Transform Your Senior Year Through Mentorship With Jaiden Thomas And Ryan Briggs

College senior years may be the busiest and most challenging, but you can always bring it to the next level by going beyond books and the usual curriculum. Optimize your experience and tap into your full potential by getting access to the right college mentorship experience. Tina Fox is joined by two seniors of the Texas Tech University-Rawls College of Business: Jaiden Thomas, who is double-majoring in Architecture and Business Administration, and Ryan Briggs, an Information Technology Major and Sport Management Minor. Sharing their experiences and insights, they reveal what it is like to be a senior in college today, as well as the importance of finding mentors aligned with their goals and passions. Jaiden and Ryan also explore the benefits of getting involved in school organizations, how they navigate the uncertainties of young adulthood, and what it takes to lead an intentional and heart-driven college life.

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Listen to the podcast here

Transform Your Senior Year Through Mentorship With Jaiden Thomas And Ryan Briggs

I am Tina Fox, the founder and CEO of TERN Mentoring, and this is TERN Talks. We have two very special guests because I am on location at Texas Tech University over here in beautiful Lubbock, Texas. We are at the Rawls College of Business with two seniors. We have got Jaiden Thomas. Jaiden is not only an architecture major, but also a business major.

His hometown is El Paso, Texas. His post-grad plan is to go into a master’s degree in architecture. We also have Ryan Briggs. Her major is information technology with a minor in sports management. Her hometown is Albuquerque, New Mexico, and her post-grad plan is to go to law school. We wanted to kick off this conversation.

I have had the privilege to work with both of these students through an internship. They are both part of an amazing team called Mission Possible, and they have worked with Terns. They know a lot about our company. They obviously are students, and they are getting ready to graduate.

They have got a lot of wisdom to exchange not only to the younger audiences of students who are still going through their college education, but also to all of those alumni mentors out there who are interested in finding out. What is it like to be a senior today?

What Could Sneak Up On You During Senior Year

What are some of the thoughts, concerns, and issues that they are dealing with in today’s market, not only in the job market, but also in many other areas, like in their personal life? We are going to start with what is the one thing you wish freshmen understood about what sneaks up on you by senior year? We will start with Jaiden.

I would say the one thing that I wish freshmen understood is that you are going to have to make a lot of decisions in your senior year, especially ones that feel like they are life-altering, because they are. Not only that, but you have built so many relationships within your college years and friendships and things like that, but you all go in your own separate ways. That is a territory that is unfamiliar because even in high school and elementary school, you were with people all the time, every single day. Now you are stripped away from that. You have to learn how to make friends in the workforce or outside of work, and things like that.

What about you, Ryan?

I agree with what Jaiden said. Freshman me knew, but did not understand, because your parents are always telling you these are going to be the best and fastest four years of your life. You’re like, “Yeah, sure, Mom.” It really is. I would want freshmen to know time really is scarce.

As Jaiden said, you have to be a lot more intentional with everything that you do, the relationships that you build, the things that you choose to do outside of class, whether it be extracurriculars, work, or the friendships that you make. All those things, you really have to be very focused on what you want to do with every minute of your day, and it goes by so fast.

Jaiden And Ryan: Beyond Their Majors And Minors

I described you as far as your majors and minors, and you have been here for four years. As you said, it has gone by in a blink of an eye, but I am sure every day seems like a long day, especially when you are taking 16 or 18 credit hours. Who are you beyond the major and the minors? Who have you become in these four years that you have been here at Rawls?

Speaking for me personally, I feel like I am someone who learned the value of family, especially within these last four years. I feel like I did not really understand how much I was going to miss my family until I was away from them. That made me be more grateful for the time that I do spend with my family, and also the family that I have created here at Texas Tech, and those friendships. I just like to travel. I like to hang out with my family and my friends outside of school.

As a mom of teenagers who have not entered college, you’re giving me hope that they’re going to want to hang out with me. How about you, Ryan? A lot of development, I am sure.

Being away from home, just like my first time living alone and all these things, has really helped me figure out who I am and what things apply to me in particular, and how to apply my strengths and weaknesses. I am very Type A, and that sometimes makes it harder to make relationships, but I have found the people with whom I really click and the different processes that really work for me.

I actually spend a lot of my free time cleaning my house because it makes me feel better, and I hope to have a lot of space. It is just things that help your day-to-day go smoother, like finding people I can confide in and things that make my life easier, which is having a clean house, in my personal opinion. Just being able to do things that make you happy.

Do you think your four years have been a postponement of real life, or do you think it has helped you step into real life?

Step into it for sure.

When I am here, and you do things like cleaning your house and things of that nature, that is really cool. You have been at Rawls. What do you feel as though is one moment that has changed you and how you see yourself outside of cleaning your house now?

I would not even say just within Rawls, but just in other on-campus organizations across Texas Tech. Having other people believe in you before you believe in yourself has really been something that has changed my perspective on how I approach different tasks. One specifically was that I worked with tech athletic ambassadors on campus.

This can go towards Scovell too, but having this reputation that you have, like putting on a polo that says Texas Tech, for some reason, I did not change anything else about myself except for putting on this thing that made other people look at me like I knew what I was doing, even if I did not. The confidence boost just immediately goes up. I may not know what I am doing, but I will find out for you, and I will go figure it out.

It is just something like that, knowing I got this position for a reason, even if I do not know why. I did this interview, and I was not confident. They saw something in me that I did not see in myself. Having that visual representation of someone believing in me made me have this mind-altering situation of like, “Yeah, I can do this.” Having that extra support was something that Rawls and Tech really brought to me.

That is really beautiful. What about you, Jaiden?

I 110% agree with Ryan. I feel like one moment for me was getting accepted into the School of Business Leadership Program. There are hundreds of kids that apply, and I had just finished high school, and it was the summer right before becoming a freshman here at Texas Tech. I applied, I did the interview, and it was my first time ever really applying for a leadership role within college.

Ultimately, I got the call back, and as Ryan said, I was able to put on that polo, and just like the staff and everybody here at Texas Tech felt confident in us, so that really boosted our egos, but not in an egotistical type of way. It just really helped us step into that leadership role with more confidence.

Jaiden And Ryan’s Extracurricular Activities And School Organizations

That is great. You guys are talking about words like Scovell or the athletic teams. Why do we not talk for a second about some of the other extracurriculars that you are involved in? Why do you not tell the audience? What else do you do? Talk about what Scovell is all about. I mentioned it probably a couple of times.

Scovell was the first program I joined at Texas Tech. I applied prior to being a student here. You go through an interview process, and you talk to a lot of different staff members and professors, and they look at your resume and your high school academics. It is essentially a prestigious program in Rawls, specifically for top-performing students, to help them get an opportunity to be leaders and learn from leaders, and be able to take the knowledge that they can get from the networking and all the different opportunities that they have, and be able to give it back to other students and possibly mentees in the future.

I am also involved in many other student orgs on campus. Texas Tech has so many opportunities. I am in Women in Business, Future Lawyers of Today. I was in Tech Athletic Ambassadors. I am in a student sports management group, and they are really open to having so many people involved, and they want to open doors for you. All the opportunities here have been amazing.

If there are 24 hours in a day, you know how to pack a day. Jaiden, I know that your resume is equally impressive as far as all these other extracurriculars. What are you involved in?

I would say, just like Ryan said, even whenever I was just looking at which university I wanted to attend, something about Texas Tech just really jumped out at me was their commitment to students and their commitment to professional development. On the architecture side, I am Vice President of the NOMAS, which is the National Organization of Minority Architects. Here in the business school, I am also in Scovell. I am also in the Real Estate Organization. I do work for Texas Tech Housing as well.

I was only involved in two things when I was in school, and that was enough, and I did not even have a job. I listen to this, and I am like, “What made you want to get that involved in all these things?” Plus, you guys have heavy academic schedules on top of it. Are both of you graduating on time, in four years?

Early.

You are graduating early. By six months? One semester?

Yeah.

What made you decide to get involved in all these things? Were people dragging you along? Were professors encouraging you? You just had an interest? What made you decide to do it?

For me, it just came naturally. I have always been like that. Even in high school, I was really involved. I was in maybe four student orgs. As I said, it was different when I came to college. I did not have that confidence because I knew the student body was going to be so huge. I did not have the confidence to be like the student body president or anything like that. I was able to step here on campus and see professors really see that value in us as students, which inspired me to apply and take the initiative to engage in these student leadership roles.

We are here with Ryan Briggs, and she is talking to us about all of these extracurricular activities that she has participated in. What made you decide to do this with such a heavy academic schedule and graduating six months early?

It did come pretty naturally to me as well. A lot of classes, especially freshmen intro classes, have different student orgs come in and just give a brief little statement about who they are and what they do. Oddly enough, what really draws you in is that most of them have free food. You are a freshman on campus, and you’re like, “I’m hungry, and you guys have pizza, so I will be there.”

You just meet people, and you join one student org, and now all of a sudden, the friends that you make in that student org are like, “I’m also in this student org, you should come.” You go a few times and all of a sudden you have six different student org meetings that you are going to in a week and you’re like, “Wait, how did this happen?” You click with all those people, and you really enjoy all the different activities, and all of a sudden, here you are. Every year, you add another one because some class tells you to.

There is definitely quantity. Do you all feel the quality in these organizations? I know you mentioned you are the Vice President for the architecture group that you are with. You feel quality in this time as well. You are not overspread.

No, I would not say I am overspread. One of the things with me is that I only do something if my heart is truly in it. I feel like every single student org, I am truly in it, and I am committed to it. It never feels like a burden, being in these student orgs at all.

That is such great advice. I know you are offering it in that way, but what I heard was if you’re going to be in something, give it your heart, give it your all. Otherwise, it will be quantity, and it will not be quality. Is there anything you want to tell other students who maybe are shy to engage in activities on campus? What advice do you have to give them?

I would say even if you are shy, it is okay. Just go ahead and take that first step. As Ryan said, there are going to be tons of people who are very welcoming in many cases. If you are unsure about a student org or an activity, just reflect on it. If you truly cannot commit to it, I think it is okay to step back. It is okay to let some things go, but what you do not want to do is just stay in it and not put in any effort, because that is going to show. Word spreads fast in terms of your work ethic and things like that.

That is part of your brand. You’re setting your brand. Anything else you want to tell these students?

It is a saying you hear all the time in college, like you get out what you put into it. It is just that you take advantage of the opportunities that they give you. There are so many events across campus all the time. Either you go, or you do not, and when you do go, you either connect with people, or you stand there, and you look around, and you feel left out. It really is what you put into it.

All these organizations are on campus for a purpose, and that purpose is to help you. Do not be afraid to go to different student orgs because they are there for you. They want you to come. They want to see how they can help you. A lot of times, if you have something in mind that they do not have yet, you can bring it up, and they will create it. It can really be whatever you want it to be. You just have to take the steps to get there.

Becoming More Confident By Embracing Vulnerability

I love the entrepreneurial spirit. We are going to shift gears a little bit because you all are in your twenties, right? We will not tell exactly how old you are, but you are in your twenties, and one of my college besties actually recommended this book to me called The Defining Decade. You all are in the defining decade. I am going to read something here. This is by author Meg Jay.

She is the PhD who wrote this book. She argues that your twenties are not a dress rehearsal, that defining moments like earning power, changes in brain and personality development, and other key decisions about work, love, and self compound. What feels most uncertain right now as a twenty-something-year-old getting ready to graduate from your four-year institution and go out to your next chapter?

I did get a little bit of a precursor as to what is making you nervous during our dinner. Anything, whether it is work, money, relationships, what are you feeling that you want to share? Your vulnerability will help others feel as though, “I’m not alone.” What do you say, Jaiden?

I would start off by saying I think that college has really helped me become confident in myself and my abilities. I feel pretty confident there. Graduating from college, I feel like I stepped out of my shell, and I gained a lot of lifelong skills in college. I would say the things that are uncertain for me are things that give me anxiety. Most definitely our relationships, because I am such a relationship-driven person. As I said, I have gained a lot of friendships here in college, and we are all going our separate ways. That is untried territory for me. I would also say money, obviously.

That does not go away.

One of the things for me in particular, just because I am going to get my master’s, I am having to figure out, “Do I want to stay here at Texas Tech, an institution that has been so great to me, or do I want to go somewhere else and take on that cost of tuition and pay that on my own?” That is something that is uncertain for me.

The thing I am most uncertain about moving forward is just time and direction. I have always been very scheduled. You always have a one-year, a two-year, a five-year, and a ten-year plan. You’ve gone from elementary school, middle school, and high school, and there has always been this expectation of what the next step is.

I am getting to the point in my life, in my academics, in my career, where there are so many different options, and I do not know what the expectation is, what the next step I can take is. I do not have a vision of what my life will look like in five years to the accuracy that I have had before. It is hard to get a grasp of not knowing what could happen in the next couple of years or where I will end up.

There is ambiguity for sure in everything. We are not guaranteed tomorrow, but I think with the choices that I have seen you two make already, you make wise choices, you make educated decisions. When you get there, you’re going to figure it out. It is just one step in front of the other. I totally understand the 1-year, 3-year, 5-year, 10-year thing. That was what my dad used to ask me in middle school.

Getting The Right Mentorship From The Right Mentor

He kept asking me every week when he came home. It was a great practice in goal setting, but as I, like you, moved past my college career, and I was so uncertain about what even one year would look like, it became more of a place of anxiety. I understand that, but I can tell you that you’re going to see yourself through every decision you make, and it is going to be brilliant. On that, you’ve been a part of the TERN Mentoring Program. You’ve had mentors. What have you learned about your mentors as far as that interaction and exchange?

The first interaction is always a bit nerve-wracking, and you always feel like, “This is wrong.” As they know everything that I know. I do not want to ask them things because I am wasting their time. They do not want to do this. It really is just a matter of going deeper than surface level. After you get through those first couple of interactions and you gain a deeper respect for them as a person, and once they’re able to know a little bit more about you and what you’ve done, that level of respect does meet up.

They’re just people, too. Jaiden, what would you say?

I would say that they’re also people as well. That is how I have approached it every single time. I go into it with an open mind. Both of my mentors have been really great and understanding. I never felt like there was a power trip or anything. The dynamic was always really equal between the two of us. It just took us some time to get to know each other. You have to be vulnerable and share your strengths and your weaknesses with them. That way, they know exactly how to help you. They will also ask us for help on certain things as well, which is great.

What Jaiden And Ryan Are Hopeful For In Their Twenties

That is definitely two-way. You guys are in your early twenties. What are you hopeful for in your twenties? What are you excited about?

I am excited for all the possibilities. I feel like, for me, my mom always says this. Once I have my mind made up on something, I always go after it, and I attack it, and I get it. I have certain things in my mind that I know I want to attain. I am really driven in that aspect.

What do you think you do not know?

A lot. Many things.

As for me, I do not know where I am going to be in the fall, but as we talked about, I know I am going to end up somewhere great, and I am just waiting it out. That uncertainty does give me some anxiety. I know a lot of other people in their twenties are feeling the same way.

This connects to what you wish you knew as a freshman, but it is to be excited about challenges. I feel like so many students and people are just so afraid of change and so afraid of getting something wrong or raising their hand in class and getting the wrong answer. What I’ve learned is that it is a lot more exciting to learn something new and to be bad at it. When you finally have that a-ha moment, and you finally get it right, it is so much more rewarding.

I am really excited moving forward to learn new things, to step into new fields, to see more of different processes and different businesses, and to see how different cultures work in different cities, and be able to expand my general knowledge. It is okay to get things wrong because then, when you get it right, it is so much more fun.

I feel like you can let your anxiety outweigh your curiosity or overpower it. Ryan talked about raising your hand and just speaking up. One example that I have is, I believe, it was my sophomore year here in Rawls. We were just in SBLP, we were doing a luncheon, and there were professionals who were eating with us, and they were asking, “What are your goals after college?”

They were already asking me that as a sophomore. One of the things that I talked about is that I have my mind made up on what I want to do. Yes, I am going to get my master’s in architecture, but specifically, I want to do set design and entertainment design, which is very niche.

For my whole freshman year, I did not tell anyone that because I was very scared that nobody knew what that was, and so I just kept it in, and I was like, “Once I graduate, that’s what I’m going to do.” I built up the courage at that luncheon table to just be like, “This is what I want to do, have you heard of it?” Someone was like, “Yeah, actually, I have. You should look into this person.” That was already a connection that I made. Just from that very first time of expressing my goals and my interests.

You do help put the pieces of the puzzle together for other people when you display a little bit more of your thoughts. Ryan, one of the things I loved you said is this whole aspect of change. It is okay that you can change. I remember in my twenties, this is something I think this generation, we are talking about things that people have assumptions about.

I know when I was in my twenties, the assumption was that when you graduate from college, you get a job, and then you stay with that job for the rest of your life. At least that was my parents who had stayed in their careers for a long time. I was coming out in a time when I did not feel as though that was going to be my path because I was not going to be in the military like my father or work with the federal government like my mom. I was moving into the private sector.

As I moved into the private sector, I realized that there were new opportunities I needed to seek. I was making a job change every couple of years in my twenties, to which my parents were just horrified, because they were like, “That’s so disloyal, and nobody’s ever going to want to hire you.” Just that aspect of knowing, I can change my mind, I can try new things, I can be vulnerable, I can tell people these are some of my interests. That might shift where you go in your twenties.

Getting Out Of The Snow Globe Of Lubbock, Texas

It sounds like you have already learned that lesson, and you are going to be moving beyond that very quickly. Let us go into this beautiful snow globe that you are leaving out here in Lubbock, Texas. We have got students who come into the snow globe, and as you said, it is very structured.

You have got lots of support around you. You have all sorts of different organizations that you can join. You are going to be describing or defining your major, and then you are going to be taking classes specific to your major. There is a lot of structure around that.

We also know that when you go into the real world, it is not going to be as structured, and we try to serve you, and they do a great job here at Rawls in providing you a mentor to give you some of that advice. What is something that you are dealing with now that takes you outside of campus resources? That is not in the snow globe. What are you leveraging, using, or starting to explore that is not necessarily in this structured world?

It is just moving into your senior year and your upcoming summers. You are having to expand outside of on-campus resources for internships and grad school. You have to determine where you want to go and all the different factors that could go into that. What is best for you, because no one else knows what is best.

Mentorship: Expand outside of on-campus resources for internships and grad school. You have to determine what is best for you because no one else knows better than you.

At this point, not many people, at least the ratio of them, go to grad school post-undergrad, and maybe not in the same field as you, for sure. You have a lot fewer people to ask, “How do I do this? Where do I go to apply? What do I need to submit? How do I know when the deadline is?” All these different things. Where it is kind of like going into college from high school. They give you all that stuff.

It is just like everybody’s doing it at the same time. You and all of your friends are all doing the exact same processes. People who are just a year or two older than you know the process step-by-step. They just did it. It is coming to me now where you have to do a lot more of your own due diligence to find what you need to do and where you want to go.

Where are you finding that?

You just have to look around. I have really scoured the Texas Tech Law website and all the different things. You look on LinkedIn, you look in your student orgs. I know from Future Lawyers of Today that a lot of them are going to law school. I look at our previous president, who just graduated, “Where did you end up? How did you get there? How did you study for the LSAT? How did you apply? When did you apply?”

Those organizations are really helpful for that because they are a niche group of people who are going the same path as you. They are in a different college, and now they are going to law school too, so I can ask them. It takes a lot more of your own efforts to find the correct people to ask.

Have your mentors been helpful in it?

Yes.

When you are partnered with mentors in TERN Mentoring, it is not necessarily because they went to grad school or law school, and now you are going. They might have taken a different path than you. It is not noise when you talk to your mentors. You are getting help. Have they been able to expand your network beyond them?

Yes. I would say both of my mentors really have. They have been able to help me expand my network, but I do not like to limit myself. I like to explore as many opportunities as possible. As you said, the campus has a lot of opportunities already. I try to get those opportunities and get what I want out of them. I know that sounds a little scary or a little crazy, but for example, last semester, Rawls invited the HR head at the NFL to come and present.

I attended that conversation. I followed up with the HR professional because they also have a role in hiring, and I was like, “This is my name. This is my major. I’m really interested in set design and entertainment architecture. I know you all do a lot of Super Bowl shows and halftime shows and things like that. Are there any opportunities outside of campus?” You just have to be proactive as well.

For all of you who do not know Jaiden, he is the king of follow-up. Right there, he is dropping a lot of really good knowledge for you. I do not care what age you are. He is the king of follow-up. You guys have had mentors. I know you seek out your own mentors. As you said, you like to go out and do your own thing.

Design the perfect alumni mentor. We have an audience of people that are listening, and they’re like, “What can I deliver to twenty-something year olds? What do they want to know? Who am I as a mentor? How can I deliver for them?” What would be some things that you are seeking from alumni mentors?

For me, it has been hard to find a mentor with as interesting a career path as I have or have planned. I am an information technology and sport management minor who applied for those two majors and minors with the intention of going into sports analytics. Since then, we have had the uproar of NIL and all of the different compliance issues and insane amounts of money and roles and everything.

I have gained an interest in law and contracts, and NIL, which has evolved. Interestingly, every time I’m like, “I want to go to law school,” people are like, “What’s your major?” I’m like, “IT.” They’re like, “What?” I’m like, “I’m also in sport management.” They’re like, “I don’t get it.”

It would be really helpful to have a mentor who maybe is not in my specific field, but who has made those different jumps and is like, “How do you get to where you want to go when all of your things do not connect?” I am not IT going into AI or something. Just having someone who’s like, “I had to navigate that too, where my paths were all over the place and I was still able to get on track.”

That would be helpful. What is so interesting is that you and I hear more and more these days, which is what the working world is having to deal with. It is that the traditional jobs are no longer the future jobs, and that you might have been trained in something ten years ago that is now going to be obsolete because life is moving at a rapid pace, and there are all these new things coming to market.

You are looking for a mentor who really understands flexibility, reinvention of self, and entrepreneurial thought. It does not matter if it is in your specific major and minor. You just need somebody who knows how to pivot. Jaiden, design your awesome mentor.

I totally agree. Some things that I would add. Definitely someone who is personable and can follow up. That is one of the things that I am very big on. We do not have to have 30-minute conversations. It is just here and there, just checking in. That goes a long way.

All that momentary mentorship.

Just letting them know that you are available is really important. That you did not forget about them. Neither of my mentors has made me feel that way, but I think it would go a long way if mentors did start doing that a little bit more. Also, someone who may not have all the answers or who did not go down the same exact career path, but they are willing to utilize their connections and ask questions for you as well in their profession. That would also be very useful.

Mentors who are resilient, available mentors, even if it is just for a quick question. Mentors who are resilient, they are available.

I would say they are proactive.

Keeping Genuine Relationships After College

Thank you for that. You stated earlier about this life after college. One of the things that you are worried about is that you have built all of these relationships and how you’re going to keep those relationships when you leave school. Is this something that you talk to your friends about, like, “How are we going to stay in touch? I am probably going to go to the University of Miami and study architecture, and you are going to go wherever you are going to go.” What are you guys talking about? Is it just like, “We will just see when we get there?”

We definitely say that we are going to keep in touch, but I know that things change, especially in your twenties. People start their families, and they start different careers in different cities. We have all said that we are going to make it a priority to also show up for our friends. I know that does not always happen, so that makes me feel sad sometimes.

I know I am also going to gain a lot of friendships as I am working, or also just staying active outside of work, and doing other things. I talked about keeping that momentum. I am going to get a job, but I also want to join a workout group or something like that, just to keep me active and motivated as well.

Your generation is the first generation that, from the cradle, has had access to tech. You talked about the fact that you are going to show up, which is different than showing up on tech. For you in your development of relationships and keeping relationships, where does technology play a role versus being in person and seeing those individuals?

Showing up in person goes way further than just showing up online.

I love hearing that.

Of course, if it is something smaller, just a text like a holiday text or something like that. That does go a long way as well. Just letting them know that you are thinking about them is also great. Just finding those moments. For my mentor and me, I texted her and I was like, “I’m actually going to be in Dallas over the weekend. Do you have time for coffee?” Using technology as a way to set up those meetings and those quick schedules is really great. I was ultimately able to meet with her in person, which is really great. Even though it was a last-minute thing, technology was able to help make that process much smoother.

I am recognizing that you are building your perfect alumni mentor in the same way that you behave, which is that whole proactive get in touch with them, set up the time to see them in person. That is really amazing because I do see a lot of students who are very connected to technology. They have a hard time connecting with people in real life. They are very nervous about conversations with strangers.

They are missing out on the opportunities, because people are people. Ryan, what about you? You are going to be heading off to law school, I am sure. How are you going to stay in touch with your friends? What are some of the things that you are committing to?

The hard part is, in some part of your mind, you do know that it is one of those truths that you know, but have not said out loud, that this may not continue. That is nobody’s fault, and for no bad reason. Many of my friends grew up in different places than I did, and we are probably going to go back to different places or move to different places. Being online really does help with that, both in school and moving forward.

It is just you know a lot more about what is going on in other people’s lives, so that when you do see them in person, when you do make that effort, you have a lot more to talk about. You’re like, “How was your trip?” or “How has school been?” It is easier to know what people are doing. That is always helpful, but really, as Jaiden said, I love in-person interactions way more.

I will take an in-person class over an online class all of the time, even though online can be a lot more convenient. Just because I do not feel like you can really have a true connection with somebody when it is fully online. I have never once emailed an online professor unless I have a grade issue. Whereas I have had professors in person that I have nominated for awards and who have had children since then, and I’ve been able to follow up with them and be like, “How is it going now? How is your child? How has work been?”

All the different things that they have done and have been able to have that mentorship outside of that, you have gone and created on your own. You just cannot do that over an online platform. Even from an academic standpoint, too, it is so much easier to succeed in class when you actually have a professor whom you can stand next to and show them your work and say, “How does this look? What can I do differently?”

Be able to actually see their body language and how they speak to you, and how much that can impact a relationship. Sometimes when you’re emailing a professor, you’re like, “They think I’m dumb. That was a dumb question. I shouldn’t have said that. Now they think I’m just not doing my job.” Whereas in person, it is much easier for them to be like, “I can see you’re putting in the work.

I can see where you’re having a disconnect. We might just not be communicating it correctly to really get the answers that you need.” Putting forth the effort to have those in-person connections is something that I hope to carry forward and really take the time for, because they are so valuable.

Answering Lighting Round Questions

They do require a little bit of work. They do require work. I am sure every single one of your professors is very happy that you showed up to class. If I said, “Ryan Briggs,” I can see them smiling. Now we are going into a lightning round. These are fast. We are going to start with Ryan, and I am going to go to Jaiden. Ryan, one thing you would do again in college.

Athletics, sports, and being involved in the things that you will not be able to do in the future while you’re still a student.

There are so many things I would do. Jaiden, one thing you would do again in college.

Something that I would do again and something that I would do differently is definitely to talk to so many people, just to maximize those connections, and I would be more outgoing.

Ryan, one habit you are taking into post-grad.

Probably writing stuff down. To-do lists, scheduling, having Excel spreadsheets that I have learned to create in college, which help me stay organized, and budgeting.

You did say you’re Type A, so that makes a lot of sense. Jaiden, what habit are you taking into account?

One habit that I am taking is maximizing my schedule, but in the best way of also incorporating self-care, incorporating fitness, and then as well as my job and things like that.

Skill you are still building. We will start with you, Jaiden.

Skill I am still building. I would say obviously, my architecture skills. There is a lot that I just do not know. I know that I am, even once I get a job, I am not going to know them, but just being able to ask those peers around me is really going to help me.

I will continue and will never stop building people skills, because you meet different people every day, and everybody reacts differently, has different responses. Building empathy and knowing how to deal with different altercations or things that may come up, I think that’s just a skill that will continue to grow for the rest of your life, the more people you interact with.

Since this is going out on all streaming services, we will probably get answers in the responses. You get to ask the audience one question, if you could ask an alumnus for yourself right now. You have got the whole alumni community out there. What do you want to know? Who do you want to be connected with? We will see if we can make it happen.

I do not know. That is a loaded question.

That is really tough.

See, this is the world is your oyster. You get to ask anything you want.

I do not know. How do you know what is right? If you do not know what is right, how do you deal with it? How do you make it right?

Somebody is going to say, “Flip a coin.” We will see what the other answers are.

We were just talking about that, though, and that is a valid answer.

That is actually a yes.

What about you, Jaiden? What do you want to ask? Anything out there?

One question that I want to ask an alum is, does it ever get easier making those decisions in the future, because I know I am always going to have to make life-altering decisions.

That is a good question. The alumni are going to ask other alumni.

I could even add to that. Also, how do you advance your time management skills? Whereas now we are already struggling to balance school, work, and social lives. How do you add kids to that and a spouse and all these other different things and still have time to breathe?

You do. I can honestly say that I am an alumnus, but I can honestly say that you will figure it out, that you can have it all, you just cannot have it all right now. That is the fallacy that people believe is that they can have it all in this moment. You cannot prioritize everything, but you move through spaces in life where you get a chance to prioritize things. Right now, the priority in your life is your education.

As you move through that and you acquire a ton of knowledge, you’re then going to want to acquire a ton of wisdom. In order to get that wisdom, you need to apply your knowledge. You’re going to move into work. Once you start building wisdom, you might want to share that with people. You might want to become a mentor. You may want to then decide that, in all of this that I am now mastering, I now want to start a family.

You are just going to have to reshift your priorities through life, but you are going to be able to get through it. None of us has it all at the same time. There are sacrifices that we have to make. If you have, and I know Jaiden for sure, because we have had so many conversations. If you have a good North Star, if you know yourself really well, and you have your ethics and morals, and you are just pointed in a direction that you’re very confident in, and both of you are very competent individuals, you will end up making the right decisions.

Episode Wrap-up And Closing Words

You will know what to prioritize when. That is my answer, but let us see what the alumni say. I am going to close out this section because we have heard from two wonderful seniors here at the Rawls College of Business at Texas Tech. We heard that uncertainty is normal.

We heard that despite the fact that this is the first generation of students that were raised with technology, they still find interpersonal human connection to be one of the most valued tools that they have not only learned here at school, but they are going to take forward with them in life. Mentorship has been a part of that for them. I know that even in our conversations, it is not mentor-mentee.

These students have also helped mentor me in many things. I want to thank you, Ryan, and you, Jaiden, for being a part of not only TERN Mentoring but also a part of this show. I hope that there are others who are tuning that are going to learn from you as well. We will see you next time on the show. Look for us online on any streaming service. If you are interested in getting connected with us, you can always do so on our website at TERNMentoring.com or via email at Info@TERNMentoring.com. Thanks so much. We will see you next time.

Thank you.

Students, do not wait until senior spring. It is never too early to start building your identity capital with relationships and projects.

Alumni, you do not need to be perfect. You need to be present. A few conversations can make a world of difference.

Important Links

• Jaiden Thomas on LinkedIn
• Ryan Briggs on LinkedIn
• TERN Mentoring
• Info@TERNMentoring.com

About Jaiden Thomas

As a designer with a background in Architecture and Business, Jaiden is passionate about shaping experiences that connect people through storytelling, emotion, and place. His interests lie at the intersection of entertainment, hospitality, and architectural design, where spatial design becomes a stage for human connection.

From concept development to execution, he aims to create environments that don’t just function but resonate. He strives to design spaces that honor culture, identity, and narrative, fueled by the belief that design can challenge conventions, celebrate inclusivity, and redefine how we experience performance and community.

Currently pursuing his bachelor’s degree at Texas Tech University, Jaiden plans to continue into a Master of Architecture program with the goal of becoming a set designer and experiential architect who bridges the worlds of performance, storytelling, and space.

About Ryan Briggs

Ryan is a senior at Texas Tech University with a strong interest in mentorship, leadership development, and meaningful storytelling. She is passionate about learning from others’ experiences and using those insights to build strong purpose-driven communities in both academic and professional spaces.

She aspires to attend law school and pursue a career in sports law, with a particular interest in contracts, advocacy, and the business side of athletics. She is motivated by opportunities that allow her to develop professionally while gaining hands-on exposure to legal processes and leadership environments. She values collaboration, curiosity, and service and she is committed to continuous growth as she prepares for a future in the legal profession.