Henry David Thoreau once said that "Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it." This couldn't be truer for City College student Geanina Watts. The dynamic young woman, who emanates all at once creativity, enthusiasm and determination, certainly kept busy last spring: a full-time load of classes, the presidency of the SCC Business Club, community volunteering, three inventive business ventures (yes, three!), and in the midst of all that, Watts still found time to pursue her fine arts career as a photographer.
Of course, like most achievers, Watts modestly says, "It's better to be too busy than the other way around."

Watts arrived from Romania five years ago, with a diploma in theology under her belt. She and her husband, a Cornell graduate, eventually launched three Web-based companies, which inspired her to go back to school and resume her studies - but this time around, as a Business major. "Even if you already have your own business," she said, "there are so many things you don't know."

So with the goal of maximizing her companies' potential, she enrolled a City College. "I chose City College because I had heard very good things about it. I liked the campus and I loved its proximity to my house."

She was immediately taken by the dedication of all those with whom she came in contact. "The counselors," she said, "are so encouraging. The faculty go above and beyond in their commitment to student success, and they really teach at a university level. The classes are very challenging but so rewarding."

But what particularly impressed Watts was that the faculty's willingness to help went well beyond the walls of the classroom. "I can't emphasize enough how helpful Shirley Short [dean of the SCC Business Division] is. She attended almost all of the Business Club's meetings, and she and Professor Arthur Hernandez [Business Club Adviser] invested an incredible amount time in creating opportunities for us to meet the right people and visit the right places. With so much dedication," Watts added, "you want to do an even better job."

Watts says that she has learned much from the past semester, and she was able to directly apply freshly learned marketing techniques to her own businesses. The first one, Traction Systems, is a Web and marketing development venture whose clients include Sactown.com, a collective devoted to promoting Sacramento's increasingly popular Second Saturday Art Walk. Another one of Watts' companies is the innovative and elegant W Gallery & Studios - an entirely virtual art gallery dedicated to promoting some of the city's finest artists.

Although the classy W Gallery & Studios allies two of Watts passions - fine arts and business - the company she is perhaps most excited about is Wishzilla.com. This clever venture, she explained, is the solution to the "wrong present blues," which surely, we have all experienced at least once. (Simply travel back to your last birthday, when your aunt gifted you the exact same tie she gave you last year, even though you never wear ties.) "Wishzilla is a universal gift registry, meaning you can add wishes from any Web site or simply make one up off the top of your head," Watts explained. "The key functionality is intended to help maintain the surprise of giving a present - you can ‘lock' a gift away so other users can't see it - but the original wisher has no idea that this has occurred."

Since its launch, in mid-2008, the site already boasts of a few thousand customers. As Wishzilla.com expands, Watts says she will not forget Sacramento City College, and she plans to extend opportunities to its students. "We want to put together a team of soldiers to market Wishzilla, and since I saw the dedication of some of the students at City College, we will definitely recruit some of our students," Watts said, with enthusiasm. "We will extend to other universities, but City College is first on our list."