June

So I was hoping to make my blog posts bi-monthly, but I seem to have fallen into a habit of making one big one at the end. For July and the rest of my term I will try to make smaller, and more frequent updates.

This month I sat in on an interview training session, which was very interesting. Then I had the opportunity to sit in on an actual interview! I participated in two telephone interviews, then a face-to-face interview. It was a great experience and I am very excited for more.

One particular week this month was crazy. On Tuesday I was invited to the C.A.H.R.M.A golf tournament. C.A.H.R.M.A is a HR organization in central Alberta, with some very nice members. I met some of leading HR professionals in Red Deer, and showed off my inept golf skills. I slightly improved my golf game, but only a little. I am terrible at golf. I plan to work on it a little more now. When you are with a fun group of people, golf is very enjoyable. The funniest part for me was when I bought pink women’s golf balls, and the old guys were not that impressed.

Then on Wednesday and Friday I was invited to go along for the Calgary Energy Expo. It was a giant job fair, with over 6,000 people looking for work in the Oil & Gas industry. I was a little uncertain of what to say, but before I could even think people started coming to our display. I jumped right in and started talking to people, and didn’t stop for what seemed to be hours. In fact, 8 hours with a lunch break. The experience was incredible though, and it was so interesting to be on the other side of the table for a change.

I decided to stay overnight with my family, which was really nice. The next morning I headed back to the convention center, where I met back with the team. My feet were still a little sore from the day before, and I was not feeling too good, but the day was much like the first, and still enjoyable. Everyone was very helpful, and looked over resumes when I was not sure.

The expo also gave me great insight on what I’ll be working on in terms of strategy. I met a couple of students while I was there, as well as U of C career center workers. Connecting with students I find very interesting because I can relate to them on a personal level. I am very excited for the upcoming school career fairs this fall.

One major skill I am working on right now is my typing skills. These blog entries are great practice, but I guess typing is something I should have worked on in the beginning. I'm proud to say that I finished that sentence without looking at the key board.

On a non-work related issue, my car is having trouble. I need to replace the wheel bearings, and I'm pretty down about it. However, our team leader, Rob, is very nice and helped me without hesitation. He recommended a great place and gave me a ride to the shop, and work the next morning. Not only that, I left my lights on in the parking lot, and he found someone to give me a boost. I definitely owe him now.