How I've Grown and What I've Learned

I have learned and grown since starting my college career here at ISU.  I have learned small things that will help my with life on campus and i have learned bigger lessons that will help me in life.

Some of the small lessons that I have learned include how to get around campus, how to prepare for tests, and how to do my own laundry.  These were all difficult at the beginning of the semester and have become much easier as it went on.  I use these skills on almost a daily basis while living here in Ames.

Some bigger lessons that I have learned and ways in which I have grown are how to live independently, how to meet new people and make connections, and how to continue to move onward when challenged.  I have learned these skills while at ISU and can foresee myself using them for the rest of my life.

Attending ISU has been and will continue to be an amazing and beneficial experience for me not only in terms of education but in life lessons as well.

What The Hixson Award Means To Me

                The Hixson award means a lot to me.  The Hixson award is giving me a chance to be successful and productive in my future.

                Growing up, I always planned on attending college but never had a plan as to how.  My family has never had enough money to save any for future expenses.  I knew I could take out loans but didn’t want to be in major debt.  The Hixson award has given me a way to attend college without placing further financial burden on my family.  I will still graduate with debt, but with an amount that I see as reasonable.

                I also feel honored to have received the Hixson award.  I can hardly believe that I am among the few recipients of this award considering the many possible candidates.  Being honored with this opportunity I feel that it is my duty to use it to its fullest potential and learn as much about being successful in life as I can while here at Iowa State University.

                Overall I am thankful, honored, and proud to have received the Hixson Award.

Social Media

                I use Facebook as a useful form of communication.  Though it is often cluttered by useless information, one can still sift through and find the desired pieces.  The hard part is knowing how to use it properly.

                I have “friends” who post a status nearly every hour.  From the reading and my personal opinion this is because they feel that someone is listening and it makes them feel important.  I rarely write statuses and am occasionally annoyed by others’ constant updates.  The best thing I’ve found to do is to barely skim the news feed and only read things pertaining to you or close friends.

                Some of the reading mentioned how people act differently online and how conflicts that were fairly civilized can grow into an all-out war.  I had never noticed this until reading this article but can now think of several occasions when this happened among friends.  It seems that things that should be kept to oneself often end up as statuses followed by more unproductive comments.

                Despite all of this I still consider Facebook useful.  I can easily send mass messages or RSVP to an event with the click of my mouse.  I can follow pages or groups that interest me such as 2011 Group 6 Hixsons, Monsanto Seed Company, or Johnny Cash.  Facebook allows me to contact people that I may not reach otherwise.  Facebook and other social media will be useful in communicating with people as I move towards my goal of graduating and beginning a career.

SMART

For this blog I am using my goal of a 3.5 GPA for the next four years and applying the SMART goal setting rules to it.
S    My goal is specific because it is has an exact GPA to reach.

M  My goal is measurable because once I have graduated I will either have a 3.5 or not.

A  My goal is attainable because I believe that I can reach this GPA even though it will be challenging.

R  My goal is realistic for much the same reason it is attainable; I believe i can do it.

T  My goal is time bound because it must be done at the time I graduate.

My MBTI

                My MBTI said that I was INTP.  This means that I tend to be Introverted, Intuitive, Thinking, and Perceiving.  I agree with a majority of these but believe that some are not entirely true.

                An Introvert is someone who gets their energy from within themselves and enjoys time alone.  I don’t feel that this is an accurate description of me.  When alone, I am often bored and I feel energized when around friends.  I do however, feel uncomfortable around large groups or people that I am not familiar with.  I believe that I am somewhere in between an introvert and an extrovert, drawing my energy from a small group of close friends.

                Being Intuitive is thinking about the big idea as opposed to every detail.  I believe this describes me because I like to learn why or how things work but find names and specifics unnecessary.  I remember processes, patterns, and connections but struggle with minor facts.

                A Thinking type decision maker makes judgments based on logic.  I agree with this result because I enjoy debate and use logic to form my arguments.  I sometimes upset people by doing what makes sense instead of what they want.

                Someone who is Perceiving deals with things as they come.  I hate having strict plans and dates set, I would rather just make decisions when they need to be made.  I usually procrastinate and put off things that need to be done until last minute.  I am unorganized and have never used a planner.

                I feel that this was a fairly good indicator of my personality type but also believe that some aspects are more complicated than being one way or the other.  I have noticed several categories where I possess traits of both type and this cannot be shown by a simple four letter code.

My Bucket List

Next Four Years

1.       Get my degree

2.       3.5 GPA

3.       Have a career plan

Before I Die

1.       Travel the world

2.       Make a scientific discovery

3.       Sky dive

4.       Go deep sea fishing

When I Was At My Best

                As I have grown up, I have put effort into a lot of things.  I have pushed myself in difficult classes and worked to become the president of my local 4H club.  The one instance that stands out in my mind is my time spent playing football.

                Being naturally awkward and uncoordinated, I was never a star player in any sport.  I played baseball, basketball, and ran track through elementary school and Junior high; mostly because I was needed to meet the minimum number of players for a team.  It wasn’t until freshman year that I found my sport.

                In fall 2007 I joined my high school football team.  Because I lacked such skills as catching and speed, I was thrown in with the lineman as a practice dummy.  I unenthusiastically accepted my new job and saw it as my way to contribute to the team, but after many bruises and grass stains I realized that occasionally I could out block the varsity lineman.  Being 145 pounds I had the advantage of quickness over the 300 pound lineman.  I continued the year practicing against the varsity line but never playing.  The following summer I spent riding my bike 6 miles into town to lift weights and riding home.  I planned to be prepared for my sophomore year.

                In fall football practice began again, and so did team weight lifting.  We began by maxing out and much to my coaches surprise, I could squat and deadlift just as much as most seniors including the varsity linemen.  In practice I continued my effort and proved myself worthy of being a second string lineman.  Each time I played was against someone outweighing me by nearly 100 pounds but never giving up. 

                My Junior and Senior years, I played starting line for both offense and defense of every game.  I never grew, but through hard work my abilities did.  I believe that this story represents a time in my life when I was at my best.  I put forth my best effort and was rewarded for it.