By Alex Hayes, Outstanding Senior in the W.A. Franke College of Business
As I prepare to graduate next month, there are many highlights from my time at NAU.
Meeting Warren Buffett and the subsequent Dale Carnegie Training stand out in my mind.
The annual trip to Omaha, Neb., to meet with Mr. Buffett is, understandably, a big deal in the W. A. Franke College of Business. So, it does not come as a surprise that Warren Buffett is always a topic of discussion, especially in the Business Leadership Program.
One of the critical facts about Warren Buffett is his enthusiasm for Dale Carnegie Training. Just to demonstrate how enthusiastic he is, he does not even have his diploma from college or graduate school on the wall in his office, but he does have his Dale Carnegie diploma there because he says it changed his life.
With such enthusiasm for Dale Carnegie Training, it only made sense that our college would look into getting the training here on campus. Last fall, the dean’s office and office of undergraduate programs in the W. A. Franke College of Business worked to get Dale Carnegie Training representatives to drive up from Phoenix for a 90-minute Business Leadership Program event and a 60-minute pathway event for a larger number of students.
The BLP leaders, such as myself, were so impressed with that 90-minute program that we urged Ms. Bernadine Lewis, director of undergraduate programs and the BLP, to bring them back for an official course. She ended up making it happen along with Dean Craig Van Slyke, who generously paid for the majority of the costs. I thank them both very much!
Today, with everyone being connected via the internet, most great life lessons have already been spread—it is rather uncommon for me to learn new soft skills. So, I was honestly surprised at how much I learned from the Dale Carnegie Training course. I will, therefore, recommend Dale Carnegie Training to anyone who gets the opportunity.
Everyone I know who takes the course ends up taking away a new life lesson. For me, it gave me a new perspective on how to interact with people.