Keeping it Brief: The Power of a Video Brief
4/15/26
For someone who hasn’t worked on a video brief before this semester, I can’t overstate the importance of a video brief. You want your stakeholders to know what you are doing. If you’re not coming to them with a plan to report your progress, your idea, no matter how good, won’t be approved.
Think of it like this, you’re going on vacation. Typically, you have some sort of plan, big or small. So you need to know where you are going, how you’re gonna get there, and where you will be staying. Imagine if you threw caution to the wind and flew out to Thailand. Now you get there and realize you have no idea how you’re going to get home.
Logistically, you are going to run into many issues. Planning is necessary, so create an outline and brainstorm some ideas. Your brief is just like any writing piece adjustments need to be made before you turn in the final result.
Refine that brief, make sure it makes sense. Read it out loud. The brief is the outline you’ will be following; it’s like a roadmap for a road trip. You look to it for direction on how you want to handle the video.
The brief really is necessary and important. I know I value its importance, and anyone higher up in a company will. Make the brief concise and to the point, don’t beat around the bush, tell them exactly what will be done. The brief is the first draft of the video. Changes to the brief may be required if requested; in addition, you need to recognize when the logistics are not possible.
Take risks and be reasonable in your brief. The brief series is the first impression of the idea you’re giving it. Give it a solid foundation, and the rest will fall into place.
Drafting A Disciple: Reaching My Goals Without Losing My Way
4/15/26
Staying faithful in the latter days can be a massive challenge. A continual struggle I find myself in is staying on track to balance my ambition and faith. But these things should go hand in hand. Our goals should lead us closer to Jesus Christ and should increase our faith. By making time for the gospel each day, we can progressively see how to better balance our lives and align our goals with a gospel-oriented end.
Distractions are a natural part of life, and they are everywhere. Overcoming distractions is part of this earthly life. So how can you overcome these distractions? Well, I know by actively making time for the lord in my day, no matter how small, there is always time. I am always busy balancing school, work, and my social life. It’s hard to find a balance in it all. In all honesty, you can’t perfectly balance your life, but you can make time for the things you need to do.
Realizing when you are lacking in one aspect, spiritually or goal-wise, is part of the refining process. A great example of this is in the scripture 1 Nephi 20:10 “For, behold, I have refined thee, I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction.” While this primarily refers to us in our afflictions, it contains a very important principle. God is continually refining us. Whether in our trials or while we are striving to reach our goals. As we act as agents rather than waiting to be acted upon, we can be refined and improve.
Rationalization is where self-improvement goes to die. We can rationalize our lives away, but that won’t change anything. Ignoring problems like that is like walking through a forest without moving branches out of the way. Instead, you stand there and stay there a while. Meanwhile, it is still raining outside. Rationalizing your self-improvement is killing your productivity. It’s easy to fall into that trap.
Aligning ourselves with God’s will is absolutely necessary for our spiritual survival. With the help of that we can have increased motivation. We should make choices that align with our goals, but more importantly, with our covenants and commandments. As we do, God blesses us.
Lastly, the most important part is to continually serve. Service should be part of our goals. We shouldn’t sneer or think it’s a waste of time; service is actively helping people. Making time for it is a necessity. There are many things we could be doing, but when we forget our neighbor who needs help, we are being selfish.
Speed vs. Accuracy
3/25/26
Have you ever been the first to do something? I have, and it feels very exciting. I know I’ve had many experiences in my life where I was the first to do something. Once, I was the first to accept a new position that was created at a company. It felt fulfilling and challenging. I was the first one to pave the way in this position. In my life, I value keeping up and moving on. The future is always on my mind. What is the next thing I can move on to? I often find it very difficult to slow down and put my mind at ease so I can really focus on what I am doing.
In the news and broadcasting world, there is a great thrill to being the first to cover a story or publish something. But in our world, which is just chock-full of misinformation, it can be so easy to leave out details. I’ve seen many people around me distrust the media. I certainly want all the facts, rather than the first person to cover the story. I’d rather have quality over quantity. I know I would rather have a quality story.
Speed is important, and time is of the essence in publishing, but there is no need to rush when you don’t have the full picture. The old tale of The Tortoise and the Hare is a perfect adage to this. I know I remember negative things more easily. You’re only hurting your image by not getting all the facts. I can remember a time in school when I gave a presentation and wasn’t prepared as I should have been. It felt like I was grasping at straws, and those who were watching and listening to me could tell. You don’t want to seem underprepared.
That is why it is most important, when reporting the news, to be accurate with the facts. When you start getting the small details wrong, it can really ruin a reputation and image. The situation may have a completely different intent or meaning without the proper facts, and can easily change the message being conveyed. When writing a story, gather all the details, be professional, and stay informed. The audience can really feel that. In a world where listening does not occur nearly as much as it should, we need to listen to every detail while newswriting.
Life is a Group Project
3/19/26
Group projects are something I struggle with a lot. They can be stressful. Oftentimes, communication can be hard. Maybe one group member just kicks back and does nothing. Or maybe you’re the one who does everything in your group. It can be a conflict of interest; maybe you don’t share the same idea. A lot can happen in a group project. But recently, I had an experience that made me excited to do more group projects.
In my communication class, we worked together to create a newsletter. It was a fake newsletter for a company. It was a travel agency that was intended for newlywed couples on their honeymoon. It was great, everyone communicated with each other and did their part.
The assignment was completed very quickly, and when we received feedback, we were able to address it promptly and implement it. The text we wrote didn’t flow as well as we’d hoped. So we changed it up and made it flow together. We were satisfied with the final result.
I learned that in a group, you won’t share the same ideas or thought process. But that is what makes it work well together. Because you don’t share the same ideas, you can make something greater than something that you could make on your own. As you put your heads together, you can come up with a very special idea. When everyone contributes, it speeds up the process. You can build a firm foundation for an idea. Then put it into action.
Life is a group project. In your career, the likelihood of group projects or collaborations is very high. There are a few careers I can think of where you don’t collaborate with others. To encourage collaboration in your career, here’s a list of things that I try to do:
- Be open and Communicate
- Do your part and try your hardest
- Don’t take over the project
- Make sure you don’t sit back and relax
- Listen to others ideas
- Include everyone
I try to do all these things currently in my career and academics. While it’s not easy, you have to treat a group project differently from how you do things alone. Be open to those around you and do your part. It can be difficult at first, but I know I have learned so much from group projects, and they have benefited my life and made the work I do even better. As you have a positive outlook and attitude toward group projects, it will come more naturally to you.
The Reasons Behind TikTok Being a Social Media Juggernaut
3/11/26
TikTok is the most powerful social media platform, and here is why. Among all social media platforms, it has the highest engagement. It isn’t just someone casually hopping on to look at a few posts. These are people who are logging in and actively engaging with the app’s content. The things they watch are actively influencing them. It is a massive, rapidly growing social media platform with significant influence. Almost every trend in recent memory has originated from TikTok. Not only this, but it’s also a huge space for discussions of politics or religion.
The Younger Generation
The newer generation is heavily found on these platforms. They make up the majority of users. These young adults and teens on the platform will be massively influenced by TikTok. It’s been proven that what you consume heavily impacts you. 80% of users take action on the app, whether it’s buying products or participating in trends. That is a huge number of individuals. In the U.S. alone, there are 183 million users who log on a month. As a reminder, there are 342 to 349 million people living in the U.S. That is nearly 53% of America on TikTok. That has a wide range of people on the app. That isn’t even the number of users worldwide, which is 1.6-2 billion. Now, is this less than the number of users on Facebook? Yes, it is, but TikTok will heavily influence the younger generations and our future. Which I would say is more powerful.
Those on these platforms have a lasting impact impressed upon them. Information spreads there quicker than ever. This is a massive app where news is actively shared. Young people use this as a source far more than actual news sites or apps. It actively influences the brains of those who use it. Especially the younger audience, it rewires them to behave a certain way. This is happening at a younger age, which is during their development. By getting lots of dopamine hits from the endless scrolling. Their attitudes and perspectives change. Because many on the app share their perspectives, and those who hear them can be influenced by what others share. That is why TikTok is the most powerful social media platform. It has a grip on the younger generation and the world’s future.