Author Archives: janicerojas

Overcoming a Pandemic & Giving Back

17 Wednesday Mar 2021

Posted by in Blog Posts, Experience, Life Experience

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I know that I haven’t written on here in a while. There’s been a lot going on with the world. Since I wrote on here last, I travelled to Europe, got married, my first niece was born, and I even got a new job with BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina as Communications Advisor. I have loved every minute of it! Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there’s been a lot of changes. I am now working from home full-time and I cook more often. I also haven’t been able to interact with my coworkers since starting this new position. We met once in December 2020 at a Blue Cross retail parking lot and waved at each other. It’s crazy how that’s all we could do at the moment. We did share some laughs and talked from afar, we even tried to do a socially-distant selfie.

This pandemic has become the ordinary, it has taken over our lives and we have moved forward through it. I haven’t seen my friends or family as much as I’d like, but we have found creative ways to “hang out” with each other by doing Zoom calls over wine and checking on each other on weekends and doing lunch together.

Writing and reading books has helped me to cope, just like it has with everything in my life. I have written short stories during this time and have also finally tried a lot of recipes from my cookbook. I’ve worked on my health by purchasing a treadmill and walking on it as much as I can during the week.

I have realized that during these tough times, it’s important to really listen to our peers, provide support, and be a good friend to people in our lives, now more than ever. Most importantly, giving back to the community and searching ways that we can come together by supporting charities around us and organizations that may need our help. There are so many organizations that need help, you can find some here.

So what’s next for me? Well, I am always looking for ways and opportunities to grow as a person. I am starting yoga and also finished editing my novel, so I am looking to publish this in the summertime, or so I hope! (I am my biggest critic, so fingers crossed). I am also looking to do a certification in digital marketing in Spring 2022 with UNC Chapel Hill, which I am super excited about since communications is my passion!

What are you doing to cope during this difficult time?

Below are a few pictures from the past years of moments that made my heart happy. I hope that I get to do more of these things after the pandemic. Some of these pictures include me and my parents, my baby niece mentioned above, and when I travelled to Amsterdam.

  • Me and my parents
  • When my niece was born
  • When I met Jill Biden
  • Me in Amsterdam

Memoir_ Untitled

31 Friday Aug 2018

Posted by in Novel Drafts, Novels, Publishing, Writing

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Attention family/friends: This is beginning of a memoir, maybe not, who knows – I just know I’m finally writing again and that feels good. Experiences are real but names are not. Happy reading – JMRA

Chapter 1: Panic

I remember when I had my first panic attack. My civics teacher pulled me aside, saying he needed to talk to me with the school principal. I had done nothing wrong, or at least I didn’t think I did. We walked through the halls of Rookie High School, the place where everything was white.

The tile floors were white, the walls were white, the people were white. Let’s be honest, I was referring to the people mostly.

To this day, I don’t remember what I had done or what we talked about with the principal, but I remember I was crying hard as I breathed in and out of a brown bag. They both attempted to calm me down but failed and we had agreed to wait for my mom to get there.

I wonder what I had done. Maybe I had passed too many notes to the person sitting behind me.  I was also a talker, maybe that’s what it was? I am sticking to the fact that this moment was so traumatizing that 8 years later, up to today/the present, I don’t remember what happened.

But let it be known that this was the year I had first experienced depression. This was also the year I was graduating from high school and felt the pressures of college applications, doing well in all my classes, maintaining friendships, while also being social and remaining cool enough.

I was never cool, nor did I want to be. I read a lot of books, wrote a lot, I was even in the English academic team at one point.

I was so uncool that my Saturdays were spent at the closest Barnes and Nobles with my dad, reading books while I scouted cute boys. Believe it or not, there were plenty of cuties at B&N.

I’m not ready to tell you about my B&N adventures just yet – let me tell you about my high school best friend. Her name was Kate, she was beautiful and very popular. I don’t remember how we became friends, but I know it was definitely through someone I knew – not because I had met her and we had decided to be friends.

I know this because the second we all went our separate ways and graduated she had decided that she was too cool for our friendship and didn’t want me in her life anymore. I was hurt. I didn’t know how to take it, but I made new friends and I was fine.

But here’s where it gets funny: I shared this information with one of my first friends in college, Adrian, a very hilarious boy who made me laugh every day my freshman year of college. He was so enraged by this that he decided to message her on Facebook to tell her how awesome I was. No boy or anyone had ever done that for me before.

Well, people, he did just that.

I forgave her because I later found out she was going through some trials in her life. I saw her again many years later and she looked very happy and seemed like a nicer version of herself. I wish her well.

What happened to Adrian? Well, Adrian deserves a chapter or two.

Until then.

———– Draft ——– Untitled / Memoir Blurbs ————- Written by Janice M. Rojas————–

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New Year, New Experiences

18 Sunday Feb 2018

Posted by in Experience, Non-Profits

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2018 is off to a great start!

Board Member of YNPN: As of January 2018, I started serving the Young Nonprofit Technology Network (YNPN) of the Triangle as a Board member. YNPN is a nonprofit 501 (c)(3) that helps young nonprofit professionals with networking, resources, and events to help them thrive.

In my role as a Board member, I serve the Marketing & Communications Committee by assisting with content, marketing strategy, and social media to increase engagement of YNPN in the Triangle. I also have the pleasure of working amongst other thought leaders and have thought-provoking discussions about equity and inclusion in the area.

I am excited for what this opportunity will bring as I continue to expand my skills and grow in my role.

Marketing Consulting – N’Kogniito

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I also officially started consulting small businesses in marketing and communications. I currently am working with N’Kogniito, a band in Raleigh, NC, started by two brothers who wish to “make the world smile again” with music. I help with social media content, marketing strategy, media, and collateral.

This year, I am keeping busy as I continue my role as Marketing & Communications Director for Carolina Small Business Development Fund and expand my portfolio and passions outside of work.

Stay tuned, there’s more to come!

-JMRA

Professional Growth

11 Friday Nov 2016

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This past year has been a whirlwind! I continue my exciting journey with Carolina Small Business Development Fund, formerly The Support Center.

Every day I wake up with a burning passion to do what I do. There are days my fingers hurt from all the typing I do at work and I sometimes start seeing blurry from being on the computer too long, but nothing compares to the feeling of satisfaction I get every day. When I get home from work, I know I did something good. I know I learned something new.

The thing that makes my organization so great is the people. My relationship with my supervisor is unique. We are the dream team. She is the perfect leader and mentor anyone could ever have and I truly learn from her. Our team is diverse, with people of different backgrounds that bring new ideas to the table. I am lucky to work with our passionate President/CEO and coach who always encourages us to “stretch” and think critically. Every day is a challenge. Every day is different. Every day I stretch and grow.

I am proud to work for an organization that truly cares about the well-being of the state’s economy. Small businesses are the economic engines of our economy, so our goal is to help small businesses succeed. To support them and help them to achieve their dreams. Our mission is to foster economic development in the state of North Carolina.

A few things have happened since I wrote on here:

  • I was promoted to Director of Marketing and Communications.
  • I implemented a successful marketing plan.
  • I was part of the re-branding process from The Support Center to our new name: Carolina Small Business Development Fund.

I have grown professionally. I always told myself I would work for an organization that meant a lot to me, where I would feel that I was actually making a difference.

I feel that here. I have learned way more than I could ever list out in this blog post. I am grateful for the privilege to learn something different every day and to work alongside great people as I continue to grow in my career.

I am thankful for my family and for their encouragement to get an education and follow my dreams. I do this for them and for my grandparents. I do this for my Latino/Hispanic community.

As I continue to grow, I seek to find opportunities to grow in my career by keeping myself updated with the digital marketing trend.

A lot of people spend their lifetime looking and searching for their passion. I tell them to be patient. It will come, and once it does, you’ll never let it go.

Loving What I Do

20 Thursday Aug 2015

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“If you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life”

by Marc Anthony

These past three months have been the best three months of my life. I have had the opportunity of a lifetime to work for TSC, an organization that already means so much to me.

As I mentioned in one of my posts from May 2015, I moved to Raleigh to work for a nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering economic development in NC by providing small business loans to distressed communities in the state. As marketing and communications associate for the organization, I have a direct impact in branding and the way the organization gets to communicate with all stakeholders. If anyone were to ask me, “so what kind of job would you see yourself doing?” This would be it.

I love everything about my job. I enjoy working with my supervisor, who encourages me to be creative and teaches me through her positive suggestions and way of communicating with me. I have a great relationship with my co-workers and love the work environment. Everyone treats each other like a family and it seems everyone is very passionate about what they do. I love that.

My favorite part about my job is coming up with marketing strategies and being forced to think every day. Every day is a different day and I am being challenged to think outside of the box. I love how I am encouraged to grow and excel in my skills. I also have gotten the opportunity to see the direct impact that this organization has on our community by attending events and being involved with our audiences.

Before taking this job, I knew I loved writing but since working here, I have attained a new passion. I am falling in love with branding and marketing. I am passionate about the fact that a brand is determined by the way people see it. I might consider branding as a concentration for my Master’s.

Since working for TSC, I have been happier and my life seems more complete. I have learned to manage my finances with a stable income and I feel I have grown and matured into a young woman my parents are proud of. At my job, I am encouraged every day and praised for my hard work – which has an impact in the effort I put into my work on a daily basis.

I am happy to say that I am doing exactly what I pictured myself doing after graduating college. It took me a year, or two, to really get where I want to be but it is all thanks to experience and hard work. To all my friends entering the workforce, I encourage them to picture their future and make it happen for themselves. God had this planned for me and will do the same if you put the work into it.

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In this picture, I am with some of my co-workers at the WWBC conference in Asheville, NC.

janandborrower

This picture is one with one of our borrowers and the opening of his business. This was the first time I got to see the direct impact we’re having.

TSC-yourpartner

The Support Center (TSC) is a Community Development Institution that provides small business loans and financial training to start-ups and existing businesses and lending services to community-based organizations in North Carolina.

Click here to learn more 🙂

How It All Started

05 Tuesday May 2015

Posted by in Blog Posts, Experience, Life Experience, My Experience with Non-Profits, Non-Profits, Post

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It all started when I was 18 years old. It was my first encounter with Winston-Salem Industries for the Blind (IFB). Winston-Salem Industries for the Blind is a nonprofit organization whose vision is to provide employment, training, and services to people who are blind or visually impaired.

My dad, who has been working there for ten years as Director of Operations, encouraged me to be part of this program before I went to college.

So I did.

I became part of a Summer Enrichment program which was meant to provide educational experience filled with trips to museums and activities for 10 to 20 children who were visually impaired or blind. I was a mentor to one of them, imgreshis name was Jacob, an 8-year-old funny and vibrant kid who was fully blind.

We became the best of friends. We sat in the bus together and held hands as we walked through forests and lakes that we visited. I remember being scared of the lake and Jacob would always hold my hand firmly and guide me.

Funny because I was supposed to be guiding him.

You’d think I would have an impact on Jacob’s life but he had an impact on mine. He touched my heart and left a feeling of giving.

He made me want to work for a nonprofit organization, for a cause. I knew I was meant to do this. So when I went to college, I aspired to intern and work for a nonprofit. I worked for Special Olympics then for The Kay Yow Cancer Fund.

I find that people excel where their passions are, and this is where my passion is. My passion is in working for a cause where my efforts, sweat, and work will go into helping people. Every day there will be little silly mindless tasks that I will have to do like printing hundreds of papers/ads, or stuffing envelopes, but I know I will be doing it for someone. I will be doing it for a cause, for the community.

This is my story and this is who I am. I went into the field of communications and public relations because I want to have contact both internally and externally with my coworkers and the community so that we may work in a group to accomplish a goal.

Jacob left a feeling in my heart so that I may continue to help others through my skills with my heart and passion in hand.

– JMRA

My Professional Journey Continues

04 Monday May 2015

Posted by in Blog Posts, Internships, Non-Profits, The Real World

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I realized I haven’t blogged here in a while but that’s only because I’ve been having a lot of fun interning for Pace Communications Inc., in Greensboro, N.C.

I started my internship with Pace in January 2015 as Editorial Digital intern for the multicultural team. I have learned a lot about CMS and literally everything I have to know about WordPress. 

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I dedicated most of my time doing the following:

  • Uploading articles onto CMS
  • Creating asides
  • Updating article database
  • Assuring quality of the work before publishing
  • I have also gotten the opportunity to do some writing in both English and Spanish (Being Bilingual comes in handy)

I had the opportunity to work with an agency that does incredible and creative work. From content marketing to really connecting with the client and understanding their needs. This was my first time working in an agency environment. I didn’t realize how much I loved fast-paced work until I started working for Pace.

Unfortunately, my time with Pace has come to an end and I have accepted an offer to work full-time with The Support Center, a nonprofit/ CDFI insititution (Raleigh, N.C.), with a wonderful cause to foster economic development by providing small business loans to the underserved community. I will be working as their Communications and Marketing Associate.

I am very excited for this new journey, especially because I will continue to make a difference in my job by working for a nonprofit organization.

My life has changed in a heartbeat, but I call this living and excelling in the professional world.

– JMRA

And Then You Novel – Publishing & Synopsis

11 Wednesday Mar 2015

Posted by in Blog Posts, Novels, Post, Publishing, Writing

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Title: And Then You |  Setting: New York City | Genre: Young Adult/ Fiction

Read first chapter here: And Then You – Chapter One

Intro Summary of And Then You:

Helena has everything. After landing a job with one of the most successful magazines in New York City, Helena has everything going for her.  She might even get promoted. That is, until Parker, the boy she’d fallen in love years ago comes back into her life and she’s forced to revisit her past. Would Helena make the right choice between her past and her present?  And how would Helena react after finding out what really happened to Parker after their last encounter? Watch as two people revisit their past and learn about the true meaning of friendship, love, regret but most of all, loss.

And Then You is the novel I have chosen to publish from the short list of novels that I have written. I completed this novel the summer of 2013. I spent all summer writing this novel and was inspired to write about two fictional characters who have challenged my writing and become a big part of me.

In my writing, I like to challenge myself and write about characters and situations that I have never gone through. This novel has been a challenge because I have had to think outside the box and write from a guy’s perspective, which requires a lot of analyzing and psychology.

And Then You is written in two different perspectives: Helena and Parker, where the reader gets to see what each of these characters are thinking as the chapters go.

This story is about Helena and Parker and the development of their friendship throughout the years.

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When Helena and Parker graduate high school, they both get admitted into very prestigious schools. Helena gets accepted into NYU and UPenn, and Parker into UPenn.

Given that Helena is in love with Parker, she decides not to attend NYU and instead decides to go to UPenn with him – she also decides to finally tell him how she feels about him after all those years of frienship. But when she finds out that Parker is dating her archenemy and high school bully, Vanessa, everything changes.

Heartbroken and humiliated, Helena decides to leave for NYU where she makes a life for herself and gets a job with a big-time fashion magazine.

When she leaves for New York, she and Parker stop being friends and she never hears from him again. Well, not until she coincidentally runs into him in New York City. But when she runs into him, Parker reaches out to introduce himself to her. Helena realizes that something is wrong with Parker because he doesn’t recognize her.

What Helena doesn’t know is what really happened when she left for New York six years ago. Why doesn’t Parker know her anymore? What really happened to him when Helena left him? Parker is a whole different person and she’s bound to find out what changed.

– JMRA

Just a Few Tips for Seniors in College

11 Wednesday Feb 2015

Posted by in Blog Posts, Post, The Real World

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When you graduate college and step out into the real world, you kind of get this feeling like you don’t know if you’ll succeed with the set of skills you’ve gotten either from your classes or from your internship experience.

the bestIt is very easy to feel scared to apply these skills because you’re afraid you won’t be good enough. I’ve certainly felt this way before but I have learned so much this past year and now I am willing to share a set of helpful tips and advice to those who are getting ready to take the plunge into the real world:

1) Get an internship or part-time position that in-part, applies to your career. You have no idea how helpful it is to have a base of knowledge of what you’re studying. And hey, it looks wonderful on your resume.

2) Travel. Don’t give up searching for jobs but I’d also like to encourage you to travel and get out of your comfort zone. Still haven’t found the job of your dreams? Consider travelling or finding a job somewhere out of the country. If you think about it, once you land a good job, you will be there for a while and you won’t have much vacation to travel as you’d like to.

3) Research. Start looking at different organizations and companies you’d like to work with and check out their employment opportunities (Do this Spring before graduation). It’s always nice to see what kind of positions the companies are looking for and what position you would fall under.

4) Consider Graduate School/ Certifications. I remember my last year of school I was very scared to even think of grad school because my brain was fried up with knowledge and all I wanted was to start making money. Well, I definitely encourage you to look into graduate programs, especially if your major seems to be more defined by it.

5) Network. I definitely encourage you to speak to fellow alumni who are working in the field of your interest. They will have wonderful insight and advice since they’ve been out in the real world for a while. Feel free to reach out to Career Services as well, they have resources and can assist you in reaching out to your fellow alumni.

6) Enjoy your last year of college. Don’t let the stress of Senior year and finding a job right out of college get to you. You will make it. You will succeed. This is your time to make memories and take it all in because this might be last time you’re in school. This might be the last time you see some of your friends, who will eventually end up in another state or country.

Go after what you love and as cliche as it sounds, don’t give up!

– JMRA

The Dark (Draft)

11 Wednesday Dec 2013

Posted by in Blog Posts, Novel Drafts, Writing

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I started a new piece of writing which I am titling The Dark.

As always, my writing comes from within and was inspired by a rainy and dreary day. I thought about characters and people I wanted to write about. I like to challenge myself in my writing by writing about things that I haven’t experienced.

This one’s a great example of a piece of writing that came out of nowhere.

Dark

Click here: The Dark

– JMRA