First Witness To An Act of Kindness

During the past several months, I have written blog posts regarding the importance of taking time to help others succeed and lending a hand to those who need assistance. I've often written about the importance of how taking time to help others is meaningful to others and can build trust and lasting relationships. Last night, I was able to witness a very generous act of kindness that meant a lot to a young boy and his family.

When walking into Solon, Ohio's Stewart Field to take pictures of the Solon vs. Massillon Jackson lacrosse game, I noticed all off the players, coaches and parents wearing t-shirts promoting "Vincestrong." I wasn't 100% sure what exactly "Vincestrong" was until one of the parents came up to me and asked that I take pictures of the captains going out for the coin toss. The parent informed me that "Vincestrong" was created to help a local boy who was diagnosed with leukemia and raise money for his foundation. On this very night, this boy was not only getting an opportunity to go out for the coin toss before the game but the entire Solon lacrosse family dedicated the entire night to him and his family.

In addition to dedicating the night to this boy, the parents sold "Vincestrong" t-shirts and wrist bands with the proceeds benefiting the foundation. As the game went on, I saw lots of students in attendance and parents make their way to the press box to pick up a t-shirt and donate to the cause. During halftime, I couldn't help but walk up to the press box to pick up a t-shirt to help this local boy as well.

As the night went on, I could tell how meaningful this act of kindness from the Solon lacrosse parents and players was to the boy and his family. These parents and players didn't have to do this at all but they all decided that lending a hand would be meaningful and helpful to someone in need. As a result, they garnered the trust, support and appreciation from this boy and his family for a long time.

By taking time to help others in need, you might not realize it at first but your assistance can mean a lot to someone in the end. If you have the chance to lend a hand to help, do so and you will not only assist someone but could create a lasting relationship.

College Seniors: What Is It Going To Take To Reach Your Goals?

With spring rapidly approaching, decisions about your life after college will have to be made. Decisions as to where you want to go in life, what you want to achieve and where you want to live will have to be considered before you walk across the stage and earn your degree. These decisions may not be easy but taking the time to understand where you want to go can help you in the end. After you decide where you want to go, you have to ask yourself what is it going to take to reach your goals.

As you plan your life after college, take some time to determine where you want to be one year, five years and maybe even 10 years after graduating. Do you want to go back to school at one point? Do you want to be a manager for the company you work for? Do you want to work for a large sized company? Take several minutes to decide how you want to start off, where you want to be five years after that and what you want to achieve ten years down the road.

Once your goals are set, you need to ask yourself one simple question:

"What is it going to take to achieve these goals?"

Goals are always at the top of the cliff, however, you need to know how you are going to climb up the mountain to reach them. What steps will you need to take to get better at your job? What additional training or information will you need? It is questions like these that will help you plan the steps you will need to take to reach your goals and understand what it is going to take to reach your dreams.

For example, let's say you have a goal to become a ear, nose and throat doctor. What schools do you want to go to for medical school that will give you the best training before your residency? If so, how do you plan on getting into those schools? What score will you need on the MCATS to get in? These are all questions that will answer what it will take for you to reach that goal of becoming an ear, nose and throat doctor. After you answer these, you will have the plan set up in place to reach that goal and understand what it will take.

As your time is winding down in college, decisions will have to be made about your future and goals will need to be set. If you understand what you want to achieve, you will need to understand what you need to do to reach those dreams of yours.

Be Grateful For What You Have

Throughout out lives, there are times in which we come across others that may have a nicer car, a bigger house or other luxury items or talents we wish we had as well. Sometimes it may be difficult not having certain items or talents but looking at what you have in your life instead of what you don't have in your life may help put things into another perspective.

For example, when I was in high school, I ran track but was never as fast as some of our other runners and not as athletically gifted. It may have seemed hard at times knowing I was never going to be a championship runner, however, I decided to look at it from a different perspective. I looked at the experience as an opportunity to make some awesome friends (some of which I still talk to to this day) and find different ways to contribute to the team. I often found myself cheering on my teammates who helped win meets for us and even put together the end of the season video (a tradition that continues to this day).

In this case, I knew I didn't have the athletic ability some of my teammates possessed but I understood the awesome friends I had made and the importance of cheering on your teammates. I may not have been the fastest runner out there but knew I had met some great people and learned some valuable skills along the way.

As another example, growing up, I knew others that could paint and draw pictures really well, however, I could not (and still cannot) do either very well. Instead of being upset that I couldn't do either one of these activities very well, I found another way to be artistic by taking pictures. After years of doing video production, photography came easy because I was understood how to frame a shot, could vision what I wanted a photo to look like and it has become one of my favorite hobbies. Instead of being upset about not being able to draw or paint well, I am grateful I had the skills to take some great pictures and become artistic in that sense.

Even beyond my high school years, I have still come across those who have more athletic talents then I have, have other skills I don't possess and may have a few items I don't have as well. While it might be easy to be jealous or upset in these cases, I learned that looking at it from another perspective has helped me be grateful for the things I do have. By looking at things from this type of perspective, it has helped me appreciate the friends I have, what I can do and the small things in life that put a smile on my face.

Trying New Opportunities Can Build Some of The Best Friendships

During certain times in our lives, there are times in which we aren't eager to try new opportunities, new challenges or break out of our comfort zones. Trying an activity, hobby or something that is out of your comfort zone can be challenging but can reap the rewards if done right. Not every new opportunity you take advantage of may be a good experience but taking the time to enjoy new hobbies and activities can help build some of the best friendships.

Before I went to college, I never had the courage to run for any type of staffhead position for any of the organizations I was apart of due to the fear of possibly being rejected. I lacked confidence and didn't feel that I had the skills to lead people or feel I could even win the position. This fear I had made it difficult for me to want to take on any type of leadership roles during that time in my life.

During my sophomore year of college, this attitude of mine changed with an opportunity that was presented to me and the encouragement of two friends of mine. There was an opportunity for me to become an Assistant Promotions Director for the campus radio station at Otterbein (where I went to college) and after getting turned down for another position months beforehand and feeling down about that, I wasn't sure I wanted to run for anything again. It wasn't until the Webmaster of the station and the General Manager talked with me for a little bit that I finally decided to throw my name in the hat for the open position.

Unlike the months before, I ended up getting the position and the girl who was the Webmaster, the General Manager and others who worked at the station became some of my closest friends. These people took time to encourage me to work hard at the position, grow and develop leadership skills I never knew I had, and helped boost my confidence. I was able to trust these people (something I had trouble doing at certain times) and realized I was building great friendships with these individuals. Taking advantage of this opportunity not only helped me realize skills I didn't have but helped me develop some great friendships as well.

Had I not taken advantage of this new opportunity, I never would have made some of the great friends I had at the campus radio station and never realized some of the leadership skills I had. it opened me up to becoming more involved in this organization and others and I greatly benefited from going out of my comfort zone to try something new.

Even beyond college, I've taken advantage of new opportunities via the suggestion and help of others. I've become close with those who have helped me get more involved with my photography hobby, have become friends with a couple of people who have given me dating advice, and have gotten to know some other great people by getting out and trying something new. I've not only benefited and become more confident but have developed some close friendships as well.

Whenever you have the opportunity to try a new activity, you may not only benefit yourself but also develop some incredible friendships along the way too.

Take Time To Relax: You Might Need It!

As a college student or working professional, there will be times in which stressful situations or weeks will arise and it will be tiring. There may be times in which longer hours will have to be put in and cause you to feel tired and strained a little bit. Getting through this may not be easy, however, taking time to relax afterwards may be something to help you refresh.

Below are some tips on finding different ways to relax and refresh after long periods of work time:

1) Plan a Weekend Getaway Somewhere - Take a weekend to find a place to travel to and get away from your normal routine. This will help you focus your attention elsewhere, find some peace and quiet and help you explore another place.

2) Take Time To Enjoy Your Hobbies - Hobbies are a great way to relax and make life more enjoyable. Take some time to create a project with one of your hobbies, share it with someone else or just enjoy a hobby you enjoy doing. This will divert your attention and force you to focus on something else.

3) Go for a Couple of Nice Long Workouts- Exercise can release tension and take time to get in shape or do some long workouts to relieve the stress

4) Plan a Movie Night or Movie Day - One of the greatest ways to relax is to stick in a movie you haven't seen in a while and just sit and enjoy it! You might be surprised as to how relaxed you will feel while enjoying your movie.

Getting A Phone Call at a Bad Time: Don't Panic!

As you are networking within your college and professional career, there will be instances in which taking a phone call will be easy and other times where taking a call will not be convenient. When receiving a call from a network contact, it is always best to be relaxed, calm and polite not matter what the circumstances might be.

When reaching out to others, there may be an instance or two in which you may not have the time to talk to someone at a particular moment. There may be times in which you need to go into another meeting, another call, or driving that will prohibit you from taking that person's phone call.

If this should happen, consider the following tips below:

1) Stay calm- Don't sound rushed or as if you are trying to get them off the phone as soon as possible. Stay relaxed and talk at a normal pace.

2) Thank the person for calling and ask for a time to call back - Always thank someone for taking the time to return your phone call and offer a time to call back. Consider the following examples:

"Mr. Smith, I want to thank you for returning my call. I am a bit tied up at the moment and would welcome the opportunity to speak with you. When is a good time I can call you back today or tomorrow?"

"Mr. Smith, I would like to thank you for reaching out to me. Unfortunately, I am a bit tied up at the moment but would welcome the opportunity to speak with you. When would be a good time for me to call you back?"

"I would like to thank you for returning my phone call, Mr. Smith. I do apologize but I am not in a position to talk right at this moment. I would welcome the opportunity to speak with you; when would be a good time for me to call you back?"

3) If you are driving, pull over or pull into a parking lot- Find someplace you can go to where you can concentrate just on the phone call at hand. This will help you listen to the person on the other end, ask the right questions and retain more of the information.