REFLECTION: A semester in pubs.

Here we are on the last day of the year, and I’m finishing up the most trying semester of my life. Throughout this semester, things just kept popping up and getting in the way of what I thought was going to be a fairly relaxed, go-with-the-flow type thing; boy was I wrong. The first month was great! We went through bootcamp in pubs, I was involved in several activities all over campus, and things were looking pristine for the semester! But on February 24th, things got weird when I broke my right pointer finger into the joint and had to have surgery. Considering I’m not only right handed, but a public relations/writing-based major, this was the last thing I needed to be successful. I had my first ever surgery and they told me I would be out for 8-11 weeks, cutting well into the study abroad trip I had just enrolled in, jeopardizing a show I would be in in April and really throwing me for a loop. However, despite the craziness, I learned three important things that have served me well and will continue to do so (and I learned them from PR Pubs!):

1. Don’t chase waterfalls.

If you know for a fact in your gut that something is not going to work, don’t keep pushing it. I tried this with the Starbucks business card with trying to make it a completely image-based card, wanting to test the global branding powers of Starbucks and see if it would be effective. However, I knew that without a person’s name and contact information, it could never be classified as a business card. I also learned not to push the inevitable in real life, trying to re-set my finger myself before seeing a doctor. Very. Unwise. Decision.

2. Take your time.

Publications are not to be rushed. The best assignments I ended up producing were the ones that I let sit and simmer and stew. I learned that time, though it is of the essence, is also a necessity in creating good product and publishing your best work for the benefit of the client. (SIDENOTE: this is not an excuse not to make deadline). I learned this personally by allowing my finger to do its thing for 9 weeks this semester, waiting patiently to function like a normal person again. (SIDENOTE: still not functioning like a normal person).

3. Let the good times roll.

Life is short. (I am the ultimate cliche.) Enjoy the things that make it good, don’t take for granted the things you’ve been blessed with and stay grateful. Take pride in your work and in your lifestyle, and live a life worth writing about.

In summary, it’s been the hardest semester of my collegiate career. It’s also been the one in which I’ve learned the most.

Until next time!

• Jess