Helpful Advice

Hey guys! As the semester comes to an end and summer gets closer and closer I've been thinking about the classes I have taken this past semester. Even though this business writing class has been one of my easier classes this semester, that does not have anything to do with the fact that it was one of my favorites as well. Being a business major I could relate to a lot of things we had to learn and accomplish in the class. Some advice I would give to future students would be while this class is easier I wouldn't wait to the last minute to get things done. My partner and I both had very hectic schedules and many of the time we would have to wait till Sunday to finish our work. Another piece of advice would be to read the chapters and use the outlines for memos or documents needed. The book can be very helpful and informative while not boring like most. I did not like the Second Life application only because it didn't work a lot of the time. I believe using a Instant Messenger would have been more efficient and reliable. If you have any questions about the course, Angie is very helpful and she is more than willing to go out of her way for you. Good Luck!

A Failure in Ethics

As I wrote last week, there are many times when an ethical issue will come up in your business life. In class this week we further discussed moments in time when ethical issues were acknowledged and not handled ethically. After discussing this, I decided to look further into it and find a time in recent years when someones life might have been put in danger because of someones unethical decision. It just so happened that while I was studying for a Law 322 test, I found a case in which Guidant Corporation didn't recall a heart defibrillator and put thousands of lives at risk. The malfunction in the device was discovered in 2002 but was not recalled until nearly 3 years later. The company's excuse for not recalling sooner was that the risk of removing the device was greater than the risk of malfunction. Not only did they wait 3 years to inform individuals of the malfunction, Guidant admitted to not believing the "modified" version from 2002 actually fixed the problem. This simply blew my mind, I do not understand how a company can knowingly harm innocent people because they think some risks outweigh other risks. The least they could have done was offer the knowledge to doctors and patients that it affected and allow them to make their own decision. The malfunctioning device resulted in at least 7 deaths. This may not seem important to many people, however I do believe the families that lost someone would greatly disagree.

The Truth in Business Ethics

The article in which we were asks to read and reflect on was very informative and held statistics that I never would have thought of before. Ethical lapses in the workplace can cause many problems on many levels. When a employer hires someone they do so on the basis that they believe the applicant is honest and trustworthy. Therefore, the employer believes that if their employee is faced with an issue they will do not only do what is right for the company but what is right in the eyes of society.

As I have been working since the age of 16 I have been faced with many ethical situations, whether it be myself in the situation or others. I definitely agree with the fact that it can cause "dissonance and distraction" in the workplace. There have been times where I have been put in situations that looking in retrospect I believe I could and should have handled differently. However, having said that I also try to keep in mind that you can only learn and mature from your mistakes and that is what I am going to continue to do.

Web, Paper, Scissors

The difference between writing on the Web and writing on paper today has changed dramatically compared to that of 20 years ago. The primary difference I feel like in writing on the Web is the fact that we have gotten in such a hurry that Web writing is not quite as formal. As our technology has advanced over the years we have gotten to the point that sending a letter through the mail is almost nonexistent. We rely almost solely on the speed of our internet and I don't think I could comprehend spending a week to send a letter back and forth compared to e-mailing a letter where it takes mere seconds. Now comparing this to 20 years ago writing on the internet was not nearly as popular. Not many people had computers, much less the internet so writing on paper was more efficient so that it complied with everyone, not just the few people that were fortunate enough to have the internet.

Now even though paper and internet writing seem dramatically different I also believe they have a lot of things in common. They both reach out to a specific audience and require research to back up ideas. Another similarity is the fact that writing on both paper and the Web is they both require the critical thinking involved in any type of writing.

As I stated earlier, we have gotten in such a hurry in today's society that we tent to shorten things and have certain abbreviations for certain words. One of the most important things I believe when transferring from paper to the Web is to understand and acknowledge that not everyone is aware of these short cuts in writing.

Spring Break and Summer Plans

So this was the first week back after Spring Break and I'm not going to lie, I would have much rather been back in Charleston by the Beach. Even though it was far too cold to lay on the beach it was better than being at the library (Where I happen to be right now actually). After deliberating many summer options I've finally decided that I will be moving down to Charleston with two very good friends. Since I have always wanted to own my own restaurant I want to get a job at a nice restaurant downtown, which I hope won't be too hard with my experience and the fact that summer in a beach town will be the busiest time of the year. The living arrangement is posing to be a small problem. We first found a house to sublease for pretty good rent but my friends mother didn't believe the neighborhood to be safe. Then the other apartment we had lined up does not allow pets. So wish us luck and be very jealous because while some of you will be doing work and school over the summer, I will be at the beach! :)

The worth of a lie

This week we were asked to read and reflect on an article written about people who choose to lie on their resume. I believe that most people think that there is no harm in a little white lie or boost on their resume, but if people would take into consideration how they would feel in the same situation then people would be less likely to lie. Honesty is one of the most important qualities a person can possess and it would be better to get the job truthfully then under false pretenses. This explains why Mary was fired because even though she did her job successfully she received the job by lying and her employer could no longer trust her. Trust is something that shouldn't be taken lightly and once it is taken away it is very hard to get back. Now Mary has to try and find a new job without a reference from her job that she has been doing for the past two years of her life. So people need to understand the importance of being truthful because honesty is far more crucial to an employer than a better resume.

Interviews and Company

This week in SL I interviewed for a dream job of mine, Marketing Adviser for a music company. When I was answering interview questions I tried to keep in mind how I would answer a question if I were face to face with my potential employer. I tried to incorporate my past work experience and show the potential employer what type of employee I would be. Hopefully showing them that I would be a great addition to their company.

My group chose a clothing company to create and market. We met in Second Life and figured out a lot of the basic things we want our company to include. We realized that we want to start out small and with time expand. We would like to start out with womens clothing, targeting the college age, which would be from about 18 to 25. The type of clothing we are going to provide are going out tops, pants and dresses. Being college students ourselves we realized that the clothing will need to be more affordable but still dressy enough to go out on the town in.