Little Sister

"A sister can be seen as someone who is both ourselves and very much not ourselves - a special kind of double."- Toni Morrison

-This is my sister and I. In some ways COMPLETE opposites (and if you know us, you understand what I am talking about) but in other ways we are the exact same. Despite our differences (my typical outfit--sweatpants-- and hers --abercrombie--) our hearts are the same.
Sisters are different flowers from the same garden. ~Author Unknown

We love big or go home, and yet at the same time are afraid to love and surrender our hearts. Heartache and uncertainty are hard for anyone to deal with, but no one knows this better than us.

-So, this post is dedicated to my little Sister, Jenna, because I have never been more proud of her. This girl has been through a lot in her short 18 years, and I now know she is on the right path for her and will be happy and successful in any way she decides to be.

I love you Jenna! You are the mirror of my heart and I am so lucky to have you as a sister.



"To the outside world we all grow old. But not to brothers and sisters. We know each other as we always were. We know each other's hearts. We share private family jokes. We remember family feuds and secrets, family griefs and joys. We live outside the touch of time." ~Clara Ortega


"Sisters is probably the most competitive relationship within the family, but once the sisters are grown, it becomes the strongest relationship." ~Margaret Mead


**This one is for you Jen (we both know its true):

If your sister is in a tearing hurry to go out and cannot catch your eye, she's wearing your best sweater. ~Pam Brown

Finally an Adult!

I can't believe how much time has gone by since my last post! I have so much to update you on, so let's get right to it!

-After an exhausting semester of interviewing and job hunting, I have officially accepted an offer for my first ever, full-time, real-life, adult job/ career! I will be starting next year (June '11) at Polaris Industries in the Leadership Sales and Development program (headquartered here in MN). It's nice to know that all of my hard work has finally paid off! The position will consist of a marketing rotational program (for the first 20 months) and a subsequent 2 years in field sales (DSM). They were my number one choice, so I am SUPER excited!

-I just started "Insanity"... and it's already holding up its end of the bargain by thoroughly kicking my butt! It is an "at home" work out program (similar to P90X) but a 60 day program and you don't need to buy any extra bells and whistles. Money back guarantee... so I am hoping to see some results! (will keep you updated as the 60 days progress).

-Re-connecting with God... this has been in the back of my mind for a while now, but has been placed on a back-burner for some time. It wasn't until recently that I decided that my life was getting too crazy and I needed to re-center myself. So God seemed like a good way to do that :) Laura has always been a great inspiration for me, so seeing her on her journey continues to motivate me to seek one of my own.

-Possible trip to Europe with Jenna? That's right... I got to travel with Jason last year, so now it's our turn. Hoping to save enough money by the time I graduate to travel for a few weeks (Greece is definitely on my list of places to see). Overall, I just miss my sister. She is one of my best friends and we NEVER get to spend enough time together! Sister bonding time, what could be better than that?

-Good friends = good trips! I got to visit Christie in CO for a weekend! It's hard to be away from such a good friend for that long, so it was nice to go out and see what her life was like out there (almost didn't come back!). Plus, for some reason they have this thing called "Fall break" where they get to come home early for TG... so dinner and drinks celebrated her arrival back home :)

-TG: Family... 'nuf said.

More to follow when it's not so late at night!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Attitude is everyting

I finally got to sleep in! But as I was moping around, procrastinating getting ready for work, I read my friend Tony's fb status. It really inspired me, and I hope it inspires you too. Don't be content with the status quo... always strive to make yourself and those around you better. It all starts with your attitude.

Here is the quote. I am thinking about reading it every morning when I get up:

"Everyday think as you wake up, today I am fortunate to have woken up, I am alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it, I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others, to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings, I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, not be angry or think badly about others, I am going to benefit others as much as I can"

Becoming an adult

Sorry for the long lapse in posts... life has been getting the better of me. As my last un-inspirational post stated, I barely have time to sleep!

So here has what I have been up to:

-Interviewing for full-time positions for when I graduate in May.
To people outside of the Carlson School of Management realm, this may seem like I am getting ahead of myself. However, there are about 500+ people just from my school all fighting for jobs right now, in a market that hasn't completely recovered yet. I just feel blessed for all of the experiences I have had, the preparing I have done, and the infinite amount of advice my dad gives me (usually unsolicited haha). So where am I interviewing? So far it has been with General Mills, Polaris, News America Marketing, and Target.

These interviews aren't just "any old interview" and advice like "just be yourself" does not apply. Obviously you want to be authentic and make sure your personality fits with the company you will be working for, but preparing, practicing and forming answers using the STAR technique, looking up company history, networking etc all takes hours and hours of time! Not to mention that that's only for the first round of interviews. Then you have to wait to see if you make it to the second round... schedule that, and block off an entire day to go to their headquarters and interview for another 1-2 days. So yeah, interviewing.

-Delta Sigma Pi.
My co-ed professional business fraternity has mandatory weekly meetings on Tuesday nights. Mandatory Professional events every other week, volunteering events, fund raising, and recruiting/ social events. Last week I spent 12 hours just participating in things for DSP.

-Work
I work 15 hours a week in the school library. Its easy, but there goes another 15 hours of my week. And I am possibly looking at doing an internship for a beer company- managing their social media marketing.

-Class
This is the least assuming part of my life, oddly enough. But the past two weeks has been mid-term time on campus and looked a little like this: 2 midterms and a group project and a paper due one week, and a similar situation the next week. It just never seems to slow down!

-Intramural s
Wed nights: Soccer at 6:30-7:30, basketball from 8-9pm
Sunday nights: Double header soccer games 6:30-7:30, 7:30-8:30

Well, that about sums it up! So I apologize if I have not been as diligent in maintaining contact with my friends and family. :( I promise this will improve! I miss you guys! Love you, and thanks for tuning in.


"The future is not a result of choices among alternative paths offered by the present, but a place that is created--created first in the mind and will, created next in activity. The future is not some place we are going to, but one we are creating."

So here's to the future! It is what you make of it!

-------

I have nothing inspiring to report as of late... its all I can do to just keep going. Barely sleeping, always interviewing, always homeworking...

Updates soon to come.

Insights Discovery Profile...

So this week, at our Delta Sigma Pi meeting, we had a professional speaker come talk to us about our personal styles, how we interact with each other, what kind of energy we give off when working in groups. All of the results were based on a personal inventory survey that we took in June. If you want to know/ understand me... here it is in a nut-shell.

Check this out... It's freakishly accurate:

"Shannon is independent and creative, owning strong internal feelings, high principles and deep personal integrity. Low key acknowledgment for her contribution is likely to be appreciated by her. When she gives help to others, she expects to get it reciprocated, particularly as recognition for this help. She will be hurt if people ignore her and likes to be remembered and appreciated for the services she continually seeks to offer to others. She can be a rather gentle, compassionate person but may be prone to stubbornness at times." <-- as if this wasn't eerie enough, wait for what it says next "She tends to be disinterested in subjects for which she sees no practical application. Her work has to contribute to things that matter to her and she tends toward perfectionism only when she cares deeply enough. Because she tends to live for the present moment, she does not sense the need to prepare or plan more than is necessary. She tends to be there when she is needed, offering low-key stability and strength to people and situations in need. Although objective, she may be more interested in finding creative solutions to problems than in seeing those solutions become reality."

"Because she lives by principles and rules, Shannon is very consistent and dependable. Her modest manner can restrain her from pushing herself forward and this occasionally results in her being under-valued."

"Shannon avoids conflict like the plague, is a calming presence in conflict resolution and is keenly aware of group dynamics and involvement."

So what? I now know that my Dad leads with a red energy: this means he is VERY competitive, demanding, determined, focused on results, strong-willed, and purposeful. We are opposites (imagine that) so in order for us to get along, I need to let him direct and decide, focus on results. However, when interacting with me he should speak in a relaxed tone, use logical explanations, take time to ask questions about me etc. This can help so many people learn to appreciate others and the unique energy they can bring to a group!

So overall I lead with a green energy... what do you guys think? Feel free to comment (doesn't matter if you agree or disagree), I would like to hear both sides!



Also, if you're curious about this you can check it out at www.insights.com or just google: "Discovery Insights."

Updated design/ layout

Hi Everyone!! (for anyone that still reads this)

I have updated the look of my blog to reflect the new things that are happening in my life. Right now my life is almost entirely consumed by school, Delta Sigma Pi, and job searching! So my life is all about finding balance and figuring out what I WANT from life! Due to my new single status I have realized that it's time to stop basing my decisions on what other people want and what other people want for me... what Society expects of me.

So get excited about the posts to come... they should be very introspective and revealing of my new journey to discover what my dreams are.

Dream big everyone!

"You got a dream... You gotta protect it. People can't do somethin' themselves, they wanna tell you you can't do it. If you want somethin', go get it. Period."