The progress I have made throughout the UNIV 150 course has been drastic. At the beginning of the semester I was having trouble adjusting to college life and all the elements of college courses. Throughout the semester I learned how to manage my time more and discovered more resources that I could use to my advantage. The eportfolio has been a tool that I took for granite and has not gotten the credit it deserves. Throughout the semester I have been using this as a tool to improve my writing and to keep track of my journals. 

At the beginning of the semester I was not satisfied with my writing skills and knew there was room for improvement. I struggled with paragraph structure along with grammar/spelling. I did not know the writing process and the appropriate way to compose an essay correctly. My instructor taught me how the writing process and how to be successful. However at the beginning of the semester I did not take advantage of these ideas. 

In the middle of the semester I saw improvement in my writing and wanted to improve but did not know how. I started to go to the writing center advised by my instructor. I got my peers to read and give me advice on my writing pieces. I revised my papers and assignments longer than before as well as finished my assignments faster than before so I could use the extra time to improve them. I then saw much improvement in my writing with results I was looking for. 

The eportfoilio had a huge impact on my writing more than I noticed. It is where I kept my writing along with journals. I used it as a tool, but never noticed the impact it had on my writing. It required me to practice and practice writing small journals and showed me my weak areas. It was used to organize my writing and to keep it in a safe spot. 

Overall this semester has been rough with writing, but I will not quit trying to improve. I know now how to manage my time as well as the steps needed to be successful in writing and will take advantage of the resources available to me before it is too late. I will continue using eportfoilio to keep my writing assignments organized.  

Journal #11 A motto I have gone by since high school is “No one cares, Get better”. Although it isn’t your ideal motto It has a very deep meaning to me and my mentality. During high school I played football and I learned that it doesn’t matter how good you are or how strong you are, it’s about how you will continue to improve or not. I believe in whatever you do, you should be get 1% better every time. No one is ever going to care about what you do, or feel bad or sympathetic for you. If you want to accomplish something in most cases the only thing that stops people is themselves.

Journal #12 Can money buy happiness? Everyone always says money cannot buy happiness, which I disagree with. Items and possession can cause happiness, however it is not PERMANENT happiness. It is simply temporary happiness that will eventually not be enough to fill that gap of happiness and will eventually be worse if that person does not find happiness without money.

Journal #13 The most valuable thing I own is my mind. I have the ability to do anything I put my mind to. I believe anyone can do anything if they really wanted to. The mind determines your whole life along with the decisions you make. Materialistic items can always be replaced and are worth no value compared to knowledge. “Knowledge is power” just like they say, nothing is more important than your mind.

Journal #14 Something I can do to better myself is bettering others. I am usually a lone wolf that doesn’t talk to many people, that usually thinks about himself. I strive for my goals, but believe that I can be nicer to my friends and put myself into their shoes. Having a different perspective showed me that I am more fortunate than some people, I can find ways to help my peers more in life or academically.

Journal #15 This is my last journal for the semester. It has been a long semester that has not been easy. I plan on bettering my strategies to be even more successful than this one has. I have gained lots of knowledge from my professors and peers about how to handle my time and workload and I will not make the same mistakes. From here on I will only be going up and continue to improve my grades and college experience.