My expectations definitely prepared me to begin my internship, but I did not realize how different it would be from my classes. People in professional, work settings have very practical goals and, as a result, treat assignments differently. When we peer review each other in class, most of us are some degree of reserved. At work, no one can afford to reserve themselves because money is most likely on the line. Motivation changes and the work output is much greater. I've had to change my work schedule. I used to like to write during the evening or night, but as I mention before, working in the morning around coworkers forces you to listen to others' ideas and not focus on just your own. Revision is good. I've learned that I'd rather revise 20 times than make an error simply because I'm being stubborn. Sometimes, a particular task may take longer than a day, and I may have to devote entire days to that one task. Everything I mentioned in an earlier post is still true, but I have definitely expanded on these skills and experiences since then.
First my writing habits stand as always. When I write during the day (usually just when I have time or get the urge), I am definitely very coherent and employ complete ideas. Like one of the students in Portfolio Keeping, I often expect my readers understand what I'm saying without fully explaining myself. I usually don't have to revise my logical writing more than once or twice. However, I write more meaningfully at night. I anticipate the audience's questions and focus more on the message than the means in which I'm sending it. While I think this type of writing is more persuasive, I usually revise up to 5 or 10 times (and sometimes more). Which mode of thought is more effective depends on the assignment.I've found myself being too cautious about writing in my internship. I become unmotivated because I'm unsure if I'm doing something the correct way. My hesistance could be due to the flexibility of my work. However, lately I've been very motivated to finish projects because midterm has passed. Now that I feel pressured by time, I'm trying new programs and processes and just revising later. This is working and I hope to continue pushing through my work instead of leaving it for later. Working on every aspect of a project at once is not working either. I've started focusing on one aspect of a document per day (since my time is limited). For example, one day I will research topics, the next I might work on organization or visual design.Looking back, I realize that I thought revising many times was bad practice. In fact, depending on the type of writing, several revisions may be necessary. I hope to move forward with this thinking and to continue focusing on one aspect at a time.
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That is a lot of revision. I wish I could force myself to do that. You say you become unmotivated because you're unsure if you're doing something the correct way. This is one thing I am good at and something which you're ability to revise several times is perfectly suited to.
ReplyDeleteJust start. Write. Force yourself to put something down. That has worked for me for years in many more areas than just writing papers. Anytime I am unmotivated because of the size of a job or an uncertainty about what a person wants out of it, it is best just to start doing something. With something tangible--and at least with writing, cheap--its a great way to get things done. You then have a point of reference from which to get solid feedback, feedback which will be of more use than that provided from vague or general questions about a project. So again, just start doing it, you can always go back and change it. And I'm sure, with five to ten revisions, you'll have plenty of opportunity to do that.
Again, you do fine reflective work here. I mentioned this same thing in response to an earlier post of yours, but I appreciate your change toward a writing strategy in which you're focusing on single aspects of a project at once. That seems to me a good approach to addressing a related concern that you mention earlier in this post -- your sense that sometimes you're not explaining particular ideas fully enough for your readers. Focus on a single paragraph at a time or a single design feature at a time can be a great way to really consider how your audience is going to read and make sense of Part X or Part Y or Part Z of a document.
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