College is one thing where I have given it my all. In all that I've done, I've been doing things 120% with a few exceptions. I have been going full-force and I have thoroughly enjoyed it. Without further adieu, the top 10 college accomplishments (in no particular order, 24 and older):
1. winning the spirit of Boise State and the volunteer of the year: these awards mean a lot to me. I have structured my life in college around volunteering and being the best example and advocate that I can be.
2. the 100,000,000/6,000/1,000/700/200 club: as far as I know, since I've been at the REC, I'm the exclusive member of the 100,000,000 lbs. lifted, 6,000 laps swam, 1,000 points scored in ball, 700 laps ran, and 200 hours in exercise classes club. there will be hard-pressed to be another individual in this club.
3. getting on the dean's list unofficially for 4 terms and missing it unofficially by less than 0.3 of a grade point in three others: this shows academic fortitude and stellar significance in conduct to academia. a true test of character and study habits, especially with all that I do.
4. moving into self-direction: better all the way around and all of my skills are better. that whole self-direct piece says it all.
5. my great achievements in self-advocacy: this has been my biggest piece of love and energy outpouring the last 2 1/2 years. it also has been the most tiring and time-consuming, but I'm glad to have done it.
6. decorating my apartment at the Springs to make it look like a studio: this shows great love and fortitude and honoring of space. it makes it look amazing.
7. overcoming my fear of heights by stockpiling outdoor activities that are awesome: not necessarily a recommendation, but the fears were overcome, I made friends, and I enjoyed these things enough to explore doing most of them again. it was a great ride.
8. going to Jamaica: this was an amazing service project. I will have memories, good and bad, for the rest of my life.
9. getting close to my 5-gallon pin for blood donation: this is a true test of dedication and love for helping out individuals and shows fortitude and excellence in what I do. it is a great accomplishment.
10. loving to run and doing so faithfully: while I limit my race schedule substantially, running is an amazing activity for me. I have practiced plenty of times and I feel like this could almost be a lifetime sport for me.
Monday, July 29, 2013
Sunday, July 21, 2013
Top Ten Accomplishments 15-23
Here are some of the bigger accomplishments from ages 15 to ages 23 (in no particular order):
1) getting the choir and director choice awards in church choir at the same time- mostly because only one person has done that ever besides me and he's an inspiration. it is hard to believe, but I do have a good ensemble voice sometimes.
2) entering college- as crazy as it seems now, college was probably last on my goals when starting high school. I worked my behind off and eventually made it to where I got good enough grades the last couple of years to be a possible candidate for admission. entering the social side was my next endeavor.
3) figuring out the BUS in 2 days- once again, this proves that I'm smart. And that I earned going to college.
4) doing Unified Sports and pick-up ball and church-leagues and doing well- this proved that I wasn't just somebody who did well competing with just people with differing abilities. I also played well at lunchtime football for a while and well with church camp sports for a while, but these sports endeavors proved that I could play with pretty much anybody, which I always wanted.
5) working volunteer jobs and starting my first paid job- perhaps the biggest accomplishment at this point. the volunteer jobs helped give me solace that I could work hard and do what I needed to do and the paid job I started at the end of this era and I still have to this day.
6) making friends in college well the first year and beyond- high school adjusted socially for the whole time and I had a close friend circle, but at this point, I don't really hang out with anyone there. college I hang out with a lot of people and there are some that after they leave I will make a point to hang out with.
7) doing orientations- mostly because I don't believe in them, but I've always been a viable source, so I helped out with them anyways.
8) expanding leadership- there were many things I did in some community but not others. when I turned 22 and 23, I continually expanding my leadership possibilities and opportunities, and I enjoyed it immensely.
9) 3.217- this was my high school ending GPA after year 5. despite some academic shortcoming my first year and some shortcoming with time I could spend studying and how much high school equaled hell, I was able to complete high school that well.
10) going to a foreign country for 2 1/2 weeks and thriving- this is an experience I will never forget. I triumphed in the travels with my Mom by my side and we were able to enjoy my 21st in style.
1) getting the choir and director choice awards in church choir at the same time- mostly because only one person has done that ever besides me and he's an inspiration. it is hard to believe, but I do have a good ensemble voice sometimes.
2) entering college- as crazy as it seems now, college was probably last on my goals when starting high school. I worked my behind off and eventually made it to where I got good enough grades the last couple of years to be a possible candidate for admission. entering the social side was my next endeavor.
3) figuring out the BUS in 2 days- once again, this proves that I'm smart. And that I earned going to college.
4) doing Unified Sports and pick-up ball and church-leagues and doing well- this proved that I wasn't just somebody who did well competing with just people with differing abilities. I also played well at lunchtime football for a while and well with church camp sports for a while, but these sports endeavors proved that I could play with pretty much anybody, which I always wanted.
5) working volunteer jobs and starting my first paid job- perhaps the biggest accomplishment at this point. the volunteer jobs helped give me solace that I could work hard and do what I needed to do and the paid job I started at the end of this era and I still have to this day.
6) making friends in college well the first year and beyond- high school adjusted socially for the whole time and I had a close friend circle, but at this point, I don't really hang out with anyone there. college I hang out with a lot of people and there are some that after they leave I will make a point to hang out with.
7) doing orientations- mostly because I don't believe in them, but I've always been a viable source, so I helped out with them anyways.
8) expanding leadership- there were many things I did in some community but not others. when I turned 22 and 23, I continually expanding my leadership possibilities and opportunities, and I enjoyed it immensely.
9) 3.217- this was my high school ending GPA after year 5. despite some academic shortcoming my first year and some shortcoming with time I could spend studying and how much high school equaled hell, I was able to complete high school that well.
10) going to a foreign country for 2 1/2 weeks and thriving- this is an experience I will never forget. I triumphed in the travels with my Mom by my side and we were able to enjoy my 21st in style.
Sunday, July 14, 2013
Top 10 Accomplishments Volume 1
Here are my top ten accomplishments from my childhood-early-teenage life, pre-high school (no particular order):
1) winning several student of the month awards: even early on, when I had an ugly temperament, my brightness evidently showed.
2) going to the group home: the main accomplishment until I reached college. the group home helped me get to where I am today and it has helped me maintain life-long friendships.
3) winning 6 gold and 1 silver in swimming: this made me prove that I could do something and it helped me get to the point where I could pursue this life-long.
4) honor roll in middle school: once again, proving that I excelled in school all my school career long. I ended middle school with a 3.333 GPA and I did almost as well in the next couple levels. I am smart.
5) hitting two very important shots as the designated shooter in middle-school ball: while no one remembers this but me, these were my first two field goals ever. and that's maybe why I remember it.
6) speaking for the first time about autism: though I had plenty of help and it was nerve-wracking, because I was willing to do it, I was able to make a career as "Ian Bott: Motivational Speaker" as this has gone on for 16 more years and continues to this day.
7) gaining some friends in middle school through basketball and other things that I still have: they were my first true friends I had and I'm lucky to know that through this day, they've got my back. with or without caffeine addiction.
8) confirmation at church: the first of the necessary steps to understand what a Christian meant (Christian intentionally capitalized). this is what I always strive to be, and though it means more today than it did then, I can count it as a big one.
9) staying out of trouble for most of middle school: it's simple: I got away with a lot. but since I'm kind of a sketchy character, I can count this as a big one.
10) cultivating a love for reading, the arts, and sports: this would continue life-long and when I was in middle school and a little before was the first time I was really exposed to this type of learning.
1) winning several student of the month awards: even early on, when I had an ugly temperament, my brightness evidently showed.
2) going to the group home: the main accomplishment until I reached college. the group home helped me get to where I am today and it has helped me maintain life-long friendships.
3) winning 6 gold and 1 silver in swimming: this made me prove that I could do something and it helped me get to the point where I could pursue this life-long.
4) honor roll in middle school: once again, proving that I excelled in school all my school career long. I ended middle school with a 3.333 GPA and I did almost as well in the next couple levels. I am smart.
5) hitting two very important shots as the designated shooter in middle-school ball: while no one remembers this but me, these were my first two field goals ever. and that's maybe why I remember it.
6) speaking for the first time about autism: though I had plenty of help and it was nerve-wracking, because I was willing to do it, I was able to make a career as "Ian Bott: Motivational Speaker" as this has gone on for 16 more years and continues to this day.
7) gaining some friends in middle school through basketball and other things that I still have: they were my first true friends I had and I'm lucky to know that through this day, they've got my back. with or without caffeine addiction.
8) confirmation at church: the first of the necessary steps to understand what a Christian meant (Christian intentionally capitalized). this is what I always strive to be, and though it means more today than it did then, I can count it as a big one.
9) staying out of trouble for most of middle school: it's simple: I got away with a lot. but since I'm kind of a sketchy character, I can count this as a big one.
10) cultivating a love for reading, the arts, and sports: this would continue life-long and when I was in middle school and a little before was the first time I was really exposed to this type of learning.
Sunday, July 7, 2013
The Iantern (Or What I've Learned Working In A Non-Profit For The 1st Month)
I was an Iantern once before for Volunteer Services Board (a now defunct organization at school that is now Get Involved) and I worked sometimes hard, but I didn't get as much out of it as I needed to because I was unsure of what to do and how to do it. I chalk that up as a learning experience, but that was 3 or so years ago and I kind of had a lot going on. Now with jobs as my main focus for the summer and a clear idea of what to do, I am able to understand my roles as an Intern or Iantern with a non-profit, the Self-Advocacy Leadership Network. The Self-Advocacy Leadership Network or SALN for short, is a state-wide non-profit that focuses on helping people understand their roles as a self-advocate. Some of my roles have been a project manager, helping out with computer-related items, giving personal calls to people, attending meetings and events on the weekends, meeting individuals of high importance that are behind what we do, and creating better bonds with the board, among other things. Some things are learning experiences, like the ethical decisions on what to do when someone is out-of-sorts over something that was done or when I have been trying to ethically be authentic with the calls at high-stress times. There hopefully will be future interns from U of I, Boise State, and Idaho State, and each of them will bring different things to the table. My communication values and communication piece changes dramatically the landscape of SALN and their help with what needs to get done for everything is a variant that I can make over the summer and it gives me some cred when I look to become an officer in the winter. People are flawed, so there is going to be conflict, but it's trying to foresee what to do with the conflict and handling it well that changes what landscape I have yet to do and what people are still trying to piece out for the future landscape. As someone with autism and a long-time future officer hopefully, I can't imagine someone better for the Internship of SALN. Next week's blog: the top 10 accomplishments volume 1 of 3
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