Facebook.

In ALES204 lab, I am learning the importance of advertising myself to anyone interested in my work as well as to future employers who wish to invest time in me for job opportunities in my field of interest. One valuable resource that goes unnoticed is none other than....



That's right! Facebook.

For a great majority of users, Facebook is an amazing tool used to connect with people from all over the world, keep in touch with old friends, and serves as a way to communicate with new ones. Who would have thought that it can also serve a purpose in the professional sense?

On a regular basis, Facebook is used primarily in a casual sense, so to be able to use it as a professional tool opens up its potential in the corporate world. By creating a Facebook page about one's self, it will allow employers or any interested to know the "real" person behind the name. People can see who one truly is, not just the tense person spruced up for the interviews, and in this way, it allows interested employers to obtain a better picture of someone's interests, personality, and above all, professionalism. How one conducts him or herself on the internet is very important nowadays since employers can easily search up employees' activity on the worldwide web (Once you press send, it is out for everyone to see, and it cannot be taken back). It also provides a clearer picture as to what kind of reputation the person of interest may have and how his or her reputation will affect the employer's image.

I would have never thought of creating a Facebook page for myself until I took ALES204, so I can appreciate how the creation of a social media page instantly allows easy connection to those interested in what I do or aspire to do. Besides being readily available and convenient for future employers, it also helps to cut down paper. A little goes a long way (Go green!)! It is beneficial to you as well as the earth, which is a double bonus!

Here's a screenshot of my Facebook page:

Image source: My own. Screenshot of my Facebook page.

Click here for a better view!

(Side note: since the screenshot, I have changed my name to Christine Wang so as to keep it more private)

Here is a link to my Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Christine-Wang/155836434530120

I also think you may enjoy my friend, Brenda Le's blog! She has some excellent insight!

Stay professional!

Introductory Post.

Hello all! My name is Danielle Lu, and I am currently a 2nd year undergraduate student in the Nutrition and Food Science program. I am hoping to transfer into the Nutrition program next year, as I am really interested in making my interest in this field into my career. Although nutrition is something I do not always abide by (I do enjoy the occasional cookie or bag of chips!), I believe it is important to be aware of how to take care of your body through the right diets and food lifestyle choices.

I first became interested in nutrition a few years ago. It was a large change from my original goal of becoming an architect/interior designer (I may end up getting another degree in design later on though, but I'll focus on one thing at a time!). My family has very close friends who are involved in the nutrition field, most of which live in China. Through word of mouth of my mom, I heard about all these different ways food could transform certain aspects of one's health and better the body as a whole, which I found very interesting and, well, cool! Although nutrition peaked my interest, it wasn't until my grandparents and dad started to develop health problems, such as pernicious anemia and hypertension (Salted, preserved foods are a family favorite!), as a result of imbalanced, inadequate diet that I realized how important nutrition is as a whole and to myself. Eating should be healthy as well as an enjoyment. It should be balanced! After researching online, I found more information on what being a dietician really entails. It's not just telling people what to eat. That's only part of it!

You can get a taste of some general, interesting health information can be found here at http://www.thehealthblog.com/.

In this way, it shows the importance of communication since mom gained knowledge from people on the other side of the world! Therefore, this stresses how necessary exchanging information is from place to place so that a vast audience can have access to important and up-to-date information. As a student and for future work, research findings and experiments can be quickly conveyed and shared with others who find it interesting and beneficial. Being a dietician, it is critical that the most accurate information can be passed around so that we can be accurate in passing the message along to clients.

Before ALES204, I only had a Facebook account in which I used to connect with friends, old and new like most people do. I never really thought about profiling myself using social media, so my Facebook profile is pretty informal and casual. Now that I'm learning to use websites such as Blogger and Twitter, I can appreciate how these technologies are a gateway into profiling myself to the world and treat it, like Jess said, "as a business card." I hope to learn more about ways of effective communication in ALES204!

You can follow me on twitter @dlu4. Here's to a great semester!

Image source: http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/fresh-ideas/dinner-food-facts/tomato-called-a-love-apple.htm