In order to answer this question I will study Clifbar, as far as their "misson" and what they do and compare it to what they are building at their headquarters. I chose Clifbar because they are a fun company and this is a fairly new project Ellis Partners is working on. I can study what types of things that will be going on as they are planning and building.
My mentor and I already have my project planned out for the most part. My essential question will be "How does a company's culture reflect their work environment?" or something roughly around there. In order to answer this question I will study Clifbar, as far as their "misson" and what they do and compare it to what they are building at their headquarters. I chose Clifbar because they are a fun company and this is a fairly new project Ellis Partners is working on. I can study what types of things that will be going on as they are planning and building.
Post 8: Analyzing my Workplace
My WLE office has about 15-16 people here. Although everyone has their own projects that they do, everyone is close and interacts with everyone. Ellis Partners interacts a lot with other companies, so it is interesting to compare. For example they are currently working with State Farm, whose company is much larger than Ellis Partners. When walking through their office, their environment gives off an uptight feel. Everyone is to themselves, quietly working in their cubicle. Whereas here, it feels much different. Although its a very proffesional workplace-people are still working in cubicles-but it's more open, everyone communicates and helps eachother along and probably have closer relationships with everyone. The offices inside the suite don't even have doors so people are always in and out of eachothers which means its not so closed off and to themselves. My WLE is probably different compared to those who are interning with bigger companies/businesses. I've met almost everyone and have talked with most them a couple of times. Other students with bigger businesses probably get a chance to meet more people but don't talk and know everyone the way I do.
As far as the "chain of command" goes, there are two big bosses here, so of course everyone is reporting to them first before they just do whatever they want. And then there are different people in charge of different areas of the company that others will report to in order to do what they need. My mentor really likes his bosses because although they're the "top dogs" of the company, they aren't the types to just order you around, they are willing to work with you and come off as being very likable people but are still about getting business taken care of.
I really like my work environment, I like feeling that I can be comfortable but not too relaxed here. I'm comfortable talking with the other people working here and being in the office.
As far as the "chain of command" goes, there are two big bosses here, so of course everyone is reporting to them first before they just do whatever they want. And then there are different people in charge of different areas of the company that others will report to in order to do what they need. My mentor really likes his bosses because although they're the "top dogs" of the company, they aren't the types to just order you around, they are willing to work with you and come off as being very likable people but are still about getting business taken care of.
I really like my work environment, I like feeling that I can be comfortable but not too relaxed here. I'm comfortable talking with the other people working here and being in the office.
Post 7: Other Blogs
I looked at other people's blogs by random and chose Tera's, George's, Jaszi's, & Julie Grant's. I think Tera's was is one of the best because she's really descriptive and goes into detail with her writing which I think is something that would make my blogs better. It doesnt look like very many people are blogging regularly; the majority have the first two and then a few here and there. I'll probably help Melanie get on track to do her blog since she's really behind and have just recently started going to her WLE. From reading the blogs I looked at, I'd say we are all learning something but are all doing different things but because we arent there with those other people, its hard to say who is learning more than who. Some people might not be as descriptive with what theyre learning or doing at their WLE. I haven't been in here for the whole time we were supposed to have an internship but I'm not bored, I'm enjoying it and have been staying pretty busy and productive. This week, we walked to a new building that my mentor is managing for a couple of hours. He is in charge of remodeling it so that tenants will want to rent that space. We were in the beginning steps of the process and took note of what needs to be done to meet city expectations/code, what he wants to do to the space and other changes that need to be done.
Post 6: Grading Myself for WLE
Mastery of Knowledge: 4, I know what is expected of me and I know what needs to be done for example when we get to our meetings in the mornings, I jump right into what I need to do, which is taking pictures of the site and then when we get back to the office I continue on with doing whatever task I need to do, and whenever I have any questions or need any help, I know who I can go to.
Metacognition: I would also have to give myself a 4. Being an Impact student, makes it easy for me to reflect on myself and work. Every week, I try to assess how well I am doing my work, my productiveness and what I can do to improve.
College Work Habits: 4, So far, I have met at our meeting place early every week, with the exception of one because there was a problem with our communication for what the plans would be for that Wednesday. I have been able to complete all that is asked of me quickly but efficiently. I try to keep a positive attitude and remain as professional as possible.
Application of Knowledge: I apply what i have learned and know in order to do what I need with little to no
assistance therefore I think i deserve a 3.5-4.
Metacognition: I would also have to give myself a 4. Being an Impact student, makes it easy for me to reflect on myself and work. Every week, I try to assess how well I am doing my work, my productiveness and what I can do to improve.
College Work Habits: 4, So far, I have met at our meeting place early every week, with the exception of one because there was a problem with our communication for what the plans would be for that Wednesday. I have been able to complete all that is asked of me quickly but efficiently. I try to keep a positive attitude and remain as professional as possible.
Application of Knowledge: I apply what i have learned and know in order to do what I need with little to no
assistance therefore I think i deserve a 3.5-4.
Post 5: First Day
For this first day, none of the 21st century skills directly affect my internship here at Ellis Partners, because for the majority of the day, I have been observing meetings, although I can see where the majority of the skills would apply. Today, because it is my first day, I havent really learned any specific skills that I haven't had to do somewhere else, such as Impact, because I am still getting a feel of whats going on
. For example, in a classroom when there is a speaker I am normally attentive-watching, or listening to what they are teaching, explaining, ect and because of the meetings I have been sitting in, I have also had to practice being quiet and attentive. I can tell that this internship will give me a better idea of how to be proffesional because at school we have to act a certain way, but it is still different from the work world. At school, the only real time it is absolutely required to be proffesional-like is when we have exhibtions and this internship will give me more insight on what a more formal job is like.
My role as an intern is very different from being at school. I am a lot more quiet here than I am at school because of what I've been doing today. It has required me to take a step back from being very interactive in a group, and instead, watching and observing other groups, such as how business meetings go. I've noticed that there are different tones and moods of the meetings depending on the type of people there, as well as the topic. It is also different because at school it is much more relaxed, whereas here, it is more professional and there is a difference of a way to carry myself and act.
. For example, in a classroom when there is a speaker I am normally attentive-watching, or listening to what they are teaching, explaining, ect and because of the meetings I have been sitting in, I have also had to practice being quiet and attentive. I can tell that this internship will give me a better idea of how to be proffesional because at school we have to act a certain way, but it is still different from the work world. At school, the only real time it is absolutely required to be proffesional-like is when we have exhibtions and this internship will give me more insight on what a more formal job is like.
My role as an intern is very different from being at school. I am a lot more quiet here than I am at school because of what I've been doing today. It has required me to take a step back from being very interactive in a group, and instead, watching and observing other groups, such as how business meetings go. I've noticed that there are different tones and moods of the meetings depending on the type of people there, as well as the topic. It is also different because at school it is much more relaxed, whereas here, it is more professional and there is a difference of a way to carry myself and act.
Post 4: Interview
This Weds, I had an interview with Matt Wickens at 1pm. I spent the day getting ready, and then about an hour or so in his office interviewing with him, asking questions, going over what types of things I would be doing, etc. It was a pretty easy thing for me. I wasn't really nervous and felt really comfortable talking to him even though I had never met him before. It made me feel more confident that I will be able to do well at any other interview. By the end, he had let me know that he would like to start the internship next week, as long as his bosses allowed and that he would let me know later on this week.
Since I already knew about my interview with Matt, I didn't work or look for another one because I was feeling confident that'd I'd be able to get this one. The rest of the week, I will be making sure i know what time i will be meeting him or any other minor details. I don't think I'll be needing any extra help from here. This week I learned or got a better feel of how an interview goes, I already had an idea but going through something is always different from just hearing about it.
Since I already knew about my interview with Matt, I didn't work or look for another one because I was feeling confident that'd I'd be able to get this one. The rest of the week, I will be making sure i know what time i will be meeting him or any other minor details. I don't think I'll be needing any extra help from here. This week I learned or got a better feel of how an interview goes, I already had an idea but going through something is always different from just hearing about it.
Blog 3: Still Searching...
On January 27th, I still didnt have an internship, so that morning, I got up and checked my email. I looked at the connections Morgan sent me & looked up a few of the places online. Next, I sent an email to the director of Justice Now, which is an organization that helps women in prison. Later on that day, I recieved an email back from Jen's husband, Matt, who has a career in Architecture about meeting with him soon. I replied back by letting him know where it would be the easiest to meet him. Earlier in the week, I had sent him an email expressing my interest of interning with him. The rest of this previous week, I was just waiting for replies from emails or calls that I've placed.
Unfortunately, I still don't have an internship because the time that we were spending looking for an internship, I was looking in a field where I have to be 18 years or older, or have some type of college degree. I realized that I needed to start branching out, and look at other options of places to intern. I dont think that I'll really need too much additional help because I am close to having my internship with Matt. But I've learned that when looking for a job, don't stay in a narrow category. I have to be flexible with my options because you can't always have the one specific job you want & sometimes you have to work your way up to it.
Unfortunately, I still don't have an internship because the time that we were spending looking for an internship, I was looking in a field where I have to be 18 years or older, or have some type of college degree. I realized that I needed to start branching out, and look at other options of places to intern. I dont think that I'll really need too much additional help because I am close to having my internship with Matt. But I've learned that when looking for a job, don't stay in a narrow category. I have to be flexible with my options because you can't always have the one specific job you want & sometimes you have to work your way up to it.
How I plan to get my WLE:January 6th
I have been trying to get an internship that had to do with therapy or psychology. I was also looking into some type of fashion or style work.
I have tried contacting or have contacted many people while in Academic Seminar, I have been going online and looking at different companies or therapists that I am interested in possibly interning for. I also asked a family friend who is in the line of work that I would like to intern for. I haven't been having very good luck because everyone that I have contacted has either not responded or has said that they don't do internships. A couple of my contacts gave me ideas on where else I could try but I've either not found interest in that place, or they haven't responded as well. Since the job shadow day, Morgan has been working closely with me to help find me an internship. She helped me find a few that were interested but they ended up not working.
Wednesday, I was calling people/emailing constantly throughout my day and found a style consultant that really caught my interest. I am currently in contact her, and although I will not be interning with her, she is talking with people in her company to help get me the internship.
I will be working really hard to find a mentor ASAP. Morgan and I are currently working towards some type of intership with prison inmates. If that doesnt work out, I'll be trying to find more connections.
I have tried contacting or have contacted many people while in Academic Seminar, I have been going online and looking at different companies or therapists that I am interested in possibly interning for. I also asked a family friend who is in the line of work that I would like to intern for. I haven't been having very good luck because everyone that I have contacted has either not responded or has said that they don't do internships. A couple of my contacts gave me ideas on where else I could try but I've either not found interest in that place, or they haven't responded as well. Since the job shadow day, Morgan has been working closely with me to help find me an internship. She helped me find a few that were interested but they ended up not working.
Wednesday, I was calling people/emailing constantly throughout my day and found a style consultant that really caught my interest. I am currently in contact her, and although I will not be interning with her, she is talking with people in her company to help get me the internship.
I will be working really hard to find a mentor ASAP. Morgan and I are currently working towards some type of intership with prison inmates. If that doesnt work out, I'll be trying to find more connections.
