For the longest time, I wanted to do Yearbook in high school. I know that sounds incredibly geeky, but it’s true. I loved getting the yearbook when I was younger, and I always wanted to be a part of that. When I was finally able to sign up for yearbook my sophomore year, I could not wait. Little did I know, I had signed up for an interesting ride for the next three years of my life.
There were times I both hated and loved yearbook all at the same time. It was stressful and annoying at times, but honestly, it was almost always the greatest part of my day. It was an escape from the real world; a place where I could tune out life and design a layout, write copy, and reflect on that year’s events through pictures.
Besides learning important things like Photoshop, InDesign, and how to write a three-sentence caption about a girl kicking a soccer ball, I learned many important lessons about life.
You’re Going to Dress for Success
While selling an ad, leggings and T-shirts just do not cut it. Wear that business professional dress your mom bought you for College Day; it’s not like you are just dying to wear it, but it’s more appropriate than the XL comfort colors shirt and new Lulu Lemon leggings you wear 24/7.
You Have to Sound Like You’re a Professional
In Yearbook, you have to send a lot of emails, call people you don’t know, and do interviews. You find sending an email with no subject and greeting someone in a message with “hey” are not appreciated nor what big girls say. You’ll need to save the “heys” for texting your friends, and learn that grownups don’t really use abbreviations such as “totes” or “perf.”
You Learn to Be Accountable
Because of how important the yearbook truly is, people rely on you like never before. You have a group of students who need you to make the deadlines in order to produce a successful book. You are required to do things whether you have the time to do them or not. You are in control of what gets into the book based on what was asked of you to do. Without your pictures of the homecoming game, did it even happen?
Through the three years I did Yearbook, it changed my life. I can send a professional email, make deadlines, and dress like a grown up. I have already used the lessons I learned in Yearbook in my college life thus far, and I know I’ll be able to use them in the future.
Even with these life skills, I have also made relationships I know I’ll keep forever. I still have my group text with two of my closest Yearbook friends where we still laugh about inside jokes and bond about the class that was the peak of our high school days.
Even though Yearbook may seem geeky, I’ll always embrace my inner yerd. #soof
