Long Days with Loads of Work

Today went by pretty much the same as yesterday. It’s about 9:40pm and I just got back to my dorm room from office hours. It’s crazy how much time we spend in class, but I actually really like it. I mean, it’s long and tiring, I’ve taken naps after class before dinner since yesterday and I think I’m going to keep that going. It’s a really nice way to give my mind rest to be able to concentrate during office hours. This way I’m more productive as opposed to if I did something else after class, went to dinner, then back to office hours. I would be drained if I tried to do that. I also went to bed earlier last night so getting up this morning was easier. My sleeping habit is improving already.

During class today, we explored Microsoft Office 07, it’s amazing how no matter the familiarity with a common program there’s functions we fail to discover. We learned simple but useful techniques that will help us format templates and keep them for future use. I love the practicality of this class. As opposed to regular high school, this class is teaching me about a field, about an industry. One of the biggest industry’s in the world nonetheless! Lecture today went off somewhat off topic when the class got into discussing finances. Reneta, our professor kept saying how off that spectrum was from the spectrum of the class. It was confusing, interesting but confusing. Later during office hours we had more than 40 pages to read for homework in addition to a group memo we were supposed to sign and turn in before the end of office hours. The reading was long and a little tedious, but I really tried to understand it. I had to look up abbreviations like CMBS (Commercial Mortgage-Backed Security), BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, and China), EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization), and REIT (Real Investment Trust). Looking these up helped make the text clearer to the point where I more or less had an understanding of what I was reading. It took more time to look them up but it’s pointless to read something and not understand so it’s worth it taking that extra time to ensure comprehension.

Today we were also introduced to CHESS (Competitive Hospitality Education Simulation Series). A business letter is due on Friday to describe what our basic plan is to improve the Hotel Room sales. I’ve discovered that we aren’t trying to sell rooms, we’re trying to sell rates. One room that can sell for $70 has the potential to sell for $110, we just have to figure out when to close the lower rates so that people are actually willing to pay more for the same. The professors have mentioned we have to learn the way our guests work, not the way the market works. Tomorrow when we get to play around with it, I’m going to pay attention to all those details, what works and what doesn’t so that when the real trial comes along, I’ll be able to operate a successful hotel.

During office hours I also remembered Mrs. Kim wants me to give her a draft of personal statements by the end of this month, which is tomorrow. With all the commotion of the pre-trip, the trip, and now class I completely forgot. I’ve developed a plan: I’ll write the personal statement tonight before bed check, if I don’t finish it, I can finish it tomorrow, even after office hours because we’re three hours ahead, turning it in at 10pm tomorrow would be 7pm back home. I think it works. Thinking about personal statements makes college a reality, being here really makes college even more of a reality. I’m starting to notice everything that I have to take into consideration before actually making a decision. I need to consider the surrounding area, the weather, the residential facilities, factors besides the academics of schools. This all just gives me more to think about. It’s no longer ages away like it once was, it’s around the corner and it’s still scary.