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1. Present yourself well.  "straighten name tag, pops a mint and strides the crowd."
2. Do as much research as you can on the people attending.
3. Try and stand out with your outfit
4. Be prepared to give and receive business cards.  One pocket for outgoing, one for incoming, no fumbling.
5. Walk with purpose.  Look like you are having a good time.
6. Start at the food table.  People tend to be much more accessible around food.
7. Carry food in your left hand so you can shake with your right.
8. Circle the room once to read name tags and see if there is anyone you remember from your research.  
9. Approach VIPs and speakers before they present.  They will be swamped afterwards.
10. Try and talk to people who are alone.
11. Ask about other people, and when presenting yourself, say your name at the end so they are more likely to remember you.
12. Always shake hands at the start and the end of a conversation, it shows you are open and willing to talk.
13. Ask open ended questions to find out if the person will be of any use to you.
14. Be ready and willing to exchange business cards. 
15. Try and get someone to introduce you to someone new.  It is taken as an endorsement of you. 
16. Make sure there is some give and take.  Try and find out if you can help the other person with something, and if so, do it.  This makes they feel obliged to help you in return.
17. Remember that your goal is to not close any deals.  You are there to find a contacts that you can follow-up with, over a phone call or a coffee.

KIVA and Kickstarter

KIVA

Nizami from Azerbaijan deserves money from our class.  He is a market vendor that sells many common food items, like flour, butter, and candy.  Many people depend on his business   If it were to close down, people would be left without a place to buy their food.  It says that it is his second loan, and that he has good history.  This means that we don't have to be worried about making the money back.

Kickstarter

I believe that we should donate our money to FRC team 3992.  Robotics is near and dear to my heart, and this team is clearly struggling for money.  If we were to donate to this team, it would provide inspiration to about 30 students, as stated in their kickstarter.  Our money will provide them with everything from miter saws to registration fees.  I would love to see our money going to something like this, as I know the personal impact that they will have upon receiving the money.

Creative Writing

My Story

Throughout high school I was always that person who took the most difficult classes, spent hours upon hours volunteering, and joined every sports team I could.  After-school camps, volleyball, robotics, anything I could possibly think of.  My friends all said I was crazy.  They said that with all these things that I did, I wouldn't have time to do well in school.  They said my marks would drop.  Unfortunately, they were correct.  I had to take 2 extra years of high school to get enough credits to graduate.  I had failed english twice, and computer science once.

My family encouraged me to go to university, but I knew I wouldn't do well.  Thanks to all my networking and volunteering that I did, I was able to land an entry level job at an engineering firm.  My family was amazed that I was able to land the job, seeing how I was lacking education.  Unfortunately, my lack of education started to show through.  I was fired from my job and had to move back into my parents house.

I was determined at this point to make a name for myself.  My parents said they were willing to pay for me to go to collage, but I knew that if I did that, I wouldn't be able to make a name for myself.  I would just be another guy in another job.   I wanted to be famous, Neil Armstrong famous.  I was going to beat the world record for largest free fall, set by Felix Baumgartner.  After years of work, and many failed attempts, I was able to successfully claim the record, my name was spoken with respect around the world.

Finding Purpose

1.       Make a list of reasons why you are in school which come from your parents, culture and other external influences.

• To learn how to be successful in the future
• To gain the qualifications I need to enter university
• To meet my parents expectations
• To socialize
• To prepare for work life
  
  

2.       Explain why you come to school, why your grades are what they are and relate it to your effort. Are you getting the grades you want according to your goals?

The primary reason that I am in school is the gain the qualifications I need to enter university.  This is directly related to the grades I receive.  In general, I am happy with my grades.  My science and French marks especially.  To meet the requirements for university, I need advanced functions and calculus.  To be able to succeed in those math classes, I need to put more effort into math now.  My math grade is not where I want it to be.  I will start to put more effort into math, and then my grade should start to meet my goals.

3.       What goals you have made this year and achieved? Think of small goals too (making a sports team, winning something, doing well in an assignment). If none – explain why.

·       Captain of the volleyball team

·       Mentored a middle school robotics team

·       Achieved an 85% grade 9 average

·       Made it through culminatings with limited coffee consumption

·       Got a summer job doing something I enjoy

·       Completed my volunteer hours, and then some

·       Competed in an international robotics competition

4.       Name some goals do you have in the next 4 years? If none, explain why

·       Get 10 hours of sleep a night

·       Maintain an 85% average throughout high school

·       Continue to participate in the school volleyball team

·       Attend the University of Waterloo for mechanical engineering

·       Continue to have an active role mentoring middle school robotics teams.

·       Continue to participate on my high school robotics team

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Cover Letter Rankings

1.

14, 18, 2, 12, 5, 7, 19, 17, 16, 11, 18, 3, 8, 4, 9, 15, 1, 10, 13, 6

2.

I ranked these 3 cover letters as the best because their formatting was appropriate   They were able to effectively convey their message through their cover letters.  Everything included was pertinent to the job.  Their background's, in relation to math, were also effectively conveyed.  Their grammer and spelling is impeccable.

3.

I don't think that much effort was put into these cover letters, particularly applicant 6.  6 lines really doesn't meet my standards.  It did not have enough substance to make me want to hire this person.  "As my qualifications meet your requirements, I welcome any further contacts with you."  This seems very cocky to me.  These cover letters did not give me a very good vibe about the people who wrote them.

Resume Rankings

1.

20, 13, 4, 7, 14, 2, 10, 15, 19, 5, 16, 12, 8, 17, 18, 21, 1, 6, 3, 11, 9

2.

20-This person blew everyone else out of the water with the prior experience in regards to tutoring.  This person also showed that they are proficient in math, due to the awards listed.  They also listed that they helped raise students math average, which is one of the goals of math clinic.

13-This person had the best layout, however they were lacking the abundance of experience that 20 had.  This person showed how hard they worked due to the numerous accolades mentioned.

4-Although this person's experience in math is somewhat lacking, they have previous experience tutoring.  Prior experience is a big look for in my opinion.

3.

3-This person got the name of the school wrong.  He called it "Danforth Tech Collegiate." This shows minimal effort on their part.  Typing "Danforth Collegiate and Technical Institue" doesn't take too long.

11-I believe that slag is unacceptable in a resume.  The fact that this person want to "grab the position of a math tutor" shows to me how unprofessional this person is.

9-This person is clearly overqualified for the job.  He stated he started working on gas systems in 1992.  If we assume this was straight out of university, then he graduated high school in 1988.  This would mean he is about 42 now.  This age gap would ostracize him from the other tutors.

Living Expenses

Food:

I predict I will eat out once a week, which will cost about $30 a week, or $120 a month.

Rent:

Rent is the listed price of the apartment I have chosen.  This apartment includes electricity, water, and gad.

Savings:

Savings are broken down into 4 things; Car, Wedding, House, and RRSP

Car will cost me $5000 over 5 years, or $84 a month

Wedding will cost me $14000 over 8 years, or $146 a month.

A bungalow will cost me $580333 over 30 years, or $1614 a month

I read that an RRSP is typically 6% of your income.  As an aerospace engineer, I would make $97480 a year.  $97480 a year = $8123 a month.  6% of $8123 = $487 a month.

$84+$146+$1614+$487=$2231

My after tax income would be $71 174.  This is significantly greater than my yearly expenses of $54 672, therefore I will survive!