personal collection of thoughts

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[joieli]

Sustainable Living

Over Thanksgiving Break I watched The True Cost documentary. It highlighted the lives of garment workers across the world that sew for our fast-fashion needs. Their working conditions are extremely poor and are not treated with respect. As an everyday consumer of clothing, I realized how much an impact those fast-fashion purchases can have on workers around the world. Since then, I’ve tried to lessen my footprint on the world and buy from sustainable brands. I’ve compiled a list in the links tab. 

[joieli]

A little political, a little social (media) rant

I was scrolling through my Instagram recently when I came across HONY’s post of Hillary Clinton, recalling some of the events she went through during college and when rising through the political system. 

I clicked on “Comments.”

Almost 70% of them were negative comments. Two comments, in particular, caught my attention. 

“If you all think this (is) her being ‘real’ sadly you are wrong. She is just using this as another way to help her campaign. If she really wanted to come out and be real about her past then maybe she should bring up the AWFUL HORRIBLE things she’s done and explain why tf she did it. Instead she’s playing all over you and playing this part of a woman facing power struggles because of her gender. It’s sad to see people fall for this.” - micaelaXXXXXXX (censored for privacy) 

Okay, Micaela. Let’s dissect what you just posted for all of HONY’s 5.8 million followers to see. 

“wanted to come out and be real about her past” -- As a politician, Hillary’s a completely public citizen. She doesn’t enough nearly as much as privacy as you and I do, much less get a day off. That also means that the press is constantly questioning her, the networks criticizing her weight and itty bitty social media users like me and you nick pick about every word she utters. Isn’t that a lot of pressure? Isn’t that a lot of past that you have to explain? Past that, despite everyone American having the right to be a free person, everyone demands to know? So maybe chill - she’s getting there. This post explained a little more about that past. Even if it wasn’t the part you wanted to hear. 

“AWFUL HORRIBLE things she’s done and explain why tf she did it” -- Micaela I really wonder about all the AWFUL HORRIBLE things you’ve done and if you’d like to explain every one of them (yes even the tiny ones that you thought no one noticed. They noticed) to the entire international media along with why tf you did it. Hm?

“playing this part of a woman facing power struggles because of her gender” -- Yes because I’m sure no woman has ever faced power struggles because of sex, especially not in the extremely penis orientated political system that we have set up in Washington right now. No, you’re completely right, there is no such thing as a glass ceiling and woman are definitely just complaining about silly things such as rape, wage gap and discrimination because of our periods. 

... 

I scrolled through some “Puke. Unfollowing” and “Trump16!!!” to reach a comment by Jamie. 

“I love you @humansofny but please stop covering this criminal, who for some fucked up reason, is allowed to run for PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, while under investigation. Talk about white privilege. I love your page but covering her, is just bad.” -jamie.XXXXX

“criminal” -- Hillary has not been convicted as a criminal. And before you sneak the word yet in there, there are tens of thousands of other criminals who walk around with no one pointing fingers at them. Even worse, there are thousands of wrongly convicted people behind bars. So maybe it’s a flaw in the legal system. But even so, you can’t legally call her a criminal. 

“allowed to run for PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES” --  Speaking of legally, yes! It is legal for her to run for President! Last I heard from my AP US History and AP Government teachers, as long as you’re a citizen (or resident for at least 14 years) and over 35 years old, you can run!! Amazing isn’t it, how Constitutional laws are still a thing. Much like freedom of speech. Simply amazing. 

“white privilege” -- This isn’t a case of white privilege. Criminals are allowed to run for president. Al Capone could have run for president. But if OJ Simpson couldn’t run, then that’s white privilege 

“covering her, is just bad” -- To be fair, I think HONY should take the time to cover everyone. Hillary is another human who has lived in New York for quite a while. And it’s not like he hasn’t given publicity to her opponent, Trump. There’s a huge long post dedicated to him. 

That’s it for now Tumblr! Until the next thing that sparks a rant. 

[joieli]

Watching someone type code is so interesting... they’re so engrossed in what they’re doing and through going through the simple motions of the keyboard, can create the backbone of what we see on websites today. 

That’s pretty neat stuff. I’m gonna try to learn how this summer starting with HTML, then CSS, Python and maybe Javascript! We shall see what Lynda.com has to offer! 

[joieli]

Unmarried at 27: Meet China's 'Leftover Women' | Broadly

During Mao's reign, ambitious women in China were idolized. Today, being an unmarried woman is stigmatized and being a feminist activist could get you arrested. We look at how China's "iron girls" became "leftover women."

China’s only child policy isn’t the only thing that has held it back in the past: so has women's rights. 

[joieli]

Modern Day Natural Selection: People who don’t get vaccinated

There’s been six cases of diagnosed mumps on IU’s campus recently, and so I got an extra vaccine Wednesday, offered by the IMU and the Monroe Public Health system (i.e people with common sense), just in case.

But I still don’t understand why people won’t get vaccinated. It’s been proven to not be linked to autism, and it prevents disease. I feel like it’s similar to Global Warming, but I haven’t done enough research on both sides. 

But still. Get Vaccinated! 

[joieli]

Mary Ellen Mark

While scrolling through endless clickbait on Facebook today, I stumbled upon several articles about the recently passed photographer Mary Ellen Mark. After reading the articles, staring at the photos and being transported to the place her photos were taken, I’m taken aback. 

I have looked at hard hitting portraiture in a while. I see a lot of nature pictures, a lot of happy pictures, and tons of posed family, or graduation, or wedding photos. But not too often story-telling photojournalism. 

So the links below really opened my eyes again to the problems the world was facing, problems that still occur now, and will likely continue in the future despite the numerous advancements that we prefer to talk about. 

http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/05/30/410521364/mary-ellen-mark-and-the-caged-prostitutes-of-mumbai 

http://www.npr.org/2015/06/27/417782675/what-happened-to-the-9-year-old-smoking-in-mary-ellen-marks-photo?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=npr&utm_term=nprnews&utm_content=20160221 

http://www.maryellenmark.com/text/magazines/life/905W-000-021.html 

http://www.maryellenmark.com/text/magazines/life/905W-000-031.html 

[joieli]

Barbie’s Got a New Body

Read TIME’s cover story on Mattel’s radical makeover of an American icon

After learning about branding in Compass-1, I think this kind of brand change is very interesting, especially considering how iconic the typical “Barbie” traits are. 

I wonder how their advertising strategies will change. 

[joieli]

New Opportunities

These couple of weeks have been super busy, but I’m not complaining! I was able to join the 180 Degree Consulting Team here at IU, which means I’ll be joining some 40 other people in pro bono non-profit consulting for companies around the great Bloomington and Indianapolis areas. It was intense, especially because they only accepted 11 new people out of 40 first round interviews, then 24 second round case interviews. 

Additionally, I’ve become the HHart Program Designer and Co-Written Word Chair! Due to time conflicts, the previous chair stepped down so Rose Johnson (Head Chair/President) and Jonathan Van Hecke offered it to me. I finished the program template over break, so now I just have to design some of the written word pieces that come in. Designing has become more of a hobby than a job, so it’ll be like my guilty pleasure on the side. 

Bloomington Ad Club (BAD) has started prepping a lot for NSAC, so research and final preparation have started up and won’t slow down 

I’ve been very busy over the past few weeks, but it’s definitely been worth it! I’ve also gotten the hang of my classes and my new schedule, but I’ll definitely reflect on those once I’ve got more time! 

[joieli]

New Year!

It’s been a month since my last blog post, and after taking a triangular road trip to the south (hitting both New Orleans and Orlando), I’m finally back in Bloomington. 

I started today with honors Business Presentation, bright and early at 8am. Getting up early wasn’t actually as hard as I had expected, but I also expect getting up to get worse. 

Professor Kolovou was a really energetic and engaging person, and I feel like I’ll be able to learn a lot from her. We already have an introduction speech due this Wednesday that’ll help us determine our group members. 

Now I’m headed off to M119 (intro to Calculus), where hopefully I’ll have as much success as I did in Finite! 

[joieli]

As a side note though, I just made everyone on my floor motivational sticky notes and I hope those cheer/motivate everyone, even just a little bit! 

[joieli]

Dead Week/Finals Week

It’s the Monday of dead week, which means finals week is quickly approaching. I have a lot of blog posts saved in “drafts,” but I really want to focus on my studies for now. Best of luck! 

On a side note, I’ve decided to take a break from blogging over winter break, so I’ll be back once the new semester starts. Till then! 

[joieli]

Back in the Bloom: A Reflection of Thanksgiving

A brief reflection of break after returning to IU’s campus. Currently studying for finite, microeconomics and K201! There are a lot of finals coming up as the semester ends, and it’s quite scary how quickly time has passed. 

Academic:

For Compass, I was able to finished my Brand Poster and Informational Interview. I also got an 100% on my LinkedIn profile, which was reassuring to know since it’s one of the main social medias that recruiters look at in the professional world.  

I asked Sam Fattah, Jenna’s dad, during the ride back for an informational interview regarding his job as a project manager for the Simon Property Group. I learned a lot, and my main take away was that the information or major I go into in my undergraduate won’t actually determine what I do in my career; rather, it’s the experiences I have in college that will help me more. 

Chinese vocabulary for C302 next semester is what worries me most, so I’ve started to study C301 vocabulary already. It’s a bit difficult since I’ve never had formal Chinese study training, so I hope to work more on it during winter break as well. 

Extracurricular: 

The RA Application is due this Thursday evening and I’m glad that I finished it over break. It included 3 short essays, a short questionnaire and 2 letters of recommendation ( I asked Lynn from HRC and Laughrey from high school to talk about my commitment to diversity, inclusion and leadership). 

HHart Program design is underway! Although I have a fixed amount of content I have to put in it, the 16-page design is up to my discretion and I’m excited about that. I haven’t designed anything this official all year. 

Leadership Council Planning for St. Louis is still ongoing. We are continuing to book buses, hotels and figuring out how payment works. Our treasurer hasn’t been available at all, which is incredibly frustrating but I hope we can figure it out. For now, I’m in charge of finding possible restaurants to eat at downtown. 

Some other random reflections from going back home: 

I was sitting at the library, right across from the high school, doing work and I realized how much has changed. From being at Carmel to now, I’ve learned a lot about self-discipline and that what I’m doing right now will reflect and influence me in 2 weeks, 2 months or even in 2 years. Considering how fast high school passed by, and now my first semester of college has too, time is a fleeting thing that I need to take advantage of. 

While helping my parents host a party, a family attended who’s daughter had just started high school. At the end of the night, I gave her all my old review books, and we bonded briefly over how competitive our local high school is and how hard the classes are. Although it was a bit sad to part with all the academic coursework I’ve learned about in the past 4 years, it was also a heavy burden off my shoulders knowing high school is behind me and I can focus on pursuing academics that interest me. 

[joieli]

Shelbyville’s final Deliverable D video project regarding electronic signage for the ALDI Case Competition. It took us so long! 

[joieli]

A Brief Reflection of the Past Few Weeks

The past few weeks before Thanksgiving have been so busy that I didn’t have time to blog! Here’s a brief summary of what I did during the month of November: 

Academic:

Finished the video for the ALDI Case Competition Deliverable D (will upload the video in the next post!) 

Won Compass Brand Pitch Case Competition 

Basically a mock presentation of being a consultation firm to heighten our understanding of personal brands in compass. My team named themselves Suave consulting (after what shampoo brand I use) and I was the client. 

We won overall with comments from our professor such as “Good brand identity and target demographics, good recs on pulling brand thru LI, Good rec of blog, in person good, twitter vague (referring to the slide about Twitter). Very professionally done!”

After reflection, I’ve decided that K201 is an extremely useful class

I decided that I wanted to keep track of my finances in college more just as good habit, and K201 has taught me so much about how to use Access and Excel to my advantage in that. Without the programs, everything would have to be calculated manually and that would be a real pain in the butt. 

Thank god for technology and that these classes are requirements in the Business School. Honestly I think classes like K201 and Compass should be required for all the college because they’re just very applicable to life in general. 

Extracurricular: 

Leadership Council Update

Currently we are pretty much all wrapped up for the Trip over MLK weekend. We’re trying to figure out how to set up online or bursar pay through SOA. It’s quite complex and I think the SOA is slow process these things. 

We’re also hosting a winter party on Dec. 5th! Just so people can relax a bit before dead week and finals. Winter break is just 3-weeks after Thanksgiving break, so finals are very close! 

Accepted as one of a few interview candidates for the HHC Mentorship Coordinator position

It’s exciting! I applied because I wanted to help guide freshmen in their first year on campus. Even now, I’m still a bit confused (but much better than when I first arrived) so I hope to help incoming people the same chance. 

Interviews will be next week and so far there are 12 other candidates but hopefully my interview will go well. 

Current Projects/Things going on:

Studying for Finite

The third finite exam got pushed back from the Thursday before break to the Wednesday after break due to printing errors

Although it’s quite annoying, I suppose I’ll have more time to do practice exams now. Plus, it’s not as if Professor Hendrickson wanted this. Everyone makes mistakes. 

Planning for finals

Typically, I like to set a schedule for studying for finals so I feel like I have to work against time to fit everything in. Hopefully I can still do it this year, although already planning out my every day should probably suffice. 

Next semester schedule 

I’m planning on taking Honors Business Presentations, Calculus (M119), Chinese 302 (which includes lecture on Tuesdays/Thursdays and drills on Monday/Wednesday/Fridays), Accounting, the RA self-development class, and an Arts Management class about graphic design. 

I will post a picture once I’m fully committed to these classes. 

[joieli]

Paris attacks: one gunman was 'French extremist known to police' – live

Latest coverage of the attacks across Paris that have left at least 127 people dead

Last night, the city of Paris was attacked and held hostage by a group of well-organized extremists. 

It is not the first time Paris has been attacked; earlier this year in January, there was a fatal shooting at the Charlie Hebdo satirical newspaper office. Then, the attackers identified with the Yemen based Al-Qaeda group. 

Investigators strongly believe yesterday’s attacks are also the result of extremist groups. 

While there is little I can do to physically help what is happening, I have been keeping track of the news and sending my thoughts their way. There is much to be changed in the world, and I hope to be part of that new change. 

To all those who have suffered and lost; Toutes mes condoléances.

[joieli]

While studying at the Pourhouse Cafe on Wednesday, I noticed their chalkboard art sign sitting in front of the cafe. I thought it’d be fun to doodle my own little sign, and I’m quite proud of it. 

All it took was a little creativity, 3 ballpoint pens, paper and 10 minutes.

[joieli]

Kelley Alumni: Inspiring Momentum

Yesterday evening I attended a panel regarding success in the business world with some Kelley Alumni. The panel included James Hodge, Louis Jordan, Todd B. Richter, Milon Nag and Sherry Davis. 

I was impressed with the amount of diverse panel members brought forth and the depth of their involvement in the industry. I definitely hope to attend this kind of event again in the future and maybe even one day sit on one myself to give advice to aspiring business students. This way, I can give back to the school who helped me and inspire future generations. 

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James Hodge, whom Hodge Hall is named for, graduated as a Bachelor of Science in 1974 and is currently the President and Chairman of Investment Committee at Permal Asset Management Inc. I arrived 15 minutes early, so in the lull period before the forum began, I actually went up to Mr. Hodge and introduced myself, thanking him for taking his time and coming to the panel. It was extremely nerve racking and my heart was pounding, but I figured in the future I would have to introduce myself to a plethora of people, and now was a good time to start and practice my introduction, handshake, and professionalism.

Some notable things he said included equating happiness with success, and advising us in realizing the value of failing, sticking with what we have and to pull through, due to his experience with his investment firm during the financial crisis of 2008 and 2009. At first I thought he was rather quiet, but I realized that when he spoke, he spoke with power and knowledge, and really thought through his answer. You could tell immediately that he knew a lot, just didn’t openly flaunt it. Wisdom, perhaps, is the best way to put it. 

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Louis Jordan graduated in 1980 with an MBA and is currently the owner of Tympany Vineyards. He was previously the Senior Vice President of Finance for Starbucks Coffee Company and the Chief Financial Officer of Global Retail and Digital Commerce at Nike Inc. I appreciated what he said the most, because he was very good at using analogies and phrasing his language eloquently. He also commented briefly on being a person of color in the corporate world, something I think I may face as well in addition to being a woman. 

I think some of his best answers/advice included: “Don’t be afraid of a changing world; the world is going to change.” “The things that you are good at and the things you’re passionate about - when you’ve found where those intersect, you’ve achieved Nirvana.” “(America) is a bubble.” (when Sherry Davis mentioned traveling abroad was one of the most crucial things to do in college)

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Todd B. Richter, MBA graduate of 1981, currently serves as the vice Chairman Global Corporate and Investment Banking at Barclays. As an investment banker, I immediately noticed he put value in money, starting off answering the “How do you define success and have you achieved it” question by stating that success equals how much money you make. Not to say that he isn’t a good person, or a bad person, but that each person quantifies this concept differently. 

Mr. Richter had a very straightforward attitude towards business, and I can definitely respect that. What I took away most from his responses were:  “Never be afraid of failing.” “I would rather surround myself with people who tell me what they honestly think than people who tell me what they think I want to hear.” (I identify with this because honestly, I love constructive criticism. It allows me to problem solve and improve my performance for future opportunities.)

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Milon Nag, graduate in 1984 and 1985 respectively with his Bachelor of Sciences, is the Chairman and Managing Director of K.K. Nag Ltd and a Trustee of the Nag Foundation. He talked a lot about his family business, but also what it was like to oversee overseas operations in India. Notably, he quantified the first question about success by categorizing it as external and internal forms of success. Externally, success encompasses how much revenue one makes and what we typically think of in terms of “success” in business - profit, name recognition, stock value etc. In other words, what Mr. Richter mentioned. Internally, on the other hand, encompasses what Mr. Hodge said, equating success with happiness and internal satisfaction. 

Mr. Nag also commented that he didn’t think anyone on stage thought of themselves as successful. That is, he didn’t think anyone on the panel believed they themselves had reached the pinnacle of their career; everyone agreed that they had room to improve and improve on their definition of success for themselves. He described the three C’s that he followed in any project: concentration, consistency and cooperation. Concentration to focus on the task, consistency so people know you can do your work and rely on you for continued good work, and cooperation to work as a team. 

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Sherry Davis, the youngest grad with a Bachelor of Science in 2000, serves as the Director-Corporate Audit Service at Eli Lilly and Company. As the youngest member of the panel and the only woman, I noticed when she and other panelist would start talking at the same time, she was always the one to be more courteous and let the other person go first. She also touched on getting back into her job as a mom and overcoming the, while probably considerate, stereotypical barriers of assumptions that motherhood comes with, like not having enough time for work, or not wanting to travel abroad. 

I related to Mrs. Davis because she mentioned she was someone who planned out her entire day (she even had a 5 year plan at one point! I have daily and weekly schedules planned out to the hour) and because she wanted a good balance between work life and personal life. In spite of challenges, her words of “If something doesn’t make you nervous it’s not worth it,” inspired me the most. If something’s not challenging, will it make me learn? Will it be worth my time, will it make me a better person? 

In conclusion, I felt I learned a lot from this panel. I intend to RSVP to more in the future.