Social media & the disaster in Japan

Like every other person on this planet, I've been watching with a sad heart the state of affairs in Japan. The images of this crisis bedded in our minds: flat-lands that look like they're covered with painted popsicle sticks, with the occasional boat, train and even airplanes mixed with the rubble. Entire towns and families have been swept away, with chances of survival bleak. There are many families in Japan who still have no idea if their loved ones survived or not.

Communication has been very difficult during this crisis, and I'm finding it interesting, as well as inspiring, how people are communicating their well-being. I stumbled across this article written by Yahoo! that puts me in awe of the development of the social media and communication world. The two cases mentioned in the article relate the story of people in America who located loved ones through the help of YouTube and Twitter. This is AMAZING. The fact that these outlets exist and are even being used during a crisis of this magnitude is truly AMAZING. We have evolved from a society that tinkered with social media to connect with others, to a society that has is using SM as a means of crisis communication. Social media sometimes gets a bad rep for its usefulness, and these success stories shows the limitless possibilities of SM and its uses.

Here's a link to the article. Read, enjoy, and feel free to leave your thoughts.
http://yhoo.it/fmPXsf

"You can do it!"

Does anyone remember watching the 1997 US Olympic Gymnastics team? I remember watching them flip, cartwheel, and stick their way to the podium as gold medalists. I idolized their effort and determination to get to the top. I also remember hearing the coach, Béla Károlyi urging on the sidelines, "You can do it! You can do it!" (except with the accent, it was more "You con dooo et!"). And he was right, they most certainly did. To this day, I still use this line with a smile when encouraging others, and even myself.

So why this walk down Olympic memory lane? During these couple months (when I haven't been blogging, tsk tsk), I have been applying and interviewing for jobs back in the U.P. of Michigan. I've left the interviews feeling like everything went well, but I can't help but get the notion that the person behind the desk thought I was too young. This inkling may make the potential employer feel as though youth translates into inexperienced, naive and just a baby-faced punk looking for a job. Let's face it, I'm not even a quarter through my life, but that doesn't mean I'm not qualified. I might be young, but I've got a lot of energy and heart, and that's just as good as having a few more years tacked on to my life.

So for my fellow young recent grads or soon-to-be grads who are experiencing similar situations: YOU CON DOOO ET! Don't leave that interview without stressing that point! If you have the knowledge, skills and gumption, anything is possible. We may be young, but we can get the job done and get it done well. If you truly believe this, then say so. Your future employers won't know unless you tell them. Now, let's go take the world by storm, shall we?