Yamil Bautista’s ePortfolio

While there are a lot of applications that connect you socially, there are applications designed to promote productivity that have become so essential in 2021. We were all affected by the Covid-19 pandemic as jobs and school went remote. Between working full time from home and attending school virtually in the evening, apps like Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Teams allow me to schedule my day to promote maximum productivity.

Every company utilize email as a way to communicate company updates and strategy. Microsoft Outlook is the platform that my company uses to communicate internally and externally via email. The app has a very clean interface with a great clear font. The app is also user friendly. On the bottom left side is an envelope icon, which directs you to your emails. On the bottom right where you acccess your calender. You can view your calendar a day at a time or three days at a time to view all of the meetings and appointments I have for the day. I like to also add my lunch time in the day to ensure that I get a moment to eat and stretch my legs. You can add a 15 minute reminder to each event to remind you of upcoming meetings. I love Microsoft Outlook calendar enough to also add my personal appointments to keep me on track for those also.

Microsoft TEAMS is the sister application that works with Microsoft Outlook. Teams is mainly used for video conferences. My company will schedule virtual meetings through outlook with a teams link. Once I accept the virtual meeting request, the meeting will generate a link to join the video conference, and it will be added to my calendar. I love the two systems working in conjunction because internal employees can pull up my calendar and see what availability is open before they send me an invite for a meeting. Their ability to see my calendar allows the process of scheduling a meeting more seamlessly. The second function that I love about Microsoft Teams is the quick chat ability. All internal employees have access to chat. This is great for when I have a quick question to ask a peer. I can get a response within a few minutes.

With Microsoft 365 and Teams, I am able to stay connected and manage all the commitments that I have in one place. Working from home has increased my productivity immensely and I attribute that to staying organized and staying connected.

NYPIRG has shown me how active student activists are on college campuses. Currently, students are opposing a bill that would be harmful to the environment if passed. Recently I performed outreach via text message. I learned how to use the application called Hustle. Hustle makes it easier to reach the masses by engaging your audience via text. This platform is favorable for advocacy, fundraising, public engagement, and recruiting. The way the application works, you first define your goal. Set a measurable goal for every campaign to track the impact of your messages, whether you’re driving event attendance, fundraising, or re-engaging contacts. Then you create fully customizable scripts to make it easy for your team to talk to customers or constituents. Once the hand is completed, the application can text over 1000 people per minute. Recipients view the text coming from a local number. It’s like talking to someone one-on-one. Your team gets real-time responses. You can respond to questions, provide more information, and keep the conversation going. You create a connection with the audience without invading space, and you track your results.

As part of the AIGA Webinar series, I watched “Make It Remote: Virtual Meetings Don’t Have to Suck.” One of the significant areas that was affected due to covid was the workplace and the ways that people gathered to get information. With everything going remote, I was interested in ways to make virtual meetings more exciting and engaging. 

Matthew Manos, the founder of “verynice,” presented his super engaging seminar on making the best out of our new virtual worlds. In the first few slides, he discussed the differences between what meetings should be emails, which should be a virtual meeting, and which should be a workshop. 

The main points of difference are that emails should be used to cascade information, provide feedback, and assign work. Meetings should be utilized for making group decisions. Lastly, workshops should be used for brainstorming. I understood Matthews’s logic in creating these categories on ways to present information. Misutilization of time when something could have been emailed can disrupt workflow. 

Matthew then went into detail on how to make virtual meetings more impactful. He began by suggesting that the moderator have a clear and concise agenda. The next thing he suggested was adding appropriate break times and email breaks. I agree that email breaks are necessary because those are potential distractions. Taking a break can ensure that people remain engaged. Matthew also suggested doing technical things like having an engaging background and ensuring a good wifi connection. Most importantly, he stressed the importance of allotting time for buffering before the actual session begins. Connectivity issues can play a massive role in the execution of the meeting. 

The last subject that he covered was how to host effective workshops. One of the key suggestions that I remembered when he covered workshops was the simple method of sending workshop packages to participants before the meeting begins to keep them engaged. Often time these packages can include a notebook and branded pen. The smallest gestures can really keep people virtually engaged. 

Matthews’s presentation was concise and impactful. He opened up the seminar to a lot of Q&A, where he continued to answer questions while giving out so many more helpful tips. The biggest lesson I learned was to be yourself on camera, keep people engaged and remember that there is “no back row seat” everyone is equally positioned in virtual meetings, so you should just go for it. 

As an intern for NYPIRG, I’ve been attending environmental protection meetings. This week we made phone calls to our assembly members to vote against upcoming bills deemed detrimental to our environment.

The Senator for District 30 which encompasses Harlem, where I live, is Brian Benjamin. Mr. Benjamin is considered a political progressive who has focused on criminal reform.

As taxpayers, we have a voice and should speak on items we are against. Our voices united have the power to make a change.

Last week I had the opportunity to interview for an internship position for one of my favorite Magazines, SLAM. Although the interview was conducted via phone, it was very engaging and gave me insight into the industry. The interviewer was really personable, and I felt more like the meeting was a conversation less than an interview. The interviewer and I connected over our love for the NBA and even discussed some of our favorite players. Ultimately, I didn’t receive the position as Intern for SlAM magazine, but I learned a lot from the experience and look forward to continuing to interview.

In addition to that, I was able to attend a zoom meeting for the NYPIRG. During that meeting, we discussed the great dangers of fracking and how we can impact the outcome of an upcoming project. I collaborated with my peers to draft emails and phone scripts to contact federal agencies. I not only learned about the real dangers that fracking has on the environment, but I was able to learn from my peers how to express my opinion professionally.

Lastly, I attended a meeting to bring awareness to students discriminated against based on their disabilities. There were state assemblymen that were present on the call to also add their emphasis on the needed attention.