I Got Work To Do....

As I have stated time and time again over the last month, I will not be posting my personal business. Instead, I will be periodically posting information regarding current issues, personal thoughts on certain issues, relavent projects I'm working on, and any other information that I think may be useful.

With that said, before I get into today's topic I am posting information regarding a job opening for people who are interested. If you are not interesed but know someone who may be, make sure to spread the word.



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If you are between the ages of 18-31 and have a high school diploma please visit:

http://www.faa.gov/jobs/job_opportunities/airtraffic_controllers/

This is a federal government position where you can make up to $100,000 with benefits in 3 years tops...no college education is needed because they will provide training. This is a rare open application that the government rarely has...they only have open applications like these when they have a large number of retirees...so get on it, ASAP and do not wait.

I wish everyone the best of luck if they do decide to apply.

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Current Issue's Update

Congratulations on Senator Obama for winning over the most states during Super Tuesday. However, I still encourage people to vote if their state has yet to hold primaries. Even though Clinton did not win the majority of the states on Super Tuesday, she did win both NY and CA. Marylanders are voting on this upcoming Tuesday, February 12th. Register before it's too late and vote if you are registered. Young people are less inclined to vote....let's be mature, adults for once and try to contribute to the change we want to see.

I encourage everyone to visit http://www.savedarfur.org/ and get involved in the Save Darfur cause. For all those who have been living in a bubble regarding the Darfur Conflict a.k.a. Darfur Genocide please vist http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darfur_conflict for a brief description of the issue.

I also encourgae everyone to visit http://www.redcross.org/news/ds/profiles/disaster_profile_southerntornados.html and get involved with Hurricane Katrina Disater Relief. Just because it happened 2 1/2 years ago does not mean that it is not a major ongoing issue. There are still a substantial number of people in need of help. Get involved. NOW.


Relavent Projects

I am currently interviewing for summer and spring semester internships. I have been interviewing for the past two-three weeks. Interviewing is exhausting, I hate it. Gggggrrrr. lol. N e ways...

Hopefully I will be getting a marketing internship with Prudential Financial for the semester. Their corporate regional branch is located here in Pittsburgh. Prudential Financial has been around for a long time and unlike it's competitors, the company still usues traditional modes of conducting business. They have outdated business practices which is hindering their growth as a corporation even though they have a lot of clout.

Most of their marketing comes from the personal ability of their sales people. Anyone who is in marketing knows that the sales arena is a very small but substantially important part of the overall marketing umbrella. People usually associate marketing with advertising and sales without realizing that those are very small parts of it all. Sales and Advertising are the product of marketing overall and not necessarily marketing in itself. Focusing on just your sales department and not actually have a full fledged marketing infrastructure within a company is close to company suicide.

With that said, Prudential Financial is trying to substanially enhance their marketing infrastructure. The interns that they hire now will have a lot of leverage considering it is new territority for this company. The two interns that they hire will be acting Marketing Directors which is an extremely HUGE responsibility. The only thing that I do not like about this position is that by being the primary go-to person, there is not a lot of room for learning because you are the teacher.

As far as my summer internship is concerned, I have made it to round 3 interviews with Harrahs, Inc. Harrah's is the largest casino gaming company in the world. They basically control Vegas and Atlantic City. They are about to open up properties in the Carribean (maybe I'll get to work there in the future!). If I get the position, I will be spending my summer in Vegas Baby! That would be off-the-chain.

I would be a Campaign Analyst Intern it is both a strategic marketing positioin as well as a technical position. There is alot of work involving UNICA, CRM software, and SQL writing in Microsoft Access. Mainly for building and maintaining databases.

I am a little intimidated by the technical aspect of the position but I have experience with SQL writing and building databases in Microsoft Access. I'm not familiar with UNICA or Customer Relationship Management software but they said that they will provide training.

As a Campaign Analyst, my overall job would be to determine the profitability of the stategic marketing plans developed pertaining to the different target markets associated with each campaign. Upon my analysis of each campaign, I have to write reports and give presentations. Harrah's primary strategic marketing plan uses a lot of direct marketing. For all those in this field, you probably know that direct marketing is extremely precise given the fact that consumers are highly segmented and precisely targeted. There is a lot of attention on CLV (customer lifetime value).

Another resposibility of the Camapaign Analyst is that they have to provide training manuals about the software as well as manuals for running good campaingns.

The thing that I like about both internships is that they are highly specialized which to me is extremely exciting.

I have been pondering what I want to do with my business degree over and over and over again and I have decided that I want to go into commercial realestate (this is a big difference from regular realestate that everyone is trying to jump on the bandwagon and get into). Commercial realestate is kind of what Harrah's does. Even though it is a casion gaming company, they invest in properties. These properties are their casinos. Hotel companies are the same thing.


I am still working on my book and it is coming along great (it takes so much discipline to sit my ass down and actually write, ggggrrrr). It is the main reason why I stopped writing personal things on my blog. I figured that I needed to start writing for real. When writing in my blog I have tried different writing styles while writing what is going on in my life to get practice for my actual book (I guess that is why my writing comes off as a bit soap operish)and to become more disciplined in my writing endeveours.

Verlaurus, LLC...the company that a collegue and I established is doing good. It, as usual, is going slow. It's only going slow because we both have a lot on our plates. Furthermore, it is definitely a rigourous learning process. Particularly when dealing with manufacturing companies. Productions and Supply Management is a field that I have little knowledge about (I'm taking a class on it now, though).


Today's Topic: Delaying the Real World

Last Wednesday I met up with an old friend of mine. I had not seen her since December 2006 since I was at home in Bmore all of 2007. She graduated from my school last May and is currently living in Stamford, CT where she works for UBS Investment Bank (I think). She was visiting Pittsburgh because she was doing job recruiting for her companay since she is an alum. Like many of my friends who have graduated, adjusting to the real world has been a lot more difficult than expected. Not in terms of financial stability because a lot of my friends have good jobs, but in terms of life fulfillment.

Many people are under the impression that you work hard, you finish school and overall you will find happiness and be generally fulfilled. But how can you be fulfilled if you never take the chance and live your life the way you want to live it? A substantial number of my friends have worked their asses off getting good paying jobs, they are people who have done what they are suppose to do as opposed to doing what they want to do....and they have done this at the expense of their happiness. The consensus is in: Financial success is not enough.

My friend who I mentioned above, ideally likes the counseling field but never pursued that interest because she was primarily focused on getting a high-paid, prestigious job....and it is very clear that she is not enjoying it. She said that she is still "adjusting to the shock of the real world". In my opinion, I think people like this have yet to learn what living really means. It's never been enough for me to live my life on someone else's routine time clock...no matter how much they are paying me. And it's never been enough for me to stay at a job that I hate regardless how much they pay me. I never was one to live on anyone elses terms and have always done me. Unfortunately this is not the case for more than half the world, and many people's reality SUCKS!

I have come to learn that your reality is what you make it. There of course are many exceptions to this considering life does throw us uncontrollable curve balls...but even then, you get back up and find another way...even when it makes you sick.

I'm beginning to realize that people always manage to find contentment...or rather, contentment finds them. I know a substantial number of people who did not go to college and are content with the nothing they have (financial instability). But then there is another group of people, those are the people who did go to college and are content with inexperience...they do not go out and experience life. After all, isn't that the point of gaining financial stability? The whole general idea is that contentment is the point where you stop having the will to grow. Contentment is passivity. To me, there is no difference between the high school drop out and the college grad whose life is only clocking in and clocking out. In both cases, the person is not trying to get the most out of life. In one case the person is a societal leech and in the other case the person is a societal robot.

There is a book that I came across. It is called Delaying the Real World: A Twentysomething's Guide to Seeking Adventure by Colleen Kinder. A description of the book's premise can be found at http://www.delayingtherealworld.com/intro.php

Super Tuesday

Tomorrow is Super Tuesday. It's the day where the greatest number of states (I think 24 states) hold their primary elections. Whoever wants to run in the Presidential election historically must do well on Super Tuesday to ensure their parties nomination.

Whoever wins the most delegates on Super Tuesday usually wins the nomination. As of right now, the biggest debate is among the Democratic party... Clinton vs. Obama. Despite who wins, I will be voting for the Democrat in the 2008 election.

Here is my personal take on the Clinton vs. Obama issue.

It's true that Clinton and Obama agree on most issues considering that they are both Democrats....but the bigger question that Democrats need to consider is WHO IS THE STRONGER CANDIDATE TO WIN AGAINST THE REPUBLICAN NOMINEE?

The candidates do differ on foreign policy issues and health care. They also differ on the way in which they PRIORITIZE certain issues....even those that they agree on. They are in a way (and I use this term loosly) conservative liberals....but that is what democrats need to win the republican vote during the election.

Regardless who gets the nomination, I'm voting for the democrat in the 2008 election. But I'd rather see the nomination go to Obama. I think he has the ability to win over more republicans than Clinton. Futhermore, Hilary's stance on foreign policy and the war has consistently changed from one debate to the next...which makes me nervous considering there is a war going on.

However, most people would choose Clinton's healthcare policy over Obama's due to the fact that her's is more universal whereas his is more conservative. Obama believes that the US should decrease the cost the health care and make it more affordable as opposed to giving it to everyone because he believes that part of health care is individual responsibility. I agree with him. It is true that everyone should have a right to good health...but everyone needs food too....so should the government be required to provide everyone with free food or do people need to take individual responsibility in trying to feed themselves as long as food is affordable?

As far as experience, many people say that Hilary is older and has been in the political arena far larger than Obama. This is true. But people have quickly forgotten that Bill Clinton was Obama's age when he ran....and Bill Clinton is a HIGHLY respected president. There is no doubt in my mind that Obama has what it takes.


States Holding Primaries on Super Tuesday

Alabama (Open Primary)
Alaska (Caucus)
Arizona
Arkansas (Open Primary)
California
Colorado (Caucus)
Connecticut
Deleware
Georgia (Open Primary)
Illinois
Massachusetts (Semi-closed Primary)
Minnesota (Caucus)
Missouri (Open Primary)
New Jersey
New York (Closed Primary)
North Dakota (Caucus)
Oklahoma (Closed Primary)
Tennessee (Open Primary)
Utah (Closed Primary)
West Virginia (Closed Primary: Republican only)


** Those who do not know the difference between an open and closed primary election here are definitions as follows:

Closed

Voters may vote in a party's primary only if they are registered members of that party. Independents cannot participate. Note that due to the appropriation of the term "independent" by some political parties, the term "non-partisan" is often used to refer to those who are not affiliated with a political party.

Opened

A registered voter may vote in any party primary regardless of his or her own party affiliation. When voters do not pre-register with a party before the primary, it is called a pick-a-party primary because the voter can select which party's primary he or she wishes to vote in on election day. Because of the open nature of this system, a practice known as "raiding" may occur. "Raiding" consists of voters of one party crossing over and voting in the primary of another party. Although no cases can be shown where this has happened successfully, the theory is that opposing party members vote for the weakest candidate of the opposite party in order to give their own party the advantage in the general election.


Since I'm from Maryland and go to school in Pennsylvania, I'm posting their primary election information as well:

Maryland February 12th (Closed Primary)
Pennsylvania April 22nd


Unfortunately I will not be able to vote in the primaries :-( because I am registered in Maryland as an Independent. Since Maryland only allows you to vote in the primaries of your political party (closed primary), I will not be able to cast my vote for Obama since I'm not registered as a Democrat. I'm going to try to change my voter status to Democrat and register in PA before the PA primaries.


If you are reading this and will be participating in Super Tuesday or your states primaries, I hope that you take careful consideration of the very brief arguement that I presented to you and hopefully you'll vote

OBAMA 2008