Boldness is a not word Brian Tarrant is afraid of. Throughout his lecture at the Carmelo K. Anthony Basketball Center on Wednesday evening, he emphasized the importance of going after what you want.

Tarrant, a 1996 Syracuse University alumnus, was invited back to campus as part of the Alumni Speaker Series, co-sponsored by Career Services and the Office of Alumni Relations.

During his time at SU, Tarrant was a student-athlete who played defensive end for the football team during its 1993 Fiesta Bowl victory against Colorado.

‘I was like most of you guys, waking up one day in February and realizing I was graduating in a few months,’ Tarrant said.

As a sociology major, the last industry Tarrant expected to find a job in was marketing events and sales, he said. However, when he reached out to Shawn Garrity, a 1986 SU football alumnus, he found himself presented with an opportunity in that very industry.

Tarrant is now the division vice president of events, exhibits and environments at MC2, a national event marketing and advertising company. Tarrant and MC2 were directly involved in the design of the basketball center’s Orange Basketball Hall of Fame. SU athletics has a story he wanted to make sure was presented correctly, Tarrant said.

During his talk, Tarrant emphasized the importance of networking and interview preparation, both skills necessary to launch a successful career. Tarrant said utilizing resources like LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook is also important.

The ability to sell one’s ideas and goals is another requirement for success, Tarrant said.

‘Never lose sight of being a salesperson,’ he said. ‘The people who are great at their jobs are great salespeople.’

To express one’s goals to employers, Tarrant said making a good first impression is key. As a freshman, Tarrant said he made an awful first impression and couldn’t even order pizza without stammering his words. After a teammate alerted him that his shyness made him seem unapproachable, Tarrant said he worked tirelessly to overcome his fears.

One of the more personal moments of Tarrant’s lecture was when he spoke of his biggest life lesson. Early in his professional career, he received a DUI. As he was being led into a jail cell, a man inside recognized Tarrant as an SU football player.

It was one of the most embarrassing and shameful moments of his life, he said.

‘Not only did I let myself down, but I let down my family, my friends and my college,’ he said. The incident was a reality check for Tarrant and greatly affected his perspective on life.

‘Legally, it is all erased, but I never erased this lesson from my mind,’ he said.

Erik Bortz, a junior political science major, described Tarrant as ‘one of the brightest and most innovative members of the SU family.’

‘I thought it was really interesting how he shared personal experiences,’ said Shannon Mowles, a freshman political science major. ‘It was not what I was expecting.’

The willingness to take a risk, be bold and ask for what he wanted allowed Tarrant to reach his level of success.

‘You can all afford to be dreamers,’ Tarrant said. ‘Always pursue something you love because eventually you will excel at it.’

jbundy@syr.edu 

Published on April 4, 2012 at 12:00 pm

Contact Jen: jbundy@syr.edu