Friday, March 13, 2020

What's Your Secret Sauce?


What makes me ME:
1.       I have an uncanny ability to think outside of the box and propose new solutions. This is one thing that was drilled into my head from an early age, being the son of an engineer and a math teacher and a computer scientist myself. Whether it is with solving a math problem or trying to figure out how to make my daily routine and schedule more efficient, problem-solving and efficiency are at my core.

2.       Empathy is one of my strongest characteristics. Whenever someone is describing a situation to me, I’m always quick to put myself in their shoes and to see things from their point of view, so as to gain knowledge about whatever they are talking about and to help however I can. This provides me with the power of perspective.

3.       Curiosity is also one of my strongest character traits. No matter what I’m thinking about, I’m always asking: why, how, and why not? I care a lot less about learning what things are, and more about why they exist and how they contribute to things. Reasoning is priceless.

4.       My drive and work ethic have always served me well in life: whether it was with playing golf at an elite tier in high-school (opportunity to play NCAA Division 1) or with being in the top of my class both in high-school and college, my tenacity and commitment to excellence and doing my best has always had a prominent presence.

5.       My confidence has always been a major component of who I am and what I stand to do in life. I’ve faced a good deal of adversity, whether it be personally, emotionally, or academically, and despite it all I’ve never once given up or thrown in the towel. No matter how low I may have felt, I always showed up and gave 100%, 100% of the time. Showing up and doing the work is in my blood.

Interviews hosted on Soundcloud at:


Interview 1 Summary:
                My key takeaways from this interview with my dad were that it is very apparent to those around me that I take my education and knowledge extremely seriously. In addition to this, I’m always relentlessly pursuing new things. In addition, being humble while still staying confident is one of my key traits.

Interview 2 Summary:
                My key takeaways from this interview with my brother were that the time I give to others is very apparent to them, and not just to myself. I’m always trying to impact those around me in a positive manner. This shows the generous person that I am.

Interview 3 Summary:
My key takeaways from this interview with my girlfriend were that I am a very genuine, down to earth person who is always quick to be there for others. My work ethic is also insane, and I stay humble despite of it. I’m always willing to teach new things to others and to share my passions with them.

Interview 4 Summary:
My key takeaways from this interview with my sister were that I am very free and giving with my time to those I love. This could simply be just spending time with them or going out of my way to help them resolve a problem or to learn something.

Interview 5 Summary:
My key takeaways from this interview with my mom were that I have an insanely strong work ethic, especially relative to my age. I treat everything with a perspective of “how can I improve?”. In addition, I am always setting goals to help keep myself accountable and moving forward. I also am a very emotional and caring person, and I keep other emotions in mind all of the time.

Reflection:
                In general, I would honestly have to say that the view I have of myself and the view that other have of me align very closely with one another. My work ethic, dedication, problem solving skills, empathy and confidence are at the head of who I am, and both sides saw this. However, the one difference I noticed was that those around me noted how humble and down to earth I am despite my accomplishments and how successful I am. I believe that I didn’t initially think of this due to the fact that as being a humble person, I’m very quick and apt to undersell myself when I talk about myself. As such, I didn’t want to note that as one of my best qualities.

                Other than that, I really do agree with and believes that all of my interviews were very correct. I am very close to all of them, and they know me as a person very well. If I could make one correction to the list I made, I wouldn’t remove anything, but I would add another number about how I am humble and how it makes me unique.

3 comments:

  1. Hi John! Wow you seem like a really great brother, son, and boyfriend. Each of your interviewees spoke very highly of you. I am very similar when it comes to having strong work ethic and always wanting to expand my knowledge through learning new things. It is a really great trait to be focused and serious about bettering yourself. Keep being you! It really seems you will be very successful when it comes to the real world! Good luck in your future endeavors!

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  2. Hey John, it seems like everyone has had positive things to be said about you! The fact that everyone was able to say things about you like this means you currently do have a good future with the intentions in going in the right path! Keep up the great hard work as not everyone has this!

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  3. Hi John!
    Your post was great as always, I really liked hearing input from your family showing what makes you distinctive. I agree with your dad that being humble is a trait that is in short supply, and that it can be a potentially useful trait in business when dealing with employees and outside companies. I look forward to seeing what you do with your uniqueness!

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