BLAKE BUBAK
bubakbt@lopers.unk.edu
Former Husker football player Aaron Davis presented to UNK students in the Health and Sports Center last week. With UNK being one stop on his speaking tour, Davis shared the importance of embracing opportunity and keeping perspective.
Renae Zimmer, Assistant Director of Leadership and Student Engagement at UNK gave her thoughts on the event.
“When I started in 2018, I kind of had that in the back of my mind. Speakers that I had heard in the past that have made a huge impact on my life that I thought could resonate a really powerful message to a large group of people here at UNK?” Zimmer said.
This is what led her to collaborate with the athletic department and residence life to coordinate Davis’ presentation. A native of Lincoln, Nebraska, Davis brought a message that could be shared with the diverse student body at UNK. The message focused on the negative side of technology and the power it has to control our attention, embracing everyday with a positive attitude, finding your “why” and much more. Davis is diverse in his speaking material and he utilizes his personal experiences to fuel his meaningful presentations.
He is able to mold these topics into something that everyone can compare their own lives to.
“I really enjoyed Aaron’s perspective on life and I felt like every topic he covered I could relate it to something in my life,” Will Lansman, 7-12 Social Science Education major and UNK football player.
While Davis is relatable, he also presents to his audience with a certain level of realness, honesty and transparency.
He places an emphasis on family values and mentioned that he instills his speaking lessons within his own kids. This includes making sure technology doesn’t disconnect their relationship. He backed this up by pointing out the idea that in this day in age, we are the most connected we’ve ever been, but we are also the loneliest. This idea alone serves as the fuel for his presentation as he preaches to others about getting the most they can out of every situation.
Davis urged students to stop, listen and look around from time to time. Just in case they were to miss something that is right in front of them.
“The days go slow but the years go fast,” Davis said.
This was a saying that he often heard from his mother and one he works to live by everyday.
