Human Touch

In a lot of my classes over the course of four years at Auburn, we have talked about the world become globalized.  Some may ask, what is that? What does it mean?  The world we live in has become so connected with countries and people that live on the other side of the globe.  Our world really is flat.  A conference call can be done with headquarters in Japan and a company in the United States within seconds.  Making it so managers do not have to visit headquarters or CEO's never have to check up on their individual companies.

To me, this is a lazy excuse.  We has humans (leaving businesses out of this) think it is just okay to just text one of our best friends to see how they have been.  We think because we are friends on Facebook and see all their posts that we are somehow still be emotionally connected to that person.  How is our friend we are stalking suppose to know we actually care if all we do is 'like' a status and never actually have a real live conversation with that person?

Telephones (meaning picking up the phone and having a conversation) have become extinct to some people.  This is a huge problem.  Especially because our alternative is texting and driving.  You can't tell me that you get the full idea of what someone is trying to get across is a lyrical status, a silly Tweet, or a text message.  And you definitely can't pay full attention when you are driving (well at least you shouldn't be).  One thing I am trying to make a habit of is not using my phone in the car.  It is extremely hard!  I am still guilty of using it on occasion but the more I think about how important an actual conversation is with someone the less my phone matters to me.  Talking to the anonymous world of Twitter is not the last point of contact I want to have before I die.

Let's not lose connections or relationships with someone because all we do is "talk" online.  We'll lose sight of who people really are when all we do is look at what they post on the internet.  This goes for people and businesses.  One of the most important things I have learned in the past four years as a Hotel and Restaurant Management major is that human touch (not a physical touch) is the most important part of a guests' experience.  It should be the same for a person to person contact as well.  The human touch experiences mean much more to a guest (or person) than a reply to a Facebook post.

Disclaimer: I am not saying that all of social networking is terrible because everyone knows I use every bit of it.  However, if that is the only form of communication you have with someone you might want to reevaluate that relationship.

To reconnecting with the world,

Kayla

Let's Catch Up

A lot has happened since my last post on February 1st.  Birthday's, Anniversary's, Holiday's, and Races!  Let's start from the beginning...

February 10th was Brenden's birthday.  He turned 22 and like any college kid just wanted a relaxing night not to worry about college and life.  Well, on Friday Brenden accepted an offer from a company in Arkansas and has an official start day for May! I am very excited for him and proud that he secured a job way before graduation.  And I might be a little jealous. :/  Before the job offer, Brenden kept telling me he has always wanted to see Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw in concert.  The first few weeks of January, I found out Kenny and Tim were touring together this summer and just had to get tickets for him for his birthday.  So I did.  But the concert is in Atlanta... and he just accepted a job in Arkansas.  Let's just hope he can some how make it there because he was very excited about the tickets (at least he acted like it!).  

After a fun night with friends, we made our way to Birmingham were I was running my second half-marathon on Sunday.  We made it to Birmingham and had the opportunity to hang out with my family and see my friend that set Brenden and I up.  It was so great to see her and spend the night at her cute little apartment in Birmingham.  

Sunday morning, bright and early, in the freezing cold, my Dad, Katherine, Allison, Allison's little brother and Dad and I ran a half-marathon in Personal Record (PR) times for all of us.  I cut 23 minutes off of my time from last year and was able to keep up with my Dad which is an accomplishment in itself.  Allison, Jacob, and Katherine completed their first ever half marathon in 20 degree weather with a wind chill of 15 degrees! It was such an accomplishment for all of us and I, for one, could have never cut that much time off of my first one if it hadn't been for the love and support from my family and friends.  Also, I never could have kept a 9:17 pace if it wasn't for my Dad's competitive spirit and drive to push me to be the best he knows I can be.

After running two half-marathons, having support is definitely a key component in running the long distances.  You don't realize how big of a factor that little emotion has on someone.  Knowing that people want you to succeed and do well makes a world of difference when you do anything but particularly long distances.  Now I am trying to decide, "What's next?" Another half-marathon, a full marathon, or a sprint triathlon? Decisions decisions.  As my sister would say, I am mentally ill!! :)

After running and driving back to Auburn shortly after the race, Brenden and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary of dating.  This sounds silly as I type it (like I'm in high school or puppy love) but to me it was something to celebrate.  I'm not big on Valentine's day so our celebration was just on Sunday night.  I got a gorgeous watch and stylish sunglasses from Brenden and I reminded him of the two tickets I gave him on Friday. :)  Brenden made an excellent steak dinner and we were able to talk about all the changes that are soon to happen to the both of us.

In all of my classes, we are reminded constantly "there should be an action plan for any event, it should be updated regularly, communication is vital, and recapping is of the utmost importance".  That's kind of how our talk was on Sunday night.  What's going well, what can we/I improve on, and what is coming up that we need to plan for.  The past two years have been a growing period for the both of us (he is going to be so mad I'm writing about this on the Internet).  We have developed as young adults and are about to embark on a big step into our adulthood.  We still have a lot to learn about each other and we continue to do that everyday.  I've heard before, if you can make it to the two year mark, you can make it forever.  I don't know how true that is but I sure hope it is. :)

Until next time,

Kayla

One Month Down

Wow!! January flew by.  I can't believe today is February 1st! I graduate in just 3 months and 5 days, Spring break is 38 days away and Brenden's birthday is 9 days away. Can time just slow down a little?  I guess that's why I'm "Running Through Life".

Tonight I did some reworking of my blog (new design) and thought of changing the name of it.  After this month, I've started to realize my life 1. never stops and 2. goes by way too fast.  So I thought why not change the name to something a little more relevant to my life?  Well, honestly, the title is very relevant to my life.  I'm staying busy, time is going by fast, and I'm learning so many things along the way just like running.

My race is in less than two weeks and I'm getting really excited.  I love competing and challenging myself to reach outside of my normal routine.  Even though I run in my normal routine, I don't normally run at 7 in the morning, in Birmingham, with thousands of other people.  Putting myself through something that is so different from my usual routine gets me excited and makes me realize that there are things outside of my tiny little box.

This month has a lot of exciting things coming up. Birthdays, anniversaries, classes will be halfway finished, and training (for SOS) will be almost complete. WOW.  That's all I can say! WOW. This month is going to fly by too! Good thing we have an extra day this month ;)

I've been keeping a hand-written journal since the first day of school this semester.  It has been really short entries but it has been interesting to go back and see all the little (and big) things that have happened in this month.  After keeping this daily journal, I'm starting to realize that my time is very precious.  I don't normally do anything that isn't going to better prepare me for the future.  This month, I am taking extra care of my time.  Like I said I only have 3 months left until graduation then the real world is going to start and it's going to be just as fast.  I better get at the starting line now because race time will be here before I know it (the actual race and the race of life!)

-Kayla

Let Me Explain Myself

It's been a recurring comment I've gotten that my blog, Twitter, or Facebook make people feel terrible about themselves.  I wanted to take some time to write a blog hoping to clear some things up.

First, my blog, Twitter, or Facebook were never intended to make people feel bad about themselves.  I only hope to motivate people or maybe make them think about themselves, life, or choices they may come across in life.  I would never want to tell someone what to do or make them feel like I know everything because 1. I don't and 2. I don't like when people tell me what to do either so I wouldn't tell my followers what to do either.

Second, my blog, Twitter, or Facebook are there to help me just as much as they are to help the people that read them.  Putting things out there so the world can see it keeps me accountable and makes me realize that people are watching (or reading) and that I need to be the best version of myself at all times.  Also, it's a great way to track different problems I may be having and see how I handled it in a previous scenario.

Lastly, if it bothers you that much please don't waste your time reading my social media stuff.  I honestly only do it to help better myself and other people.  It is my passion to motivate and encourage other people.  So I won't stop what I write (or type).  I know this doesn't apply to everyone that reads my blog, Twitter or Facebook because sometimes I get excellent comments back that make me feel like I am actually helping someone out there.  But if it hurts you or makes you feel terribly about yourself first off ask me or tell me about it and hopefully I can change something to make you feel better about yourself.  But if that doesn't work for you please feel free to de-follow me in the social media world.

Thanks to all my followers who enjoy my blog, Twitter, and Facebook.  I only do it to help other people and I hope that I can make some change, motivation, or encouragement for you!

Goodnight,

Kayla

Fearing The Unknown

I am a planner.  Plain as that.  I want to know what's going to happen, when it's going to happen, and what is going to happen after it happens.  This year is a year of unknowns and I'm freaking out.

For as long as I've been alive I've always known what's next.  After third grade, I knew I had to switch schools.  After fifth grade, I knew I was going to the big middle school.  After eighth grade came the frightening high school.  Even though I didn't know what would happen in college I knew that I was going to Auburn after I graduated high school.  I came to Auburn knowing exactly what I wanted to be when I grew up.  After a year of struggling in classes that dream went away and new plans came into play very quickly (because not knowing scares the crap out of me).  After switching degrees, I began planning my future immediately to figure out where I would work and what I would be.

After two years of planning what I would be after graduation, I have no idea what those plans are and honestly  I don't think I ever knew what I wanted to do.  Graduation is less than 4 months away and I have no idea where I will be living, working, or doing with my life.  I guess this is suppose to be fun for some people but my personality doesn't care for this unknown at all.

I have no idea how to plan what will happen after May 6th because it isn't in my control.  The best thing I can do is hope that what I think I want to be and where I want to be will eventually fall into the "plan".

Talents

Everyone is talented.  Whether you know what that talent is or not you have one (or more).  You will succeed much more in life if you can identify that talent and maximize on it.  Some talents are followers, some leaders, others do-ers.

Sometimes you think you may know what your talent is but after further investigation, you realize you were no where close to what you thought.  What do you do then? You realize your potential in your new found talent and strive to meet new and exciting goals.

Recently, I have discovered I may not have the talent I always thought I possessed.  Realizing this new talent is making me reconsider where I want to be in a year.  Learning how to maximize on your talent is the hardest part.  Especially when you thought you were special at something else.  Once I fugue out how to be successful at this then I will post another blog.

My challenge to you is to figure out what your talent is and dig deep to figure out how you can be the best you can be. What is your talent and what do you do to be successful? Let me know in the comment boxes below.  Good luck!

-Kayla

2012 is Going to be a Great Year

Happy New Year!! I cannot believe it is 2012! I feel like it was just yesterday it was 2008 and I was graduating from high school.  Now I'm 5 months away from graduating college and jumping into this big ole world!

New Year's Eve is a day to reflect on what went well and what went poorly and on New Year's Day you think about how to fix the bad and move on with the good! For me, this is the best day of the year.  I set my New Year's Resolutions and prepare myself for a year long of being busy and much needed change!

My New Year's Resolutions are: to have a more productive way of working out (instead of just going to the gym to get on the elliptical), be nicer to the people I care the most about, get a job, rent or buy a place to live (whichever makes more sense), and manage my budget.  Also, I hope to write more blogs.  Maybe not as long but more often.

Life is going to be extremely busy this coming year and everything is  going to change! I cannot wait to see what the new year has in store but I must take it one day at a time.  This getting older has made the years and days go by way too fast.

They say whatever you do on the first day of the year is what you will do for the rest of the year.  Today I woke up in Atlanta (I'm hoping to move there in May), came home and ran 9 miles (must stay fit), helped Mom cook low-fat chicken noodle soup (must eat healthy), and spent time with my family.  If this was the first day of the rest of the year will be like, I am in for a GREAT year! :)