Adapting to the unexpected

I always knew I would graduate from college, but what I didn’t expect was graduating during a pandemic. I didn’t expect having to finish my senior year online, not celebrating my last final exam with my friends and not walking the stage to make my accomplishments feel real. But, although these conditions haven't exactly been ideal, it has taught me how to adapt to the unexpected.

Opportunity to expand

I like to stay busy, and am always looking for the next project to dive into. Whether it’s getting a new project at work, or finding something new to work on at home, there’s nothing more satisfying than finishing a project, especially when it's been done above and beyond all expectations. I am particularly passionate about creativity taking things to the next level. Life becomes much more exciting when you take opportunities to expand on the ordinary.

Life is all about opportunity, opportunity to try new things (as scary as it can sometimes be), opportunity to make memories, opportunity to grow, and opportunity to create. Most people wait for opportunity to knock at their door, but I understand something that drives me to success. Opportunity is not something that finds us, and it’s not something we need to go searching for. Opportunity lives inside of us, and we can use it whenever we want. So when I said “life is about opportunity”, what I really meant was, “life IS opportunity”. In every moment of our lives, we have the chance to do things bigger and better than we are expected to. If we can take the opportunity to live life about the expected minimum, we can improve the overall quality of life.

Teamwork

I've played a lot of sports, and I am very fortunate for all the things I’ve learned in that experience. I started with softball, and luckily for me, my Dad was my couch so I got a say in who was on my team. Since it was 90% my friends, this isn't exactly where I learned competitiveness, I don’t think we ever won a single game. What I did learn though, is that getting along with your team makes working fun, even when you can’t win. I also learned how important teamwork and communication is. We all had to try every position on the field to understand how each position works together. 

Since then, I’ve done dance, gymnastics, Karate, Tae Kwon Do, ice hockey, soccer, lacrosse, track, and the sport I've learned the most from, field hockey. My position was goalie, and when people say “you have to be at least a little crazy to be a goalie”, well, they aren't wrong. This is where I learned about confidence, leadership, risk, and how to deal with the excitement of winning and the disappointment of losing. As a goalie, I was responsible for protecting the goal, and managing the defense during the game. I had to think on my toes and be completely committed to every decision I made. If I made the right decisions, it only meant it was time to make the next, and if it was the wrong decision, I had to let it go and try my best to make the next one right. At the end of each game, I learned to thank the other team for their competition, not be angry at them for winning or rub our wins in their face, but appreciate the game and get ready for the next. We even went on to be the South Coast Conference co-champions. I returned for the next three years as a volunteer coach to three new goalies.

Kick back

As much as I like to live life to the fullest, I also like to kick back and relax. Growing up in a small town in the woods, I learned very early that the best way to decompress is taking some time to reconnect with nature. When I was younger, I spent most of my time exploring the woods building forts and treehouses, camping with my family, or in Cape Cod on boats and beaches fishing and soaking up the sun. As I’ve grown up, I never lost my connection to the outdoors and often go kayaking and fishing, and have bonfires with all of my friends.

In my blood

My mom went to college in Boston to become a very successful kitchen designer. She is a skilled artist, and has always encouraged us to embrace creativity. I didn’t understand that I was passed this creative trait until I was recruited to build and design sets for the plays in middle school. In high school I used all of my free electives on art classes and it made walking into school each morning exciting. When it came time to graduation, I won “most artistic” as my senior superlative. I wanted to be a graphic designer, but was advised to look more at the business side of the industry. I decided to go to Johnson & Wales for advertising. About a year and a half into college, I had to take a graphic design class. My professor was wowed by my work and convinced me to change my major to graphic design. I missed designing and was happy to be back, but a part of me deeply missed the strategy behind each design. My senior year I joined AdTeam, and just like that, I was sucked back into advertising. I've decided my calling is somewhere in between graphic design and advertising and now aspire to be an innovative art director.