i'm a leader.. one last time

Guess what? This is my last post for classes. YAY! I was getting tired of capitalizing my letters. (Maybe that's something I should get used to though, huh?) Today is my last day of my M/W classes and tomorrow I have one class left until I get to enjoy finals (sarcastic font.. Alex please be reading..), but then that means home is just around the corner. I really can't wait. But I guess I should get to the point, huh?

This past week leadership was focused on networking. I love this topic. I feel like networking was my forte in high school; and learning about it more gave me some thoughts of how it can be my forte in college, too. In high school I knew so many random people. Why? Well, I was a Facebook creep- let's be real. But I also was involved, and that involvement took me to meet others who were involved. Most of my networking I accredit to student council, HOBY, and FBLA. Statewide conferences were great for bouncing off ideas from other students and some even turned from acquaintances to friends. Those conferences were some of my fondest high school memories, but it was also a part of high school that I had forgotten while here at BYU.
During our lab Monday I thought about them more as I visited with Tess Hilmo. To be honest the lab wasn't what I expected. I thought we would be rotating amongst the professionals that were there, so I just sat down at the first available chair. That chair was at Tess's table. She is an published author- very cool, but not something that interests me for my future. As I noticed we would not be switching tables at all, I felt like I had not put myself in a place to get as much as I could out of this lab. However, she talked a lot about the writing/author conferences she goes to and how that is a great networking tool. This reminded me of the conferences I went to in high school and all of the great contacts I have because of it.
Many say BYU and members of the LDS church make for a very small world. It's SO true. Here's a funny story that deals with BYU and my high school conference:
Through state student council conventions I made a friend, Kate. We texted almost regularly, especially when anything was upcoming for student council or FBLA (which we were both in). Before FBLA spring conference she told me she had a friend she wanted me to meet from her school that she thought I would like. She told me a little bit about him, but then said one thing, "But there is one kinda weird thing about him... He's Mormon." I couldn't help but laugh. Apparently Kate didn't know I was Mormon, too. This made me even more excited to meet him, as I was the only member at my school. Long story short, we briefly met at FBLA but after high school he went to BYU and then on his mission and that was about the end of Trevor. Well guess what? Trevor is back and is now living at the same apartment complex as me. Oh BYU. :)
I'm glad that one of my "contacts" from high school networking carried onto my college experience, but I look forward to making more contacts while here at BYU. The people at BYU are so friendly and the alum are so willing to help, so I don't see it being too difficult. This networking will open doors for internships, jobs and careers.

i'm a leader: part twelve

This past week we all presented our book reports to the class. Earlier in the semester we had all chosen a book from "the list" to read. Of course I think it's safe to say 95% of us didn't read our books until days before. However, mine was a good read. I read "Standing for Something" by Gordon B. Hinckley. I chose this book because I liked that it would be spiritually uplifting, as well as insightful.
It was exactly that. I loved reading a book that a prophet had written and experiencing his writing style and personal voice. President Hinckley's book centers around 10 Virtues. He puts these virtues so plainly to state their importance. He also includes many interesting stories that make the reading easy.
As I told my class during my presentation, this book was not written to make it you a better leader. It is a book written to make you a better person, which in turn will make you a better leader. Also, the virtues he highlights are virtues that are becoming less and less important to the world. If we work on these virtues and follow his counsel in this book, we will naturally become leaders and examples to the world.
Reading this book made me grateful, motivated, and it grew my testimony of living prophets. President Hinckley was a man of optimism, great depth, and eternal understanding of what matters most.
Here are some of my favorite quotes from him:

"If we would 

individually and collectively resolve to 

stand for something, 

to lift our voices for truth and goodness and offer our supplications to our eternal father, 

those supplications would be heard, and the results would be 

r e m a r k a b l e."