CLASSES & JOBS

Are you a Mac or a PC user? In the computer industry, it is very important. There are versions of software made especially for Macs or PCs, and they won’t work if you don’t have the right version. Also, it seems that more and more, people can determine who you are by what kind of machine you use. Who knew that we would one day be judged by the kind of computer we buy? The debate over which is better, Mac or PC, seems as heated as the debate over who will make the best president for the country.

The division of users is everywhere, especially on college campuses. Walk into any college computer lab and you will see that PCs are on one side of the room and Macs on the other. Students will even argue as to which has the better processor or which is more user-friendly. It seems as though the line has been drawn in the proverbial sand and each must make a clear decision as to which is the better computer.

This presidential election has been a very long, intense, brutal campaign. Watching the news for months and following polls and statistics made me wish that the campaign was much shorter than it is. What is especially difficult is getting different types of news from different sources, despite the fact that news organizations are supposed to be objective and aren’t supposed to pick sides. On one channel, journalists give certain bits of information while on another channel, the news is different. What journalists choose to say and not say is often very interesting, and it does reveal their inner beliefs and motivations.

I don’t feel like campaigns should be allowed to last that long because, inevitably, some candidate turns to smear tactics and the whole thing becomes a big joke. It gets to the point where Americans are turning off the news when political updates are on instead of tuning in. Maybe if there were laws in place that prevent candidates from campaigning more than a few months, Americans would be much more likely to stay informed and practice their rights of civic engagement.

So many people are Jacks of all trades, master of none. That is also why it is so hard for some of us to pick a career. We have many different interests and many different abilities, so how do we narrow it down to one thing that we want to do for the rest of our lives? If you are a Jack of all trades, find a career that challenges you to use many of those skills and to continue learning and growing.

My friend found that a career in Public Relations has just enough variety to keep her happy. When people hear the term PR they think about going to parties, meeting celebrities and running events, but that’s just the most glamorous aspect of PR, and it’s certainly not the most predominant. The majority of careers in Public Relations include writing press releases and developing campaigns for companies. It is an excellent choice for people who need a creative outlet coupled with hard work. There are hundreds of other great choices as well, including being an educator, getting a degree in business or business management, and becoming a coach.

It’s fun to experiment with different styles of makeup. We have so many options of types and colors. Choosing the colors and textures that work best with your skin is important. Some experts say that 90% of women choose foundations that do not compliment their skin types. Having a cosmetic expert help you select the right foundations is important.

I remember going over to my friend’s who was really “cool” because she was 13 and I was only 10. She taught me how to put on lipstick, eye shadow, and blush. I was never really into wearing makeup as a kid; I’d rather have played kickball with the boys. But, I really liked to play dress up and put on makeup with Kaitlyn. We pretended we were older and drinking wine at a country club and watching a polo game. We’d dress up in our moms’ fancy dresses and heels that of course were far too big and put on big hats and makeup. I still enjoy dressing up once in a while, with nicely done makeup.

Unfortunately injuries are unavoidable. Even for people who don’t live seemingly dangerous lives, there’s always the inherent toe stub or paper cut. Sometimes I feel like I’m the most accident-prone person ever. Like other people I know, I can get injured doing pretty much anything, including sleeping.

I really enjoy living life on the edge and doing things that give me a big adrenaline rush. But those are not the things that make me injure myself. I’m more likely to run into a wall, trip over a curb, or burn myself cooking dinner. I am such a klutz it’s ridiculous! My friends laugh at me because I can’t ever walk straight so I’m constantly cutting people off when I walk next to them. It’s a very rare occasion that I don’t have a bruise or cut somewhere on my body. Just this past week I was opening a door and somehow managed to injure my hand on the metal door frame. Don’t ask me how I did it, but I have a nice gash across the top of my hand to prove it.

My friend once went into an employment agency in need of immediate work. He handed over his resume and list of skills and after a three minute glance at it, the woman informed him that all she had available was a job being a personal marketing tool.

“What is that?” my friend asked, and she proceeded to give him a very long speech about the high demand companies have for personal marketing tools. When my friend was still unclear as to the actual description of job, she pointed out the window. Across the street at a local pizza place a man stood outside holding a sign that read: “Oven Ready Pizza To Go $5.” While this was not the ideal immediate work my friend was looking for, it was something. And after he stood holding his own sign for a few days, he decided to enroll in marketing classes and began looking for the jobs he really wanted.

It’s incredibly important to have insurance in case something unforeseen happens. There is insurance for everything. You might be surprised to hear that I have insurance for my horse in case he gets hurt or gets sick. My horse insurance covers the cost of his medical bills or death expenses if he dies. There is insurance for most types of pets, as well as for your car, boat, house, children, health, etc. If you own something of value (or if you have someone who is dependent upon you), they should be insured, as should you!

I pay a little less for my horse’s insurance than I do for my own health insurance. It covers any major surgery that he needs and if he dies, it will pay me what he’s worth. I was very glad that I had insurance for him when I found out that he needed surgery about a month ago. It was a good lesson for me to learn that insurance really is very important. I definitely would have been hard pressed to be able to afford the surgery he needed without it.

For those of us who work in an office, we know how important it is to have a good IT team. IT, which stands for information technology, is the development, design, implementation and support of information systems…support being the most important to those of us who use computers for three things: Email, surfing the web and writing.

IT guys are those angels with geek gear that we call when our computers won’t work and we’re moments away from throwing them out the window. My advice to anyone who works in an office with an IT team: Suck up to them as much as possible. They may speak a tech language most of us don’t understand but who else can retrieve files that have been lost in the electronic abyss? My next bit of advice for those of you interested in working with computers: Take a few IT classes from your local college. They’ll look great on your resume and give you the skills that make you everyone’s best friend!

Law is an interesting topic to talk about with other people. I’ve always been intrigued by the reasoning behind different laws, and learning about them so that I can make informed decisions about issues. Following the laws (and knowing what they are in the first place) is extremely important, especially when traveling out of state or out of the country.

When I was younger, people frequently told me that I would make a great lawyer. I’m almost positive that they only said it because of the fact that I loved arguing, and was good at it as well. I’ve always enjoyed a little competition, whether it is a sports game or debating a political topic. I don’t in any way know everything about law, but I’ve been trying to learn as much as I can. I don’t think that I have the right to argue about issues if I am not informed about them. And since I still enjoy a good argument, I try to be informed enough to be able to have them.

Life coaches help people get what they want from life. Sound interesting? Life coaches can help you land your dream job, overcome your fear of public speaking, learn to be more confident, and even make friends. They help you improve what you want to improve about yourself. Think of a sports coach you had in grade school or college. Did that coach teach you any great life skills (or, if he or she wasn’t a good coach, what did you learn on your own)? Now think of a life coach being like a sports coach for your life. He or she can give you the direction, support and encouragement you need to accomplish your goals.

You can become a life coach by studying at school and taking classes like management, business, personal counseling, financial planning, family counseling, and even teaching. Life coaches are equipped to help people with their marital and relationship concerns, financial issues, and with job-seeking and goal-reaching strategies, and more. A life coach is a great person to have on your side.