This was my second year at UC, and what an exciting one it was. By and large, the biggest event of this year for me was going on my first co-op. Although I have held a job before, it was not in an office or corporate environment, which meant that moving into the professional workplace was a big change for me. It helped me learn new technical skills, gave me an idea of what to expect when fully employed in my field, and helped me to learn how to interact with coworkers in a professional environment. Prior to co-op, I had only working in a small factory setting, meaning that the change of environment, and the change to a large, bureaucratic structure were completely new to me. I think that it was this part of the experience that was the most influential on me. The new workplace culture was something that although it took some time to get used to, I very much enjoyed it. I had been concerned that I would simply be another nameless cog in the system of the company, but my interactions with my coworkers proved me thankfully wrong. Finding friendship with my coworkers, both fellow co-op students and full time employees, was easily one of the best parts of this year for me. It allowed me to change the dreary picture of corporate America that I had previously held, and see my future job as something that I’m going to be able to enjoy far more than I thought I would. While I very much enjoy the field that I’m entering, even the things that we enjoy can begin to wear on us under poor circumstances, and realizing firsthand that being employed was as much about interacting with the people around you as it was being able to technically do the work was a big relief to me. I know that I don’t just have to be a faceless cog in whatever company I end up at, and that working in a professional environment doesn’t always have to be as serious as the media makes it out to be. Along with learning about how to interact with my coworkers, the friendships and professional relationships that I developed as a result of that learning are ones that I hope to keep foster as I continue to grow in my next semester of co-op there.
Moving in to my next year at UC, the biggest advice that I want to give myself is to remember to keep a positive attitude. I think that too often I let myself sink into a spiral of negative thoughts about work or school, and I feel like this year I’ve learned that its simply not worth it to fixate on the things that cause those thoughts like I have in the past. Although they may be important, fixating on them and letting a negative event or worry consume you will never be productive. Moving from that, I think I’ve become less directly focused on my own success. Rather, I’ve become focused on being happy with where I am, and what I’m doing, and then I let my success follow as a result of that satisfaction and happiness. I think this is something that will help me find out where I really want to be, and give me a new way to guide myself in the coming year. Building off of this, my goal for the upcoming year is to come out of it as satisfied with it as I am with this year. I want to continue volunteering through the Cincinnati Computer Cooperative. I want to continue taking care of stressful events when they are ripe to be finished, instead of letting them sour and become a problem. I want to continue to succeed in the workplace through teamwork. I want to continue to push myself to succeed. In sum, I simply want to continue to be content and happy here at UC.
Moving in to my next year at UC, the biggest advice that I want to give myself is to remember to keep a positive attitude. I think that too often I let myself sink into a spiral of negative thoughts about work or school, and I feel like this year I’ve learned that its simply not worth it to fixate on the things that cause those thoughts like I have in the past. Although they may be important, fixating on them and letting a negative event or worry consume you will never be productive. Moving from that, I think I’ve become less directly focused on my own success. Rather, I’ve become focused on being happy with where I am, and what I’m doing, and then I let my success follow as a result of that satisfaction and happiness. I think this is something that will help me find out where I really want to be, and give me a new way to guide myself in the coming year. Building off of this, my goal for the upcoming year is to come out of it as satisfied with it as I am with this year. I want to continue volunteering through the Cincinnati Computer Cooperative. I want to continue taking care of stressful events when they are ripe to be finished, instead of letting them sour and become a problem. I want to continue to succeed in the workplace through teamwork. I want to continue to push myself to succeed. In sum, I simply want to continue to be content and happy here at UC.