Tag: design

Providing Service: Gaining Experience Through the PWC

Elizabeth Slatsky
Elizabeth Slatsky, Social Media Manager for the PWC
By Melissa Lawrence

Professional Writing students frequently engage in emotionless, business-like writing. Unlike other English concentrations at UAB, professional writing requires students to write briefly and concisely. Despite the mechanical nature of professional writing, students in this concentration can still create meaningful products and impact their community.

For instance, UAB’s Professional Writing Club (PWC) partners with a nonprofit organization, Wordsmiths, to help design a literary magazine each year. Throughout the process, UAB students help Birmingham City students acquire the necessary skills to succeed in future careers.

Wordsmiths offers creative writing classes for students attending Birmingham City Schools or living within the city limits. They aim to provide students in 7th to 12th grade with free opportunities to develop creative writing skills. Each year, professional writers and college volunteers work with Wordsmiths to instruct a group of up to sixteen students. They educate the students through extensive individual feedback.

Since most Wordsmiths students are enrolled in schools where seventy percent of students need free or reduced lunches, Wordsmiths focuses heavily on preparing its students for college. Not only do volunteers assist with the students’ creative pieces, they also help with standardized testing preparation and college applications. Wordsmiths shows students how to submit their work to writing contests across the state and the nation. Additionally, students who have enrolled in this after-school program every year since middle school receive a $2,000 scholarship when they graduate high school.

Ultimately, the organization desires to show students that their abilities are valuable and worth improving. They believe that each student has a unique story, and they encourage students to express themselves through short stories or poetry.

The PWC first began collaborating with Wordsmiths in 2014. The organization hoped to continue publishing their students’ work in an annual literary magazine, but it was too expensive and time consuming without the help of the PWC. To save the nonprofit organization a significant amount of money, UAB students now design the layout for the entire publication. A representative of the PWC meets periodically with Gin Phillips from Wordsmiths to ensure the club’s work meets her expectations.

Although UAB students do not directly meet with the Wordsmiths students, they enjoy knowing that their hard work enables young people to have their voices heard.

The PWC’s Social Media Manager, Elizabeth Slatsky, expressed the emotional significance of the project by saying, “I really like knowing my work will have a positive effect on someone. Also, I remember how much I wanted to be a published writer in high school, and I wanted my work to be taken seriously. Creating something that looks professional and polished that the students will be proud of is important to me for this reason. I want to create something they will be proud of.”

At the beginning of the project, PWC members learn how to construct a layout for the magazine within Adobe InDesign. As they format master pages, they also select fonts and designs for the publication. Members then learn how to design a cover page for the magazine. In this process, they often utilize photography skills and gain some Adobe Photoshop experience. This year, a PWC member photographed Rail Road Park to create a unique cover.

When Wordsmiths send in their students’ poems and short stories, PWC members learn how to place their work in the publication while preserving each student’s unique style. After the club completes the project, Wordsmiths receives a final PDF that is ready to print.

Any UAB student can join the PWC and gain valuable experience while designing Wordsmiths’ creative writing magazine. Through this project, students acquire an extensive familiarity with Adobe InDesign. Specifically, students master setting up templates, creating paragraph styles and managing a 60-page document. Students also develop valuable negotiation skills from working with their clients.

Through this project, PWRC students obtain skills for future careers in publishing, and they create a product which many members of the community can enjoy.

Professionals Have Standards

Student working on a computer, courtesy of UAB Image Gallery

By: Evan Harris

How to write and how not to write—those are the questions. When a person writes they need to do so with purpose and with a focus on how they want their message to be received.

In Fall of 2019, I am taking EH 340 Developing Digital Documents and EH 301 Read/Write/Research for English. Both of these classes have helped my writing style become more professional and focus-orientated.

Know your audience

When a person writes a professional document, one of the first things they have to consider is their audience. Whether you’re emailing a professor, writing a term paper or drafting an article for a publication, you should always know who your audience is and edit your content accordingly.

Font choice is another valuable consideration, as well as page design and format. This type of thinking is something I have learned in Dr. Bacha’s EH 340 class. I would seriously recommend this class to anyone. Developing Digital Documents nudges you to become creative and design publications in a way that both invites and holds the reader’s attention.

Know your focus

You should always know why you are writing. Professionals write to instruct, inform or persuade. These purposes will help guide the reader’s interpretation.

When you write, you should never assume your reader already knows what you’re taking about. You are the expert and must convey information to your audience, so emphasize your message. Your writing should have clarity; the reader must be able to understand what the document is about in the first thirty seconds.

Writing professionally is a skill everyone should acquire. You might be selected for an interview just because you chose the perfect font to make you stand out. If you you would like to improve your writing, I would definitely recommend the classes I listed above.

What is Markdown?

By John Channell

Part of this Article in the Markdown Language

Markdown is a Markup language, which may seem confusing from the name of the language. Like HTML, Markdown is a language used to better format information for the general consumer.

A few reasons why Markdown is important in the grand scheme of professional writing is the ability to post information to website applications such as WordPress. For the coding, websites such as GitHub will use Markdown as the general file language to brief the users on what exactly they are looking at. Including more information, this article will also have a small tutorial so you can familiarize yourself with the Markdown language.

The most common editor for the Markdown language is known as the What You See Is What You Get (WYSIWYG). This is used by websites such as WordPress and is a handy tool for looking to get content out quickly. Alongside WordPress, many websites such as Reddit or Discord will also use Markdown, or a generalized version of it, to help users get their point across. Coding software including Visual Studio Code, Atom, Sublime Text , and even something basic like Notepad or TextEdit can also be used for Markdown. The beauty of Markdown is how simplistic it is to edit things together. It doesn’t take hours upon hours of learning a language.

What do you need to get started with Markdown? Honestly, not much, just some kind of editor and the syntax (keyword) guide. For better seeing and understanding Markdown, Dillinger might be your best choice as it is made precisely for Markdown. For further reading on the Markdown language, the free and open-source reference guide will be your best bet. Head to The Markdown Guide’s website to see more of the entire language.

While looking at Markdown in a code editor, it is purely what you type in, without much formatting. If you want to bold some text, you need to put two * characters so the language can interact with it.

The same goes for italics, but that will only require one * character. These are the simple syntax characters that you should learn as they might be the most used characters when writing in Markdown.

Thanks to the different applications, you can write simple code blocks to make it easier to read, which is why it is the preferred language of websites such as GitHub.

```html
<p>For example, this is some HTML code built into the language. The only thing that 
renders is the code, and it <b>does not</b> get processed.</p>
```

Within professional writing, learning Markdown can be a beneficial skill. Many publishing websites will most likely still use Markdown or a version of it. Learning it early can put you leaps and bounds above some competition that has not started to delve into the Markdown language.

Next time you’re working on some article, try to convert it to Markdown if you have free time. Learning Markdown is one skill you will not regret learning.

Beginner’s Tips for Website Design

By Kristen Williams
headshot of Courtney Lassiter
Courtney Lassiter

With so much taking place online, effectively designing and marketing websites are important skills; but, acquiring those skills can be difficult.

The problem? Apart from taking a Digital Publishing course, there are millions of places to look for advice, but what advice is actually helpful?

I turned to UAB Digital Media for guidance, interviewing Courtney Lassiter, a Media Fellow. Her job involves producing creative content for the University, as well as editing and building websites.

And pursuing a career in graphic design means offering tips on design and marketing is in her wheelhouse.

Below, I’ve condensed her many helpful tips into a few practical ones:

Developing Your Layout

Courtney joked about her habit of analyzing every menu she encounters, but stressed that it’s because of the important role layout plays in any visual medium. It’s a major part of marketing.

“How you lay out the content completely changes the meaning,” she said,
“if you have something that’s poorly laid out it’s not going to convey what you want to say effectively.”

Practical Step: Start on Paper

Creating a “wireframe” sketch for your site’s layout on paper (like this example Courtney traced in Adobe Illustrator) is a great starting point.

example wireframe sketch
Wireframe sketch

Then, a program like Sketch (which she recommended), can help you transition those ideas into your website. “Sketch is cool because it allows you to see the differences between various screen sizes, like desktop, tablets and phones,” Courtney said.

However, Sketch is only compatible with Mac and does charge you yearly,
so you might want to check out some alternatives depending on your budget.

For designing visual content for your site, Canva offers helpful design templates, works on Windows and Mac, and has a free option.

Using Links Effectively

With this tip, Courtney discussed that when linking to other sites you never want to send your audience away completely. That is: you don’t want your audience to leave your site for another within the same tab. Courtney explained that if you link to another site like this “[your audience is] going go there, and they’re going to stay there, and they’ll never come back.”

Practical Step: New Windows

screenshot of new tab
Direct your links to open in a new tab

Instead of leaving your site for another, have links open in a new tab.
She stated, “that way they’ll have to at least come back and exit out of [your site].
Always make them come back to you.”

Be Mindful of Accessibility

This, she claimed, is “the most important part of designing a website.” Courtney said: “if you have a glass hamburger, it’s nice to look at, but you can’t eat it.” That’s a similar problem for a website that’s visually appealing, but lacks accessibility.

Practical Step: Assess Your Content

According to Courtney, some ways to check your website’s accessibility are: assess who it might be alienating, ensure content is functional and, again, examine the layout.

Resources

Additional helpful resources she mentioned were:

Her parting advice: “It’s never going to be perfect.” However, following these tips can put a beginner on track to generating a high-quality website.

Why Do We Give a CRAP?

By Luke Richey

Discovering Design

Visual Rhetoric Flyer
Visual Rhetoric flyer

Design permeates virtually all aspects of professional communication—from writing resumés, memos and cover letters to pitching a new product line or advertising an upcoming event. How that information looks matters and can be the difference between it being picked up or thrown away.

Backtrack to Fall 2014, when I had just entered my first professional writing course at UAB and was asked to design the cover for that issue of MEMORANDUM with absolutely no idea what or how to design.

Being a complete novice at the medium, I searched for help anywhere I could find it. Between Robin Williams’ (not the comedian) book, The Non-Designer’s Design Book, and a fellow UAB student and graphic design major, I learned a few tips that could help any professional writing student who wants to start dabbling in design.

Williams stresses the need, when designing, to make CRAP—but the good kind of CRAP. Williams’ CRAP stands for Contrast, repetition, Alignment and Proximity. Which, in a nutshell, means:

  • make the design stand out and create an impression on the viewer
  • introduce and repeat common themes throughout the work
  • do not throw space on the page haphazardly
  • organize elements in a way that makes the design “flow” well

When designing, a balance between consistency and contrast creates an effective and appealing design that grabs the viewer’s attention and keeps them interested. When designing, nothing should be arbitrary. Words, images, figures, etc. should work well together to enhance the composition rather than of weaken it.

Identify, Inspect, Innovate

From the graphic design student, whose name unfortunately eludes me, I learned to play with colors and fonts, get inspiration from other sources, and make the design unique—tailoring it to my own preferences.

Design can be fun; don’t be afraid to play around and look for things that appeal to you. And yes, it’s alright to look at other designs and other people’s work. This inspiration can spark a concept—an image—that takes from that design and works well with what’s already visualized in your head.

Finally, remember to create your own brand, a design that is unique to you and your personality. Just like writing, creating a design that does not fit you can come off as stale and uninteresting. Trial and error is always a part of the process and will make your designs that much better.

If you’re interested in understanding more of the basics concerning the four principles of design, Williams’ book can be purchased here.

Document Design: The Need for Attractive Documents

Andrew Atchison

In a society where an overload of visual information provides constant stimulation, attractive design is necessary in order to stand out. Billboards, advertisements, and personal brands should have a unique style to make them stand apart from the ordinary so they can sell products while still conveying the necessary information. Even a personal brand is essentially selling a person’s services or intelligence; résumés, curriculum vitae (CV), and personal statements hold vital information for an individual to be accepted into professional schools and even employment. According to a study published by The Ladders, admissions committees and employers often spend an average of six seconds viewing a resume! With this thought in mind, the important information these documents contain must be readily available and accessible in order for an individual to have an advantage over competition.
Document design should not be a daunting task. A few simple techniques can transform a document or advertisement from bland and ordinary to attractive and visually appealing. Keep in mind that design can easily be over done and the end product will not be effective.

  1. Choose a typeface wisely. Don’t be compelled to use Times New Roman because professors require it for academic papers; it’s used so much in the academic world that it has become outdated. Any easy to read font will be sufficient for the body of the work.
  2. Bold and underlined text is not the only way to make information appear important; use a different font for this information. Just make sure it works well with the other font.
  3. Put information in places that make sense. An address in a résumé shouldn’t be contained in the personal skills section.
  4. Use color(s). However, choose colors that work well with one another and make sure the product is still easy to read in color. Use a color wheel if choosing colors becomes a problem.

These are just a few techniques that can be used to make most documents stand apart from others, but there are many more. Just remember to try not to create ordinary and outdated documents because viewers will associate those qualities with the author’s personality.

 

The PWC at UAB

Having the ability to communicate well is a desired trait that all employers are looking for. An integral part of that is written communication. The Professional Writing Club at UAB (PWC) has been established to help students understand and excel in written discourse. The PWC was founded last year by a group of Professional Writing Majors whose goal of was to create an open forum where the field and study of Professional Writing could be shared and explored across all fields of study at UAB.

The PWC has since achieved official recognition by the University. With this recognition and under the guidance of UAB faculty advisor Dr. Jeffrey Bacha, the PWC now has the credibility and knowledge to help facilitate its mission: “To equip students interested in Professional Writing with knowledge and experience to prepare them for the workforce. To network with professionals in the field, and participate in industry-focused workshops. To come together with others and innovate the future of the Professional Writing and Public Discourse program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB).”

Following with this mission, the PWC has hosted several workshops on different elements of professional writing. These workshops have been on such topics as: résumé building, creating a Cover Letter and the basics of Photoshop. These workshops stressed the importance of good written communication and how to attract the eye of potential employers. Dr. Bacha lent his expertise and led the workshops, but they were planned and executed by the elected student officers of the club. The Photoshop workshop provided insight into one of the most widely used image editing software around and showed how design is an important part of professional writing. Having a good knowledge of these documents and the concepts associated with them is an important asset to have when job hunting. That is another key part of the PWC: giving students knowledge beyond what they might find in a classroom.

The PWC hopes to continue in this vain by hosting guest speaker events. The best way to learn about how professional writing crosses all sects of industry is to hear from those who use it in their professional lives. The PWC plans on having several guest speakers come and discuss with the club what professional writing means to them and how they apply the craft in their fields of industry. These speakers will show just how diversified professional writing can be, as well as, provide “real world” knowledge of the craft. Another way that the PWC will be providing real world knowledge is by executing professional level projects for UAB and the local community.

Avoiding the Classroom: A Study in Unusual Jobs

by Brandon Varner

After announcing to someone that you have chosen to major in English, the reply is usually an inquiry about the student’s plans for teaching.

Well-meaning relatives and strangers you interact with on the street assume that once you have your B.A. In English, you are prepared to spend the rest of your life teaching at some level, or getting involved in academia. The idea of the English major as a teacher only is not only outdated, but unrealistic in today’s society, where the salary for teachers dwindles and the job market is so very unforgiving. In this article, I have highlighted only two of the many options available to new grads.

Music Editor

Benjamin Lukoff was the music editor for Amazon.com, an indexer for Microsoft’s Encarta, and is now an editor for Seattle Children’s Hospital. His duties included, but were not limited to writing music reviews, suggesting new music that was prominently displayed, and being the website’s copy editor for that specific section. He received his M.A. in English before getting a job at Amazon as a proof-reader through an ad in the newspaper. Lukoff does not specifically cite his degree as an English major as helping him eventually land the job as the music editor, but he undoubtedly was able to use the skills that he had picked up in the program in order to give himself a leg up on the competition.

In an interview Lukoff had with Sell Out Your Soul.com, his advice was for people looking to find a job in any form of professional writing to have demonstrable work in the field that they’ve done, even something as relatively benign as work on a student journal.

It’s important for anyone trying to get into a field such as Music Editing, or really any sort of lifestyle curating position at a magazine or website, to have a strong and well-rounded knowledge of the segment that they are attempting to capture. Whether that be something in media like music or film, or even a more broad sort of local happenings list and reviews of events that one can attend or previews of those one may attend. One of the most hackneyed sayings that people in creative writing have heard quite a bit is “write what you know,” and outside of the creative writing setting, this is very valuable in the world of Editing.

Web Developer

Many English majors have gotten into the world of web development (or webdev for short). As someone that has done a bit of programming myself, I can say that it is a job that requires a fair amount of trial and error. Equally important is the ability to spend what may seem like a protracted period of time reading many lines of code, which requires one to have the patience and skills of interpretation and forming connections that can be unconsciously honed while studying literature.

The process of becoming a web developer may seem exceptionally murky. There is a built-in career path available to those that have chosen the Management Information Systems and Computer Science degree tracks. However, there is not an exact degree requirement in coding, and it’s a skill one can actually learn for free from websites like CodeAcademy.com.

Many employers will love potential employees that are capable of creating content for websites as well. Despite the fact that many larger companies will have their own PR agent, there is still a niche in coding for smaller design houses that cater to companies that may be receiving their first professional website.

In Conclusion

There are many exciting fields that are open to an English major. The possibilities may seem almost limitless, which can be exciting. Teaching is an exceptionally noble profession. However, it would be a shame if every English major went into the field of teaching without the knowledge that it is possible to branch out and write one’s own narrative.

Tips to Improve Your Professional Writing

by Payton Hamilton

Exceptional skills in writing and graphical design are necessary for aspiring professional and technical writers across all fields of work. If you hope to convey a specific message smoothly to a particular audience, your skills must be up to par. Even the most well established writers constantly strive to perfect their writing across all industries to properly advertise products. If you wish to improve your writing for your future career in Professional Writing, the following tips will certainly aid you in your quest to create quality content:

Enroll in PW Classes

The Professional Writing Program offers students various opportunities to enhance their analytic, critical, and technological skills needed to advance in their career of Professional Writing. The University of Alabama at Birmingham prepares students interested in Professional Writing with the tools needed to write and create high quality documents to impress future employers. Taking Professional Writing courses will allow you to create a unique resume and portfolio, and will not only help you develop unique web designing skills, but also gain experience as a technical writer. A professional writer will also be able to establish interest in their audiences and effectively create unique designs. Whether you wish to major or minor in Professional Writing, you will gain valuable writing, research, and designing skills needed to advance outside of the classroom and into a successful career.

Understanding of Technology

As a professional writer, you must continuously be up to date with the latest computer software. Professional Writers are always eagerly involved in all types of technical communication, varying anywhere from Microsoft Office and Excel, to Adobe Photoshop and InDesign. Since Professional Writing is heavily influenced by the Digital Age in which we live, a common knowledge of the online world is encouraged. Professional writer’s jobs are, of course, to communicate and persuade their audiences. What better way to communicate to your audience than a brief understanding of social media? Twitter, Facebook, WordPress, etc. are all valuable platforms to effectively reach your target audience. Technical communication will always be evolving and developing. As a professional writer, you must always remain knowledgeable of these changes to effectively connect with your audience.

The PW Community

Familiarizing yourself with the friendly community of professional writers around Birmingham will certainly enhance your chances of succeeding in this major. There are various student groups around UAB’s campus, for example, the Professional Writing Club. The Professional Writing Club will help you get to know fellow students interested in the same field, as well as connect with professionals that will help you hone your skills outside of the classroom. Similarly, involving yourself in UAB’s student newspaper, Kaleidoscope, may be beneficial. Not only will you practice your writing regularly, but you will also become prepared for the professional world of graphical design and media. Additionally, looking into the University Writing Center located on the first floor of Mervyn Sterne Library will also prove helpful. UWC is available for students to help with any inquiries for any category of writing.

Notice Your Surroundings

As a professional writer in Birmingham, you will more than likely see various posters, advertisements, and general postings throughout the area. Taking a moment to study and read these designs will help improve your skills as a professional writer. Whether some postings are utterly ridiculous or, perhaps, mind-numbingly dull, you will learn from them. Not only can you begin to notice these postings, but also notice brand names and commercials. Notice Company names on the sides of semi-trucks or even silly t-shirt designs. Analyze their mistakes or take note of the intricacies of their designs to gain inspiration. Notice placement, contrast, and colors to aid you in your next project. Recognize the effects their designs have on your mind and how you remember certain patterns, layouts, and composition over other designs.

Practice Makes Perfect

If you wish to boost your writing technique further, know that practice is one of the most important elements needed to master your prose. Just by writing on a regular basis, your work will improve immensely!

Creating Experience

Though there is still much to learn, Chris enjoys his work

BY Amy Roberts

The job market today is filled with available, entry-level positions that require minimum experience. This makes finding work difficult for recent graduates. A key component to overcoming this hurdle is by being an autonomous student. Professors can only teach so much in the short 50 to 75 minute time frame they are given with their students two to three times a week. Students have to be willing to acquire skills outside of the classroom to make up for the experience they lack when entering the workforce.

Chris Finley, a recent University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) graduate, left UAB last spring with a degree in Professional Writing and Public Discourse with a minor in Linguistics. When asked about his job search Chris replied, “[I] put my resume on several job-searching websites. Applied to 75 jobs to only receive three call backs and two interviews. Everyone wants experience.”

Fortunately, Chris found employment with a young, quickly growing company called Zero RPM, a business who specializes in creating idle mitigation systems for vehicles. Chris was hired as the Technical Writer for Zero RPM after producing a professional portfolio to show shareholders. The portfolio Chris put together consisted of various writing samples from literary analyses to recommendation reports and a video presentation he created for a Visual Rhetoric course during his final semester at UAB. The first few items are all pieces any Professional Writing graduate can include in their portfolio, but the video showed Chris’ future employer his versatility.

Graduates today not only have to worry about filling the gap created by their lack of experience, but also setting themselves apart from others competing for the same job who may, or may not, have the experience companies are looking for. In Chris’ case, the video presentation he included showcased his diverse set of skills. For this final assignment in Visual Rhetoric, students created presentations including their definition of visual rhetoric, and then presented examples defending their definition. The professor, Dr. Bacha, introduced students to a variety of presentation tools, one of which was a screen recording program accessible for free during a trial period. Chris chose to take on Dr. Bacha’s challenge and created a video after having spent hours of personal time learning how to use the trial free software. Then, he figured out how to overlay the screencast with the audio of his presentation script. All of the time spent outside of the classroom acquiring these skills proved to be well spent when the company who hired him asked him during the interviewing process if he would be able to create a video showcasing their products.

Though some of the software Chris lists as tools he uses every day sound familiar to some Professional Writing students, like Adobe Creative Suite and Microsoft Office, many he has had to learn for the first time. Those include Solid Edge 2D, a drafting tool which allows users to design 3D models, Formstack, an online tool used to create virtually any type of form and overlay logos with no prior coding knowledge required, and Sitewrench, a tool used to create and maintain websites. Chris says he learned about these new resources through research he did on his own time. He says his bosses give him a task objective and more often than not he researches new software for completing each. Other than coworkers and Google, Chris says he watches YouTube videos to learn how to work with new products.

With the projects given to him by his bosses, Chris is also faced with the job of having to learn the company jargon. Zero RPM is a company that develops units to conserve fuel by allowing various car systems to run without the engine. Chris is currently working on a project “redesigning the wiring schematic to show how systems work in correlation with pre-existing electronics in a 2013 Ford F550 for Nevada Energy.” This is not exactly an assignment taught in EH 404: Technical Writing, but Chris says he has created a personal dictionary to assist with learning the language.

During the break between semesters, consider brushing up, or engaging in document design software. Research popular programs being using by current writers in a desired field. Play with various freeware found on the internet, like Gimp or Scribus. Professional Writers, Technical Writers especially, pay much attention to document formats. Leaf through graphic design books for inspiration. Create mock drafts of potential documents for a company of interest. Start compiling writing samples and past assignments to include in a professional portfolio. Students graduating next spring should start, if they have not already, thinking about how they intend to use their degree. Chris reflects on the days leading up to and after graduation saying, “Graduation puts you sky high to immediately be knocked back down to reality.” Upcoming graduates need to prepare themselves for the reality.

Companies want experienced employees for a reason. Chris agrees saying companies take risks hiring employees with a lack of experience. Graduates entering the job market have to understand it costs an employer more time and money to teach someone how to perform tasks. They can attempt to overcome the experience void by showing an ability, and willingness, to learn more after graduation. Students should also consider researching tools of the employer’s trade. When applying for jobs, go beyond researching what a company does and the requirements of a job, but look into how tasks are most likely run. This is the sort of prior knowledge employers will be looking for in applicants. Education does not stop once the diploma is handed over, but rather it has barely begun.

Chris adds one final piece of advice to undergraduates “Be prepared for anything. Demands are high and requests can come at any time of the day or night. It’s primarily R&D (research and development) so things are changing constantly. You cannot have thin skin because you’re never right the first time. The rewards are great but so are the expectations. Be humble because there are millions of people looking for the same thing as you. Stay focused and dedicated and your time will come.”