Describe An Issue Of Personal Concern Essays (663 words)

Describe An Issue of Personal Concern I am violently warring for peace. I know this is a paradox, and I'm rather proud because it is true. Passivity has been a lifelong threat, laziness a constant lure in my search for identity. This world begs me to succumb to existing in the image of someone else, it asks only that I slip silently and blindly into the niche it provides instead of carving my own. I required a long time to work up courage to fight for the serenity I had glimpsed in hot summer woods and in lovingly handled books read late until the early morning. Doubt had established itself in my mind at some early age, when or why I do not know, and I could trust any person or group more than myself. Doubt begat fear, and fear gave birth to obscuring myself from the eyes of the world while I was a child. Now, I am dedicated to the fight, after over five years of fear and immobility. I rejected the easiest way out of life, and demanded truth. I strengthened my body as I strengthened my mind against the attacks I faced. When I was fifteen I started Tae Kwon Do, the martial arts class that was offered through my school. I learned more about blocking, kicking, and punching in the first two weeks of that class than I had known my entire life. My once powerless body, petite and thin, could knock the wind out of someone with a well placed punch, and I could kick people taller than me in the head. So what I could do, I did, and now my friends instinctively block when they see me grin mischievously in their direction. I am content to know I have taught them something useful. Last spring for the third time in a row, I shakily accepted my teacher's hand as he congratulated me on second place in women's division sparring. It was a bittersweet triumph, three times now I have lost to the same girl. She has become an icon for everything I wish to triumph over in this world. She is beautiful, hair like black silk, impeccable taste in clothing,makeup like a Renaissance painting, and average when it comes to everything else. I watch her silently stride into art class on three inch heels, skirt above her knee, no runs in her stockings, and manicured nails smoothing invisible wrinkles from he shirt. I look down at myself, one of my shirt buttons missing, securely replaced with a safety pin, my comfortable green pants provide freedom of movement if little style, and my sturdy black shoes have been with me for three years. I hear my voice laughing almost too loudly, physics notes are sticking out of my sketchbook, and I am well aware of that I am not average. I fight this opponent I have created and what she represents not because she chooses to live her life by the beauty standard, and not because I feel inferior. We are at war because no one outside of Tae Kwon Do class ever sees what she is capable of. They don't know that those perfectly moisturized hands can break through boards or leave your head spinning. No one knows that those feet captured in three inch heeled prisons can leave you hurting for days, bruised where you blocked, bruised and bleeding where you failed to. I fight her because she is a symbol of how I tried to hide myself and my potential. I'm tired of being afraid of how the world will respond to me, and I war against the part of myself that would rather just please fashion magazines and popular concepts. Peace comes from accepting my identity, not from hiding it. I will laugh loudly at outside ideas of who I am supposed to be, kick down the opposition to my goals, and I will continue to fight until I have my peace.

10 Things Hiring Managers Wish You Knew When Applying For Jobs

10 Things Hiring Managers Wish You Knew When Applying For Jobs There is a lot of advice about how to interview out there. But the people we should really be asking for advice about the interview process are the people who conduct those interviews- the hiring managers. Here are the 10 things hiring managers wish you knew. Make their jobs easy, and you just might get the job.1. Be early, but not too earlyWhatever you do, do not be late. That said, if you show up 30-45 minutes early, you could really distract or annoy the hiring manager, who might have better things to do and not want to interview you on the fly. If you end up at the office with this much time to spare, grab a coffee or do some last minute prep on your own before going in. Aim to be 10-15 minutes early. Most hiring managers agree that is the sweet spot.2. Don’t apply unqualifiedIf you don’t meet 85% or more of what the job description says they’re looking for, don’t bother interviewing. The hiring manager will just feel like you are wasting his time. Mak e sure you meet the minimum requirements (and that you go a few steps beyond as well) before going in for an interview. You don’t have to be perfect or overqualified, just not obviously underqualified.3. Do your homeworkToo many applicants head into the interview room without doing research into the company, their potential manager, or their role in the industry at large. Don’t fall victim to this laziness.Do your homework! Look up specifics! Familiarize yourself with the company’s workings, their numbers, and their day-to-day operations. This will impress the interviewer and give you plenty of topics about which to converse. Don’t go in the room until you feel comfortable reciting in one sentence what the company does and why. Internalize the narrative and tailor your answers to emphasize how well you understand what they are looking for.4. Treat it like a first dateInterviews can be a bit like speed dating, and that’s okay. It’s your chanc e to see whether the company would be a good fit for you, and their chance to see whether you’d be a good fit for their culture. Chances are, if you got the interview, you’re already a technical fit given your qualifications and experience. You’re in the room to get to know each other. Treat it like a date; don’t talk too much about yourself. Ask questions. Listen. Be respectful, but also make sure to show off your best traits.5. Bring questionsPart of doing your homework is coming armed with questions. You will be asked. Make sure you don’t get caught without a good one. Think of what you’re curious about that you weren’t able to find online or on the company’s website. When in doubt, ask about some of the specifics for the position you’d be filling, or potential growth opportunities within the company.6. Lead with your software skillsBefore you even show up for the interview, you need to convince the hiring manager tha t you have the skills necessary to be qualified in the first place. If you don’t already have a list of all the software programs in which you are proficient, put that in immediately. If they see that you’re a rockstar with the one program they use most, you’re almost guaranteed to get an interview.7. Don’t lieIf you lie, either on your resume or during the interview, you will almost certainly get caught. Resumes and references are checked. Fluffing yourself up a little is a human tendency; a little spin on your accomplishments in one position might be justified. Just don’t bend the actual truth. And be prepared to prove yourself.8. Say thank youThere is no excuse for not sending an immediate, handwritten thank you note. Or at very least, a thank you email.9.  Be patientNothing is likely to get you bumped out of the running more than constantly badgering the hiring manager about when the decision will be made. Ask for a timeframe for decision-mak ing when you’re in the room, then don’t make a peep until a day or two beyond that. A short, respectful follow-up email will do. And if you don’t hear back? You didn’t get the job.10. Know that hiring managers are people tooPut yourself in your hiring manager’s shoes for a second. They see dozens of people. It’s your job to make their job easier, and to make yourself memorable. It’s also your job to ask the questions you need answered; don’t just assume this information will be handed to you.Imagine meeting with a person who has been looking at three hundred similar resumes for the same position. Try to dazzle them. They’ll thank you for it, even if you don’t get this particular job. And it’s a great skill to learn for next time.

Reducing Secondhand Smoke on Children Research Paper - 1

Reducing Secondhand Smoke on Children - Research Paper Example in Shaw et al., 2012). Equally important, the numbers of children who report second-hand smoke at home has largely increased over time. Quite surprisingly however, most of the children who report second hand smoke exposure point out that they have at least one of their parents smoking (Shaw et al., 2012). This therefore shows that there is a very close correlation between the pervasiveness of second-hand smoke exposure in children in homes and the increasing number of people who smoke. In the disadvantaged areas where smoking rates are higher than the average and the rehabilitation rates are lower, the topic of second-hand smoke exposure has become a major issue that has affected the children. To elaborate, previous researchers have found out that socio-economic status of people living in different areas has largely influenced the prevalence of people smoking due to lack of employment or sufficient income, overcrowding, poor housing or homelessness, and single parenting among others (Shaw et al., 2012). This can largely be attributed to the fact that smoking has been widely used by people as a means of virtually reducing their stress, more so when they face the mentioned economic conditions. Equally important, Shaw et al., point out that the cases of smoking in homes is more dominant among poor or low income parents (2012), and thus due to this fact, the people who come from a lower social group face the challenge of becoming addicted to smoking as compared to the people who come from higher social group. Besides, the people who reside in areas that are of lower socioeconomic status have less chances of experiencing or having a total ban on smoking in their homes relative to the individuals who reside in areas that are of high socioeconomic status. Besides, Shaw et al., contend that introduction of smoke free legislation will result to the reduction of cotinine levels among the children (2012). However, it is worth noting that Akhtar