Alabama State University News September 22, 2016 General Mills President Offers Students Advice on Leadership, Integrity and Courage Author: Timothy C. Ervin Alabama State University students received a special message of leadership, integrity and courage today from Anton Vincent, president of the General Mills Snacks Division. Vincent, a native of Jackson, Miss., grew up just blocks away from slain civil rights leader Medgar Evers. He said they grew up in a time that most students today probably couldn’t conceive, but his parents still managed to instill good values in him and his siblings. “Whatever major success I’ve had it’s because of my parents,” he said. “When I was born they did not have the right to vote. They couldn’t determine their own destiny at the ballot box. I don’t say this to say how far we have come, but I say this to say that this generation should be grateful for the people that died for your freedom, died for your independence, died for you to do your ‘thing.’ I am the fifth of five boys and our parents taught us three things growing up - - work hard, don’t make excuses and help people. And I still live by that today.” Vincent told the students that they must prepare to compete globally. “Your competition is not the person sitting next to you. Your competition is somebody in China that speaks English just as well as you do,” Vincent said. “So, I want you to reconceptualize what you are doing here at ASU. You are not going to college because mom said you have to go to college. You aren’t getting a degree because that is the next thing you are supposed to do. You are doing it to be the next leader. You are doing it to survive. It’s that serious, and I hope you are approaching your education that way.” Vincent explained that there are two types of people - - those who are trying to survive and those who are trying to master their own circumstances. “Those are two different trains of thought,” said Vincent. “So, how do you go from survival to mastering your dreams or goals. Anybody who is teaching you, anybody who is developing you, they are trying to do one simple thing: They are trying to make you the best you, you can be.” >From Survival to Mastery He offered five ways to go from survival to mastery: • Go where the puck is going. • Have an insatiable appetite for learning. • Learn the art of the productive disagreement. • Ask for and act on feedback. • Never lose your confidence Lexus McCrary, a junior business major from Ohio, said she believes Vincent’s message was influential. “His presentation gives the average student the chance to think big and see that you can be something better than what you think that you are,” McCrary said. “College is not just a step or part of life, it’s something that helps you and betters you and prepares you for something in your future.” Vincent is responsible for popular snack brands such as Nature Valley granola bars, Betty Crocker fruit-flavored snacks and Chex Mix. He has received many awards and accolades, including “Diversity MBA” Magazine’s Top 50 Under 50 in 2006, “Black Enterprise‘s” Top 100 in Marketing & Advertising in 2011 and “Savoy” Magazine’s Top 100 Most Influential African Americans in Corporate America in 2014. Vincent’s lecture was sponsored by ASU's Center for Innovative Educational Practices and Services and ASU's First-Year Programs and Services Office. SANDRA M. PHOENIX HBCU Library Alliance Executive Director Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library 111 James P. Brawley Drive SW Atlanta GA 30314 404-978-2118 (office) 404-702-5854 (cell) http://www.hbculibraries.org sphoenix@hbculibraries.org Honor the ancestors, honor the children. 7th Biennial Membership Meeting: Register here http://hbculibraries.org/2016meeting-form.html for the October 10,11 Membership Meeting in Atlanta. Follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/hbculibraryalliance1/ and Twitter at https://twitter.com/HBCULibAlliance Check out "PULSE!" The HBCU Library Alliance's News Source! - https://hbculibraryalliance.wordpress.com/