Straight from the heart, I want to thank each and every Career Assistant who I worked with at Career Services during my 3-years; Ben, Jami, Brittany, Nella, Ashley, Becky, Erik, Alysha, Mike, Tyler, Wajeeh, Sarah, Kaitlyn, Scarlet, Simon, Monika, Sean, Lydia, and Andre. Each and every one of you had a profound impact on my development and my university life. I loved learning from each and every one of you and I really enjoyed mentoring all of the Career Assistants who came after me. Every year I worked here I learned something new from everyone I worked with. I also owe much of my success and my incredible time here to our supervisor, Resource Coordinator & Faculty Liaison Kara Renaud. Without your guidance, I simply would not be the same person I am today. That being said, I wanted to share some key pieces of advice that I learned while working here and throughout my university career.
DON'T LET OPPORTUNITY PASS YOU BY!
I had a pretty clear idea of what I wanted to do when I graduated - I wanted to run my own hockey team as a general manager (like many aspiring Sport Management students think when they start university). I found that the more classes I took, the more clouded my career path became. In contrast, it was the volunteer and work experiences that did not directly relate to my career that ended up shaping who I want to be and my career path and goals. Simply put, you are a product of your environment. Living in a stagnant environment where you laser-focus on one particular job and only take experiences that directly relate to that end-goal is extremely limiting.
Want to keep things exciting? Take that Ultimate Frisbee Referee volunteer position (note: it does not have to be ultimate frisbee or refereeing for that matter) and your entire world will change, albeit in a minor way, but enough to broaden your horizons. For me, being a painter for a summer and then being presented an opportunity to run my own painting business the following summer was life-changing. Painting does not relate to Sport Management, but the transferable business, marketing, training, customer service, and other skills are invaluable. I also worked at a pool store and learned invaluable customer service, problem-solving, and sales skills. Don't judge a book by its cover - don't let an opportunity pass you by! Consequently, understanding what you don't like is just as important as understanding what you do like. Use Career Services and CareerZone to identify opportunities and nail the interview. On that note...
YOU HAVE TIME - VOLUNTEER AND WORK.
There is a school of thought that in University your studies take up 100% of your time. That is a lie. Stop telling yourself that. Time management is an acquired skill that cannot be taught, only experienced and improved on with real-life experience. I know that some degrees are more demanding than others, and making sure that you have high grades is very important and school should always be your first priority. That being said, you would be surprised by what you are capable of if you challenge yourself. When backed into a corner of deadlines and limited time to study, you can excel and lift yourself to new heights. It does not have to be insane, but even volunteering a few hours of your time every week or working some evenings and weekends will limit the amount of time you have to do the things you already do. This is where fight-or-flight kicks in, and you can fight the time restrictions and become more efficient and productive in the time that you have. I found that the more I took on (to a point, of course), the more productive I was with my time and because of that my grades actually improved over when I had more free time.
As an aside, the purpose of going to university is to eventually get a job. Employers want to see what else you have done besides complete your degree - in the end, you and your entire graduating class have the exact same piece of paper... what is distinguishing about you? Maybe your proven time-management skills and experience on top of your degree! Trust me, you are capable of incredible things. We all are. Don't believe me? Read the next one.
NEED A CONFIDENCE BOOST? TRY NEW THINGS!
When I started University I didn't know anyone and only really knew my sister at Brock University. I was extremely introverted and shy, and it was to a point where I couldn't even look people in the eye when I talked to them. It was that bad! And I know there are a ton of people out there who deal with the same feeling or even worse. My advice to you, as cliche as it sounds, is to try new things. What got me over that feeling and the shyness was challenging myself to take a small step outside of my comfort zone and try new tasks. For me, it started with making a bigger decision and buckling down to apply at Career Services. What helped me make that big decision, however, was a combination of small changes in my life. It was a combination of going on runs on different trails, listening to new bands, trying sushi, learning how to build my own computer, trying golf (and being terrible at it!), painting small miniature models, and more. It doesn't have to be huge, it can be small things that you can do on your spare time that changes your world in ways you cannot imagine.
From a career perspective, it can be as simple as taking on new tasks at your job and helping people in different departments. Maybe volunteer at an organization that has nothing to do with your career goal. Take a workshop that YOU want to take. Update your resume and cover letter with Career Services! The more you try new things and update your life, the more possibilities present themselves. I went from not being able to look people in the eyes when I talk to them to thriving in everyday interaction and client assistance. I did not do anything special to make this change. You can do it too, trust me!
Lastly, I would like to end with a quote that has defined the way I look at life now. I've always loved Rise Against and their rebellious, cause-oriented style of rock. This song urges us to make a move and go against the norm. Take action, do what is right, and don't wait for something to come to you. For those who took the time to see me at Career Services, the students, alumni, and community members who I performed hundreds upon hundreds of document reviews for, and most importantly the people I worked with, it has been my pleasure.
"Echoes of songs still lurk on distant foreign shores
Where we danced just to please the gods
that only ask for more
So it goes
But still we give ourselves to this
We can't spend our lives waiting to live" - Rise Against "The Dirt Whispered"
Anthony Mancuso
Graduating Lead Career Assistant
Honours Bachelor of Sport Management
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