How I keep my motivation.

A lot of times, people will ask me – how in the world do you not only find the time but the energy to keep going throughout the day? Well, I’m all about multitasking. I believe in being able to focus on many things at once – in fact, if you want to accomplish everything you want within 24 hours (and sleep an adequate amount) I think multitasking is a necessity.

Well, part of the reason could be that my watch usually looks like this.

But, no, really – there are little nuggets of inspiration that I’ll post on the blog from time to time that are kind of my secret mojo to staying motivated. I’m going to a very share-able tip here today.

We all carry our cell phones around with us. I’m even more addicted to my little device – I literally feel a little bit of paranoia when it’s not around. Since I keep it so close at all times, I keep little notes of inspiration behind it, just behind my clear phone case.

This is a fortune that I got inside of a fortune cookie a few weeks back. It reminds me to be nice and calm at times that are high stress. I also keep a spare business card just incase – you never know when you might meet a potential opportunity to build a relationship!

One of the more important and meaningful pieces of inspiration I’ve ever had the fortune of receiving.

The above note was from a note that I found on my car. I had just spoken to the National Honor Society at my high school earlier that day. I had told Deb that I’d stop by and see her before I left school that day but ended up getting a little caught up with a few others that I was visiting with at Stafford. So she left me this wonderful note that I have literally carried with me EVERYwhere I’ve gone since. It’s impressive how much of an impact and how much power just a few written out words can have on you. Thanks, Deb.

March 14, 2013

A lifetime of memories?

Whenever I look back on the Cascades Hike video I think of two things: first, my friends are AWESOME. Second, University Relations did a fantastic job of putting that video together. Absolutely fantastic.

The below photos were taken inside Squires Student Center this week, of some awesome banners that Student Centers and Activities had made for the lobby of the building that department calls home.

The caption, below “active citizenship” (which is also incredibly accurate) reads “Making a Lifetime of Memories.” Too accurate. Way too accurate. That hike was easily one of the best memories of my life. Not just because I have such amazing friends, but because of everything that happened AROUND that event. So thankful for the people that are close to be. Beyond thankful.

Carrying your friend up a mountain? That’s active citizenship if I’ve ever seen it.

March 14, 2013

This week’s art work.

I’ve been a little truant when it comes to updating the blog this week, but I’ve been getting my fair time of

Sleeping in. And taking naps.
Spending time with my first graders.
Forgetting to reply to e-mails.
DOING SOME AWESOME ART WORK! Check it out:

I was helping the students write in their journals and decided I should take a stab at a journal entry myself.

March 14, 2013

Sarah Sitting Down.

I don’t know Sarah, but I love this blog post. And I love children. So…’nuff said.

Sarah was paralyzed from a horse-riding accident when she was 21 years old. As a result, uit seems like Sarah fights through a lot of similar challenges that I do also. This blog post from Sarah Sitting Down, her blogger-based site, relates why I love the honesty of children.

More importantly, Sarah seems like a wonderful woman who fights through challenges in an optimistic way. After all, she did say “I lead with kindness.”

Admirable.

I'm not one to praise anyone without letting them know it! :) — I’m not one to praise anyone without letting them know it! :)

March 11, 2013

Expedition Leadership & Oversharing.

The brief hiatus I took from life at the end of last week (and a very abrupt break from e-mail) resulted in me having over 50 need-to-be-replied-to messages in my inbox come Sunday evening. But, now it is Monday morning and I am grateful for yet another Monday morning where I can say I have less than five messages requiring my attention at the moment. And yes, I do always try to keep my inbox down to zero…anything else intimidates me.

Anyways, one e-mail I regretfully missed at the end of last week was a follow up to a blog post that I wrote last week about the middle school assemblies we had last week through Actively Caring. The mom of one middle schooler had taken the time in the day prior to the assembly to thank me for my service to the school. It’s always nice to get messages like that becuase, quite frankly, it’s such a nice thing to hear that is just so completely unnecessary — let me explain. I still would have marched into that school with a goal of connecting with those kids, no matter what. BUT it was still so uplifting, honoring, and humbling to have a complete stranger e-mail you something so meaningful. So while “unnecessary”, it was definitely welcomed.

I decided to share last week’s post about Community with this mom – who also happened to work at VT, and she shared her blog with me in return. Her reception of my blog was monumental, in my eyes, and so moving. I was excited to read what she wrote about as well when she linked me to it. And as blessed as can be, after I click on the link I’m looking at a blog titled “expedition leadership.” It referenced me, but that wasn’t the part that I focused on. The part I focused on was:

It’s risky sometimes – putting yourself out there. Being willing to open up and share – your self, your ideas, your life, your fears, struggles and triumphs – requires a level of vulnerability. (See “Trust“… hmm, perhaps this isn’t so much of a detour after all?) But experiencing it from this side, I’m reminded of the tremendously powerful impact a person is able to have when they open up genuinely and share – it creates connections, builds relationships, inspires exploration… changes lives.

Somehow she took the words right out of my mouth. I wrote about the same exact thing just the week before as a Guest Blogger for Student Centers and Activities.

Just last week, I was at Interview Weekend for the Higher Education program here at Tech and I was connecting with a candidate who had just shared with me his wife’s gluten intolerance. In an effort to connect with him (I don’t have any major allergies, myself) I reflected, out loud, on how my minor allergy to shellfish is inflated by alcohol. Funny story, you know – eat sushi, drink wine, scratchy throat. I didn’t try to make it seem even nearly as bed as the diet he forges ahead with for his wife, even though he’s not affected but wants to be supportive (admirable). In the middle of the conversation a friend, from across the room, informs me that apparently I’m very good at over-sharing. And that remark stuck in my mind for like a WEEK. And I was like wait…sure, I’ve only known this guy for 10 minutes, but am I over sharing? IS THERE SUCH A THING?

The above passage cemented that there is no such thing. Not for me at least. If I meet you at a conference, sorry, but no – I don’t want to talk about your research or what you do or your job before I get to know who YOU are. I had felt as if I was at fault or in the wrong in some way for trying to connect with the student but in retrospect I felt like maybe I didn’t share enough, actually. Sure, one of the other students guessed I was allergic to penicillin when I mentioned my only major allergies were medicine, but was there anything else I could have confided in him to make him more comfortable? Don’t know. I won’t know. But if I learned anything from that interaction it’s that I’m not going to let that happen again next time.

It sort of reminds me, also, of three weeks ago when I was in Turner Place. I was running a bit ahead of schedule trying to grab lunch and get back to the office, and I think I’m just allergic to being early. I saw a student walking around inside the dining hall with a bookstore bag so I assumed he was a visitor. I stopped him because I hadn’t met anyone knew yet that day. This was identical to what took place a week before in Owens. Both times I stopped the students, offered directions, and then introduced myself as a graduate student working on his second degree from VT. I gave them both my business card and informed them that I used to be President of Hokie Ambassadors and to please not hesitate to e-mail me any questions if they thought of them. In the moment I felt like I was freaking them out – as if they wanted to be doing anything BUT speaking to me.

But my perception was changed, again, just like my perception was changed with Amy’s blog post. Both students e-mailed me and shared that I was the only person on our campus, outside of their tour guide and admissions rep, that spoke to them without being asked a question first.

They both told me that they were choosing Virginia Tech because of that chance interaction. Because it made them feel like a part of the community because of the small facts I shared with about myself in order to bring out the best in them.

Over sharing? Yeah right.

March 11, 2013

Being grateful.

There are a ton of things in this world that I am grateful for, but I think it’s pretty much a “duh” statement when I say that I appreciate relationships the most. The relationship I’ve been blessed to have with my parents is by far the most important I’ve ever had. Not only did they bring me into this world, but they have taught me the founding tenants that I live my life with and I tell everyone about them every chance I get (working to be an individual before my wheelchair, knowing that I can do anything I want, I just have to do it differently…).

The relationships I have with my two older siblings have taught me the foundation of working through relationships, developing, and loving someone else unconditionally. Every relationship I’ve had with a mentor has taught me how to support each other mutually and how to best leverage others knowledge through working together, and allowing others to do the same for you.

Each relationship I’ve had with a significant other has taught me monumental lessons in life, most of which are too personal to disclose here…

But, overall, I’m so appreciative for how each of those relationships have helped me arrive at the person that I am today.

If you read the tab (at the top of the page) titled “why a blog?” you’ll see that the point of this blog is to be a personal journal for me. I post things that I want to share with others but also want to be archived, forever (well, until WordPress ever crashes) and that I can go back and look at whenever I want.

That’s why I’m posting the below image – it was the impetus behind this post, overall.

Kristin sent it to me the other day I didn’t ask her permission before posting it (whups) but it really resonated with me and has been sitting on my desktop ever since. It’s from one of our favorite blogs, Just Little Things.

By no means do I ever wish to portray our relationship as “perfect.” But the lens with which I view our relationship and our interactions has changed since November 25th, 2012. Almost losing someone you’re in love with to a near-fatal accident really gives you a new perspective – or at least it did for me.

Things that used to be annoying don’t matter as much. Arguments that used to be emotional stressors are now conversations that help both of us grow. And I can’t even begin to count how many times in the last two weeks, since she’s been back home, I’ve been able to look over at Kristin as she exists in our home and realize how close she was to not being here anymore and we would have never, ever shared that moment again.

Moments like those become even more perfect and with more ease when you realize how close life was to that moment never happening again. And then you reach over, tell that person that you love them with a kiss, and remind yourself of how appreciative you should be – how appreciative you ARE.

I encourage everyone I interact with, now, even more than before to never leave an interaction with someone you love in a grumpy, upset way. This was actually a rule that a high school girlfriend and I followed when we dated. It’s definitely stuck because it means a lot. Working to build meaningful, developmental, and constructive relationships is one of my biggest priorities in life. AGAIN, I’m not perfect – even in Kristin and I’s relationship, over the past 2 years and some change, I’ve had many of slip ups that I’m not proud of, but I don’t regret them – I do my best to learn from any mistakes (and I’m thankful that she agrees). I think that’s what relationships are for, though; not for getting along 100% of the time, but for butting heads, pushing the other to be better, learning from each other, compromising, meeting in the middle.

Maybe before there is no longer an “us” – if that ever happens – we’ll arrive at some perfect understanding of that. Doubt it. But we can keep trying! :)

Thanks for teaching me that, KH.

March 8, 2013

Tired.

Hello. My name is Justin. I am tired.

More details to come…

Was coming down with a cold but some good cuddling and a lot of sleep + a coffee mug (but with orange juice) does the body good.

March 7, 2013

SCALE-UP

“Student-Centered Activities for Large Enrollment Undergraduate Physics”

My professor and mentor, Dr. Frank Shushok, would probably prefer the acronym “Student-Centered Active Learning Environment with Upside-down Pedagogies.”

But go on – ask. What in the world do I have to do with the above phrase, this is often acronym-ed to “SCALE-UP.” In the traditional sense, absolutely nothing. I don’t like Physics. I’m not science-minded. And I most certainly don’t have anything to do with LARGE enrollment physics at any level. Never even learned that stuff in high school.

But I DO have an interest student-centered activities, especially those that focus on collaborative learning. I’m passionate about the value that is experienced in learning around those that are very different and diverse from you. And when I say diverse, I’m not just talking about cultural diversity, I’m talking moreso about diversity of perspectives, upbringing, ontology, etc.

old_scale_up — This is what the space used to look like – it was formerly home to stacks and stacks of government documents.

This article in the Collegiate Times earlier this week elaborates on the history behind Virginia Tech’s second, but first one open to general students outside of class, SCALE-UP classroom that had it’s grand opening today on campus.

This is a snapshot of the first SCALE-UP classroom on Tech’s campus, in Derring Hall.

Leaders from Newman Library and the College of Science – partners on this project – address the crowd just prior to cutting the ribbon on the new classroom on March 7.

This SCALE-UP classroom is going to focus on collaborative learning for students and, in my opinion, is an amazing hub of technology. There are 8 tables that give the room a capacity of more than 70 students. The classroom is “owned” by the College of Science during the day (7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.) as academic space and will be open to students under the purview of University Libraries from 7:00 p.m. – 7:00 a.m for first-come first-serve study space.

You can bet I will definitely be studying here just to say that I did!

Each table in the classroom has six power outlets in the center as well as a VGA hookup for your laptop to display on the screen that corresponds to your table number. You can also use a central area to push different things to each screen, or the same thing to each screen – You Decide!

A view from the other side of the classroom.

Another view from the other side of the classroom.

The classroom is on the first floor of Newman Library, right on the Drillfield and across from the University Bookstore. I’d definitely recommend checking it out and experiencing some of the great, new experiences that the University Library team is giving students!