Reflective Commentary: Work Experience and Skills Development

This document is a reflective commentary by a student, detailing their experiences in various roles, including volunteering at a clinic, working as a certified swimming coach, and acting as a social media handler. The commentary explores the responsibilities, challenges, and skills developed in each role, offering insights into the practical application of knowledge and professional development. The student reflects on the rewarding aspects of volunteering, the importance of controlling anxiety in competitive swimming, and the strategic and operational aspects of social media management. The references cited support the student's reflections and provide context to the discussed experiences. The report aims to provide a comprehensive assessment of the student's experiences and the skills they have acquired.

Reflective commentary 1
Reflective commentary
[Name of student]
[Name of institution]
[Date]

Reflective commentary 2
Work experience
Volunteer at a clinic
My volunteering experience at the clinic was remarkable. I think it depends on what
organization you volunteer with. That said, volunteering at a hospital is interesting and very
fulfilling. The opportunity to help a patient when they're stressed and at their most vulnerable is
extremely rewarding. Volunteers go through jobs they can do to help the nurses. They can push
wheelchairs from appointment to appointment keeping them company. Run errands, books and
magazines, delivered flowers, get a clean hospital gown and slipper socks. They are in the gift
shops, chapel, dining room and small task that nurses will allow (Yeo, Liew, and Oon, 2014).
Volunteers can hand them the phone, their slippers, pencil and papers, and call for help, etc.
What they can’t do is anything that is strictly for the nurses, no medication, no picking up
patients, no making beds or sitting on beds, etc.
My Auxiliary has over 40 different services at our hospital, many which are patient
centered. We assist staff with various non-clinical tasks, run errands between departments and
assist visitors at the Information Desk. We also socialize with patients and survey patients and
visitors about their experience during their stay there. Our Auxiliary is in almost every
department throughout the hospital including the Emergency Department (Eldakroury, et al.,
2013). It has a close relationship with hospital staff and if they have a need we agree is
appropriate for us, we will write up a description and start a pilot program. They also have state
or federal HIPAA confidentiality laws that volunteers must follow.
Certified swimmer and coach
Let me preface this by saying that I am not an Olympic athlete. However, my mother and

Reflective commentary 3
father has always motivated to be a part of something that I solely enjoying doing. Apart from
being a certified swimmer and coach, I have master in sports and won several medals in Russian
and Moscow championships. I have been teaching swimming to kids voluntarily from a very
long time. Having been coached by her during my childhood, listening to her stories throughout
my years and serving as her writing assistant, I can offer advice that she would give and what I
have observed as swimming coach. Most swimmers do experience nerves on the blocks and
beforehand. My coach always says that without a few butterflies in your belly, you won't do as
well. Inherently, nerves help to boost our adrenaline and give us a competitive edge (Surda, et
al., 2018; Surda et al., 2019). That said, learning how to control anxiety is crucial to world-class
athletes so that it does not get in the way of their mental preparation. Today, many swimmers
and swimming coaches like me and nations employ trainers that specifically help athletes cope
with these anxieties. But, for the most part, learning how to work through the nerve’s days,
weeks and even months in advance is something that world-class athletes have been doing
throughout their lives and certainly swimmers given that most start competing at a relatively
young age (Kraft, et al., 2012).
Social media handler
With my experience of being a social media handler, I have to give a theoretical answer, I
would say, me as a Social media manager is a person who handles social media marketing,
campaigns, and day-to-day activities. I Create relevant content and reach the target audience. I
with my partner manage, create, and curate all the content. However, this is not all. There is a
rising dissection amid the unique profile of manager of social media causing propagation,
essentially generating lots of new names and parts. For instance, we previously know social

Reflective commentary 4
media strategist, we have started hearing new job positions like, content executive of social
media, editor of social media for digital content, social media planner, and the list goes on. More
and more job profiles are created every day, hence dividing the work and errands of the original
(Heath, 2018). Despite the diverse job profiles, when it arises to the social media manager, the
responsibilities divide into two: operational and strategic. For the very same reason, social media
executive or social media tactician are used in exchangeable manner.
One thing that should be kept in mind while discussing these points is that my roles and job
descriptions totally depend on the type of organization I work with and I am talking about. For
example, there are firms who have made social media as their core objective, while, on the other
hand, few companies take social media marketing as a part of their hierarchy (Preoţiuc-Pietro, et
al., 2015). The latter doesn’t need to divide roles in different parts. However, social media firm
will differentiate job profiles accordingly. To clear this confusion which is persisting for a very
long time now: I have made a list of the duties that I have served and do it from my own page as
social media manager.
1. Know the manufacturing in which the business or organization is.
2. Project a strategy for social media that’s in line with identity of brand, goal, and target
market.
3. Define the content strategy Control the content calendar and its execution.
4. Administer the budget for different strategic actions and maintain a record list
5. Define a strategy that helps to enhance the fan base
6. Develop channels that increase engagement with followers.
7. Segment the marketing strategy according to the targeted audience.
8. Have to be in harmonization with marketing and sales department of the business

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9. Describe and govern the social media conversions, ROI and KPIs.
10. Select what tools and applications would be used to fulfill the task
11. Design a plan for tackling with social media reputation crisis (Ifigeneia and Dimitrios,
2018).
To conclude, I can say that as a social media manager I am a person who is unswervingly
connected to strategic decision- making: starting from which social media site will be covered
for the brand marketing, what all steps should be taken to target a particular audience, what steps
will be taken in case of standing crisis, what would be the communication style, and what type of
content shall be shared.

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References
Ifigeneia, M. and Dimitrios, A., 2018. Globalization, Social Media and Public Relations: A
Necessary Relationship for the Future?. KnE Social Sciences, pp.309-325.
Eldakroury, A., Olivera, E.P., Bicki, A., Martin, R.F. and De Groot, A.S., 2013. Adherence to
American Diabetes Association guidelines in a volunteer-run free clinic for the uninsured: better
than standards achieved by clinics for insured patients. Rhode Island Medical Journal, 96(1),
p.25.
Heath, S., 2018. System and method for using impressions tracking and analysis, location
information, 2D and 3D mapping, mobile mapping, social media, and user behavior and
information for generating mobile and internet posted promotions or offers for, and/or sales of,
products and/or services. U.S. Patent 10,127,564.
Kraft, A., Bauerfeind, E., Nöthig, E.M. and Bathmann, U.V., 2012. Size structure and life cycle
patterns of dominant pelagic amphipods collected as swimmers in sediment traps in the eastern
Fram Strait. Journal of Marine Systems, 95, pp.1-15.
Preoţiuc-Pietro, D., Volkova, S., Lampos, V., Bachrach, Y. and Aletras, N., 2015. Studying user
income through language, behaviour and affect in social media. PloS one, 10(9).
Surda, P., Putala, M., Siarnik, P., Walker, A., Bernic, A. and Fokkens, W., 2018. Rhinitis and its
impact on quality of life in swimmers. Allergy, 73(5), pp.1022-1031.
Surda, P., Tornari, C., Putala, M. and Walker, A., 2019. Exercise and Rhinitis in
Athletes. EMJ, 4(3), pp.120-126.
Yeo, B., Liew, C.F. and Oon, H.H., 2014. Clinical experience and impact of a community-led
volunteer atmospheric haze clinic in Singapore. Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Medicine
and Public Health, 45(6), p.1448.