It s a shame I've been sitting on this book for about two years now. A friend of mine gave me Never Eat Alone , by Keith Ferrazzi a couple years ago (thanks Rey), and it s been on my bookcase ever since. It was resting there not because I didn't want to read it, but because I already had so many others in the pipeline. I finally got around to reading it last month and I definitely recommend it. In very simple terms, Ferrazzi explains why networking is important and how to do it. From how to make call lists to planning dinners to personal branding to goal setting, it s all here. He also maintains a valuable blog .
Inevitably there will be times when you have setbacks or things don t go your way. Maybe you didn't get a job you thought you were sure to get. Maybe you lost a job unexpectedly, didn't win a contract, or lost a major client. Your car always seems to break down right after you've had some other unexpected expense. These kinds of situations immediately place us in crisis. They don t feel good, but sometimes they re what we need in order to grow. The beautiful thing about crises is that they force us to take a step back and reevaluate what s going on in our lives and rediscover what we truly want and need. When we get over that initial shock and feeling of disappointment, we might realize that maybe that job wasn't really the best for us anyway. Maybe, just maybe, that wasn't what you really wanted to spend your life doing. Maybe that friend was holding you back instead of pushing you forward. The way I deal with crises of these sorts is simple: If something doesn't go my way professionally, I try to create a situation that would be more rewarding than the situation originally planned. A while ago, I was offered a job that looked very promising. After I accepted the offer, they pushed the start date back three times, later informing me (via e-mail) that they wanted to bring me on in the near future but I should feel free to explore other options. I was extremely disappointed. I felt disrespected and angry, but decided to make the best of the situation and follow my dream of working internationally. I then flew to Santiago, Chile and had great professional and personal experiences I wouldn't have had otherwise. Later, reflecting back on the original opportunity, I realized that working for a company that avoids a start date three times and then can t pick up the phone to explain the situation is probably not where I need to spend my time. Use setbacks as an opportunity to put your goals in order and act on them. In the moment, it s difficult to look at a setback as temporary, but they are. They happen to everybody. It s how you respond to them that will determine how they affect you.
I chose to attend Bainbridge Graduate Institute without so much as a visit to the campus. I decided to apply based on the recommendation and support of three people I trust—three people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world. I did my research. I turned to LinkedIn and Quora to ask professionals what they thought about the school. Many had never heard of it. But the ones who did greatly respected the program and the citizens the learning community develops. Did I say citizens? Yes, I did. How can we expect businesses to be good corporate citizens, if the individuals who go into business don’t know how to be individual ones?
We often refer to ourselves as consumers. When we use language like this, we must be careful not to overgeneralize who we are as people. We are not consumers. We are people who consume. Consumers do not feel an obligation and responsibility towards fellow human beings. People do. I chose to attend BGI because I wanted to surround myself with a group of people better than me who want to use business as a tool to promote positive social and economic change. During orientation, I asked my Leadership and Personal Development professor Mary Kay why she chooses to teach at BGI. You can watch her response here.
In just 37 seconds, Mary Kay reaffirmed why BGI exists and validated my decision. We exist because we want to be the change we want to see in the world. They might call us hippies. They might call us optimists. They might even call us crazy. But as they say, “The ones who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.”
The following is the copy from the press release provided by Media Justice League. If you can, please come support this luncheon.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
DeAnne Cuellar
210-896-9141 (voice/text)
We here at the Media Justice League have some exciting news to share. Thanks to the generosity of the San Antonio Current and The Twig Bookstore we can now offer our speaker’s luncheon for FREE to the first 50 people to RSVP. Yes, you can save that $20 you had set aside but RSVP soon as seats are sure to fill quickly. You certainly can’t beat the value.
For FREE you can meet our featured speakers Juan Gonzalez and Joe Torres, aurthors of the book, “News for All the People.” Get your personal copy signed. Tour the offices of San Antonio’s favorite alt-weekly, The Current and meet publisher Michael Wagner. Plus, share lunch with some of San Antonio’s finest journalists, public relations professionals and community leaders. Did I mention this is all FREE? Proceeds from the Twig’s book sales will benefit the Media Justice League’s ongoing media literacy programs throughout South Texas.
This is an opportunity for everyone in San Antonio who makes media, consumes media, and cares about media to come together.
October 26, 2011 - 11:30 AM Meet the authors, book sales, and signing. Noon-1:00 PM Lunch and Program.
More about our speakers:
JUAN GONZÁLEZ is a two-time winner of the George Polk Award for commentary, is a former president of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. He is a columnist for New York’s Daily News, and co-host of the nationally syndicated TV and radio news show Democracy Now! His previous books include Harvest of Empire: A History of Latinos in America, and Fallout: The Environmental Consequences of the WorldTrade Center Collapse.
JOSEPH TORRES is the senior advisor for government and external affairs for Free Press, the national media reform organization. Before joining Free Press, he worked as deputy director at the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and was a journalist for several years.
The Book: News for All the People offers a sweeping account of the class and racial conflicts in American news media, from the first colonial newspaper to the age of the Internet. Based on years of archival research and up-to-the-minute reporting by veteran journalists and media reform advocates Juan González and Joseph Torres, News for All the Peoplereveals how racial segregation in the media distorted the news and highlights numerous examples of how publishers and broadcasters actually fomented racial violence through their coverage.
Fast-paced, story-driven and replete with portraits of individual journalists and media executives, the book weaves back and forth between the corporate battles and government policies that built our segregated media system—as when Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover gave a radio license to the KKK—and those who rebelled against that system, such asPittsburgh Courier publisher Robert L. Vann, who led a national campaign to get the black-face comedy Amos ’n’ Andy off the air.
This event is being cosponsored by the San Antonio Current, Democracy Now!, Free Press, and San Antonio Association of Hispanic Journalists (SAAHJ). Reservations are encouraged. For more information contact DeAnne Cuellar, at 210-896-9141 or by emailing directly to deannec@texasmep.org.