October 31, 2013--"We Have Nothing to Fear but That Huge Guy With an
Axe"
The dictionary defines fear as
“an unpleasant emotion
caused by being aware of
danger; a feeling of being
afraid.” I describe fear as “an
unpleasant emotion that I will
do just about anything to
avoid.” The season of scares
and chilling thrills has been
upon us for quite some time,
and it has been marching us
toward Halloween with the
deliberate gait of Michael
Myers.
I don’t particularly care for or
enjoy the scary stuff of
Halloween. I find it almost
annoying when I’m flipping
through the channels and I
inadvertently stumble onto
some gory nightmare
sequence. Just last week I left
the room for a few minutes
after finishing a movie on
AMC, and when I returned, my eyes were scarred by the scene from It where Pennywise, the clown, pulls unassuming, innocent
little Georgie into the sewer. Georgie didn’t deserve to die—he just wanted to see some floating balloons!
I reached out to the ECU staff today to find out some of their favorite scary movies, and why they found them so scary. Just as I
expected, most of the answers I received were perfect. The parts that follow in parentheses are my thoughts in response.
The Ring—The part where she crawls out of the TV. (Indeed truly scary. I actually covered my eyes the first time I watched
this movie.)
The Shining—He seemed like a normal husband, father, and provider. Then something went terribly wrong. (I’d say so. To
this day, I pray that
I never run into twin girls wearing Sunday dresses while I'm on my tricycle.)
The Wizard of Oz--The wicked witch gets really scary and creepy, not to mention the stories that went on behind the scenes.
(Parts of this movie
are genuinely frightening, but none are as bad as the sequel The Return to Oz. I hate even mentioning it.)
The Strangers—I think it was scary because it was based on true events. (Saw this in the theater in the middle of the
afternoon. Couldn’t sleep
for three days. No lie.)
Scream—That mask made it scary for me. (I never thought this one was that bad. Scary Movie kind of ruined it for me.)
The Cell—It’s inside the mind of a killer, and it’s really strange in his head. (I would assume so. I’ve never actually seen this
one. I think it has
Jennifer Lopez in it, and that's enough to scare me away.)
Ghostbusters—Something about that marshmallow man just didn’t sit well, or the green slime coming out of the bathtub.
Now we just call that
plumbing problems, I guess. (Look, I was a chubby kid. The idea of a giant marshmallow man sat very well with me.)
The Birds—There really aren’t many murderous dolls that come to life (none, that I can think of) or Jasons hiding behind me
in the bushes (lucky
you,) but birds are everywhere. And to this day, when a big group of them are chirping, I get really creeped out. (Me too. I
don't know who
birds think they're fooling with those weapons on their faces. Face weapons. Think about that.)
Halloween—Any Michael Myers’ movie. The scariest parts are when the music starts, and you know he’s about to come
around the corner. (A
classic horor franchise. I've actually known a couple of guys named Michael Myers. None of them were serial killers. I think.)
Signs—It was scary because I’m a big baby. (I saw this at the drive-in in college. It was fun to sneak up behind people and
scare them.)
Howard the Duck—No explanation necessary. (If the idea of a man-sized duck that can talk doesn’t scare you, I don’t know
what will.)
Scary movies play on our fears in order to entertain or thrill. What is it that really, truly frightens you? For some it’s a home
intruder. For others it’s large groups of sparrows fluttering in a tree. All too often, we have fears with no possible way of alleviating
them except deep breaths and the arm of a loved one. There are things in the world that should scare us, but we can take steps to
prevent some of them from happening.
Don’t fear someone stealing your identity. You can enroll in IdentitySecure today. Don’t fear the unknowns of retirement. Sit down
and talk with C.S. Wilson and Associates. Don’t fret about job loss or personal disability. We have services that can help with that,
too. Take the guess work and fears out of your finances. Put that stuff on us. We can handle the bad guys. Thanks for stopping by.
October 23, 2013--"Doing a
Little Good Will (Job)
Hunting"
I’m not sure using a movie is the best way to decide
what you want to do with your life, but it’s what I
did. After a weekend rental of Good Will Hunting in
high school, I decided I wanted to be a
psychologist. Four years later, I graduated with a
degree in Psychology. What Good Will Hunting had
forgotten to tell me was that a bachelor’s degree in
Psychology doesn’t really do much for you except
make your family think you are qualified to help
them with their problems. I quickly found myself
relegated to the career options of social work and
social work.
After nearly 5 years of working with troubled
children and youth in foster care and residential
placement, I realized I no longer wanted those GWH moments. I needed something different, but my passion for working with
students remained strong. I went to work for a small, non-profit company where my position was grant funded. I soon became
aware that this job was more temporary than permanent.
One of my tasks in this job was to help the company raise funds through a community impact fundraiser. I attended a business
networking event one morning in an attempt to find major donors where I met with a local credit union representative. In a
fortuitous twist of fate, she and I had attended high school together and graduated in the same class some nine years earlier. We
traded business cards, and she asked that I come by her office to further discuss the fundraiser.
A week later, I sat in front of this young lady asking her to write a check to help the fundraising cause. The discussion turned to my
current job, and I told her I was a few months from unemployment because of quickly evaporating grant money. She then told me
that she was hiring for a Financial Educator position, and asked if I was interested in the job.
Three weeks later I started as a Financial Educator/Marketing Specialist. I’ve been with this company for over three years, and I’ve
never been happier in a job. It has given me countless opportunities I never dreamed were possible, and I also make more money
than I’ve ever made before.
I majored in Psychology in college. I now give financial literacy presentations and market a credit union for a living. I am a walking
advertisement for how networking can get you a job. I often think about my current position, and become immediately grateful that
I wasn’t a huge jerk in high school. My current boss would have never given me money for a fundraiser or offered me a job had I
been.
Networking can take you places you never thought you’d go. You can build a solid network if you focus on the following:
1.
2.
Be Nice. No one wants to be around, much less employ a grouch.
Be Diverse. If you work in finance, volunteer for Salvation Army. Show range.
3.
4.
Be Proactive. Seek others out. Ask how you can help them.
Be Patient. Not everyone you meet will offer you your dream job.
Author Rasheed Ogunlaru said, “What people say and feel about you after you’ve left a room is precisely your job while you are in
it.” If you do a good job, people will know.
This blog was recently featured on a great website for financial wisdom, The Money Side Of Life. This site covers everything you
could ever want to know how to spend and save your money. Check it out. They're good people. Thanks for stopping by