.png)
The Rotary Spark Podcast
Welcome to our dedicated podcast for Rotary International's District 5750, designed to connect our community through the power of personal storytelling. Each episode celebrates the unique journeys of our fellow Rotarians and community members, highlighting their individual experiences, motivations, and the profound impact of their service and contributions.
Join us as we dive into heartfelt discussions with individuals from all walks of life, sharing stories that inspire and foster connection.
The Rotary Spark Podcast
#0024 - Neal Hettinger
Has community service evolved in the digital age? In this episode, we dive deep into the connections that Rotary fosters, showcasing how one local club navigated the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic while fostering fellowship among its members. Join us as Neal Hettinger shares his personal journey through Rotary, detailing how they effectively transitioned from in-person gatherings to virtual meetings, ensuring that community spirit continued to thrive even in the most trying times.
We also explore the exciting realm of AI in graphic design as Neal introduces his book, "Modern Graphic Design with AI." The conversation reveals how these technologies not only enhance creativity but also empower students to secure jobs in an increasingly competitive market. As we discuss the importance of authentic relationships formed through Rotary, we uncover how service organizations can catalyze personal and professional growth beyond mere networking.
What does the future hold for community service in the era of AI? Tune in to hear inspiring stories, discover practical skills, and gain insights that could transform your own approach toward service and professional development. Remember to subscribe and share your thoughts with us!
A non-profit committed to empowering other non-profits by enhancing their technology independence.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Welcome to the Rotary Spark Podcast. I'm your host, Brian Treiger, and with me today is Neil Hedinger from the South Oklahoma City Rotary Club. How are you doing today, Neil?
Speaker 2:I'm doing great. A little chilly out there, not too icy.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I've heard it's going to get a little bit warmer on Monday. I'm looking forward to getting outside yeah. So tell us a little bit about your Rotary journey.
Speaker 2:I you know like to volunteer and do a lot of things, and when I lived in California I kind of over-volunteered, so we moved to Oklahoma City. I was looking for something where I could actually more pick and choose With the church. It seemed like, you know, when they asked, I had a hard pick and choose With the church.
Speaker 2:It seemed like you know, when they asked I had a hard time saying no. So with Rotary I had an easier time to say I like to do this, I don't have time for that. So I was talking to Jack Warner and he suggested Rotary. At the time I lived in Edmond and the idea of driving down to South Oklahoma City was quite a journey, even though you know know, I left LA to get away from driving. But I was glad I did.
Speaker 2:I knew some people there and I met a lot of from a business point of view a lot of business people that got to know a lot about the city that way up in Edmond I knew a number of people so it made sense to be down here also I taught at OCCC, so that kind of worked in hand-in-hand too.
Speaker 2:The funny thing is that when I first the first, three meetings I went to we had speakers and all of them were wardens from prison and I was really wondering what I was getting into here and Jack says oh no, no, no, it just worked out that way. So years later, when I was president during COVID, I made sure we had a wide variety of speakers that try to hit every different range, you know.
Speaker 1:But it's been a great journey because everyone's nice, you know, you join to help the community, but it's really the fellowship that keeps you going. During COVID.
Speaker 2:That was a difficult time, we to go to zoom and fortunately with my tech I could handle the zoom. I was doing it for class too and um, you know it was funny. We stand up to say the pledge of allegiance and you'd look on the screen, you'd see all these bellies you know, and I had a picture of the flag up, and then we did the fourth, fourth, four truths, and, um, this is the four-way test. And then you know we went through it.
Speaker 2:The hard part was getting speakers they didn't really like just sitting there talking, even though there was people they just weren't used to it but we kept it going and then, finally, we got through the covid stage and were able to start meeting in person and we still kept the zoom going at that time it was a little difficult.
Speaker 1:And then slowly.
Speaker 2:everyone just kept coming and no one was on Zoom, so that worked out well.
Speaker 1:I remember the COVID days. It seems like it was just a couple of weeks ago.
Speaker 2:It was quite a different feeling, wasn't it?
Speaker 1:You know, we have some older people in the group community and in our club and they were extremely concerned, so they really enjoyed the Zoom, except they just didn't know how to use it.
Speaker 2:So a lot of times I'd either go over there or we'd be and I'd talk them through how to set up their microphone, how to set up the camera. Believe it or not, there's computers, even though it was only four years ago that didn't have computer, or they didn't have cameras, didn't have microphones, and so we set that up for them too, but really that was their only real touch.
Speaker 1:They were stuck in the house weeks at a time.
Speaker 2:that's when a lot of the food and restaurants started delivery you, you know, groceries and things, so that opened up a whole new industry there, not like Japan where they couldn't get waitstaff, so they built robots. But it did change our whole, a lot of our business.
Speaker 1:And it changed school.
Speaker 2:You know a lot of schools at OSU. It. A lot of it's online. You know the students prefer that rather than the time to drive in to class and stuff.
Speaker 1:So it's interesting how you and I have seen before and after COVID.
Speaker 2:So you know we got BC and AC.
Speaker 1:Yeah, the world's definitely changed a lot, so during that time I want to definitely spend some time to talk about your book. Did some of the seeds get planted then to write your book Modern Graphic Design with AI?
Speaker 2:Well, no, that was actually a little bit later, when AI became more prevalent.
Speaker 1:We had.
Speaker 2:AI as small areas on some of the software you could use generative descriptions to get things.
Speaker 1:But slowly, and then about a year and a half ago, in May 23, so almost two years ago, it became free and you didn't have to pay for it.
Speaker 2:And so, with my students, I started teaching them that in the fall of 23. And last year, a year ago, about 70% of my students in my class in the final class who were graduating had jobs already and I told them, put AI graphic designer and no one really knew what it meant, but it got their attention. So, even though they may only had a two-year degree, they got in where it was requiring a four-year degree. So people were interested and it's a great tool.
Speaker 1:The class I had brought in a client for them to work with.
Speaker 2:So they got on-the-job training that way and they used some of the AI stuff to create things and the client chose it and so they actually have printed pieces that were created from AI.
Speaker 1:Wow, okay, and so let's talk about some of the tools. I have not read the book yet, but I look forward to diving into it after this meeting. What are some of your favorite tools that are discussed in the literature you may wade into?
Speaker 2:it. It's pretty thick, okay, 300 pages.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:It shows you, even takes you through how to sign up for ChatGPT how to sign up for firefly or express, my next book coming out.
Speaker 1:I go into some of the others that have popped up, like canva and figma there's a lot of free ones.
Speaker 2:You know, in microsoft word now when you type, you have the option. There's a little tiny icon that pops up and you can click and hit rewrite. Oh, wow, okay instead.
Speaker 2:Instead of just using the editor, which was a form of AI. Sure. And then Apple. You know they've had AI for a number of years, but they didn't use it because everyone was afraid of the term. Okay, you know, there was a lot of people oh, it's going to take over my job, it's going to do it and it will. You know, there are some people that will lose jobs with any kind of technical thing. In the 1800s, when whaling went, out and oil took over.
Speaker 2:there was that fear, you know, but every kind of change like that it almost always makes more jobs available. You just have to stay with the technology or up with it.
Speaker 1:So the book was written more for graphic designers and marketers that wanted to know about AI and didn't want to get left behind but didn't want to have to go back to school, so it's a textbook to that degree and it's a step.
Speaker 2:The next book I'm working on is called marketing design with AI is. I mean it's for people. If you want to do a social post and put some motion and take some of your videos that you've done and made them where they can be posted as opposed to things that they'll re-edit it so that you can do it so it's a new growing area.
Speaker 1:Sure, and yeah, I've definitely used and heard of some of the tools. I use Canva myself. Even though I've used the Microsoft Suite, I didn't even notice that there was an AI integration into Word specifically. I'm guessing that Copilot has something to do with it. Well, Copilot.
Speaker 2:If you have a Word subscription, you can use Copilot for free.
Speaker 1:Okay, you get so many credits. Yeah, there's also.
Speaker 2:Creator, which you use to create images. Okay. And it works really well. I really think Microsoft has done it. They've beaten Google at this. But if you're using Word itself and typing, you'll see it looks like a little tiny scroll icon up here. Okay, and if you click on, that it will say it gives you some options. Do you want to rephrase this? Do you want to rewrite this? And from the very beginning. On a blank page it'll say do you want us to generate?
Speaker 1:Tell us what you're thinking about and we will generate it for you, sure.
Speaker 2:So you can bullet it and it'll write it so think about that.
Speaker 1:I'm in the Division of Arts.
Speaker 2:Humanities and.
Speaker 1:English and. Dean.
Speaker 2:Wollstone at OCCC. She really is knowledgeable in AI and she keeps up with it.
Speaker 1:And that's one of the biggest things is how do we get students still to be able to write, because you know when you go for a job you're going to?
Speaker 2:have to do some sort of cover letter.
Speaker 1:You're going to have to email people.
Speaker 2:You can't just text clients.
Speaker 1:Of course, and so if you can't, write.
Speaker 2:You can't count on the AI because AI makes a lot of mistakes. In fact, chat GPT. If you get it from you know you have it.
Speaker 1:Write something you better run it through an AI assistant that will proof it for you.
Speaker 1:Sure, yeah, no, and AI definitely picks up where my limitations kind of start to take place with AI, start to take place with AI at the end of the day, as I develop a relationship with the AI tools and I start to really slow down and understand how it interprets what I'm thinking and doing. It gives me an opportunity to leverage the teamwork that's taking place. So at the end of the day, I know, you know, I start noticing where AI is limited. Ai starts to, you know, start noticing where ai is limited. Ai starts to you know, in a maybe slightly more automatic way, understands where I'm limited and, as long as we work together and I make the final revisions, uh, the content is so much better than what I can do to, you know, create myself it's amazing what it knows.
Speaker 2:I don't know if you ever heard of these murder mystery dinner games uh, yes, I have heard of them so just for the heck of us trying out, I said, okay, write a murder mystery that takes place in um. I gave it a locate louisiana right and it wrote all the different characters it wrote just made them up, yeah um created that and when it was all done and done, it said would you like a more?
Speaker 1:a twist at the ending is this what you were done? It said would you like a more twist at the ending? Is this what you?
Speaker 2:were thinking what kind of things would you like to change? And so I didn't really give it much detail and it knew enough about the murder mystery things that it could create this, so you could actually have a murder mystery.
Speaker 1:Not as good as the actual games but it was pretty interesting that it was close. Yeah, it made me think where else could you use this and do it?
Speaker 2:one thing I did want to say about rotary is you know the we do a walk along the river every sunday at eight o'clock. Anybody wants to join us where we pick up trash? Okay and it's we started was just like a once a year thing. What then once a month? Now it's every sunday, you know we're out there and it like a once a year thing, then once a month. Now it's every Sunday, you know we're out there.
Speaker 1:And it's a good way to get to know people.
Speaker 2:But if you are a business and you're starting a business, or you're new to the area, join a Rotary, because you're going to meet a lot of people.
Speaker 1:And I'm not saying necessarily you're going to get work from them.
Speaker 2:It's not a networking, but you will get to know about the community and what's going on and it's great I get to meet you because of Rotary, right yeah. So it will help you in so many other ways, so I wanted to make sure.
Speaker 1:I talked a little bit more about Rotary, Of course, and it's done the same for me. You know, I think I came with an initial expectation to do business networking and maybe generate some clients early on and I realized that the only way to make that happen is to lose that expectation, to come in and see what I can offer and just develop some authentic relationships, not only for the exposure but just to solidify my platform as a person which will help me in any area of life. You know, it really helps a person naturally generate social wealth in a lot of ways and and I think that that's it's just fantastic.
Speaker 2:You know you're giving back to the community. You're getting fellowship with a lot of other business people. And it's nice sometimes to be around that group and you're not competing. Yeah, you know, there's a lot of advantages to Rotary and when I get people to come and I'm trying to get them to join- I tell them we're not the guys that wear the hats and ride the little motorcycles. You know we're out there.
Speaker 2:But anyway, like I said, there's a lot of things we do for the book raising, for the schools and bike. We have a bike giveaway for kids with perfect attendance, great grades kind of things, some of the elementary schools and just so many different things you can get involved with. And we have a lot of fun too. Pancake breakfast is always a fun. Everyone enjoys that. We have Grinch there and Santa Claus and people take pictures.
Speaker 1:Can you remind us where the South Oklahoma City Rotary Club meets and what time?
Speaker 2:It's at Hidden Trails Country Club. It is just north of the I-240 off of Pennsylvania, just north of the I-240 off of Pennsylvania. So if you go, north on Penn and turn west on 64th. It'll take you right to it.
Speaker 1:Perfect Go inside.
Speaker 2:There's a sign outside, sign inside and we have a luncheon every Friday at 12 o'clock. Get there a little early and tell them you're Jack Warner's guest.
Speaker 1:He'll pay for your, you know and for anyone who's interested in purchasing modern graphic design with ai barnes and noble amazon, I know if you're kindle unlimited subscriber you have access to the material, uh, anywhere else that people can find it if you do a searchers, I've given up counting how many places offer it now.
Speaker 2:So it's great, you know and if you want to learn more? Go to bestdesignerwebsite.
Speaker 1:And that's all about the book.
Speaker 2:And it tells you more, and there's even a discount code in there, so you can save a little money.
Speaker 1:Perfect, and this will be posted on our district's social media page. You can find us on Facebook Rotary District 5750. You'll also have access to all of that stuff on rotary5750.org. I want to thank everyone for listening today. I want to thank Rotary International. Happy birthday, rotary International. This week you turn 120. Thank you to ITSpark for supporting this endeavor and thank you to the Metropolitan Library System for giving us an opportunity to make this happen every week. And have a great weekend, everyone. You.
