Val Agosta Memorial VocationVacation Scholarship Winner Announced

It is with great pleasure that I announce the winner of the 2010 Val Agosta VocationVacation Scholarship — Robi Malone of Simpsonville, South Carolina!

Everyone at VocationVacations has a special place in our hearts for our private investigator mentor, Val Agosta, of Boise, Idaho.  She lost her battle to breast cancer in March of 2009.  However, her spirit for living, her sense of humor and her laugh live on in our minds.  And, most especially today since December 15 is her birthday.

Choosing the scholarship winner was once again not an easy decision for Val’s family this year as we had so many entrants whose short essays exemplified Val’s essence and zest for life.  But, after much discussion and deliberation, Robi Malone was their choice.  Robi’s essay detailed how she put her life and goals on hold for many years in order to raise a family, including a son with a disability.  Once the diapers were changed, the soccer games attended and the kids were all in school, she went back to school herself and received her GED.  But Robi didn’t stop there.  She received her bachelors degree from Wright State in Dayton, Ohio.

Along the way Robi also pursued her love of photography.  But Robi feels it’s time to take things to the next level: she wants to start her own photography business — and she wants a portion of her work to be charitable, pro bono photography for families who are going to lose a loved one due to a terminal illness.  More on Robi’s plans and which Photographer VocationVacation she will take in 2011 in the January VocationVacations newsletter (if you’re not signed up, please do so on our homepage).

Please join me in congratulating Robi!

And thanks to the hundreds of folks who submitted their applications.  Don’t give up — please apply again in 2012.

Happy Holidays To All,
Brian

 

How Will You Spend 525,600 Minutes?

I have found myself becoming more reflective over the past few years as everyone, it seems, has been impacted by the Great Recession in some way.  But at the end of the day I remind myself and others what really matters:  Us.  And the memories we form together during the 525,600 minutes that comprise a year.

In the Broadway play RENT (that I was so thrilled to see in its first month on stage way back in 1996), there’s just the most amazing song that I’ve forever loved, “Seasons of Love”.  If you haven’t heard it or if it’s been awhile since you’ve listened to it, I highly recommend doing so.  It’s not at all a traditional holiday song but as you find yourself on “holiday deadlines” (tree needs to be decorated by Wednesday, outside lights are past-due, gifts need to be purchased by Dec 15, etc.), take a moment…come up for air…and take a listen to “Seasons of Love” on YouTube.  It will put it all in perspective for you.

And check out our really cool, latest newsletter HERE!  Includes a $100 gift offering to YOU….

Happy Holidays!

Brian

 

What I Said Is Really That Bad? Really?

I rarely use my blog as a forum for venting….but I do use it for feedback.  Today it’s a bit of both.

I hope you saw our VocationVacations newsletter this morning announcing a couple of our new, exciting career mentorship programs:  Phone Mentorship and our Saturday Workshops – VocationVacations 360 (the first one is, “So You Want To Get Into The Wine Business?” and will be on Jan 15, 2011).  These are in addition to our 1-on-1 VocationVacations that have served thousands of people since 2004 and our relatively new Small-Group VocationVacations.  There’s a lot going on!  Good stuff.

The subject line of the newsletter this morning was “How’s Life In The Cubicle?” followed by this verbiage to kick off the newsletter:

When we speak with clients prior to their VocationVacation career mentorship experiences, we ask them if their physical work environment is a nice, pleasant space. Rarely do we hear, “I love where I work!” Instead, we hear, “I am stuck in cubicle hell without a window!”, or “I was promoted and now have my own private office – complete with bad fluorescent lighting and a view of the elevator”, or “I sooooo need to be outside more than I am today!”

You get the picture. Are you stuck in proverbial cubicle hell? Well then, it’s time to explore YOUR dream career and discover what your life could be like outside of that cubicle.

Well.  Let me tell you, I inadvertently set off a small firestorm in response to the subject line….here are a couple of my “favorites”:

From David H:  Go f*#$ yourself!

From Sarah A:  ouch! offensive/painful/derogatory toward small businesses… subject line… I’m out…When you are an inspiration again I will check in. Buena suerte!

Time for my vent:  Really, David and Sarah?  Really?  Was what I asked so bad?

So, feedback.  What do you think?  Do you really think my asking “How’s Life In The Cubicle?” was such a bad thing to ask?

From outside of the cubicle,

Brian

 

Do You Want To Become A TV Script Writer?

I always love announcing new VocationVacations mentors.  So it comes with great pleasure to introduce our new TV Script Writer mentor, Mark Kunerth!

You’ve enjoyed Mark’s writing skills if you have ever watched “Friends”, “Roseanne”, “Veronica’s Closet” or Showtime’s hit new show, “The Big C” starring Laura Linney.  In addition to being a successful TV script writer, Mark is simply a super nice guy and is wildly passionate about what he does for a living.  He can’t wait to share with you how he made a career transition from writing press releases for Dairy Queen to moving to Hollywood and becoming a writer.  For real!

Give us a call at 503.720.4282 or sign-up online if you’d like to compare calendars and arrange your career mentorship with Mark.

Cheers!
Brian