Duncan Nugget® #49: Self-Motivation

“How do I stay motivated?“

Good question. That’s a question people ask me all the time. And I tell them the same thing every time:

“Motivation has an ebb and flow like the tide. Even if they love what they do for a living, people are not in a state of high motivation all the time. It’s all about being about to make the downtime less frequent. It’s about being able to do what needs to be done even when you don’t feel like doing it. Action comes before motivation.”

Suggested Reading:
What comes first–action or motivation?

Now Hiring Millennials: The Fresh Air Fund

“Al, do you know about any jobs or internships?”

Inside The Mind Of Kristen Farmer

“I think that working with young people is something that has its challenges and requires patience, but it also is the most rewarding kind of work that there is out there. It is also some of the most important work.”

–Kristen Farmer

Most Millennials are job hopping every 2-3 years. Kristen Farmer, however, has been with The Fresh Air Fund since 2005 and doesn’t plan on leaving anytime soon. Case closed. The Fresh Air Fund must be a cool place to work.

If you’re a college-aged student looking for a summer job and you love to work with children then this might be the place for you. (Hint: That means they’re hiring.)

Every summer, 3000 inner city children head off to one of five Fresh Air camps at the 2,300 acre Sharpe Reservation in up-state New York. During the year an additional 10,000 students will visit to learn about the environment.

Kristen Farmer, the Tutoring and High School Placement Coordinator during the year, will be there again this summer as the assistant director. “I believe so much in what we do”, she exclaims.

Her belief was clearly evident during our conversation. Kristen believes in service and has a serious passion for working with young people.

She began her career at Fresh Air as the Journalism Teacher—one of the counselor positions—for the career awareness camp called Camp Mariah.

Prior to Fresh Air, she has been a tutor, a pre-kindergarten teacher, a substitute teacher, an intern with the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and a Health Education Volunteer with the Peace Corps—all before the age of 25.

Let’s find out what else is going on inside The Millennial Mind of Kristen Farmer.

Q & A: Can you help me find my brand?

I spoke to you at the assembly here at Claflin University, and I asked you some things, but was afraid to ask the rest out loud, my question is I am applying for the Honors College and I need a brand statement in order to get in, just in case I get interviewed.

My skills that I have obtained so far are communications skills, I have interpersonal skills but, that’s too few to name can you help me find my brand? To get in I have to demonstrate ongoing leadership skills, be academically successful, and develop service for the community.

–college freshman, Claflin University

Duncan Nugget® #65: Warning Signs

“It is only after long-term lack of recognition that simple signals and obvious warning signs become complex challenges and seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Work on problems as soon as they begin to develop.” – Al Duncan

Facebook Banned: Chatting with your teacher is a no-no.

Imagine the you are a teacher checking out your wall on Facebook when you notice that several of your students have posted messages. They are all asking you about the same thing: a class project.

This scenario seems simple enough, right? Well…if you happen to be a teacher working in The School District of Elmbrook (Wisconsin) boy, oh boy, are you in trouble.

An article that I read in The School Library Journal explains that, as of February 10, 2009 “communication between staff and students via social networking and IM” has been banned.

What about a student calling a teacher? According the article, “not a problem.”

Huh?

Boomers and Millennials Are the Same?

Cool (and humorous) blog post that shows how much the Boomers and Millennials have in common.

Generational Smackdown: Baby Boomers vs. The Millennials | TerryStarbucker.com