Getting Into The Spirt

I'm not going to lie. I'm not feeling the world cup this time around. I don't have cable and I'm just not into soccer enough to put up with a buffering live stream or drink at 10am in the morning.

However, I might be able to get more into the spirt with the help of some creative advertising on behalf of ESPN. In 2006, ESPN used the music of U2 to create different ads which featured the members of the band narrating a short story. In 2010 ESPN is again using the music of U2 in their advertising campaign. However, If you missed the originals I can't think of a better time to take trip down memory lane:

Bono on the Ivory Coast:


Adam Clayton on the Tartan Army


Edge on sick days - I think this one screams the truth!!

My Personal Brand is U2

One of the first people learn about me is my deep love for U2. The music created by Adam, Bono, Edge and Larry inspires, comforts and defines my life on a daily basis.

Defining Smaller is a perfect example. The main picture of the CN Tower was taken at the U2 concert on September 16th 2009. You can see the edge of stage on the left hand side of the picture. Moreover, I've already mentioned Bono a bunch of time and this is only my tenth post. 

I'm proud of my wealth of knowledge about the band and the things I've accomplished because of their inspiration. It's easy for me to talk about and allows for easy conversation when talking with relative strangers.

When a new connection finds out about U2 and I it sparks a range of questions that allow for easy engagement:

Why U2?

Honestly I don't know. It started in high school because I loved the songs Beautiful Day and Elevation. I stole my sisters Best of 1990-2000 and The Joshua Tree and the rest is history

Favourite song?

In A Little While 

Favourite Album?

Achtung Baby!

Favourite member?

Adam Clayton

How many times have you seen them live? twice in 2005 and twice in 2009.

Even if the person I'm talking to hate U2 or hates Bono it allows me to 

engage in easy and interesting conversation. Normally, I ask why and listen to them with interest. I don't expect everyone to love what I do and respect their opinions (unless they Bono bash without a decent reason).

Most of the time people I talk to have the same passion for another artist. If that passion is there, it's easy to make a meangiful and memorable connect with someone that could transform into a great friendship. 

Dream Out Loud: Setting Goals

Today as I made my morning commute to class I picked up a copy of the Toronto Metro. Sitting at the back the bus I browsed my way through the paper. I glanced at my horoscope and couldn’t help but smile.

Under Sagittarius it read:

By all means set yourself new goals. By all means aim high. But don’t aim for perfection. For that can never be reached.

 

As I previously mentioned I am an extremely goal oriented person and I’ve always met my goals. 

For example: When I was 12 years old I decided I wanted to go to Queen’s University in Kingston, ON. I graduated from Queen’s in 2009 with a BA in Global Development Studies. During my second year of university I decided I wanted to be a Fundraiser.  Now I am just a few weeks away from completing my Post Graduate Certificate in Fundraising and Volunteer Management.

For the first time in my life I lack clear goals. That is aside from the obvious vague goals that most of society has: find a job, keep a job and maybe find a significant other. And my goal block couldn’t come at a worst time.

I’ve been reading many books about networking. Currently I’m reading Never Eat Alone by Keith Ferrazzi. In chapter three of his book Ferrazzi describes the importance of having clear goals and understanding how to meet them by using a three-year matrix in which you outline your goals and sub goals and the people you will network with to help you accomplish all these goals.

He states the importance of sharing your goals with others. Apparently this will help you stay more focused on the task at hand. I can’t help but believe this to be true. I was very vocal with my friends and family about my earlier mentioned goals and accomplished them with little difficulty.

So blog readers (if you are out there) here are 4 personal goals I have to share with you.

 

  1: To gain at least 5 followers of this blog by the end of June.

  2: To find a house to live in that I love for reasonable rent by August.

  3: Find away to attend Toronto Raptors games for free or pay by October.

  4: To dance on stage with Bono in the summer of 2011.

Notice how all my goals have dates attached to them. Ferrazzi argues without a deadline a goal is only a dream. Dreams are often expendable, while my last two goals may seem like I’m living on dream land, they are very important to me and by giving them deadlines I am more likely to stay focused on meeting my goal.