I have really found this IPP unit to be beneficial to myself in my search for employment. Not only am I more knowledgeable about where to look for employment, I feel I am able to promote myself successfully and in a more considered way.
From now on:
– I will continue with updating my social media platforms on a regular basis and ensure that everything is up to date and communicates information about myself that is relevant and that reflects myself in a professional light
– As well as keeping everything in terms of social media up-to-date, I need to ensure that I am using social media to my advantage and that if there is an opportunity to gain new skills such as courses, lectures or guest speakers, I need to be a part of this. I am already signed up to several websites that send out weekly and monthly updates, so, I need to be aware of the material they are sending out, as, quite often there are opportunities to attend events and seminars, and by attending these, I would not only be boosting my skills through learning, but I would also be benefiting myself in terms of networking and creating new and all important contacts in the industry. This is also about not closing doors to opportunities. I have always believed, and believe even more so now through experience, that if you say no to something, you will regret it and think ‘what if’, I will, with my new found skills, be more opportunistic and aim to go to anything and seek out whatever it is that will not only improve my career but that will also improve myself in both my professional and personal life
– I am going to continue with getting The Guardian and reading the media supplement as I have found this has been a valuable tool in using something that is not online all the time
– I will continue to read all of the online articles and magazines that I have been reading throughout this year
-I will maintain my blog so that I have a record of where I have looked/applied to/considered so that I can work on my reflective practice. Already when I am looking back at earlier blogs from the year, I can see how I have changed and how my knowledge has expanded and I can see how I have learned from mistakes. I think it is very important to be able to reflect on your own practice as well as on others, as, ultimately I am the one who is going to have to make the final decision in my career path, so I need to be secure in the knowledge that I have done everything in the way I have set out to in my plans
– I will use all of my research throughout this unit to so that my career plan is justified and makes sense and is appropriate to what I have explored, where I have been searching and is reflective of how much work I have put in. I feel that at this point, I am more perceptive of the skills I have and can use these and reflect upon them to ensure that wherever I am employed fits my skills and abilities
– I now need to ensure that my personal ‘brand‘ is clear and communicated in everything I do, whether this is my blog, my website, twitter, my business cards, portfolio or CV, it all needs to reflect my brand. That way, if it all fits into each other, I know that I have created a successful brand and one that can communicate with the audience. I would like my brand to be memorable, creative and to be able to show my interests and skills in communication and design
-I am now aware that there are a number of opportunities for me if my initial career plan of working for a magazine does not work out. I have found that opportunities lie in graduate trainee schemes, freelance work or working for another company that I had not thought about. All of these have been presented to me as I have been following my research plan for landing my dream job, and I now feel much more secure in the knowledge that if plan a does not work out initially, there are so many opportunities available to me that I do not need to feel that I have failed if my first option does not initial work out. Although, with that said, I will do everything in my power to make my career plan happen and I hope that my first option is the option that I will be able to work with
– In terms of finding employment in magazines, I need to start applying after the Easter break, as I will have my portfolio and CV ready. I think that applying in late April, into May will be the right time as I will be graduating at the end of June. I have a list of companies I will ring, another list that I will email, and I am aware of the ones that I need to apply to directly through their own online application processes. I will work my way through this process and ensure that I have applied to all of the relevant companies. I am sure that during the application process, as I aim to continue my research and reflection, that I will find other companies and jobs to add to the applications, and there is potential that, as the research is on-going, that I will find better opportunities than what I have found at present
rubyophelia 