Adolphus Floyd

Exactly Why Am I Doing This Now? Part I of III

Exactly Why Am I Doing This Now? Part I of III
By Monette Benoit, All Rights Reserved.
May 1, 2013

The requested tutor and empowerment coaching appointment began with a simple question.

My question to the court reporter was simply, “How are you?”

There was a loud sigh. The answer began, “I am so tired of …” I watched the clock. How long? Over five minutes. I did not peep one word as I listened. After a noticeable silence, the court reporter asked me what I was thinking.

Soflty, I said, “Wow, that was almost a five-minute literary test. Now please tell me what you really think.” She howled with laughter.

Ah, court reporters and court reporting students.

When someone asks us what we think, and the question is posed by someone (my opinion here) related to our field, we can really let the words fly, yes? Yes.

This individual and I have worked together in the past. She emailed with a question requesting numerous sessions.

Again, I found it interesting that the tenacity and goals that were set by this person while enrolled in court reporting school (her words) “who would never make it out of school fast enough” were now similar to today’s scheduled session.

“I’m not going to spend another dime to improve my skills when I have paid so much to get where I am.” (I remained silent.)

“I know people can do what I am trying to do now. If they can do it, why can’t I? I want – No, I need to earn more money. I didn’t go to court reporting school to be at the bottom of a seniority list with working court reporters after this period of time, did I?” (I remained silent.)

The sentence I truly enjoyed (professionally and personally here), “I’ll just get there and take it from there when I do get there, okay?”

I listened to this gainfully employed court reporter.

“The support on my software is about to expire. I have to pay for that, too. And the support on my new writer is about to expire. More money there! All that adds up to a lot of money and it is due very, very soon!”

The reporter summed it up, “I just am wondering exactly why I am doing this now …”

And there we had it. The dancing zebra in the room was bowing and exiting.

Now that the energy had been expelled in a healthy manner – and we were clear that we would focus together – we began an open dialog for the goals.

Part II of III is posted May 15, 2013, on Monette’s Musings at www.monettebenoit.com and www.CRRbooks.com

Part III of III is posted May 24, 2013, on Monette’s Musings at www.monettebenoit.com and www.CRRbooks.com

Monette, the Court Reporting Whisperer, may be reached: Monette@ARTCS.com and Monette@CRRbooks.com

Monette Benoit, B. B.A., CCR, CRI, CPE, Paralegal

Tutor, Motivational Management & Empowerment Coach,
Multiple Title Author of Books & Test Prep for the Court Reporting, CART, & Captioning Industry
Realtime Court Reporter, Instructor, Consultant, Columnist

All American RealTime/Captioning Services, Inc.: www.ARTCS.com

Court Reporter Reference Books & CDs: www.CRRbooks.com

Blog: Monette’s Musings, www.monettebenoit.com

* Educational/Career Advancement; Private Tutoring/Customized Coaching

Have you failed NCRA’s RPR, RMR, RDR, or a state court reporting exam?
Monette will help you to pass your test and to exceed schooling and career goals. http://crrbooks.com/index.php?cPath=61

Did You Know: www.CRRbooks.com has material to help you advance skills for NCRA exams and state certifications?

Did You Know: You can accelerate your career with private tutoring and empowerment coaching?
Court reporting veteran Monette Benoit can help you achieve your goals.

Empowerment coaching and tutoring topics include:

• Motivational skills to keep you moving forward,
• Time-management skills,
• Process learning for more effective retention,
• Development of skills to author your book, your blog, and how to publish,
• Communication skills, daily interaction improvement skills, and much more.

Who comes to Monette for tutoring and empowerment coaching?

• Professionals who want to achieve their goals, to create new possibilities, to advance their career, to author their book, and to develop the dream within,
• Veteran and novice court reporters, CART providers, and broadcast captioners brushing up on their skills for test-taking requirements,
• In-class students who feel they’re “stuck” and falling behind, or aren’t ready for the required tests,
• Students and veterans who struggle with focus, goal-setting, time-management or other life skills that might be interfering in their upward success,
• At-home students who want to ensure they’re on track for their exam and career goals,
• Veteran court reporters, CART providers, and broadcast captioners expanding their career options in related fields,
• Students and veterans alike who find they’re struggling with key areas of daily practice,
• Students or veterans who have begun to question their career or whether they’re on the “right track” …

Check out: Reach Your Goals with Tutoring and Empowerment Coaching
http://crrbooks.com/index.php?cPath=29

Monette Benoit, the Court Reporting Whisperer, can help you achieve at much high levels.

Where do you want to go? What have you really wanted to do with your career, and ultimately, your life?

Specific custom-designed guidance efficiently assists you!

About Monette Benoit:
As a 25+ year court reporter, CART provider, author of NCRA test prep material, and an instructor, public speaker, Monette Benoit has taught multiple theories, academics, all speed classes, and the 225 homeroom within NCRA-approved schools and a community college. She understands the challenges many adults now face in our industry and schooling.

Monette Benoit has worked with thousands of professionals, court reporters, CART providers, captioners, students, and instructors. She has also helped create new court reporting training programs, worked with federal grants, and assisted instructors in developing curriculum for both in-class and at-home students.

Her one-on-one tutoring, private coaching, has greatly assisted thousands of students, novice and experienced professionals to privately reach the next level.

Monette’s Musings is a blog containing information for busy professionals, students, and individuals who are fearless and seek to create their success each day.

01 May 2013

Will You Accept My Invitation?

Will You Accept My Invitation?
By Monette Benoit

Copyright by Monette Benoit, All Rights Reserved.

I began my 2005 National Court Reporters Association, NCRA, seminar in Phoenix introducing Robert McCormick, teacher of 32 years, National Court Reporters Association, NCRA, 2004 Teacher of the Year, CATapult’s CD programmer, and Sheryl Stapp, RPR, realtime writer. Bob, a professor at State University Of New York, SUNY, At Alfred, Deacon and Counselor, was playing with the word “y’all.”

As the audience laughed, applauded, I began: “Sign language applause is like this (indicating). And people who are blind and deaf — do you know how they applaud? They pound the floor and/or a table with their hands and/or feet. You can feel the vibration, applause, through your hands, feet.” I jumped from my position, pounding my open hands onto the floor.

Then I asked, “Did you just learn something new?”

The audience voiced, “Yes!” I replied, “Good, we’re still in the first minute; you already learned something. Remember that.”

“Now I’m going to extend an invitation. I ask that you consider accepting this invitation. Can you do that for me?”

The audience nodded. I shared, “Every day, we have choices, we make decisions. I don’t know what you’re going to learn within this room, but I’m going to give you as much as I can. I hope you take as much as you can, and realize you’re going to process.”

When you read my articles, or have heard you me speak, you know I believe people process information at different intervals. The phrase ‘see Spot run’ may not mean anything now, not a darn thing. But later with additional information that phrase may be insightful, leading you to a new goal.

You may be thinking, “Hey, I’m just here to get points, is there a door prize? I read an article where you gifted a pearl necklace …”

The audience roared with spontaneous laughter.

I said, “Come on, guys. It’s 4:30 on Friday afternoon. I have friends who are getting a massage right now. They said, ‘I love you, Monette, but I’m not coming.’ For you to be here, I want to be respectful of your time; I also want to tell you what I expect from you.”

I expect you to listen to what we’re sharing here. I invite you to ‘check-out’— you will mentally check-out of this seminar. You will hear the little voice in your head: Can I do it, should I do it, why am I doing it? Look at all the money this is costing — that ‘mental’ list is still running when you check back, to continue listening here today.

I invite you to accept that your ‘court reporter retention’ will permit you to check-back, placing all information from this seminar into a little ‘court reporter processor’. It happens. This drives our families crazy. They say, “You weren’t listening; what did I say?” Then we respond, ‘I was.’” We quickly look away for a moment, re-channel our listening. We all do it.

So I’m asking you to give yourself permission that what you’re taking in here is not overwhelming. I don’t expect people to leave saying, “I’m going to …”

But I’d love for you to leave here saying: “I have goals. My goal is to do more than when I walked into this room, sat in this chair.” Even if your goal is to never come and listen to that woman again, it’s a goal.

The deal is to make goals with you. Give yourself permission to accept and reject what you hear today because even if you reject a message, you still heard a message you didn’t have before. You still have information from what you ‘reject’ to perhaps lead you to a new goal.

So if you’re a student, a teacher, a court reporter, what do you really want to be doing with your life?

The common answer from the audience that day: “Making it easier.” I replied: If your goal is to grow or to stay where you are, then you are familiar with a goal. You are willing to challenge yourself.

Even if your goal is to stay where you are, you must know that goal is a challenge because with current technology, ‘staying where you are’ is going to take more energy than moving forward. It will. Sometimes we think we are going uphill, sometimes we are.

If you’re going uphill, there’s a point where you can coast, but you have to make that decision based on the goals you make, the goals you create.

Quyen N. Do, from California, won the white pearl necklace my Vietnamese sister-in-law, Wenny, made from her store Tong Sing Jewelry, located at 615 Grant Ave, San Francisco. Quyen jumped up, bounced. She ran to the front, hands in the air, threw herself at me. I told the audience I felt like Bob Parker’s ‘Price is Right’.

DyeAnne Littlejohn, from Michigan, won the peach pearl necklace from the captioning and court reporters’ ‘CATapult Your Dictionary Software Program’ exhibit booth drawing.

When I phoned, DyeAnne screamed into the phone, then shared she attended my seminar in Chicago last year during the 2004 National Court Reporters Association on “How, When And Where To Publish Your Creative Ideas, Skills and Stories.”

DyeAnne had been praying to God and believes my phone call was an answer to prayers. DyeAnne now has new goals. How do I know? I asked.

As I write this, it’s August, 99 degrees hot tar, Texas weather.

When you read this, you may be preparing for Thanksgiving or Christmas. I now ask you to extend invitations, such as here, to those around you, and to create new goals.

And now I’m off to my cousin’s.

Uncle Joe served in WW II and carried “treaty” papers for General Eisenhower in Potsdam, handcuffed to his body.

Joe, a “lowly second lieutenant” was a German interrogator, working under the rules of the Geneva Convention. I am asking questions, listening.

I’m going to Joe’s house because I extended an invitation to myself after meeting a mature man who cleared the land in Iwo Jima for “those soldiers to raise the American flag.”

The Marine I met was wearing a WW II hat, a red windbreaker, and he had a small medal on the necklace around his neck.

He volunteered, “I share respectfully, the boys in the picture were not the heroes. The heroes were the Marines who cleared the path, then that picture was taken. Many boys died for that picture, and the real heroes were the boys who cleared the path before the boys were able to raise our American flag.”

I am preserving Uncle Joe’s story — the family member right in my backyard. Joe’s wife was my grandmother’s brother.

My maternal grandmother, Monnie Rae Floyd, a piano prodigy at four years old, was his first music teacher — also a court stenographer— in Corpus Christi, Texas. (She had her own orchestra where each person was required to play four instruments. My grandmother was the first music teacher in Corpus Christi volunteering to teach music to the students enrolled in public school.) And my grandmother’s father, Adolphus Floyd enlisted in the Civil War in 1861 as a ‘flutist in the band’.

My great-grandfather, Adolphus Ward Floyd was named after his uncle who died fighting within the walls of the Alamo, March 6th, 1836.

His 32-year old uncle walked from Gonzales, Texas, answering the call for volunteers that spread throughout the countryside while they were waiting for reinforcements to arrive.

This volunteer arrived behind the enemy line in 1836, moving through the gunfights to join the Alamo fighters within the fort. Dolphin Ward Floyd died on his 32nd birthday, leaving a wife, pregnant at nine months, and a four-year old son, knowing he would never see them again.

During the Civil War, Adolphus was a soldier in the 7th Regiment Texas Infantry was a Prisoner of War twice from 1861 to 1865. He was captured and released ‘for exchange’ from POW camps — the notorious— Fort Donelson, Illinois, and also Camp Douglas (‘received from’ Louisville, Kentucky and sent to Vicksburg ‘to be exchanged) in Franklin, Tennessee, before walking back to his home in Corpus.

We were always told that his having been a musician and being of strong-stock, kept Adolphus Floyd alive – having been a POW in the Civil War twice – to return home to his family and cotton farm, Adolphus walked home.

After the war, he married and with family and stagecoaches, moved the family, walking down to Corpus after he had tested the soil for cotton. (Tales of fighting bandits and Indians are still shared — how my great-grandmother loaded rifles for the men during battles.) As I grew up, my family always told me: You come from strong stock: Yes, you do.

My cousin, also a professional musician, who rarely spoke of WW II, is now answering my questions. He’s talking, crying, laughing and sharing mischievousness of “the boys.” Uncle Joe is saying, “Others have better stories; you should take their stories.”

When I reassure Joe, ‘I really want your stories; we’ll make sure the others share, too,” he says, “Sure you can have my stories! Come and get them while I can remember. Can you come tomorrow?”

Uncle Joe is 92, planning a trip to Africa this fall “because I’ve never been there!”

This afternoon I’m going into the Texas heat to complete a goal I made to myself, to preserve a goal Uncle Joe made when he raised his right hand, entering WW II.

Will you accept my invitation? What will you do?

Happy Holidays. Happy New Years to each of you.

About Monette:

Monette Benoit, B. B.A.,
Certified Court Reporter, Certified Reporting Instructor, Certified Program Evaluator, Paralegal, Columnist
Multiple-Title Author of Books & Test-Prep for the Court Reporting, CART/Captioning Industry

Purple Books – Court Reporter Reference Books & CDs: www.CRRbooks.com
All American RealTime/Captioning Services, Inc.: www.ARTCS.com

Blog: Monette’s Musings, Monette’s Musings

Court reporting veteran, author, instructor, publisher, public speaker, Monette Benoit can help you achieve your goals.

Customized information; test-prep for the court reporting, CART (Communication Access Real-Time Translation) captioning industry; tutoring, coaching; articles; academic books; and CATapult dictionary building lexica.

98% successful pass – 29 years, counting – with Purple Books. Prepared by Experienced Educators & Working CART Captioners, Court Reporters. Purple Books has the largest test-prep for NCRA’s RPR, RDR; State CSRs; and NY’s Civil Service exams.

Purple Books Complete SetPurple Books Trio Set

Purple Books updated textbook, workbook, companion guide used by schools & candidates, covers all elements tested by NCRA’s RPR, RDR; State CSRs, NY’s Civil Service exams.

Thousands of students and reporters “Purple-Up” and continue to pass NCRA’s RPR, RDR; State CSRs, and NY’s Civil Service exams the first time with Purple Books sets. Test prep with actual guided instruction and testing strategies!

Coaching and tutoring topics include: Motivational and time-management skills; Process learning for more effective retention; Communication skills, daily interaction improvement skills; and much more.

Purple Books updated textbook, workbook, and companion guide are used by schools and testing candidates. Material covers all elements tested by NCRA’s RPR, RDR; State CSRs, NY’s Civil Service exams.

Monette Benoit assists court reporting students and reporters to earn new certifications and to advance careers.

Named the ‘Court Reporting Whisperer’ by students, she may be reached: monette.purplebooks@crrbooks.com and Monette@CRRbooks.com

28 Jan 2008