being a bridge
It's almost 10:30, and I'm just starting to get my second wind, exactly when I SHOULD be getting ready to go to bed! Ever since I purchased my iMac and DSL connection, I've found myself staying up later and later. Normally I'm doing stupid things...checking my email, reading the New York Times, or adding new items to my ever-expanding wish list on Amazon.com! With Blogger, at least, it feels like I'm doing something somewhat creative for a change...something more than simply clicking and processing, passively receiving. Well, I suppose putting books and CDs in my wish list is an active task, but the only thing it's really stretching is my checkbook!
Anyway, on to more interesting topics. Today was a good day. Second full day of faculty orientation at school, and I received several complements from various teachers regarding my presentation yesterday. I spoke for about ten minutes to the entire faculty about nothing very exciting - policies and procedures for the AV equipment, and updates regarding classrooms I will be upgrading this semester. But the funny thing was, I enjoyed it! And what's stranger yet, it seemed like the *faculty* enjoyed it, too! (at least some of them!) It was the first time I had the opportunity to address ALL the faculty, and considering that they are the people I serve (even more than the students, who benefit indirectly), I was elated to have the opportunity to speak to them directly, all at once.
Anyone who knows me knows that communication is a passion of mine, and I feel especially strong about how a department or an organization provides information to the demographic or public it serves. Or, to put it in other, cornier terms, creating bridges between people, departments, and groups where a gap currently exists for lack of information or understanding. I don't want to brag - and those of you who know me, know I rarely do! - but I really feel this is one of my gifts.
Along the same lines, I'm proud of the fact that I have successfully managed to help facilitate tecnnology orientation sessions for several student groups that have not had any formal orientation in the past, including seminary students, MBA/Masters of Commnication students, and student athletes who have arrived on campus early. There's no good reason I can think of why these students didn't receive training in the past. I think it's just a matter of everyone being so busy and up to their ears in work. And it IS a lot of work to coordinate schedules between departments! But all it takes is one person who cares (and can motivate a lot of other people along the way!) Paul and I gave a training tonight to the MBA/MAC students, and I really enjoyed myself. I get a real charge out of helping the students get on their feet, at least as far as technology is concerned, and answering their basic questions. Lord knows that I am far from the most skilled or technically inclined when it comes to hardcore tech issues. I leave that to the experts - the programmers, network admins, and PC specialists. I'm just a bridge. In any case, I hope that my enthusiasm comes across. Every time I give an orientation, I feel like I get just a little bit better...figure out what's important, what's not, what works, and what doesn't. And the more comfortable I get, the better I become. I hope.
This passion of mine extends to other interests which seem unrelated at first. Take, for example, my interest in writing reviews...just another way of sharing some information about a topic with a group that presumably is seeking some guidance or advice. I've posted several mini restauarant reviews on CitySearch.com, which was a blast. I blew an entire Sunday morning thinking of my favorite restaurants around the country and posting a few comments about each one. It sounds geeky, but it was totally addicting!
Dream jobs I'd take in a second if money were no object: graphic designer, architect (for residential homes or public buildings), travel writer, map-maker, photographer, writer for the New York Times, explorer, business owner (for a creative firm), griller par excellance, movie director, painter/illustrator/artist.
This sounds odd, but I think it takes courage to dream. I think, growing up, I lacked the audacity to really dream. Don't know why. But I do know that I limited my aspirations to that which I felt was practical and feasible. Sensible. I don't feel that way so much anymore. Having limited expectations of the world lead to limited returns. I feel that the world only asks of me what I expect of myself. Having curtailed my expectations, I have suffered from what I feel is a lack of energy directly related (in retrospect) being disconnected from that which I feel passionate about. Of course, I was also naive in thinking that simply "following my bliss" (a la Joseph Cambell) was going to lead to my bliss. Wrong. It's not quite that simple. My new recipe for success is to heed my interests while keeping in mind my skills. It has to be a marriage of interests AND abilities. Maybe it sounds self evident now, but I wish to hell that someone would have taken me by the shoulders before I enrolled in graduate school and told me that. Not that I regret my time in grad school. I loved every minute of it. But if I had been thinking clearly, I would've known that I was not destined to become a museum curator or administrator. I knew this, and yet I didn't heed that knowledge for various reasons. I'm thrilled to be in a job now, where I can experience moments of real excitement and gratitude, like today.
I was wondering how I was going to tie this all together. Kinda cool how these random thoughts came full circle, huh?
Anyway, on to more interesting topics. Today was a good day. Second full day of faculty orientation at school, and I received several complements from various teachers regarding my presentation yesterday. I spoke for about ten minutes to the entire faculty about nothing very exciting - policies and procedures for the AV equipment, and updates regarding classrooms I will be upgrading this semester. But the funny thing was, I enjoyed it! And what's stranger yet, it seemed like the *faculty* enjoyed it, too! (at least some of them!) It was the first time I had the opportunity to address ALL the faculty, and considering that they are the people I serve (even more than the students, who benefit indirectly), I was elated to have the opportunity to speak to them directly, all at once.
Anyone who knows me knows that communication is a passion of mine, and I feel especially strong about how a department or an organization provides information to the demographic or public it serves. Or, to put it in other, cornier terms, creating bridges between people, departments, and groups where a gap currently exists for lack of information or understanding. I don't want to brag - and those of you who know me, know I rarely do! - but I really feel this is one of my gifts.
Along the same lines, I'm proud of the fact that I have successfully managed to help facilitate tecnnology orientation sessions for several student groups that have not had any formal orientation in the past, including seminary students, MBA/Masters of Commnication students, and student athletes who have arrived on campus early. There's no good reason I can think of why these students didn't receive training in the past. I think it's just a matter of everyone being so busy and up to their ears in work. And it IS a lot of work to coordinate schedules between departments! But all it takes is one person who cares (and can motivate a lot of other people along the way!) Paul and I gave a training tonight to the MBA/MAC students, and I really enjoyed myself. I get a real charge out of helping the students get on their feet, at least as far as technology is concerned, and answering their basic questions. Lord knows that I am far from the most skilled or technically inclined when it comes to hardcore tech issues. I leave that to the experts - the programmers, network admins, and PC specialists. I'm just a bridge. In any case, I hope that my enthusiasm comes across. Every time I give an orientation, I feel like I get just a little bit better...figure out what's important, what's not, what works, and what doesn't. And the more comfortable I get, the better I become. I hope.
This passion of mine extends to other interests which seem unrelated at first. Take, for example, my interest in writing reviews...just another way of sharing some information about a topic with a group that presumably is seeking some guidance or advice. I've posted several mini restauarant reviews on CitySearch.com, which was a blast. I blew an entire Sunday morning thinking of my favorite restaurants around the country and posting a few comments about each one. It sounds geeky, but it was totally addicting!
Dream jobs I'd take in a second if money were no object: graphic designer, architect (for residential homes or public buildings), travel writer, map-maker, photographer, writer for the New York Times, explorer, business owner (for a creative firm), griller par excellance, movie director, painter/illustrator/artist.
This sounds odd, but I think it takes courage to dream. I think, growing up, I lacked the audacity to really dream. Don't know why. But I do know that I limited my aspirations to that which I felt was practical and feasible. Sensible. I don't feel that way so much anymore. Having limited expectations of the world lead to limited returns. I feel that the world only asks of me what I expect of myself. Having curtailed my expectations, I have suffered from what I feel is a lack of energy directly related (in retrospect) being disconnected from that which I feel passionate about. Of course, I was also naive in thinking that simply "following my bliss" (a la Joseph Cambell) was going to lead to my bliss. Wrong. It's not quite that simple. My new recipe for success is to heed my interests while keeping in mind my skills. It has to be a marriage of interests AND abilities. Maybe it sounds self evident now, but I wish to hell that someone would have taken me by the shoulders before I enrolled in graduate school and told me that. Not that I regret my time in grad school. I loved every minute of it. But if I had been thinking clearly, I would've known that I was not destined to become a museum curator or administrator. I knew this, and yet I didn't heed that knowledge for various reasons. I'm thrilled to be in a job now, where I can experience moments of real excitement and gratitude, like today.
I was wondering how I was going to tie this all together. Kinda cool how these random thoughts came full circle, huh?
posted by Mike Willis @ 10:21 PM
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