Be good. Be damned good.

It's the second week I have left PRSSA inspired. Tonight, Dr. Joe Trahan spoke to us, but not about something typical. He didn't discuss social media or how to stand out from a crowd. He took us back to the basics of being a leader. He served in the military and that definitely shaped him into the professional he is today. When he was talking about being a leader, I re-evaluated everything I do as a leader. I hold two executive positions. One in Delta Zeta and the other in PRSSA. I love both of my positions, but they can get extremely overwhelming. Yet tonight's speech made me remember why I ran for these positions and why I got elected.

I can do great things. We all can. We just have to lead from the front. And even on days when I have been busy from the time I woke up, I need to handle my leadership roles with energy and enthusiasm. If I am not excited, why should the people who look to me be excited? With DZ, we dress up for our sisterhood meetings. And as an executive member, I try every week to look extra nice, not just kahkis and a polo. It's little things like that that I think people notice and take note of.

After tonight, I realized I need to keep doing what I am doing and even start doing more. I need to remember L.E.A.D.E.R. everyday and try to live it in my daily life. Anyone can be a leader, but to be a great leader, you need all of those components.

And even though the whole presentation was motivational, one of Dr. Trahan's final sayings was to "be good. Be damned good." And to me, it was like a light bulb went on. I can't just be great or pretty good. I have to be damned good to be successful in PR. And what better time to start than tonight?

New Clients for VisComm

This week I met with the newest client for our firm, Career Services. And let me tell you, this one might be more challenging than I expected. They want us to promote their new services, but we aren't allowed to edit their Web site. The guy I spoke with seemed to know what he wanted, but definitely threw a lot of stuff out there. He spoke highly of Career Services which is hard for me to grasp since what I know about that place revolves around resumes. But apparently all of that has changed. They are now offering mock interviews, workshops, and other various programs to prepare students for the real world. They are still holding job fairs and even helping with internships! Check out their new Web site! They just re-did everything from their appearance online to their buildings appearance. Career Services is stepping it up and hopefully, VisionCommunications can help them change from their old identity to their new one across campus!

Help Needed ASAP!

Hey Social Media Class, this one's for you! As you know, I am the director of our NATIONALLY AFFILIATED firm, VisionCommunications. One of our clients, Polar Bear Nation, is looking for someone to manage their blog. I know we are all busy, but I figured this is a great opportunity for one of us to get our feet wet in the real world. If anyone who is in social media is interested in joining firm and managing this blog, please let me know ASAP! Either comment on here or stop me after class. It would only be once a day. The blog will be about the environment, so there really shouldn't be too much to manage. You will just have to make sure no one is saying anything too out there or causing a ruckus. You would also need to post a few times a week about some new environment issues or something going on in the world affecting the environment. I am sure Agozzino will let this count towards class. Let me know if you are even remotely interested :)

Obsessing Over Drums

To kill an hour between research and social media, I hung out in the PAC lab with Brandon.  And instead of being remotely productive, we played on youtube.  We watched a bunch of clips of travis barker killing it on the drums.  I think we determined this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOfsr9D-KXU was our favorite.  He pretty much owns it.

Limits on Teen Drivers

While on digg.com, I found something pretty high tech and fairly cool, if you ask me. There was an article [http://tech.yahoo.com/news/ap/20081006/ap_on_hi_te/ford_teen_drivers] about Ford coming out with new models that will let parents limit the speed of their teen drivers. Being from New Jersey, I didn't get my license till my 17th birthday. And personally, I think many states need to up their age on driving to 17 as well. Not that everyone is bad drivers, but at 16, I don't think kids are mature enough. Looking back on how I was when I was 16, I can't imagine how other teens acted. Something like these new models might be a good way for parents to have some control over their teenagers without increasing the age. I feel as though speeding is something new drivers run into. Everyone has those awkward first few weeks of driving. You use your blinker 24/7 and turn it on more than 100 feet before the stop sign. You are super careful pulling out of places and never make sharp turns. But once the fear of messing up passes, many drivers turn into speed demons. Although I support increasing the age in crazy states where you can have your permit at 15, I think this control over speed is a great idea for Ford and will help parents have a better sense of control over their teens.

Pod-what?

The more I read about social media, the more things make sense. One of my friends back home always talks about podcasting. And until I read chapters 6 and 18, I never really understood what qualified as a podcast. I know this sounds redic since I am a 20 year old college student, but I really had no idea what any of these terms meant.

YouTube is a prime example of a Web site used for podcasting videos. And in the past, it used to just be fore music. But today, podcasting is taking over. People can watch religious sermons and weekly shows. And one of the craziest things, it's able to be accessed on the go! There is actually a category in my iPod for podcasts. Now that I know what it is for, maybe I will actually use it. lol. I always just linked them to music clips. But now that I know there are specific shows online that are only broadcast through podcasts, I can't wait to find them!

One of my favorite shows on YouTube which counts as a podcast is this guy named William Sledd. He has a fashion show where he bashes fads he doesn't like and encourages ones he supports. For example, he hates crocs. And so do I :) He even has a few shows where he goes through his local mall and wal-mart pointing out fashion do's and don'ts ... well, mostly don'ts. Check one out :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVESRceJL5k

VisionCommunications

Thursday night was amazing. I haven't felt that motivated in awhile. First, we had our first meeting with Donate for Life Do It Now College Challenge. The presenters really impacted our firm. There are some key points that make this challenge a real life experience. I can't wait for our next meeting to start getting our plan together and begin implementation. And even though this is a competition and there is a prize, it all means nothing compared to the action we are taking. Just by signing people up to be donors, we are helping save lives of people young and old. There were a lot of things I didn't know about organ and tissue donations. I feel as though this campaign will do more than just get people to sign up to donate, but they will learn from our campaign, which is important.

And if that was not enough to motivate, we had PRSSA afterwards. Billy Fischer came to speak to us and it was inspiring. He spoke about social media [surprise, i think agozzino is planning this]. And it was the first time I left PRSSA wanting and needing to get on my computer. He was so chill in his presentation, that I wasn't stressed about being behind with social media, but instead, motivated. It really was a great feeling and my new goal is to get onto my social media sites a minimum of once a day. As for blogging, I am determined to write in it at least every other day.