Help Us Help You!

I was thrilled when Father McHugh gave a shout out to Jerry Maguire, one of my all time favorite movies, this morning at Mass. Besides being an all around fantastic movie, I believe there are many life lessons in watching Jerry "grow a conscience," struggle to become a better person and find meaning in a stereotypically soulless profession. There is one scene in particular that really resonates with me. If you have seen the movie, you no doubt recall the infamous "Help me help you" locker room scene in which an exasperated Jerry begs Rod to tone down his attitude and play his heart out so that Jerry will have a chance of negotiating a better contract for him. Jerry describes being a sports agent as a "pride swallowing siege that I will never fully tell you about." At times, being a college counselor feels a little like being Jerry Maguire! Did you know that we routinely call colleges to advocate on your behalf and remind them how wonderful you are and how difficult Visitation is? We love the opportunity to call attention to a fantastic set of first semester grades or the 300 hours of service you did last summer. So....help us help you! Some ways you can do this:

• Stay in touch - make sure we have your most up to date resume and that you have filled out the blue Brag sheet to the best of your ability. The more you can brag about yourself (as unnatural as that seems), the more we can brag about you to colleges!



• If something fantastic happens during the year - let us know that also! Sometimes you forget to tell us about the exciting things that happen over the course of the school year - or you just assume we already know. Keep us posted on new honors, awards, and interesting experiences. Don't be shy!



• At the same time, let us know if something...not fantastic...happens. If you are really struggling in one of your classes or something is going on that might impact your applications, it's better to make sure we are in the loop before things reach a level that feels unmanageable.

This is all fine and good, but you would really like to see the aforementioned clip, wouldn't you? Enjoy!




And while we're at it, feel free to enjoy the "You Complete Me" scene at the end of the movie. Swooning is optional.

Published by TSM