Name: Keith Diaz
Program: BBA
Year of Study: 3rd
Hometown: Scarborough, ON
Favourite Quote: Any pizza is a personal pizza, as long as you believe in yourself.
In your time at Laurier, what have you been involved with on campus?
In 1st year, it was House Council, House Parties, and Homesickness. 2nd year was unreal AF, because that’s when I was blessed with the opportunity to start the Golden Speakers Club with some close buddies of mine. I’ve probably told the story a million times by now, but the idea for the Golden Speakers Club came to me the morning after my 19th birthday, when I convinced myself to have a little less blackouts and a little more purpose in my life. Now that I’m in 3rd year, it’s really been all about the Golden Speakers Club. We started off really strong and I’m so happy with how things worked out, so now my main focus is passing it off to the most trustworthy leaders so that they can create their own Golden Speaker Legacy. OH, I also started my own YouTube channel, The Story of Now, in December 2015, because I was learning the most mind blowing things from my friends. SO MINDBLOWING that I thought it’d be sweet to share them with everyone else, because ideas were always meant to be shared right? It feels so good getting a random message from someone saying that they’ve been watching my videos and it has really changed the way they look at life. That’s the biggest reward I can ever ask for, to know that my videos were able to impact at least one person.
What has been the most rewarding thing about starting the Laurier Golden Speakers Club?
One night, Laurier SOS invited our Public Speaking Coaches to speak to their group. Usually, I would try to control the event as much as possible, but that night I wondered what would happen if I just let Katie, Julia, and Jordan do their own thing. I was literally just in the back taking photos and trying to blend in with the audience, and daaaaaamn (Daniel) I will never forget how I felt that night. They TOTALLY crushed it, and I believe it’s because they each did it in their own amazing way. I’ve seen so many people around me take their own unique approach towards an end goal, but regardless of the fact that they did it differently they are still able to come out with their best work. People take people for granted, and take in how awesome it is to be able to throw an idea into a circle of people, knowing that it’s not coming out the same way (because everyone takes a turn shaping the idea into the best that it can be). The Golden Speakers Club is no longer just something that I can be proud of, it’s something that everyone else can be proud of as well. Daaaaaamn Daniel.
How would you describe the key to success with one word and why?
The key to success: Purpose. Lately I’ve been asking myself more Why? questions. Like, why am I putting so much effort into this, and why is it that, out of anything else that could’ve happened at this exact moment, this is happening right now? Your alarm clock may WAKE you up in the morning, but it is your purpose that actually GETS you up.
After a night at the bar in Waterloo, what is your place to go to for food?
It’s been all about Pizza Maniac ever since first year. If you’re still hesitant, check out my homie Mihailo’s Pizza Review ha ha.
What are some things on your bucket list that you would like to achieve before leaving Laurier?
I don’t know really. I’m all for those spontaneous plans. Like, when you’re chilling at home with your roommates and you all suddenly realize that wings at Morty’s would be blessed. Or when you’re in line for Night School and everyone turns to each other and says, “Yo, sushi tomorrow?” Man, I have a lot of good memories with food ha ha.
What has been your most memorable moment at Laurier?
On Thursday, October 8th, 2015, at around 8PM (I write exact dates and times in my Journal), I very clearly remember standing in front of a full room of Golden Speakers with their arms around each other – when I burst into tears.
I was super stoked because the theme of that night’s event was “The Little Things” and we invited the Sikh Student Association to share their stories around humility and selflessness, but I definitely wasn’t ready for what was about to happen that night. When we opened the floor to everyone else, my friend Nimisha told us that she was tearing up in her seat listening to the Sikh students speak, because she hasn’t seen her family in 6 months and they brought home TO her. My brother Pablo opened up about the death of his friend back home, and how he stayed up all night writing a song about him. The room was heavy with emotions, that’s for sure.
When I got up to conclude the event, I was facing the white board with my back facing the audience because I still needed some time to take it all in. When I finally turned around, I saw everyone with their arms around each other and tears rolling down their cheeks. I started to speak, but the words got caught in my throat and I couldn’t hold it in anymore. The most memorable part about that night was the joy that I felt. At that moment, I was just SO happy to feel the good vibes from these people who care so much about each other’s stories. At that moment, we were all connected as one.
Oh, there’s also that one time we were all dancing on a roof of some house on Albert St. during HOCO 2015. That was bananas.
Outside of academics, what do you enjoy doing in your pastime?
Okay, so for several months now I’ve been writing in a journal and it’s still hard for me to believe myself when I say that I really, really, really enjoy it ha ha. Many years down the road, I hope that they’ll find my journal somewhere in the ruins and be so captivated that they’ll decide to film a movie about it. This is what I tell my friends all the time: after everything they’ve taught me and after everything I’ve written about them in my journal, there’s a really good chance that they’ll be in the movie.
10 years in the future, what are you doing with your life?
Let me paint a picture for you: I’ll be on a beach just chillin’ okay? I can hear the sooooothing sounds of the waves and I can feel the warm sand dancing through my fingers. I slowly drift off to sleep with the sun’s rays hitting my face.
Suddenly, I hear a beat – quiet at first, but it gets louder and I can hear people running and screaming around me. As the music gets louder, I realize that it’s “Work” by Rihanna playing and these people are here to party. All of a sudden I’m on my feet right in the middle of a dance circle… Or living in a nice little townhouse in a quiet neighborhood, that’d be nice too.