Learning
Weekly Report 04/24/2018 to 04/30/2018
Recently, I met with Texas State Senator Van Taylor and his assistant, Sable Coleman. Getting to interview him for my documentary film project was truly an honor and I loved getting to hear him speak about the topic of gun control. Senator Taylor shared tons of insight about the statistics on gun violence and how, while gun ownership and rights have been increasing, violence related to guns (excluding suicides) has been decreasing. The information that Senator Taylor shared with me was extremely helpful and has created new starting points for individual research, and, in addition, his poise and speaking abilities enhanced the interview even more. I appreciated how eloquent his word choice was and am able to understand better how politicians need to be able to use words not necessarily in the corrupt, sliding around the question type way, but more so to communicate effectively and be able to share their knowledge in an engaging manner. This interview really inspired me to work on not only my public speaking skills, but also just my everyday, conversational abilities in order to become a better communicator of my ideas.
Additionally, I attended the Child Protective Services roundtable luncheon with my mentor earlier in the week. A few months ago I also attended this event, but in this case, my mentor and her local board helped to host the event and share their facts and figures on what they do to support the CPS as a board. Seeing the behind the scenes work that my mentor had to put in to make this event successful, from organizing the speaker list and topics to ordering cookies decorated with scales, I learned more about hospitality and how to make volunteers feel welcomed and invited. One of the big takeaways from this year for me has been that I have a heart for serving others and having compassion for those less fortunate than myself. I love to support local charities and get involved in volunteer work, and seeing my mentor’s activity in the Child Protective Services while still having a busy career has been inspiring and motivating for myself to do the same as an adult, even if I have realized that the law is not my true passion.
Similarly, I have been looking at different career options for topics which I could possibly study for the upcoming year in the ISM program. I took a bunch of quizzes on the “perfect major” for me to study in college, or the right career path based on my personality studies, but I realized that I have a lot of varying interests which do not quite have a connection. While I still love the law and learning about court cases, I also enjoy videography and all things related to fine art. However, these both are the extremes of my hobbies; I do not want to just be a lawyer or just a YouTuber, but rather a combination of the two. My mother is the same way; she studied English in college and then became the head of the English Department, a private piano and violin lesson teacher, the creator of Multicultural Minute in elementary schools, and now the Executive Director of Frisco Arts. It is this entrepreneurial spirit that drives her to create change and bring new ideas into fruition, and I feel that the same ambition to implement change in a project-based way has been cultivated by my mother within myself. My mum challenge is one example of this, and I hope that in the future I can continue to develop my ideas into projects, using both my intellect and my artistic spirit. With this, I hope to study entrepreneurship and learn how to be a businesswoman and a creator of change and innovation through the ISM program next year, combining my love of creativity and art with my love of intellect and careful thought.