Brainstorming for Storyboard

After deliberating for a while over a solid topic, our group eventually decided that steroids would be a solid choice.  We then moved on the topic of our video.  None of us were against the idea of filming a video and we all thought that we had fairly good ideas that would make for a good video.  We began brainstorming and jotting our ideas out onto a sheet of paper.  The paper was very unorganized and random but it ended up being a great way to collect our thoughts before we began the actual story boarding process.  We talked about a number of different ways to approach our video.  We discussed the pros and cons of doing steroids in professional sports versus portraying steroid use in high school or college level sports.  We discussed having just one story and following that story very closely or having two separate stories and having them collide in the video.  We ended up deciding that having two separate high school boys, me being one and Matt being the other, was the best route to take.  Matt and I would both be attending the same high school and fighting for the same scholarship on the football team.  We would both meet with our coach and discuss how we were both well-qualified for the position and whoever showed that they wanted it more would get it.  We then go our separate ways.  Matt then decides that he is going to take steroids to try and cheat his way into the scholarship.  I take the traditional approach and work as hard as I can without any supplements to get the position.  Matt ends up winning the scholarship and all the girls at our school have taken notice of his large muscles.  I grow more and more jealous until Matt is eventually caught taking the steroids in the locker room of the gym and reported to the coach.  At this point we go on to discuss the downside of steroids and how it is actually not beneficial in the long run.  We are going to attempt to present our project with a double screen, showing what Matt and I are doing at the same time.  Katelyn and Katherine will be narrating the entire film to minimize confusion.  They may also play the role of the girls that Matt and I are trying to get to like us.  We will use some of our friends for other positions such as the coach and other football players on the team.  We have finished our storyboard and are going to begin filming today.  We have also already divided up the different parts of the paper that we each need to complete and have set due dates for ourselves.

brainstorming for media project

We dove right into the brainstorming process as soon as we had assembled our group together.  As is often the case with group projects, everyone has a different idea within their head about how they want the project to go.  The process of breaking this idea down to make room for the other group members ideas is often not an easy task.  You must strain and squirm to keep your mouth shut when an idea is presented that does not fit into the schema that is present within your head.  This however did not seem to be the case for our group.  I found myself inspired by my group members ideas rather than disgusted.  This was quite a pleasant surprise, for it was not often that this happened to me when confronted with a group project.  I typically felt like the only one who had good ideas and I would end up taking over the project even though I did not want to simply so that my fellow group members terrible ideas would not make it.  This was an exception though.  Finally I had found the perfect group..hopefully.  We began talking about animals and thought that might be a good subject to start on.  After brainstorming about different video techniques, we could not seem to narrow it down enough to make it a concrete topic.  Then we discussed the idea of sports in high school and what issues might arise within them.  From there we talked about kids not making the team or making the team based off of certain stereotypes.  This idea eventually evolved into the subject of steroids.  Steroids, a very common drug used typically by men to gain incredible amounts of muscle have caused a great amount of controversy over the years.  We decided that there would be lots of good information on this topic and it would be a good one to settle on.  We then discussed our parts within the video.  We determined that we would create two stories happening at the same time, one involving steroids and the other not, and have their paths cross at some point in time.  When the paths cross, we talk about the positives and negatives of steroid use and how it effects children in high school.  

writing center

I made my way to the writing center on wednesday around 4pm.  I got there and met with the lovely Samuel to discuss my paper.  At this point I did not have as much done as I would have liked to have done but I went none the less.  I had mostly only worked on my introduction and two of my main body paragraphs which were fairly long.  I gave him a brief overview of my topic telling him that I was still working out how I wanted to word my thesis and how I wanted to structure my argument as well as my body paragraphs.  I told him that I wanted to discuss how introverts were much more effective at doing things than people give them credit for and that society is far to bias towards extroverts.  They are the ones who people think are the ideal friend because they now how to talk to people and always want to do something socially.  I explained the positives of introverts that I wanted to get across.  I told him they were extremely good listeners making them good when working in groups because they take everyones thoughts into consideration.  They also are very thoughtful in general because they enjoy spending time alone and thinking about what is going on in their head.  This means that when they make a decision, they are much more prepared to make that decision.  He then proceeded to read my paper much faster than I could read a single sentence.  He stopped briefly at a few places to ask me what I ment and made a few gramatical errors.  He said he liked what I had so far but that the information was a bit scrambled.  We discussed several ways that I could better organize the information including using better transitions between paragraphs.  We also talked about different ways that I could organize my argument so that it would make a little more sense and make my paper flow better.  He also mentioned that bringing in some information about extroverts would be more helpful than just talking about introverts the whole time.  He wrote down all these notes on the draft that I brought in and then our time was all but up.  I left feeling much happier about my paper until I began working on it again.  But that is ok, I will bounce back from my slump.

Research outline

INTRODUCTION:  With the population of the world growing rapidly, the amount of human interaction is also increasing at a staggering rate.  People are being forced into closer quarters causing the amount of connections to increase.  After all, all humans love to make connections with other humans.  Whether a business connection or a very personal connection, they are all important.  With this increase comes and increase in the diversity of people’s personalities.  Some people are more removed from society while others thrive on interaction and cannot lead a normal life without it.  Throughout history many leaders and successful businessmen have been both introverts and extroverts. 

THESIS: Introverts, however, have a greater chance of raising their social status and being successful in the long run than extroverts.

BODY: Mohandas Gandhi was a very influential leader in India.  He led his whole movement based on the idea of a peaceful revolution.  Through fasting and peaceful protesting he was able to change the direction of an entire nation.  Gandhi was in many ways an introvert.  I will look further into his personality and what he was able to do as a leader due to his personality.

BODY: Mother Teresa was a very shy and soft-spoken nun.  Many were surprised when they met her that she was able to make as large of an impact as she did.  She ministered and looked after the poor and sick for over 45 years.  She was able to make an impact simple because of her charitable ways.  Through her great acts of kindness she won multiple peace awards and quickly gained international success.

BODY: Warren Buffett is an extremely successful investor and philanthropist.  He is widely regarded as one of the most successful men in the world.  He also has an introverted personality.  He is known to be very reserved and shy.  Many people say this is one reason he is so successful as an investor because he has such a cautious personality, he has an eye for the right and the wrong time to invest.  He is almost completely giving away all his riches to various charities with about 83% going to the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation (Bill Gates also has an introverted personality) and is leaving almost none for his children to inherit. 

ORGANIZATION:  I plan to deeply explore the personalities of these three introverts, what made them so successful, and how they got to the point of success.  I plan to explore their lives and show how they would not have achieved as much success if they had different personalities. If I feel that the paper is lacking I will add another example of a successful introvert (Joe DiMaggio, Hillary Clinton).

CONCLUSION:  Recap what was said in the introduction.  Talk about the differences between introverts and extroverts.  Mention what about an introverted personality makes them successful.

Extra Credit Pendulum visit

I started my adventure around 6:15.  Why this time you might ask? This is the hour of greatness.  The number six was viewed by the Greek Gods as even greater than the number three, traditionally the most called upon number.  The number six is also worn by Lebron James, arguably the best basketball player in the world right now, and also worn by my very own father.  For these reasons, when the clock struck six, I knew this was the time for me to go. When I left my dorm, the sun was just setting and the Clemson skyline was unlike it has been on any other day.  Presented before me was a dark and dreary sky with the exception of a small hole in the clouds directly above the crest of a distant mountain.  Peaking through this hole were gentle rays of sunlight taking their last breaths before they were covered by the impending darkness of night.  These rays projected beautiful shimmers of orange and purple light creating a soothing blend that reminded me of a soft freshly baked kaiser roll.  I began to walk towards the pendulum and quickly discovered that I was ill-prepared for the trek.  There were numerous puddles of rain water that seemed to be attacking my skimpy non-waterproof shoes.  I persevered through this challenge and eventually made it to the pendulum with soaked shoes.  The whole time I was walking over I was wondering if would be moving or not when I got there.  When we took the field trip in class it was not working.  It seems that whenever I hope for such things they never seem to come true but to my surprise, I rounded the corner and saw the ball slowly swaying back and forth.  My excitement overtook me and I let out a gentle cry that sounded similar to the horn of an old volkswagon bug.  The cry actually never came out but if it had I imagine that is what it would have sounded like.  I was as happy as a fox in a hen house.  The excitement, however, wore off very quickly as I realized I was getting cold and my feet were getting more and more pruned.  I did take the time to read the label and discover that it was build by the physics professor Albert Reed.  I then grew bored and headed back to the comfort of my dorm. 

Research in progress

After visiting the Cooper Library to start my research, I immediately realized that my topic was too broad and it was very difficult to find specific information.  Making my topic more sharp and concise will come as I do more research but for now I have found some interesting sources that may help me in that process.  The first book that I came across was a book on the personality and character in the White House.  The book is essentially analyzing all of the different presidents and how their personalities played into their success. Although this is not directly related to being an introvert or an extrovert, after looking through it briefly, it became clear that this could be very helpful for my paper.  The book goes into detail about how Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, and John Kennedy were all very outgoing people and that this contributed to their success in many ways.  It also talks about John Adams and Woodrow Wilson and how their shy and reclusive personalities affected their time in office.  I look forward to reading more deeply into this book as it seems to have very good relevant information.  This source could be very helpful in my body paragraphs by providing multiple examples of actual people and their stories.  I also found several online journal articles that go into detail about the differences between and introvert and extrovert and what makes a person fall into either category.  One sentence that stuck out in my mind describing extroverts was that there is little or no barrier between their feelings and expression of their feelings.  I found this very interesting because it gives a definite line between the two types of personalities and how to tell if a person is one or the other.  One word that particularly stuck out in my mind when describing introverts was cautious.  Everything they do leads back to being cautious and not jumping right into things.  These article will be helpful in my introduction and conclusion because they will provide a good foundation, giving the audience a good idea of what the two types of personalities are.  I also found a book sitting on my roommates shelf while watching TV one day that I think may help provide some good information.  The book is on Steve Jobs and it analyzes his personality and success throughout his life.  The book goes fairly in depth describing his personality and this may be a helpful source to back up my argument (if I ever find one).  I am hoping to find a few more good sources to help my body paragraphs but I think that I am off to a good start so far.

Free write: Research Paper

I would like to compose my research paper on the positives of being an introvert and extrovert in todays society.  I would like to research more deeply the benefits of both types of personalities and how they add to society in their own separate way.  I became interested in the subject after reading an article in TIME magazine which analyzed the two types of personalities and the positives and negatives of both.  I want to further investigate the former leaders of our country and famous figures of the past who made a large impact on the world and how their personality played a role in their success.  Leaders such as Gandhi who changed the world through the use of non-violence and peaceful protest.  Martin Luther King Jr. is also a great example of a leader who used non-violence to achieve great things.  Other famous figures who carved their way to fame through the business world such as Bill Gates or Steve Jobs would also be very interesting to research.  I want to research the personalities of these people and analyze what about their personalities made them successful.  I do not think this topic will be too hard to find information on.  The article I found in TIME magazine will provide a great deal of helpful information.  With some research in the library, I may be able to find many books on the topic as well as biographies on the important figures that I want to discuss.  These biographies would be helpful in analyzing the personalities of these famous people and what their thought process was that led them to their fame and success. There is also a great amount of information on this subject on the internet.  From surveys to experiments, this could be a very interesting topic with a great amount of information to support it.  I want to organize my paper by first talking very generally about the two types of personalities.  Talking about how people who are introverts or extroverts approach love, music, their home, their job, and many more day to day things. I then want to slowly progress into a more in depth analysis of different famous figures and the importance of their personality.  I want to stress the fact that both types of personalities have been achieved success.  This topic is not only very interesting to me but it also is a topic that has not been looked into extensively.  Although I do not believe it will be hard to find information on, it may be difficult to piece the information that I do find together in an organized fashion.