After a very unique post, I am following it with one carrying a more serious tone.
I keep talking about how life is just so interesting and it's important to live each day to the fullest. I feel like I have done all the living for this day that I can. I've now been up for 18 hours, driven three hours to college, had two classes, a three hour lab, and an FFA meeting. I feel like this day has been seized, and by "I feel," I mean both figuratively and literally. I'm exhausted.
I feel that there are many things in life that you simply cannot afford to not do. One of the short lists is just the title of this blog. Dream Big, Stand Tall, Speak Strong, and Know When to Sit and Listen. You may be thinking, "So much wisdom from a 19-year old..." In the last nineteen years I have done a lot. The clubs and committees I have gotten to work with, the leaders of different groups, and many other notable events with which I have been able to participate are numerous and nice to reminisce about. The key is 1, what's this about? and 2, how does this apply to other people? Well, I'm going to talk a little about myself past, present, and future. In my elementary years, I was a child who found it far simpler to talk to adults than my own peers. That changes over time. But what it did was allow me the opportunity to learn certain skills at a very young age that have helped me thus far. One thing the youth of today seem to do less and less of is actual conversation - especially with elders.
As a middle school student, I was one of my 4-H club's youngest presidents. I was an eighth grader. after that, I held offices in Key Club (one of the world's largest student-run service organizations), holding various club offices including president, and a year as a state lieutenant governor. I was a student council officer, a class representative, a representative to my town's Hometown Competitiveness team's Youth Pillar. I was also a marching drumline section leader my senior year of high school. These very different types of leadership positions gave me the opportunity to deal with adversity in every respect I could imagine, and some that I couldn't. I had the opportunity to network with many people with substance and status within our community and state, and meet people in other places. This very thing is the type of thing I am doing here at Purdue. As a member of Farm Bureau and FFA, I am getting the opportunity to lead and make a difference in the world of tomorrow, today. A third organization I have gotten involved with in my time here is Agriculture Futures of America (AFA), but I will be speaking about that during the end of this week and weekend, as I will be at a conference in Kansas City, MO.
Again, where am I going with all of this information? Well, I got where I am today because I'm a dreamer and a planner. I have known for my whole life that I wanted to be a leader, so I started way back then, planning and trying to make sure that I was learning the things that I was going to need. Being a leader can be hard. I'm not saying I am Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., or Martin Luther, or Abraham Lincoln. That's not what I'm trying to say. What I am saying is that in order to lead, you have to be dreaming. If you're not dreaming, wishing, wanting, hoping for something in the future, then what are you working for?? If you're ever satisfied with just life as it is, you're holding yourself back. Never settle. Stand up, use your voice, and work toward your dreams. Only you make your destiny. One of the biggest keys to final success is realizing that there will be older people who have been where you are and done what you're doing that will want to try and "help" or give advice. If you want to be one of the successful people, you must know when to step back, sit down, and listen. As crazy as someone may seem, they have probably already tried and figured out what doesn't work. Always with a grain of salt, accept advice and help, knowing full well that what works for one person may not work for you, but it's one way of doing things.
Life is about working hard to try to earn or achieve something. If you're not working for a goal, why work? Always move forward. Always use your voice to respectfully put yourself out there. Don't just be a face, but be a friend, an acquaintance, be someone. The world remembers people who put themselves out there. If you spend your life on the sideline, you won't ever get any field time. Life's a game, but if you never try in practice, when game time comes around you won't even have a shot.
I close the same way as I began because I feel that this is THAT important. Always remember to Dream big, stand tall, speak strong, and know when to sit and listen. It could change your life in ways you never expected. Even better, it could change the life of someone else.
Until tomorrow, goodnight!
Here is a link to Holly Spangler's blog that started all of this! http://farmprogress.com/blogs-30-days-five-things-five-things-7778
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