Overcoming Group Project Struggles

In my last 8 semesters at Purdue, I have had my fair share of group projects, especially in my last 4 semesters as a Liberal Arts student studying Public Relations. Generally, group projects, for me, tend to be fairly short-term and mainly take place during scheduled class time. However, I have recently encountered two semester-long group projects that have presented issues I had never experienced before.

As an extroverted person and someone who typically takes the leadership role in projects or organizations, I sometimes struggle with out to deal with group members who do not present high quality work. This was my experience with a recent semester-long project; I did not know how to approach a group member who was not presenting work at the same level as other group members.

As I wondered what to do about the situation, I considered the needs of my group and the importance of respecting all group members. I remembered something that one of my mentors had once suggested to me about group work. She suggested that I take into consideration the strengths of each member, no matter what the strength. I decided to give this a shot and it ended up resulting in a great change of direction for my group. All group members felt at ease when we identified each of our strengths to create different assignments within the project and felt we now had a way to each equally contribute to the project.

It is important to keep in mind in the classroom, in an internship, or in a co-rep position the value of asking group members and partners what they believe their own strengths are. I have learned that this is an excellent way of delegating. Time after time, professors stress to us the importance of delegation, but sometimes that is hard to accept when you prefer to take the lead. However, learning to delegate turns out to make for an excellent leader, and is a piece of advice I would pass along to anyone.

Last Semester Senior

I began my last semester of college with a lack of motivation. Typically, the weekend before the semester starts I purchase school supplies, research the most cost-effective book rentals, and plan out every day in my agenda before classes even start. For my final semester at Purdue, and with a schedule of only twelve credit hours, I prepared by planning when the best time would be to fit my workouts in throughout the week and which books I want to take the time to read before graduation. Looking back to that time about one month ago, I know for certain that the security and comfort of already having a job lined up after graduation was largely contributing to my oddly unmotivated lifestyle.

I worked very hard these past three and a half years, and having a job lined up before even starting my final semester felt extremely rewarding. I knew I would pass my classes with ease, even if I was not trying my best, and I knew I had the opportunity to make the most of my social life. After a couple of weeks of feeling unsatisfied with completing the bare minimum to get by, I felt an emptiness. All at once, it seemed, I knew I had begun to start missing my busy schedules and hours of working on standout assignments.

It is so important to work hard during your last semester of college. While it is tempting to ignore academic responsibilities, it is also important to remember what got me the job that waits for you after graduation—hard work. Dedication and motivation sometimes lack when one notices a simpler, less stressful path to graduating, but with that path lacks rewards. With a new mindset, I decided to involve myself in an extra curricular public relations campaign a professor approached me about and focus on my internships while balancing time for friends. There is no reason to not leave this last semester without giving it my best.

Crossing It Off

Lists, lists, lists. You can probably already guess that I am a Type A personality. While I do not reflect a Type A personality in the organization (or lack of) in my apartment, my school work sure does. I am a person who thrives off of being busy, off of having a million things to do, and off of being constantly involved in anything I am a part of. If you have experienced a high level of satisfaction by crossing off each meeting you had on a Wednesday in your agenda, then you and I have a lot in common.

As the semester has just begun, so have I. I filled in all my test and homework assignments in my agenda. . . and in my phone calendar, as well as my laptop calendar (there’s the Type A in me). But this semester will be different, I am only taking twelve credit hours, one of which is an independent study requiring no actual classroom time, so my work load is a little less than average. Additionally, I am on “senior status” in my sorority, meaning I attend much fewer activities. This semester already is different, and I think I will be okay.

As a last-semester senior, I have new things to add to a list, including price checking and comparing apartments in all the major cities open to relocation for my job post graduation. This transition will be a new turn in my career path, and I am certain many other seniors can agree. While we have been traveling along our career paths all along these past four years, we are entering into a new set of twists and turns. I, for one, am more excited for these next years than I could have ever imagined. I am already looking forward to crossing off items on a new type of list.

What I Know After the Interview

In a recent interview experience, I found myself more nervous than anticipated in the minutes before someone from HR came to escort me to the elevator. I surprised myself with the nerves that came over me; I was so prepared for the interview and I had felt calm and confident the entire month leading up to it. My resumes were freshly printed, my suit was crisp, and my morning drive to the location had gone smoothly. It was not until I took a seat in the lobby after checking in that all of what I felt confident about fled my body. The woman sitting next to me appeared to be here for the similar interview (I could tell when I glanced at her itinerary for the day). It was not that we were sitting close to one another that caused the nerves to kick in, rather it was the fact that I “sized” myself up against her. With seven minutes until I was told an HR representative would come for me, I let myself become overwhelmed with an insecurity I did not know I had.

The woman sitting next to me for what I assumed to be the same job opportunity had a beautiful dress on with a matching coat, coffee in her hand, and portfolio on her lap. She appeared to have everything together and stress-free. I immediately panicked, as I did not bring a portfolio with me and was jealous of her outfit that morning. Consequently, thoughts about how unqualified and unprepared I would appear to my interviewer entered my mind. The thoughts kept piling up in my mind until the woman said hi to me and asked if I was here for that particular position. In an instant, I came back down from my worries and felt a sense of relief. She and I then chatted about the position, how we had ended up there that day, and where each of us currently attended school. My confidence was restored.

When I look back on the morning of my interview and the doubts I encountered in the lobby, I know that my confidence about the interview and about myself never truly left me. I momentarily felt inadequate because I assumed someone else in the room was a better option before I even spoke with her and before either of us talked with an interviewer. As it turned out, the woman next to me in the lobby was applying for the same position, but had her own nerves about how the morning would go. This interview experience taught me never to doubt myself when I know how prepared, deserving, and qualified I am. With that said, after I eventually eased back into confidence and a representative escorted me up the elevator into a waiting room in the Human Resources department, I participated in a morning of successful interview sessions. At the end of the afternoon, I walked out the same lobby downstairs feeling even more confident than when I stepped in.

A Career Fair Reflection

As November approaches, you may feel like some of my peers and I feel: disappointed. If you are like us, we attended career fairs, we presented our perfectly crafted resumes, exchanged our business cards, and wore more days of business professional than we would have liked to our exams and club meetings to impress recruiters and companies at the fairs all to greet November jobless and let down. I encourage you to read on if you can relate.

One of my dearest friends and mentor is currently establishing her name in the world of public relations. I am beyond excited for her and she inspires me with her positive attitude and drive to be better. She thinks big, sets personal goals, offers me the best advice and, complemented with her positivity, knows how to make me feel better about the slow job hunt journey I am currently enduring. I remember her struggles as she worked to find her right fit when she was a senior at Purdue. She persevered and assures me that what is meant to be, will be. However, she and I view job-hunting similarly; job-hunting requires the hustle. She and I know that no matter how disappointed we may be about not getting a call back and not receiving a response to our follow up emails with recruiters, we must continue to push forward. We agree that keeping the goal of happiness and passion in mind will lead us to our own successes. Sure, our first job(s) may not be the job, but the work we put forth into obtaining that first gig will be rewarded if we continue to keep a positive outlook and strive to improve upon our skills inside and outside of the work place. Positivity is key and I have seen first hand what it can do when searching for a job.