Re-Usable Advice...

    I'm back! And after much deliberation, I have decided what type of post I feel is appropriate for this time of year. The end of the school year is often a time to reflect so, naturally, I looked back to the Senior Edition of my school newspaper, printed just about this time last year (hey, I'm a Journalism major...what did you expect?). Inside, I found my senior letter, in which I bestowed on the student body of my high school the wisdom that I felt I had gained over the four years prior to my graduation. Now, although I am no Aristotle, I do believe that it is interesting to see what I was thinking during the "monumental" point in my life when I was being thrown out into the hard, cruel world (or so I thought at the time).

    So, here it is. Maybe inside you will find something relevant to you, whatever point in your life you are at.

    "Roughly 28 classes, 22 teachers, and, what seems like, thousands of AP Literature papers gone by and still, here I sit, listening to the Rolling Stones, biting my nails, and attempting to write this paper, that you are currently reading, the night before it’s due. Although some things will never change, I feel that many things, such as my wisdom, have. That being said, here is some advice I feel is notable.
    Don’t over think the small stuff. It sounds so simple , but many people don’t take this advice. So much time is wasted on petty fights or problems that will mean nothing in the long run, so don’t waste perfectly good moments being mad.
    Put yourself in awkward situations: join a club that none of your friends are in, do something that makes you uncomfortable, go out of your way to talk to someone you don’t know. You can’t truly experience new things unless you step out of your safety zone.
    Enjoy the moment while you’re in it. It’s easy to get caught up in things and stress out while they’re happening, especially senior year. Even when things are crazy, take time to sit back and enjoy the beauty of what’s going on. Breathing doesn’t hurt either.
    Only worry about those who worry about you. Don’t waste your time trying to impress everybody. Your friends and family are the only ones who matter and, chances are, they will love you no matter what you wear, say, or looked like in the fifth grade.
    Leave the past in the past…or it will be impossible to live for today. People will come in and out of your life, but in the end, the ones who make it to your future are the ones who are suppose to be there. Forget the past, but remember what it taught you.
    See one of your favorite bands play live. I know this doesn’t really tie into the other ones but just trust me on this one. Also, camp with your friends.
    Tell your family you love them. Frequently. Appreciate what they do for you and let them know that; you won’t always have that luxury.
    Take Journalism. Biased? Maybe…but for me, it’s been more than a class. It’s been an experience; one that has taught me a lot about myself. It’s something I‘ve become passionate about through being on staff and with a little help from Mr. Covey. So I guess maybe this last bit of advice should be "find something you’re passionate" about and do whatever it takes to pursue your dreams with it. That’s what I plan to do at least."

In need of more inspiration? Check this out.

The Big Question: "To blog or not to blog"

(As usual, the un-edited version):

    Essays, speeches, exams, club meetings, a part-time job, a social life; with so much to worry about already as a college student, who in the world has time to blog?
    With blogging becoming a growing phenomenon, “to blog or not to blog” has been the question on many public relations and journalism students' minds.
    Bryan Blaise, Senior Account Executive at Fleishman Hillard International Communications advocates student blogging because it gives individuals “a chance to practice one of the most essential skills you will use day in and day out, while becoming an expert on a specific topic”.
    “Fantastic writers, like prima ballerinas or star quarterbacks, are made, not born,” Blaise said, “A natural talent for writing is only improved through continual practice, and with today’s ease and accessibility to blogs, there’s no reason for a young PR or journalism student not to blog.”
    Aside from improving upon one’s written communication skills, blogging proves to be an indicator to potential employers that a person is participating in new media. Dr. Robert Stewart, the associate director of the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism, believes that the only reason a student should not blog is if they want to risk not having a job.
    “I’ve heard more that one person in the industry say that they’ll ask about blogs when hiring because they automatically assume you blog,” Stewart said, “Employers in the industry want to hire people who are participating and can function in the Web 2.0 world.”
    Although Stewart advocated the obvious benefits of this new art to the incoming journalism school freshmen, less than 30% actually took the advice.
    “Blogging isn’t for everyone. There’s an art, science and dedication required, and many people won’t commit to that,” Blaise said, “The opportunity is there for everyone to blog, but doing so half-heartedly or without purpose or strategy will do more harm than good.”
    M.J. Clark, Communications and Leadership Consultant at M.J. Clark Communications, agrees that “it does you more harm to start a blog if you don’t keep up with it”.
    “Blogging is great if you consistently update it; if you don’t, you’re creating your own negative PR for your own personal brand,” Clark said, “It’s something that really needs to be thought out. If you’re not a blogger and think it’s not something you can keep up with or something you’re passionate about, it does you more harm.”
    Stewart, on the other hand, believes that although there is some risk involved, “there is way more risk in not doing it”.
    “If you have a talent, you do things with it,” Stewart said, “Employers don’t want to hire people who bury their talents.”
    A common fear students have about blogging is that a mistake or a sentence that is not in a potential employer’s style of choice will cause that potential employer to look the other way.
    “College is about getting mistakes out of your system. It’s better to learn lessons as a college student than to have to start trying to learn at a job and making mistakes there,” Stewart said, “Also, no one is expecting blogs to be in AP style. Newspaper bloggers don’t follow AP style and sometimes even write in first person.”
    Blog writing is actually more conversational and more personal, according to Andrew Revkin, a reporter for the New York Times.
    “[Blogging is] a journey towards understanding,” Revkin said, “I don’t know what’s going on; I know some people who have a decent idea, but they could be wrong, too. So why not come along on the ride?”
    Many students argue that they simply have nothing to write about, but the reality is that there are an endless amount of “blog-able” topics.
    “Blogs are a chance to communicate your perspective on just about anything you want,” Blaise said, “I would encourage young professionals to blog about topics or situations relevant to [their] desired career goals.”
    Although Blaise suggests that students steer clear of topics such as “the latest Gossip Girl episode or your newest pair of Manalos”, he does agree that a blog does not have to read like a textbook.
    “Communications can be found in almost anything, so if you’re set on having a fashion or sports blog, consider blogging about the communications activities of companies within that industry*,” Blaise said.
    Another common misconception students have is that they do not know enough about the industry to blog.
    “I have actually learned a lot from students. If you have confidence then you should know that your opinion matters and people in the industry may know a whole lot less than what you know right now about new media,” Clark said, “Students have an insight and need to know that they have a worthy contribution.”
    If not done passionately or with good intent, blogging may prove to be destructive; however, if done with thought, maintaining a blog can offer benefits to students that students of “older media” could have never enjoyed in the past.
    “Every post, Tweet, or wall comment is a testament of your personal brand, and you can not be flippant about what, where, and how you communicate online,” Blaise said, “However, experience in the strategic application of new media is a major asset that new professionals can bring to the table and set themselves up for quick and great success.”


*Bryan Blaise is the author of www.fhoutfront.com, where they cover a wide array of people, companies, and issues all through the lens of communications about and to the LGBT community.

From the Vault: Adam

(Side note: I wrote this article last year, but thought that it was worth bringing back out. The prompt was something to the effect of: "Describe someone who has greatly impacted your life and why". It had a length-limit on it, otherwise there is no doubt it would be longer. Enjoy!)

    "Adam Sealcott sits at just under four feet tall and weighs approximately 75 pounds. Diagnosed with Myelomeningocele, the most severe form of spina bifida, Adam has been paralyzed from the waist down and confined to a wheelchair his entire life. Those who know Adam, however, do not see a boy in a wheelchair when they look at him; they see a musician, a writer, a comedian, a spelling bee champion, a skateboarder, and a friend. Technically, Adam is handicapped, which means he is supposedly "disadvantaged", but his positive outlook on life and his determination often give him an advantage over those who do not have physical disabilities.
    My friendship with Adam has radically shaped who I am today. Adam has taught me to make the best of what I have; he has taught me that if you do not excel at one thing, do that much better at something else. Adam may not be able to use his legs for football and basketball like his twin brother, but he uses what he has, which is his arms, his voice, and his mind, to play the guitar, sing, and write his own song lyrics. Instead of getting upset about the things he cannot do, Adam focuses on what he can do and what he does well. Adam has helped me be a stronger person when facing challenges, and he has taught me to focus on the positive things in life and in myself. All people shine in their own way; it is simply a matter of finding how to do so."

Adam is currently: pursuing his dreams. What are you doing?

Check out more of Adam:

"Song Three" Music Video

Adam's Virb Site

"Mirror Mirror"

     "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder", but in today's world, that beholder is often the media. From TrimSpa commercials to air-brushed magazine models, every aspect of propaganda and entertainment unconsciously tells teens and young adults how they should dress, eat, talk, and think. Thanks to certain media sources and other influences, teens everywhere want to be taller, blonder, and skinnier.

        Though men feel the pressures too, woman's magazines have nearly 11 times as many ads and articles relating to weight loss as men's magazines (http://people.bu.edu). According to research done by Boston University, girls as young as nine years old are beginning to experiment with common dieting practices such as exercise and restricting food intake.
        Many times, the "image" of beauty is distorted. Often, the models that teens see highlighted on the front and inside of magazines have gone through computer programs that hide flaws and enhance other features. Research shows that exposure to thin models in air-brushed ads is linked to depression, low self-esteem, and the development of unhealthy eating habits ("Dove Campaign for Real Beauty").

    Teen Magazine reported in 2003 that 35 percent of girls between the ages of six and 12 have been on at least one diet and that at least half to three-fourths of "normal" weight girls truly believe that they are overweight.

    Idolized celebrities spend endless amounts of money to possess the "perfect" body. From hiring personal trainers and personal chefs, to spending time at high class fitness facilities, all celebrity weight-loss methods prove to be expensive ones. Magazines, movie stars, and models all seem to set an unrealistic standard of leaving for the "average" person.

    Although the media's role as a pressure on youth is not a recent one, perception of what is "beautiful" is always changing. For example, in the 1950's, Marilyn Monroe was glorified for her curvy body and hourglass shape, while the next decade brought a new kind of Idol, Twiggy: the 90 pound fashion icon who made "stick thin" the new craze.

    Throughout history, various types of media have dictated the social norms of American culture. In a study titled "The Pervasiveness and Persistence of the Feminine Beauty Ideals in Children's Fairy Tales", 168 of The Brothers Grimm fairy tales were examined. The authors, Grauherholz and Baker-Sperry, explored the extent to which feminine beauty was highlighted in the tales. The study found that 94 percent of all tales acknowledge physical appearance and of that, appearance was mentioned nearly fourteen times per story. 

    Nearly all fairy tales have a beautiful princess or attractive prince against a wicked witch or ugly villain. Through fairy tales, children are taught that "unattractive" people, such as ugly stepsisters, are punished, while "beautiful" individuals are rewarded; this results in children's skewed judgement, based solely on looks, later on in life.

    Another familiar example is Barbie. With her perfect features and disproportionate body, Barbie gives children an unrealistic image to look up to. 

    With the media, celebrities, and even childhood heroes promoting an unrealistic image of beauty, it is often hard for teens to focus on what is important. A friend once said, one should "always concentrate on the positive things about oneself".

    "Someone might have a great smile, or pretty eyes, and those are some of the first things you notice about someone," she said, "it's not all about the body, it's about personality and how you treat other people. 

    When one is happy with the way he or she looks, others see a happy, confident person no matter what shape, size, height, or color. For those who are still simply not happy about the way they looks, the time and energy used to obsess over body image can be displaced elsewhere more positively. Above all else, treating oneself with respect and maintaining a healthy body is the most important thing one can do.  

Want more? Check out some of these sites:

Barbie Vs. Real Women

Dove Evolution

Startling facts about body image

"What PR is...not"

The un-rated (i.e. edited) version:

    Ari Gold: he gets thousand dollar hair cuts while some poor kid holds his phone to his ear, he pays two grand to take his clients to Lakers’ games, he yells at whoever he wants, whenever he wants (usually getting whatever he wants), and he goes through more personal assistants than bottles of Ax body spray. More importantly, Ari, the beloved publicist of Vincent Chase in the HBO series Entourage, lies, cheats, blackmails, spins stories, and, inventively, paints the inaccurate picture that many outside of the field have of the Public Relations business.
    Although students and professionals in the Public Relations field know that fictional characters such as Ari Gold represent the extreme side of a typical stereotype of the business, it is not uncommon for friends, relatives, and the general public to believe otherwise.
    “Public Relations is not just what you see on television. It’s not all about promoting celebrities, and even for those who do, it’s a very small segment,” Professor Michelle Honald said, “Also, it’s not about being an ‘evil genius’; spinning is not a part of PR.”
    Rather than “spinning” problems, which is a mechanism used to react to a problem, Honald believes that Public Relations is about being proactive, or “stopping problems before they start”. Also, contrary to popular belief, honesty is the number one rule in PR.
    “One of the most important ideas in PR is transparency: being clear and not trying to hide things,” Honald said, “This field is not about hiding the bad, it’s about acknowledging problems.”
    Danny Brown, owner of Press Release PR* and founder of the 12for12K Challenge**, agrees that a common misconception about those in this field is that “every PR person is akin to a snake-oil salesman and will say anything to get the dollar”.
    “It's true there are some shillers in the industry, but you get that anywhere,” Brown said, “thankfully there are great people making a difference and ‘cleaning up’ the industry and its perception.”
    Another common myth is that PR is all about the “glitz and the glamour”.
    “[In actuality] there's a lot of ‘boring’ work behind the scenes such as research for press releases, contact info, and legal clearance before a story or pitch can become live,” Brown said.
    Faded ideas such as those that surround the 1800’s “press agentry” also leave “outsiders” in the dark when it comes to what kind of work a PR professional actually does.
    “Most people think that PR is all about publicity when really, there is so much more that goes into it,” Honald said, “PR involves everything from community and internal relations, to event planning and communicating messages.”
    In Public Relations, misconception is the name of the game; those not in PR often confuse the field with others, such as marketing and advertising. Brown agrees that these fields are very similar, but there are some key differences.
    “With advertising, for example, if you pay for an ad to be shown, you're guaranteed that it'll be seen by your target audience; with PR, you're hoping that it'll be seen, but a lot has to do with relevance of story, timing, and media [among other things],” Brown said.
    When it comes to marketing, the difference is found in the publics. Marketing is a “sales and distribution function whose principal publics are the customers, retailers, and distributors” while public relations practice “involves many publics besides the customers” such as the media, employees, community leaders, government regulators, activist groups, and more (Public Relations: The Profession and the Practice, 2004).
   Finally, a fallacy that Brown comes across regularly is that PR will get a business all the sales it needs: that PR is a “magic brush that will get your name in all the major newspapers and TV shows”.
    “PR represents an opportunity to tell your story, but that story needs to be worth telling in the first place, and people need to be receptive to it. Get that combination and then you've got the chance to get some major eyeballs looking at you,” Brown said, “but a lot of it is luck, combined with hard work and knowledge.”
    Oh yeah, and a little bit of honesty, too.


*Press Release PR is a boutique agency offering social media PR and marketing consultancy to both small-to-medium businesses and Fortune 500 clients. For more information visit http://pressreleasepr.com/
**The 12 for 12,000 Challenge is the combination of social media and fund-raising that aims to change the lives of millions worldwide. For more info visit http://12for12k.org.

"Hapiness is a Warm Gun..."

    It has recently been brought to my attention that not every breathing human on the face of this earth has seen the movie Across the Universe. This is truly a tragedy. For those of you who have seen it, kudos to you (unless you've only seen it once, in which case, you should probably consider watching it again), but for those of you who haven't, here's my official (ish) take on it...

    "A musical tribute to one of Rock’s most beloved bands, The Beatles, Across the Universe pulls together an interesting mix of song, psychedelic effects, and dance. With war and the struggle for peace in the foreground of the movie’s plot, this twisted musical captures the true spirit of the 60’s era through the use of 34 Beatles compositions.
    Including songs from “I Want to Hold Your Hand” to “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)”, Across the Universe cleverly and creatively plays out the fab four’s greatest hits while all the while stringing together a love story that hits ever note. Through the use of metaphors, director Julie Taymor’s characters use the well-known songs to parallel everything from the Vietnam War and the draft, to a young Asian girl (T.V. Carpio) and her infatuation with someone she can never be with.
   The cast’s lovable characters, including Jude (Jim Sturgess), a Liverpool native who comes to America and falls in love with the sheltered Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood ), make it nearly impossible not to care about the characters and their many situations. Max (Joe Anderson), Lucy’s brother and Jude’s first American friend, goes through as many changes as his prim and proper turned radical sister, leaving the audience anything but bored.
   From crazy, psychedelic scenes such as “I am the Walrus”, complete with appearance by Bono, to heart-wrenching serious acts such as the war tainted “Let it Be” and “Strawberry Fields Forever”, Across the Universe has everything any musical lover, Beatles fanatic, or war buff could ask for in a movie."

A few other reasons I believe you should watch this movie:

-The cast is fresh and fairly unknown. Sure we all knew who Evan Rachel Wood was, but who knew she had those pipes? And thank you Julie Taymor for discovering Jim Sturgess...you have completed my life.

-It's the musical-hater's musical. Leave thoughts of The Sound of Music and Chicago out of your head. Besides the random, but totally necessary, bursts of dancing from time to time, the plot is cleverly played out as if no one were singing at all. In other words, the movie does not simply move song to song.

-Dana Fuchs sounds like Janis Joplin and Martin Luther plays eerily like Hendrix.

-The scene Happiness is a Warm Gun. It will change your life, I swear.

-The clever inserts of Beatles' lyrics or references in simple dialogue or in background happenings. Sadie: "Where'd she come from?", Jude: "She came in through the bathroom window". Ba-dum-chi

-Joe Cocker. We needed him back in our lives.

From the Vault: "What's your sign?"

  A picture is worth a thousand words, but for many musical artists, certain pictures are worth so much more. Recognized around the world, band logos let many proudly flaunt their favorite artists without touching the alphabet. More importantly, however, they represent the band and what it stands for through the use of colors, lines, shapes, and a little bit of imagination.
   Most recognize the familiar logos, but many do not know the stories behind the well-known works of art.
   One of the most recognized band symbols of the rock era is the “tongue and lips” logo, representing non-other than the English rock and roll rebels, the Rolling Stones. Designed by John Pasche, this symbol started in the inner sleeve of the band’s album, Sticky Fingers.
   In the words of Pasche, the “concept of the design was to represent the band’s anti-authoritarian attitude, lead singer Mick Jagger’s mouth, and the obvious sexual connotations of the band and their songs (www.rockandrollreport.com).”
   While the 70’s brought an era of increasingly surreal and extreme band artwork, Pink Floyd and it’s design team, Hipgnosis, stuck to the basics when they produced the band’s most-recognized symbol.
   Atom Heart Mother and Meddle, the two albums preceding Dark Side of the Moon, had displayed a cow and an over-sized human ear. For Dark Side, Hipgnosis presented a similarly simple design: a diagram of light passing through a prism, said to offer clues to the spirit of music within.
   Presented with five different designs, the band took less than three minutes to pick the design before going back to work in the studio.
   “The symbol represented both the diversity and cleanliness of the sound of the music,” designer Storm Thorgerson of Hipgnosis said, “In a more conscious way, it worked for a band with a reputation for their light show (www.pinkfloyd-co.com).”
   The triangle is a symbol for ambition, which was an important theme to band member, Roger Waters. It was also Waters’ idea to turn the light from the prism into a heartbeat inside of the sleeve, representing the sound that starts the music.
   Unlike the logos of Stones and Floyd, the symbols representing Led Zeppelin did not come about in such a positive manner. After the release of Led Zeppelin II, which included “harder” rock hits such as “Whole Lotta Love”, the band retreated to a cottage in the mountains of Whales, England to find a new formula for their next album. The outcome of this retreat resulted in a nearly all-acoustic album, Led Zeppelin III, which was simultaneously slammed by the press.
   After the album’s negative reviews, lead vocalist Jimmy Page decided that the next album would have no mention of the band’s name. Instead, the album would showcase four symbols, representing and devised by each member of the band to express himself.
   Robert Plant’s symbol is a feather in a circle, found in an old book called “The Sacred Symbols of Mu.” According to Page, “the ancient Mu civilization existed around 15,000 years ago as a part of a lost continent in the Pacific Ocean (en.all experts.com).”
   “All sorts of philosophies have been based on the feather; it has a very interesting heritage,” Page said, “For instance, it represents courage to many Red Indian tribes. I like people to lay down the truth, that’s what the feather in the circle is all about.”
   Three ovals interlocking a circle represent band member John Paul Jones. It is thought to represent unity and family, as well as a person who is confident and competent because it is near impossible to draw accurately.
   Percussionist John Bonham’s symbol is three interlocking circles. Plant once stated that he always thought Bonham’s symbol represented man, woman, and child: the trilogy. It is also the emblem of the Ballantine Bear.
   The meaning of Page’s multi-dimensional symbol is unknown.
   Originally designed with the purpose of marking the band’s flight cases to easily identify them on tour, the Grateful Dead’s skull logo has become a strong image for the band. The logo was designed in 1969 by artist Bob Thomas, although the symbol was not used until the release of the album Steal Your Face in 1976. The logo was inspired by a 60’s poster displayed in California and balances it’s color in a “yin-yang” style (www.intuitivedesign.com).
   Dave Matthews Band fans easily recognize the band’s energetic, dancing logo, rightfully dubbed the “fire dancer.” The fire dancer logo came about when Matthews was asked to draw what he sees when he looks out at his fans.
   The meaning behind logos and symbols of bands vary as greatly as the music behind the bands. Some logos, such as Prince’s name-replacing symbol, listeners may never understand, while others, such as HIM’s heartagram, representing the balance of good and bad, are clear cut and simple. However one thing is for certain: when a symbol and a band’s name can be interchanged, a milestone has been hit.

The power of young minds..

...never underestimate it.

    Last year, I took an idea from Jeff Foxworthy and decided to head to my old elementary school to get some advice for a "Younger Years" centerspread I was creating for my school newspaper. Although it started as just a sidebar expected to generate a few "awwww"s, it actually turned out to be pretty insightful. Insightful in the fact that these small, "innocent" (depending who you talk to I suppose) minds had life figured out in the simplest way. It's amazing when I think about young adults my age and older who still don't know this stuff. Here's what Ricky Eberle, age 9, Rebecca Burk, age 9, Rachel Davis, age 9, and Mackinzee Dunning, age 8 (and a half, she made sure I noted) had to say. You may want to write this down:

“The worst thing about being older is that you can’t get away with some of the stuff you could get away with when you were younger.”

“If your friends are being mean you should try to be nice to them but if they’re still mean, you should stay away because they’re probably not real friends.”

“When you’re younger you should try to have fun as long as you can because soon you’ll be busy and working.”

“Sometimes people can be really mean but if you can ignore it, you should.

"It's safe to wear your seatbelt in a car. Also, little kids have to sit in the back."

“Be nice to your friends. If they do something bad, tell someone. If they hit you, don’t hit them back.”

"You should always try your hardest at whatever you do."

    Simple? Yes. But tell me how many adults you know that still can't seem to get it right.

From the Vault: "Servers are people too"

    Since my recent return to my hometown from Athens, I have picked up my old job as a waiteress at a local restaurant to pay for college, as well as to pass the time. In the short time that I have been back, I have realized why the job of serving and I have had a "love-hate" relationship over the past couple of years.
    That being said, I thought it appropriate to break out an opinion story I wrote for The Cougar's Roar last year about why the general population should remember that servers are, indeed, people too.

   "Typically, waiters and waitresses are friendly and hospitable towards their guests, but eventually they are all pushed to utter the words, “I hate people.” Not to say that all customers of the average food joint treat their server as a food slave, but the fact is, many people enter restaurants without the proper knowledge of how to act.
   For the sake of servers everywhere, here are some brief tips on how to make your dining experience a pleasant one for all who are involved. Feel free to cut this out and store it in your wallet and/or purse to refer to as needed.
   If the restaurant puts up a sign that reads “please wait to be seated”, they are expecting you to read it and follow directions. Seating yourself will only make things difficult for everyone. Hosts try their best to rotate tables so that each server gets an equal amount of tables; this is to ensure that your waiter or waitress does not get overloaded and can give you the best service possible.
   When a server walks up to you with a smile and asks “Hi, how are you doing today?”, “coffee and ice tea” or “we’re not ready yet” are not acceptable answers. Servers are humans too. That’s not how you greet people on this, or any other plane.
   If your server asks you if you are ready, be honest. It may seem fun to make your server stand at your table while you actually decide what you want, but he or she does have other things to do and could be serving other customers. Also, if you tell them you’re not ready, please keep in mind that they can not read minds and may not come back the second you’ve decided.
   Your server puts in your order, brings you your food, and furnishes you with all the utensils, napkins, and extras your little heart could desire, but he or she does not cook your food. If there is something wrong with it, please let them know, but do not take it out of their tip. Your food is being made by someone who will get paid hourly regardless if your food is correctly made or not while your server makes what you give them.
   Take into consideration your surroundings. At 7 p.m. on a Friday night, chances are your food may take a little bit longer than usual. If your server comes out juggling drinks, napkins, silverware, and another table’s check, the questions “is our appetizer ready?” is irrelevant.
   If you’re sitting in a large group and you insist on splitting the bill, please have at least enough consideration to tell your waiter or waitress upfront; also, sit by those on your bill. Chances are you’ll end up paying for something that’s not yours if, after the bill has came and everyone has played musical chairs, “he’s on our bill, and those three are on their bill, and the boy with the blonde hair is on our bill”…
   If your server is serving another table, it is both rude and inconsiderate to flag him down, shout at him, or come up and tap him on the shoulder. You don’t interrupt others when they’re talking, this rule does not change as soon as you enter the four walls of a restaurant.
   When you bring children along, it is not cute to let them open things and dump them all over the table. Sure, you don’t have to clean it up but someone does; namely, your server. Also, it is not safe to let them get up and run around the restaurant like an animal when servers are carrying out hot food.
   When you feel that it is necessary to stay longer than fifteen minutes after your meal is finished, consider this in your tip. If you are sitting at a table, that means that other customers are not, and your waitress can’t make any money. Also, if you feel that it is necessary to come in ten minutes before close, please remember that your waitress must stay there as long as you do. Closed means closed, not sit and continue to talk. Servers don’t come into your work place and sit on your desk long after you should be home and in your slippers.
   Tipping: the times have changed. As it is no longer 1853, the minimum amount you should be tipping your server is 15%. Yes, there are times when your waitress is not particularly friendly (although you have bad days at work too) or you didn’t make them run that much, but keep in mind that after you leave they must clean your area , fill various containers, and do other jobs to clean up the store, all for around $3.15 an hour.
   Also, it is nice to get verbal praise, but compliments do not pay bills. Neither do prayer cards or religious pamphlets; it is also insulting for you to think that your server is without religion. If it is Sunday and they are not a church, it is because they were required to work on Sunday because everyone goes out to eat after church.
   Sure, the majority of restaurant dwellers are considerate; if this weren’t the case, the job of waiteressing would not be an easy one to fill. Although it is stressful to serve the public, most servers continue to do the job because of their love of the people. So don’t be the reason a poor waiter or waitress gives up on humanity. Do your part: smile, acknowledge that they are human too… and, oh yeah, don’t forget to tip."

   Okay, so maybe I came home from work and wrote this after I had waited on one table too many, but, I think you get the point.

My First PRSuccess Story

Twitter, Facebook, Typepad, LinkedIn: with so many ways to connect being thrown into the world of Public Relations, it’s enough to make any PR major’s head spin.
However, PR students need not be afraid. Although some may choose to focus their studies on all aspects of Social Media, many PR students will find that in their personal affairs, in their future careers, and in most major companies, utilizing one or two methods of Social Media is the most beneficial.
PRSSA President, Paul Matson, prides himself on the time he spends going through new Social Media sources, researching what’s being used, and trying to find new, effective trends in the Social Media world. Matson agrees that focusing on one or two of the many means is a smart choice.
“Just because you have a message, you don’t have to use every social media outlet,” Matson said, “if you want to put something in media, you need to figure out what will reach your audience.”
For Ohio’s PRSSA chapter, two mediums are utilized that Matson feels are the most efficient in reaching the local college-age chapter, as well as other PRSSA chapters. According to Matson, most PRSSA information is sent out through Twitter and the blog, http://www.ohiouprssa.org/, because they are the “easiest to update”.
When engaging in Social Media, individuals and companies alike must realize that not all outlets are for everyone. For example, Matt Dickman, VP of Digital Marketing for Fleishman-Hillard of Cleveland, Ohio, stresses that “not everybody should blog”.
“For some companies, blogging would be a terrible idea; they would have absolutely nothing to blog about,” Dickman said.
Although blogging may not be for everyone, it is evident that Social Media of some sort can benefit any and every company. Not all organizations, however, are ready to accept Social Media as a part of everyday life.
“People don’t take the time to understand [Social Media] because they’re not use to it,” Matson said, “The older a company is, the more they’re going to try to resist. We are threatening because we are really the first digital generation”.
Many companies are afraid to engage in certain Social Media mediums because many give anyone the chance to give comments about a company, product, or person. According to both Matson and Dickman, however, the fear of “citizen journalism” is a pointless one because “the discussion is going on whether you are there or not”.
“Good or bad, information spreads quickly,” Dickman said.
“They don’t call it viral for nothing”.