Self- Evaluation

I have used critical thinking in situations involving how to treat a customer. I wasn't exactly sure how to speak with another person casually without being a bother or asking too many questions. Trying to figure out how to schedule her clients was a bit difficult because some people had different labels and types of treatment they wanted. I had to use my best judgement and put them in her schedule into the order I think would be best fit for my mentor. I did get to communicate with my mentor and her clients. I would ask if I was uncertain about certain parts of marketing or how her clients have been in a professional manner. She would respond to me with patience and there was no problem speaking with her. When I was given paperwork to do, I tried find many ways to finish my task as quick and correctly as possible.

Personally, I have gained a lot from the Capstone Project. I've learned how to be more patient when dealing with other people. The Capstone Project taught me to be more organized. It showed me how organization played a big role in a business. I'm more understanding to how to deal with customers. I have also become less afraid to speak with other people. My voice speaks a bit more naturally than it used to. I feel like I can speak more with people rather than just ask questions. In the area of marketing, I have gained a lot of knowledge from my mentor. I've learned a few different types of marketing. My mentor also introduced me to the jobs that help a business start.

During the project, I have faced many challenges. It started form when I met my mentor, to learning about marketing, and then dealing with customers. I'm a shy person and when it comes to meeting people I'm not the most confident. My mentor was friendly and welcoming so I'm happy I got her as my mentor. I learned not to be so afraid of meeting people. Learning about marketing with her wasn't so easy because she could explain things a lot in a short amount of time. I had to go back to things she already explained and ask questions about it. I felt very rude but she was glad to help me learn how the different types of marketing. Dealing with customers wasn't the same as dealing with my mentor. Her clients were all different in their own way. Some were friendly, and some would look like they have so much on their mind. I had to speak with them in a professional voice through phone or in person. I learned not to be asking too many questions, be welcoming, and answer any questions they might have.

March 13, 2013

Today I met up with my mentor for 2 hours. I've completed the minimum of 25 hours. This meeting was to review my customer service skills. Basically all I had to do was answer her work phone and speak with the customers with kindness. I may visit more often since she is okay with me visiting every now and then.

March 8, 2013

I met with my mentor on tuesday the 5th for about 2 hours. That makes up a total of 23 hours. She taught me about how she made her T-shirts. She told me about the screen printers in the local area being a rip off and everything. She explained to me how you can get places out of the United States for cheaper prints. She didn't get very far into showing me how she makes her designs. The next time we meet will probably be March 11.

February 28, 2013

I still have the same amount of hours as before which I think is 21. The plan she had for meis still the same. She will have me research some products and designs that she wants for her business.  The next time we meet had changed which is after March 4th.

February 22

I still have the same amount of hours since last week which I think is about 20. My mentor will be out for the next couple of weeks so I wont be able to do my hours. On march 4th is when she returns and she will have me do some research on products.

February 14,2013

I got a total of 4 hours yesterday. That means I got about 20 hours in total. What we went over was her website. She explained how important it was to explain her business on the site. Another reason that she has the website is to look more professional. She wants people to know about her story and her business. She also mentions how it can make it easier to show your preferences with customers. The way her website is shown makes her look neat and organized. It also gives potential new customers a way to see how to make appointments or see her rates. The next time I plan to see my mentor is next Monday.

February 4, 2013

So far I have 16 hours completed with my mentor. I got two hours done yesterday. Something we went over was starting a business. I think this is the second time she mentioned it to me that you have to lose money in order to gain money. I asked her about why she chose the location that she currently has. Her response was t hat it was cheap and available. She mentioned how her lease is about to expire and that she has to find a new place to run her business. She's been looking around with her partner to see if they can find a new place to run the business. What I learned from what I'm about to explain next is that people can be really unfair about paying rent. She talked to the person about running her business there and was going to be charged a high price in rent. The difference in rent was that the other businesses around had to pay an extremely smaller portion compared to what my mentor was offered. What also makes this unfair is that the place she's trying to claim is a lot smaller than all of the other places. She did mention paying for utilities was fine with her. She found out all of this because the man she was trying to get the palce from had a chart of who's paying what. The next time we meet will be next week.

January 30, 2013

I did another 3 hours with my mentor. The lesson that was most important was about the way to treat your customers. I've observed her closely and watched how she made a nice casual conversation with her customers. Everything stays professional and upbeat. She even helped out the customers with their schedules. I thought it all went well. The next time we will probably meet would be next week. Her hours might be earlier so that might be more convenient for me.

January 28, 2013

The time I spent being mentored was 3 hours. The most important lesson that keeps popping up whether I'm in school, outside, or at my mentors work, it would be time management. She explained to me how she needed to go all the way from San Francisco to San Bruno. Its crucial not knowing about all the bart times for her to get to work for her appointments.I feel as if time management while doing this project makes using my time properly more difficult to handle. The next I will meet with my mentor is probably be on Wednesday January 30.

January 24, 2013

Yesterday I visited my mentor for 3 hours. She started off telling me about her experiences in marketing. Before her business, she used to go to San Francisco with a team of people to pass out cards. Another thing I think she mentioned was her friend putting her on something called SCO. It helped her gain customers. She also uses Yelp to attract more customers. So far I think there are nine reviews. Another thing she mentioned about starting up her business was all the paperwork. She had to fill out a bunch of documents and receive a permit. I plan to meet up with her next week or possibly today.

January 16, 2013

I went to visit my mentor again and got two more hours finished. This time, she explained how she had to report her taxes. What she had me do was help her organize by writing down appointments with her clients. The month I started from was early May. It took a long time to get up to the month of August. The next time I will meet with her will probably be next week if not today. My mentor puts on a very proffesional voice when she works with her customers. Her customers are always happy with the service.

On Tuesday I finally met my mentor and we discussed our schedules so we could fit time in hers so she could teach me. That took about an hour to go over. The following day I decided to visit. We got two hours finished. She started by introducing her business and how it works. With the competition around she sets a more fair price than other local businesses similar to hers. She also explained how taking advantage of the Internet helped her gain customers. Her business started with as little as 15 clients. She let me do some computer and paper filing. Her clients increased at least three times more than she used to have. Another thing she did was explained types of businesses. She compared businesses from retail, to customer service, and restaurants. I picked up little by little and everything is going smooth so far. The times we're allowed to meet for her to mentor me are Mondays through Thursdays around seven o clock. I'm not completely sure about meeting on weekends.

Fiscal Cliff Response

A) Republicans proposed a plan to avoid the fiscal cliff but the democrats are denying it. The president wants to work with the Republicans when they can agree on something. Republicans seem as if they're more willing to compromise with the Democrats than the Democrats would with them. The two parties can't seem to agree because there are some things Democrats want to keep that Republicans want to change.

B)I searched for my answers by typing in the key words of what I'm looking for. I typed in Republican's position on fiscal cliff 2012. Next, I typed Democrats position on fiscal cliff 2012. I looked for well known news companies and newspapers. None of the information I came accross seemed biased.

C)http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/03/politics/fiscal-cliff/index.html
http://www.cnn.com/2012/11/28/politics/fiscal-cliff/index.html
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/11/11/democrats-republicans-seem-more-ready-to-compromise-on-deficit-deal/
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-pn-fiscal-cliff-20121230,0,5362515.story