Blog Post 5

It’s the beginning of the third week and I am already wishing it was the tenth week. Going to class from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Monday and 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday while also putting in 20+ working hours a week is extremely tiring, but there is no room for complaining. As Elizabeth Gilbert said, “Just do your job.” It is my job to be a student and get a good education, and in order to do so I must push myself until I reach my goal. 

Monday’s class started off with a talk about the Disney Corporation. I am an avid fan of Disney and I am always interested in the thoughts of what people have about them. I have heard tons of remarks about how they are fake and “plastic,” but they are doing something right to still be a successful company. Yes, Disney has a different way of presenting ideas via films, television shows, merchandise, theme parks, and much more, but being different and standing out is what draws people’s attention. Disney has very strict, military-like, guidelines for their employees and it shows a great deal of professionalism to other employers. If you, the reader, are interested in learning more about what the guidelines are, as well as “untold” Disney secrets and stories, Mouse Tales by David Koenig provides an excellent behind the scenes look of the company through the stories of former cast members of the Disney Parks.

As a class, we discussed what the elements of a good story are and broke into pieces what a good story should have. We came to a census that a story should have a beginning, middle, and end, characters (protagonist and antagonist), setting, plot, and other descriptive terms. We also talked about how key aspects of a narrative are tied together in a linear action.

The films we watched in class were very inspiring and, like the other classes, made me view things in a different perspective. I have read a few books by Amy Tan and I have not yet been disappointed. I found parts of her presentation to be quite hilarious and I definitely related to some of the things that she brought up (i.e. how she was supposed to be a doctor, but ended up becoming a writer). She also made me think about things in a new way. For example, I never really thought about how everything in life, including accidents, occurs for a reason. Tan’s theory about how uncertainty is a good thing provided me with a different perspective on life and it inspires me to always try and seek out answers for every question I have.

Elizabeth Gilbert’s presentation also provided some excellent advice which will probably stay with me for quite some time. Her suggestion to us about not being afraid and just continuing on with our job made me think about how we sometimes avoid things. Why do we avoid doing certain tasks? What is the reason why we avoid things? Fear is the main reason—we are afraid of failure. We never really know the outcome of something unless we try. Every accomplishment starts with the decision to try. When in doubt, attempt something.

I learned a lot in this class and from now on I won’t be a complainer. If I dislike something, I’m just going to deal with it. Like the Nike states, “just do it.”