Choices come in all shapes and sizes.

What should I major in? Should I attend grad school? Should I sleep-in or go for a jog? Do I want sweetener with my coffee? What about a career change? Should I go on that blind date? What about teaching or working abroad? What should I do this weekend? Should I do an internship?

Life and careers are full of all types of decisions. Choosing where to focus your energy is the ongoing challenge, and opportunity. You can pursue educational and professional endeavors that align well with your unique talents, gifts and skills you enjoy using. You can do the opposite as well – make decisions about your near and distant future that do not align well with the energizing ingredients that make you special.

My hope is that you choose the first option mentioned above, and invest time and energy in uncovering, embracing and sharing abilities / talents / core skills / activities which come naturally to you. Yes, I’m talking about strengths here. Merriam-Webster defines [strength] … as “a strong attribute or inherent asset”. Everybody has strengths. Creative expression. Public speaking. Active listening. Singing. Working with kids. Snowboarding. Learning new technology. Risk taking. Writing short stories. Painting. Repairing car engines & using tools. Taking initiative. Blogging. These are just a few examples. Everybody has their own unique combination of abilities that are inner motivated, core to who they are as a person. Core strengths are motivated skills that are used repeatedly in early and recent experiences in which you have done well and enjoyed what you were doing. Placing significant strengths at the nucleus of your life and career decisions, leads to maximizing more of your potential. Trust me.

Strengths grow and evolve over time. Core strengths stay fairly consistent throughout our lives, even if the venue, activity or environment where the strength is used, changes. One key to making informed and strategic decisions about our futures, is to take action to recognize, embrace and market our inner-motivated strengths. American icon Barbara Cook once said, “if you’re able to be yourself, then you have no competition. All you have to do is get closer and closer to that essence.” Alternative rock band Audioslave sings, “to be yourself is all that you can do”. Good advice, now let’s get started.

The best place to look when identifying significant strengths, is to reflect upon good experiences throughout your life. Not just happy memories, but good experiences in which you did things well, you enjoyed doing them and you are proud of what you did.

Here are three questions to help you begin the process:

* What is the good experience that first comes to mind? Write a paragraph about it and try to be as detailed as you can.

* In your latest assignment, project, activity or work, which parts of it did you do best and enjoy most? Try for two or more examples.

* What activities give you the most enjoyment when you are not at work/school? These could include hobbies, volunteer work, ventures, projects with the family or anything else. Try for two or more examples.

Now that you are getting into the mindset, try to identify your top 10 good experiences. It does not matter when they occurred, but rather what you did to make the good experience happen and whether there were outcomes that you felt good about. These experiences can come from any part of your life: school, sports, employment, personal relationships, hobbies, travel, etc. Cover all parts of your life from childhood to the present. During this reflection, remember the definition of a good experience: 1) something you did well, 2) enjoyed doing and; 3) are proud of. For each of your top good experiences, write up one or two paragraphs using the STAR method, describing the Situation, the Tasks you completed, the Actions you took and the Results you felt good about. Try then to identify patterns of skills or talents which show up repeatedly in your top good experiences. Pay attention to the obvious and more subtle connections.

After you have identified a list of strengths appearing in your good experiences, take the next step to see if they are significant strengths or not. For each strength, identify three distinct examples of experiences in which you strongly applied that strength. It should be relatively easy to come up with three examples, if the strength you are testing is truly a significant strength. Try to test 6-12 strengths. I know this is not easy. This reflection is important. You can do it.

Consider making deeper examination around your strengths a priority for the near and distant future. Expand your network, conduct informational interviews and engage in conversations about strengths with others.

Many people leave decisions about life, careers and relationships up to chance. We often hope that things will just work out ok. Make decisions about your future a priority. Carve out the necessary time for these important decisions. There is so much about your life, attitude and future which is within your control. Be intentional.

Finally, try your best to shake the social conditioning we all face, of focusing on weaknesses and shying away from self promotion. When you back up what you say about yourself with evidence and examples, you are not bragging, just sharing the truth. Becoming your own-self-advocate takes time and practice. You can do it. Focus on your strengths. Build on your strengths. Incorporate insight about your strengths into career, life and academic decisions. You will end up thanking yourself in choosing that strategy.

Cheers!

Patrick Chidsey
The Career Center
University of Washington, Seattle
Senior Career Counselor
December 2009
chidsey [at] uw.edu

http://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickchidsey

http://www.facebook.com/TheUWCareerCenter

Exploration Seminars transport your education into a global context. Over 40 programs offer you the chance to intensively explore a topic in a small-group learning community, outside of the classroom, during the UW’s early fall start. Exploration Seminars are open to all UW students, and have few prerequisites so that you can access the places, cultures and topics that each program explores.

Intensive, small-group international programs

Unique cohort-based learning communities

Apply Now: http://depts.washington.edu/explore/

Visual Arts:

London: The Arts of Pilgrimage | Books, Map, Manuscripts and Textiles
Italy: Tuscany | A Creative Journey
Japan: Buddhist Art and Religion

Design:

Rome: Design in the Urban Context | The Power of Images, the Art of Propaganda

Cinema:

Italy: Framing Rome | Cinematic Space and the Eternal City

Literature:

France: Surrealist Paris

Wing Luke Asian Museum Presents
Cultural Transcendence

Featured artists: Robert Hodgin, Eunsu Kang, Heidi Kumao, Horatio Law, and Brent Watanabe
Curated by: Lele Barnett

On display: December 18, 2009 – September 19, 2010
George Tsutakawa Art Gallery at the Wing Luke Asian Museum

EXHIBIT OPENING
THURSDAY, December 17, 2009

6:30pm-7:30pm: Open to the general public, Free Admission, No RSVP required.
Not a member? Join now at www.wingluke.org/join or call 206.623.5124 ext.126.

In Cultural Transcendence, five Asian Pacific Islander American artists exhibit works that focus on a step forward from traditional to new media: materials expanding beyond their inherent meanings. Their conceptual themes peer into history but do not dwell on a negative past — inequality, discrimination, and alienation; instead they search the present and envision a better tomorrow. Cultural Transcendence explores the importance of technology in our modern experience and technology’s influence on contemporary installation art.

The following dance performances and drama monologues are the end of quarter projects from the performance art focused Academic Learning Link. Academic Learning Links are a pilot program, created for first quarter freshmen at the UW, and funded by the College of Arts and Sciences (specifically ArtsLink and Slink). The students in the following videos were enrolled in three 5 credit courses here at UW (Intro to Acting, Intro to Dance, and Shakespeare), as well as a 2 credit seminar where they were able to explore and gain a better understanding of the arts communities on campus. For this assignment, they were to perform a one minute monologue or dance piece for their peers.

First of all–what is Bricolage? Well, Bricolage is an annual journal that publishes short fiction, poetry and artwork created by students, faculty and staff. They are not a club that meets weekly, but if you would like to get involved, let them know here!

Bricolage is now accepting short fiction, poetry and all kinds of artwork for Issue 27! The deadline is Friday, December 4th.

To submit, follow these instructions:

1. Email your piece to bricouw@gmail.com as an attachment.

2. In the subject line of the email, you MUST include what category your submission is: short fiction, poetry or art.

3. You can submit only two entries in each category. Submit each entry separately. For example, you can submit two poems and one piece of short fiction, but you cannot submit four poems or six photographs. If you have any questions about this policy (perhaps if your art is meant to be a series of three pieces), please email us and ask.

4. In the body of the email, make sure to include your full name, the title of your piece and your phone number, in case we need to contact you.

If it is impossible for you to send your piece over email, then you can drop it by Padelford A-2-B, the undergraduate English advising office. Make sure to include your full name, title of your piece, your email and your phone number.

IMPORTANT: Please understand that if you do not follow these guidelines, your submission will not be accepted.

If you have any questions, email us your question at bricouw@gmail.com or check out our Contact Us page.

In August 2008, Three Horizons Productions in association with Eureka Films produced a short film version of Out Of Focus in Phoenix, AZ. In July 2009, two additional scenes were shot in order to provide an ending to the short film instead of a cliff-hanger ending.

The current edit of the short film is approx. 30 minutes in length and highlights the main story layers of the feature film script. The short film is meant to be a “proof of concept” to the feature film project. It is also planned to edit a 20-minute version for festival purposes.

Three Horizons Productions is seeking two very talented and dedicated VFX artists – an After Effects Artist and a 3D Animator/Modeler – who are interested in building a very strong portfolio of professional VFX on this project. At the end of the project these artists will own very unique VFX that they can proudly market for their next job.

The two artists will work with a professional Cinematographer (the DP on the project) who is also an expert in Color Correction and After Effects. In essence, this person will act as a professional mentor for the two artists. The Art Director on the project will also work with them and will act as the Quality Assurance/Control expert on all the VFX.

Want more info? Contact:

Isabelle Theisen
Producer/Director
310.487.9293
thp_itheisen@threehorizonsproductions.com

When:Thursday, December 3, 2009, 3:30 – 4:30 PM
Where: UW Career Center, 134 Mary Gates Hall

This workshop will answer your questions about how to start the process of looking and finding part-time or fulltime jobs and internships. It will provide specific steps on how to decide what to look for, where and when to search, and who to talk with. You will leave with resources to begin your research and search process.

Phone Contact: 206.543.0535
Event Contact Email: ccsevent@uw.edu
careers.washington.edu

Come to Parnassus Cafe this Thursday, December 3rd for the first ArtsLink Student Organization hosted event of the year!

ArtsLink is proud to introduce the HusKEYS, UW’s very own Acapella group, in their first Parnassus performance! The event is free and cookies will be provided. Swing by and enjoy!

HusKEYS in Parnassus Cafe

Where?Parnassus Cafe, Located in the basement of the Art Building.
When?Thursday December 3rd @ 3:30pm!
Who?YOU and your friends! All are welcome. Free cookies!

For more information, email us at artsl@uw.edu

This Thursday, December 3rd, is a great time to check out art for FREE in Seattle! Galleries in Pioneer Square open their doors from noon to 8 pm offering food and drinks, socializing, new local and international art. Seattle’s First Thursday is the first Art Walk of the US, and in historic Pioneer Square, it’s really a great scene.

Learn more at “http://www.firstthursdayseattle.com/about.php”

I’ll be heading to the SAM to check out the Michelangelo exhibit and some of the permanent collection. Here is what SAM Deputy Director for Art and Curator of European Painting & Sculpture, Chiyo Ishikawa and Susan Brotman have to say about the exciting Michelangelo exhibit:

This exhibition brings one of art history’s greatest figures to Seattle for the first time. Drawn exclusively from the collection of the Casa Buonarroti in Florence, the show explores Michelangelo’s complex personality and different aspects of his life and career. Centered around twelve original drawings by Michelangelo, the exhibition also features portraits of the artist, personal documents, and decorative arts from the Casa Buonarroti.
The primary focus of the exhibition is Michelangelo’s preliminary work for the Sistine Chapel in Rome, including a selection of working drawings for the Sistine Ceiling and the Last Judgment. Together, these objects give modern viewers insight into the artist’s working process, from sketches to finished studies. This exposure would have appalled Michelangelo, who burned many of his drawings hoping to sustain the idea that divine inspiration, not human labor, was responsible for his celebrated masterpieces.
The Casa Buonarroti was founded in 1612 by Michelangelo’s great-nephew as a monument to his famous relative, on the site of the artist’s former home. Housing original works of art, including the largest collection of Michelangelo’s drawings in the world, it now acts as the protector of the artist’s legacy.

I will also be looking at 3 particular pieces of Ancient Art in the SAM for an Art History course. For those of you fellow procrastinators in 201, First Thursday is a great opportunity to get going on this assignment. If you have already chosen a work to write about, this may be a good opportunity to have another look in person in a festive environment. From my own experience, visual analysis is best done with time, and if possible, several visits in person with the artwork.

I’ll report back on my Michelangelo thoughts soon!
-Milena