It's a wrap!

Having been a coach as well as a teacher most of my life I have come to know that success in life really boils down to two things … attitude and aptitude.

I’ve had student athletes that were skilled on the field but couldn’t figure out their attitude towards fellow teammates, obstacles and life in general. I’ve also had student athletes that had a great attitude but couldn’t perform on the field appropriately and let the team down. But luckily, I’ve been fortunate over the years to have had many, many student athletes that have had both. When that special mix was present we achieved amazing things … as a team, individually and professionally.

While I will agree that attitude and aptitude are both pivotal elements to a person’s success, I would also like to add one finishing touch to one of my favorite sayings. And that is that aptitude may get you in the door but it is your attitude that will determine your altitude in life.

This semester I was blessed with a group of graduating millennials that were taking one of their last classes to graduate. Yes, I say blessed, and not cursed, as many teachers today have experienced. They didn’t know me and I didn’t know them so not only did we have to overcome a steep learning curve of each other’s expectations, but we had to come together as a team in a few short weeks if my idea, my dream for them, was going to work. What is that “idea” you may ask? Well it was to completely immerse these college seniors in the most intense service learning experience they have ever had up to this point. It was a “boot camp” you might say to get them ready for the industry they had worked so hard to prepare for.

The first thing on the agenda we needed to successfully accomplish was to come up with a name for our group, the structure of who we were going to be, how we were going to operate and what clients we were going to go after.

Shortly thereafter “Fourth Avenue Design” came to be with three CEO’s, a Project Manager, Web Designer, AE’s and several very talented Creatives. Our mission “Connecting the Dots” became our motto and guided everything we did for our clients and for each other. We then had to create our logo, brochure and copy. This was the team’s first design challenge and it took far longer than I had expected. While I did maintain a positive attitude towards my team, I was genuinely concerned if we were going to have the horsepower needed to pull this off with “real” service learning clients. Another one of my life mottos: go big or go home was weighing heavy on my heart.

However, after a little hustle (I say that tongue and cheek) we landed: The Boy and Girls Clubs, Concrete Preservation Institute (CPI) for Pearl Harbor, and CPI for Alcatraz, Metro Bus, Stearns-Benton Employment Center, Tri-County Humane Society, and UpTurnships with others wishing they could still get in. Several of these clients asked us to help them with poster designs, brochures, copy and photography, creative collateral of all kinds as well as a t-shirt design. Honestly this list does not do justice to the blood, sweat and tears these students put in on a weekly basis. I think initially they were just hoping to get out of a three and one half hour class a little early once in a while. Little did they know that we would be going the full three and one half hours plus putting in an insane number of hours in SCSU’s library, and elsewhere, to meet the client’s needs and expectations.

These students learned to embrace a challenge with poise and true Chutzpa (bold courage). They learned to accept rejection with grace and a resilience that would be appreciated by any employer today. They learned to help each other and become their own teachers in ways that I don’t think they ever dreamed they would be doing in one of their last classes at SCSU. Finally, these students saw the smiles of happy clients, the utilization of four years of college training, free pizza and wound up producing some amazing "real client" portfolio pieces that will rival any agency produced material of today.

All and all these students embraced the service learning challenge with “professional attitude and aptitude”. This was not always easy and required a lot of Chutzpa on each of their parts. As a Coach, I’d say we definitely had a winning season. As a Teacher, I’d say that I’m REALLY proud of what these students accomplished for local industry through their service learning projects. As a human being, I’d say I have hope for the future.

Certainly, not all millennials are created equal. I would “strongly” encourage you to look at what these students did and the service learning they experienced. Several of my students have already been hired because their future employers recognized what they could do if only given the chance.

"They are truly an exceptional group of 2017 graduates."

It’s a wrap Fourth Avenue Design … now go show them what you can do.

All the best,

Jeff

Quote to remember: “Just Remember: The people that say, “your dreams are impossible” have already quit on theirs.” – Grant Cardone

Best commencement address I have ever seen:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxBQLFLei70