Desire is the key to motivation, but it’s determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal – a commitment to excellence – that will enable you to attain the success you seek.

- Mario Andretti

I hear lots of students saying what they want. They want to do this or that. They want to get a job. They want to make a lot of money. They want to be a designer. They want to be a photographer.

I’m calling Bullpoo.

If you really want something, you’ll get it. You may desire the thing you say you want, but you don’t really want it, because you refuse to be determined enough to get it. We’ve talked about this before, but it doesn’t seem to click with many students.

Few people lose. Most people quit. There’s a huge difference. Right now, one of my favorite students is standing next to me. Last year, she was making some decisions (or rather, not making them) and stuck in a cycle. But this year she broke out and she’s a totally different girl. You can see it in her walk, you can see it in her face. She positively glows. And it’s a result of finally DOING what she said she wanted to do. There’s a big difference between wanting to do something, and then doing it. She’s a perfect example of a winner. She overcame her obstacles with determination and drive. It wasn’t easy, but she says now it was SO worth it. She’s a kid I really respect because she quit crying about what she wanted and started walking toward it. She made the change. She threw the switch and kept burning. Last year she couldn’t accept a compliment. This year she doesn’t need one. She knows who she is and she’s proud of it.

Where are you? Are you being a winner or a quitter?

This quarter, you guys should be watching the ACA Test Prep videos. These videos prepare you for the ACA exams, and are HIGHLY effective. If you watch them and pay attention, you will pass. They take between 6 to 8 weeks to complete. And many of you are complaining that they are “too long.” There’s no project that takes longer than the self-portrait we already did. None of the projects should take you more than a week to complete.

Most schools in the nation take a whole year to prepare students for the ACA Exams. Months instead of weeks. This is an industry certification that most colleges will accept as a 3 credit course. And you’re getting it done in 2 months in high school.

If you continue to expect everything to come so easy, why would you ever expect that you should be given anything of real value? What do you do that’s different than anyone else? You want special treatment or an exclusive benefit? Then start working like someone who deserves it.

If you want to have more than everyone else, you have to work more than everyone else. If you do nothing, you’ll get nothing. Would you have it any other way? You get to determine what you receive in life- it’s determined by what you put in to this life.

JOURNAL- How do you respond to this?  Do you deserve anything above the minimum? How much do you GIVE above the minimum?? (blog in the online lab)

Last week’s post was not created due to extremely hectic circumstances. We will now return to our regular programming.

YO! Welcome back! I’m sure that you guys had an awesome break and you’re well rested. And that’s good. ‘Cause I’m about to crank down on you guys! We’re starting Photoshop. Seminole Ridge High is the only school in the world that’s been in the top 3 schools in the world for every year that the ACA has been available. I’d like to keep that going. Add on top of that the new AICE program- and you are in one of the top High School programs for graphics in the world. You’re a part of something bigger than you. I know I don’t promote a lot of this stuff often, and many people in the community don’t even know about what we’re doing- and I have my reasons for that. But we are doing things right, and doing them well. Few students get college credit and AP grade weighting for their design class. We’re working hard to make that happen.

So now for your part.

The ACA Test Prep videos are the keys to our success. They were created here at the Ridge. I made them specifically for you guys to learn Photoshop concepts that are on the ACA test without distraction by other important concepts (which you’ll learn later.) It is possible to get through the videos, and complete the projects in just 2 weeks and pass the test. Once you do that, you have complete freedom in here to pursue what you want. Game Programming, 3D Design, Digital Publishing, Tablet Apps… you name it- if it’s creative and digital, you can do it in here. You also will have access to the machines in class- laser engraver, vinyl cutter, button maker, Dye Sub machines. This class becomes a creative playground once you pass the ACA. I push this because it shows me who knows the basics as Industry has determined them to be, and because you can also use your ACA certification for college credit in an elective design class. It’s good for you, it’s good for the school, and it’s a blast at the same time.

Here’s just a couple of the things you’ll learn how to do in the ACA Video Series:

• Restore that photo of great grandma for Mom and earn MAJOR brownie points
• Create crazy animals or political commentaries to mock your opponent’s positions with class.
• Create a poster with REALLY cool looking text. Not just cheesy fonts. You used to think Word Art was cool?? ‘Cmon!!
• Fix that picture of you and your best friend that has red-eye and colors messed up to put it in a frame.
• Create a poster that shows who you are in a cool, creative way- or make a movie poster about your life!

All that is cool- but even better than that is the fact that after you pass the ACA, you’ll know all you need to know to be able to use the MILLIONS of tutorials that are on the internet to learn whatever you want, or make it on the Wall. (The ACA will NOT get you to the wall. It only gets you to the place where you can handle the tutorials you’ll need to make it to the wall.)

Photoshop is an AMAZING program- you’ll be shocked at the cool stuff you can do with this app. Trust me, you’ll love it. Take the time to learn the basics, because once you know that, you’re unstoppable.

ON SOPA- I’ve heard some talk in class about SOPA. I’ve disagreed with many of your standpoints, but I do want to express that I’m against Piracy (artists should be compensated for their work) but I’m ALSO against SOPA. Here’s why.

Hey guys- Normal post will come a little later, but for now, CLICK THIS LINK  and vote for your favorite anti-drinking poster. Our school’s entries are letters A and D- and personally I like them the most as well. These will be stickers on school busses and the students win some cash and free software! VOTE!!!

Share this with friends and have a vote party. The most votes wins…. Let’s make Seminole Ridge a winner!!!

I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.

-St. Paul in Romans

So I’m in to a new book called “The Happiness Hypothesis” by Johnathan Haidt, and there’s some crazy awesome stuff just in the first introductory chapter!! Check out split brain experiments. Seriously, this is some trippy stuff. So we all know that your brain has two main lobes (left and right), but did you know that they actually kind of operate independently? Or they can, but the right brain (logical) kind of takes things over? Experiments in split brain have revealed a side effect called alien hand syndrome. Trippy. Check out you tube for some videos on alien hand syndrome at home.

So here’s the thing. We are living in a pretty dualistic society here in America. We think of everything as either/or. Good/bad. Cool/loser. Republican/Democrat. Science/Religion. The problem is that life isn’t that way. Reality isn’t that way… as as hard as most of us are trying, we are not that way. Like Kyle’s image for today, it’s the opposite side of our coin, and you can start or end at either side. And we really need both sides for the most effective society, as Johnathan Haidt shares in this TED TALKS video. We’re all the same, we just emphasize different aspects of the same truths.

There is a part of us that is really reactive. It doesn’t think, it just reacts. It’s the reason you jump at a horror movie. You’re in a theater. Nobody there is going to hurt you. You paid money for entertainment. And you just jumped because you thought the killer was going to get you. Makes no sense.

In Happiness Hypothesis, the author talks about our lives as being like a rider on an elephant. We think we’re the rider, pulling the reigns on the elephant telling it where to go. And it’s normally that way. But the Elephant has it’s own mind and it’s own control over itself, it just chooses to (is trained to) listen to and obey the rider. But in an emotional situation where the elephant is scared, it will ignore the rider and just react to whatever is scaring it. Our brain is the same way. We have a part of us that is tamed but still kind of animal.

Ever blurt something out you didn’t mean to say? Ever get a weird thought popping in your head for no reason? (sometimes even thoughts that you think are bad or wrong!) Ever have a temptation to do something weird that pops in your head for a second? Feels like a devil on your shoulder, but no need to worry, it’s just your inner elephant.

But here’s the weird part. Like the people in the split brain experiments, some of us have not learned to keep the two sides of ourselves talking. We ignore or let run wild that part of ourselves that is “bad” or “not really us.” But we need to do more than ignore it or give in to it. We need to train it. We need the logical part of us, the one that thinks and can consider the future, to take control. And the goal is not to kill, ignore, or remove the Elephant, but to keep him under control. To tame his wild ways. To let the human part of us (these higher thinking and ordering skills are what separate us from the animals) make the choices. In fact, it’s the only part of us that can. The other part of us doesn’t choose, it just follows whatever the environment around it tells it to do. It’s a big, stupid animal.

Don’t be the big stupid animal.

There are ways to train the elephant, but it takes some time and diligence. The ancients used Meditation. It’s very effective and free, without side effects.  There are also cognitive therapies that can help (seeing a trained psychologist). Costly, but no side effects.  Today, many people use medication. Costs something, needs to be prescribed, and may have side effects. All three work to varying degrees on varying people with varying success. I won’t give any recommendations to a student on which way to go, but think about taking some steps if your elephant often is taking you places you don’t want to go.

Everyone gets somewhere. Few people get somewhere on purpose. If you’re lazy, you’ll never be in control of your own life. Do something about it. The Elephant is there. You can’t kill him, and if you ignore him, you never know when he’ll act up. But if you recognize he’s there, take the time to do some training, you can work together with him. Let’s face it, an elephant is great to have in your corner for a fight.