Secret War Journal[31 July 2009]

Another week went by! That was fast.

I foresee that this post will be rather long, so bear with me. ;)
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Prelims 2 Marks 2009 Part 1
So far, I'm not very happy with my results.

• Chemistry -- 59.2 [C5]
• Combined.Humans -- 69 [B3]

Not a single A yet! OMG! I fared really badly for these two subjects. I feel so sad. Chemistry, I can understand but combined.humans?

This is like Secondary One all over again. Argh. I need to see As. (Someone help me pray for As for the rest of the subjects. ;)

On the bright side, Mrs Hay said that my Chemistry marks should be rounded up to 60[B4]
Then it won't be so bad.

And I'm in the process of claiming one mark for my Combined Humans. Wish me luck on that. :D

English Paper 2
I got it back and the results weren't as disappointing as the other two aforementioned. I scored 32/50. I was not expecting to get the top position for this Paper 2 for my class(still not confirmed! Hahas)

Anyway, I hope my Paper 1 would be just as good, then my english would have improved way lots! Hahas.

And on top of that, this prelims would be memorable. Wanna know why? Because....

That's right! I wrote some funny answers on the Question Paper. I'm quite proud of it.

Please note, however, that these are not model answers and should not be used as learning aid or for educational purposes. There are simply meant for entertainment. ;)

Elementary & Additional Mathematics Paper 1

• E.Maths -- 72+1/80
• Add.Maths -- 62/80 (I think, I sort of forgot)

Here's something I think is funny(okay, that was evil of me)

I wanted to claim 2 marks from Mrs.Sim because she marked Cynthia's Answer(which is same as mine) correct but mine wrong. So I went over and it turned out that the answer was wrong(talk about false hope) and I sort of made Cynthia's marks reduced by 2 marks(my bad!)

But I need to thank her on one matter, because she lost two marks, she argued for one mark to be claimed due to method marks. Since she got the one mark, I got it too(Because I had that method too, hahas).

So her marks overall were reduced by one while mine was added one mark. Sounds like she sort of 'transferred' one mark to my paper. Hahas. (okay, should not laugh at people's mishap)

Let me clarify, I'm laughing on the way I got one extra mark. ;)
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The Day there was Biology
That exams portion took you so long to reach here and guess what? It was just the beginning. (Told you this post would be long ;)

Next up, on Tuesday, my class and some other classes have no school on that day because of the fact that we have no exam papers on that day and hence we decided to go out and relax.

People who went(with me):

1. Christopher
2. Jing Ting, Jaytii
   
3. Lai Yin
4. Yan Zhi
   

This time, we have fewer people. Vanessa was feeling unwell and hence she did not come with us.

Well, it turned out that Vanessa still went out that day, with Bernice and co. She claimed that she recovered overnight(yes, hard to believe) and so can go out. Well, no matter what she claims(whether it was true or not), we have to respect her decision so no hostility there when we spotted her. Hahas.

After that, we went to Bugis for Lunch. Actually, I had lunch before meeting them but I ate all the same. Hahas. Of course, I did not order a full meal set. Just some side orders, which was just some garlic bread.
They decided to dine in "PastaMaina" for some pasta. I must admit, that was my first time dining there and I wasn't very impressed.(Partly because I don't really like pasta)
Nevertheless, they had a great meal and we went off to accompany Lai Yin to buy her musical tool(s), whatever that was.

So, you would be wondering, what's the freaking highlight of this outing? Obviously, our aim was not to wander around in the streets of Orchard. In fact, we haven't even reached out final destination yet. Yan Zhi was still not with us. (Surprised?)

Next Stop: HarbourFront
Yep! Insane as it sounded, I thought it was insane, we're heading towards VivoCity. Yes, the land of HarbourFront, on the opposite side of Sengkang, the great journey from the North to the East to the South. Ahh! We were really insane then. Hahas.
Now, of all places, where VivoCity, and why so far?

The reason lies with Jaytii - She wanted to watch a movie. In 3D(ah, the catch).
As to why this cinema, beats me. I'm pretty sure that isn't the only cinema in Singapore that offers 3D movies...

Oh well, so we go..the movie...:D

Ice Age 3: Dawn of Dinosaurs

Cute little poster, hahas. Basically, the 3D effects were really a let-down. Not much worth noting effects inside which is why I feel that we should had just watched in a normal movie environment. Sigh, I was expecting more...

As for the story, it's rich, funny and fresh. For that, I urge you all to watch this movie(if you hadn't)


P.S: I used my handphone on that day. Ironic, huh?
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Interview Skills Seminar
On 31 July 2009, our school invited NanYang Polytechnic to host Seminars for our graduating classes. I chose "Interview Skills" Seminar which I found enriching, hence I do not regret going to that class.

Basically, we were offered the following choices:

1. Business
2. Roller-Coaster Engineering(something like that)
3. Interview Skills
4. Infocomm Technology
5. Life Sciences
   
6. Media and Information Technology

Our class was rather special, majority of us went for Interview skills. The rest of the classes mostly rooted for Business.

Unless I can split myself into many pieces, I did not attend the other 5. So, I can only discuss about the Seminar that I attended.
--
Key Tips in Interview Skills

1. First Impression lasts
   
   1. It takes 7 seconds to make one.
   2. 55% of the time, the outcome is based on your appearance.
2. Accept Compliments (Don't deny them :o)
3. Use Good English. (Simple English would suffice)
4. Use interviewer's name occassionally (For interaction)
   
5. Avoid simple answers like "yes" and "no".
6. Do not lie (It's a big no-no)
7. Don't be a "know-it-all", it will sound cocky and arrogant.
8. Never make negative statements about your present or former schools/organisations.

Life Skills touched on

1. "The world is unfair". This is why first impressions are so important.
2. Learn to prioritise which is more important and spend more time on it. Do not spend too much things on trivial tasks.
3. Don't spend too much. Learn to manage finance well.
4. Overall, family is the most important, not the company. Avoid becoming a workaholic and end up being married to the company instead of your life partner.

Preparing for the Interview

• Investigate the target organisation/Do your homework or research.
• Study the job description.
• Practise answers to typical interview questions.
• Expect to explains problems area on your resume.
• Build interviewing experience with less important jobs first.

Possible problems area on Resume

• Time Gaps. In between your timeline, what did you do? For example, you graduated in 2007 but only got a job in 2009. What were you doing during 2008?
• It is not advisable to put in your school grades unless they were superb. Else, it serves no purpose.

Fighting Interview Fears

1. Video Record a practice session to see how you come across(if you can)
2. Rehearse your closing statement.
3. Prepare 110%
4. Practise More.
5. Know how to answer the most frequently asked Questions.
6. Get ready success stories such as your experience as a leader. (If you have Leadership positions). Hence, get such experience by taking up leadership posts.
7. Take deep breathes to calm down and think. It is useful when you're nervous.
8. Remember that during some parts of the interview, you will be in charge.
9. Remember that you are also assessing the interviewer, and his or her organisation. This should give you confidence. (For e.g. assessing their culture)

Sending Positive Message

1. Never be late
2. Be courteous
3. Dress Professionally
4. Wait for the receptionist to offer you a seat.
5. A right and firm handshake (skill)
6. Introduce yourself
7. Control body movements
8. Make eye contact but don't get into staring contest
9. Sound sincere and interested
10. Smile

--
Your face is the most important tool in non-verbal communication.
--
I did not copy down the Don'ts for the Female and did not copy finish the Don'ts for Male.
--
Don'ts(Male)

• Bad Breath
• Oily Hair
• Short Trousers

Important Areas of Interview

1. Communication Skills
2. Attitude
3. Motivations - Your goals
4. Potential

Different Interviewer Types

1. Dominance
   
   • Interviewer of this type are often impatient, direct, short and sharp.
   • To counter this, be brief and confident.
     
2. Influence
   
   • Interviewer of this type are often chatty which makes you at ease.
     
   • To counter this, remember to smile and tell stories to illustrate your points.
     
3. Steadiness
   
   • Interviewer of this type are often Patient
   • To counter this, speaker slower so that they can hear you properly and clearly.
     
4. Conscientious
   
   • Interviewer of this type are often questioning.
     
   • To counter this, be precise, be serious, and think before answering questions.

Closing the Interview

1. Stand up and shake hands again.
2. Ask when you would hear from them.
3. Thank the interviewer
4. Take notes of the interview when you reach home.
5. Write a thank-you letter to the interviewer and that you really like the job (if you're interested in getting the job)

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With that, I will end this post. It is getting too long and I want to revise for my Chemistry Practical Assessment Tomorrow. Until next time!