Bonus Track: It's A Rap [clean version]

The lyrics, if you want to rap along - which I'm going to assume you will:

I like the advertising program and I cannot lie. 

You other students can't deny. 

When them profs walk in with all that grace pushing that new knowledge in your face. 

You get sprung, want to sit up front - 'cause you know that stuff legit.

Concentrating so hard - you're learnin' 

Your desire to know more is burnin'

Oh baby, you know you wanna go to the gala

Dress up so pretty, takin' 2- to-3 showas

But beware-  past students tried to warn me, that last media assignments gonna send you on a journey.

Cause the curriculum is tight, and the campus is kickin' 

and before I leave  I'm already reminiscin' 

So students [yeah!] x2

Can you get the grades? [hell yeah]

So turn around - work- tough it out, because even professors got to shout: 

This is where it's at

[Where it's at.]

The Bottom Line: You Gots ta Get Chor Own

It's been fun [for me at least]. I've so immensely enjoyed sharing my personal experiences and thoughts about being a student with the world wide web. With this remark and the deadline for this assignment fast approaching, I'd like to recap previous blog posts and the key messages that I would like to share with anyone who is wanting or willing to read.

SEMESTER END REVIEW - CONDENSED NOTES:

In the beginning the topics discussed in this blog addressed the hardships of being a post-graduate student. This included the subjects of networking and selling yourself.

NTS: Networking isn't important, but creating and maintaining meaningful relationships is important, and selling yourself is the first step to developing that relationship.

In the middle of the blog, I have included what you can expect to learn in terms of  software and hardware as a student in the Advertising program at Sheridan College.

NTS: Don't forget to practice what you learned about PMB, ComScore, Photoshop, Adobe Indesign etc. If you don't use it - you lose it.

And finally, the latter postings of the blog are more reflective in nature. They address how being a student has changed my outlook.

NTS: There's a lesson and a laugh in every situation.

CLOSING REMARKS

All in all, only you can assess whether enrollment in a post-graduate program is right for you; you gots to get chor own. There are several of factors that need to be taken into account and my situation might not be the same as yours. For several of reasons: financing, time, priorities, conflict of interest  - whatever it might be - pursuing a post-graduate degree just might not make sense.

I'll just let you know this: Sheridan is an excellent learning facility and I've certainly enjoyed my stay. And if you want to learn more about advertising and for some reason cannot enroll in the program, their are certainly other ways of obtaining knowledge.

To each their own. Right?

Additionally: 

If you're reading or have been reading this blog for information purposes I hope my anecdotal diary like blog has help paint a good picture of what is to be expected from the Sheridan Advertising Post graduate program. If on the off chance you would like to hear more I would like to extend an invite to reach out. You can email me or Google+ me, comment in the section below - it doesn't matter.

I'm done.

So Much I've learned. So much More to learn. So Little Time: The 3 Types of People You'll Meet at Sheridan

In my previous life I overlooked a lot of things. To list a few: how lucky I was to have a life situation that allowed me to pursue post-secondary education with ease,  people who cared about me, my brain ... the list is endless, really. I have found that this overlook of things has hindered my personal growth and has really stunted the enjoyment of life.This lifetime around, I intend to allot attention where attention is due; to be mindful and conduct activities with consciousness and with purpose. One of the major things in my previous life I over looked is the people.

*********************************************************************************

This world is populated with great people-- my time as a student at Sheridan has confirmed the validity of this statement. The way to find them (not to sound creepy) is through interaction and observation. I think if you pay attention to your surroundings and engage in conversation too, you'd also discover that [most] everyone is inspiring. Predominantly, at Sheridan, you will find people that are: passionate, driven and smart. From them you can learn a lot.
                                 
For the argument of this post, I'll  classify the people I've come into contact with according to their roles, and then I will discuss each classification and what I've learned from them.

From my observations I've deducted the following:

The Teachers:
Aren't really teachers; they're mentors and preachers of their [professional] practice. They are smart, caring, extremely charismatic, wise and are very often - almost annoyingly so - correct.

From them I've learned: 

1. The rubric is always right. Read the rubric. Live the rubric. Be the rubric.

2. Attention to detail is important - read the rubric again.

3. "F" = "please play again, s.v.p"

4. In every situation you must define the following: 

• The problem
• The implication
• The solution

In that order.

5. Effort is an important component in the algorithm for success and the amount of effort put forward usually has a positive correlation with the marks you will receive.

6. Ask  for help, and you shall receive thy help. Unless it is a test. 

7. Your job can be fun and should be fun. 

The Students: 
Like teachers, are smart. The key differentiation between this group of people is my understanding of their individuality and how I see it helps fuel their efforts to achieve their goals. I.e. a passion for photography, for music, for arts and crafts, for make-up all compliment their wanting to pursue a career in advertising.

From them I've learned:

1. Go above and beyond, and you shall be handsomely rewarded.

2. If you don't go for it, somebody else will.

3. Success is a function of effort [usually], and has a positive correlation with the marks received.

4. When in doubt, Google it out.

5. Individuality is the ultimate unique selling proposition [and they've got me sold]

Other campus staff (Mainly Vivian of the Learning Commons):
Are disciplined to no end, they know how to stick to their guns.

From them I've learned:

1. There is no eating in the library.

2. You cannot move around the chairs in the library.

3. Don't eat in the library

4. Two or more people per study room

I encourage you to stop, wait a minute, fill my cup and put some liquor in it.  Not really though, but I encourage you to stop and look at your surroundings to get some inspiration - even if you feel like you don't need it.

All I can say was "It was Enchanting to meet you": A Post on Networking Night(s)

Infatuation is often mistaken for love, a lesson I learned in life.

In my case, infatuation [which Google defines as "an intense but short-lived passion or admiration for someone or something"] was often based on characteristics that someone or something didn't really possess, but were instead based on characteristics that were a figment of my imagination- wishful thinking. In other words, I'm pretty sure I made up the whole someone or something except for the physical aspects which founded the basis of infatuation. This cycle of: see, imagine, infatuation, dissolve and disgust [for the way I behaved; embarrassingly and irrationally] exists on personal and professional levels.

**This is a professional  infatuation/love story but the thoughts really do/did mirror my reactions in personal infatuation/love scenarios- for the most part**

I will begin the story by providing you with some additional thoughts that guide my perceptions about love/infatuation in a professional sense

To me:

Networking is the equivalent of dating. You meet each other online, through friends or the company just happens to catch your eye as you're walking down the street or browsing the job sites. You then begin to wonder about this company, partaking in semi-obsessive behavior in which you begin to try and find out everything about this company; their past flings (bit*ches), what they stand for, what they do, their history, family tree and genetics.

And then it happens, you begin to imagine what life would be like if you were together, working harmoniously as one to achieve the company's mission and objectives.

Eventually your dreams aren't enough, and you decide you must make a move. This is done professionally through a Linkedin add, or a cold call, or agency tours- anything that gets you in contact with the company. If this initial meeting goes well, you try even more to get to know one another, setting up more coffee dates and trying to gain exposure to the other parts of the company.

Below you will find my professional love story. I hope it inspires you to find your professional  love.

It's a love story, baby just say yes! 

There I was again tonight, forcing laughter faking smile. The same old tired lonely place. 

My story begins at yet another networking night. If you're keeping count, this is the second one I've attended this year. In short:

• Tacos were provided!  
• Sometimes I have a distaste for blogging and this assignment
• I'm so tired and,
• I was not overly impressed with the companies that came

I left networking that night tired. Tired from keeping conversations that I wasn't really interested in. Despite this I'll admit that I left with great insight into a lot of companies, but none that I thought suited me. With my time left as a student ticking, I knew I had to try harder to find a company or position to love.

I knew I had to Shake it off. 

To begin the shaking process, I enrolled myself in some industry tours made available through the career development series (which I highly recommend). These industry tours included huge advertising/media companies such as: HVAS, Pattinson, The Hamilton Spectator, PHd as well as Carat. Unfortunately, I was only able to attend one industry tour and *spoiler alert* it only took one.

This next song lyric is a long one....

This night is sparkling, don't you let it go I'm wonderstruck, blushing all the way home. I'll spend forever wondering if you knew I was enchanted to meet you. 

Essentially, I showed up to this industry tour only because I had met the human resources at the first networking night and I enjoyed hearing about the company. Upon arrival at the agency's downtown location I was impressed by the decor, simple, open concept which I found most companies over did. The agency tour was set up such that the students got exposure to the several pillars/companies that made up the Dentsu Aegnis network. But my favorite speaker: Jennifer of consumer insights [Although I really liked every speaker]. Intrigued by every speaker, I had so many questions and only a limited amount of time. I really would have liked to spend all day there.

At the end of the tour, three students were selected for a chance to win a week internship and learn all about the company. I didn't win.

If you could see that I'm the one who understands you. Been here all along so why can't you see you belong with me? 

I left that industry tour upset that I didn't receive that one week internship. I felt a special connection, an excitement that I was sure was specific to me alone. I really thought divine intervention would interject the laws of statistics, probability and real life. Weeks later and I'm still thinking about the agency which I will now reveal to be Carat.

This love story is to be continued...

You Are What You Watch/Read/Like/Tweet: The Importance of Media

In both lives, this one and the last one, I always found myself struggling to answer that seemingly easy question that always came up in conversation: Who are you? 

Having spent a lot of time with the subject matter and observing the history of, it  always came as a shock to me when I came up empty handed attempting to answer a simple question about myself. Straining my brain for the answer never helped, neither did asking others (because we all know there are two sides to every story and even more sides to forming perceptions of personal identity - four to be exact). Only able to really see it from my side of the glass, I found myself dumbfounded and narrow sighted.

Who was I [before]? Who am I [now]? and Who do I want to be[in the near future]?

These were all tenses of that same question that hedged my investigation to define myself. Did these questions exist on a continuum or did they exist in isolation, completely separate from each other? I guess that would have to depend. 

And then it hit me one Thursday afternoon  in the confines of my media planning class.

Applying the cardinal rule " you are what you eat", I've concluded that we are what we do and what we do as consumers of information and data is: watch, read, tweet, blog, and status update; we are the media we consume [sorta, kinda, maybe.... I think].

By this definition I used to be a lot of things, productive not being one of them. As it was, I used to consume a lot of useless media in my past life. Not to say that this is a bad thing - in my opinion it is a good thing to consume a healthy dose of Jersey Shore with a side of Citytv News. The only problem was that I only ever did the former and never the latter. A consistent exposure to such media left my brain in the dark and my neurons free to pursue other things like... absolutely nothing or death.

As it is currently, at Sheridan in the Advertising program, I'm exposed to a rich variety of  material. Forced to keep up with the marketing/advertising times and relevant material featured on class slides, I am slowly becoming an advertising specialist.

As I have mentioned in a previous post: profound are the ways our environment shapes us. As active consumers left to our own demise, we are lucky that we get to choose that environment. This information is particularly useful from a marketing or advertising standpoint. What we (consumers) do in our actions gives insight to: our personal goals, interests, aspirations, personality, humour ; it's the crystal ball providing a holistic picture of ourself.

And that, kids, is why media is so important.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

A SELF PORTRAIT THROUGH THE TIMES:

Following the format of my other posts, please enjoy these gif's - they provide a timeline of personal media consumption; letting you know a little bit more about me and where I'm coming from.


Who was I [before] : A child who watched a lot of whatever was on TV at the time .... [ the lazy thug]

Who am I [now] : A bit awkward and competitive in nature. [Mrs.Cooper-Lahiri]

Who do I want to be[in the near future]: Awesome [the dream state]

Also, happy Monday!

Why I plan on Selling Myself Short: Developing An Elevator Pitch

In my previous life, elevators had no place among pitches. They belonged in buildings meant to serve humans in times of need when it did not please them to shake what their Momma's gave them up to the appropriate floor level. In my previous life, I was a great abuser of elevators that fit the definition provided above and I plan on continuing the practice moving forward.

In this life, elevators serve as a social gathering opportunity for networking, which is not always a physical elevator. The elevator in this lifetime is symbolic of a time when you and a stranger are trapped in the same quarters because you both decided that everyday doesn't have to be leg day, or that you should both support human inventions in order to promote more inventions.

The idea is that the time spent together in an elevator [approximately 60 seconds or so] should not be wasted; it should be crammed with all information possible spoken in one fluent nicely annunciated spiel.Upon said spiel, it would be determined whether or not you and this stranger are meant to be. Or less intense, whether or not this person wants to buy what you're selling. Which is not always a physical good but could also be: yourself, your friendship, Pokemon cards, drugs, your body, your employee services, an idea- anything!    

At any rate, I've realized the importance of both types of elevators: physical and symbolic. I've drawn the conclusion that physical elevators will take you to the _______  at which point you will have to sell _______ using the symbolic elevator.

At another rate, I'm finding it highly difficult to craft my own elevator pitch and I'm due for another blog posting. And so, I'll revert to what I know: observing and analyzing those people who are good at elevator pitches, and looking for the bright spots (a term learned from Chip and Dan Heath, some of my favorite authors). Let's have a look below at the following elevator pitch case studies and the tactics professionals use that make them so successful.

PLEASE OBSERVE THE FOLLOWING:

From Mr.Grey, I think that we've learned that some people are  born with an innate ability to captivate audiences with their being. In most situations, I think this means we must rehearse. I also take that good hygiene and confidence are important.

From this scenario, I think Buddy strives to illustrate the fact that sometimes you will need to buy yourself more time in order to make a good impression.

From Psy,I think we can learn that pitches should be entertaining; bright visuals that make a lasting impression should be considered as a tool.

 In this case, I think Mr. Man (first name Spider) is trying to illustrate the principle of transparency and that every successful elevator pitch should represent ourselves.

From Mr.John Doe, I think it should be noted that elevators can be deceiving and that opportunities are disguised; we must seek them out ourselves.

By contrast, I think Joseph Gordon Levitt demonstrates the power of non-verbal cues. A smile would be nice.

All in all, I think I won't know what tactics will work for sure but these role models all make good points. I'll let you know what tactics work after my presentation this week [if you ask]

Thank you for reading, please have a nice week :)

I'm down with PMB (Yeah you know me): A Mean Girls Story

Who's down with PMB? (Every group-matey)

In a previous life  I would like to claim that  I was misinformed (or rather, I was stuck in my own ignorance which, FYI did not provide bliss). I was lead to believe that the studies of theories and factual information alone would be a large predictor of success after graduation; that my degree entitled me to a job in the industry.

Boy, was I wrong!

Upon graduation and entering the next life (meaningful employment attempt #1), I quickly realized that my degree meant nothing if I couldn't speak to it's relevancy in an interview situation. Which I couldn't. Particularly because most interview questions weren't structured to do so. Anyhow, this lifetime, meaningful employment attempt #1 was short-lived and somewhat irrelevant and painful to discuss. The point was that I did not have the interview skills, nor did I have the knowledge of industry pertinent software required by most employers to be employed.

In the last days of this life, I dreamed of acquiring that knowledge and I scrounged the internet in search of how I would be able to obtain it. On my own I had attempted for a month or two to learn the software via fan made videos shared on Youtube, but the reality was I didn't know where to start. Then I came across the Advertising Account Management Program offered at Sheridan.

Applying for the Advertising Account Management certificate marked the end of the sad unfulfilled life (a.k.a meaningful employment attempt #1) and the beginning of a new life.This new life seemed promising, rich with experiences that would equip me with what I needed to succeed the second time around (meaningful employment attempt #2). The curriculum discusses a lot industry pertinent software mentioned in job postings including Adobe Suite and data analysis software like ComScore , PMB Clear Decisions and DataCOMB Suite.

BEFRIENDING THE NEW SOFTWARE: MY INITIAL ENCOUNTER WITH PMB

Fast forward to Semester 1 and I had the pleasure of meeting PMB. Introduced to me at the beginning of my cumulative project, I was told that I needed her. When we first met she wouldn't shut up, spewing all sorts of secrets she had derived from consumers she had befriended - things that  I didn't even want to know about.

She told me about the male demand for beauty products, their usage patterns and even described their psychographic profiles. She was a real piece of work. While I feared her great statistical analysis capabilities and knowledge, I wanted to be her friend as I knew she would make me popular among the employers. So I infiltrated her crew of close knit variables by learning what they meant, learning their meaning helped me read her like an excel table.

A descriptor of PMB... if she were in fact a high school girl.

All fictional stories (based on true stories) aside. I have Sheridan College to thank for my knowledge of PMB. It's a practical, highly useful software for any marketer/advertiser. Having known this software will make me much more visible in a sea of valid candidates in competition for a job.