Monthly Archives: November 2011

Friday Things.

Posted on November 18, 2011 by Erica Wodzak| 2 Comments

This week there have been a ton of things on my mind, and it’s been hard to narrow them down to just a few. The weather in Vancouver is getting colder and rainier, and with the clock change a few weeks ago, it’s time to adjust to the sun going down at 5pm. Ah well, at least I can finally break out my favourite rain boots again. There’s just something so satisfying about walking in the rain and keeping your feet dry and warm. Take that, rain. Precipitation issues aside, here’s what’s been on my brain this week.

{peanut butter frozen yogurt pops}

I know that we’re coming into winter, and that it’s completely counter-intuitive to be loving ice cream-y things, but I can’t get enough of these little pops of yum. I’ve only recently stumbled upon the fabulousness that is greek yogurt, and when you combine it with peanut butter (which is as essential as oxygen to this girl’s bod), it’s instant bliss. And by instant I mean you have to wait for it them freeze first. It’s easy to make, with only four ingredients, so if you also share a love for all things peanut buttery, you can find the recipe here.

{my new snowboard helmet}

My mum and dad are very happy about this recent purchase–my new brain bucket. I stopped wearing my old one years ago, much to their chagrin, because I thought I looked totally uncool and that none of the other rad snowboarders would be my friend. No, not really, but I have found that my lack of courage on the mountain can sometimes be chalked up to the fear of trading my university education in for a vegetable brain. Not worth it. This year, I’m thinking I might do something totally insane and bad-ass: I might do an ollie or something.

{starbucks pumpkin lattes}

There’s nothing I love more this time of year than a starbucks latte, specifically pumpkin (surprise). But because I’m a thirfty girl, and refuse to justify a daily $5 latte habit, I’m going to share my secret to a budget friendly coffee treat with you. Instead of ordering the latte, get a regular coffee and ask for flavour syrup in it. It costs 50 cents to add the syrup to coffee, instead of the $3 more for the latte. If you’d like to add more than the usual dollop of milk (to better mimic the latte flavour), ask for your coffee in a cup one size larger, and add as much milk as you’d like. See? A latte (ish) for only $2.50. How great!

{homemade caramel corn}

If I had the time, I’d have made this weeks ago. I love caramel corn, and I have a ton of popcorn at home that’s begging to be eaten, so this would be a natural progression. If you, like me, are a sucker for this stuff (and hate buying it from the store because of all of the yucky additives), then you can find the recipe here. Now all you need is a good movie and your pyjamas!

{a great thought from a great mind}

Something for everyone to keep in mind. I recently read an article about the concept of a work-life balance, and its progression into a new concept called “work-life integration”. For most of us, our work is a large part of our lives. Why try to live and be happy in your non-9-to-5 hours? Why not be happy all the time? Do what you love, and love what you do. And if you don’t, it’s time to make a plan to figure out how you can. Do it, I dare you.

{snowy and dreamy}

I seriously love the way snow makes everything look. The way it sits in the trees and dusts the ground is just plain dreamy. Seriously. The snow has been falling up in Whistler, and I’m dying to get out to enjoy it. And even if you’re not a snow-lover like me, you can enjoy this wintery scene from the comfort and warmth of your own home. That way we can all agree on it’s beauty.

Filed under Here + There

Looking Good.

Posted on November 17, 2011 by Erica Wodzak| 1 Comment

Even though mum & dad taught us early on not to judge a book by its cover, we do anyway. Why? Because usually the cover can tell you a lot about a book… or a person. Of course, this isn’t always true, but I want to show you why it’s better to believe that it is.

Although I’m still young and have a lot of job roles and future employers ahead of me, my workplace experience is pretty extensive for someone my age. When I look back on the jobs I’ve had over the years, I start to remember some of my many colleagues and superiors, all from different cities and industries. I remember people who I immediately looked to and thought “wouldn’t it be nice to be that successful some day?” and others that made me think “he works so hard, and is such a smart person; why is he still in this department after so long?”.

I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting on my employment history, and trying to figure out how I can become one of those people who I had immediate respect for. What was it that instantly made me like them? It might’ve been any number of things, but I’m going to focus on just one of them for today: looking good.

A bit of effort here...

I’m not talking about trying to look like a VS supermodel at work or anything. I’m talking about looking put together, polished, and like a million bucks, even if you’ve only got a hundred to your name. There are people who take the time to get up in the morning and really think about what they’re going to wear, and people who do not. Even though both kinds of people can be hard-working, intelligent, and good at what they do, it’s easier to convey these qualities when you play to the effectiveness of snap judgements and first impressions.

...can help you fast track to here

The thing about working in an office is that it doesn’t take a $1000 suit or some Manolo Blahniks to garner peoples’ respect. You could be wearing a $30 shirt and your sister’s old pair of heels, and still look pretty great. Office attire for the most part is about quality and neutrality, not “the more you spend the better off you are”. This means wearing clothes that don’t stand out too boldly, and that can be worn multiple times in multiple ways. It’s like a giant mix-and-match. This is the best way for a new grad to build her wardrobe on a budget, without looking like she’s wearing the same thing every third day. And this is how I’ve learned to look and feel respectable, without having to shout it from the mountaintops (although I’ll find any reason to take a trip to the mountaintops).

Ain't nothing beats a classic skirt! (or proper english...)

A good place to start in building your wardrobe is with a good pencil skirt and a good pair of pants, in either black or another neutral colour (grey, beige, navy, or brown). Make sure whatever colour you buy is going to match with the other items you have.

I would also recommend getting at least a week’s worth of shirts and blouses. Button-up shirts can be great, as well as silk blouses that will go with your pants or your skirts. I didn’t buy enough at first and felt like my outfit options were getting exhausted very quickly… no good!

(L-R: 1, 2, 3)

These are some of my favourite shirt styles, but just make sure they're not too sheer (wear another shirt underneath if they are!)

Many people recommend getting yourself a good suit for your first job, but personally I don’t. It obviously depends on what type of workplace you’re in, but for most I’d say that this is unnecessary. Instead, I bought myself a well-fitting black blazer that can be worn with pants or a skirt, and possibly even a dress (although this isn’t really a necessity).

Always wear tights when you are wearing a dress or a skirt at the office. Black is best, but beige, grey, or other dark colours can also work. Whatever you do, don’t try to get too Gossip Girl and attempt yellow, red, or other brightly coloured tights. Most people have no idea that this might be “stylish”, and the result is that you’ll end up emphasizing age differences with your outfit. This is bad, as you do not want people to see you as being too young or inexperienced.

I do love bright tights, but just not at work

Get a couple of good pairs of shoes for the office. When I got hired, I bought myself a pair of black flats, black pumps, and nude pumps. This was a great place to start, and they’ve given me so much versatility in my outfit options. It’s also worth spending a bit more money on shoes that don’t hurt your feet (or getting insoles for them), because it would be very undoing of your efforts to have to take your shoes off at work!

(clockwise from top: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)

Some great shoe options similar to the ones I've purchased

Lastly, and something that I seriously overlooked, is the value of a couple good sweaters. In Vancouver, it doesn’t even get that cold outside (compared to my hometown in Ontario), but the office can be quite chilly. As a recently graduated student who loved to wear hoodies and yoga pants to class (yep, breaking the stereotype right there), most of my warm sweaters are too casual for the workplace. So if you work in a place that gets cold in the wintertime, definitely pick up something that will keep you warm and maintain the professionalism of your outfit.

I love this cardigan from H&M

One last thing to note: last year I made the mistake of trying to be too budget-friendly on my outfits. This resulted in me buying things that fell apart, wrinkled easily (and thus looked unkempt), or just didn’t sit right on my body–none of these is a recipe for looking great, nor are they comfortable to be wearing for 10 hours a day. So keep in mind that although you might not have a lot of money to spend on your new work wardrobe, sometimes sacrifices in the bank account need to be made.

(L-R: 1, 2, 3)

Another easy option for the office: dresses!

If you’ve got any other great ideas for other versatile work-wear, please feel free to share. I know that I haven’t even nearly exhausted all of the fun things you can wear and accessorize with when you’re on the job, but this was my list of absolute staples that hopefully will help you out too. Happy shopping!

Filed under Here + There

Co-ops & Internships: the perks and perils.

Posted on November 15, 2011 by Erica Wodzak| Leave a comment

Recently, I sat down to have a conversation with my cousin, who is midway through her final year of high school. Like I was so long ago (so, so long ago. gah!), she’s been picking through the engineering programs offered at a variety of universities across the country, trying to find the best one for her.

Anybody who’s done the same thing can tell you that it’s extremely overwhelming to comb through those glossy university booklets that each school hands out, trying to read between the lines and figure out how to tell the difference between them all. It seems that every school has “over 35 sports teams!” and “a student club that’s just right for you!”, but are these the kinds of things that make or break an institution? That all depends on the student.

But one thing that isn’t really pushed on students, or explained to them before they enter their first year, is the concept of working co-op education (which is what we call it in Canada) into your degree. Co-op, if you’re unaware, extends your degree, generally by a year, by inserting semesters of 4-month work terms throughout your semesters of coursework.

On a work term in Vienna, Austria, someone actually allowed me to operate a nuclear reactor

Obviously, there is a great benefit to this type of education. First of all, having the ability to gain practical, on-the-job experience prior to graduation will give you a leg-up on your job hunt when being compared to other less-experienced graduates (a serious bonus in this economy). But what I found most useful was the ability to work in a variety of fields in order to find what I liked or didn’t like; as a mechanical engineer, I worked in Aerospace, Nuclear Power, Nuclear Research, Cancer Research, and Ergonomics. All before I graduated!

Another great thing about co-ops and internships is that you typically don’t need to have a background in an industry to be hired into it. Employers are hiring you based on demonstrated interest and general competency (which definitely includes GPA, so study hard!), with the knowledge that you’re there to learn and grow, as opposed to post-grad when they are far more concerned with your skills and expertise.

A microfluidic chip- just one of the awesome & super nerdy projects I worked on for a co-op placement

So let’s get this straight: co-op can help you get relevant work experience before you graduate, it provides you with an opportunity to work in a huge variety of industry sectors, and it can help you figure out what the heck it is you want to do with your degree when you graduate? Are you sold yet? Hold on though, because there’s one more thing.

Depending on the degree you’re going to school for, there are potentially endless possibilities for where you can do your work placements. So if you’re having nightmares about your friends traveling and backpacking across South America while you’re stuck at home working for the summer, think again. How about enjoying authentic Japanese food in Tokyo on your lunch breaks? Or spending every weekend in a different European country? You can do that. I did, and it was one of the greatest experiences, both personally and professionally, that I’ve ever had.

{Exploring the island on a weekend trip to Hvar, Croatia}

Whether you’re currently in school, or thinking about a program for yourself or someone you know, there are some things you need to keep in mind when it comes to co-op programs. Below is a list of questions you need to ask, whether it’s to the dean of the faculty at your school, the co-op manager, or anyone else you can find answers from.

Does the school program I’m considering permit my applying to and taking time off for internships?
Are the work placements paid or unpaid terms? (many internships can be unpaid, so if this isn’t something you can work with, you’ll want to know that beforehand!)
Does the co-op office actively help to find international/inter-provincial work placements?
How flexible is the program, in terms of doing longer (8 month or 1 year) internships? Is this allowed?
Can I find my own placements, or am I limited to only the placements found/posted by the co-op program? (If this is the case, you’ll want to make sure that they post jobs in industries and cities you’re interested in)

So now that you’ve got the tools and know-how to make the best of your university education, it’s time to search for an internship! It’s a smart move, and it’ll help you build your skills and networks (and if you’re like me, you’ll only fully realize how useful this is when you start the search for your first degree-related job). Getting to travel, make money, and piece together the puzzle of your post-grad career? Done.