I spent the greater part of my childhood watching TV. My parents were never very happy about this. It’s not to say that never left the house or my plastic bubble. I was involved in dance, theater and tried my hand at sports but on most Saturday mornings you would find me in my living room watching Saved by the Bell. I always knew that my years spent watching it and the subsequent years spent watching the reruns would come in handy, and not just for 80s trivia night.
Zack Morris: excellent at basketball, singing, entrepreneur and not only another childhood crush, but my unemployment hero as well.
1. Self confidence: If Saved by the Bell taught me anything about high school, besides how awesome school dances could truly be, it was that a wink and smile could get you out of everything. Ok, maybe if you were Zack Morris but that kid had game. From saving wild animals from an oil spill to spearheading his school’s Just Say No program, Zack was made for leadership. Not one to question himself or his gut, he most always ended up on top and in less than 30 minutes. It’s a skill I hope to master. Although the less than 30 minutes thing will kind of be hard with real life and no commercial break. But I can dream, right?
2. Ingenuity: You know Zack Morris invented friendship bracelets and buddy bands? He also toured with his band, the Zack Attack. I caught them in concert twice. I hope to make the reunion tour.What is great about Zack was that he took advantage of every opportunity given to him and looked to maximize it. I mean the kid played dead to try and win a trip to Hawaii. It was unfortunate he lost but still, he tried. It’s my hope to be that clever some day. I may not be able to invent the friendship bracelet or team up for buddy bands or even play dead but I can learn not to give up, and look for creative solutions in every day life.
3. No Shame: Zack made mistakes. We all do. But he always seemed to move on from them, and his friends always forgave him. No one likes to make a mistake. I know I hate it. But making myself neurotic over even the slightest error in an e-mail is not beneficial to my be like Zack Morris makeover. Take a deep breath, locate and acknowledge the mistake and move on. I may not get a salty treat this time around, but the next when I do it right it’ll taste that good.
My fear this week is that while I am being good at life writing here and remaining positive, there will be the day when I start a new job and with that comes the what ifs. What if I fail? What if my new employer doesn’t think I am as good as I was on paper? It stems from being laid off and not feeling like I was as successful as I could have been at my past job. I was just beginning to feel like I understood the tactics and was building up my skills I needed when I was laid off. Honestly that’s the way life rolls and it’s another life lesson I needed to learn. You can have all the best intentions and attitude in the world but when you’re let go — you have to let it go. I’m no master at this. I still struggle with the ghost of jobs past. Unlucky for me his visits come more often than his Christmas visiting cousin.
So I have to think What Would Zack Morris Do (WWZMD)? If my hours spent watching TV were worth anything it was being able to solve a problem in 30 minutes and learn a new life lesson. Zack would look for his next opportunity. He would smile, wink at the camera and take out his shoe sized phone to call for his next job. And my mom told me I was wasting my youth watching Saved by the Bell. Ha.
