Blake Mycoskie, Creator of TOMS Shoes, Will Be the Next "Sole"ful Speaker at Auburn University

On March 31, Blake Mycoskie will be guest lecturing at Auburn University. Mycoskie is the creator and founder of TOMS Shoes, a company that donates a pair of shoes to children in need for every shoe purchased also known as "One for One."

Mycoskie is being brought to Auburn by The University Program Council's Special Projects Committee. This "Sole"ful speaker will be discussing how he created TOMS Shoes, why he created it and how it became so successful. There will be a Q&A at the end of the session.

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The Assistant Director of Special Projects, Stephanie Cox, is thrilled about the event and believes this company promotes a great cause.

"I think TOMS is a great idea," Cox said. "People don't realize how lacking something as simple as shoes can affect someone's life."

Mycoskie has spoken on many college campuses promoting his company and explaining the significance.

Cox said that one reason tha tMycoskie was chosen to be UPC's next lecturer because his story is inpiring.

"We chose Blake Mycoskie, not only because his TOMS Shoes are so popular with people at Auburn, but also because he has a really interesting and inspiring story to tell," she said.

Since the beginning of the company, TOMS has donated more than 400,000 pairs of shoes and is growing every day. Auburn students have become passionate about TOMS and the shoes can be seen everywhere on campus.

Aaron Grubbs, the director of publicity for UPC, is very excited about attending the lecture.

"It's really neat that he will be coming to Auburn and this is a great opportunity for supporters of TOMS to go see tho came up with the whole idea," he says. "I think the turnout is going to be really good. I'm pumped."

The event is going to be held in the Auburn University Student Center Ballroom at 7 pm on Wednesday, March 31. Tickets are $1 and will be available with a valid student ID. Look for the UPC table in March to get tickets. For more information please visit the UPC website. 

Let the battle continue--Mac vs PC

Nowadays, you are either:

male or female

democrat or republican

cat lover or dog lover

and now--

PC or Mac.

It's funny how a household item has turned into something that defines who we are.  They say Mac users are snobby and arrogant...while PC users are slow and not hip.

I will admit- I'm a Mac.  I have been for nearly 3.5 years.  And I do believe that Mac's are superior to other laptops because they are much easier for me.  Although, I am proficient on both a PC and a Mac, I find that projects take less time and stress when performed on a Mac. 

And in the work force, time equals money.

However, what catches my eye the most are the PR/Marketing campaigns launched by both companies.  Mac's commercials are hilarious with the person acting as a PC and the other as a Mac and that helps people relate to each--especially when Mac points out all the problems PC has (even if you are a PC you have to admit they are right about the problems) and the lasted PC commercials with the tag line, "Windows 7 was my idea" are very audience centered. 

I will leave you with two commercials--a PC one and a Mac one.  Choose which one is a better PR campaign and why and tell me in the comments.

Lady Gaga and Hugh Hefner got married??

Of course they are not getting married for real. However, I did give a toast at their fictional wedding today in my Advanced Public Speaking class.

It was such a fun speech to give and it is why this class is definitely one of my favorites.

Writing speeches and giving speeches are two things that I have been passionate about for years. It just seems to come very naturally for me to get up in front of an audience and speak. I don't get nervous. I don't freak out. I don't lose my words.

I have fun.

I love interacting with an audience--whether they are laughing, crying or just listening intently.

I never gave this talent much thought until college. My mom had always said that I was a great public speaker but who really listens to that when you're a kid? Certainly not me. As I got older though, I began finding my nitch and finally I embraced my speaking abilities.

It's not often that I say I'm very good at something because a person who is boastful is annoying and frustrating. But, I can see that I have talent in this and I hope that I can use this in my PR career.

You want me to write you a eulogy? Sure!

An acceptance speech? Hit me up.

A wedding toast? I'll see you at the wedding!

We all hope to find a career that involves our talents and I believe I have definitely found an amazing path to one in the PR world.

Ciao Bellas!

Snowday!!

I was supposed to give my occasion speech today but we got an amazing winter SNOW STORM (at least in the definition of a southern winter snow storm) so of course being from the south--everything was immediately closed down.  No way am I complaining! I had an amazing day with friends just playing out in the snow!

Of course, this is mainly a PR blog and I'm supposed to use the skills I have acquired in my classes--sooooo I'll use my video editing/embedding skills to show you the snowman I made today and a slide show of pics from AuburnFamily!!

Find more photos like this on Auburn Family

I love DreamWeaver!

I am obsessed with working on my website which is the final project for my PR Style and Design class. 

And by obsessed--I mean it may be unhealthy.  I look forward to Monday and Wednesday lab hours so I can go get one on one help from my teacher...I also can't wait for class on Tuesday and Thursday to continue working on it and seeing how everyone else in my class is doing as well.

I have even dreamed about my perfect website.  Yes, I wasn't going to admit that...but oh well...it's true! 

For those unfamiliar with website design, my website is made up of about 18 different HTML sites and in order to make a fulling functioning website, you must make each of those different sites perfect.  So, today I spent about an hour working on my 5 main headings- Home, About Me, Resume, Portfolio and Contact Me. 

It has been so much fun seeing it all come together even after only working on it for two weeks. 

I recommend to anyone wanting to learn Dreamweaver or even any Adobe program to go and subscribe to Lynda.com! Warning--it is an addicting site that may cause you sleep deprivation from continuous viewing.

It seems as though we may be getting some SNOW this week!! So everyone be safe on the roads!

~Amanda

currently reading-- "Bed of Roses" by Nora Roberts

I'm Back!

I will be starting a new blog from here on out about my journey to graduation--the PR way of course.  All of my "Life as a NYC Intern" posts will continue to stay on here as like a Chapter 1 of this blog and I still encourage you to go read all about my experiences from this past summer!  

However, I'm very excited to start Chapter 2-"Preparing for the Real World--PR Style!" 

This semester is already proving to be the best PR semester I have ever had.  I will be discussing my PR Campaign with the College of Liberal Arts and their Camp War Eagle presentation, the fun/frustration of learning HTML/making my own digital portfolio and resume, as well as the fun speeches I get to give in my Adv. Public Speaking class (this friday I'm giving a wedding toast to Lady Gaga at her fictional wedding to Hue Hefner--should be hilarious!)

I encourage you all to friend/follow/add me on all my social networking sites listed below:

-Twitter

-LinkedIn

-AuburnFamily

-PROpenMic

-WarEagleMe

Also, I will be posting articles and videos weekly alternating between AuburnFamily and TheLoveliestVillage.  Here are the two I've already done!  Article 1 & Article 2

Get ready for a fun journey with me as I embark on all things PR! :)

~Amanda