Three Months In 

I’ve been an Apprentice at Appletree for three months now. I had my three month review last Monday and I can gladly say it went really well. Speaking with Chantal in the warmth and comfort of her kitchen we reviewed everything from how I am progressing, any problems I am having and how I am getting on with the rest of the team. Answering all these questions made me realise just how much I have learnt over the last three months. When I started here I had no idea about marketing and what was involved. I have learnt that a huge amount of ongoing work is needed, from working on a client’s website and twitter account daily to loading a monthly newsletter.

It has been a busy three months for me. I started Functional Skills at Newbury College 3 weeks ago today, as it has been over 5 years since I took my GCSEs, so I am required to sit a refresher exam. I am finding these lessons fairly easy and straight forward, however I am finding there are subjects I’m covering that I do need some help with. The ICT lesson I am taking has started off at a very basic level and I have already been told that I should be able to pass the exam in about 6 weeks rather than the suggested 12 weeks.

We had our company’s 13^th birthday party on Friday the 13^th of September, which meant I got to have the day off from office work.  Instead I had the task of setting up gazebos and preparing them for guest. We had chilled champagne and gluten free cupcakes decorated with Appletree branding. The best part of this was that it was a form of networking and confidence building for me, meeting the clients we work with and previous clients for the company. It gave me a chance to say hello, find out what they do and find out how their company is performing now.

I have had a bit of bad news which is that my Marketing course has been postponed until further notice due to low numbers. This came as quite a shock to me as I was very excited about starting it. Every cloud has a silver lining though; I have decided to take this as a good thing because it means when I do eventually start my course I will have a better understanding of what a Marketing Assistant does. This doesn?t mean I will be ahead of the rest of the class, it just means things might come to me more easily.

In my review Chantal and I laid out some goals for me to achieve by my next three month review. One of these was for me to start attending Toastmasters, so that I can start improving on my public speaking and to raise my confidence when speaking to clients and people I don?t know. Another goal is for me to adapt some work I have been doing on How-To guides into PDFs for our website – so keep an eye out for them soon!

I am getting on really well here. Chantal has said that she has no concerns and that she thinks things are going well. She told me that although I am in my 6 month probationary period I have nothing to worry about – that my place is secure. This was a really thoughtful thing for her to say as it made me feel appreciated and part of the team. I am really looking forward to learning so much more, starting my college course and growing as a Marketing Assistant.