Fashion-aprevailingcustomorstyleofdress,etiquette,socializing...this is the dictionary.com definition of fashion. As I am one day away from graduating from The Art Institute of Indianapolis I define Fashion as the way we as individuals express ourselves in a non verbal approach!
Looking back on my education I can say with much satisfaction It Was All Worth It!
As I spent 3 years or better yet 1,095 days eating, sleeping, breathing, and becoming what is Fashion I learned that you can never truly know what fashion is... Besides learning the definition of fancy terms, the history of each garment and designers that paved the way for me to do what I do best, and the buying plans that orchestrate what is OTB ( open to buy) I have truly learned something that is way more important...How To be Myself....How to relate to people..and most importantly how to build and maintain great relationships with people! It is in invigorating
to have the fullest amount of satisfaction with myself.
Looking forward I am excited to embark on this oh so fabulous journey called...My Life!
In General Education Capstone I really enjoyed the way the entire class was set up. Starting the quarter I felt that this class was pointless and unnecessary however, to my surprise it was the exact opposite. We learned a lot about ourselves as students and soon to be industry professionals. Some of the aspects that I enjoyed most about the class were the TIB paper and blog, most of the weekly blogs, and the information and knowledge that i gained through being inside the classroom with such a diverse group of students all in the same stage of life that I am. This class was a great way to wind down the time here at AI with some reflection over the past three years and some direction for the next three years!
Reflecting over all of our general education classes it was unanimous that although some may not have given us what we expected they more often than not gave us what we needed at that time. Through workshops, teams, and the sharing of ideas from a multitude of different people I believe that we can all agree it was all worth the wait.!
Song: Need to Breathe, Something Beautiful. (2009)
Photos: Katherine Justice.personal
I believe that my life is telling a story. From the time I was a teen I had a vision of what I wanted in life and where I thought my steps would lead. One year on a vacation with my aunt to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan we had plenty of time to discuss what I believed my life would be like. I began talking to her about what my passion was which was the fashion industry but how I was unable to draw and sew. As she listened to me talk about what really made me happy she says to me “Katie, you know that you could go into the buying end of retail, right?” this area would allow you to work with fashion and not construct, sew, or draw. It was from that vacation on that I decided that I could work in the same field that I was truly passionate about. I believe that God had his hand in my life from that vacation to the next time this subject began to come up. I was finishing up my last year of High School and deciding on where I wanted to attend college. I knew what I wanted to major in but had no idea where I wanted to go to school. As I went on visits places in Chicago and Bloomington neither settled right with me. After my Ai Indy visit I knew it was the perfect “fit” for me.
It was a Sunday night a few weeks before I was scheduled to leave and I was nervous, as any high school graduate is about leaving for school, and I was at Church listening to a message about believing that God is always there and how he has a plan for everyone. I began to get a sense of fear that maybe I wasn’t making the right decision or maybe there was a place better for me when I went up to the alter to justweep and pray asking God if I was choosing the path he had already started for me. As I am standing there I feel a strong hand on my shoulder and my uncle praying over me and he said “God is already setting the stage in Indianapolis, for you”. I began to weep because there was finally a peace about what I had been feeling. I believe that there is always an answer for your question, always a shoulder for your tears, always a light at the end of a dark tunnel, and always a path set forth by your creator for you.
Looking forward I believe that my path and my beliefs are telling a story about me. My personality traits, my talents, and my connections were all a part of what I was created to do and although sometimes I feel that I screw up and say the wrong things, I know it is only because I am human, God is still working in my life and on my path to mold me into the woman, creator, and worker he has set forth for me to be.
Although I am a but late...I have a few ideas for pictures and music. The entire idea behind my TIB essay is about finding out who I am and where I intend on going. It talks about my beliefs and ideas about how i got to where I am.
For music ideas I want Need to Breathe to sing " Something Beautiful". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueP05bkWVvQ
This week you asked us to talk about the awful IDEA Survey...like Kristen mentioned in her blog I only enjoy taking it when I don't enjoy the class of the instructor because this is the time to correct there behavior. Although the idea behind the IDEA survey is good it can sometimes be redundant. Here we go...
IDEA Objective 3: “Learning to Apply Course Material (to improve thinking, problem solving, and decisions). I feel that this is imperative to each and every major at this school. One of the greatest benefits to attending Ai in my opinion is the well-rounded education that we recieve. In the FRM program we are taught so many aspects of the "industry" as a whole. I feel that once I recieve my degree I can go into so many facets of fashion whether it is production, concepts, trend forecasting, graphics, or even retail. We learn so many talents that our skill set is hightened.In this class I feel that we do a great job of doing assignments that coorilate to the curriculum and to our major.
IDEA Objective 8: “Developing skill in expressing myself orally or in writing.” This objective is great because I feel that we have litereally touched on this every week in class. We are always writing down ideas, thoughts, and essays talking about our gen ed classes and our future objectives and then asked to discuss our findings in class. This is true to a majority of my classes here at AI. In class we are always speaking in front of a group of people and giving a presentation on our findings.
IDEA Objective 10: “Developing a clearer understanding of, and commitment to, personal values." This objective, I feel, is mostly related to this class. Every week we are asked to write about our own thoughts and feelings about certain topics. Sometimes it can be hard for students to truly understand who they are or what they want to be but at this school we have a body of individuals who already know and understand themselves.
Overall, I feel that this class does reach all of these objectives! Throughout the quarter we have truly examined our thought process, critical thinking skills, and gained a better understanding of personal values.
While researching what to talk about not only for my blog but for my This I Believe Essay I found it challenging yet rewarding to think of something or someone I truly believe in... Believing is such a strong word it literally means "tohaveconfidenceinthetruth,theexistence,orthereliabilityofsomething,althoughwithoutabsoluteproofthatoneisrightindoingso." When looking for a TIB story off of the page I researched stories under the "faith and religion".
http://thisibelieve.org/essay/23042/
I chose this essay titled " A daily walk just to listen" because often times that is the exact opposite of what I do. I feel that sometimes in my professional life along with my personal life I don't listen as much as i talk whether it is giving advice, talking with God, or even talking to family and friends...I talk... Susan spoke about how her daily walks just to listen inspired her...she was able to take what she "learned' on her walk through her notepad and pen to teach others and truly become an inspiration. By listening and learning that sometimes we can get the most out of our silence.
As I look forward I can see that I need to take time to myself to listen and be given advice by the one who knows my future...instead of always trying to guess what steps I need to take next.
When reflecting over last week's class I began looking into some of my SWOT characteristics...I discussed that my strengths deal with leadership roles, mentoring, communication, networking, and building relationships. My Weaknesses deal with my attitute and the tone of my voice when talking to people along with procrastination. Some of the oppurtunities that are open to me are my networking possibilities within my industry along with the ample amounts of places to work such as: Chicago, New York City, and Los Angeles. Some threats that I could see getting in the way are procrastination and my creativity is sometimes lost in working hard to perfect other objectives. In my major we have done the SWOT analysis for every company, group project, and individually since we started however, I feel that this is one of the first times I have really been able to seperate the different areas of conflict in my specific abilities. I was President of Beau Monde for two years and one of the hardest parts about being in a leadership role was working out "issues". Everyone brings something completely different to the table and on top of that each person takes direction differently. My persoanlity type and my weakness were sometimes challenged in this area of my life. I have learned from all of my activities and responsibilities on how to interact with a group of leaders so that I am not stepping on any toes in the future. My hope is that when working in the industry I can use my SWOT to better myself and the company I work for.
I wanted to go further about working in groups with people who you are or are not similar to personality (profile) wise. Last week I was in a group with two guys that were completely different then my personality type and It was extremely easy to work with them. Their personalities are more laid back and relaxed while I am high strung and overly organized. When deciding what to do for the task assigned to us it was easy for me to take the lead and discuss roles for completing the assisgnment along with ideas about what we may want to display. If we are always working with the same types of people as ourselves things would honestly never get done...
However, when we learn our personality types and the types of people we are working with on a daily basis it will become easier to communicate and accomplish tasks. Another reason it was nice working with people who have differing personality types was the fact that they had completely different and sometimes better ideas than mine. Individuals look at everyday life differently...therefore when we begin to appreciate that and work with different types of "profiles" we may be able to get more accomplished...
Looking forward I would reall like to take my weaknesses that come along with my personality type and begin to disipline myself to build up my weaknesses into strengths. Along with recognizing co-workers profiles and learning how to work effectively with them.
After completing the Insightgame.org quiz I learned even more about myself than I already knew! The first result was ESTJ which meant that I was "Assertive, practical, rational, loyal,
opinionated and decisive, the ESTJ is an organized, take-charge person who brings others into
line by assigning tasks and roles, giving clear-cut instructions, following up regularly to check
progress and giving formal recognition to those who do as they’ve been told." I feel that this is an accurate description of my personality. I can see this mentality in my work life, school, and even within my personal life. It also talks about how ESTJ's do not like to be innovative with certain policies and pre-exsisting cases but I feel that Personally if i can find a better way to do something or innovate a better model I will most certainly do so!
I was in close race to an ESFJ which is similar to the one I just talked about and is exactly like my personality as well. It says that "ESFJs are outgoing,
sociable, practical and organized. They pride themselves on their reflexive skills to harmonize,
entertain and nurture others. Duty, personal service, manners and social order come second-
nature to this type. Warm, friendly and naturally talented at working with others and organizing
people and events." I feel that I do a great job of making others feel welcome, planning events and social functions for family and friends, along with being able to nuture others in a constructive way.
Both of these personality Profiles do a great job of explaining the personality types that we deal with on a daily basis along with showing us how our personalities come across to others.
As I reflect over all of my General Education classes I quickly realize how important they were in shaping the person I am today. Each class was a stepping stone in a new direction and honestly sometimes it was the thorn in my side. However, after you get through it you realize how much you learned and how much the experiences that others discuss if often times the medicine you need to survive. While sitting in Dobson's Art History class it was clear to me that he was all about teaching us how to become more independent of the thought of "homework" but the idea of wanting to "learn"....I know that sounds completely ridiculous but so many times as students we feel like everything is busy work...well that is not true.
Tieing everything together...from gen ed classes that helped to make me a more well-rounded student to my major classes that brought out my passion and what inspires me my experience and time at AI has only gotten better. I would not be who I am today without Ai.
As I begin my last quarter on campus here at AI I can already tell that it will be a quick one.I am excited to explore what this class and this quarter have in store for me.As i look back over the last three years working towards a degree in the industry I am truly passionate about, becoming a leader for the student body as Previous President of Beau Monde, a mentor for incoming students living in residential life as a resident advisor for the housing community, and lastly as a part time sales specialist with BCBG Max Azria I can tell that these years have truly been a stepping stone for my future endeavors.
I am looking forward to the growth that will take place from this class and the recap of my general education courses here at AI. So many classes and instructors have truly been an instrumental part of my time at AI but only a few have left an imprint in my education. As I reviewed my Course Audit the main classes that stood out to me were Critical Thinking, Sociology, and Psychology taught by Sarah Vincent. Each of these classes used textbook topics and learning curves along with her dynamic ways of illustrating live and pressing issues to convey major points. For example, in Critical Thinking we were forced to work in groups to accomplish various tasks that were related to the specific topics of the week. Every time I was in class it was warm, welcoming, informational, and exciting which made me want to attend each and every week to see what else was in store.
I truly feel that every general education class has not only taught me about specific topics and course related materials but about myself and the goals I should set for myself along with the action plan to carry it out. I am looking forward to the new chapters in my life...
