Interview by Sara Couturier
Shannon Lapish, Third-Year Psychology Major, Ajax ON
Shannon was my first interview of the school year. She willingly agreed to my unconventional method of questioning, and shared some interesting things about herself! I had a list of 35 questions in my hand, and asked her if she would list some numbers between one and thirty-five; however many she wanted to answer, and only after she chose her numbers I revealed the questions. Here they are!
Q: Why did you come to Algoma U?
Shannon was the second member of her family to come to Algoma University. Her sister started at Algoma first, which is part of the reason why Shannon came. She liked the small school, and enjoyed the campus. She found it less intimidating because she had family in the area.
Q: What inspires you the most?
Shannon says that it is other people that inspire her. She explained that seeing others overcome obstacles and watching them persevere, is something she finds incredibly inspiring.
Q: What is your greatest strength? Your worst weakness?
Perseverance and sugary snacks. (I’ll let you guys try and figure out which answer belongs to which part of the question!)
Q: If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Like many people, Shannon found it hard to narrow her answer to just one place. She’d rather go on a whole tour of Europe. Her grandparents travelled a lot but she is only partly inspired by their stories. The rest of her inspiration for travelling around Europe comes from the stories that she’s read. Reading books that are set all over Europe make Shannon want to travel down those cobblestone roads and rolling hills.
Q: What is the scariest thing that has ever happened to you?
When Shannon was thirteen she thought she had a cold, but after going to the hospital she learned that it was actually diabetes. Quite understandably, this stood out as the scariest thing that she had ever experienced.
Q: What is your greatest fear, and why?
Get ready for a totally relatable answer – Shannon’s greatest fear is regret. She explained that she is now actively trying to seek experiences and do the things she wants to do as a way of diminishing this fear.
After chatting with Shannon for a few minutes I definitely felt as though I knew her better, and hope that those of you reading feel the same way. She’s very friendly, so if you think that Shannon sounds like someone you’d want to be friends with, introduce yourself the next time you see her around campus.
Before I said good-bye, I asked Shannon two more questions – the same two questions that I will use to end all of the interviews I will conduct this year. They were:
What is a kind gesture that someone has recently done for you? What is something kind that you’ve recently done for someone else?
Shannon told me about the kindness that’s been occurring in her workplace lately. She just got a promotion (Congratulations!), and one of her associates made a point of asking if they could help or support her in any way. She told me that they weren’t working at the time and had asked just to be kind. Shannon also explained how she really appreciated the person who was training her for her new position and to show her appreciation for her co-worker, she brought them coffee.