On Monday, Patrick Hernandez, an alumni from General M, visited my capstone class and talked about his formula to be successful. Patrick interned with GM when he was a student of the PR program at BYU. When he finished his internship, GM really liked Patrick's project. Therefore, Patrick was asked to continue to work on the project while he was at school and he received a full-time offer at the same time. After 5 years working GM. Patrick is now the communications manager at GM. During his presentation, Patrick gave a lot of useful advice for career development. However, what struck me the most is his humility.
Patrick told us about his journey with GM. He said his passion was nonprofit PR. As a result, when the opportunity with GM came to him, he wasn't really interested. He believed that cars polluted the environment and working in the automotive industry would go against his ideology. However, lot of his friends encouraged him to take the opportunity and apply for the internship. From his story, I can tell that Patrick is a really talented person but he doesn't let the glamour and the success go to his head. Because of his humility, Patrick received a lot of support of from friends and thanks to his friends, Patrick took the life-changing opportunity and became a very successful person. What would Patrick have become if people hadn't liked him and consequently hadn't encouraged him to work for GM? At the end of his presentation, Patrick told us to be happy because a positive attitude is what keeps us go through this crazy world. He made sure each of us have questions for him and also brought treats for us! Isn't he awesome?
I know that being confidence yet humble at the same time can be challenging. The fine line between bragging and confidence is very thin, Therefore I plan to learn how to best represent myself and make people feel comfortable around me. I read somewhere that humble people "see happiness as a journey." Understanding the real values of life will definitely take me to where I want to be.
Thursday, February 26, 2015
Saturday, February 21, 2015
Looking at Future
When I came back home, a lot of people asked me what I want to do in the future. I have always thought that I have a clear answer for that question; however, I tend to leave a blank answer recently.
I always want to work for a nonprofit so I can travel around the world, implement projects and help others. However last summer I went to a networking event in NYC and met a really great lady. She told me she is now working for GE although her real passion is nonprofits. I asked her why she pursued a totally different career track and she said sometimes she has to go the other way around. She also said having a stable income will better assist her long term goal as a career with nonprofits cannot guarantee her a stable life. Her advice made me realize the difference between reality and passion. Sometimes those two notions do not coincide which mean I have to find my way to bring them together.
Recently some new friends come to my life and become very important people to me. They
influence me to rearrange my priorities in life and I realize sometimes I have to sacrifice my dream for someone else's. I did not regret what I chose to do. It just feels like it's very to unstable to plan my future based on others's expectations. However, I knew that someday I can make my dream happen. Rather than sacrificing, I just put my dream aside so I can assist my friends and be well prepared for my dream.
Now I am asking myself what I need to do? I'm not sure what kind of jobs I want after graduation. I don't know what would be the best way to make things work out for me and others? I guess I'll just let things unfold and try my best to fulfill what's there for me.
I always want to work for a nonprofit so I can travel around the world, implement projects and help others. However last summer I went to a networking event in NYC and met a really great lady. She told me she is now working for GE although her real passion is nonprofits. I asked her why she pursued a totally different career track and she said sometimes she has to go the other way around. She also said having a stable income will better assist her long term goal as a career with nonprofits cannot guarantee her a stable life. Her advice made me realize the difference between reality and passion. Sometimes those two notions do not coincide which mean I have to find my way to bring them together.
Recently some new friends come to my life and become very important people to me. They
influence me to rearrange my priorities in life and I realize sometimes I have to sacrifice my dream for someone else's. I did not regret what I chose to do. It just feels like it's very to unstable to plan my future based on others's expectations. However, I knew that someday I can make my dream happen. Rather than sacrificing, I just put my dream aside so I can assist my friends and be well prepared for my dream.
Now I am asking myself what I need to do? I'm not sure what kind of jobs I want after graduation. I don't know what would be the best way to make things work out for me and others? I guess I'll just let things unfold and try my best to fulfill what's there for me.
Friday, February 13, 2015
Home Sweet Home
All of the familiar faces, the big smiles, and the inside jokes brought back sweet memories. I realized sometimes I forget how much my family means to me. I still love my family members as who they are, and I still feel the invisible bonds with them, but the distances gradually drive me away from my family . After being away from home for six years, sometimes I feel like I have my own life over there in the U.S. and no one in my family would understand me. However, going home once again reminds me the the everlasting and eternal meaning of family.
I haven't met my family for two years. My heart aches a little bit when I saw my dad and my mom. They have aged since the last time I met them. And my little brother has grown up so fast. In my mind, he is still the little baby who would make me laugh all the time. But now he's just as tall as me. As a college student, everyday I worry about finishing up homework, going to work, and spending time for social activities. As a result, I subconsciously spend less time for my family. Less phone calls. No more deep conversations. Everything was fading away.
The hectic life has changed my priorities in life. School and work took over my life and I kept telling myself that I will have time for my family later. But time does not wait for me. I need to try harder if I truly love someone. When I get back to Utah, I am planning to talk to my family every week and checking on them more often. I will cherish every single moment with my family.
Friday, February 6, 2015
No Pain No Gain
Hello all:) I finally made it home after a 20-hour flight. Yup I am talking about my real home in Vietnam. But what I want to talk about is how I overcame a really rough week to achieve my ultimate goal- going home.
To be able to go home, I tried to do a lot of things beforehand. I knew that I needed to take care of everything in Provo so I won't miss assignments and fall behind in school. However, things were not easy as it seemed. Somehow I had more homework during that week and I had more assignments at work. In addition, I had three midterms that I had to take before I left. Not to mention a million other things came along the way. There were so many things to do. It got me to the point where I could explode anytime. Everything seemed to go wrong. I got angry at my friends for no reason. I lost my patience easily when I couldn't design a poster properly. I snapped at my coworkers because I thought they didn't do their jobs. Luckily, my friends knew what was going on with me and they tried to keep me positive and helped me as much as they could. When I was about to lose my temper and felt like giving up, they were always there and gave me courage. After all, I did everything I could and now I am enjoying the sunshine in Vietnam^^
When negative things happen simultaneously, people tend to feel suffocated, react aggressively and finally give up. At some points, the feeling of helplessness penetrated to my mind and I felt like: "Ok it's done, that's it!" However nothing great will be achieved without blood, sweat and tears. What I learned from last week is it's really important to have determination along with a positive attitude to to overcome adversity and hardships. Epictetus said, "It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters." I am learning to have a greater sense of control. I will not let external circumstances determine who I am and what I am going to do. I know that bad things can happen but I always have a choice about how to respond.
To be able to go home, I tried to do a lot of things beforehand. I knew that I needed to take care of everything in Provo so I won't miss assignments and fall behind in school. However, things were not easy as it seemed. Somehow I had more homework during that week and I had more assignments at work. In addition, I had three midterms that I had to take before I left. Not to mention a million other things came along the way. There were so many things to do. It got me to the point where I could explode anytime. Everything seemed to go wrong. I got angry at my friends for no reason. I lost my patience easily when I couldn't design a poster properly. I snapped at my coworkers because I thought they didn't do their jobs. Luckily, my friends knew what was going on with me and they tried to keep me positive and helped me as much as they could. When I was about to lose my temper and felt like giving up, they were always there and gave me courage. After all, I did everything I could and now I am enjoying the sunshine in Vietnam^^
When negative things happen simultaneously, people tend to feel suffocated, react aggressively and finally give up. At some points, the feeling of helplessness penetrated to my mind and I felt like: "Ok it's done, that's it!" However nothing great will be achieved without blood, sweat and tears. What I learned from last week is it's really important to have determination along with a positive attitude to to overcome adversity and hardships. Epictetus said, "It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters." I am learning to have a greater sense of control. I will not let external circumstances determine who I am and what I am going to do. I know that bad things can happen but I always have a choice about how to respond.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)