LC 18 (Fall 2011)

I went to a workshop about how to act in the interview.  They also told us what to wear and what to do and not to do in the interview. They also gave helpful tips of what to say when the interviewer asks you a question you are not ready for. The most interesting part of the interview activity was the question Tell me about yourself? It is such a simple question but so hard to answer.

Almost every monologue was a depressing story. One after the other was about someone hating their life. I also didn’t like it because they didn’t say David’s monologue. I guess I’m never going to hear it.

The Rubin Museum was a great experience. It was very interesting. The activity that was done was great and I really enjoyed it. The most interesting part of the museum is the meditating room. It was so quiet and the atmosphere made you calm.

Baruch voices was pretty good.  Some monologues were funny and some were sad.  The first time I went to voices was during convocation day, and I didn’t really find it interesting. I guess because this time the monologues were written by our classmates.  I could even connect to some of the monologues, especially the one with the chicken nugget one which was the funniest one. There were a few which were really depressing and sad, and I heard people crying. The actress even cried herself which shows how much emotions the monologue had. It was very nice to hear about the stories of my fellow classmates. I enjoyed it a lot.

On Monday, November 21, I went to the workshop for resumes. I knew the very basics of writing a resume, since I have never written one before, so I learned a few things at this workshop. I learned about the 2 types of resume: Chronological and Functional. A chronological resume lists all the extracurricular activities/jobs the person have done or have had, while a functional resume just lists the activities/jobs that is relevant to the position he/she is trying to apply for.  In a functional resume, it’s important to demonstrate that you have produced results in what you have done. Each description about the activity or job should start with a power verb. The font should be no smaller than 10 point and it’s okay to make the font bigger if you don’t have much on your resume. These are some of the things I learned. The instructor for the workshop also gave us a site that can help us with the resume-making process: baruch.optimalresume.com

I enjoyed the performance! Although none of the monologues from our LC were presented, most of the monologues were pretty interesting. A lot of the monologues were really emotional! At times, I felt awkward listening to it or looking at the presenters 🙁 especially that girl who cried in every single monologue she read. She made me feel super uncomfortable! From the monologues presented, I could tell that many people found that it was a good way to express what they were feeling without being judged by it. I respect people who are able to dig deep into themselves and share the things that many people would rather not share. Overall, it was really good! I was really hungry during the performance though 🙁

Today we went to see the Baruch Voices performance. It was… interesting and… sad. T__T The monologues ranged from funny and just scratching the surface of who the individuals were to something deep and personal. There were many monologues about cancer… this made me more aware of how much the disease affected people everyday. The one that stood out among the other cancer-related monologues was the one about leukemia and how Amanda gave up her chance to survive so her friend, the writer, can continue living.

At this event, I found out how much some fellow members of the Class of ’15 have been through. This remind me of how I complain about my life, but it’s nothing compared to how much others have been through. I also thought it was amazing how someone can craft a whole monologue on the topic of chicken nuggets! One thing I did not like all that much was one of the performers’ acting. I mean they were all skilled at conveying the emotions through their voices and everything, but I thought one of the female actors overacted/was too dramatic. Overall, I thought the performance was pretty good, although I didn’t like how it left us on a somewhat depressing note .__.

On Tuesday 11/15, I attended my 2nd workshop: Small Talk I: It’s a Big Deal. During this workshop, we talked about how to start a small talk with other people, such as possible employers and other important individuals. The advisor taught us how to start conversations with open ended questions and closed ended questions. I also learned small details that I didn’t notice before such as how body language can greatly make someone else aware of what we’re thinking. For example, if I avoid eye contact and talk unenthusiastically, the other person can get the impression that I am not interested in pursuing a conversation with them. I also learned that showing interest even though I am not necessarily interested in the topic we’re talking about, such as sports, is something that is beneficial. The advisor also taught us some of the media topics that we should take time to learn about because those topics are the ones many potential employers spend time discussing. I thought that I would have to have intellectual conversations with potential employers, but this is not necessarily the case. Most people have more discussions on social topics, rather than topics that are associated with the area of the business itself. Interviews are a major process is getting a job or an internship, so learning how to have small talks with people of all ages and backgrounds is an important skill that we should all take time to learn. Like my advisor repeated many times during the workshop, “small talk is a form of art which one can perfect after a lot of practicing!” After this workshop, I realized the importance of being able to start and maintain small conversations with other people.

The museum was quite interesting, although our visit was pretty quick. We were given some brief history about it and I thought that it was interesting how the museum itself used to be a tenement house, and how the stairs used to be part of that. Overall I enjoyed visiting the Rubin and thought that it was informative.

I found the museum quite interesting because I’ve been fascinated with Buddhism for a while now; I like the idea of leaving your worries behind and just taking a moment to just be in touch with nature and your own mind. I even kept one of the little pamphlets that explained the different symbols in people and poses in the artwork to decorate my room. The other thing I found cool was the fact that the museum used to be a tenement. I visited the tenement museum a couple years back and to think that of the big transformation (appropriation) of the building was interesting.