larson #4

I ended up adding one more meeting with my dad to talk about how this semester was going and to get the last little bit of insight on how he runs the business. I told my dad how excited I was for the summer and to be home. I had finally locked down a summer job with a company back home and was excited to have a job for the summer. Unfortunately the job is a second shift position so I won't be able to see my dad much besides on the weekends because of conflicting schedules. I was pretty bummed that it had to work out like that but my dad encouraged me to take the job because of the experience I would be receiving and because the pay was exceptional. My dad and I also talked about the upcoming draft for the NFL and we talked through what players we hoped our team would pick up and where our favorite college players would land.
I asked my dad a couple more questions about his job and what he sees day to day. I thought an interesting question would be what kind of style he tries to run his company with, if there was a certain management style he thought he possessed that was different from others. He told me that he tries to be humble and that his employees know he tries to live for God but he won't force it upon his employees but that he is always willing to talk to them about religion however. I thought this was super important as you want your employees to know your intentions but you don't want to force it upon them.
This experience has been great for me to grow as a person and to better communicate with my dad.

Mary Ellen's Third Post

Having my brother in law as my mentor means I have access to his life in a way that not many people have with their mentors. Knowing about his work life is really important, but I also wanted to know how Corby handles work-life balance.

Corby has weeks where he'll work over 70 hours, and he has days where he'll be in the office from sunrise to way past sunset. His wife (my sister) even made him let her adopt cats for company since he works so many late nights.

So how does he balance a successful work life, being a newlywed, and being in the middle of buying a house?

Corby told me he's lucky because he has a great relationship with his boss. Corby's boss has two kids, and anytime his boss needs Corby to cover some extra time at work Corby happily does it. Because of that, Corby is able to take plenty of vacation time, work from home occasionally, and has no problem leaving work for a couple of hours if he needs to. He works so hard when he's there, he's indispensable to his company, but still finds the time he needs to live his life.

I like to look to Corby's company and boss as an example of what I'm hoping to find in a company. A place where I can work hard for them, and they'll still let me find a balance to live my life.

Mary Ellen's Second Post

As the Post Production Producer, Corby oversees all different editors, motion graphic animators, audio engineers, production assistants and many others involved in creating different commercials and advertisements. After talking to him about his immense responsibilities, it is very easy to see how needed he is at his job. When I asked him about the stress of work, he responded with, "The most important thing to remember is to always stay calmer than those around you." While he said this with laughter in his voice, it is easy to understand why he must remind himself to stay calm in all stressful situations at work. With clients such as S.C. Johnson, CDW, Kimberley Clark, and the Chicago Blackhawks, there isn't any room for mistakes or lack of effort. Plus, overseeing so many different people puts a lot of responsibility on Corby to not only perform at the highest level, but keep those around him working as efficiently as possible.

What is most remarkable to me is Corby's ability to live out a Christian lifestyle while working at one of the top marketing agencies in America. It is easy to get swept up in the madness of agency life, but Corby seems to keep a balance through all the long days and tight deadlines. I think it says a lot about a person with how well they are able to stay committed to their families and responsibilities after they leave the office. Not only do I respect him so highly for how much time and energy he dedicates to his job, but I am so proud to call him my brother in law because he is a man of character. Whether its a stranger on the street, or a friend he's known all of his life, Corby interacts with everyone with such genuine interest, care and always, always, with a smile. I believe that's the way that life is meant to be lived out.