Unfortunately, things are at a standstill in the internship again. Monday, we were supposed to meet to discuss the paper we had been working on the past two weeks, but a family emergency had the meeting postponed. This was really frustrating because I had worked so hard on the edits and had made so many notes to discuss. However, it was completely understandable why it was canceled. Emergencies happen and we have to adapt.
Overall, I am at a real loss of what to write about because of this. I was not able to complete any real assignments because of stagnant communication (completely understandable, of course.) Really, I just spent this past week reviewing my notes and twiddling my thumbs while I waited to see what would happen.
However, I have had time to reflect more on what I hope to accomplish in the next week. I have listed them below.
1) I want to focus on my organization systems for this internship. Currently, I write everything down in a physical notebook. While this has worked in the past, I find that my notes are unorganized and I am having difficultly locating the information I need quickly. I hope to improve this through the note taking software called Notion. I've used this for note-taking in the past, and find it very efficient to organize. I was hesitant to use this originally because it was digital, and I know that you remember things better when it is written down physically. But, you can also find things better when it's readable, and not scattered about in a giant notebook.
2) I also want to work on asking more questions. During the zoom calls with Dr. Farless, I mostly just listen. In the coming weeks, I want to start coming prepared to the zooms with questions on the process to remain engaged in the internship. This will allow me to have a more expansive learning experience, beyond just what it's like editing papers.
3) Finally, I want to work on getting my own work published. Previously, Dr. Farless had mentioned that it would be highly recommended for Trish and me to start working on papers to submit for the journal. I had mostly just ignored this because I did not think I would have the time this semester to commit to writing or editing a paper worthy of submission. However, recent changes in my schedule have freed up a lot of time for me. I look forward to taking advantage of this great opportunity with this new freedom!
Overall, this was a pretty disappointing week and I struggled to find 500 words to say about it. I even think I am still about fifty or so short, but I just do not have anything else to say. However, I look forward to future weeks where I will continue to learn and grow as I have in the past! With these reflections written out, I feel revied to start the next week prepared.