How To Get More Involved When Feeling Behind
Have you ever felt like you are already so far behind your peers? Do you fall down the rabbit hole believing that you would never be able to join a club, get a better connection, network with others, understand what you are doing better, and more? Well, I felt this dread and I am here to share my advice on what you can do! Being a transfer student from a small university with few opportunities, coming to Grand Valley significantly changed the trajectory of my career! I thought I would never be able to get where I wanted to be in life because of “how behind” I believed I was. The bottom line is: there is no “behind,” and you can always get ahead in ANYTHING you are doing.
1. Where Do I Start?
Starting seems like one of the most challenging things to do to get where you want in your academic career, but actually is one of the easiest. Questions are never too much, especially in the PR world! Someone in the room is more than likely thinking the same thing you are. If you are scared to ask a question in front of everyone, wait until the class or meeting is over, and head up to someone and ask it one-on-one. There are many resources available online that can help you become a better question asker. If you are not asking questions, you will not start at a base where others can help and engage with you more.
2. Do Your Research
If you feel you are behind in your program and do not know how to get more involved, look into joining clubs within your major. As a transfer student this past summer, I was stalking GVPRSSA and GrandPR on all social platforms. Since I was behind academically, I wanted to ensure I would excel at Grand Valley by joining extracurriculars. With that came research, research, and more research.
3. Can I Work My Way Up?
Simple. Easy. Straightforward answer. Yes. If you have never been on a club or association board, find out what position you would be interested in and ask the people holding those positions. I had to find out who was where (which is simple if you do the research), and I figured out what I was passionate about and went with that role. It might not take you a couple of days, weeks, or months. Sooner or later, you will get where you want to be as long as you put in the hard work to get there.
4. Do You Want This?
This is a genuine question and something to think about. Change your mindset by ensuring you put in those extra hours while everyone else is not. Making sure that you are asking those hard questions that others may not be asking. When you put in those extra hours or work, you prove you want to be better, and others will notice it.
5. Feel Powerful & Passionate
When you feel powerful, you can take on anything that comes at you, and that comes with wanting to get ahead. However, being powerful comes with having the passion for what you love. If you love your major, then you will have the passion for completing whatever steps are ahead of you. Sometimes when life gets hard, you will fail, and failure is a part of growth and feeling that powerful momentum. If you have a powerful mindset with that passion for continuing to grow, then behind or not, you will exceed in your academic and professional life.
Now that you know how to get where you want to be, go try it for yourself! If you feel like you are already where you want to be, there is always more you can do, and always more you can get out of being behind.
About Alexandra
Alexandra Lucaj is a junior majoring in Advertising and Public Relations with a public relations emphasis and a minor in general business. This is her first semester at GrandPR as an Account Associate. Alexandra is specifically interested in social media content creation and community relations. She hopes to one day secure her dream job as a public relations professional for the Chicago Cubs. She also hopes to gain more experience producing campaigns and blogging at GrandPR this winter.