Reflection of Year

            When I first got to Southern I wasn’t sure how I was going to be able to handle the amount of work. However, after a few weeks went by I realized that I needed to learn how to use my time wisely. I started to make set times to get my work done and make sure I set deadlines and goals for myself. I was starting to get bored with just going to class, the dining hall, and back to my room. I then realized that I needed to get involved on campus because just doing work and sitting in my room wasn’t making my semester worthwhile.

            On the day of the club fair I decided to go check it out with my roommate Chris. I went to the booths and ended up talking to some guys from the Beta Mu Sigma Fraternity and was interested. I ended up then going to their rush events and really liked it. I realized that this was something that could get me involved and really living life in my first semester at college. I ended up making friends and brothers that I know will have my back all throughout my college career.

            Some strengths that I have realized about myself this semester is that I work well under pressure. This also comes along with the weakness that I wait until the last minute to do things, but the pressure of it creates my best results. Another strength of mine is that I am very friendly and can create many resources that will be able to guide me through my college experience; Beta Mu Sigma Fraternity is a big resource that I can use that will help me throughout my whole life and I know I can get help at anytime.

 A weakness of mine I discovered is that I have a lot of trouble waking up early in the morning; even if I go to bed early my body just doesn’t want to get up early. I’ve tried to work on it and picked later classes for next semester so I don’t have such a problem with it. Another weakness of mine is that I am not able to juggle my time wisely and get work done early when I have some free time. I plan to improve on that next semester and get my work done early, so I can have more worry free, free time to do what I want.

            In my opinion I have grown a lot since I first got to college. I wasn’t as focused in high school, I didn’t know what goals I needed to set for myself and didn’t realize what a huge responsibility it is to be on your own at college. I came to realize that nobody is going to help me achieve my goals but myself and only I can make that happen. I’ve also realized that the friends you make in college mean a lot more than the ones in high school because you are together much more often and there is a much larger and diverse selection of people.  I think that most people grow a lot in their first semester of college because a lot of things force you out of your comfort zone and to get responsible for your own life. This causes you to become an individual and not follow others and be the leader of your own life.  

            I think that I have definitely taken risks this semester, not only academically but socially. I had to take a lot of risks when I decided to rush a fraternity, I knew absolutely none of them and had to walk in and be confident. I tried to challenge myself academically by pushing myself to set higher and higher goals for myself. I also took the risk of keeping my girlfriend from high school even though I knew the distance would be hard. I had to trust her with the distance and try and avoid the many temptations at college, which was really hard.

            I don’t really have any huge regrets this semester, only that I could have done better overall in school. I know I did decently, but I regret not being able to excel even more. I wish I had taken more time to focus on each class rather than wanting to sleep or go out and hang out with friends as much, but that’s not necessarily realistic for a college student. Next semester one of my biggest goals is to get all A’s and B’s. I know it will be really hard but I figure if I set that as my goal I’ll come closer than if I had no drive at all. I definitely don’t regret getting involved, it has taught me a lot about the campus, getting involved, and mostly about leadership. I know it took up a lot of my time but the rewards I took away from it are far greater than the lack of time I had.

  

Final Project - Involvement

Time Management Project

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XUNCe583rI

Time Management Project

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XUNCe583rI

Psychology - Yes or No?

          When choosing a major in college it is important to really enjoy the major you choose because you will most likely be pursuing it for the rest of your life. It is essential that you know that you want to pursue this major for the rest of your life because you wouldn’t want to change your mind or be unsure about it down the road. If you end up changing your mind down the road then you have ultimately wasted your time and money. This is a very tricky subject because at one point you may like one subject but down the road find out that it’s not for you. This is why it is recommended that you take classes in different subject categories because then you have a variety of choices to see if they are the majors you want to pursue. Most college students don’t choose a major until their junior year and even then some are still unsure about it. It is different with every person and it is ultimately up to that person to decide what is best for them.

            The major I have chosen is Psychology. Psychology to me is a very interesting subject and has a broad variety of possibilities for the future. There are different fields of psychology that you can go into, such as: medical, educational, clinical, and etc. It is difficult to decide which the right one for me is but I believe that down the road I will figure it out and end up pursuing it. As of right now I’m still not too sure about my major, even though I have chosen psychology because I haven’t really researched any other possibilities out there, but I still have time for all that. I am currently taking a Intro to Psychology class and I can say that it is very interesting and I am leaning more on pursuing this field of study.

                                      

What is a Good Blog?

           What makes a good blog? Everyone has their own opinion on which blog is a good blog and what is good about each blog. A good blog is one that is interesting and unique from others. It stands out and catches the reader’s attention and makes them want to read more. A good blog shows creativity in the writing and is not only informative but gives an opinion that is interesting and shows the writers point of view. There is also a good amount of illustrations and links to go along with the writing. That is a major part because you need to have back up information on your topic that you are writing about and you need to have illustrations to have it stand out. Also a major part of your blog that catches the reader’s attention is the title. No one wants to read a blog when they see it has a boring title. Mostly everyone will not even look at the blog if the title is boring, that is why you should have a title that is unique and appealing to the public.

            After reading some blogs throughout the weeks, I will have to say that I have come across some pretty interesting blogs. But one blog that really stuck out at me was Oscar’s blog, I Write Sins Not Tragedies. His blog is very unique from others and just by looking at his page you could tell its going to be interesting. He also uses very unique titles that catch the reader’s attention.

            There are many other good blog posts out there and I don’t think I have found one that isn’t good. It is just that others are more creative and interesting in their posts rather than the same thing being said over and over again. Just remember to make it interesting and unique.

Time Management Skills

For my digital storytelling project I was a bit confused at first on what to do with my project. I couldn’t decide on a topic to base my project on. After thinking about what interested me I thought of time management. Everyone needs help managing what they need to do in their lives. Time management is the key to success. If you can’t find time for things then you are never going to get done what is needed to get done.

Everyone has their way of managing their time. It would be interesting to see how a professor and a student manage their time and what different strategies they have. In order for a college student to be successful they have to manage their time wisely. What is a good way to manage your time? What are some tips on time management? What can I do to manage my time? If you are asking yourself any of these questions, you are more than likely in help of managing your time. There are tips online at the southern website that can help you with time management. There is also a study skills center in Engleman Hall that you can visit to help you with time management skills.        

For my project I intend to help others with their time management problems. If I cannot do so I will push them in the right path and show them where they can get help on time management. This is an important life lesson that you will not only need now but throughout your whole life. It is better to have good time management skills now than to try and change your ways later in life.