Lollipop Moments
It seems a little dramatic to say that I hinged my decision to switch my major on the advice of one influential senior, but that was kind of what happened. After I decided to change from pre-business, one of my close friends recommended talking to a senior she knew. The senior was majoring in advertising in the Hussman School of Journalism and Media; she also happened to be president of the advertising club at the time. I remember our conversation vividly. We had just had dinner and were standing in our sorority house’s foyer. My friend introduced me as a prospective Journalism and Media student, curious to learn more about her experiences; she explained the immense opportunities within the major and told me about the advertising club she was in charge of. She was impressive, well-spoken, and someone that just seemed like they had it all together. Now that I think about it, she sold the major to me almost like an advertisement. The conversation was no longer than ten minutes, but I hung on to her every word. I decided almost immediately after that to switch my major to advertising and public relations.
In a powerful and impactful TED Talk, Drew Dudley explained the concept of the lollipop moment. He defined it as “a moment where someone said something or did something that you feel fundamentally made your life better.” The concept stems from an interaction between a girl and Dudley; on his last day of college, the girl came up to him and told him that she remembered the first time she met him, the day her parents were dropping her off for college.
She broke down in tears the day before, telling her parents how scared she was about the whole experience, unsure she was ready to make this leap. Her parents reasoned with her and said that she should go the next day, and if at that point she still felt like this, she did not have to stay. When she was standing in line for registration, she had the same feelings come over her as she looked around. She could not do it and had made up her mind. As she turned to tell her parents, Dudley came over carrying a sign to promote a charity and was handing out lollipops. Dudley froze in his tracks and stared at her once he made his way over. He looked at the guy next to the girl and said, “you need to give a lollipop to the beautiful girl standing next to you.” Dudley embarrassed the poor boy so bad he turned bright red and could not make eye contact with the girl, but he gave her the lollipop. As the girl was taking the lollipop from the boy, Dudley gave a stern look to the girl’s parents and said, “look at that first day away from home and she’s already taking candy from a stranger.”
Everyone in the immediate radius that saw the interaction burst out laughing. At that moment, the girl knew she could not quit because she was where she was supposed to be. Even though the girl had not spoken to Dudley since that day, she said he had impacted her life in that pivotal moment. She did not quit. Four years later, she was dating the guy that gave her a lollipop. Something this impactful on the girl had to have made a significant impression on Dudley, right? No, Dudley did not remember the story.
When I saw this, I immediately thought of that conversation with the senior majoring in advertising. The senior pushed me towards feeling confident in my choice to change my major. Dudley went on to pose the question, “how many of you have told that person they did it?”
“How many of you have told that person they did it?”
Around the time I watched this TED Talk, I applied for an internship at the advertising agency she worked at after she graduated. I set up a meeting with her to talk about the internship, but I also wanted to tell her about my lollipop moment; I had to let her know how memorable that conversation was to me in finding what I wanted to do next. The best part was she did not remember it at all, similar to Dudley’s story. However, telling her how important it was to me made her day. I think we are all striving to make an impact, so why not tell people when they have? I am just happy Dudley called them lollipop moments rather than Dum Dums.
More About The Author
Lia Esposito is a senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill pursuing a degree in Media and Journalism concentrating in Advertising and Public Relations with an English Minor. She is currently a social media strategist in the fintech industry.