Stepping Out of the Comfort Zone: Jason Jenkins' Smart Guy Journey

It is incredible how much young people learn and adopt from their parents, guardians and important adults in their lives, how their values become your values, their beliefs become your beliefs, and how your attitude or life view is a direct reflection of theirs. Some people try hard to avoid becoming like their adult role models, citing the desire to have an identity of their own. Others, like Jason Jenkins, have not only accepted the characteristics, values and beliefs that were instilled in him by his parents, but he has embraced and modeled their teachings with open arms. Jenkins was raised in Houston, TX by his parents Mary Clay and C.L. Whittington. Jason is not shy about giving them credit for helping him to get to where he is today, the Director of Media Relations for the Miami Dolphins and a strong husband and father.

“My parents did a great job in raising us,” Jenkins explained. “They shielded us from the negativity and barriers of the outside world and eliminated any type of excuses for us not to be successful.”   Before heading to college Jason had to make one of the biggest decisions of his life.  Most people in Houston, particularly native Houstonians, rarely leave due to the great opportunities and rich tradition that the city holds. Houston is a place with many successful people whom are from there and tend to stay to make their city even better. During Jenkins senior year of high school, Jenkins was presented with the opportunity to go to college outside of Houston. “The big decision was not wheither or not to go to college, but wheither or not to leave home to go to college. Ultimately, I decided that leaving would be about stretching out to pursue new opportunities.” Jenkins said. “I was the only person in my high school group to go to Texas Tech. That was a big step for me to be able to leave the area that I was from and go far away to Texas Tech." That decision to branch out allowed Jenkins a time to see, grow, learn and experience new environments, new cultures and new people. These new experiences led Jenkins to pursue different opportunities. 

“I was able to go to college at Texas Tech in Lubbock,” Jenkins continued “Then after Texas Tech I left to go to work for Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA. I was then able to come back to Houston to work for Texas Southern. The next stepping stone took me out to California with the San Francisco 49ers and then to Florida to work with the Miami Dolphins. That initial big step, getting out of that comfort zone of the town that I grew up in, allowed me to be able to experience new things, different environments, different cultures, and different weather. All of those things helped me get to where I am right now.”

Jenkins loved sports growing up and was always interested in having a career in the sports/entertainment industry.  He graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Communications/Broadcast Journalism from Texas Tech University in Lubbock, TX.  “It is something coming out of college that I always wanted to do.” said Jenkins “On the collegiate level, I always wanted to be an Athletic Director, but on the professional level where I am now, I knew I wanted to do something in Media Relations. Communications was my background, and I had a knack for being able to successfully deal with players, coaches, staff, and the media. So this position was a perfect fit for what I wanted to do professionally.”

Jenkins constantly displays professionalism and enthusiasm for what he does. Jenkins continues to work with the passion and dedication of an intern trying to get their first break, making sure to stay humble and grounded.  “I think that I have a passion for what I do which was instilled in me by my parents.” Jenkins said. “There is nothing that I do that I don’t put my all into it. When I am finished other people can deem it as a success or a failure, but I know that I did my best and gave it my all. I always look at things, whether they turn out good or bad, as an opportunity to grow. I am not necessarily satisfied with things that other people might perceive as great.  Nor am I humiliated or nervous when people don’t perceive those things as great. I think there is always something to learn in everything that you do. I think the passion that I have for learning and my thirst for education is what makes me a Smart guy.”

Jenkins advises young people to set a far reaching goal. Set the ultimate goal as high as you can, but create checkmarks and benchmarks so that you can notch off the successes that you have reached on the journey to your ultimate goal. “I think a lot of people see an end result of something and they want to get there,” Jenkins said. “But when things get hard they kind of fall off because they don't connect what they accomplish on a daily basis as part of reaching that ultimate goal two, five or ten years from today.  Also, surround yourself with like-minded individuals and good people that can help you along your path, helping you get to where you want to go.”

  

Surrounding yourself with like minded people is something that Jenkins not only preaches but practices as well. While in college, Jenkins reached out to Dr. Alfonso Scandrett Jr., who ultimately got him into the field of athletic administration. Scandrett Jr. was a big mentor of Jenkins at Texas Tech and seeing what he did at the collegiate level is what inspired Jenkins to get involved in the field. Once Jenkins left the collegiate level and entered the professional ranks, Tony Wyllie (Senior Vice President of Public Relations, Washington Redskins) and Kirk Reynolds (Vice President of Public Affairs, Pac-10) became mentors to him. Jenkins learned a lot from them about the field and the career and they helped him develop into the professional he aspired to be.

Mentors have played such a role in the professional development and personal life of Jenkins that now he has become a mentor to young professionals entering this industry, the mentee has become the mentor. Jenkins has added another mentee to his list of people that he continues to help shape their careers, his daughter Liya. Jenkins is now the proud husband to Elizabeth and father to Liya, and you can count on his beliefs, values, attitude and views that he received while he was younger will be instilled into Liya as she continues to grow and find her place in the world!

A Mentoring Smart Guy,
Jason