How to Let ‘No’ Motivate You ~ The Disney College Program

The Disney College Program.

This program changed my life. Growing up, my family loved going to Disney, and we created so many wonderful memories there. In high school when I heard about the program (where I could LIVE in Orlando, Florida and get to create that same magic that had been created for me), I was over the moon, and I couldn’t wait to get to college so that I could apply.

Well, the time finally came…application day. As I filled out the application and hit submit, I held my breath and wished upon every star out there… and I waited… and waited. Three months of waiting was agonizing. Three months of seeing other people in the Facebook group moving through the rounds of interviews. Three months of waiting to hear on the last day that I was no longer in consideration.

I was disappointed to say the least, but I wasn’t going to let it get me down. I knew what I wanted. The DCP was my dream, so I brushed myself off and stood back up.

Next application season came around, and I applied again. This time I started receiving invitations for a second interview… and then a phone interview! This time was it. I knew it. My perseverance had paid off. After my phone interview (the last possible round), I started watch people get accepted on the Facebook group. With each week passing by, more people were accepted. With each minute passing by, I was refreshing my email. Then on the last day, I received that email once again. I was no longer in consideration.

Wow. I couldn’t believe it. I thought this was it.

“No. I’m not gonna let this stop me” I thought to myself, “People encounter trials and tests on their way to their dream. It usually doesn’t go the way they thought it would, just watch any Disney movie”.

Before I knew it, application season had once again arrived. As my friend Jessica and I sat on her dorm room floor jamming to Disney tunes, we opened the application, filled it out, and hit the submit button. This time seemed different. I felt it in my bones. I didn’t feel anxious or nervous, but excitement because I just knew I was moving to Orlando the following semester.

Interviews came more quickly this time. I had watched dozens of YouTube videos and read articles and took notes on how to prepare for these interviews. During the second wave of acceptances, I received an email that thought I was imagining (and immediately screenshotted): “Dear Macie, Congratulations! You have been selected…”.

Five months later, I moved into my apartment with five amazing roommates, and I was getting ready to start my first shift in merchandise on Main Street U.S.A. in Magic Kingdom. Little did I know that I was going to be dancing every night to the firework show, making friends from all over the world, and creating memories that I’d never forget.

I went into college not knowing what I wanted to do.  After a semester of GenEds, I decided that I loved people and storytelling, so I went with a Communication degree (because you can do anything with that, right?). The Disney College Program gave me direction and helped me narrow down what I wanted to do, but more importantly, it showed me where I wanted to do it.

You are going to hear “no” in your life. You will probably even hear it two or three times, but don’t let it stop you from following your dreams. When you hear “no”, use that opportunity to make the most of where you are, preparing yourself for your next chance. You will learn something from it. Surround yourself with positivity and know your time is coming. Don’t lose hope. Chase after your dreams with everything you have.

As Walt Disney once said, “The difference in winning and losing is most often not quitting.” Pursue your dreams with everything inside of you and don’t hold back.

Written by: Macie Delnay

Tips and Tricks: Portfolios

In my previous post, I shared all about polishing off that resume to help you secure your dream job. However, if you are like me, you’ve been hearing about how to make a resume for YEARS. On the other hand, we never hear too much about portfolios. Today, I hope to change that.

Welcome to round two of Tips and Tricks with Macie! Now let’s talk about portfolios. Here are the four things that I think are the most important to keep in mind when you're creating your portfolio

1. RESEARCH – Sometimes job applications will specify what the employer wants to see on a portfolio. It will be to your benefit to include exactly what they're looking for. Maybe they want an online portfolio, which means you have to create a website (I highly recommend Squarespace or WordPress). If you haven’t created anything you could put in a portfolio at a job, it is perfectly acceptable to pull from your classwork or create what they are asking for. Get involved with clubs (like PRSSA – shameless plug) that will allow you to help run their social media, write, design graphics, etc. You’ll get to develop your skills in a semi-professional environment and have something tangible to showcase in your portfolio.

2. SPECIALTY – Communications is an incredibly broad industry, and there is need to do everything. Find your niche. Start to focus in on what you love doing. Chose work you love so much that you would do it for free. Then, do some of it for free to build that portfolio! There’s a so many different areas if communication that you can focus on: social media, PR, HR, marketing, graphic design, and the list goes on. Find what you are good at and/or what you love, go after that. Demonstrate in your portfolio to an employer that you have worked to thoroughly develop specific skills.

3. BRANDING – Figure out what your brand is. Your brand will represent you. Strong and consistent branding shows that you know what you want. It will set you apart from the competition. Think about how you want your target audience to perceive you. Crafting your brand practically looks like: creating a logo, choosing colors, writing and standing by your mission statement, and having a website that displaying all of these different elements.

4. BEST FOOT – Don’t just plaster everything you’ve ever done on a website. It would look clutter-y, and it would give off the impression that you don’t know really what you want. Put the best of the best onto your website/portfolio. Think about the projects that you’re especially proud of – that’s what you should put up.

Hopefully, these tips will better prepare you to beginning your career in this crazy, growing industry. Take a deep breath. Know you are exactly where you need to be in this moment. Learn from it. You got this.

“Go, live your dream!” – Tangled

Taken from the PRSSA website.

Written by: Macie Delnay

Tips and Tricks: Resumes

Creating a resume so incredible that the hiring manager offers you a job right there on the spot… is tricky. You’re marketing yourself on a piece of paper someone will glance at, and sometimes, you have to market yourself to a computer before human eyes ever see it. Resumes are constantly being updated; they truly are never complete. Every job application requires a custom resume. You wouldn’t send a resume with all of your PR experience for a Social Media Internship. There would be different keywords needed for each.

I’ve done so much research on this over the past six months as I’ve worked to get my dream internship. I thought I would share what I’ve learned with all of you in hopes that you might get one interview close to landing THE job.

Hopefully, with these six tips, you will be one step closer to understanding how to do this whole resume thing.

1. KEYWORDS – My biggest tip is pay attention to key words on your job description. Print out a copy of your resume… and then print out a copy of the job description. Highlight the keywords in the job description and then your resume to see how many words matches up. Your resume may go through an ATS (applicant tracking system). This is a computer program that tracks how many key words you have. If you don’t have enough, your application goes in the trash. I know - It’s harsh, but big companies like Disney use it because they can’t go through 50,000 applications.

2. CLASSIC LOOK – Most resumes should be the classic black and white. It looks official and standard. It’s great, but if the position you are applying for is a creative position (graphic design, for example), then you can use a more creative resume to showcase your skills. Add color. Add some shapes! Go crazy… but not too crazy. Stick to your brand, and make sure it is professional looking. Canva.com is an INCREDIBLE resource to get inspiration from (or to fill out a template).

3. DON’T REPEAT – Your resume will look solid and detailed if you don’t have the same action verb at the beginning of each bullet point. I know it doesn’t always happen, but it’s a great goal. Use a thesaurus or google ‘good action verbs for resumes’. Your school’s career center will also have some excellent resources to help you to spice up the wording in your resume.

4. NUMBERS – Numbers stick out so much against the mundane-ness of alphabetical letters, but more importantly they SHOW the results of your action. In the business world, results are everything. Always include numbers.

5. USE ALL THE WORDS - The less white space, the better. I know that some resume templates are cute and simplistic but try to fill your resume with as many words as you can. Show off the work you have done; you deserve it.

6. CANVA – As I mentioned before, there is a website that I have discovered recently called Canva.com. This incredible resource helps with a multitude of design options. If your creative juices aren’t flowing and you need to create a stylish resume, check out Canva. They have free (and purchasable) templates for resumes, logos, menus, posters, flyers, business cards, YouTube thumbnails, and so much more. It will even help you create your brand.

Taken from the PRSSA Website.

Written by: Macie Delnay