Self-Discipline.

Looks as if my aspirations in self discipline are similar to most others in my leadership class.

Yup, I am just a simple everyday freshman.

Same problems, same excitements, same dilemmas. Thats not too bad of a thing though. I know that I will break out and go my own way soon.

I need to work on having better self discipline in:

- continuously working to have consistent quality character

- I need to stop procrastinating!!

- I need to have better self discipline in the job I want to do.

- I need to be better about living out what God wants me to do on a day to day basis

- I need to step up and get buff...

I need to be a leader in every aspect of my life. I need to be an example, sometimes I feel like falling back and not doing too much, but I know what I need to do and its exciting.... :)

When due assignments are coming up, I should probably just do them when I have time. But usually I make up many other friendship building exercises that keeps me from doing work in my free time. Instead, I do my homework in my study time; therefore, I get little studying done. Oh well, Unlike most I am not shooting for a miraculous goal grade wise, I am just going to school and loving it. I believe that I will be successful and I think I have the tools to be successful, I just need to act quicker on my school work.

If I want to be successful in my job, I need to be disciplined in doing my articles and interviewing. That will come with time, but I believe the earlier, the better.

God needs me to be all that I can be all the time. I need to strive harder for that.

I need to work out more. thats all.

I also need to learn and grow in my musical studies.

Love these blogs, I wish I had cool pictures, or a camera...

MY MISSION

I am at my best when I am executing directions. When I have learned information in a concise manner and have the ability to exercise what I have learned. When I am in a conversation that is captivating and potentially helpful to others. When I am in front of a group of people giving a speech. When I am with my family and friends relaxing.
I will try to prevent times when I have to conceptualize topics. When I have to wait..
I will enjoy my work by finding employment where I can move, be a do-er. Be a worker and rarely move slowly. But I also love to read and write..
I will find enjoyment in my personal life through read about football recruiting and listen to music. .
I will find opportunities to use my natural talents and gifts such as music, remembering and learning about football recruits. .
I can do anything I set my mind to. I will Make a football camp for athletes that is one of the top camps in the nation. The camp would teach Biblical principals and be taught by some of the mots recognizable athletes in the world. This camp would be a profit organization, but it would be profitable on both sides..
My life's journey is I am empowering athletes to live a life that can be followed by anyone. People who not only talk the talk, but walk it out all the time as well. .
I will be a person who I would like for my family and colleagues to be at that birthday party. I want students affected by my work to be there too. I want people to say that I am the man who has affected everyone I have met with my honesty and massive expectations in everyone..
My most important future contribution to others will be Sky high expectations that will be fulfilled with my assistance if allowed..
I will stop procrastinating and start working on:

• I should continue to work harder and press towards the Goal.
• I need to be more open to new ways of thinking that might help me in the future.
• I need let more people into my life to help me attain my goal.

I will strive to incorporate the following attributes into my life:

• strength
• confidence
• perseverance

I will constantly renew myself by focusing on the four dimensions of my life:

• body built for endurance.
• firmly planted in God, and continually pressing to get to know Him more.
• Strong mind that can take set back and overcome.
• outgoing, and emotionally strong, can't let too much get to me.

OU Mission

OU looks to provide each of their students with a powerful education that will signifcantly aid them in their job search. They look to provide students with a good learning atmosphere. They have many organizations and are open to anything to help a Sooner find his/her niche. The professors look to help the students, and the leadership on campus look to find students out and aid them if necessary, or to simply be able to help shape them into leaders themselves.
OU has great school pride and OU looks to harness that pride in sports and really carry it over to academia as well. OU's mission is simliar to many other Universities, the difference is the people. The people at OU are always willing, and most of them are kind and caring. These people really give OU the extra feeling of comfort that any student would want when leaving home for the first time and beginning to go their own way to learn.

Prof. Doug Gaffin

When speaking of a leaders on OU's campus, one will never have a hard time thinking of a great leader they have encounter while spending time in Norman. I had the pleasure of conversing with one of OU's wonderful leaders and professors on campus. The great part about meeting with this person is how closely related our lives were at that time. As a freshman, I am required to take part in one of the classes the University College (UCOL) offers. I was lucky enough to meet with the dean of said college. The Dean of University College here at OU is Professor Doug Gaffin.

Doug Gaffin is not only the Dean of UCOL, but he also teaches one of the largest classes OU offers underclassmen and that is Zoology. With those two responsibilities, one might feel a bit overwhelmed, but I was surprised to see that he is enjoying himself and the responsibility offered to him.

He is a rabid volleyball fan, and even though he has yet to make a game because of his work schedule, he is following the team's success this year and is supportive. Not only is he a fan of volleyball, but he actually paid for a sand volleyball court that is south of Adams Tower.

He gave me very good advice on some things I should look into for my future, but I was intrigued at how good of a listener he was. He really showed an interest in me when others in the room would not do the same.

Prof. Doug Gaffin is a good leader for our school and hopefully will be a good relationship I can keep for my future.

Josh McCuistion- leader in his field.

I have had the great opportunity to be able to intern under one of the most well respected writers for Rivals.com. He has shown a tireless work ethic and has brought the site he works for, SoonerScoop.com, to be one of the more well-known recruiting websites for OU football.

He is a graduate of Putnam City West High School and has a Journalism degree from The University of Oklahoma.

People have described him as, "One of the best," and from what I have learned so far, he is one of the best. He shows great leadership in his communication with others, and he feels great leaders are great communicators.

He exemplifies hard-working and he exhausts any and every medium possible to be able to get info to his readers. But he never crosses the line as some media members may do. In fact, he makes sure that even I get permission from the coaches before talking to players in fear of getting in trouble with the coaches and losing good relationships. This realization is why I thought I should interview him as the leader in my possible career field.

Some of his articles are linked here:

Lots of young talent in Guthrie

These are premium articles, so they have to be paid for, but at least the format is shown to express what it is that he does.

He takes many pictures of athletes one of the he has taken lately is shown as well.

As asked before, but for the purposes of this assignment: How did you get involved in being a journalist for SoonerScoop.com?

Well it was while I was in J-school and I simply was a member of the site. I had some questions about problems with the site and it just slowly evolved into my now boss asking me if I had some interest in doing some work here or there.

I wish I could say there was some massive work of dogged work but other than simply letting him know my eagerness to do the work, there wasn't a lot to it other than luck.

What do you think sets you apart from other football recruiting writers in the Rivals family?

I think it's just bringing something unique to the network. Many guys cover only their own area or only the recruits within their school's commitment list but I try and make sure that I know the best players in the state of Oklahoma as well as the guys who will be wearing Crimson and Cream in the near future.

Also I think I bring a blend of video, photo, and writing that few guys in the network have any interest to do, much less put the work through to do actually accomplish.

What do you think sets Rivals apart from other websites that offer recruiting content, such as Scout.com and Espn. com?

I think it's just shear numbers and making sure that we cover things from a grass roots levels. Lots of places have national analysts who watch video but see very little in person. We have national guys who go all over the country as well as hundreds of guys like myself who are all over the place on High school game weekends to make sure that every player worthy of recognition gets it.

What sets SoonerScoop.com apart from the other team sites such asOrangebloods.com and OStateIllustrated.com?

Well we are a credentialed media outlet through the university that we cover and while both sites are great in their own ways it's not something either can claim. We also have worked very hard to set a tone throughout the site and the idea of having an overall gameplan seems to help us with many of the smaller details.

You are considered a leader in your field regionally; what do you think you have done leading up to your current position with Rivals to gain that notoriety from your colleagues?

I don't think of myself as particularly talented in any aspect, I do think of myself as a hard worker who is more than willing to go to all reasonable lengths (and occasionally beyond) to find the stories that my readers need. I also think listening to those same people is a big part of having a great site, you can't know what you need to be doing without asking those who are paying you to do it.

You are currently working with a few other men of Rivals and ultimatelyYahoo.com that are good leaders in their respective field, what qualities do those men (Carey Murdock, Jeremy Crabtree, etc.) have that makes them effective leaders?

I think at the end of the day it's simply about knowing what you want and devising a plan for how to reach it. Crabtree has been in this business for nearly 15 years and is almost undoubtedly is the most well-respected national recruiting analyst in the country. He has done that by developing a game plan of how he wanted to attack the news and build our network from the ground up.

What do you think is one of the main traits you have established of yourself that makes you one of the best in your field?

As I said above it's about work rate. In this type of media there is always going to be news there is always going to be something to hear and you aren't always going to be the first to get the latest rumors. You just have to make sure to keep moving and not focus on what you didn't get and instead move to the next story. There just isn't any time to linger on successes or failures.

What is one of your weaknesses that you hope to improve on in the future that deals with your current occupation?

I think the technical aspects of my field are always difficult to fully wrap your head around, the latest trends in writing are out dated within days of their pinnacle. I also think that getting into ruts of work can sometimes be a real issue for myself making sure content and stories are fresh and original is always a good thing.

What is an important bit of advise you would give to someone [me :)] who is looking to follow your footsteps and be a recruiting analyst and write for a prominent recruiting website?

Get out and see things. You can know as much about football as you want but if you don't know what is going on with the players and their strengths and weaknesses beyond general obvious things then you have nothing to begin with. Information is King and the more you have it the more you have to offer both future employers and those who read what you have to say.

If there is one thing that has really stuck out to you, and that is key about being in your position as a leader in your field, and a moderator to many football crazed fans, what is it?

Patience, I know I keep talking about speed and effort but there is a human side that can't be forgotten when dealing with not only fans but players, their families, etc. You can't be cold and business like or no one is ever going to trust you with information that is at it's most basic very personal.

What do you envision as the next level for you in your climbing of the sports recruiting ladder?

I hope that as time moves on recruiting coverage finds it's way into more radio outlets and I can have more open avenues that way because as big as we may be it's staggering how many OU fans are still out there and are completely unaware of our existence.

Who is someone you look up to as a leader in your field, or life in general and why?

Oh there are so many great journalists out there it's hard for me to peg one as the guy that I focus my attention around. As far as someone I've always looked up to I'd have to say my grandfather, simply because of his work rate and the fact he seemed to always focus a lot more on making sure the job was done right than always rushing through something.

His impact had less to do with my job and how it's done than handling aspects of the job in the best way possible.

Josh McCuistion

Associate Editor - SoonerScoop.com

Josh@SoonerScoop.com

My future at OU

I expect to meet every person I can in a position of power during my time at OU.

I want to be a stud networker. I think that is one of my gifts honestly. I like to meet people and build relationships that will work well on both sides.

I plan on majoring in Journalism and contuing to work for Rivals.com and SoonerScoop.com.

I plan on being able to have a good time in college balancing all the tasks that are on my schedule on any given week. And I plan not to worry about any of them.

I also plan on contuing to work with volleyball in a managerial position for the rest of my time at OU as well.

Then finally I want to get that big degree, the reason I am here.

They say your attitude determines your latitude

I think when you find some of the most successful groups at accomplishing tasks, the word "attitude" is not brought up very much. It is a given that for the task to be completed accurately and efficiently, that the task must be taken on with a positive and winning attitude.

The "winning attitude" term has become cliche at our age now to where that seems like something an adult would communicate with a younger child about. Well I think that is a powerful term, because if someone was going to go into a situation with a defeatist attitude, then they will not succeed in a quick and concise manner.

I have a wonderful friend, well I have many wonderful friend, but I think I want to highlight two of them right now.

One of their name's is Andrew Charles Martin.

Andrew has taught me many different lessons on how to live life to the absolute fullest. My college experience is one hundred percent different than what it would have been if I did not meet Andrew.

I am much more excited about class in general, I love to listen to everyone and everything. Observing is one of the most powerful tools I have been blessed with, and Andrew helped me really realize that gift. But most of all, he made me believe that I could do anything and let myself get out there and do anything I decided I wanted to in my life.

Now I am apart of a few wonderful things in my life, that has done nothing but grow me into a better man of God daily.

His attitude was incredibly positive and it could build anyone up that was having a rough day. I appreciated most, however, how he was very real with anyone. If he did not like a situation, you would know quickly.

So yup, he's tight.

"Our Attitudes are our most important Assets"- From the way we communicate, to what we believe in our hearts, heads, and everything else exhibits our attitude. We need to have that positive reaction that enables us to make the best of our life.

Dorion Billups

Challenge vs. Problem

I have a few quotes that I have attained over the years dealing with challenges:

"The pressure's on, but guess who ain't gonna crack?......This ain't no tall order, this is nothing to me. Difficult takes a day, impossible takes a week."

- Jay-Z speaking on challenges facing him in his career

"Stop saying it's impossible, if it were impossible you could not do it."

- Santiago Restrepo coaching the volleyball girls during a difficult drill.

These two quotes were both talking about challenges and in my personal opinion, the best way to defeat them. For challenges to be defeated in one's life, he must have a positive and conquering attitude towards the issue. Go right into the challenge and attempt to defeat with the best effort one can give. That is how challenges can be solved.

DO NOT COMPLAIN ABOUT CHALLENGES, THEY HELP YOU GROW.

Problems on the other hand has a bit more of a urgent nature to it.

I would consider a challenge to be something that has a solution that can be achieved with time and careful consideration in time. A problem is the same, but with an added component of the level of urgency of the problem.

Problems need to be handled and solved. Challenges are an opportunity to be a problem solver and find solutions to better situations.

Most of the time the difference is clear if both are apparent at the same time. Challenges will look very urgent until they are set next to a problem.

Thats my take on that.

Watch out for Advice!

So I guess I am supposed to either talk about the journey from high school to college, or the freshman year of high school. Either way, all you need to know is that you need to figure out what is best for you and act on it.

Worrying about what others think at this point in your life will simply demobilize you and cause you to be slow in making decisions. Think about where you really want to go to school, and think about the real reasons for that. Will those reasons be good for the long term?

Think about what you want to study, not what your parents want you to concentrate on. Start really getting used to making all of these decisions on your own. It is so worth it in the end.

College is fun, and the time management thing has been over stated. Be smart, you know at Heritage everyone was really busy all the time as well. It is just that its a bit different here. Everything you do has school has involved in it in some way. It is a good thing though.

Do not worry about going far if you are worried about not making friends, I go to one of the closest schools to Heritage and I rarely talk to anyone from Heritage that goes here.

Just work hard and make smart and informed decisions ON YOUR OWN. Everything will be good from there.

Bystander; Response-Ability

Well, I am not the most schooled individual when it comes to having issues happen to people and having no one there to help them. Maybe that is a good thing though...

One of my old youth pastors who now lives in LA had a wreck or something of the sort and was stuck sitting on the road in his pajamas for an extended amount of time. He had no phone to call anyone so he had to simply wait for one person to step up and help him.

He sat there on the side of the road simply wondering why people can not take time out of their obviously packed days to simply help. Well finally, one guy came along and helped him out. Think of all of the bystanders that decided not to help someone who was in need.

This realization that people do not normally do extreme or even simple acts of kindness gave Elijah the idea to build a site that encourages and pushed others to do acts of kindness for others.

This picture was the main picture of that little group he started.

But I do now remember one time when my car broke down. Only a few people even went down the road where I was stranded. But one who did went to Mcdonald's and got me some water so I would not sit outside and perish.

My girlfriend would not even come and pick me up and take me somewhere that I could at least not be in the intense heat. My mom was at work but she was still working hard to make sure that I was safe.

For the most part, people I am around do the right things and speak up and act out when it is most necessary for the action to take place to help others. That is why I do not think to much about responding to problems, because it has been a natural action of mine and my friends for such a long time that it is second nature.

Good people.

Dorion Billups

Prioritize my life.

I am not the most organized person, but I do find the time to do everything that is asked of me.

One of the best reasons for that is because I have good friends that take care of me as far as keeping me accountable and on time to any and every meeting I need to attend.

I am part of a wonderful Christian brotherhood that consumes quite a bit of my time. So between that and volleyball, school can seem difficult to stay in the fore front of my priorities.

But luckily, I have been raised to where school is one of the most important things I do.

So school is always a great priority, and byx does a great job of making sure we have many study hours to keep us up to date on our school work.

After school, I must make sure that volleyball is not forgotten and that I am fulfilling my duties in that.

Then BYX and friendships being built from that is next simply because of the amount of time given to that.

All the while, I have a multitude of family members supporting me and making sure I am making good decisions.

So my priorities are good and I am very blessed to have the people around me that I do that make sure that I am successful and continually pressing foward.

Influences

Liking sports so much came from my Mom, but its interesting because that is the least of things she has done to influence me.

She has influenced me to become basically the person I am today. A person who fears God and loves being the church.

I think she has proved the benefits of extremely hard and work and perseverance. I want to be able to take that quality from her and apply it to my life.

I am a St. Louis Rams fan from a man named LG Hamilton.

My love from music is basically all from my friends who have introduced me to so many different types of music and I have taken it and have become the connoisseur that I am today.

My music teachers in middle and high school both laid down the foundation for who I am today as a musician and I applaud them for trusting and sticking with me in my quest for musicianship.

Dorion

It's all about me...

My name is Dorion Billups

I have two middle names, one of them is Gyasi which is Swahili for wonderful!!

I love music, musicals, instruments, and all that good stuff.

I play the sax, bass, drums, and I am currently teaching myself the guitar, hopefully by the end of the year I will have a good grasp on it.

I only like good music, no true genres, just good music.

I have played the sax for 8 years.

I hope to be able to continue playing for the rest of my life.

Football Recruiting is my thing. I cover high school football in state. I love it and I am very lucky to do what I am doing right now.

I am a freshman at OU, and school is going well.