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General Conference

Traditionally, New Years is the time we sit down, evaluate our life, and set appropriate goals. However, an even better time for this is coming up in just three weeks - General Conference weekend. For anyone not familiar with this event, General Conference is a semi-annual meeting in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints where members from all over the world gather to hear the teachings of our church leaders. We believe these leaders to have the same authority and the same divine commision as the apostles and prophets we read about in the Bible. The teachings we receive during General Conference help us to know how we can face the specific challenges of our day and be better disciples of Jesus Christ.

Because conference is such a special event, I believe it merits extra attention and preparation. Here are some things I've done in the past to prepare for General Conference that I would suggest:

Before Conference:

1. Periodically watch, read, or listen to previous General Conference talks.

2. Come up with a list of life questions with which you need guidance. Without fail, as you sincerely listen to the speakers, you will find the answers you seek.

3. Study the scriptures. I especially recommend Mosiah chapters 2 through 5 in the Book of Mormon. See how King Benjamin's sermon mirrors the General Conference that we have today. Pay attention to how the people receive his teachings as he expounds the doctrines of the fall of man and of the atonement.

During Conference:

1. Go to Conference. If you live close to Salt Lake City, make a point to attend at least one session live at the Conference Center. Having a ticket is helpful but not necessary, as there are always extra seats to go around. I believe watching it live at Temple Square serves helps us remember what a monumental occasion it is.

2. If you can't go to Conference, still take the day off, dress in your Sunday best, and watch it at home. Be sure to remove all distractions, and avoid trying to multitask during conference.

3. Take notes. Even if a particular talk does not apply to you directly, writing helps you to stay focused. Last year I bought a Moleskine diary solely to hold Conference

notes. Any notebook will do, but if you are like me, investing more in a nice one will help you to value it more.

After Conference:

1. Sunday afternoon, find a quiet place to go ponder and review your notes. From your notes, make a list of the key ideas and quotes that you felt were most important for you.

2. From your summarized notes, create Conference Goals - specific goals for improvement based on what you felt and learned at conference.

3. Print your goals, stick them on your wall by your desk, and refer to them often throughout the coming months.

Hearing from living prophets and apostles is such an incredible privilege. On October 3rd and 4th I hope you will all take the time to "go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths" Isaiah 2:3

Full conference coverage can be found here: http://www.lds.org/conference/languages/0,6353,310-1,00.html

Have a great week - I'll post another update on my life soon.

Summer Happenings

...and just like that, summer's over. I don't know if I'm ready to move on yet - I feel like I haven't given myself a proper summer vacation since I've been working so much. Can't complain though when my daily schedule consists of consulting with clients at companies like Bain, Ameriprise, eBay and GM just to name a few, and also helping professors from across the globe at campuses such as the University of Adelaide (Australia), the Nanyang Technological University (Hong Kong), Harvard, and Berkeley. It is a breath of fresh air compared to a regular college job.

Here's some summer highlights -

July:

The Timpanogos Trip - Part 2

Earlier we had tried hiking Timp, but there was still too much snow. This time though, we were successful! I really like Timp. On a regular mountain, you get to the top, enjoy the view and then you just come back down. But on Timp, you get to the top, you enjoy the view... and then you slide down a glacier! Seriously that was more fun than any ride I've ever been on. I wish I could have done it more than once, but that would have meant another hour hiking back to the top.

resting at the top

the mighty glacier - watch out for rocks!

August:

More of the same stuff. The only August pictures I have are from a

bonfire in which three of us at Qualtrics happened to wear our company t-shirts.

I've been struggling to make time to get my business going. I have registered my business name with the state of Utah, but that's about as far as I've gotten. We also moved this last week. I felt bad for our new roomates when, after being there just one night we had a spontaneous pizza dinner with probably about 15 people there. I love the new complex so far. Our apartment feels more like a home than a dorm. We have a downstairs with the kitchen and living room, and then bedrooms upstairs. Unlike Glenwood, there are no holes in the wall or beds supported on cinder blocks, and the manager is the nicest person you will ever meet. Still though, I feel like my heart's back at the Glenwood. My roomates and I have been back there nearly every night this week. I'm sure we'll grow to love the new ward though.

So with all that said, here's my personal development goals for the new semester:

1. Communication - be a more interesting person to talk to

2. Organization - keep my room clean and my books and notes organized (I'm really bad at this)

3. Time management - limit my 'screen time' at the computer to only necessary tasks

Ask me how I'm doing next time we talk!

20somethingspotential

Part creative writing practice (can I become a decent writer?)

Part marketing experiment (can someone really draw a following and make money online?)

Part service project (can I help people live better?)

It's A 20-something's guide to living up to your potential, my new blog. It is a chronicle of my quest to set and reach goals and live up to my potential. I hope to also provide practical ideas based on my experiences along the way on having more meaningful relationships with those around us.

Phantom of the Glenwood

Here's the finished product of our video for the ward film festival. For full screen, click on the arrows next to the vimeo logo.

Pizza

I've been trying my hand at pizza for the last week or two, and have found some interesting recipes. One of my favorites is the deep dish pizza (but I'm probably biased since this is my own recipe.)

Ingredients:

1 ¼ cup warm water

1 tablespoon yeast

2 tablespoons sugar

½ teaspoon salt

3-3 ½ cups flour

¼ cup butter or margarine, melted

2 cans tomato paste

1 can whole plum tomatoes

1 package Jimmy Dean Italian Sausage (be sure to get this exact kind - it is seasoned perfectly)

pepperonis (optional)

Mozzerella cheese - at least 1 cube fresh and 1 cup grated (the more the better - you can do all grated if you want to simplify things)

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

minced garlic

minced onion

basil

oregano

salt

pepper

Dough:

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water.

2. Add sugar, salt and 2 ½ cups flour. Mix to form dough.

3. If more flour is needed, add up to 1 cup more. Mix about 3 minutes.

4. Let dough rest for 10 minutes.

Sauce:

1. Cook sausage and drain grease

2. While sausage is cooking, in a seperate pan simmer finely minced garlic and onion in olive oil for a few minutes

3. Add 1 can plum whole tomatoes (drained), 2 cans tomato paste, and one paste-can of water. stir until well mixed. You will probably want to mash the tomatoes a little (but not too much).

4. Add the sausage (and pepperonis if you want) to the sauce. The sauce should have a very thick, chunky consistency - if it is thin, you will have a very messy pizza.

5. Add basil, oregano, salt and pepper to taste.

Assemble:

1. Spray a springform pan liberally with oil. Roll out dough and place it in the pan (so it covers the bottom and comes up the sides). The dough on the sides will be drooping down, but once you pour in the sauce this won't be a problem.

2. Cover the crust with thin slices of mozzerella.

3. Pour in the chunky sauce / sausage mixture.

4. Sprinkle additional mozzerella and shredded parmesan cheese on top.

5. Bake in preheated oven (probably around 425 - I can't recall) until the crust is golden brown.

Hope you like it. For more great pizza, you can try these amazing California Pizza Kitchen recipes:

Rosemary Chicken and Potato

http://www.recipesource.com/main-dishes/pizza/rosemary-chicken-potato1.html

BBQ Chicken

http://www.recipezaar.com/BBQ-Chicken-Pizza-California-Pizza-Kitchen-Style-155744

Glendog Millionaire

For FHE we were supposed to make a movie for the ward Film Festival. Our assignment was "Phantom of the Glenwood: The Musical", but we didn't know what to do with it, so we did what anyone who's seen Slumdog Millionaire would do - an ending credits bollywood dance.