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T. Marni Vos, left, with UNMC’s Charlene Tate. |
“The comfort zone is a great place to rest, but a deadly place to live, at least spiritually,” said T. Marni Vos, a humorist and founder of Laughter’s Echo Inc. “You have to be willing to shed your skin, so to speak, and travel out of that zone.”
Vos was the keynote speaker at Wednesday’s celebration of Administrative Professionals Day. More than 250 administrative professionals attended either the breakfast or lunch sessions, which were sponsored by the UNMC Employee Growth Advocacy Development Organization (EGAD).
Charlene Tate of Business and Finance Services organized and hosted the event for the fifth consecutive year. Vos’s remarks were preceded by presentations from Myrna Newland, M.D., director of the UNMC Equity Office and a professor of anesthesiology, and Roderick Kelly, division director of strategic staffing in the Department of Human Resources.
Dr. Newland shared some photos and a few of her experiences during a recent trip to Afghanistan. Kelly told the administrative professionals that they deserve much of the credit for getting things done at the medical center, and he outlined many of the past year’s successes.
Vos had the audience in stitches for much of her presentation, using topics ranging from her niece’s potty training to her time as high school speech teacher. She said the path someone takes is their own choosing.
“If you wake up looking for all of your problems, you’ll be amazed at how many you’ll find by the end of the day,” Vos said. “There is a lot of truth to, ‘You’ll find what you’re looking for.'”
Looking for the humor in everyday events, Vos said, leads to a better appreciation of life. She recommended toting a “humor journal” to record the funny episodes.
“Humor will always be one of your shiniest companions, but you have to invite it in,” Vos said.