When God Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade

Write your homework down. Be prompt. Pay attention. Do not procrastinate. Have good attendance. Ask questions. Never settle for less. All of these will lead to good grades and a great education. However, there are certain points in life that some people will never grasp. For instance a mathematical mind may not be able to grasp the details of the color wheel. Or possibly a music major understanding the laws of physics. People are not made to be good in all matters. I had one occurrence with this when I took and economics class. I never studied so hard and did so bad in a class as I did in that class. My mind is creative. It likes color schemes and logical flows of pictures and hands on learning. This occurred in high school and when I came to college I swore I would never take an econ class. I have yet to take one as a senior. Out of all my classes I manage to come across the hardest class for me my senior year. Radio News. Radio news has challenged me more then any other class, but also taught more then all my others as well.

What is radio news? We write, produce, along with the reporting and anchoring for a two minute news minute each week. Seems simple right? Well, at the beginning of the semester I was not even close to knowing what I was doing. For whatever reason, I could not sync my thoughts with my actions. For the first time in my life I felt like I was cooking in my own kitchen for the first time. Meaning I had all the skills and tools but I did not know how to put it all together. I was frustrated. I did not like the class. I did not care to do radio news. I thought it all stupid, pointless and played only to my weaknesses. Unfortunately I needed this class to graduate. I was stuck. It was either suck it up and work until I was blue and crazy or not get a degree. Easily guessed I choose to suck it up. I started being proactive about my life and my grade. I went to the professor shared my concern about not passing because of my “mental block”. I re-arranged my schedule to dedicate more time to the classes demands. I even went so far as to taking a pre-test for ADD. I became so adamant about doing well in radio news that it was almost sickening. Although I was in a dead belief that nothing would work and I was destined to fail radio news, things changed. My thoughts changed.

My perseverance for doing well started to pay off. I changed my schedule to dedicate Sundays to news. I found new ways to focus in class. I and believe it or not it helped. I was not a lost and helpless puppy. I knew my stuff. Slowly I started grasping the concepts in action. My writing was improving. my sound clips were getting better. I anchor better and my reporting is better. I feel proud that I have turned myself around so much. I also feel more confident in myself that I can do it. I have the abilities I just need to apply them fully. As much as I hate to admit it the class has actually taught me a lot not only about myself but also about life real world. Learning how to talk to people for a beat has been one of the things I learned. Asking people to help you and learning to ask the right questions is par t of what I have learned as well. A big part of what I learned is learning to listen and take my time. Because I lie to be involved and do a lot I feel that I should be speedy with everything. After much ado I have come to realize what I have learned transcends just the news room. My efforts have bared fruit (lemons) and I am proud of what I have made with them (lemonade).

“Scary Judge of Talent”

I maybe a senior but I will be the first to admit I do not know everything. I do however consider my self to be a “scary judge of talent” (Quote From The Recruit). Well a decent judge at the least. Of my many successors in the broadcasting major I would have to say there are few who interest me. One of these successors Andy Bortz sparks my interest. He may not be on air talent but he is amazing at music. Now what do I mean Music? Well there are some people who can sing or play music but there are others who listen to music. Listening is Andy specialty.

OK go ahead call me crazy. But there is a definite difference in listening to music for fun, listening with a critical ear and listen to capture the moments. Andy captures the beat the moment the personality of the music. When he listens to music he listens to the details. The drum, the flute, the piano, the down beat, and the upbeat. He has an uncanny ability to take music and mix it to fit the ear. Andy knows what people want. He can take a group of people define the audience and choose music accordingly. The transition is smooth and there is just enough old and new in the mix to make everyone happy. So what exactly would I say Andy is good … no, no, great at? DJing. Yes he knows the ins and outs of a radio station. Fro working the board or on air talent, it just comes naturally. He sounds great too. He understands how to move his voice with the music. Understanding when are appropriate times to be excited or calm is key. Working the Audience is another thing, he is good at. Lets use the “who cares?” rule. Taking a group of Caucasian 42 year olds and playing 50 cent, is not going to do much good for anyone. But take a group of male 18 to 21 year olds and that is much more reasonable. Andy grasps this concept. What is even more impressive is what he does with the music. He can mix songs that most people would never know can go together. I have heard some music and he honestly just has talent.

There is no rhyme or reason why people have certain talents. But to be able to find what your talent is at a relatively young age is quite and amazing. I believe that if you thoroughly enjoy something then it makes it your efforts twice as good. And I think in Andy’s case this happens. He does genuinely enjoy music working it and molding it. And maybe that above all else is what makes him shine.

My Mentor

There are a few things in college that will surmount anything you learn or do in any class. Mentors, best friends, and Just dealing with life through college will teach you leaps and bounds beyond what you would imagine. For many, including myself, you will find a person, a friend, who look up to and admire. I have found that person. Carsen Nesbitt… a very professional person, fair, a good student, a good sister and a great friend. I can honestly say that I look up to her more then anyone I know. Beyond my family, beyond my best friend, beyond any mentor or teacher that could pass my way… Carsen proves to be a person I can admire. There are so many reasons I look up to Carsen on a personal and professional level but I only want to give you a few instances.

I meet her through Sigma Kappa, Student Government Association, and Theta Chi. After I got to know her I started to watch what she did in SGA, in the sorority, how she handled herself in tough situations. She was professional and fair in every position she held. I started asking her opinion on different decisions I was making in my personal life as well as leadership positions. There is one specific instance that I remember made me think she knows what she is talking about.
My first semester Junior year I had my heart set on one thing, being president of Sigma Kappa. Now what you have to understand is I like to be involved, so I tend to be in everything… or at least as much as possible. I like to be busy. But I was so dedicated to being president, I was willing to give it all up. I did my homework too. I talked to the current president and Carsen. I need her opinion. She told me what people thought and how it could hinder me. She told me people thought I was too busy. Her honesty allowed me to try and to position myself so people would my dedication. Things happened and I didn’t end up running, but it was her who was able to walk me through my decision.
Carsen graduated May in 2008. I miss her dearly but I found that I have so much to learn from her still. She is in Law school and loves every minute of it. She knows what she wants and knows how to get it. She is also amazing at what she does. I love taking to her about what I should do when I graduate because I want what she has. She is happy with that she is doing in Law School and surrounded by good friends. I want to love what I do and she has given me such good advice as to what to do personally and professionally. Thankfully, I know that no matter what I do she will be there to help me and listen.

Appreciation

How much do you appreciate life? An interesting question but a very hard to answer. How do you measure appreciation for life? What kind of quantity can you make? You can’t. It is as simple as that You cannot define something intangible. However, you can tell when you personally appreciate life more then you did before. Different instances in your life such as death or births or disease will help you appreciate what you have. One reason I am doing my capstone on JoAnn Esposito is because it give hope to those who don’t have any and helps those who do appreciate what they have.
“Living Strong” is a documentary on JoAnn Esposito. It takes you on a journey through her stage 4-breast cancer, from beginning to end. All the way through her treatments to whom and what kept her motivated. More impressive still she manages a Breast Cancer Research Foundation called Par For the Cure. She is cancer free now and spends her time raising money for Par for the Cure. Par for the Cure takes place in Las Vegas, where they have a celebrity Golf tournament. While her son raising money and coordinates efforts on the West side JoAnn Focuses her energy here. In New Castle, she raises thousands of dollars for breast cancer research. All of the money goes straight to the breast cancer research, specifically to Dr. Slamon. A new castle native, who along with his team came up with a new drug that fights HER-2 cancer. As you go on the journey looking at the strength and courage, she had during this time you will find yourself amazed that one person could go through so much. In the end, I want my video to be an inspiration to others. I want people to appreciate life because it could be gone in an instant. I will produce direct run crew all on a budget of nothing to produce a 10-minute film. I will premiere it on Tuesday December 2nd in Mueller Theater at 5:00pm. Designed in accordance with the documentary is a poster and a trailer.

One Charitable Woman

Some might say cliché. Others might say brilliant. Still others might shrug and say of course. On the whole, none of the other opinions matter… it is my decision and after much thought I decided on Oprah. I spent a good hour and half of my life deciding whom I admire in the professional world and I finally came up with Oprah. Not only does she encompass the epitome of a strong independent woman, but she is compassionate and charitable in her life as I wish to be.
Growing up in Mississippi, she suffered abuse from various male figures during her adolescence. After moving to Tennessee to live with her father, she attended Tennessee State University. She studied broadcasting and ever since then her life has been in the history books.
Her Career sped her toward fame and money. Oprah, at 54 years of age, still shows women young and old to be strong and strive for their goals. Oprah has a talk show, book club, magazine, production group, and myriad other business functions. However, the business woman in her does not stop there. Her accomplishments in business are surpassed only by her charitable heart. She is almost as famous for her weight loss as she is for her charities. Over $51,000,000 raised by her Angel Network is just one of the many charities that she encourages and oversees. (Thanks to http://www.biography.com for Oprah Winfrey’s biography information)
The future may be unsure, but when I look at what I want to be in life, I look at Oprah. I am and want to be that strong independent woman, ready to step up to the plate and play hard. The biggest reason for my admiration of Oprah is her charitable heart and compassion. Almost all of her philanthropies focus on the welfare and well being of children. And I believe I am in her line of thinking when I say that one of the most important things to protect on this Earth is our children. If I am meant for one thing I hope it is for charities, especially focusing on children. No matter what I do with my professional life, i know that I will work charities throughout my life. I have already started down that path through my sorority work and my documentary on a person who has made a difference in the community. Famous professionals have admirers all the time. I find most admirations of them silly. However, I believe that Oprah is a genuinely kind and charitable person who I would love to meet in person.

A Moment of Truth

There is a moment, an epiphany if you will, when your mind is clear and all you can see id what is important. Honestly it is pretty uncommon, so if you do happen to come across this moment then you are pretty lucky. Now I am not a lucky person but I will be honest and tell you I have had one of these moments. However I did not come to this conclusion on my own. A Westminster faculty member trying to help me with a problem triggered my “moment of truth.”
My first year in college I was slightly nervous and one of my very first classes was Speech. Diesler was my professor and she was so nice. Now I have never considered myself a bad speaker or a good speaker but being as it was a new environment I was still trying to get to know everything. So keeping on track, she gave us our big speech topic. It was research speech and I for the life of me couldn’t find something. I think I went through 5 different topics. Every time I went to her and was I was unenthusiastic and not very happy with it. So usually other people kept giving me ideas and I would try them but they just would really fit me so I would end up being not so happy. So finally she sat me down and said what do you like and I told her a lot of things. Her advice to me was this …. do something that makes you happy , something that interests you that you genuinely want to learn about and something that is what you come up with that you want. I looked t her not really understanding how that was supposed to help me because I thought that I was already doing that. Well I told her ok I would try, not really knowing how else to respond. Her last statement to me was … sometimes if you stop looking so hard topics will pop out of no where for you. So I went back to my dorm thinking what I could do differently and kind of what she meant.
Finally it hit me like lightening on a rod. My moment of truth had come to me not only had I found a topic but realized that what she said could span across life in general. So since then I have lived for what I love to do what makes me happy and doing what I want to do and not what others tell me I want to do. I still keep I contact with Professor Diesler and she always has something interesting to say… food for my thoughts.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T…

There are many reasons I have made it this far in my college career. Some of it is from my drive to excel, another is because it is something I need to do. Either way, I have been blessed with wonderful opportunities and come in contact with many motivational people. Most have one professional person who helps them decide what they are doing with life, shows them the ropes, and supports them in general. And like most I have that as well …but slightly different. There is one person who has taught me more then she will ever know on more then one level. She has prevented bad life decisions but, let me learn from some as well. My first year in college, I was a bio major. I am certain that 2 weeks in I would have given up if she had not studied with me every night. When I realized that I really didn’t know how to study she said she didn’t know either. But I watched her process and saw the dedication and focus that she had and tried to replicate it. It worked for awhile but I finally realized it just wasn’t for me. Now I know I could never be her and honestly I don’t want to but I do take lessons from her. She is the only person only who showed me how to organize my life, telling me how to say “NO”, and reminding me on numerous accounts that “you can only do ONE thing at a time”. I would have never have pushed so hard or been as confident with myself if it wasn’t for her encouraging me and pointing me in the right direction.
Professionalism is a point of perception one could say. Why do I say this? Because you can call a teacher “professional” but that doesn’t mean they are. I have seen and heard more “professional” people do so many unprofessional acts it is sick. So, I look to other sources for my professional cues. If you would tell me I had to choose a person who has influence me in my professional career, personal life, and educationally I would tell you it is Ashley Carnahan. Some may argue that she could not be a role model if she is my age but I beg to differ. Through her I have learned how to properly conduct myself in meetings, in classes and in life in general. I must say that watching her speak, excelling in every aspect of her life has affected me greatly. When I am unhappy in my personal life it is libel to seep to my educational world and professional world. Therefore a big part of being professional is controlling my personal issues. Ashley has taught me to do what makes me happy, be confident and classy. She may not be a “professional” but give her a year to get her MBA and she will be more then qualified.