Tough Decision

The decision I must make is based on the following three choices:  to stay with the current company in my current position and wait for an opportunity for a training position to come along; apply and accept an entry position with my current company ; or apply and accept a position with a new company.  These choices have several key positive and negative aspects.  I rate on the positive side time to finish school, gain specific company knowledge with my current employer, a better salary, benefits and opportunities to network.  On the negative side there is the loss of opportunity to fully use my skill set, losing out on opportunities to find a training position with another company or loss the of the networking connections already made.  Because there is no way to guarantee that any doors will open to the path I want to take, I can only take the very real steps toward the path I would like to materialize.  So as in the strategy in the text (between steps 4 and 5) suggests, I visualized myself in the future of my preliminary choice.  I know that if I apply and accept the entry level position I know is available with my current company, I would have to commit to one year before I could apply for any other position within the company.  However, I clearly see the pros to this choice; a better salary, benefits, and a good schedule that would not conflict with my schooling. That is very important.  Another two benefits are gaining knowledge of the company’s products, procedures and customers.  This knowledge would give me the foundation I need to be able to apply for a training position.  I’m aware that department trainers are often selected based on their knowledge in a particular business segment of the company.  I’m also aware that team trainers are charged with training the new hires, and they are selected from the business segment teams.  I saw this as a way of getting some training experience within the company.  So when a training position becomes available, I would have current training experience, as well as, specific business segment knowledge, and at least two and a half years of employment history with the company.  The company often hires from within.  Taking all of the aforementioned information into consideration, I believe that the decision to apply and accept an entry level position with my current company would be the best decision to make.  I’m open to opinions, suggestions or ideas, so please feel free to offer them.  Thanks for taking the time to read and consider my decision

Personal Journal 6.12.11

   Over the course of this term I've become aware of many new concepts. The information I read in Learning Styles Perspective has been the most eye opening for me because it seem to speak directly to my natural learning style. I say natural because I didn't choose it, it chose me. The more I read about learning styles the more I understood why I learn the way I learn. This alone gave me a sense of who I am as a learner and how to be a better instructor.
  As a part of this insight I became aware that I have a combination learning style. Primarily an auditory then a visual learner. Now I understand why I read out loud and must break new information into pieces as well as make connections between the parts in order to understand the whole. I just thought I became easily overwhelmed by unfamiliar data. I didn't know that I had to learn new information sequentially, but now I don't feel confused by my own study habits.
   This alone has improved my learning process because I can adjust, with confidence, my learning strategies to enhance my learning. I tried and was successful in suppressing my running commentary. I actually would try to talk out loud to drown out the voice in my head. I was a mess when it came to studying. My time management will also be better because I will incorporate thinking and wait times into my strategy.
   Understanding the components of my learning styles has already helped me, I can fill in any holes I have with concrete and tangible building blocks. I'm so excited to have answers to questions that I honestly didn't know were questions I had about my way of learning. I just thought I had a learning handicap of some sort, so I just worked around it. Not knowing I was just working very hard against myself, making learning a struggle and very difficult. I know I will have to break some really bad habits to be completely successful, but it will be worth it.