Mistake and Disappointment are your friends

Possibly one of the hardest but most beneficial lessons I’ve learned through my career search/ self-discovery is the importance of a mistake.  Some of you fear making a mistake because as students you are ingrained that to get a good job you have to be the best.  This idea causes you to place an excessive amount of pressure on yourself and to develop an aversion to risk. The problem with that mindset is it makes you

Awards and Choices

Today, I attended my school’s annual Honors Convocation ceremony.  I watched as many people took the stage to accept awards or receive recognition.  As I sat watching the professors accept awards for service, scholarship and teaching, one of my favorite quotes came to mind:

“Choice, not circumstances, determines your success”

~ Anonymous

The people that received an award today chose to do certain actions that led them to that success.  They actively shaped their futures instead of letting external forces dictate their success.  Seeing this inspires me, as I believe we can all do the same thing.  Our recognition may not come in the form of a formal event but in knowing we took control and got results.

My advice to you is take control and be accountable for your future.  Don’t allow yourself to be a victim of circumstances.

Success...Characters welcomed

We often say that people are a product of their environments and the characters that surround them.  This statement seems broad to me, so I will break it down according to the effects that each character types has on personal success.  The types, or “-ers” as I like to call them, are listed from least important to most important.

Me, Me, Me... Why it's important

Since we were little kids, our elders have always asked what we wanted to be when we grew up.  Back then, our answers were firefighter, police officer, doctor, nurse or astronaut.  Now that we are older, everyone expects a more serious answer.  Many of us simply do not know, some of us have an idea, and very few are certain of what they want.  I believe that no matter where we place ourselves on the spectrum of certainty about career goals we all need to stop and assess ourselves to figure out where to go next.