English 111 has been a great learning experience for me. Within only 50 minutes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I have learned more than what I have ever expected. In English I have learned about kaizen, good ethos, and improving the six steps of the writing process. In order for me to succeed not just college, but in life I think theses three things are useful and important.
Kaizen, before Professor Brandon’s class that was a word I have never heard in my life. I understand kaizen now; it makes sense to me that making continuous small improvements is better than trying to change everything at one time. With using kaizen I have notice a huge improvement in my college life. I go to the library more to do my homework, this is a step I use to eliminate the noise and distractions around me. Little things like turning my phone of while I study, which has really made a difference to me. I now feel confident that I will reach the success I want with understanding that it is okay to take smaller steps, and picking the lowest hanging fruit is not always a bad thing.
Understanding and having good ethos was something that I lacked or did not understand at first. Ethos is a form of persuasion. The way you want your audience to portray your message and receive your message, depends greatly on how you deliver it. Having the proper posture, eye contact, and assurance all play a role in establishing good ethos. I knew the importance of this, but I just did not practice it. I know now that the audience that is receiving the message has expectations, and those expectations are to be met by the author or messenger. All of these are factors of the rhetorical triangle. Rhetoric is the study of communication, and I have learned that you have to have good ethos to communicate with your audience. Without the proper ethos your audience will lose interest, and the message will not make any sense. I now understand that establishing ethos from the start of the message is very important, if I want my audience to stay interested and meet their expectations.
Finally, having knowledge of and improving the six steps of the writing process, something that will take more than just semester for me to master. The six steps are; prewrite, draft, revise, proofread, publish, and review. Prewriting is probably one of the most important steps, and that is getting your ideas out and on paper. Drafting is writing about your ideas. Revising is the process of correcting errors on the draft. Proofreading is making the final changes before publishing. Publishing and delivery is an important step because it is your final product being delivered to your audience. Revising being the final step, this step involves feedback on your work. I know all of the steps by heart and I know how important they are. Each step has its own importance, and without out one the whole process would be incomplete. English 111 has shown me that there are not only steps to writing, but there are also steps to success. These six steps are more than a tool towards my success. I may not appreciate the significance behind it just yet but I do know that it is here to help me on the many papers I have to write in college and in life.
Professor Brandon’s English 111 class has really help me understand everything there is about ethos, kaizen, and the writing process. I greatly appreciate the information that was given. My success in life depends on the process I choose to take and the routine I stick with. The writing process will help me understand and reevaluate my thoughts before and after they are on paper. Having the knowledge of what good ethos is will help me in not just college, but life. I know that my peers and future employees will have to have respect for me as a person to understand my message. English 111 has made an impact on my life, and it is going to change by the way I look at things now. In the future when I have to write another paper, the writing process will be stuck in my head. When I am interviewing for an important job, the ethos I have learned will play a role in helping me meet the expectations of the person interviewing me. Finally, remembering that it is okay to pick the lowest hanging fruit is okay in life, and sometimes it is not always necessary to take risk.
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