Hello all,
I hope your internships are going well. Mine has been great.
This week at my internship, I used diligence (one of the Work Readiness skills) in a positive way to complete several tasks that I was assigned. For example, on Friday, I was responsible for opening and processing incoming mail. This involved sorting each letter into its appropriate category and then following through with claims by date-stamping them and reviewing/highlighting priority information. I completed the work within a reasonable time frame, and checked to make sure that I had done the work accurately.
Another Work Readiness skill that I used to support my success was the ability to improve (by learning new skills). This week I had a variety of tasks that involved using machines that I had never used before. One such machine was the fax machine. One of my coworkers asked me if I knew how to use it, and when I replied "no," she taught me. I was a quick learner and was able to fax efficiently soon after.
One instance where my Work Readiness weakness (communicating effectively) held me back took place on Monday. I needed to pull and print some documents to compile, but for some extremely frustrating reason, the printer was acting up and printed in landscape format with the document covering only half of the page. No matter what I tried, the printer always wound up printing in this format. I wasted half an hour struggling to control my anger at the printer and trying to figure out the golden set of settings for me to be able to print properly and get on with my work. Finally, I figured that I'd better talk to someone about the problem and see if they could figure out what was going on. As it turned out, they did know how to fix the problem and had it sorted out in no time. I hadn't asked sooner because of my hesitation to communicate with my coworkers about my dilemma. I ended up wasting my time (and more than a few pages). I learned my lesson, and next time I will not hesitate to ask for assistance when needed.
It can be difficult sometimes to ask about something like copying a document because it seems like it should be so simple. Just remember that everyone else has been working where you work for much longer than you have and they understand that you have never worked with their copier before, so never be afraid to ask. I'm sure they are very happy with you and your work and would be happy to help you with any of your questions.
ReplyDeleteI also have trouble with communication skills when it comes to asking for help. I think it can be difficult to admit that you don't know how to do something, because you might think it comes off as weak or inexperienced. But in my experience I've found that people are almost always willing to help if you ask. However, getting the courage to ask people questions is an important skill that takes a long time to develop.
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