I first started at the Bemidji (Minn.) Pioneer as an intern in the summer of 1996. That would begin six years as a news reporter, sports reporter and copy editor for a small, six-day-per-week daily newspaper in northern Minnesota. I wrote a large range of stories from multiple beats, to features to sports, my favorite being the coverage of the Red Lake Reservation High School basketball team named the Warriors. Here is a collection of my stories from my time at the Pioneer.
June 27, 1996
By Devlyn Brooks
Staff Writer
Whether it be occupational difficulties, worries about kids, health problems or even financial setbacks, University of Minnesota professor Robert Veninga said a lot of people today have difficulties coping with the stresses of daily life.
Veninga was the featured guest at Wednesday's Campus Community Breakfast at Bemidji State University. The event was co-sponsored by the BSU Alumni Association and the U of M Alumni Association.
Veninga is the head of the Division of Health Management and Policy in the School of Public Health. He has written four books and more than 60 articles about stress, changing and career renewal. He was also recently named to the U of M Teacher Hall of Fame.
"We know from study after study a lot of people are having of everyday life," Veninga said. "It doesn't matter whether you live in Los Angeles, New York or Hayward, Wis."
However, he said, there are a few things people can think about to be more satisfied.
First, he said it's absolutely essential that a person stay focused in life to be satisfied. He said his research has shown that people who are the most satisfied with their jobs are people who are focused.
He said at times it is hard to live with a "grateful heart," but those that do live happier lives.
"People who are able to keep a tough mental equilibrium are focused in on the good things in life," he said.
He made an analogy for the large crowd about people who write lists. He said the lists tend to make people more focused, and what people need to do in life is to periodically sit down and write a list. "Did you know people who tend to write lists are psychologically healthy?" he said.
The second key to staying positive is taking pride in everything one does. It doesn't matter how small the task, he said, it's important to take pride in it.
He said the thing that has helped him remember this in life was listening to a speaker at his own high school commencement. "He said, 'Treat every job you have as the most important job you will ever have, and your career will go far," Veninga said.
The third key is that everybody should expect setbacks in life. Nobody, no matter how wonderful their life seems, gets through life without setbacks, he said.
"At times you wonder if you're going to come out the other side," he said. "But be patient -- everything will come out right."
The final key to remaining satisfied is to have a sense of humor. "I'm really convinced that the key to a successful job is a sense of humor," he said.
He told the audience that as a teacher, he wants one student who has a good sense of humor in every class, because it enhances the classroom.
He said he also keeps a file of all the funny things that have happened to him as a professor.
His favortie is a letter he received from the wife of one of his students. The letter stated that the husband liked the professor's class but hated the book that was used. She wrote in the letter that every night he would go to bed with the book, mumbling about how much he hated the book and about how boring it was.
"Today, I am six months pregnant, and I hold you personally responsible," Veninga said the letter stated.
In closing, he said it is important to celebrate the little things in life worth living. Obviously, he said, everybody celebrates the big things such as weddings and birthdays, but being able to take a walk on a nice day, go out to lunch with a good friend or even see your child hit a single are important also.
Not everybody has major things happening all the time, he said, but there are more than enough small things happening.
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