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The first time I wrote a resume I was only sixteen. I was only a junior in high school looking to make some money to buy my own stuff and become a little more independent. I knew the first step toward getting a new job would be making my own resume so I went on and started it. I didn't even know how a proper resume looked like so I went to Google. Google never lets you down. I remember I found a good looking one quickly so I used it as my template. I literally erased everything in it but kept the format.

I remember feeling kind of bummed out after I was finished putting in all my information. My resume was only half a page long, There's a good chance it was even shorter than that. I didn't have anything to put on it since I had very limited experience. It pretty much consisted of a set of skills and and a personal statement which said something along the lines of being eager to learn and gain experience.

I think my greatest challenge with writing it was finding what to include on it. I didn't want any potential employer to think my resume was a joke for being so short. Then I calmed myself down because that's how everyone starts. I wasn't going to apply to work for NASA, just a basic entry level job.
Back then I knew some friends who worked in retail so that's the kind of job I was shooting for. It seemed like retail would be the easiest job to get. Specifically, I was applying for work at Pacsun. In my head it all looked pretty cool. It was a store I would normally buy clothes from so it was my element. The way I saw it, I would be getting paid to be there and get a discount on anything I wanted.

After applying, I didn't get the job. I didn't even get an interview. I don't think it was because my resume sucked, I blame it more on the fact that I was only a kid who just turned sixteen. On hindsight I'm thankful about the whole situation because I've heard working in retail sucks. Also, it got me to write my first resume and be more conscious about what I want to put on it.

#9 work

At this point in my life, I am struggling with what specific career path I want to choose. My heart is divided between becoming a sports psychologist or a developmental psychologist. I find them both equally interesting. I'm a big sports enthusiast and as a sports psychologist I would be able to work with athletes to reach their full potential. On the other hand, I think it's so cool to study how we change as the years pass, how we take on the different stages in life. Whichever path I choose to take I know I will have to learn and adapt to what is required of me.

All I know is I am taking short but efficient steps towards reaching my goals. I am very close to obtaining my psychology degree and looking to get involved in anything that will help me in the future.

Even though my current job doesn't have much to do with psychology, I believe it's an important stepping stone to get to where I want to be. Working for the Ymca has given me the opportunity to try several hats on. I work the front desk where I have to be very attentive to members and always be willing to help with a smile on. I've worked as a wellness coach always keeping a winning attitude and helping out members with our machines and how to perform exercises. I've worked summer camp which gave me the opportunity to work and interact with children from various ages. And I've been a soccer coach, my favorite.

This job is indirectly giving me experience and tools that I can apply to a psychology related job. Networking has also been very useful in the company. I've gotten to know directors and heads of departments which I know will be useful. Recently, a new opportunity has been presented. The company is looking to hire behavior support specialists to help children with autism or behavioral issues. This is strongly related to psychology so it can be another step toward reaching my goals.

#8 Service workers

Being a waitress or a waiter is definitely not an easy job. It's very fast paced and needs careful attention to detail. The ability to multitask is a must.

I've never had a restaurant job and I would honestly like to keep it that way. I'm not trying to disrespect anyone or look down on restaurant staff, I just don't think I would be able to handle it. It's just not for everyone, especially waiting tables.

Good waiters and waitresses have to be very well prepared. There are so many things they have to know and remember. Knowing the menu from top to bottom is a must. Also, knowing the basics on how the food is cooked is a plus. My dad is that special costumer who always has a million questions before making his decision on what he will order. He's always impressed when the waiter knows what he's doing.

It's also pretty interesting how waiters and waitresses have to constantly change the way they talk and how they communicate. they have to be warm and patient with costumers. They need to use "normal" conversation skills to present their product. When they write out the order or go tell a chef what he or she will need to cook this changes. They're part of the same discourse community within the restaurant so they use their own slang and abbreviations.

Peter Drucker claims that workers in service jobs such as waiters can't be considered "knowledge workers." I find this a bit insulting and condescending. Maybe one doesn't go to college to be able to wait tables, but that doesn't mean the job doesn't require a vast amount of knowledge.

My current job is basically all costumer service. It may seem like anyone can do it, after all, the main part of the job is to keep the costumer happy and answer questions. It's not easy. Not everyone can do it. I've seen co-workers come and go because they can't get the hang of it. The truth is you have to be trained properly to be successful. Costumers expect us to answer any question they have so we have to be ready and know as much about our company as possible. In fact, we constantly have to go to trainings ranging from information about special events to how to communicate more efficiently with our costumers.

Cost of Affiliation

Navigating between the way I'm expected to be at home with my family, at work, and at school can be exhausting. Each of the three seem to have pretty different discourse communities.

When I'm at home, my siblings and I are expected to be warm and loving towards each other and our parents. We use simple language to communicate whatever we're feeling or anything that's going through our minds. We've always been encouraged to talk about our problems and find ways to help each other.

At work, I'm expected to be quick and efficient with everything I do. Working in a gym environment makes almost everything be goal oriented. If I'm helping a client sign up for membership, I have to explain everything he or she will be will be able to use. The trickiest part is convincing potential clients they will reach their goals. Some are just interested in general health, some are interested in bulking up, and others are interested in losing weight. Whatever their goal is, I need to know and use regular gym terms such as the names of the machines they can use or the name of exercises they will need to perform.

At school, I have to switch my mindset yet again. I'm expected to be part of an academic discourse community. Being an undergraduate student in the science department requires writing research papers for my classes. I have to follow delicate guidelines for my papers to be graded. The language I use has to be academic which is far too different from the type of language I have to use at home or work.

In "Discourse Communities and Communities of Practice," professor Ann M Johns discusses how students are pushed into joining an academic discourse community. I agree with this. I think being required to take a certain amount of writing classes in order to graduate, regardless of a student's major, is an example of how we're pushed into this discourse community. I don't see it as a bad thing, I just see it as a way of scholars telling students "you need to write this way if you want to be a part of us."

On a daily basis, I have to navigate between these three discourse communities. Sometimes it's complicated to adjust. I have to really let go of two to really focus on one, but that's just the cost of affiliation.

Discourse Community

John Swales' definition on what a discourse community is can be somewhat complicated. At the same time, if one "zooms out" of the definition it seems a lot simpler. Basically, what makes up a discourse community is a group of individuals that share values and goals who tend to use phrases and slang only they are familiar with.

A key aspect of a discourse community is the shared goal of the group. Whether it is an explicit goal or more of a secret one, this shared goal is way brings the group together.

Mechanisms of intercommunication are also vital. Members of a discourse community can stay in communication in many different ways, not just a direct face to face conversation. For example, they could all write on a blog or a Facebook page. The purpose of this mechanisms of communication is for an exchange of information. A person would not be considered a member if he or she is part of the Facebook group but never really engages with other members.

Discourse communities rely on genres depending on the context. More than one genre can be used as communities grow and evolve. Along with genres, they also have specific lexis. This is the most interesting part of a discourse for me. Words, abbreviations, and acronyms are community-specific. A great example of this are the prescriptions Medics write, since only themselves and their colleagues working at pharmacies understand their abbreviations.

A final aspect Swales provides for a discourse community is keeping a balance of novices and experts within the members. This makes sense because you need experts to pass down information and you need novices to take it in.

Being a soccer player, I believe soccer players have our own discourse community. We obviously share a common goal; score as much as possible, and keep your opponent from scoring on your team. That is the main goal. Our main mechanism of intercommunication is through direct conversation. When we're playing, our coach talks to us about what he expects from us, and we as players are welcome to provide feedback on how we think we could reach our goals as a team.

We have our own set of words and phrases in the field. We say things such as "line"or "nutmeg" to refers to actions in the field. I've tried playing recreational games with friends who are not soccer players and the communication has been terrible. I've used these terms all my life and they've never heard of them.

Coaches are usually retired players, so the first thing they do with new players is teach them their terminology. This is where the balance of the discourse community is. the experts teach the novices.

Intro to Joel

Hello fellow classmates! My name is Joel Richardson and I was born and raised here in San Diego county. One of my favorite things about living here is the cultural diversity, you can meet people from all around the world here. This will be my last year as an undergrad pursuing a degree in psychology. My goal is to become a sports psychologist and be able to work with athletes, but I'm still open to exploring other fields in my career.

I love playing and watching almost every sport, but my personal favorite is by far soccer. I've been playing it for about 17 years and don't plan on stopping any time soon. There's something about it that takes my mind off of pretty much everything and I just enjoy the moment.

Fitness and strength training at the gym has also become a passion of mine. Some people think working out is very superficial and just focused on looking attractive, but to me it's much more than that. There are many benefits that come with it involving health and you also learn a lot about yourself. I had to learn how to be discipline and goal focused. The best thing is that these two skills can be applied to any aspect in life. You have to put in work physically and mentally to get results.

I like traveling and feel that I'm at a point in my life in which I should be doing it given that I have no major responsibilities such as children or big house payments. I've been to a few countries including Mexico, Spain, and Germany. My favorite trip so far has been to Munich, Germany because it was the first time I travelled completely alone to a place where I didn't know the local language. Needless to say it was an amazing experience. the first couple days were rough but after I felt like I was in sync with the locals.
My family plays a big role in who I am. My parents have taught my sisters and I important life lessons by setting the example. They've taught us the values of hard work and respect, among other things. The unconditional support I receive from all my family is my fuel to do anything in life.

I'm hoping to have a wonderful semester and make the most out of my classes. I look forward to meeting my classmates and making some new friends as well.