the laaast post!

So here I am…sitting here on my last day at 4:15 thinking about packing up all of my stuff and remembering when my desk was so empty on my first day. It sure has been quite an experience and it will be one that I will never forget. I have learned so much about not only the working world, but myself. Coming into this co-op, I had absolutely no clue what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. SHM has truly shown me so many new things about myself and it is because of the people that taught me along the way.

Meredith: Dang. What am I going to do without you every Monday to Friday? I’m probably going to go through withdrawal or something. You were my little buddy throughout this entire experience and I literally don’t know what I would’ve done without you. Can we please have play dates ASAP? I’ll most definitely be coming in to have lunch with you. Miss you lady!

Jake: Hey there buddy! Thanks for all the jokes these past 6 months. I know I’ll be seeing you around campus and you better not ignore me when I scream your name…because I will.

Christine: Where do I begin? You have made this co-op experience more amazing than I could’ve ever imagined. You taught me so much and really made me feel like I was part of the family. From the first day to the last you answered all of my questions and I know you loved it! Thank you so much for everything! It has been a joy being your MA and good luck with school and everything!

Vernita: Vernitz!! I’m going to miss passing your desk all the time and hearing you say “CARLYYY!” Thank you for including me in the booth…it was such a great experience! Good luck with your masters! Keep up those 100% on your tests! PS – I’m mad at you for not saying bye!

Ashley: Hey lady! Working with you on the promo products was probably my most rewarding experience. You knew exactly what type of change I needed! Thanks for everything!

Katie: I will forever remember our lunch’s at John’s. Thank the lord we didn’t have a “3rd” one. Hopefully see you in Florida! Can’t wait for the wedding ;)

Celisse: Thanks for the fun chats. I’ll miss hearing you call “Kaaat?” everyday multiple times a day!

Kari: Thanks for everything!! Hopefully I’ll see you again soon outside of the office! Except this time it won’t be a secret!

Jacqui: Even though we haven’t spent much time working together, I know you’re going to be great here. You’re so nice and aren’t afraid to speak your mind. Enjoy it!

Kat: I’m gonna miss you saying “bless you” every time I sneeze! Thanks for putting up with my random questions and requests! I hope you marry that flyer soon…I expect to be invited to the wedding missy.

John: I will forever remember “Why not?” It is definitely my new slogan for life. Thanks for everything!

Todd: You truly are the reason why this co-op program is so unique. You make it one of a kind and I can speak for all of the past MA’s when I say we greatly appreciate it. Thank you so much for everything you’ve taught me, and even though I didn’t like when you said “I trust you” I know you meant it for the best. Maybe I’ll see you in class…uh oh :)

Thanks again for everything!! I’ll miss you all and don’t worry…I’ll be thinking of you next week when I’m soaking up that Florida sun!

I don't really need to say goodbye since I'm only leaving for a week..BUT to Carly & Jake, you know I will be seeing BOTH of you around for your respective reasons.

Hope you both had a great 6 months! ADIOS

Thanks a Bunch!

Thanks a bunch!

I just wanted to say thank you to Carly and Jake for everything that you have done here. Everything you completed here has made a difference and I want to thank you both for that. A special shout out for Meredith who has helped me and the other MA’s through this process … don’t ever want to do this without you! As for Jake, thank you for the laughs and for everything you did here. As for Carly, I feel as though I must write a little something extra for you! Thank you for everything you have shown me while you were here. You not only learned a lot about yourself but you taught me a lot too. I’ve learned more about being a leader and I want to thank you for that. Little did you know … you were a great teacher to me as well! Keep up your confidence because you have proven yourself here and I want to exude a new found confidence in your work and your ability. It has been a please working with you.

For laughs & Memories …

Jake: I will always remember you as Sweet Little Baby Jesus, Bringing in the Volleyball to get John and I in trouble, and you bugging me every Friday! I’m going to miss you!

Carly: I will always remember watching Deal or No Deal at lunch, working with you every day, the day you got accepted to go to Prague and I will personally take with me everything you taught me throughout your time here! Come back and visit!

Meredith: Not sure if I am supposed to say something about you … but I will always remember our rubber band wars, your “original crew” and our lunch time chats. You will be back so see you soon!

I want to leave you with one final thought …. “You cannot change what happens, you can only change how your react to it!” Please take what you learned here and make the best of it. Hopefully this experience can take you further then you imagined. And please … help TVD say “he knew you when”!

Is Change Necessary?

I don't know what I will change with the new group of co-op students. Everyone has their own personality so I am sure that I will have to adjust myself to make sure that I am giving them a fair opportunity, especially after working with a great class like you guys.

It's always hard to lower your expectations, but it's necessary to give everyone a fair shot.

I will always be Vernita, but tweaks are needed in our journey through life.

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end...

Alright everyone.

It's Monday. It's Jake & Carly's final Monday here at SHM. It is my final Monday as a co-op student, ever. It's the final blog post in Collective Reality for some of us.

SO let's take this final post as a "final goodbyes, thoughts, etc." Write you goodbye letter and final thoughts for those to come, those who have been here, and those who are currently here. You can write to each individual person (in your department, obviously), or to your department as a whole.

We did this last March, so if you want to see what I' m talking about, check out the post I wrote last year.
http://collectivereality.blogspot.com/2009/03/as-we-go-on-we-remember-all-times-we.html

"special question"

4.12.2010-5:00 PM

PS - Did I say thank you?

For those of us staying:

Well I hope I’ll be hanging around here … my review is sneaking up on me lol. I learned many things over the past 6 months. I learned a lot about myself. I learned a lot about my leadership style and what is effective and what isn’t. All of that learning came directly from my friends on the other side of the wall. Carly was my inspiration throughout these past 6 months. She stepped in and took control and I don’t know what I am going to do without her. She helped me realize different training methods as well as trusting that she can take on more than I had hoped. I’m gonna miss ya kid! And, Meredith I will forever be grateful for your leadership throughout the MA process as well as for all the laughs. Thanks for being my partner in rubber band wars! And Jake … AKA Buddy or Sweet Little Baby Jesus, thank you for always coming to visit me on Friday for my dashboard and helping me realize how I can help you get your work done as efficiently as possible. (Oh and Kat … you aren’t in here because you are a FULL-TIMER now, but I still love ya!)

This round of MA’s has shown me how to make this process better. From going through this a second time, I realize now what works, what needs improvement, and how to prepare for the next round of MA’s. I appreciate all that the MA’s have taught me and am inspired by everything that I learned. I want to thank the MA’s for everything that they have completed as well as everything they taught me. Also, one special shout out for Carly … because she had to put up with me for 6 months.

THANK YOU!

Cant wait for my last blog post....

JUST KIDDING MEREDITH...haha. Well my first co-op is coming to a close and it has been awesome. As far as my next two co-op's go, Im hoping to expand my skills past what they already are, grow my knowledge of business, branch out from current responsibilities and continue to grow my strengths and identify/work on my weaknesses. I see co-op as a way to identify strengths and weaknesses and work on them, BEFORE getting your first real job after graduation. It really allows for the learning curve to shrink or maybe even become a non-factor. I hope i learn as much as I have here at my next co-ops and I have the opprotunity to reflect and say "yea, this was worth it and I am better because of it" Thats probably my main goal in the co-op program. To become a better person and employee out of it. Personally, I think im off to a wonderful start thanks to everyone in M&M and the rest of the SHM family.

I wish I was in North Carolina

I'm almost done! But not quite.

Come April, when I start working here part-time, and NOT as an intern/co-op, etc. (finally), my role will be working in HR with Krystal, and pretty much learning what it takes to run a department with Todd. I don't have much to say about it, except that I am really excited to get more experience in different aspects of business. Hopefully it will help me decide what I want to do for a career.

I'm anxious to see the co-op results on Tuesday, and I hope the transition is smooth! YAY!

Happy Friday

bye bye birdie...

It's crazy thinking that next week will be my last ever blog post on Collective Reality. I can't believe my one and only co-op is coming to an end. What do I want to do when I graduate? Well, I definitely want to take time off and travel as much as I can...or just do things I know I wouldn't be able to do once I settle into a full time job. To quote John Stelmachowitz "why not?" Why not travel or do whatever comes to mind once I'm out of school? Since I don't really have a plan, I guess I can't really say what I will be doing. Just wish me luck! :)

dot dot dot

2 more weeks.
10 more days.
The end is near! (For some of us, anyway)

So for those of us moving on: What will you be looking for in your next co-op? If you don't have another co-op, what would you like to be doing once you graduate?

For those of us staying: What did you learn in these past 6 months, that you hope to continue, or change with the new round of Drexel students we have coming in?

Special question for Kat: when will you be coming home at 5pm with me again!? Love yaaa.

I just realized how much I actually have to do in these last 2 weeks before co-op is over. Besides all of the work, I am really excited to be one step closer to knowing what kind of career I want for my future. Also, I am super excited to get all of the promotional products done! I can't wait to see the sweet tote bags, etc.

Along with Meredith, I am also going on Erin Express this weekend! Woot I'm legal! My friends and I got shirts designed and my nick name is car-bomb...pretty awesome if I do say so myself. Compliments of miss Emily Woods! Have a fantastic weekend!

In the next 2 weeks, I would like to accomplish...

Every HM10 related design. We're on our way :) Which is why I am making this a super short post and am now going to get back to work.

I can't believe its March already!

Just 2 more weeks left, things that I would want to accomplish are-

Update the QI Assistant Toolkit ( It had all the resources for the next intern explaining her tasks in detail)
Thats my coop goal and I would also want to complete the staff development project that I was recently given. I don't think I am expected to complete it because it might take a while, but I would want to at least provide the next intern a platform so its easy for her to finish it.

As far as personal goals are concerned, the more people remind me about just 2 weeks left till the coop ends, I am reminded of my Dental Admission tests which is exactly in 2 weeks too. I am really nervous because I've been studying for this exam for at least 6 months now and I just have those 4 hours of exam to prove myself. Hopefully I'll do fine..

Have a great weekend everyone!

most pathetic post ever

In the next 2 weeks (because today is Friday) I hope to accomplish:

-Progress on the MA website
-RESOURCE GUIDE...come onnnn

That's pretty much the two pieces I would be really proud to complete. Unfortunately, more important things keep getting in the way. AHHHH.

I'm seeing Alice in Wonderland tonight in 3-D, I am pumped.
Also, I am experiencing my very first Erin Express tomorrow! AHH Wish me luck.

I chose the word commitment. Being committed to something is a huge part of being successful. I think this word encompasses passion, dedication, and so many other words that were on our original list. I wanted to share my opinion with what I think needed to be included in the definition. Overall, I am happy with the outcome.

Branding Sess

Well I was actually taken away from the group that I originally chose, (I'm sorry...I thought this was AMERICA) and was placed into the group working on the term 'hard-working'. I actually liked being a part of the discussion though. We really worked to redirect the message that we were given. We felt as if it was mis-construing the message and we needed to re-work it. After much discussion and revisions we finally were able to come to a definition that we felt demonstarted how hard work is a part of the culture here at SHM.

It won't be long

Hello!

Can you believe we only have three more weeks of co-op? I can't believe this is my very last co-op. I've been looking forward to this day for literally 3 years. I'M ALMOST DONE COLLEGE.

Anyways, with three weeks left, what is the one thing you really want to accomplish?

Vernita - since you're a full-timer, what is something you might change when the new co-ops start? What will you keep the same?