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Professional Development:
On March 18th, 2025, Randy Winston, the Creative Director of Fiction at the Black List came to KSU to discuss the ins and out of the film and literature industry. While Winston gave me a lot of great inspiration and ideas regarding furthering my own career, what I enjoyed most about his speech and learning how exactly he made the pivot in his career, from picking up trash to working for a media giant.
Pushing Through Fear
Pushing Through Fear
The majority of Randy Winston's speech dealt with how he climbed the ladder to working for massive media giant, starting from picking up trash and hosting parties, to graduating from Kennesaw State University with a bachelor's degree, to making the move to New York City to pursue an MFA at the New School. While in New York, Winston stated that he pushed himself out of his comfort zone and made himself attend any event that fit into his schedule. It was through this innovative that Winston was able to meet people and create a network that catapulted him throughout his career.
Source: KSU Norman J. Radow College of Humanities & Social Sciences Instagram
I found this part of Winston's speech to be very inspiring. I myself have never been a social butterfly. I have struggled with social anxiety throughout my life, and although I can navigate social events much better now than I could in middle school or high school, it still takes a lot of effort to force myself out of my comfort zone and attend an event if I do not know anyone else going. Looking back at my time in undergrad, I really regret not attending events that seemed interested in, soley because I would have to attend them alone.
Since starting KSU, I made a promise to myself to attend any and all events that fit into my schedule and I am interested in, and while I have not been perfect at maintaining that promise, Winston has encouraged be to step out of my comfort zone and hopefully turn strangers into a network of peers.
Networking through Empathy
Networking through Empathy
In addition to pushing himself out of his comfort zone to meet people, Winston stated that much of these newfound relationships were built off of genuine care for his professors, colleagues, and peer, rather than a sole desire to get ahead in his career. He stated that the first thing he does when greeting people is asking them how they are doing. I think this is a great mindset to have in any career, not just literature or academia. I think we often forget that people are trying to juggle their own lives, and I am trying to instill this within my own teaching philosophy by creating an empathetic environment where students will be comfortable opening up to me about problems they are having with course materials or why they may be missing class.
Overall, I really enjoy Randy Winston's speech. It really helped shaped my teaching philosophy and I look forward to hearing what endeavors he pursues next.
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