The 5 Paths of Personal and Professional Success

On Friday, August 7th, my co-worker, Michele Roberts, and I attended a workshop by Dr. Zebulun Davenport, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs at Indiana University. His workshop was titled 5 Tools to Create Success In Your Personal and Professional Life.

In this workshop, Dr. Zebulun gave 5 tips that we could start using immediately to improve our lives:

1. Start your day with a positive attitude.

2. Set goals in your life and stay focused on those goals.

3. Take responsibility for your life and actions.

4) Take advantage of the here and now.

5) Laugh sometimes.

As Dr. Zebulun talked about his "5 Tools", he also gave extra important lessons to keep in mind. One of them was that life is too short to worry about what others think of us, what we are and what we do. It is important to grow in ways that are authentic to you. Also notable was when he defined FEAR as "false experiences appearing real."

I am glad I took the time to see this workshop. The messages in it were simple but still impactful, and an effective pick-me-up as we get very close to the start of the Fall semester.

Try to see how you can use these 5 tools in your life starting today. And, as Dr. Zebulun says, success is the journey not the destination.

Nayelli Perez

Assistant Director

My Favorite Dr. Seuss Quote

March 2nd was Dr. Seuss' birthday. Everyone has a favorite Dr. Seuss quote, and career services professionals are often fond of quoting "All The Places You'll Go."  But, my favorite is this one:

Now, you might be thinking that "go right along" is a little too passive for life advice, and I understand why you'd think so.  But, I'm going to break down why I like this quote:

1.  Let's consider the first phrase.  Of course, things *will* start happening in life. The world is an interesting place, and there are tons of great opportunities going on here at Hofstra. Too much, some might say! In any case, there is no shortage of things to do.

2.  Now the second phrase. Don't worry. Don't stew. This is easier said than done. But, to me, these four words speak to not second guessing yourself and taking advantage of the opportunities that are happening around you. It's natural to worry and feel stress at times. But, being open to interesting things that come your way is perhaps the best piece of advice a college student can hear.

3. Finally, the closing sentence. When you are surrounded by interesting things, and open to doing interesting things, you're going to be more interesting. Go right along!  And I truly think that makes life worth living.You may or may not feel you have a specific purpose in life, or that you have identified a passion to pursue. But, neither of those things should keep you from doing interesting things.  They're all around.

Doing interesting things, and doing them with commitment and authenticity, is part of finding career success. So, next time good things start happening, say yes, and you'll start happening too. What's holding you back?

Gary Alan Miller,
Executive Director