“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”
-Walter Elias Disney
At a young age, I had very “high” aspirations: I wanted to be a ringmaster for the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus. You don’t have to tell me how childish of a dream that was, but I figured somebody had to be the ringmaster, so why not me? To inject a little more context into why I wanted to run away and join the circus (literally), I had been going to circuses every year up until I was about 12 and every time I found myself more captivated by the splendor of circuses, more convinced that being a ringmaster was the right job for me. His colorful jacket, shiny buttons, and stylish top hat, combined with his booming voice and commanding presence on the floor, had me believing that he was the most important and powerful individual in the room, and from my perspective, he was. He controlled the show and by extension the audience with as little as a simple gesture or words that would send the entire arena into a frenzy with dancing elephants, prancing horses, fierce tigers and ridiculous clowns. I wanted that same control, to know everything about my show and everyone in it, in addition to entertaining and delighting my audience so that everyone would like me. Because everyone likes the ringmaster.
Naturally, my aspirations have shifted, but the principles that guide them, the ideas of control, showmanship, and knowledge have remained unchanged. I like control; control of my academics, social life, and personal well-being has always been and will continue to be important to me. I consider showmanship the bedrock of my life so far. From the numerous musicals, plays, choir ensembles, and presentations I have done, to my current job as a tour guide for my university, the art of entertainment is in my blood. Knowledge, of course, remains a work in progress, as it should be. One is never done learning, and I am always eager to improve and further educate myself. I also haven’t stopped enjoying circuses, and I am still very excited to see “O” by Cirque du Soleil in Las Vegas, Nevada.
I wanted this first post to be an introduction of sorts, but also more entertaining than the “Hi my name is…” stuff you will see on other sites. However, I do want to give a true introduction to who I am and what this series will contain. So, “Hi my name is…” Samson Cassel Nucci, born and raised in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and currently pursuing a double major in Global and Supply Chain Management at The University of Pittsburgh’s College of Business Administration (CBA or PittBusiness). This blog is intended to document and share my journey through a formal and informal business education, with special recognition to concepts on hospitality and customer service, a passion of mine. There will be everything from personal stories to business take-aways from different books or articles I’m reading. I hope this series will be fun as well as informative. If you have any questions, suggestions, or hesitations, feel free to contact me (my information is located in the “my profile” section on the site). I don’t know how long I intend to carry out this journey, but I hope I can entertain you for a little while as the ringmaster I will never be.
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