Tag: experience

Germany Week 1: I’m not dead!

I arrived and am alive!

So the first question you may be asking yourself, “Did Mike make it”? The answer is yes. The next question you might find yourself asking “what have I been doing the past week”? Well, let me tell you.

Classes started the 5th and I arrived at 6:10am on the 2nd to Frankfurt airport. Feeling overwhelmed at the airport, I quickly found the nearest Starbucks,which I suppose is better than going to McDonalds. After I had time to collect myself, the rest of the OSU squad arrived and we took a taxi to downtown Frankfurt (don’t, it cost 74 Euros!).  Frankfurt is basically the Wall Street of Europe, so there were plenty of skyscrapers and people in suits. When we arrived, we checked in at the youth hostel, had lunch, and then napped for a few hours (super exciting!). After our lovely nap, we decided to explore Frankfurt. Besides there being a lot of brothels (we didn’t go in, I swear!), there were…

Churches!!!

20160902_170209

I took a lot of photos but the one above is my favorite and is simply here to illustrate the fact that we explored around 3 to 4 churches, all of which were very beautiful. Just to give you an idea of scale: 20160902_170516

After the churches, we found…

20160902_171215

A bridge with love locks! A lot of love locks! That’s about it. It was cool, but nothin’ special.

And Then…

20160902_175416

The creepiest statue ever. And then…

20160902_181633

The chillest statue ever… But of course, I wouldn’t be a good business major if I didn’t take a photo of…

20160902_180459

The Bear and Bull of Frankfurt! So yes, it’s confirmed! Frankfurt is indeed the Wall Street of Europe if there ever was any doubt.

What else did I do? Ah yes, after Frankfurt I arrived safely in Mosbach via train. The housing is amazing and i’ll have more photos on the way… But for now, just to give you an idea of how awesome this experience has been thus far, here’s the bed i’ll be sleeping in for the next four months.

20160909_082958

Yes, it does have zebras! That’s all for now, cheers and stay classy friends!

Germany: What Have I done?

Life is about experience. If you had asked me a year ago where I saw myself a year from now, I bet you I wouldn’t be saying Germany. Yet a little over year ago, I asked myself a simple question, “why not”? I was taking summer classes at the time when I read an email saying “Hey, Study abroad is pretty cool, come listen to some guest speakers from Germany and Sweden talk about the programs”.  So I went. Sometimes that’s all it takes, a little nudge in the right direction. When I went to info session, I fell in love with the German program and as much as I’d love to say I did hours of research into every country I could experience through study abroad, Germany had me at Oktoberfest. I had my reservations at first but here I stand just a week away from what will be the greatest experience of my college career. So…

Why Go?

Perspective – It’s about understanding. The world would be a better place if everyone went abroad and learned that we as human beings are more similar than we are different. More so than understanding similarities, study abroad is a great way to teach you to value the differences.

Independence –  The great quest of the college student, learning how to Adult properly. You can spend your entire college career thinking you can Adult and are getting quite good at it only to realize once you graduate you’ve been doing it completely wrong. What better way to learn how to Adult the right way than in a foreign country?

YOLO – You only live once. Was there ever a truer statement? Is study abroad a risk? Of course! I could end up living in a box when I get back from Germany because I spent all my money on beer. Who knows? But if we didn’t take risks, face our fears, and live for experience, then we wouldn’t get anywhere in life!

You actually save money! (In theory) – Groceries are cheaper, housing is cheaper, textbooks, etc. As far as I know, I’ll actually be saving money while overseas! Probably not, but one can dream.

But the main reason you should study abroad…

For Blog - Germany entry 1

As I said earlier, life is about experience, or better yet, life is about adventure. If we’re not moving forward, we are either standing still or moving backward. It is absolutely terrifying to take a leap of faith and say “I’m going to live in a foreign country for 4 months”. Yet the very fact that I’m terrified makes this opportunity all the more exciting. When we are afraid, it means we are outside of our comfort zone. Every time we step outside of our comfort zone, we grow. We push our limits and set new standards for ourselves. Our comfort zone expands each and every time we face our fears and that’s when we say “what’s the next adventure”?

 

Embracing Chaos

So let’s start where it all began; The Big Bang. The Universe was in harmony, molecules bonded, planets formed, life was created. The Universe was in order. Every moment that passes the Universe expands ever faster and the unforeseen happens, bringing a little more chaos into our lives. Is it bad? Not at all! I may sound like a mad man, but hear me out.

So, what is chaos? Chaos represents that which we cannot control and that scares a lot of people. Control gives us a sense of stability, so as humans we seek to control the world around us. Yet this is a futile effort. We have this illusion of control, that somehow our lives will be better tomorrow than they are today. This is not guaranteed. Some may say it comes down to perspective, that if you think positive, your life is all sunshine and rainbows. This is a false assumption. Optimism only goes so far and it can be a slippery slope. Being overly optimistic can lead to a false sense of security. It can become easier to ignore reality than face that the world can be a cruel, unforgiving place. “Good to Great” wisely stated (I’m paraphrasing, but you’ll get the gist) that optimists don’t survive in the real world. The people who survive believe they will prevail but set realistic expectations. So pessimists rejoice, you have the right attitude (just don’t have a rain cloud over your head)!

I have spent my entire college career trying to answer what role chaos has played in my life. Like the great human being I am, I spent the the first two years trying to control the chaos with no avail. Then I simply let the chaos control me. And then, I invested a lot of time and energy building myself from the ground up, the typical reinventing that many-a -college-student goes through. What did I find? Once I understood how to control myself, how to self manage and all that good jazz, I didn’t see chaos as such a detriment. I wouldn’t say chaos and myself are BFF’s right now, but I’ve found life to simply be more enjoyable. I know what you may be thinking “hey, he figured himself out, that’s great! But doesn’t the act of finding/creating yourself help reduce chaos?” Yes and no. The way I see it, investing in yourself is the equivalent of being handed a compass. A compass may point you in the right direction but at the end of the day you can choose any map you want to follow. But there’s a difference between looking at a map and having direction vs. actually setting down the path you’ve chosen. All the preparation and tools in the world won’t prepare you for reality, the environment and situations you may or may not come across. You may find that the road you chose to wander down is a dead end. If you are afraid of chaos, you’ll turn around and retread your steps. The familiar will  always give a false sense of stability. If however, you embrace chaos, you might say “this road is blocked, but I know where I’m headed, so here’s another road that’ll get me there”.  So go ahead and embrace chaos, you won’t be disappointed.

The best ways to reduce stress

So, you’ve missed that deadline. Instead of getting the job done you’re stuck in an endless cycle of procrastination. You keep trying to get caught up but it only leads to more stress and procrastination. What do you do? Well, I say, take a step back and breathe. Remember that the world is not coming to an end and there’s always tomorrow no matter how rough today may be. So here we go, proven methods on how to get rid of stress and feel better about tackling your problems head on.

  1. Read a book – If it seems like the world is falling apart, it’s not. We tend to think our mistakes are a lot worse than they are. If you’re about to start kicking puppies, I suggest picking up a good book instead. A book will help take your mind off the problem you’re facing and you can just let the hours float by. By the time you’re ready to stop reading, you’ll find yourself feeling refreshed and ready to tackle whatever was bothering you head on. If not…

  2. Invest in a stress ball – Simple yet so effective. I’m not talking about those cheap stress balls that companies give away for free. I’m talking about a high quality, 4 dollar stress ball that you can give a good squeeze and feel your muscles tense, then relax. Quality stress balls also have the added benefit of being throw-able if all else fails. Give a stress ball a few chucks against a wall or just throw it back and forth between your hands and it’ll keep you distracted and hopefully will make your mood a little better.

  3. Go on a run –  I’m not talking about a treadmill run (those are nice and will help you reduce stress) but rather a run where you set a trail and go on an adventure! Running should be fun, not a chore. Those who say they hate running set unrealistic expectations. Running is a chance for you to take in the scenery and think through your problems while constantly moving forward. Getting yourself to put on your running shoes is the tricky part, everything else after that is amazing. I recommend having a running buddy, but honestly running is just as fun alone as it is with a friend. 

  4. Take a nap – I’m a man who loves to nap. Why? Because I care about my health. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve tried to force myself to get work done and only had that lead to further frustration because I just couldn’t figure out that tricky problem. We’ve all been there. Then one day I said “Fuck it, I’m taking a nap” and guess what. When I woke up I went to work on that tricky problem and what took a matter of hours before my nap I was able to accomplish in a few minutes. Yes it seems like the last thing you want to do when you’re crunched for time and stressed, but it falls under the philosophy of “sharpening the saw”.

  5. Do a creative hobby (something that you love) – Whether it’s dancing, listening to music, singing, painting, or photography, just take a step back and rock it. You’re most likely at the point where you’re not going to get any work done anyways, so why should you spend your valuable time stressed. Go work on that painting you’ve been putting off, go sing your heart out. Life is too short, so shouldn’t you spend most of your time enjoying it? I’m not saying don’t be responsible, all I’m saying is sometimes you need to take a step back from the grind and take time to really invest in yourself

So there you have it people. A guide to help you find ways to breathe when the world appears to be crashing down.  This is not a guide on how to get work done but rather more of a way to keep your sanity when you loose your way! Thanks for reading and remember to breathe!