Recently I went to New York and met with Tanner Stransky. He's a Drake alum, a writer for Entertainment Weekly, and author of Finding Your Inner Ugly Betty. In short, he's kind of a big deal. I got to sit down with him and learn more about what it takes to get your foot in the constantly contracting journalism industry. Bottom line? It's not easy. Print media is just on the outs. It's a sad reality for people like me. But I did learn a lot from talk to him and now I pass Tanner's tips on to you.
1. Tailor your resume - Don't use the same resume over and over and over for every job you apply for; tailor it to fit the job. If it's an online job, play up online experience. If it's a job like Tanner's in entertainment media, play up your experience with entertainment. You get the point.
2. Use resources on campus - Drake has a lot of journalism professors (and I mean A LOT) who have actual real-world journalism experience. It's a good idea to talk to them and see who they know. A lot of them have good connections at the Des Moines Register and Meredith and even a bunch of other places in and out of state. Journalism has always been about who you know. Don't be afraid to ask.
3. Find alum - I don't remember if this was his tip or mine, but either way it's worth mentioning. Before I went to New York I asked my adviser if she knew any alum I could contact. Advisers like to keep tabs on their students after graduation because they like to brag about them a bit. And that's perfectly fine and totally awesome if they can hook you up with an old alum. I think alumni are the best type of people to meet with because you already have something in common (you both went to the same school) so it takes away a lot of that initial awkwardness.
4. Figure out what you want - This one, I think, is the hardest. Tanner says to tailor your resume, but I pretty much snatch up every opportunity I can find and there isn't exactly a common denominator between all of them. After a while you have to kind of pick an avenue, even a broad one, and pursue it like crazy and get experience in the area of your choice. If you like interior design, find interior design stuff - even if it's just a blog here and there or an random freelance article for the web. If you like sports, write sports articles for the school newspaper. It's good to be well-rounded, too and have a variety of experience, but it's also beneficial to have one interest or specialty because it makes finding real jobs in that field much, much easier when the time comes.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
The Revolving Door of Doom
There are some people in this country who are used to the fast paced nature of New York. There are some people who are not.
I am, as you may imagine, not.
Everything in New York seems to move faster. People, life, elevators (not kidding - go to the 22nd floor sometime and see if your ears don't pop) and the evilest and scariest contraption I've come in contact with ... revolving doors.
You wouldn't think revolving doors would be tricky, but don't be fooled.
Here's the story...
I was leaving the hotel in New York and I approach the revolving door. This particular revolving door is automatic. It stops when nobody is using it, but starts going again when someone gets near it.
Well, just as i step one foot in the revolving door it starts revolving and before I know it I'm half in the door and half out of it, pinned up against the entry door frame. Meanwhile, the door is still trying to revolve because I keep setting off the sensor. And this sucker has some force - so much, in fact, that I couldn't get out on my own. The doorman ultimately had to come to my rescue.
I felt stupid. But maybe my story will prevent further accidents.
Just keep all this in mind the next time you're confronted with a revolving door of doom. Be careful and happy revolving.
I am, as you may imagine, not.
Everything in New York seems to move faster. People, life, elevators (not kidding - go to the 22nd floor sometime and see if your ears don't pop) and the evilest and scariest contraption I've come in contact with ... revolving doors.
You wouldn't think revolving doors would be tricky, but don't be fooled.
Here's the story...
I was leaving the hotel in New York and I approach the revolving door. This particular revolving door is automatic. It stops when nobody is using it, but starts going again when someone gets near it.
Well, just as i step one foot in the revolving door it starts revolving and before I know it I'm half in the door and half out of it, pinned up against the entry door frame. Meanwhile, the door is still trying to revolve because I keep setting off the sensor. And this sucker has some force - so much, in fact, that I couldn't get out on my own. The doorman ultimately had to come to my rescue.
I felt stupid. But maybe my story will prevent further accidents.
Just keep all this in mind the next time you're confronted with a revolving door of doom. Be careful and happy revolving.
Expanding horizons
In life, I'm told, it's important to expand your horizons. Push the envelope. Expand your comfort zone. Think outside of the box. All that jazz.
I agree. It's important to do those things. You can't always just stick to who and what you know. You just can't. Where's the personal growth if that's what you're going to do?
But I think it's a misconception that you have to do something drastic to expand your horizons.
I am, to say the least, a safe and cautious person, and I'm ok with that. Some people are more adventurous and take risks - and admirably so. Good for them, but that's not my style.
It was a big, BIG deal for me to pack up my life and move 600 miles away from everyone and everything I knew to go to school in a state I wasn't entirely convinced existed. That was a major expansion of my own personal horizon.
You know what was also a big deal for me? I went to New York recently for a couple of days to meet with some magazine people out there. Granted, it was only two days and, no, New York isn't THAT scary, but I'm not a big city type of girl. At all. I don't like big cities. Maybe I'm just boring that way, but that's how I am. There was another expanded horizon.
Not only was I walking around a big city by myself, but I was also meeting with some pretty intimidating people.
That's a lot of overwhelming stuff for someone like me in such a short period of time. And through all of that I realized that expanding horizons doesn't necessarily involve going to the other side of the country at all. It's as simple as going to a new restaurant. Meeting someone new. Joining a club. Getting a different haircut. Taking an interesting class that doesn't apply to your particular field of study. Trying your brother's new video game and enjoying it even though you convinced yourself you wouldn't.
I think when it comes to pushing your personal envelope you have to understand what kind of person you are. Are you the type who can take massive risks and launch yourself into an entirely different environment and adapt flawlessly? Or are you more cautious and prefer to maximize the comfort zone and minimize discomfort? There's nothing wrong with either, but I think it's an important distinction to make. Expanded horizons aren't necessarily waiting in New York, or any other distant and foreign place - they are, in fact, everywhere. I would even venture to say they're absolutely impossible to avoid.
I agree. It's important to do those things. You can't always just stick to who and what you know. You just can't. Where's the personal growth if that's what you're going to do?
But I think it's a misconception that you have to do something drastic to expand your horizons.
I am, to say the least, a safe and cautious person, and I'm ok with that. Some people are more adventurous and take risks - and admirably so. Good for them, but that's not my style.
It was a big, BIG deal for me to pack up my life and move 600 miles away from everyone and everything I knew to go to school in a state I wasn't entirely convinced existed. That was a major expansion of my own personal horizon.
You know what was also a big deal for me? I went to New York recently for a couple of days to meet with some magazine people out there. Granted, it was only two days and, no, New York isn't THAT scary, but I'm not a big city type of girl. At all. I don't like big cities. Maybe I'm just boring that way, but that's how I am. There was another expanded horizon.
Not only was I walking around a big city by myself, but I was also meeting with some pretty intimidating people.
That's a lot of overwhelming stuff for someone like me in such a short period of time. And through all of that I realized that expanding horizons doesn't necessarily involve going to the other side of the country at all. It's as simple as going to a new restaurant. Meeting someone new. Joining a club. Getting a different haircut. Taking an interesting class that doesn't apply to your particular field of study. Trying your brother's new video game and enjoying it even though you convinced yourself you wouldn't.
I think when it comes to pushing your personal envelope you have to understand what kind of person you are. Are you the type who can take massive risks and launch yourself into an entirely different environment and adapt flawlessly? Or are you more cautious and prefer to maximize the comfort zone and minimize discomfort? There's nothing wrong with either, but I think it's an important distinction to make. Expanded horizons aren't necessarily waiting in New York, or any other distant and foreign place - they are, in fact, everywhere. I would even venture to say they're absolutely impossible to avoid.
Monday, December 29, 2008
APO National Convention in Boston
Every two years, Alpha Phi Omega holds its national convention. Brothers from all over the country (and even from some other countries) come for four days of leadership, friendship, service and brotherhood.
This year the convention was in Boston, Massachusetts - home of the Green Monster, Cheers, Paul Revere, some killer seafood (so I'm told), Hahvahd, and a harbor full of tea. I was excited that it was in Boston because I had never been there before and it was bound to be cool because, well, it's Boston.
Unfortunately, I didn't get to see a whole lot of the city. I did get to Fenway Park (boo on the Red Sox) and Chinatown (which was more scary than cool) but most of my time was spent in the hotel convention-ing.
And that was AWESOME.
It was so incredible (I wish I could come up with a better word to express the amazingness) to see APO on such a large scale. Before I just thought about my little chapter on my little campus doing little service projects and things like that - but it's HUGE. There are chapters EVERYWHERE and it was a really powerful reminder that I am (and my chapter is), in fact, part of a VERY large whole. It was a wonderful feeling.
And it was interesting, too. One APO chapter isn't like another APO chapter and they're not like the next APO chapter. Every single chapter does SOMETHING differently. And from time to time I didn't really like or agree with their policies or the way they do things, but it was still interesting to hear about.
On the other hand, I spoke to lots of brothers from other chapters who gave me great ideas I want to take back to my own chapter and I in turn gave other brothers ideas to take back to THEIR chapters. It was really, really interesting just to talk to other people.
At the convention I was my chapter's voting delegate. Each chapter gets two voting delegates (my chaper only had one) to participate in legislation. Legislation is where various committees bring forth various proposals and resolutions to be voted on by the legislative body as a whole. There are long hours and you don't have time to run around and explore the city or go to other workshops that are being offered, but to me it was a sacrifice I was willing to make. Being part of legislation was awesome, and I was overwhelmingly proud to represent my chapter on the legislative floor. I was only one person with one vote, obviously, but I was helping change national APO policy. It was extremely rewarding.
The convention was a blur of excitement, deliriousness (little sleep was had) and enthusiasm and I loved every minute of it. It was an awesome feeling to be surrounded by 2,000 people who love APO and what it represents just as much as I do.
At the end of the convention there was an awards banquet. The convention committee took turns speaking and crying and hugging and thanking each other, various awesome chapters were recognized, and everybody was able to reflect on their time in Boston and with each other. We all tied our napkins together to represent being connected as loyal brothers in leadership, friendship and service.
Then, all 2,000 of us got up out of our seats and formed a circle around the massive ballroom that had to be the size of a football field (we had to actually make a two-layered circle), and sang the APO toast song. Yes, we have a song. That was hands down one of the coolest parts of the convention. It was like in that movie Drumline - one band, one sound. We were one massive group celebrating APO together as one.
It was great meeting people and learning new things about other chapters, but I think it was the contagious enthusiasm and love and passion for APO that I loved the most. Lately there have been some changes in my chapter and I know it's not everything it can be and, particularly last semester, I became frustrated and discouraged. But the convention put the APO twinkle back in my eye and I'm ready to take my APO high back home to my chapter and share with them everything I gained this week.
This year the convention was in Boston, Massachusetts - home of the Green Monster, Cheers, Paul Revere, some killer seafood (so I'm told), Hahvahd, and a harbor full of tea. I was excited that it was in Boston because I had never been there before and it was bound to be cool because, well, it's Boston.
Unfortunately, I didn't get to see a whole lot of the city. I did get to Fenway Park (boo on the Red Sox) and Chinatown (which was more scary than cool) but most of my time was spent in the hotel convention-ing.
And that was AWESOME.
It was so incredible (I wish I could come up with a better word to express the amazingness) to see APO on such a large scale. Before I just thought about my little chapter on my little campus doing little service projects and things like that - but it's HUGE. There are chapters EVERYWHERE and it was a really powerful reminder that I am (and my chapter is), in fact, part of a VERY large whole. It was a wonderful feeling.
And it was interesting, too. One APO chapter isn't like another APO chapter and they're not like the next APO chapter. Every single chapter does SOMETHING differently. And from time to time I didn't really like or agree with their policies or the way they do things, but it was still interesting to hear about.
On the other hand, I spoke to lots of brothers from other chapters who gave me great ideas I want to take back to my own chapter and I in turn gave other brothers ideas to take back to THEIR chapters. It was really, really interesting just to talk to other people.
At the convention I was my chapter's voting delegate. Each chapter gets two voting delegates (my chaper only had one) to participate in legislation. Legislation is where various committees bring forth various proposals and resolutions to be voted on by the legislative body as a whole. There are long hours and you don't have time to run around and explore the city or go to other workshops that are being offered, but to me it was a sacrifice I was willing to make. Being part of legislation was awesome, and I was overwhelmingly proud to represent my chapter on the legislative floor. I was only one person with one vote, obviously, but I was helping change national APO policy. It was extremely rewarding.
The convention was a blur of excitement, deliriousness (little sleep was had) and enthusiasm and I loved every minute of it. It was an awesome feeling to be surrounded by 2,000 people who love APO and what it represents just as much as I do.
At the end of the convention there was an awards banquet. The convention committee took turns speaking and crying and hugging and thanking each other, various awesome chapters were recognized, and everybody was able to reflect on their time in Boston and with each other. We all tied our napkins together to represent being connected as loyal brothers in leadership, friendship and service.
Then, all 2,000 of us got up out of our seats and formed a circle around the massive ballroom that had to be the size of a football field (we had to actually make a two-layered circle), and sang the APO toast song. Yes, we have a song. That was hands down one of the coolest parts of the convention. It was like in that movie Drumline - one band, one sound. We were one massive group celebrating APO together as one.
It was great meeting people and learning new things about other chapters, but I think it was the contagious enthusiasm and love and passion for APO that I loved the most. Lately there have been some changes in my chapter and I know it's not everything it can be and, particularly last semester, I became frustrated and discouraged. But the convention put the APO twinkle back in my eye and I'm ready to take my APO high back home to my chapter and share with them everything I gained this week.
The Christmas Trick
This year Christmas went a little differently. Usually we, like, unwrap presents and, like, get the presents we unwrap.
That wasn't completely the case this year.
We looked in our stockings and pulled out some kind of random things with paper taped to them. The paper had the name of a real gift taped to it. For example, I got a "butterfly calendar" in my stocking but I really got an empty jewelry box. It was pretty funny and, honestly, really unexpected.
Then we started opening tree presents and there was a small cylindrical one that piqued my curiosity. I opened it and found a can of tomato paste with a label that said "hat" on it. I was confused. I definitely didn't expect to continue to get what my parents called "virtual presents."
My brother and I continued to open presents finding some real ones and some virtual ones that included a cardboard box with plastic bags and screws, canned food, books we already owned, and empty cd cases.
Eventually we were surprised when Mom gave us these really gorgeous santa sacks that she MADE full of the gifts we had received "virtually". Mom and Dad just got tired of us being able to guess what all of our presents were. Well, they definitely fooled us this year. Nothing was as it seemed. In the end it was fun and I liked not knowing what my gifts were. But one thing's for certain - they definitely fooled us.
That wasn't completely the case this year.
We looked in our stockings and pulled out some kind of random things with paper taped to them. The paper had the name of a real gift taped to it. For example, I got a "butterfly calendar" in my stocking but I really got an empty jewelry box. It was pretty funny and, honestly, really unexpected.
Then we started opening tree presents and there was a small cylindrical one that piqued my curiosity. I opened it and found a can of tomato paste with a label that said "hat" on it. I was confused. I definitely didn't expect to continue to get what my parents called "virtual presents."
My brother and I continued to open presents finding some real ones and some virtual ones that included a cardboard box with plastic bags and screws, canned food, books we already owned, and empty cd cases.
Eventually we were surprised when Mom gave us these really gorgeous santa sacks that she MADE full of the gifts we had received "virtually". Mom and Dad just got tired of us being able to guess what all of our presents were. Well, they definitely fooled us this year. Nothing was as it seemed. In the end it was fun and I liked not knowing what my gifts were. But one thing's for certain - they definitely fooled us.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Takin' Care of Business
Ever since I moved into Drake West Village, I've had the most annoying trouble with my internet. I'll be surfing the net, minding my own business, and then out of nowhere, my signal will break for like ten seconds, I'll get booted off iChat, and my tetris game won't load. It was really quite ridiculous. I mean, half of my ever-so-important chats with AIM buddy Ryan ended up consisting of the messages one of us missed when I was unexpectedly kicked off the internet .. again. And I don't even want to tell you how it hurt my tetris game.
Last night was beyond bad. I was being kicked off every two minutes it seemed and I couldn't get anything done. And I mean real stuff - not just my chats and tetris - I was actually working on things.
Realizing that enough was enough, today I decided to take matters into my own hands. I went out to the router box thingy (excuse my excessively complex technological terminology) and unplugged it and reset it thinking SURELY this would solve the problem.
Guess what?
IT DID!
Our internet no longer blips out on us all the time. It just... doesn't work at all.
Oops.
My roommate called her computer tech mom and boyfriend and they couldn't help us, and neither could my dad. All three gave us the same answer: call Qwest. Realizing that if I hadn't effed things up in the first place we wouldn't be in this situation, I decided that I should be the one to call.
So I called one number and finally made it through all the menus - only to talk to a person on the other end who did nothing but give me a new number to call. So I called that number. The guy needed the phone number the account was under. There was a phone number on the router box, so I gave him that. Apparently that didn't work. The phone number I gave him didn't at all match my address. Then he asked me for an account number off my billing statement which, of course, I don't have because DWV takes care of all that stuff. I talked to four people and nobody understood my living situation. I got frustrated, hung up, and went to talk to the DWV office where I got a new number to call and I was told to give the tech guy the room number ("My room has a phone number???").
I called the guy. I explained the problem. I gave him my room phone number (still kind of amazed that my room HAD a phone number...). I waited. And I waited. I was then told that there was no DSL service connected to the phone number I provided at all, and that I should probably call DirecTV.
"DirecTV? I should call them if I'm having problems with Qwest internet?"
"Yes, for the Choice TV."
"What..??? Uh... ok."
I didn't call DirecTV. Instead I went back down to the office and re-explained my situation. Apparently I'm not the only one struggling with Qwest tech support people. Drake West Village has kindly started to take care of things for me. Unfortunately, this all happened right around 4:30 and the office closes at 5, so for the night at least, my apartment (and my very agitated roomies) are without internet.
They can get over it, though. All they really need it for is youtube and flash games so maybe this way they'll actually study for finals. As for me, I DO need the internet and I'm sitting in the laundry room bumming a signal. Hey, it's nice down here. It's warm, it smells good, there's internet AND tv. What more could I ask for really?
Last night was beyond bad. I was being kicked off every two minutes it seemed and I couldn't get anything done. And I mean real stuff - not just my chats and tetris - I was actually working on things.
Realizing that enough was enough, today I decided to take matters into my own hands. I went out to the router box thingy (excuse my excessively complex technological terminology) and unplugged it and reset it thinking SURELY this would solve the problem.
Guess what?
IT DID!
Our internet no longer blips out on us all the time. It just... doesn't work at all.
Oops.
My roommate called her computer tech mom and boyfriend and they couldn't help us, and neither could my dad. All three gave us the same answer: call Qwest. Realizing that if I hadn't effed things up in the first place we wouldn't be in this situation, I decided that I should be the one to call.
So I called one number and finally made it through all the menus - only to talk to a person on the other end who did nothing but give me a new number to call. So I called that number. The guy needed the phone number the account was under. There was a phone number on the router box, so I gave him that. Apparently that didn't work. The phone number I gave him didn't at all match my address. Then he asked me for an account number off my billing statement which, of course, I don't have because DWV takes care of all that stuff. I talked to four people and nobody understood my living situation. I got frustrated, hung up, and went to talk to the DWV office where I got a new number to call and I was told to give the tech guy the room number ("My room has a phone number???").
I called the guy. I explained the problem. I gave him my room phone number (still kind of amazed that my room HAD a phone number...). I waited. And I waited. I was then told that there was no DSL service connected to the phone number I provided at all, and that I should probably call DirecTV.
"DirecTV? I should call them if I'm having problems with Qwest internet?"
"Yes, for the Choice TV."
"What..??? Uh... ok."
I didn't call DirecTV. Instead I went back down to the office and re-explained my situation. Apparently I'm not the only one struggling with Qwest tech support people. Drake West Village has kindly started to take care of things for me. Unfortunately, this all happened right around 4:30 and the office closes at 5, so for the night at least, my apartment (and my very agitated roomies) are without internet.
They can get over it, though. All they really need it for is youtube and flash games so maybe this way they'll actually study for finals. As for me, I DO need the internet and I'm sitting in the laundry room bumming a signal. Hey, it's nice down here. It's warm, it smells good, there's internet AND tv. What more could I ask for really?
Need a study break?
Stressed much? Sad that the most wonderful time of the year is shrouded with pressure and stress. Instead of going shopping or skating or baking Christmas cookies, we're stuck with our noses in books trying to memorize information we're just going to forget the instant we're done taking the exam.
If you're feeling finals a little more than you'd like to, take a moment to take a study break and check out these youtube videos. Just make sure you're taking a study break to watch videos and not taking a break from videos to study. :D
Jeff Dunham - ventriloquist extraordinaire
This one
This one
This one
They're all hilarious
Straight No Chaser - awesome a capella group. Very cool stuff.
Twelve Days of Christmas
There own personal theme song
Lion Sleeps tonight
Now get back to work!
If you're feeling finals a little more than you'd like to, take a moment to take a study break and check out these youtube videos. Just make sure you're taking a study break to watch videos and not taking a break from videos to study. :D
Jeff Dunham - ventriloquist extraordinaire
This one
This one
This one
They're all hilarious
Straight No Chaser - awesome a capella group. Very cool stuff.
Twelve Days of Christmas
There own personal theme song
Lion Sleeps tonight
Now get back to work!
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