Resignation Letter

I have recently been granted the opportunity to transition from one portion of the company I've worked for for the last five-and-a-half years to becoming an independent contractor for the same company. However, this transition means leaving my current position. I've always been reminded (by my wonderfully traditional parents) that when you leave a position voluntarily you must announce your intention.

Convention tells us that two-weeks' notice is appropriate, but I was never taught how, and haven't found much in the way of an appropriate example. A recent scroll through Pinterest came across a post that summarized my feelings without being either too formal or too personal. I thought I'd share my revised version:

Company Name
Company Address Line 1
Company Address Line 2

Date of letter 

Dear Supervisor, 

Please accept this letter as my formal resignation from Position at Company effective Date, two weeks from today. 

During my time at Company, I have been fortunate for the opportunity to grow and learn more about Industry. Thank you, I appreciate your support during my tenure here. Your guidance and support have prepared me well for the future. 

I wish Company the very best going forward. 

Respectfully, 

Signature

Name
Personal Address Line 1
Personal Address Line 2
e-mail address

If you've changed managers or have a more personal relationship with your leadership you can always add more detail. A heartfelt wish for the future of the company and continued good relations can solidify a relationship with the company, at the very least with the individuals of the company.

Remember, these are the people who you'll be working with until your last day, and likely will be asked for their opinion of you by potential future employers. It is never a bad idea to leave a good, lasting impression.

Just a thought...
Stephie

Important Letters

As life progresses I've learned that respect and consideration are some of our most powerful and best tools for proceeding. While in the heat of the moment you may not want to sugar-coat your message it is commonly accepted that less is more in various business settings.

I have been blessed with an exceptional education, but it has not prepared me as well as it should have for life in the business world. I recently discovered this when attempting to terminate my business relationship with a long-time employer.

When I was struggling with my resignation letter I discovered there are quite a few letters young people haven't been taught to write, let along make their own. A quick internet search will reveal dozens of templates; in my next few posts, I'll present my examples for different letters.

Cover Letter
Interview Follow-Up/ Thank you
Resignation/ Two Weeks' Notice
Donor Gratitude
Apology

Back to the Grind

It's 2013!

     It was a crazy year, 2012: at least four "apocalypses", a Presidential Election, and some very influential decisions made in Washington State. Yet, we're all still here. What are some of your favorite memories from 2012? Did you ever keep those New Year's Resolutions that we're always making? What are some of the things you wouldn't change for the world?
     I'm back to school after a wonderful Christmas Break full of friends and family. New Year's was great, the party went as planned, and we had a great group of friends there. We counted down that last ten seconds to the new year and watched the Seattle Space Needle firework show on the local news. Then there was the NYC celebration, the flurry of text messages and phone calls from family and friends, and the midnight toast. Overall it was a great time and a fun way to ring in the new year.
     But now we're back. I learned yesterday that my entire January schedule was wrong: my class starts at 11:30 rather than 2:30 and goes Monday through Friday instead of starting Tuesdays. That doesn't seem like much of a change, except that it's right during the time I was scheduled to work. The frustration of figuring out how to balance all of our schedules and have someone on duty at all times is starting to get annoying, simply because January has a completely different schedule than the rest of the year. Anyway, everything is piling up, and homework is still a huge factor in what all of us Lutes are doing this month, but it's great to be back and have everyone else around.

Just a thought...
Stephie

Does it Hook You and Drag You In?

     In reading for Capstone, I came across a literary critic who, just after his mother's death, used photography and photographic theory to try and recapture his mother. that was Roland Barthes' (said "Bart") foray into photography in Camera Lucidia, which was originally written in French. The fact that it was translated helps to understand why the actual words on the page don't always make sense.
     The main things Barthes talked about were the punctum, studium, and unary photograph. When he talked about these different ideas he used the word affect to describe the emotions it made him feel. The punctum is described as a detail in a photograph that hooks into the reader and draws their attention. Studium is something that you notice, but the attention doesn't get caught on. A unary photograph is a photo that is so perfectly composed that it doesn't do anything to the attention--the observer says "hmm" and walks away--like the pictures that come in picture frames.
     My argument is that everything has this sort of element--it's not in the art itself, but in the observer's experience. The three parts are dependent on each other to exist, but without the observer there is nothing for them to relate to and create the affect that Barthes seems so stuck on. I understood affect to be the emotional meaning that creates the three responses, when you look at a wedding photo you're usually happy because weddings are happy occasions.
     It's difficult to make my argument make sense to other people because I'm not applying a photographic theory to photography, so I have to explain as well as show that what I'm saying is not only possible, but also plausible. I'm enjoying the application of my take on Barthes's theory, but no matter how interesting I find it, explaining his theory is a pain.

Just a thought....
Stephie

Do I have ADD or is it my Generation?

     So I'm working on a giant paper that shall be the bane of my existence until it is complete, but I've noticed that lately I just can't focus for more than fifteen minutes at a time. Even when I can get those fifteen minute bursts to line up and form more than 45 minutes, there are three things I have to have on hand: 1. A cup of hot tea, 2. A clean working environment, and 3. My earbuds and music. The first two are more necessary when I want to sit down for more than twenty minutes, but the third is necessary for any work to be done. My question is: Why can't I work unless I block out the world with music?
     When my brother was little, his teacher wanted him to be checked out for ADHD (Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder)--he was seven and hyperactive as any seven-year-old boy is--the doctors concluded no, but a couple of the symptoms of ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) linked with some of the behaviors that both my sister and I have been experiencing in the last couple years at college. Mainly the inability to focus for longer periods of time. Now, none of the doctors I've seen have said anything about having ADD, but I've noticed that when I can't hear the world around me, it's easier to focus. I've also noticed that I'm not the only one this works for.
     You can take a look at nearly any college library to find students listening to music while they study. This is the same group of students that can text and walk, listen to the television and hold a conversation, and play a video game while socializing with friends. Multi-tasking seems to be what we've been trained to do. I can keep track of four conversations at once, as long as I'm not actively involved in any of them, but why can't I just sit in a quiet room--even if I have my cup of tea and clean environment--and get anything done?
     There are a couple theories circulating that propose this inability to work without extraneous stimuli is a result of the multi-tasking my generation has been asked to do from such a young age. So why is my generation so different? We grew up with the computers, with the internet and all the flashing colors trying to get your attention, we have our portable music devices and our phones that all keep us going going going, and we've had them since we were little.
     I wonder about the children who are already experiencing what I've started going through in the last couple years: the lack of concentration without stimulation, what are they going to do in fifteen years when it all starts getting more pronounced? Will we have to have those sci-fi technologies where the computer display is in your head, just so the everyday person has enough background brain stimulation to focus on the foreground?
     Whatever happens, I just hope we realize that we're doing this to ourselves and our kids. Take the time to turn off all the electronics and interact with real people: they're way more stimulating and it eases the go-go-go of the brain.

Just a thought...
Stephie

Managing Group Politics

     So I deal with one of our Residence Hall governments and we've been dealing with the politics of hiring a DJ and planning programs. We just finished an event and were going over what went well and what didn't go so well.
     The biggest thing we've discovered as a problem is discussions happening outside of the official channels. One student had asked to do music for a function and another student, one with the authority to say yes or no, didn't object. The hopeful DJ took that to mean he had the job, but the miscommunication contributed to an unsatisfactory result.
     It turns out the DJ was willing to use any music we wanted, but something stopped him from using his own music, and what we provided. So, he had a buddy bring in music. The friend's music was all of one type--dubstep--and it began to influence the event. In the end, the dance ended early because people weren't enjoying themselves or the music. An event that has been one of the biggest events of the year became a mediocre replica of what it had been, only because the lines of communication became blurry.
     Is this a normal thing that plagues all sorts of organizations? Or is it because we are inexperienced in this sort of thing? The group I'm working with is an amazing collection of passionate people working to make both their own college experience and their classmates' the best it can be.

Just a thought....
Stephie

Brownies!

     My roommate and I love to bake! We'll make anything from cookies to cakes, from pies to brownies, and anything we can think of. Last night she made brownies. They were good, but not quite the amazing either of us was expecting: they came out dry. Now, that's not going to stop either of us from eating them in one sitting if we don't stop ourselves. But still, is there a reason a perfectly good recipe turned sour?

     The first thing I thought of was the oven. It's new to us both, having just moved into the dorm, and we haven't exactly worked all the kinks out. Then there was the fact that rather than using the (super expensive) baker's chocolate we used powdered cocoa and vegetable oil (as suggested on the box of cocoa). A final, but unlikely, reason for the dryness was overcooking. We both came down on the side of using the powdered cocoa as the cause.
     How are we going to fix this? Easy answer: we don't know. We talked about taking the brownies out early, adding more oil or other liquid, or even using shortening rather than oil, but none of them are known fixes. This isn't going to stop us, but it was an unexpected first bite into a fresh brownie when it crumbled down our faces.

Just a thought....
Stephie

The Wild Man

     I took a Fairy Tales & Fantasy class last year where we looked at the psychology behind some of the common fairy tales. It was a great class and I finally got to look into the history and motivations commonly thought to be behind the stories I've been hearing and reading for years. The story we looked at in the most depth was the story of the Wild Man. Now, the Wild Man is a wise man who lives in the forest. In the story he is known as Iron John, a man who lived in a pond and mentored a young prince.

A basic retelling of the story:
     Something strange is happening in the forest near the king's castle: people go in, but they don't come out, so people stop going into the forest. A mysterious hunter shows up and  asks the king if there's anything dangerous around. The king points out the forest and the hunter goes in with only his dog. When they pass a pond, something reaches out and grabs the dog. The man returns to the castle, gathers some people, and returns to empty the pond. They find Iron John, tie him up, and lock him in the castle dungeons.

     One day the prince is playing with his favorite golden ball when it rolls away and into the Wild Man's dungeon. Iron John says he'll give it back if the prince releases him, the boy runs away and returns twice more before saying he couldn't release Iron John even if he wanted to. To which the Wild Man replies, "the key is under your mother's pillow."
     The prince steals the key when his parents are away, and tries to release the Wild Man, but hurts his finger in the process. When the man is free he cries, "don't leave or they will beat me" so Iron John takes the prince up on his shoulders and they escape together. The King and Queen notice the escaped prisoner and missing prince and scour the lands for them without success.
     Iron John feels compassion for the prince, who can never return home, and sets him to the task of watching a spring, not letting anything fall into it. The boy sees golden fish and creatures moving in the pure water, and unknowingly slides his hurt finger into the pond. It turns to gold! When the Wild Man returns the prince is given two more chances to right the wrong, but he allows a single hair from his head, then the entire shock of his hair to fall into the pond. The Wild Man sends the boy out into the world to experience poverty because of his failure.
     The boy went in search of work, having no skill by which to earn his living he wandered until he found a large city. He went into the palace and asked for work, and while they didn't know what he could do, they liked him and set him to fetch and carry for the kitchen. One day the cook sent him to deliver food to the king's table, but the boy didn't want the king to see his golden hair and kept his hat on. The king found this disrespectful and ordered him fired.
     Instead of firing him, the cook took pity and traded the prince for the gardener's boy. One summer day he took off his hat and his golden hair sparkled and glowed in the sunlight. The princess saw and demanded the boy bring her flowers, when he arrived she tricked him into taking his cap off. He tried to escape, but she caught him and gave him a bag of coins. The prince handed them over to the gardener for his children. On the next day the princess tried again to see the boy's hair, but he held his cap on and she gave him another bag of coins that he handed over to the gardener. On the third day, he held onto his hat and refused the bag of coins.
     Soon a war broke out in the country. The boy decided he was man enough to go to war and declared his intention. The soldiers mocked him and left him a lame horse. The boy called at the edge of the forest three times "Iron John" and the Wild Man came. "What do you want?" the boy replied a strong war-horse. So Iron John provided a magnificent war horse and a band of iron-clad warriors. They drove back the enemy force and won the battle for the King, but rather than riding directly back to the castle, the prince returned the gifts to Iron John and rode the three-legged horse home.
     The king decided to host a festival to bring out the mysterious knight ending with the princess throwing out the golden apple. The prince went back to the forest and asked Iron John to catch the apple, the Wild Man gave him a chestnut horse and red armor to protect him. He rode onto the field and when the princess threw out the golden apple, he caught it, immediately riding away. On the second day the prince wore white armor and rode a white horse, caught the apple and rode away. The king became angry and told his men that if the mysterious knight didn't come and report his name, "chase him and give him a blow with your sword." On the third day Iron John gave the prince black armor and a black horse. He caught the apple and fled, but the King's Men followed and knocked his helmet off. They returned and told the king all.

     The princess went the next day to the gardener and asked after the boy. He replied, "he went to join the festival and got home late last night. But he showed my children three golden apples he won." She returned to her father and the king called the boy. The princess took his cap and his golden hair astounded the court, the king asked if he was the knight. The boy replied yes, revealed he was the mysterious knight from the war and that his father was a notable king, and when the king offered a reward, asked for the princess in marriage.
     When the two were celebrating their marriage feast, a baronial king burst through the doors with his attendants, hugged the young man and said, "I am Iron John, enchanted into the Wild Man, you have freed me and all my treasures are now yours!"
And they all lived happily ever after...

     There are so many things we talked about in this story, like the golden ball. The class discussion came up with the golden ball as innocence. Around eight years old, something happens that the world is no longer a happy-hunky-dory place. For some people this is sooner and for some this is later, but for the most part, something happens at eight. The time in the king's kitchen is reminiscent of the work that everyone has to do to figure out their own identity and who they want to be in the future. It continues over into the work with the gardener, only that is more of the busy work that you do until you've managed to put into action who you want to be; like a first job before you start your career. Finding the princess is, in this case, finding the inner female or the anima. I was fascinated that Iron John's spell was broken because he mentored another young man in the ways of the Wild Man, and in doing so helped him to achieve his fortune and destiny. It speaks to the idea that you're not completely done with your life's work until you've helped and led another into the beginning of their life's work. A resounding advocation of mentoring programs. I enjoyed the story, while it isn't my favorite myth or fairy tale it does show how these stories are reflections of the society and time they came out of.

Just a thought....
Stephie

Bucket List

     A couple years ago, more like five, The Bucket List came out. For me it was a life-changing movie; the idea of making a list of things I wanted to accomplish in my life was completely new (I was also seventeen years old). Since then I've made many different "Bucket Lists" but I haven't been so good at the checking-off part. I finally went through all the paper and put the different lists on my computer.... it was a long document. But I decided that I wouldn't delete things as I checked them off--only put a line through them. That way I wouldn't put them on the list again. It still hasn't helped me with checking things off my list. And the list just keeps on growing, despite how often I "check" things off.

     Here are some of the things I've got left:

1. Learn French
2. Run a Marathon
3. Visit Graceland
4. Read the classics for fun
5. Buy a house
6. Tailgate at the Superbowl
7. Ride the elevator up the Eiffel Tower
8. Go to the Olympic Games
9. Ride the Orient Express
10. Meet James Garner

and there were so many more. I crossed off a good number of them in my first years of college, but I've still got more to go, and I keep adding more, like I said. It's crazy how much I want to do with my life and how much I probably won't ever accomplish from that list (I had "Meet Andy Griffiths" on it, but then he died). It's wonderful to have something to strive for.

Just a thought....
Stephie

Busy Busy Bee!

I will miss you, bed. 

     This week has probably been the craziest week of my summer. I was supposed to move into my apartment on Wednesday, but stuff happened and that didn't end up working out. So I moved in on Saturday, yesterday. But in the midst of all this packing, moving, unpacking and reorganizing (stressful and busy on its own) I was attending a leadership institute at my university--so much fun, and a really great learning experience--then training for Orientation! The next time I have actual free time is after school starts: September sixth!
     It's going to be a crazy couple weeks. I am totally excited about what I'm doing, but I will need sleep sometime in the next couple days and it's not looking likely.