I’ve always thought myself lucky to have formed really really good relationships with my high school teachers. To the point where I’m still very well-connected with many of them, update them with my life and I visit the high school every time I’m home. I have some awesome role models in them. From opening doors for me, to making me love subjects I thought I never would, to even challenging me to have the drive to go further than I thought I could, they’ve done it all.
So visiting the high school to me is always a treat because I get to hear their stories about how loud and crazy their classes are or how brilliant and successful others are. It’s cool going back to my roots and seeing where I really consider my career aspirations started. It’s also so strange to see high schoolers; they’re so little! Really proud of the seniors though. Can’t wait for the new Wolverines to come to Michigan. Can you believe it? Class of 2016? What the hell? Where has time gone?
It’s also great to hear about my teachers’ stories about how they are doing. This is a tough economy as everyone knows and unfortunately, it has hit our education system so far. See the picture above? I actually worry about that. It’s unfortunate because teachers are really the hardest workers. At least my teachers were. They, like above, should be paid like doctors…or investment bankers. It’s not just about math or reading; a good teacher installs more than just that. I’ve learned so much more about life lessons, have great role models, and have had doors opened for me because of them.
But they’re staying strong, even through this hard times, and that’s great to see. You know you’re passionate about something when you can push through obstacles like they have. Teachers deserve the world, they really do.
Man oh man, time flies. And yes, I’m a bit nostalgic about high school but I remember how much happier I am in college.
Just saw this! My high school gave me a little shout out about a month ago and I finally got to see it. Thank you guys so much. It means a lot!
I was talking to my dad yesterday about where some of my friends were going this summer or things some of my friends had accomplished this year. And I found myself not being able to slow down because there were just so many cool things that my friends were doing. I think the picture above is true…in a sense. I think some people can interpret it wrongly by saying that you should just surround yourself with successful people and that sounds a bit…I don’t know..like you just want to get ahead yourself and use those people?
Yeah. That’s not me. I feel like I’ve surrounded myself with people who are positive and who I know are going to be successful because of how brilliant they are. It’s fun to think about the future and no, I don’t want to fast forward anywhere but imagining where they’re going to be is really cool. I’m lucky to have them and I can’t wait to see how far they go. Because I think I’ve surrounded myself with people that are truly driven and want it. Whatever “it” is for them, they have ambition to get “it.” And that, I can respect.
That’s one of the things about me that I’ve found out. I get so excited for my friends’ successes. I freak out for them. For good grades on tests, for successful interviews, for job offers, for EVERYTHING that has the slightest positive twist to it. Really. I just find it so exciting to see how people evolve and to see people succeeding, especially these people are the same people that have been supportive of me and my successes as well.
So this is for all of those I’m lucky enough to call my friends. Do me a favor: update me on how your life is going. It’s okay to brag a little (just a little!). Being away from school shouldn’t block your ability to tweet an update, to text me something, to blog about your adventures or even just taking pictures. I want to see where you are and what rad things you’re up to! And maybe use your success to help the younger people out there who are looking for advice. Because hey, we were all in that position one time and we all know that they would appreciate it. Because truth is—we’re growing up fast. And we (most of us anyway) are rising juniors. Upperclassman. Time to set the example. A positive example. A successful example.
Ready friends? Let’s see how far we go.
This may be the new LinkedIn. I LOVE it. I think it’s a great way to show a profile and accomplishments and recruiters to find more about it.
University of Michigan students can sign up for it. Do it. It’s pretty cool.
When people ask me what my interests are, I say sports, marketing and social media. The first on the list usually needs to nice conversation about sports I like, athletes I cheer for (cough Andy Roddick is at the top of that list), and teams I like (GO BLUE! GO WINGS! GO LIONS!…just to name a few!). The second is pretty self-explanatory only because that’s what I’m studying in school at the Ross School of Business.
But the third, social media, sometimes throws people off. “Social media?” they ask. Yes, social media. But I’ll always clear it up for them.
I don’t mean social media in the sense of updating Facebook statuses or tweeting what you ate for lunch.
I mean social media in the sense that I’m absolutely fascinated at the ability of sharing stories in multiple ways…in just seconds. In its simplest form, social media is just blogging. Micro-blogging in terms of Twitter, social-blogging in terms of Facebook, network-blogging in terms of LinkedIn.
I love being able to communicate with people that you normally don’t get to. Those people being celebrities, companies, recruiters, alumni of my school, stores, etc. I love that, as a student, I can find out more about the industries I’m interested in with just a view of their Twitter, or get the latest information of what’s going on around my school.
I like influencing my friends, peers, and other people to get involved with the social media movement. I like getting people interested on the benefits of social media and I try to tell them how to use it properly, about privacy settings and what I’ve gotten out of different social media outlets. I know that many of my friends will vouch that I’ve gotten them on Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest and even a few to find out their Klout scores!
But my biggest interest comes in social media marketing. It’s amazing how influential social media has become for marketing now. Companies not having a Facebook and/or Twitter is a rarity these days. Product information comes out via these social media platforms now. Even customer service is done through them these days. The brilliance of social media is that everyone who is your fan or follower is interested in you in some way—or else why would they have liked your page or followed you? That in itself has already given you the target market. You can reach all of your followers with just 1 tweet. And all of your fans with just one post. It’s unbelievable if you think about it.
The thing is, social media is what YOU make of it. So make the most of it! Follow what you like, learn more about it, and then tell the world your opinions on it. Sharing is caring!
And so yes, that is why I love social media. Passionate about it.
—-Post originally written on March 4th as I competed for the Under Armour Ultimate intern team. This has been edited.
Where I’ll be in 18 days:
Where I want to be on July 4th:
Where I want to visit for friends this summer:
Where I’ll find my way back to:
Summer in a quick nutshell and maybe some surprises on the way.
