I've just finalised my arrangements for accomodation for my year in London. I found a place in Haringey district and I've signed the contract, paid the deposit and first installment of rent. I'm so glad that the search is over, a - because it's getting quite close to the start of my course ( first orientation session is 26th of September) and b - it removes the need to look for a room. It has been a pretty easy find actually. I didn't have to put much work into it beyond posting an online ad about who I was and what I wanted then sifting through the automated emails I received from the site. It wasn't too dissimilar to the search for accomodation I did with my girlfriend to find a house for our third year accommodation in York. Though then we posted ads and also looked for ourselves. I was confident the same approach could be applied to London which would have more house shares so I used it.
The people I'll be living with seem to be friendly and my main point of contact, Jose, has been really helpful in ensuring that he and I and the agency who handles the property are on the same page. The house, as I've said in previous posts, is great for my needs and the fact that my housemates are all workers who care for their house means that I should have a nice place to live and won't be plagued by mouldy plates like I have in previous student houses I've lived in.
I'm looking forward to living in London and studying engineering. I'm feeling positive about my choice to specialise in engineering and look to work as a chemical engineer with a view to gaining chartered status. The house I'll be living in should provide favourable conditions and help me achieve my potential.
Monday, 12 September 2011
Kitzbuhel
Hi guys, its been a while. I recently returned from my holiday to Austria. My girlfriend, myself and her parents went on a walking holiday to a little place called Kitzbuhel in the low mountains. It's a small town, very picturesque and quaint. The still employ a lot of the traditional dress and music and it seems that it's what they do rather than a show for paying tourists. It was a great visit and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Pictures to follow.
Thursday, 18 August 2011
Jobs
My girlfriend recently got a job. I'm really excited for her. It's a fantastic opportunity and I'm pleased she got one so soon after graduating university. It's a 6 month placement to cover some maternity leave. The most important part of the position is that it is a true graduate position with the potential to relocate within the company after the 6 month placement has been completed.
It's great that she has a job and it's already boosting her confidence and self-esteem. Even if there is no possibility to relocate, the experience that she's gaining on the job is a sure fire help in further applications to other jobs.
It's one thing to get a job. It's another to use it to your advantage and get everything you can out of it which isn't money. An important thing to consider when in a job is the ease with which you can try your hand at all parts of the job. If you can get involved in all parts of your job and gain experience and knowledge of many areas, it instantly increases your appeal when applying for other jobs. Showing you can adapt and learn many things by demonstrating that you've done it in the past is a great sign to encourage employers to hire you because that's what they're looking for. Obviously, different positions need different specific skills but there are transferrable skills which are common to many jobs.
Bearing this in mind, good luck with seeking employment and getting the job that's right for you.
It's great that she has a job and it's already boosting her confidence and self-esteem. Even if there is no possibility to relocate, the experience that she's gaining on the job is a sure fire help in further applications to other jobs.
It's one thing to get a job. It's another to use it to your advantage and get everything you can out of it which isn't money. An important thing to consider when in a job is the ease with which you can try your hand at all parts of the job. If you can get involved in all parts of your job and gain experience and knowledge of many areas, it instantly increases your appeal when applying for other jobs. Showing you can adapt and learn many things by demonstrating that you've done it in the past is a great sign to encourage employers to hire you because that's what they're looking for. Obviously, different positions need different specific skills but there are transferrable skills which are common to many jobs.
Bearing this in mind, good luck with seeking employment and getting the job that's right for you.
Sunday, 14 August 2011
Reading
I took the train down to see my girlfriend and stay with her before we go on holiday to Austria. I find that normally the train ride is quite difficult because you're essentially sitting there and waiting till you arrive. Even with a magazine or a newspaper, it's tedious. I had decided to buy a magazine for the train in the hope of occupying my mind for at least some of the journey. On this occasion however, I passed a discount book store (The Works) and picked up a new copy of Bret Easton Ellis' outspoken 'American Psycho' for £1.99. I thought that this was amazing value considering Amazon don't do as good deals as they used to on even used books as the minimum delivery cost is £2.80 now (14/08/11). This was part of a 3 for £5 deal on books and fiction works.
I started reading from the moment I got on my first train (it's a long journey) and I started to appreaciate the appeal of reading a book over say, a newspaper or a magazine. With a newspaper, one skims the text and can't really get involved unless the subject matter is particularly cultured or concerned with some gripping theme. With a book, the mind is constantly building the environment described in the book and working hard to mould freeform thoughts into a coherent scene. This mental activity pulls you in and immerses you in the book. It is this drawing the reader into the book that makes time fly by. I tend to block out the environment around me when I read as I focus so heavily on the book and what's going on in the story. This makes for some telling offs when the missus tries to talk to me whilst I read. But this induced ignorance is exactly what is required for travelling because then one doesn't notice the other people on the train or the time. This is what makes reading books such a good use of one's time whilst travelling. The pages turn, the mind races and time rushes on. Before you know it, you're at the terminus of your journey and a large portion of your book is read. I'll certainly be reading a book on my return journey.
I started reading from the moment I got on my first train (it's a long journey) and I started to appreaciate the appeal of reading a book over say, a newspaper or a magazine. With a newspaper, one skims the text and can't really get involved unless the subject matter is particularly cultured or concerned with some gripping theme. With a book, the mind is constantly building the environment described in the book and working hard to mould freeform thoughts into a coherent scene. This mental activity pulls you in and immerses you in the book. It is this drawing the reader into the book that makes time fly by. I tend to block out the environment around me when I read as I focus so heavily on the book and what's going on in the story. This makes for some telling offs when the missus tries to talk to me whilst I read. But this induced ignorance is exactly what is required for travelling because then one doesn't notice the other people on the train or the time. This is what makes reading books such a good use of one's time whilst travelling. The pages turn, the mind races and time rushes on. Before you know it, you're at the terminus of your journey and a large portion of your book is read. I'll certainly be reading a book on my return journey.
Friday, 12 August 2011
Ladybirds
In recent weeks, there's been an invasion / massive increase in numbers of ladybirds in my area. They are everywhere, probably due to it being breeding season or something like that. They're all over the ground, walls, fences and they seem to like travelling by bus too as they're all over the inside of the local public transport, calmly walking along.
A funny thing happened the other day when I visited some friends in Hull. I was travelling on the Humber Flyer, a bus which links Grimsby and Hull. A ladybird was mooching about on the sill of the bus window and it crawled onto the woman sitting next to me. She thought nothing of it and blew the creature off her hand. The ladybird came back. She placed the insect further away on the other side of the window sill. The bug returned. The lady continued to remove the bug from herself and it kept coming back (perhaps the ladybird liked her hairspray or perfume? ). This continued for a good third of the bus journey and it ended with the woman alighting from the bus after cursing the ladybird for coming back repeatedly. It was the funniest scene I've witnessed in a long time.
A funny thing happened the other day when I visited some friends in Hull. I was travelling on the Humber Flyer, a bus which links Grimsby and Hull. A ladybird was mooching about on the sill of the bus window and it crawled onto the woman sitting next to me. She thought nothing of it and blew the creature off her hand. The ladybird came back. She placed the insect further away on the other side of the window sill. The bug returned. The lady continued to remove the bug from herself and it kept coming back (perhaps the ladybird liked her hairspray or perfume? ). This continued for a good third of the bus journey and it ended with the woman alighting from the bus after cursing the ladybird for coming back repeatedly. It was the funniest scene I've witnessed in a long time.
Thursday, 11 August 2011
Update your CV, Update your life
In today's labour market, it's increasingly difficult to get a job. There are many different people and blogs out there who will tell you that it's all about what you did on your gap year and how your handshake is perceived but this isn't the case. The big thing that will make you stand out from your rivals in the tussle for your dream job is your CV.
Looks are everything, on your CV anyways
Boring as it may sound, your CV is the document that all employers want to see and the interesting ones which make the cut will land the job. Employers see your CV before you so make your CV look as good as you do and this will go a long way with prospective employers. To ensure that yours stands out, you need to cover the following topics to ensure you've got it all.
Content
First and foremost, you need content. That means being thorough and yet concise because a 3-page CV will not get a look in, despite what you've written about this award or the amount of trophies you've won for your golfing talents. Aim for about 2 pages maximum. Giving a one page CV may be dangerous as there's a risk you don't communicate all you need to to show you're the right person for the job. To ensure that you're that right person, you need to show your relevance to the position and why you'd fit right in. You need to relate specific bits of what you've done in your education and experience to what they want in a prospective employee. You need to relate skills to requisites. Remember "skills for kills", get the skills covered and you'll knock 'em dead in the preliminary stages. Keep it relevant too; employers will want to hear about your recreational activities but don't go into too much depth. The main thing your CV needs to show is your enthusiasm and drive for what you do in all areas of your life.
Layout
A good layout is key to producing a great CV. A general note is to put the more professional components of what makes the worker you up the top of the sheet and the more informal stuff like what you enjoy doing at the bottom. There are many ways to layout the various parts of your CV and a more modern trend is to tie some of them together into a short, cogent personal statement-esque piece of writing at the top of your resume. This gives the reader a bit of context and a more holistic view when thinking about you as a potential candidate for the job. This could be useful in establishing a good image in the employer's mind and could give you the edge.
Another good pointer is to put your motivations or career objectives at the top to show the employer why you want the job in respect of the big picture you have in your mind. It lets the interviewer know where you're coming from and where you want to go and shows how you fit into the job.
Font
A simple but salient point. Comic sans won't cut it; it never has and it never will. Try something more professional like Verdana or Arial. This allows you to show your professional side and matches the font and your CV fodder with with the position you're fighting for.
With all that said and done, try these tips and see what works for you. It's also worth giving Google a go and looking for some professional templates but take them with a pinch of salt. Anything too stylised will be bad for business and you'll struggle with credibility.
Looks are everything, on your CV anyways
Boring as it may sound, your CV is the document that all employers want to see and the interesting ones which make the cut will land the job. Employers see your CV before you so make your CV look as good as you do and this will go a long way with prospective employers. To ensure that yours stands out, you need to cover the following topics to ensure you've got it all.
Content
First and foremost, you need content. That means being thorough and yet concise because a 3-page CV will not get a look in, despite what you've written about this award or the amount of trophies you've won for your golfing talents. Aim for about 2 pages maximum. Giving a one page CV may be dangerous as there's a risk you don't communicate all you need to to show you're the right person for the job. To ensure that you're that right person, you need to show your relevance to the position and why you'd fit right in. You need to relate specific bits of what you've done in your education and experience to what they want in a prospective employee. You need to relate skills to requisites. Remember "skills for kills", get the skills covered and you'll knock 'em dead in the preliminary stages. Keep it relevant too; employers will want to hear about your recreational activities but don't go into too much depth. The main thing your CV needs to show is your enthusiasm and drive for what you do in all areas of your life.
Layout
A good layout is key to producing a great CV. A general note is to put the more professional components of what makes the worker you up the top of the sheet and the more informal stuff like what you enjoy doing at the bottom. There are many ways to layout the various parts of your CV and a more modern trend is to tie some of them together into a short, cogent personal statement-esque piece of writing at the top of your resume. This gives the reader a bit of context and a more holistic view when thinking about you as a potential candidate for the job. This could be useful in establishing a good image in the employer's mind and could give you the edge.
Another good pointer is to put your motivations or career objectives at the top to show the employer why you want the job in respect of the big picture you have in your mind. It lets the interviewer know where you're coming from and where you want to go and shows how you fit into the job.
Font
A simple but salient point. Comic sans won't cut it; it never has and it never will. Try something more professional like Verdana or Arial. This allows you to show your professional side and matches the font and your CV fodder with with the position you're fighting for.
With all that said and done, try these tips and see what works for you. It's also worth giving Google a go and looking for some professional templates but take them with a pinch of salt. Anything too stylised will be bad for business and you'll struggle with credibility.
Packing
I'm due to go on holiday soon and stay with my girlfriend for a bit. I'm currently in the process of packing. And the start of a successful bout of suitcase packing is a good, thorough list. A list directs tour thinking toward what you'll need and what you can get away with leaving behind. It also gives you a handy roadmap which allows you to see where you are relative to starting and how much more you have left to do.
At the moment, I'm half way through my packing and am currently rounding up some shirts to wear in Austria. The list is a great tool for me because it puts my mind at ease to see things ticked off a list and it lets me forget about packing and enjoy my holiday.
I'm about halfway though but it doesn't take me long to quickly pack. At the most, it would take me about 45 minutes to pack everything I'll need. My girlfriend will easily take 5 times that and will pack then unpack several times. At the very most, it's taken her 2 days to pack a suitcase to travel. This can be frustrating when she's buzzing around but I just sit back and relax and bat down questions about my packing because my list is complete and all items accounted for and successfully packed.
At the moment, I'm half way through my packing and am currently rounding up some shirts to wear in Austria. The list is a great tool for me because it puts my mind at ease to see things ticked off a list and it lets me forget about packing and enjoy my holiday.
I'm about halfway though but it doesn't take me long to quickly pack. At the most, it would take me about 45 minutes to pack everything I'll need. My girlfriend will easily take 5 times that and will pack then unpack several times. At the very most, it's taken her 2 days to pack a suitcase to travel. This can be frustrating when she's buzzing around but I just sit back and relax and bat down questions about my packing because my list is complete and all items accounted for and successfully packed.
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