Miss 1 Month

Did I mention that I graduated? It's been a month and it's been great. 

Miss My Heart is Beating Really Fast

I just finished my last final and my heart is beating really fast.

As I was filling out the last 5 questions on my bubble sheet for my econ exam, I almost started to cry. I can't decide it if was out of happiness because I will never touch economics again, or if it is because I am sad that my undergraduate degree is over.

Either way, my heart is beating so fast.

The teachers, people, jobs, classmates, friends, tests, papers, assignments, activities and opportunities that I have been part of here will never be forgotten.

Thank you BYU-I.

Miss Choices

Choices, choices, choices.

Is it ingrained in us to know how to make the biggest choices we will ever make in our lives? Does it just come naturally? Is it an instinct? I'm not so sure.

I am at one of those crossroads in my life where I have to make choices. Which job do I take? Should I go to grad school? Should we move? How much money should we put in savings? When should we start having kids?

My mind is a whirlwind.

A few criteria to consider when making big choices:

• Who is involved? When you make your decision, be sure to realize who is involved when you make this decision. 
• Is it time sensitive? If your choice is time-sensitive, you should set an even earlier deadline for yourself.
• Try it on. Someone once taught me that if I am considering a choice but not fully sure of it, to try it on and see how I feel. For example, if I was trying to decided what school to go to, I would choose a school and start pursuing it and if it didn't feel right, I would then know for sure to rule it out. 
• Talk it out. I am famous for this. I have a choice and I talk it to death with my poor husband, family, friends  teachers, random strangers, etc. Talking may help you come to conclusions you never realized. It may cause you to over think, so you this technique with caution. 

Miss Finals, finally

Most people feel like finals sneak up on them. I disagree.

It's finals, finally.

I have 3 more finals to take and then I am done! Knowing that I have a job lined up now makes it hard, I admit, but I am still going to finish strong. 

And then, it will be time to celebrate. 

                                                                         Source: gusandlula.com via Kitty on Pinterest

Miss I got a job!

I received an offer today for my first, "big girl", job! It was such a crazy day running back and forth between interviews that I had in Idaho Falls but I didn't leave empty handed, and that was a miracle.

I had an interview lined up across town that I was already running late to (don't worry, I called and told them and they were running behind too) after I received the offer. I wasn't sure what to do but I needed to get back to Rexburg for class and I knew I the other job was not going to pay even close to what this job is paying (which is pretty dang good) so I called them and thanked them for the interview but informed them that I had just received a job offer.

That felt good. This whole situation feels good. It feels like a "fit".

So, now what? I just start working. And being a grown up. And not doing homework. And wearing dress pants every day. And meeting with adults that I can call by their first name instead of brother and sister.

This may be quite the transition. I may need a night class to ease me into it.

I will tell you more about the job later. I haven't officially accepted it. I will be making that glorious phone call tomorrow.

Miss Choke

All growing up, I played competitive sports. I started off dancing, then played softball, soccer, volleyball and even badminton. At every level that I played, I experienced pressure. Obviously the pressured varied from my t-ball game to my fast-pitch softball game that would take us to the Little League World Series if we won. But the pressure existed. 

Throughout those years, my dad tried to teach me about how to deal with the pressure by telling me, "Don't choke!" Countless times I went up to bat and turned my head to see my dad waving a 20 dollar bill at me mouthing, "Home run! Don't choke." My feet would sink deeper into the dirt.

Throughout the years, I have tried to figure out how to not choke. I've tried saying a prayer, taking a deep breath, focusing on the 'ball', closing my eyes, over-eating, taking a class that teaches me how to take tests, etc. Regardless of all those tests, the way I avoid 'choking' is by being prepared.

At BYU-Idaho, we believe in a model of learning. Check it out here. I use to teach classes to freshman on campus on how they can apply this learning into their studies and life in general a few semesters ago. I truly believe in it and I have seen it work in my studies as well as my personal life.

As I embark on my final classes and tests of my undergraduate degree, I am reminded that I have prepared, taught my classmates and I have pondered and done my work. I can now step up to the plate, clench my bat and take a swing. No choking necessary.

Miss Cap & Gown

I picked up my cap and gown today. Was I nervous? No. It's strange that I don't get those butterflies that I used to get when it was the last week of the school year--every school year. The anxiety and adrenaline must be weighing too heavily on my stomach for the butterflies to fly.

In the meantime, I will eat my cupcake from BYU-Idaho Alumni and be satisfied that I completed one final today and only have 5 more to go.

Miss Opinion on the Green Movement

Go Green, Not Extreme

Extreme views of green movement need to be evaluated

Source: grainedit.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Phasing out human life is necessary in order to restore the earth’s biosphere back to good health. This is the core belief of the Voluntary Human Extinction Movement (VHEMT), one of the top environmental extremist groups in the world. To propose a movement where humans should voluntarily agree to abstain from breeding in order to protect the earth is on the heavy end of the green spectrum.  The movement has become more extreme than ever and recognizing opposing viewpoints is just as important when deciding which end of the spectrum you will stand.

There is no doubt the earth has limited resources and that we need to be sensible and aware of our carbon footprint. But there is such a practice called greenwashing, a term deemed as the act of misleading consumers regarding the environmental practices of a company or the environmental benefits of a product or service.

This is a term that has surfaced because of the extreme practices of eco-friendly fanatics.

Many people take on blind views when it comes to being environmentally responsive. According to the website 7 Sins of Greenwashing, unsubstantiated claims are made about how a product can benefit the environment. There is much emphasis on certain green aspects while hiding features that are not so eco-friendly and thus greenwashes individuals into thinking that they are being environmentally savvy. For example, the words "all-natural" on a label may trick buyers into thinking a product is green, but this isn't always the case.

Consumers are also deceived by the time and effort that goes into going green. For some, it may be as simple as walking across the room and throwing a paper in a blue garage pale. For others, it may be paying extra for recycling bins to be purchased and picked up or physically doing it yourself. A simple 3 minutes per week for over 300 million citizens to recycle can take up 7,800,000,000 man-hours of time per year. Many people put in much more time than that. It’s easier to say ‘go green’ rather than to be green.

The cost of going green is even more extreme than the time and effort. For example, when building a home, bamboo flooring is often considered an eco-friendly alternative to hardwood. Bamboo is harvested in China, so it must be shipped thousands of miles to the United States. Transportation of the bamboo consumes large amounts of fuel that pollutes the air which contradicts this green product. Society wants to be part of this movement but it is not always feasible. Specpan, a research firm, surveyed home builders and found that the greatest number estimated a 10% to 19% cost increase when going green.

Your standard daily green products (e.g. hair spray, cleaning products, organic food, etc.) often cost more due to the high cost of new research and technology needed to produce these products. These higher costs are also due to the small volume of green products in the market. Manufacturers are not yet able to enjoy the cost-cutting benefits of large-scale production which green marketing promises.

So let’s recycle and save 17 trees, reduce our heating bill, use a compact fluorescent light bulb, but let’s not risk human lives to protect the earth that depends on us to protect it. Go green, not extreme.

Miss Finish Line

Now is the time to sprint for the finish line.

I graduate from Brigham Young University--Idaho in three weeks. Three weeks, people. How do I feel about it? I haven't decided. Some days I feel like I couldn't leave campus fast enough because my brain is going to explode from trying to figure out whether Wal-Mart should shut down if Safeway moves into the neighborhood or how to calculate my retirement and write a will...heavy stuff, right?

All-in-all, I am utterly grateful.

I took a survey today in anticipation of being a graduate that asked if I feel like BYU-Idaho has prepared me for life. Yes and YES. BYU-Idaho has been an incredible experience for me. Here are a few things that I have been reflecting on the past few weeks:

• I have learned how to speak in public and train people on how to become leaders
• I know how edit photos
• My GPA is higher because I get a free tutor
• My resume is stacked because of all the programs that are offered
• The students rule and run the school
• Full-time faculty members are amazing, hands-down

Many more thoughts will be crossing my mind in the next few weeks but I am ready to sprint and finish strong.

Miss TBI

What does TBI mean? To Be Interviewed....Clever, right?

At this transitional time in my life, I have been interviewed, a lot. This past 6 months I have estimated I have been interviewed about 6 times and I have interviewed others 3 times. This surprised me but I am pleased because the more practice, the better.

Yesterday, I went to another interview. (I will tell you what is was for at a later date, hopefully) The day before an interview, I usually prepare by going over interview questions. You can find typical interview questions on any given site you find when you Google: interview questions. I usually talk out loud to my poor husband or I talk into a mirror. I am not always that prepared but most of the times I am thinking about it constantly for days or hours before and that prep alone is enough for me sometimes.

For this interview, I prepared by answering this list of questions. (I am super lucky to be able to work in HR and be present in interviews and hear the questions they ask and learn about how they evaluate candidates. This alone has prepared me so much for the future.)

Consider these questions before your next interview:

• Tell us about gifts or talents that you feel you have been blessed with that apply to this job.
• Tell us about a time where you had to be the bearer of bad news.
• Tell us about a time when people disagreed with you, but you knew you were right.
• Contrast: Tell us about a time when you thought you were right, but later found out you were wrong. 
• Tell us about the most challenging work relationship you ever had.
•  Rate yourself on a scale of 1-10. 1 being someone who likes things organized, stable, routine, normal, regular and typical. 10 being someone who is wildly out of the box, creative, bold, fearless, forward thinking, zealous, ambitious.
• Tell us about the worst professional decision you have ever made.
• Comparing the importance of policy vs. customer needs, who would you be the advocate for?
• Tell us about the last time you extended an apology in a professional setting. 
• Tell us the worst professional decision you have ever made.
• Tell us about a time that you collaborated with a team.
• What was the nature of the project?
• How did it turn out?
• How did you ensure the project got done? 

Some other tips for interviewing are:

1. Arrive at least 5 minutes early. If you arrive more than 10 minutes, they won't know what to do with you. Give yourself enough time to take off your coat, introduce yourself to the receptionist or secretary and take a deep breath. Too much time may psych you out.
2. Prepare. Talking in the mirror can help you see your facial expressions. Body language and tone are huge. You need to sound competent no matter what job you are applying for. Make sure your body language and tone are appropriate for the job description.
3. Research the company. Know when they were established, their history and their mission. They will most likely bring it up and the more you know the better. Show interest in the company and they will show interest in you. 
4. While in the interview, listen. Don't worry about what you are going to say next. If you practiced, it will come to you. If you need to stall, ask for a moment to think. It is better for you to explain the silence rather than be too quiet or answer too quickly. Find a balance.
5. Be yourself. (Insert cheesy grin here) In the end, they are hiring YOU, not the fake person you interviewed as. It always helps me to think, "If I am not the best fit for the company, I don't want to work there." You will  not be able to put on a face very long. 

Finding a job that is exactly what you want to do and fitting the requisites is not easy. Getting an interview is even harder. If you get one, be present and be ready.

Miss Digital This or That?

The Internet is becoming the town square for the global village of tomorrow.
-Bill Gates 

Just because we have it, does it mean everything has to go digital? Does this have to go digital or does that go digital? How decides?


We have a newspaper publication on campus called, The Scroll. Check it out. Honestly, I don't read it much because I don't have time in between classes to actually read. But, the articles aren't awful and occasionally controversial among the student body. (You know us opinionated educated folk. We always have our 2 cents to throw in.)

The question was posed recently if it should go fully digital and expire the print version. My original reaction was, no. There is something to be said about the nostalgia of holding a newspaper in hand. But, as I thought about it more, I thought objectively and about our future. Is internet really going to be the "global village of tomorrow"?

I am not sure what The Scroll is going to do but if they do change, here are my suggestions for going digital:

• Start campaigning early in a creative way
• Improve the current site and purchase the domain name, "www.thescroll.com"
• Use more multi-media
• Receive feedback for leverage
  
  
  

What do you think? Does every publication need to go digital to be useful and effective for all users?