One Step Closer by Reaffirming my Beliefs

As I started my internship I started to get nervous because I began thinking that it was too complicated and difficult for me. As I read the book I began to think that it was just too far over my head but that all changed once I actually went Chevron Headquarters. Mr. Shaw, Lubricant Specialist at Chevron and my mentor, talked to me about oils and the process and we even went over a few slide shows from the toolkit I received the day before. Once he started to explain some of the topics I began to understand more and more and it didn't seem as hard as I had made it out to be before! After the meeting I felt reassured that this is what I really want to do with my life.

So far this internship has taught me many things that would be a little too difficult to explain over a blog but i'll do my best. I have learned about all the career types at Chevron, how crude oil is extracted and refined, and even what Chevron is doing globally with oil and other resources! The book I am reading is explaining lubricants even further on a college level that I am doing my best to comprehend. I'm glad I actually have a mentor to help me explain this book because it's still a little to complex for my current education!

I try to stay relatively regret free and nothing comes to mind when I think of regrets but I do remember thinking that I was going to regret dropping AP Psychology at the beginning of the year. My counselor had accidentally put me in Psych instead of IQuest and I wanted to get a job or internship so I asked to switch. At first I thought I would be bummed out because everyone that took Psych says its incredible but I think I am so much happier in IQuest than if i were in Psych. There is no way that Psych students are as excited as I am to do the work they are doing. Unlike other students I'm excited to go to class and my internship because this is the work I love to do!

One Step Close by Attempting to Understand the Fundamentals.

Recently in IQuest we have been asked to get a book about, or related to, our internship. My book, as suggested by my mentor, is Lubrication Fundamentals by J. George Wills. Let me tell you from the start, this book is NOT easy. I know the name already sounds difficult but the text is even more confusing. For an Engineer this book is obviously just the basics but for a Ambitious High School student, it's written in a different language! Even though it is difficult I'm not letting it discourage me from pursuing my goals.

I was serious when I said it was difficult. This is "A simplified flow diagram for a commercial dewaxing unit"

Get ready to step into my world:

Chapter one of this book is to familiarize or refresh the educated reader's memory on lubricating oils and crude oils in general. It gives a background on Petroleum; where and how it occurs. I was also informed how the petroleum was quite annoying but people found that they could sell it for "medicinal purposes". Later the author explains when greases and lubricants were first used and how the brine well drilling that opened up lots of petroleum to the world in the 1850's first began.

The second chapter informs you about lubricating oils and the petroleum industry, which was the largest in the world as early as 1976! Then Wills explains what crude oil is, where it is found and what is put into production. You may not have known that crude oils are found in a variety of types from light to black oils and asphalts. Also one of the key factors in crude oil selection is based off of the crude's pour point and how light it is! (Although very light crudes wouldn't be used for lube because only a small portion of it has a high enough boiling point.) I'll spare you the rest of the chapter because it took me 3 times to sortof understand the chapter and I have the actual text right in front of me.

Even though this book is very difficult to understand I know I will benefit from reading it. The author clearly has been studying and working with petroleum for a long time and I'm sure reading his book, even if I don't completely understand it, will put me ahead of the competition while I'm in college. Who else has the opportunity to read an advanced book (not a textbook) about engineering before college to get them ready? I doubt other students went out on their own and found books as challenging as this one and decided they would read it to prepare them for college. You can look at this 2 ways. One with a positive outlook saying it is beneficial; challenging yet rewarding. The other saying it is too hard and you should just pretend to read it. 

I will always choose the former.

Wish me luck!

One Step Closer Toward Complete Optimism

I am an optimist. It does not seem too much use being anything else. ~Winston Churchill


I would by lying if I said I was completely optimistic but I know that I have been trying to see the better parts of life. Throughout high school I've been trying to become much more optimistic because no one will ever want to be around you if you are sad and depressing all the time. Just like Churchill said, nothing good really comes out of being anything but optimistic. If you always see the sad parts of life others will try to avoid you and you will start to become more depressed. It all starts with YOU. You need to take the first step towards being positive and you need to attempt to be happier. Once you've begun the pursuit of happiness, your friends, family, and even strangers will gladly help you out because they see that you are actually giving an effort. Pessimists usually are lazy and don't put any effort into anything they are doing. Obviously, that is an awful work ethic because customers won't want to work with you, and employers know they won't get anything out of you! This quote really hits home because it reaffirms my belief that I should, and need to be, more optimistic.
Necessity

Lemonade-Chris Rice
This song just makes me so happy every time I hear it. 

One Step Closer Toward Making Ethical Decisions

Every day we make hundreds, if not thousands of decisions. Most simple like what to wear, what to eat, but others can be much more critical then we think. These critical decisions are made based off of your morals and your character. Even though we don't realize how much it matters, character really does count and it will make a difference in anyone's life. People around the world need to have character to make more ethical decisions and the people at Character Counts! are making a difference by teaching the 6 pillars of character to students at a young age.

Ever since 5th grade we've learned that people with good character are TRRFCC (Trustworthy, Responsible, Respectful, Fair, Caring, and they show Citizenship). During our classes we would study and learn the significance of each pillar but one pillar always stood out in my mind: Responsiblity. According to the dictionary responsibility means "reliability or dependability" also "The state of being [accountable]". To me being Responsible is being organized by doing what you are supposed to be doing and thinking before you act. Also, I believe you are Responsible when you hold yourself accountable for anything you do, whether it was good or bad.

I would claim that Responsibility is the most important trait in the workplace, and in life. Without it you have people not doing what they are suppose to and you can't rely on anyone to get anything done. People need to have it so when mistakes are made we don't play the blame game and point fingers. It is so important to be responsible because you set an example for people in the workforce, and for children or people who look up to you. Ever step you do will be analyzed when working and you don't want to look back thinking you shouldn't have done something.

To show responsibility you can do things as easy as following through on plans you made with your friends or doing your share of your class project. At times it may be harder to show responsibility because you don't want to be held accountable for your mistakes but I'm sure that after a little lecture, you'll be respected for holding yourself accountable. It is so necessary for you to show this responsibility because your boss and coworkers will be giving you tasks and inspecting you  if you don't do what you say you are going to do or you blame someone else for your errors, you will lose your job instantly!

I know that I am a responsible person but there are times when I don't show it as much as I could. From now on I plan to make it known that I am very responsible, and I will hopefully set an example for others to follow. I plan on following through on everything I say I will, and I will be organized so I won't have to say "maybe" to anyone. I have learned that being responsible is a key to success and I am now making the choice to make more ethical decisions by showing responsibility.