Claire Butcher

11-4-20

Comm 335: Becoming Journey Blog – Week 12 Podcast Reflection

This podcast was fun and interesting to listen to, as it was one of the first people I
recognized in one of our podcasts. I haven’t heard many interviews or talks from McConaugney,
however it was refreshing to hear such a down-to-earth personality with plenty of harsh reality
and experience. McConaugney shares his experiences with his father’s death which is hard to
hear, especially knowing he must continue his work in acting while knowing and processing his
grief. This shows a great deal of perseverance on McConaugney’s part, where he pushes though
the horrible things he’s lived through in order to continue his professional demeanor.
I also admire McConaugney’s commitment to unbrand himself. When he first noticed
the pattern in how he was labeled for rom-coms and cheaper movies that didn’t challenge him,
he decided to walk away from the entire situation, even from Hollywood. This was a very brave
and respectable choice, that also showed a lot of self-awareness on McConaugney’s part. Self-
awareness is such a key trait for both a follower and leader. I personally strive to grow in this
trait as I continue my way through my college experience and future career. I believe that
knowing oneself is vital to helping yourself and others function. Self-awareness also helps you
see what challenges you, and what doesn’t push your limits. For McConaugney, this past
experience for him wasn’t challenging, nor did it show his strengths in acting. I loved
McConaugney’s commentary on his self-trust and the effort he gives into the thing’s he’s
passionate about. He speaks on his lack of self-trust in his past, and how things have worked
out in the end, especially because he put in work and trusted himself. This is another key trait
for leadership. Allowing for a situation to play out after putting in your essential effort as well as
trusting yourself is key. It’s important to put in effort, but if one doesn’t trust themselves, then
the process towards a goal will be a lot more difficult. I personally have to work on this trait a
lot more. Depression and anxiety, along with ADD since I have been young have truly put a
damper on my ability to trust myself. I find that experience has helped. Experience in both jobs
and schoolwork aren’t the only two things that have helped me with this. I believe that my
hobbies have added a lot to my confidence in leading and following over the years.
I started embroidery in the beginning of quarantine, and have grown a lot in both my
skill and confidence, as well as my overall knowledge in the craft. I don’t do this for anyone but
myself, which took a lot of pressure off myself. However, I have found that over the years I quit
something when I try it for the first time and find that it’s not perfect the first time (surprise!).
My perfectionist goals are linked closely with my anxiety and depression, which is something
that I try to fight each time I work on a project or goal. I believe that my crafts have helped me a
lot with this in a way where it reminds me that most mistakes are not world-ending, and that
trusting myself will lead to a steadier hand and mind. It’s far easier said than done, but I tackle
these things by breaking tasks into ridiculously small steps, so small that you cannot fail them.
For example, the first step of writing a paper is “write my introduction sentence” and “make
three bullet points on what will be covered in the section”, etc. These tiny steps take away the
opportunity for overwhelming feelings to set in for me. I feel as if this will be key in my future
 Claire Butcher
11-4-20

Masters degree schooling and career, as my stage right now is just the beginning in terms of
school.