Thanksgiving and the entire family

The biggest tradition in my family is thanksgivings dinner at our house. My house has everyone in my extended family in it for thanksgiving. Christmas and Easter are always at different houses every year as it is on a rotation. My mother was smart and got us out of this rotation by volunteering to always have thanksgiving at our house. You may think this was a bad idea but it was a hell of a lot easier to cook stuff rather than have toys, clothing, and money going everywhere during gift exchanges.

So, when I say everyone, I mean everyone. all of my aunts/uncles, all of my cousins, all of my parents aunts/uncles, and all of my grandparents and some family friends. This totals to about 50-60 people in my house for one HUGE Thanksgiving dinner. It is always, always an incredible tradition and holiday where literally everyone that is related to me gets together for what is widely considered a bigger family holiday then christmas. (at least, in the U.S.)

This year, however, the first in at least 10-15 years, was the first year we did not follow this tradition. this is because of future events and thus was spent with just my mothers side of the family at her sisters house. Now, just because it was a vastly smaller group of people, it still felt like thanksgiving and everything was equally as great as its been in the past. And even though I can't wait till next thanksgiving when we're back in the full swing of things, I will admit that the change of pace was welcome.

A Little Late

Completely forgot about this last week so here we go. As far as traditions, my favorite has to be laying on my couch all day watching football and not having to move until dinner is ready. Personally that has to be the greatest thing about thanksgiving in my opinion. Other than that I lucked out this year because we switch off either eating at my cousins or at my house. My cousins happen to live directly across the street but I still found it nice not having to leave my house for an entire day. Eating is a passion of mine so obviously thanksgiving is a great holiday in my eyes. Besides the food and relaxation its nice to see family that comes over after dinner to catch up over the past year. Thanksgiving is definitely a great holiday.

happy unthanksgiving

So out of the what it seems millions of holidays, Thanksgiving is the holiday I loathe the most. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE food, but this food is worth waiting for. If Thanksgiving had hamburgers, it might be a different story. It boggles me why families will spend hours in the kitchen to cook a meal that I feel is gross. Plus, this lovely holiday leaves me with few options, as well, to curve my hunger after the meal. Thanksgiving closes down almost every food place and store! In short, I guess you could say my Thanksgiving tradition is to scurry to my room after the meal is over to sulk. (jk..but seriously)

Happy Thanksgiving!

What are some of your favorite family traditions during Thanksgiving? What do you look forward to the most?

Thanksgiving is definitely one of my favorite holidays. For me, it’s #2 in my power rankings behind Christmas. Anyway, Thanksgiving is such a great holiday because of the traditional value it holds. Bringing family together and eating a ridiculously unnecessary meal is what it is all about. I particularly like Thanksgiving because of that reason. However, I do have some Wallace family traditions. On the morning of Thanksgiving, my neighborhood gets together and plays a big game of football called the “Turkey Bowl.” Me, my dad and two younger brothers have played since I can remember and will continue that this year. Sticking to the category of sports, each Thanksgiving night Ridley plays Interboro (our rival highschool) in ice hockey at a local rink. It’s typically the biggest game of the year and is always a packed house. I played in this game for the 4 years I was in high school, so I try to go to that every year to see how our team is doing. Moving on to the meal (what I look forward to the most), we always have turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, etc. My favorite dish is probably either broccoli casserole or baked mac and cheese.

[No Turkey for Me] Day

I love Thanksgiving, and quite possibly for all of the wrong reasons. Of course it's wondeful to spend time with my family, especially after being away at school --but the food, that's really what brings me home. I am a self-proclaimed psychological fatty.

The weirdest thing is that we don't ever eat turkey on "Turkey Day". Twice in the past 18 years, I've had Turkey on Thanksgiving, and it was a little different; it almost seemed out of place; like an after-thought. Most years, we spend Thanksgiving in Brooklyn at my Grandmother's house. Going back there is always a little interesting because it's the house where I spent the first five years of my life, and it could not be more starkly different from where I live now. My grandmother miraculously manages to cook everything they had in the grocery store except for the turkey. Most years the menu includes (but is not limited to): chicken, seafood-stuffed fish, shrimp fried rice, macaroni and cheese, potato salad, greens, corn, another type of meat, apple pie, pumpkin pie, sweet potao pie, lemon pound cake, and whatever else she felt inclined to whip up.

I would pick all of that over turkey anyday.

This year, as is tradition, Thanksgiving dinner will be in Brooklyn. I will then spend black friday, (a day I was especially looking forward to this year since I'm not completely broke) on the sometimes 4/sometimes 7 hour drive to PG county Maryland, right outside of D.C. Although I'm missing my highly anticipated shopping spree (and probably for good reason), I am really looking forward to being with the side of my family I sparsely see, particuarly my cousins and hopefully the new baby boy (:

So all in all, I do love Thanksgiving. Game plan is to fast for the rest of the day just so I can have as many plates as I'd like tomorrow. [I know that's a little bit sick.]

Anyways, have a great Thanksgiving everyone! Eat up!

Happy Thanksgiving :)

I am very much looking forward to the Thanksgiving holiday! There are a few traditions I really love. The first is watching the Thanksgiving parade with my little sister & brothers. It always puts me in a good mood & I used to dance in it with my dance school when I was younger, so it brings back some great memories! The second is going out Black Friday shopping. I have been going with my parents for years & it's so much fun! We usually go out at an absurd hour (midnight anyone??) to secure a place in the front of the line so my dad can get all his new electronics that are on sale. We bring chairs/blankets/games and just have fun hanging out waiting in line and taking turns making coffee runs at wawa! Beside these fun traditions, I obviously look forward to all the food and spending time with my family! I mean, who doesn't?! Overall, I am super excited & I hope you all have a fabulous holiday! :)

PS. Feel better Meredith!! :)

Love!

I'm not a big turkey fan but my favorite Thanksgiving tradition revolves around my mother's sweet potato pie. My mom is originally from the South so her pies are truly authentic. She only makes them during Thanksgiving so that is definately why I look forward to them every year. I also love the holidays because it gives me time to relax and spend time with my family. This Thanksgiving is going to be extra special because my little brother is coming back home from the University of Pittsburgh tonight for the holidays. The last time I saw him was in August and it's his first year being away from home. I'm excited to see him and I'm hoping it will be a great holiday!

Greetings, from my bed!

Hello everyone.

I am writing this from the comfort of my bed, but not the comfort of my head. Yes, today I was declared too sick to be at work, so here I am, working from home, two days before my Thanksgiving begins.

I hope you are all excited for the holiday, I'm excited for some relaxation and to see some old friends. My high school reunion is on Friday!

That being said, what are some of your favorite family traditions during Thanksgiving? What do you look forward to the most?

To Be Honest...

I am just going to say it, because I know all of you are thinking it. Group projects are great when everyone in the group is a push over. Extra input and ideas are great when you don't have the condition of using every comment. Unfortunately, this is not the real world.

In most work environments, especially the marketing department, group collaboration is a constant occurrence. Throughout my 20 years ( 21 in a month!!!), I have come across groups filled with unintelligent, lazy, and crazy people. Most of the people here at SHM do not have these qualities thank goodness. Due to this, I am hoping that groups in the professional world are not as bad as groups in school. :: Fingers crossed ::

Team Work

Team projects are a double edged sword. On one hand, team work is a great way to get complex tasks done efficiently and effectively. On the other hand, more people lead to more problems. There is no such thing as perfect team work. A perfect team will never have disagreements about anything. In a perfect team, opinions never conflict and everyone is happy about their designated work load. It is impossible to do that with a team. this is even truer the larger the team is. Two people will have minor opinion conflicts and disagreements but a larger team of over 5 to 10 people can cause major issues.

Think of it like a machine. Two pieces fit together and get a job done fairly easily but can still have minor, easily fixable issues. Take a machine that has 10 or more pieces in it, and putting those pieces together isnt an easy task. However, get that 10 piece machine to work, and it will always over power the two piece machine.

What about companies? They can have thousands of people, how do all those pieces fit? A company is like one GIANT team, one GIANT machine. Each department, in some way shape or form, needs the other departements to function. Without finance, rampant money spending will ensue. Without IT, computers will break. Ect.

This giant machine follows the same principle at a much larger scale. However, the executives of the company (or, if you will, mechanic building the machine), have the metaphorical executive hammer. this hammer is used to force parts of the machine into place. In the real world, this is better seen as the 'I'm your boss, do as I say or I'm firing you' scenario. To further my rediculous metaphor, sometimes this hammer breaks the piece (I.E. person quits or gets fired) and the mechanic has to go get a new one.

Almost all of the team projects I've been apart of has hard the standard teamwork issues. Someone doesnt do enough work, becomes to authoritative, or completely disagrees with everything. And considering your own image is affected by the outcome of the project, just confront the person(s) and if they don't cooperate, reason with them, use the executive hammer, or pick up their slack.

POST #9 (Yes, I'm keeping track)

Everyone knows at SHM we're about teamwork. There are frequent meetings, and projects that take more than one or two brains to complete.

What are some challenges you have faced since being here when working in a group as opposed to working with one other person, or even alone?

From my perspective, working as a team on a project or task is the optimal situation. Being able to collaborate and bounce ideas off each other is a great way to build chemistry and have a strong outcome. At SHM, the other co-ops and I have experienced both individual and group tasks. While the individual tasks I could easily focus and finish on my own, the group projects are more fun to work on and complete as a team. For example, all the co-ops were asked to update and revamp the “Our Reality” website for future co-op students. As a team, we were able to create new ideas, which greatly improved the website and made it more accessible to the future co-ops. The challenge in this specific task was to utilize all 7 of us properly and implement everyone’s ideas into the project. In the instance of the website, we were able to divide it up into segments, so that everyone could add their own touch to the “Our Reality” site. So while there definitely are challenges you need to overcome, there is always a solution to those challenges. The solution can strengthen the group once agreed upon and can improve your work as a whole.

Not my favorite thing in the world.

I haven't really been a huge fan of group projects since grade school, when most assignments entailed crayons, glitter, and making some creation out of silly putty. Unless I'm working with a group of close friends or like-minded/open-minded people, I often find group projects to be frustrating. I am also fully aware that this is something I have to adjust to as quickly as possible because I will more than likely be collaborating with other people for the rest of my life. It is especially difficult to work in a group with people you know minimally on a professional level, let alone personally. Getting to know the way other group members present their ideas or respond to counter suggestions is always challenging. More often than not, taking initiative can be interpreted as being overly aggressive or controlling.

It is also difficult to convey an idea exactly the same way as it looks inside of your head; particuarly if it's something that requires quite a bit of imagination. In theory something may sound amazing, but it may be unreasonable in execution. For that reason, I do like to be around other people and bounce ideas back and forth--but everyone has to be willing to do that.

For the most part, I prefer to work alone or with a group of people I know really well, where we all have established mutual respect for one another as individuals and contributors.

It also depends on what the project is; If I'm working on something that really interests me I'm more likely to approach it enthusiastically and with an open mind.

So really, there's my list of issues, but I am completely willing to work on them and adjust as I need to for the benefit of the group overall as well as my own success.

You vs the Group

Working alone, in a group, or even with one other person always has its pros and cons. While working alone you can sometimes find yourself stuck and don’t have another option to help you out as if in a group. On the flipside, you have no one to butt heads with and clash on which ideas you see fitting for the project. As a group in many of the cases someone feels left out and becomes frustrated when their ideas are not put forth. This is the greatest problem about working in a group because it happens a majority of the time. On the other side, large amounts of work can be completed in a much quicker time than working solo. When it comes to working as a duo, if both people respect each other and their ideas, it is very easy to bounce ideas off each other and produce a solid piece of work on a timely schedule. If the two can’t come to work with each other the situation can become difficult to get any work done at all. In all three instances it really depends on the person who is involved and the way they can work and act around others. Working as an MA I have gotten to experience all types of work scenarios. I enjoy going back and forth between working by myself and others. That opportunity provides a lot of experience in the working world which we will all need at some point.

Group + Work = ?

At SHM I have not run into any group situation where there were any substantial challenges. I have however experienced group work in both my school life and my personal life. Group work in any setting requires the same factors; these factors are organization, a clear idea of roles, and a free flow of ideas. In my personal life organization really became important when my friends and I were planning a trip to Miami. I was in charge of collecting all of the money and making sure everybody met there deadlines. My sister was in charge of finding the hotel and booking everything while my best friend was in charge of planning the itenerary of places we wanted to visit. This is a situation where organization worked well because it made everything run a lot smoother and everyone felt like they were in charge of something.

The toughest experience I had with group work occurred when I was taking my MGMT 260 class at Drexel; we had a project that required our group to come up with a new product and write a business plan to go with it (Industry Analysis, SWOT, etc). Every member in my group had a different schedule with different commitments which made it hard to meet as a team. We ended up pulling through it by making sacrifices; we would pick a time when most group members could make it and let the others know the details through e-mail. This is definately another factor that can make or break team work. Solo work is usually easier for the majority of people but learning how to work in a group is important in the professional world.

"Individual commitment to a group effort - that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work."

I have to say, at SHM specifically, I have not really run into any challenges with working in groups yet. However, in other situations such as school project groups or student organization groups I definitely have. Some issues I have encountered include people not doing equal portions of the work, arguments due to conflicted views on a project, people taking other people's ideas and trying to pass them as their own to superiors, and too many people trying to take charge, just to name a few. My ways of dealing with problems while working in a group obviously vary depending on the issue at hand. However, it typically comes down to some sort of compromise that cannot be opposed because it is fair and will benefit the whole group. For example, if two people are fighting over who is going to be repsonsible for leading a project, I might propose that they work together as a leadership team and focus on different aspects of a project based on their individual strengths. All in all, working in a group is definitely more challenging than working with one other person or by yourself, but that does not mean it is impossible because there is always a way to compromise.

Happy Board Meeting week!

Everyone knows at SHM we're about teamwork. There are frequent meetings, and projects that take more than one or two brains to complete.

What are some challenges you have faced since being here when working in a group as opposed to working with one other person, or even alone?

Felice Venerdì

Where do you draw the line between having a good time and cracking down to get work done? How do you balance fun in the work place?

The company you work for is essentially your home away from home. Our time spent at SHM almost equates to the time that each of us spend in our own home (kind of weird to think about it that way.) However, all that really means is that you should present your personality and be yourself in the workplace. When you start your day in the morning, you should try to lighten the mood. Starting off the day on a good note tends to make the rest of the day much more enjoyable. Having a negative attitude in the workplace will do nothing but affect you and those around you negatively. That is why it is important to try to be positive at all times. Work doesn't always have to be work, however. Occasionally, a little fun in the workplace can be beneficial for the company and its employees. When the moral is down or the office seems to be complacent, those are the times when it is appropriate to have fun. Having fun at work is a good way to change it up a little bit and boost moral. And with a boosted moral comes increases in quality and production.

Balance.

For me, having "fun" in a professional environment directly correspons to the people I surround myself with. The friendly atmosphere and laid back vibe of SHM make it easy to feel very comfortable very quickly. That being said, the biggest challenge can be differentiating between a work appropriate conversation and something that should be discussed sometime after 4:30 with a close friend instead of all of your co-workers. In most cases the distinction is relatively simple, but I've found it can be a little blurrier working at SHM. Being part of such a free-spirited, open-minded atmosphere is a blessing as well as a learning experience.

In these two short months, I have quickly realized that no matter how busy they may be, EVERYONE here likes to joke around and have a good time. In fact, on some days it feels like the S in our company's name should stand for sarcastic. People definitely respect one another’s opinions and values, but are far from hesitant to share their own. Though this is definitely a positive aspect of working here, there is also the added challenge of not crossing any lines. Everyone has different boundaries and different comfort levels, and being mindful of those is extremely important when working with such a diverse group of people. It's fine to tell stories, pull pranks, and even tease each other a little bit, just as long as no one is made to feel uncomfortable in the process. Making sure that your laugh of the day doesn't come at someone else's expense; to me that's what maintaining the balance is.

*Except for Susan, it's okay to laugh at her! (:

Bitter Sweet

It has been well known to my friends here at college and at home that I love to work. Studying and projects have always been fun for me. At times I even find myself here at SHM not even taking a lunch break because I am so into the project I am working on. With that being said, I guess you could say fun and work has always been balanced for me. Yes, at times I don't enjoy some of the projects I am working on, so then I strive to find that balance on my lunch break. Either shopping online or going to a new restaurant with Rooks on break seems to calm my urge to spice up my day. Bottom line, completing work needs to always come first before fun. Fortunately, most days I don't have that problem of reminding myself that.

In everyday life, when it comes to getting things done at home and for school, I manage my time very well and stick to a schedule so that I get things accomplished while setting aside time to have fun and destress so that I have a healthy balance of work and fun. However, I treat things very differently at work. At work, my number one priority is to get the work done. I use wanting to have fun as motivation to work harder to get my work done quicker so I can relax and have fun. It has proven very effective for me so far. I take my responsibilities very seriously, especially in my current role as a co-op student. I want to make a good impression on my superiors and develop networking opportunities for the future. That being said, work is always going to come before fun for me in the workplace because in the long run keeping my job and having good future contacts is the most important thing to me.

Workin hard or hardly workin

Getting work done and having fun during work are the two most important things in a work day. Balancing the two can sometimes be difficult. Completing tasks is obviously the more important of the two and to do so, fun cannot take over. As stressful as work can be, what needs to be done, needs to be done and that always comes first. There will always come time for play and having a good time. In the workplace, work may come first but fun is necessary. Having fun is a big part of life and in both of the jobs I have worked, the two always manage to balance themselves out. Workers will always be working more than having flat out fun but the fun people have in the workplace makes the day’s work that much easier. When it comes down to it work needs fun to work.

A typical day...

Knowing that you have to draw the line between work and fun is definately not something that is new. When we go to school the same guidelines follow; finish the work with an impending deadline and then you can allow yourself to have a little bit of fun. I LOVE to get important tasks done whenever I feel the urge to have some fun! It's a million times better this way because I don't have to dwell on work when those particular assignments are completed. The goal is to eliminate all the work in order to have a good time. This applies in my personal life, work life, and school life; in my opinon, it eliminates stress and it is something I'll probably keep doing for the rest of my life.

Balance in all things

We need balance in everything. Too little work and too much fun leads to little productivity. Too much work and too little fun leads to much productivity, but harsh effects on physical and emotiona health.

The line that needs to be drawn is when fun starts to get in the way of work or work stresses you out way to much. If fun starts getting in the way of work, you need to do more work or you will, ultimately, lose mony. If work starts stressing you out, you need a little injection of fun or your health will start to degrade greatly.

I myself like to check a snippet of online news or something about a video game for maybe 5 minutes here and there. This gives my mind a few minutes to relax and get ready to continue. I do this once an hour (minus the 12-1 lunch hour, of course, or any hour long meetings I may have). This short little burst of fun is all I need to keep going for the next hour or so.

If I'm having a particularly hard day, which I haven't ran into yet, I'd probably like to take another 5 minutes at the 30 minute mark of the hour.

Now, if this is some clever trap to find out whos slacking off, I assure you it isnt slacking. Per hour, I'm looking at a less than 1/6th down time sometimes down to a 1/12th down time for that hour. whereas a good 5/6th to 11/12th of my time is spent being productive.

Where do you draw the line between having a good time and cracking down to get work done?
How do you balance fun in the work place?

Robin Williams

It took me a while to think about that one celebrity I look upon as a role model. After a while, I settled with the one person who has had an outstanding impact on my life and hundreds of thousands of peoples lives. That man, is Robin Williams. And no, hes not my role model because we share a last name.

Robin Williams has made some life choices that many, many, people would disagree with. But he was able to get himself out of all the potholes of life he went through, regardless of how big they were.

In the late 70's early 80's, Robin Williams was addicted to Cocaine. He would often party, and party hard, with his good friend John Belushi. For those of you who don't know, Belushi was on SNL and in the movie Animal House. On March 5, 1982, Belushi was found dead after an overdose of Cocaine and Heroin. This, coupled with the birth of his son, was a huge wake up call for Robin Williams. He has since then been clean and drug free.

Had Robin Williams not have cleaned up his act, we wouldn't of had the tremendously great man we have today. The movie "Aladdin" wouldn't have been the same without him, nor would any of the movies he was in. Quiting drugs had not only helped himself and his family, but it allowed his would be fans the opportunity to have a laugh at his jokes. He has provided laughter and good feelings for millions worldwide. Without his determination to clean himself up, a lot of laughter would have been lost.

On August 9, 2006, Robin Williams checked himself into a substance-abuse rehabilitation center for alcoholism. The fact he was able to recognize his own problem, much like in the 80's, it amazing. While an outrageously large amount of people fall into the pit of alcoholism, only a handful can realize their problem on there own and do something about it.

He's also quite strong. During his Weapons of Mass Destruction tour in 2009, he became hospitalized for heart problems and had to get his Aortic Valve replaced. You know, the valve that pumps blood from your heart to your head? After surgery, he went on to finish his tour not to much later (less than 6 months after, i think, THINK, it was about a month of recovery before he was out on tour again).

His wife founded and runs a philathropic organization the raises money for charities. He himself had donated ALL the proceeds from one of his tour stops in 2010 to help a New Zealand city rebuild after the earthquake.

And above all else, he's a huge video gamer! He even named his daughter, Zelda, after the video game "The Legend of Zelda." So, its easy to see why I like him. What about you?

M.I.A.

This question was actually one of the most difficult for me, mostly because I am shamelessly obsessed with the entertainment industry. I want to be an entertainment reporter sometime within the next 10 years, therefore I spend a ridiculous amount of time investigating celebrities and their personal lives.

There are a good number of people I could potentially say that I admire in certain ways, but I don't necessarily have a 'role model.' (It used to be Tyra Banks, but she ruined that for herself.) So going with my love of music, and her music specifically, I'm going to choose Maya Arulpragasm, or M.I.A. I really love everything about this woman. Not only does she make great beats and catchy melodies, but her music serves a purpose. Underneath the hype and occasional over-production, her lyrics are almost always some form of political commentary. She's never shy about her self-expression; voicing her opinions within her music, her social media outlets, and numerous interviews. Her opinions on third-world democracy, terrorist organizations, and the role of the government have often caused controversy--but she has never allowed adversion to water down the potency of her message.

On a less serious note, she is absolutely beautiful--but she doesn't lead with that. She's never been the type to flaunt her body, sexuality, etc. She actually wrote a song sarcastically commenting on the expectations of female artists to portray themselves in a submissive way (XXXO).I wouldn't say that she's the epitome of class in the traditional sense, but I can respect the fact that she respects herself.

She also has one of the most adorable children ever created, and seems to be in a stable relationship. (By the title of this weeks question, we all know how rare those are in Hollywood.)

I'm also infatuated with her sense of style. When I'm not at work, I lean towards the tribal/boho look, which she has down pat. The only outfit of hers that I could not stand was the see through polka dot body suit she wore for her pregnant VMA performance. It was a little bit ridiculous. She also went into labor about three hours after getting off stage, which garnered her some serious points in my book. Performing on your due date takes a lot of courage...and maybe a little bit of craziness also.



Crazy or not, she is an amazing, wonderful, fantastic human being. I can't say that I want to be her, but I would love to be like her.

Obama

Okay so a couple of people have requested that I answer this question as well. Weird - because I asked you all and I don't really think there is one person that I look up to more than anyone (that's a celebrity). If I had to choose one person currently, it would probably be Dianna Agron. I know you guys are all thinking "of course it's someone from Glee" but that's not why I admire her. Yes, she is on my favorite TV show ever, but hear me out.

Dianna is one year older than I am, and just about as successful as I wish I was. She is someone who is gorgeous, carries herself gracefully, has no scandals, and most of all: she is humble. I feel like she is one of those people that doesn't realize she is famous half of the time. She tweets about hanging out with her friends (everyone else on Glee), she blogs constantly with music videos, thoughts, and pictures. I just really admire that in the past 3 years as her fame has sky-rocketed, she has managed to stay grounded and real. She seems so genuine, so caring and so kind. I would love to spend a day with her. Plus, she has great taste in music and clothes :)

Happy?! PS - The photos included in this post are my top 2 favorite Dianna dresses, and I bought that dark colored lipstick just because of her. Weird? Whatever.

Paris Hilton

What celebrity is your role model, and why?

Since Susan took my original role model… Rachel Zoe, I guess I’ll have to settle for my second choice.

A role model to me… is someone who makes all the right decisions, makes the best out of situations, makes others around them happy and in doing so, made themself successful.

Now, I do not have one particular celebrity in which I look up or try to emulate myself. However, there definitely are some that I respect and would consider a role model type. Will Smith would absolutely be in my top 3. I respect anyone who is self-made and Will Smith is the definition of that. Having come from middle-class Philadelphia, he used his intelligence and skill to propel himself to Hollywood. He is the only actor to have eight consecutive films gross over $100 million in the box office. He was also featured in Fortune Magazine's "Richest 40" list of the forty wealthiest Americans under the age of 40. Smith also donates millions of dollars to charities, which is ridiculous to be able to give away that kind of money. Anyone who was not given an opportunity, but made one for themselves and succeeded is a role model to me and what I aspire to be.