This week we were fortunate enough to welcome Sam Beck to speak at this week’s rose cafe. Although I feel like I say this every week, I really felt that Sam was one of the best speakers that we have had. He established the casual atmosphere right from the beginning of the cafe, and encouraged us to relax and participate in a free back-and-forth kind of discussion with him.

Further, I enjoyed how he personally asked each student about what they want to do in the future, and what they hope to accomplish. I also felt that he was listening very intently about my current studies, and really cared to listen and offer advice. For a stranger to offer so much sympathy and an open ear was really refreshing, and made me leave the rose cafe feeling much more positive than I had come in initially after doing so much homework.

One of the most important topics that he talked about to me was when he was emphasizing the importance of getting a mentor in order to aid one to accomplish their specific goal. I thoroughly agree with this idea. There is so much wisdom that others more experienced have to offer. Also, in my experience, others are also much more willing to impart this wisdom than one would think. People generally seem very excited to share what they have learned through experience in order to aid a peer. I find this to be especially true at Cornell, as there are so many ways to get fellow student mentors, such as joining a service fraternity. Personally, I have joined WICC and have signed up for a mentorship program through that in the past, which has helped me get an internship this year and last year.

I hope in the future that we get other speakers as inspiring and positive as Beck. I really, really enjoyed this week’s cafe.