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          As I expected from the career portfolio, these first learning log activities would enable me to develop my professional skills and attitude towards applying for a job and/or placement. 

          The first task, the BrandMe poster, was originally perceived to be difficult, as I had never encountered such a poster before, nor knew how to write a BrandMe (personal) statement. However, after researching how to write an effective statement, I could then create my own.           The content allowed me to explore my own strengths and weaknesses, which I might not have done otherwise. It was important for me to carry out a SWOT analysis in order to accurately create my own personal brand. -- Employers want to know that applicants are authentic, genuine people; self-awareness is an essential skill to develop.            Presenting to a class is easy for me when I am in a group, however this task required individual presentations, which made me feel uncomfortable and nervous. I had written notes down on paper, but forgot to use them. -- An obvious mistake. In retrospect, I can ensure that this doesn’t happen again and should practice the presentation beforehand, as this would help to build my confidence when presenting alone.

          The second task was to write a CV and covering letter for a company of my choice; I chose to apply for Bosch’s Corporate Communications Assistant.  Although I had written a CV before, it had been years since I had done so. I felt worried at first, in case I didn’t have enough experiences to write about, but used the example CV and checklist from Purple Door to extract all relevant skills from my volunteering experience, as well as extra-curricular activities.            The covering letter was far more challenging. I felt very concerned about this final part of the career portfolio; I had no idea where to start. I looked online, searching for sources to aid me in such an unfamiliar area. In the end, I tried my best, as I knew I would be getting feedback before the final submission.

          The feedback, as mentioned above, was from a review meeting at Purple Door with Jacqui Adams and my ‘study buddy’ from my seminar group. This was by far the most useful part of the career portfolio, as it allowed me to get feedback and reflect on what I had done right and wrong, prior to this blog post. It was also interesting to see another person’s CV, and I was also able to take advice given to them, such as optimising the use of space and layout of each section.           Jacqui suggested to use more interesting ways to make our CVs stand out from other candidates by using different colours and formats; to demonstrate our skills of graphic design. This is definitely something that I wish to implement in the future, now that my CV is fully updated.