5 of the Most Influential People I've Ever Met

Whether good or bad, here are 5 people who have really left an impression on me...

1) My High School Speech Coach

Coach was crazy. She cared far more about her speech team than her communication classes. In fact, the only way to ensure she would even remember your name was to join the team.

What Coach taught me:
-Every professional look needs 5 pieces of jewelry, 4 inch heels, and lipstick.
-Communication is awesome. She inspired me to major in communication in college, which eventually led to my career in television.
-Affection can be bought. Just win a medal at a speech tournament.

2) The Boss at My First Real Job

Boss was odd. His idea of dressing up was a sleveless t-shirt and a curly mullet. The fact that I usually couldn't understand what he was saying caused me to dread our every encounter.

What Boss taught me:
-A hockey stick is a perfectly acceptable door-shutting tool when you don't want to get out of your desk chair.
-When it comes to music tastes, appearances are deceiving. A CD he made me almost went in the trash until I realized that he had unknowingly put some of my favorite songs on it.
-Laziness will eventually be punished. He was fired early one monday morning under the explanation of "downsizing."

3) My High School Youth Group Leader

Leader was exactly that. During an age when you constantly question the existence of God, and it's far cooler to be mean to others, he stuck by us all. Under his guidance, our youth group swelled to a large group of eager youth who wanted nothing more than to help others.

What Leader taught me:
-It doesn't matter what the uptight adults think. A lot of them thought he was a bad influence, but he is still the best youth leader our church has seen in the past 20 years.
-No one is perfect. During a camping trip in Minnesota, he cut down protected trees in order to construct a useless sign for his group's campsite.
-Even the coolest adult occasionally has to be strict... like when half-chewed marshmallows are spewed all over the floor of a rental van during a game of "Chubby Bunny" gone horribly wrong.

4) My London Study Abroad Teacher

Teacher was irresponsible. It's a lot of pressure being trusted with 25 college kids in a foreign country, and he just wasn't up to the challenge.

What Teacher taught me:
-It's okay for teachers to ignore their responsibilities and classes when their gay lover is in town.
-Study abroad really does involve studying. Free time must be budgeted accordingly.
-I'm on my own. When it's 5 am and I wake up in a London hospital, it's not the best time to wish you had a cell phone or any sort of emergency number.

5) My Childhood Friend

Friend is awesome. We met in preschool and were inseperable throughout our school years. She now lives far away and we don't talk much, but I still feel the same.

What Friend taught me:
-It's stupid to care about what other people think. If you want to dress crazy, then strap on a tutu. If you want to be loud, then yell.
-It's really harder to fool adults than it seems. Even if you trade clothes with your best friend, they will probably still figure out who you are.
-There actually are people you can always rely on... no matter how far away they are.

Occasionally, it's good to look back and remember all the people who shaped you into the person you are today. Whether they were a rolemodel or a disaster, each of them taught me something important.

2 weeks until my sprint triathlon. I'm struggling with training. All this rain is making my workouts difficult.

Triathlon training has taught me to be resiliant. I will be ready in 2 weeks.