Successfully Thinking…

 

It has been a long time since my last post. A lot of things surrounding this ideology have caught my attention and I thought it would be a great topic to write about. And for those of you who I haven’t met I hope this helps. Thanks in advance for reading.

SUCCESSFULLY THINKING…

So here I am, a 22 year old, college graduate with a degree and the real world is knocking at my door step. After looking back at the last year, I would’ve never thought I would be in the positions I am currently in right now, still searching for a job in a field that I spent 4 YEARS OF MY LIFE STUDYING FOR. I’ve talked to a lot of my friends and they are pretty much in the same boat that I am which made me think about how or why this happened. Since I’ve been little I was always lectured about staying out of trouble, getting good grades in school graduating from college and a landing that really nice job (the one with the big windows overlooking the city). It seemed like such a full proof plan to becoming a successful adult.

The key to being “successful” (in my ever so humble opinion) isn’t about WHAT you’ve done but more so about whom you’ve effected. The money, the cars, the clothes and other material things are good to have but they don’t quiet measure up to being able to positively affect an audience. People are the focus in my measurement because, unlike money, they never lose their value over time. But in order to make a successful difference YOU MUST LIVE, SPEAK, AND THINK SUCCESSFUL!!!!! This means that you must practice what you preach. I think people generally have the capacity to do well but their environment and other thing distract them from their purpose. I’ve actually come up with a list of might help you STAY FOCUSED.

 

1. Find Your Passion – You must enjoy what you are doing to be successful at it. Once you find something you like DO IT to the best of your ability and don’t let anyone stop you.
2. Success Is Never A One Man/Woman Show – You can’t succeed alone. Every story of success is a story of people working together, each contributing their own unique talents, skill sets and abilities. Do what you do best and place yourself around others that have similar ideas and successful actions. “Birds of the same feather flock together.”
3. Don’t Sweat The Small Stuff – Things will go wrong, it’s apart of life. You can’t fail if you don’t quit. Find yet another way to make it work. Drive is one of the essential components of success.
4. Think Successful and Actions Will Follow – If you don’t like where you are today, don’t expect tomorrow to be any different without change. Change your attitude, priorities, and activities and you will be surprised how it will affect your situation. Whatever you think about most of the time is what you create in your life. SO THINK SUCCESSFUL
5. Get On Track – its one thing to know what you want you want to do but it’s a completely different thing to take steps toward it. If you know what you want to do find out how to get there because without a path you’ll get lost.
6. You Give In Order To Receive – If you want help, be helpful. If you want honest relationships, be truthful. If you want success, help others get what they want. If you want love, be loving. “The Golden Rule” never fails.
7. It’s Your Life So Live It – Life “really” is like a movie. You write the script. You’re the star, director and critic. And like a movie, it ends. What’s important in life is not just the journey, but the “quality” of the journey. That’s why it’s important to make “every” day the best it can be, because “now” is all you have.

“”Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key of success if you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” Herman Cain

Thank you guys for reading this. I really do hope you enjoyed it. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns feel free to email me at phillipppbsedwards@gmail.com     I’m always open to suggestions 

POSITIVE THINKING LEADS PROGRESSIVE MOMENT

The Love Boat 2011…Maintenance Report

For those of you who know me personally know that I’m a bit of a hopeless romantic (well I like to call it being Old School) when it comes to women and relationships. I feel like women are probably one of the most precious things that GOD gave mankind (this is MY opinion of course) and I try to treat them accordingly. BUT in this day and age (like I’m old lol) the things that go on in “relationships” are really interesting and I thought I would input my two cents on relationships.

The Love Boat 2011…Maintenance Report

So I’ve had a while to sit back and watch this difficult journey/saga/quest/horror movie/epic novel called love from the sidelines.  I would have  never knew something that could bring so much happiness could transform into a wrecking ball of emotions that make people do some very uncharacteristic things like slashing tires, year-long depressions, fighting innocent people, etc. As I listen to my friends, family and even looked at some of my own problems with relationships and the opposite sex, IT HIT ME!!! RELATIONSHIPS ARE NOTHING ANYONE CAN UNDERSTAND. A relationship is the balance of ideas and emotions towards each other with one goal in mind….HAPPINESS. 

Do you guys remember the “Would you go with me? Check Yes, No, or Maybe “notes in elementary school or what about holding hands while you walk to class together in high school? Well I do and honestly I think grown up “love” is very similar to that time in our lives. A time when you saw that girl or guy and you got that tingley feeling that made you do something embarrassing but cute. What about the “mushy” nicknames like “babycakes” “boo-thang” “boo-boo” “snuck’ems” etc? Yeah that’s pretty lame in most people eyes but at that age they didn’t matter. 

I honestly believe that this kind of love is still out  there and its all apart of our journey to the our “Happily Ever After.” I must admit that  this journey has been made much harder because motives have definitely changed over the years and the societal definition of Love has evolved into a seemingly epic fictional novel. With that being said, the journey to “Happily Ever After” is not for the faint of heart and that’s something that a lot of people in our age group have a hard time coping with. But with that being said, Love isn’t something you can force or even make up yourself its nature force of nature that’s carefully place in your life. It’s very cliche’ but it’s so true “Everything happens for a reason” (I get mad every time I hear but its right). This very cliche’ phrase really does have power because if you think about it the pain and anguish that “Joe Blow” or “Janey Sue” put you through really taught you a lot and made you aware of somethings you never would have thought about if they were never in your life.  Hence, the pain you went through was a sign of growth and new beginnings, which is a pretty liberating which leaves room for her true love to walk into your life. —–>BUT<—– LOVE IS NOT A CURE ALL TO ALL YOUR RELATIONSHIP AND PERSONAL PROBLEMS IT TAKES  MAINTENANCE.

In my humble opinion love is more about perception rather than raw and unbridled emotion. Don’t get me wrong though, Love is one of the most powerful emotions that a human can feel but there has to more there to maintain that. Love is like a garden of precious fruit. Although its rare to find and very special if it’s not maintained and nurtured it’ll wither away. (Once again corny but effective) But in all seriousness Love has nothing to do with special song or a status or stage in life it’s all about sacrifice and courage. To honestly Love someone is actually a pretty scary thing if you look at. Giving your all to one person while expecting nothing (well almost nothing lol) in return and this is totally against our nature.  It’s perfectly normal to want love because of its outward appearance but to truly love someone else and to want to be with them for the rest of your life takes a lot of compromise and communication BETWEEN TWO PEOPLE …

LOVE IS LIKE A JOB, ITS YOUR PASSION YOU “LOVE IT” SO YOU WORK AT IT NO MATTER WHAT” 

 

Thank you guys for reading this. I really do hope you enjoyed it. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns feel free to email me at phillipppbsedwards@gmail.com     I’m always open to suggestions 

POSITIVE THINKING LEADS PROGRESSIVE MOMENT

Happiness Where Art Thou…O There You Are

 

It’s been a while since I’ve had the time to collect my thoughts and reflect on what’s really going on in my life.  Here’s a quick recap on how I got to my present position in this crazy saga called my life. I went to elementary school, middle school, high school and just recently graduated from Georgia Southern University with a BS in Public Relations.( I told you it would be quick) These last 21 years (almost 22, birthday shout out Oct. 1 coming soon) in grade school and college have been filled with tremendous ups and downs but I wouldn’t have had it any other way.

HAPPINESS WHERE ART THOU…O WAIT THERE YOU ARE.

Ok so now that the “structured” life of a child and growing adult is over I AM NOW AN ADULT…Yes an adult. The single thing that a lot of us have always wanted to be since we were little. We get to do whatever we want and nobody get give us a whoopin, put us in timeout, put us on punishment or anything.  I remember when I was little I  just want to be just like my dad. I would do every little thing no matter what it was, from washing cars like him, playing football like him, talking like him  and even sweeping the garage like him (Hence the picture below). Hahahahaha this picture still cracks me up but it made me think about myself at that age how happy I was. The things that bother me today were nowhere near my mind,I was truly happy. 

After this quick assessment of my childhood i really thought long and hard on why that same happiness I had obtained as a child was seemingly unrealistic as an adult. Then it hit me……..THERE’S NOTHING IN THE WAY BUT ME!!!! Some people spend their entire life searching for this happiness and it is in front of them the whole time. Happiness isn’t something you hunt down and catch, its something that is realized. With this thought in mind, happiness is more of a mindset than a destination and once you realize it you’ll be once step closer to becoming happy just like you were when you were the little 6-year-old in the sandbox. The main ingredient for happiness ( in so humble opinion) is YOU. Until YOU make up YOUR mind that YOU really want to do something it won’t happen.  YOU ARE THE KEY TO YOUR OWN HAPPINESS. I know this is corny but…you can’t spell happiness without I(hahahahaha yeah that was REALLY CORNY) but hey its true. There are a lot of people with the ability to be successful but few with the mindset to match their abilities to be come happy. But hey nobody’s perfect (I know I’m not at least).

I like to think of the pursuit of happiness, in terms of a relationship with yourself (this is actually what helped me discover this ideology). In a marriage (an old school marriage, like grandmomma and granddaddy) there were many peaks and valleys but at the end of the day the love they shared for each other is greater than the current situation. That confidence in there bond was something that they had chosen to believe in and it will held strong as long as they continue to believe in it (Not to mention making active steps that support their thinking). This concept is something that goes hand in hand with your “self ” relationship. Although there may be some deep valleys you have to go through as long as you trust yourself and know that everything will be ok, it will. Life keeps on going and just like the day passes into night so will your low valleys of unhappiness.

One of my good friends told me something about a week ago, “Life happens and there’s no way of slowing it down so just live it like it is.” This really helped me simplify a lot of the things that we as “grown ups” complicate for ourselves. If there is something you want just go get it with no regret.  Things will happen and that’s apart of life. Just take care of it one step at a time and handle your business. If you do, happiness will be right around the corner.  So in I would like to leave you with this thought (and yes it is original)

Happiness is simply a mentality that is positively reinforced by logical events.

Short Version

BE THE SOURCE OF YOUR HAPPINESS

 

Thank you guys for reading this. I really do hope you enjoyed it. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns feel free to email me at phillipppbsedwards@gmail.com     I’m always open to suggestions.

 

 

POSITIVE THINKING LEADS PROGRESSIVE MOMENT

Event Planning Advice

Event Planning for DUMMIES

View more presentations from Phillip Edwards.

 

Benefits and Pitfalls of Social Media for Job Seekers

Whenever we talk to someone about social media and the job market there are some good stories and some not so good. I feel that we need to be able to see both sides of the spectrum, and realize that every tool has positive and negative features. Here, we are looking at the pros and cons of social media.

 

PROS

– It’s where society is headed  -According to Forrester Research, 80% of young adults use social networks. Social media is the way of the future in communications, marketing, advertising and human resources. So the effectiveness of this meduim is useful.
– Popular medium- With over 500,000 new members on social networks each day, social media give one person the abiliy to reach out to almost any organization that they want because almost all of the major organizations use it    – Lends easily to mass communication- Over a million company’s use social media as part of thier marketing stategy, which means that getting in touch with them for job opportunities is that much easier.
– Global- There are no geographical boundries on social media. You can seek opportunity a local organization or across seas you are just a couple “clicks” away
– Accessible from anywhere – in todays world all you need a internet connection the digital world. Once you have that connection the sky is the limit when it comes to social media.
– Open to anyone- Any one can use it so navigation is simple and easy to use.
– Build relationships- Building relationships with social media is one most important reason’s why job seekers should use this medium. With social media sites like twitter, monster.com, and LinkIn the possiblities of networking are endless.

CONS:
– Ads & Spam: Spam can be disgiused as job openings and you can unknowingly sign up for spam while applying for an application.
– Complicated features: Some features on some sites make it harder to navigate
– Global applications: Lead to a loss in exclusivity
– Impersonal  Verbal communications skills aren’t exercised
– Redundant  Multiple networks focused on the same topic

Of course, a lot of these “pros” and “cons” are subjective – what some see as a con may be a pro for others. And every social network will have its own unique pros and cons, depending on its audience, its application, whether it is private or public, and many other factors.

Ben Roethlisberger’s Bar Mishap From a PR Perspective

The Pittsburg Steelers’ courageous starting quarterback  Ben Roethlisberger was suspended Wednesday for six games for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. A Georgia College and State University accused the Steelers starting quarterback of assaulting her at a bar in Milledgeville, GA. Although he was not officially charged for the offense, he felt the consequences of the altercation and his image of a “good guy” in the National Football League is in jeopardy.

From a public relations stand point I think the suspension may have done as much damage as trial would have. The suspension gives an air of guilt that hasn’t been proven in a court of law. The biggest thing that I would pay attention to on this issue would be on how his advertising opportunities would change. Because this altercation happened without a trial and it was never said that Rothlisberger was guilty or not the BIG QUESTION IS….Will this change his image as the gutsy gentle giant? Honestly, I think it will because of how the media’s perceptions and how this issue of professional athletes and domestic disputes have effected players’ images in the past. For example, Ray Lewis actually went to court and was found NOT GUILTY of a crime concerning a murder in Atlanta but because of the coverage had event, it caused  a negative stigma over his entire career at the time. In this day and age public image, as a public figure, is probably one the most difficult things to up hold (especially if its one of integrity and honesty) because the way news is generated.

In my opinion I believe that if you want to keep a “clean” public image you should watch the company you keep and limit your media footprint around skeptical situations. Although this may be something that is really hard for athletes and entertainers, they have to realize that they serve as role models for a very young and impressionable generations. 

  

Career Fairs “Its What You Make It”

 

I attended this years Eagle Expo Career Fair and I most say as a public relations major I wasn’t really impressed with the selection of companies. There weren’t any PR firms in attendence and those who were looking for communications art students were only looking for upcoming seniors and juniors. This really irritated me until I started to realized how many businesses were there and I started to seek the businesses that interested me. One of the first places I went to was Coca-Cola. They had a really nice set up and it seemed like just about every person at the fair was interested. So after waiting for seemed like forever, I finally got a chance to talk to the rep about some opportunities. Unfortunately they weren’t looking for any PR work but I did get some information about there marketing summer internship that I’m currently still up for.  I also had a chance to talk to Walgreens about a possible store manager position that they would train and prep me for, so I was definitely excited about that.  One of the last companies I talked to was Wachovia. I’ve always a interest in working for Wachovia since I my freshman year so when I saw their rep there I got alittle exicited and nerves.  We actually talk for a good while about a few postions inside the company including  HR consultants, customer service and operations manager. He also gave me some insight into what Wells Fargo was looking for in applicants and they were some of the same exact things that my parents and professors were telling me along.  

So after looking a back on my last Eagle Expo & Carreer Fair experience, I realized that your opportunities to get to the next level are out there you just have to find them sometimes. I definitely went to the expo dissapointed because of the company selection but after just digging alittle the experience got progressively better. So here are a few tips that can help you get the most of any Career Fair

Tips to Get the Most Out of Career Fairs

• Come prepared. Before the fair you can review the online directory of employers and their job opportunities. If you spend a little time getting some background on an organization, then you can ask very focused and specific questions. This impresses representatives because it shows a genuine interest in them.
• Dress appropriately. First impressions are important. While campus attire is acceptable for fairs, you will probably be most comfortable if you at least dress in “business casual.”
• Get comfortable. When you arrive, take a few minutes to review the map and directory for the fair. You may feel more comfortable if you quickly locate and walk by the employers in whom you’re most interested. This will confirm their location and alert you to any crowds or lines of other students waiting.
• Pace Yourself. If your schedule allows, you may find it easiest to start with the employers in which you’re the least interested. This will allow you to hone your approach and to be most confident when you approach the employers you’re especially excited about. Be sure to balance this tip with the reality that you may have little time and that many other students may be interested in the same employers. Assume that you will need to wait to speak with some employers.
• Ask the representative for his/her card, and then send a thank-you note. Having the business card of the representative you have just spoken with serves three purposes. First, you have a direct contact with the organization, including the proper spelling of the representative’s name, direct telephone line, etc. Second, a brief thank-you note acknowledges the help they gave you and the time they took to visit campus. Third, sending thank-you notes is a good professional habit.  

Social Learning role in PR

This week in my class we went over several theories that shape how we communicate. One of the most interesting theories has to be the social learning theory. The general idea behind the this theory is that an individual learns or picks up mannerisms from watching surrounding environment.  Social learning theory is derived from the work of Cornell Montgomery which proposed that social learning occurred through four main stages of imitation:

• close contact
• imitation of superiors
• understanding of concepts
• role model behaviour

In my opinion I think this theory is one of the top theories used in the PR industry. With this being such a copy cat industry (especially in image consulting), practitioners tend to learn how to handle situations based on the mistake they see others make. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it’s just the nature of industry. In some instances, the only way you can learn about a situation is if you see someone else and how they react to it, which is the general basis of this theory. From experience I can definitely see how the social learning is used in PR from my days an intern for the Georgia Southern Athletic Media Relations staff my junior year.  I had no idea what I got my self into when I started because I was so clueless and new to the experience. One of my college football coaches gave me some of the best advice I ever heard when I started the internship “Don’t let your fear of being wrong stop you. You have to learn from not only your mistakes but others too. That’s how you get better.” Now that I look back on the concept of this quote, puts the idea behind the quote in perspective. Social learning actually a theory you use in an everyday setting because in order for us to continue to grow and get we must learn from our mistakes and the mistakes of others.  

Internships “The Golden Ticket”

As I come up to my last couple months of school I’ve looked back on my 4 years here at GSU. I must say I’ve learned a lot that I would like to share with anybody who is willing to listen about internships.

Internships Can Be Seen as a Blueprint to Your Future One the most important things that you could do while you are in college is to get an internship.  Internships give the first hand experience that a classroom setting can’t give you. Although classroom setting is an important phase of the learning process but for me, the things I learned from my two internships (GSU Media Relations and University Directories) will stick with me for a lot longer than.  In my opinion, you learn more from an internship because you become apart of an organization in an  industry you wish to learn more about.  By becoming apart of the organization you can find your niche within that organization that may become what you make a living on. In my case, with my first internship for GSU Media Relations I found out that I had talent at designing informational documents like brochures and flyers, which led me onto my second internship with University Directories as an outside advertisement sales representative .  My second internship really helped me see how important it was to communicate effectively with business and organization heads. I really felt comfortable with the seemingly “new way” of communication that I was being exposed to. These experiences have definitely given me a better look at my personal strengths and has also driven me to pursue a career in communications.

Internships Are What You Make Them….Its a Practice Run take it Seriously One of the biggest mistakes many of colleagues have made in the past was giving up an internships because it was not paid. Although paid internships give you more incentive to work unpaid internships are just as important. Both have the ability to springboard you into your dream career

Do Your Homework When Searching For a Company… This simple task may be one of the most underrated tips when it comes to the internship interview process. Companies are looking for interns that are eager to learn more about their organization while gaining experiences from the industry. Plus by doing this you can give yourself an idea of exactly how well you can fit the organizations purpose and objectives.

GET OUT THERE!!!! Closed Mouths Don’t Get Feed!!!! Another mistake a lot of people make in looking for an internship is where and how they look for available targets. DON’T BE SELECTIVE!!!!! Every company is looking to improve their goods and services so if you think you can help or you would like to learn how to ASK THEM FOR OPPORTUNITIES. Half of the time companies will give you a chance because you showed enough confidence to come up and  ask for what you want. In the job market its very hard to get noticed if you don’t make an effort to be. So IF YOU HAVE A TALENT SHOWCASE IT SOME OUT THERE NEEDS IT.

Michael Vick’s Comeback From A PR Perspective

In April 2007, Vick was implicated in an illegal interstate dog fighting ring that had operated over five years. In August 2007, he pleaded guilty to federal felony charges and served 21 months in prison, followed by two months in home confinement. With the loss of his NFL salary and product endorsement deals, combined with previous financial mismanagement, Vick filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July 2008. Falcons owner Arthur Blanke did not want Vick on the Falcons, and after attempts to trade him failed, Vick was released. Not to mention the damage his reputation to both fans and PETA activists leaving his PR team with a very hard task of re-constructing his image.

I think his PR team did a great job of using the public relations theory while Michael Vick was incarcerated. They were about to keep his name lingering in the pubic, by giving status updates about his desire to make a comeback to the NFL. There were even talks of a T.V. show that was in the making that raised quiet a few eyebrows. He also had a great supporting audience in his family and die-hard fans that helped  his comeback. Michael Vick himself started to write letters to his fans also expressing willingness to make a comeback. This not only caught the eyes of his already passionate fans base but the NFL Commissioner Roger Godall. Even Commissioner Godall saw the compassion that still Michael Vick had for the game through multiples examples (e.i. letters, news updates, personal messages, meetings, etc.) This actually led a must earlier reinstatement than what most thought. This has to be a credit to PR team because they did a great job of showing Vick’s sincere regretfulness and  willingness to make the necessary changes to somehow help the situation. Vick was very active in trying to revamp his image through doing PETA commercials, giving to animals programs around the country and keeping a very nice profile since his release.

And as a reward Vick signed a one-year contract with the Philadelphia Eagles.  He earned $1.6 million and played a small role in the there (11-5) season.