Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the exact same if you were stealing a gift from a craft shop except you would be stealing the knowledge of someone else’s work. Plagiarism is taking someone else’s work and passing it off as your own knowledge. If your one that has plagiarised well its best than that you don’t believe in karma. I don’t understand why one would purposely plagiarise because your not going to gain anything by doing it. If you plagiarise is due to being lazy. So don’t be lazy!.

When you read a paragraph and you find something intriguing and you copy and paste the information, that is plagiarism. You cant take an authors knowledge and take all the credit for it. That is theft!. So to avoid plagiarism, if you take any quotes, phrases or facts from another individual reference the person who your taking the knowledge from. Another way is don’t take the words of another person word for word, either paraphrase or summarise the information.

In my opinion its very easy to plagiarise so ensure you know how to reference correctly or otherwise don’t put yourself through all the drama and use what’s in your own brain!. Don’t be lazy and try and copy the work of others, your not going to get away with it. Its like what I always say “taking knowledge from one man and making it worse is plagiarism” =).

 References:

Trustees of Indiana university. (2011). what is plagiarism. Available: www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml. Last accessed 25 November.

Emotional Intelligence

 In my opinion there is no greater achievement in life than accepting who you are. To do so one most not be afraid to express their true feelings. If you ignore them and just “float” through life and not contribute, well you might as well not have a voice. What im trying to say is don’t ignore your emotional intelligence as “ action is the real measure of intelligence”. So by releasing your emotions they allow you to be a better person because your just being you!. I believe one can only truly succeed in life if they show their true colours, so don’t go away and hide them.

By accepting your emotions and recognising them, it will give you a better insight to who you are. Emotional intelligence is also about your ability to understand someone else’s feelings. The ability to recognise what another person is feeling will improve your relationship with them. This is very significant in the workplace.

Having the courtesy to interpret and listen to someone else’s thoughts, will enhance your leadership in the workplace. As I always say “two heads are better than one”. So in order to gain leadership one must be trustworthy, good listener and a good communicator. The way to achieve all these fine qualities is to release your own emotions and have a voice. Be confident, be proud but most of all be yourself!

References:

mind tools.(1996-2011). Emotional intelligence in leadership. Available: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_45.htm. Last accessed 25 November.

Effective Presentations

When the word “presentation” was mentioned to me for the very first time, I was as nervous as a turkey at Christmas. Presentations can be nerve racking but from my experience that can be prevented by being prepared. Its very important to practise your presentation as it will give you confidence. As the song goes “practise makes perfect”. Another important concept when it comes to presentations is communication skills. To perform an effective presentation you have to draw your audience in and to do that you need to practise your communication skills. Here are some tips which I think are most important:

1. choose a topic of interest.
2. ensure to carry out research thoroughly as you don’t want any incorrect information, example dates, names.
3. Use pictures,diagrams if possible.
4. Know information well.
5. Be confident.
6. Dress appropriately.
7. Have two practise runs in front of a friend before the day.

On the day of the presentation, take your time when speaking and I think its good if you use hand gestures as you speak. This conveys, you have an interest in the topic. Also don’t forget to introduce yourself at the beginning even if its your class. Thank your audience at the end and ask if there are any questions. The most significant thing when it comes to presentations is practise, as “being unprepared heightens nerves”.

References:

T.S. Eggleston. (2011). key steps to an effective presentation. Available: http://www.theegglestongroup.com/writing/keystep1.php. Last accessed 26 November.

Time Management

In relation to exams for students time management is vital. There are many students who don't  take this serious, but they should especially for students in college. Here are some reasons why I think time management is vital in an exam:

1. helps you to accomplish what you need to.
2. maintains your focus.
3. prevents you from leaving too early in an exam.
4. gives you an idea to how much time you can spend on each question.

Time management can be difficult especially in exams but it is worth the hassle in the end. It does get easier if you practise each day. By having a set schedule every day it gives you a sense of control in your own life. This prevents stress and exhaustion. By planning your day it will help you to achieve your goals. This is especially helpful in college life. By practising your timing everyday it will benefit you in the long run as it will help you in relation to class assignments, study plans and will improve your organisational skills.

By having a schedule in college life it will benefit you in relation to your social life. Also by controlling your time, it will enable you to maintain a healthy lifestyle. So you see time management effects almost everything. Without time management you would not be capable of maintaining exercise, assignments and of course socialising =).So go ahead and make the most of your time and master your life!.

Reference:

Effexis. (2004-2011). Time management for college students. Available: http://www.timethoughts.com/timemanagement/time-management-college-students.htm. Last accessed 27 November.

Effective revision

learning material such as books can be stressful for many students such as myself but there are many different ways of learning. As you know yourself, the work load always builds up at the end of the year or semester, no matter how hard you try to prevent it. In order to make learning as easy and enjoyable as possible you need to find what way you study best, no matter how weird or funny it might be. For me I learn best by first reading the material, than taking out what I find most important and than talking out loud. It is a long process but worth it if I can retain the information. For me, learning can be very exhausting and draining as I have to constantly talk therefore I have to take breaks within the hour.

Here are some tips which I think can be useful:

• dont spend hours studying, the mind can only hold so much.
• keep notes tidy and neat.
• test yourself before moving onto next topic.
• make time for exercise to de-stress.
• sleep is vital.
• eat healthy such as fruit.
• drink plenty of water.
• study in a quite room with no distractions.

The main thing when revising take your time. Don’t rush through everything. Do what you can and forget about the rest. Most importantly have a positive attitude when starting your revision as “it always seems impossible until its done” =).