Monday 31 August 2015

ScotGrad Residential Training

If you’ve recently graduated or are about to graduate from a Scottish university, chances are you’ll have heard of ScotGrad (and if you haven’t then you’re about to thank me). ScotGrad essentially provide graduate placements for growing businesses. These businesses will have identified a gap in their business plan/strategy that could be supported by a recent graduate – this means that the graduate isn’t just making tea, they’re making a worthwhile contribution to the business and in doing so gaining valuable hands on experience. Throughout the placement, ScotGrad provides support for the graduate and offer a 3 day residential training programme which aims to help with business and leadership skills.

A couple of weeks ago, I joined 17 other recent graduates at the Jury’s Inn in Edinburgh for ScotGrad residential training. We had a pretty intense 3 days lead by Dr Russell Matthews from Strathclyde University and Dr John Park, who previous ran graduate programmes for P&G and Pepsico – both of which were fantastic. Not everyone who attended the course had a business related degree. We had engineers, designers, scientists and a few from an IT background but due to the nature of the tasks and discussions no one was at a disadvantage – everyone was in the same boat and was just looking to make the most of the training.

Throughout the training course we covered a mixture of business skills which made us think about our companies from an outside perspective and we were encouraged to think critically and really challenge our company’s existing business model. Where ScotGrad really differentiates itself from your typical graduate programme is the emphasis on personal development. Not all placements will become permanent so learning how to sell yourself and understand how to take advantage of your network was discussed at length and for those attending with permanent positions this would have been greatly beneficial for understanding your own value and, of course, for future career progression.

The final day was presentation day. We were asked to reflect on our placement and discuss how we would be able to incorporate what we’d learned during the training into our work. Some of the managers (my own included), ScotGrad and Scottish Enterprise employees as well as some employees from the likes of Business Gateway were in attendance – which sounds a lot scarier than it was. There was a very supportive and encouraging atmosphere so the presentations ran smoothly (and I felt rather silly at getting as stressed!).


Tuesday 16 June 2015

Workwear Pinspiration

If you follow me on Pinterest you might have noticed that lately I’ve been going a bit mental pinning workwear inspiration. I’ve recently started a new job, still in digital marketing but in a slightly more formal work environment, so I finally have a job that calls for business casual! Let me tell you, wearing jeans to work is great to start with but very soon every piece of clothing you own reminds you of work. What I love about office wear is that it really doesn’t need to be boring - I absolutely love printed trousers (as I’m sure you can tell from the image below) and throwing on a statement necklace or a pretty cardigan brightens up any look with minimal effort. So I’m not spending an absolute fortune I’ve been picking up a few bits here and there - New Look and Sainsbury’s are amazing for the likes of printed trousers and then when it comes to your daily staples (e.g. black trousers, cardigans etc) I don’t think you can go past Next. 

If you have any other suggestions for where to look please let me know! 

Thursday 21 May 2015

Spring/Summer Nail Colours

Although I’m still struggling to update my wardrobe for summer (I wish I could get as excited about clothes shopping as I do for beauty shopping), I’m all for the Spring/Summer nail colours. Whether you’re for pastels or brights, I’m sure I’ll have some ideas for you. As I'm sure you would expect I'm all about the Essie polishes. 



Pastels

Mint Candy Apple (far left) - this is one of my latest Essie purchases and I’m sure it needs no introduction if you read beauty blogs. This minty, turquoise colour screams summer and is surprisingly easy to wear. 

Go Ginza (top left) - described as a soft cherry blossom pink, this gorgeous polish is perfect if you’re already a fan of the likes of Essie Fiji or Blanc. The milky pink/lilac adds a little something extra to the ever popular white nail look. 

Maximillian Strasse Her (bottom left) - So this is definitely a Vivianna Does Makeup Inspired purchase. The cool grey/blue nail colour is even prettier on than in the bottle. The grey tones make it really easy to wear. I’m sure this is one that I’ll still be wearing constantly in the winter.


Brights

Meet Me At Sunset (middle) - If you’re a fan of orange, this is the one. It’s a vibrant orange without being neon making it really wearable all year round. 

Watermelon (bottom right) - if I had to pick one nail colour to wear for the rest of my life this would be it. Whenever I have the raspberry pink polish on I can’t stop looking at my hands - it’s one of those ones!

Meet Me At Sunset - If you’re a fan of orange, this is the one. It’s a vibrant orange without being neon making it really wearable all year round. 

Cute As A Button (top right) - I’ve had this in my collection for a while now but it’s been relatively unloved until now. The coral/pink toned polish is gorgeous on toes.

What's your favourite colour for spring/summer?



What’s your favourite nail colour just now?