From a very young age we taught right from wrong and received consequences for mistakes we made.  We were put in the corner for not picking up our toys or given a bad grade when we didn’t follow instructions properly. Although this is a standard procedure to encourage good behavior and create respectful citizens, sometimes I wonder are we really learning from the mistakes we’ve made or are we just molded to fear making mistakes?

Let’s use a very specific example for this topic such as college students. By the time we reach our senior year in college, we are almost wired to strive to be perfectionists. Pressure to make good grades, multitask and still have a decent social life can turn us into robots. We take on numerous projects and tasks because we’re afraid to say no, and the next thing you know we’re overloaded and sweeping our mistakes under a rug. We have become to fear our errors because in our minds mistakes equal failure.

When I was a student, one of the hardest things for me to do was to keep up with the latest news and trends in technology.  I was constantly busy with projects, work, and studying and found little time to roam the web for news. That’s when I learned how setting up a simple RSS (Rich Site Summary) Feed could give me all my news in one place saving me a lot of time.

If there’s one thing I understand the most about college students is that they are very busy. Part-time jobs, class projects, and student organizations consume the average college student but also helps develop them into solid multi-taskers.  Students who take leadership roles are even more impressive and are usually rewarded in the long run for their sacrifices. 

What’s your role in a student organization?

Most students belong to at least one student organization but only a few actively participate. Students are often afraid to take on leadership roles in organizations because they are already spread too thin.  Honestly, I too was afraid to have an official leadership title in the student organization I was involvedin but official title or not, I realized I could be a leader in my student organization on my terms and with less pressure.

One of the core tenets of SMCEDU is to do a better job of integrating social media into the world of higher education. That’s why when my my alma mater asked me to speak at their annual Communication Week this year, I jumped at the opportunity (well, that and I was able to take my daughter to see her grandparents for the weekend).

Because these were communications students already learning the basics of social media in their core classes, I didn’t want to do yet another Social Media 101 type presentation. Instead, I wanted to help them understand that even though they may learn what Twitter is, how to use it, and some case studies, there’s nothing like doing it in the real world. That’s why I gave a presentation titled “The 7 Things About Social Media That You’re Not Going to Learn in College.”