Honors Lecture Series Reflection Essay

I attended an honors lecture series on October 18, 2016. Im not currently an honors student so
this event wasnt mandatory for me. I wanted to go to get more information on potentially
becoming a member of the honors program. I learned some useful information from the honors
program advisor. I also took a lot from the event that was held. Canisha Turner, an A&T alumna,
was the speaker at this lecture. The honors program advisor gave her introduction. She did a
presentation titled Your A&T, Your Future, Your Life: The Keys to Owning It! Her first three
slides had three influential figures on them. The first one was Kevin Hart. Hes been in the
business for so long, but he didnt get real exposure until later in life. She talked about his rise to
fame. Kevin Hart once said, Everybody wants to be famous but nobody wants to put in the
work. The second person was A&T alumnus Terrence Jenkins. She talked about his struggle
before he became famous. He was homeless living on a friends couch. He eventually got his
break when that one person took a chance on him. The last person was Willie Deese. Hes an
A&T alumnus class of 77. Hes the reason weve got that tall clock in the middle of campus. All
of these men started somewhere. They can attest to the quote by Susan Elizabeth Phillips,
Anything worth having is worth fighting for. Her next slide had this infamous quote on it by
Marianne Williamson, Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate; our deepest fear is that we
are powerful beyond measure. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, or
fabulous. Actually, who are not to be? She said she begins every presentation she does with this
quote. Ive always known the first part of this quote but the latter part resonates with me ever
since she did the event. Its so much meaning and importance behind three sentences. Everyone
should know this quote and live by it. Now, we get into the keys. The next slide are the five keys
to owning it. The first key is fearlessness. When youre fearless youre bold. Youre never afraid
to speak. Youre the voice. You make your presence known and your absence felt. You can show
your fearlessness in a professional setting by having a firm handshake while making eye contact.
The second key is confidence. Being confident is the greatest outfit you can wear. When you
exude confidence, you automatically command a room. You need to know your capabilities,
your worth, and your value add. In order to feel confident on the inside, you need to look good
on the outside. When you look great, you feel great, and you perform great. The third key is a
positive attitude. Your attitude will determine your altitude. If you want to go far, speak in it the
atmosphere. The bible verse Proverbs 18:21 says, Death and life are in the power of the tongue;
and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. You may not have the qualifications for a specific
job position apply anyway. Embark on each task with a renewed mind, spirit, and optimism.
Bring light to a dark situation. Lastly, you should learn, grow, and repeat. The fourth key is
adaptability. You should be able to adapt to any situation. Life is about growing. Things arent
going to always be the same. You should think of stumbling blocks as stepping stones use them
to get past a situation. Lastly, life is 10% what happens and 90% how you act to what happens.
The fifth key is change the game. You should make a good kind of noise (positive change). You

need to rise to the challenge. You should change agents accept the process of change and use it
to move forward. Reading is knowledge. Pick up a book. Dont be the reason the for saying if
you want to hide something from a black person

put in a book. Who Moved My Cheese?, The

Souls

of Black Folk, and The Purpose Driven Life were three books that Ms.Canisha referred to
us. She also said we should know that theyre two most important days in our life: the first one is
when you were born and the other is when you find out why. She added an extra key which was
have fun. She said even though were in college its all about having the full college experience.
She also dont stress over losing friends. People come into your life for one of three reasons: a
reason, a season, or a lifetime. The mistake we make is confusing the three. I really enjoyed this
event. I know I say that about just every event Ive attended but its all been true. I learn
something different at each event. The first main concept I took from this event was to apply
these five keys so I can own my college experience. The second concept I learned was to live life
to the fullest. College is all about the full experience. College isnt just work (even though that is
extremely important) its also friends, doing fun things, and living life unapologetically. This
event helped me realize I need to walk around like I own it. I am an Aggie and I need to be
proud. I need to show people why Im here and what Ive got to offer. That will help me
gradually gain a new outlook on my college experience. This event impacted my A&T
experience for the better.