Get to know me
My Purpose
I want to use my creativity and innovation as part of a team working on meaningful projects that contribute to and improve the lives of individuals, businesses, and communities. I aim to be part of a team and company that understands the impact we can make and to use my problem solving and communication skills, leadership capabilities, and educational background to contribute to my company and further my knowledge and skills in the industry.
A (not so) Brief History
I grew up in Riverton, Utah. My family was very into outdoor activities like hunting, fishing, and camping. I spent most weekends growing up in the mountains. When I wasn’t on these adventures, I practiced my creativity through drawing and other artistic outlets. My favorite creative outlet was, and still might be, Legos. My younger brother and I would take our adventures from the outdoors and use them as inspiration to build. We would spend hours building trucks with campers in the back. A trailer that could carry a Lego boat and maybe a four-wheeler. I would also build spaceships and many other things. Building Legos when I was young taught me how much I love to problem solve by using my creativity and intelligence.
When I reached high school my love for creativity expanded into a love for math and science. I ended up joining the science club where we participated in the Science Olympiad held at Weber State each year for high schools across the state. I even won a few medals for some of the events. My favorite of which was an event called “Write-it Do-it” where partners would practice their communication skills. One partner would be presented with a model and given half an hour to write about the model. The other partner would be given that writing and all the pieces to build the model. The pair that was able to build a replica closest to the original would win.
After I graduated, I attended Snow College in Ephraim, Utah. At this point I still had no idea what type of career I wanted to have. I enjoyed a lot of different things, and I was good at most subjects in school though none of them really called to me. I ended up choosing an emphasis in biology with the intention of working for the forest service or something. I loved learning about biology. I still love learning about how things work. The problem I ran into was memorization. I much prefer to know concepts and how to apply them rather than memorizing every Family in the Animal Kingdom. At the end of my first year, I failed an intro biology class focusing on plants.
This was very difficult for me because this was the first time in my life where I failed at something. Feeling defeated and inadequate, I ended serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I spent two years in Chicago, Illinois teaching about the gospel in Spanish. In these two years of service, focusing on others, I really began to understand who I am as a person. I came back with a renewed focus on doing what was best for me.
I went back to Snow and retook the course I failed. I failed it again. At this point, I decided that maybe this was not the career choice for me, but I was at a loss for what I should study. I began to investigate other career options by taking different courses at Snow, including Yoga, an EMT course, as well as a Psychology class. In the end I opted to emphasis in business, mostly because that was what the school counselors pushed me into in an attempt get me graduated with my associate degree and into a university.
During this time at Snow, I met my wife, Mia and we got engaged as I finished my associate degree. At this point, I was 25 years old and having spent four years at a junior college what felt like a waste of time and money. I was planning on getting married and I still don’t have any direction for what I wanted to do as far as a career. Since she still had another year at Snow, I got a job at Walmart. This is where I have been working since. Walmart is a great organization that is really a big contributor to the United States economy, however the longer I worked at Walmart the more I have realized there is something about retail work that is not for me.
I have spent the last eight years at Walmart moving through various leadership positions. I have gained experience working in teams. I have led those teams in providing excellent service to our customers. Though I have grown a lot as a person and as a leader, I want to find a career that is a better fit for my specific strengths and skills. This is why I chose to pursue a degree in computer science.
Why Software Engineering?
My second year working at Walmart I had a coworker who asked me which Myers Briggs personality type I was. I had no idea. I always thought personality quizzes weren’t very accurate. He told me this was a little different so I took the test. It turns out I am an INTP. This realization was eye opening. I read the description of an INTP and found it described me perfectly. Up to this point I had always struggled deciding what kind of career I might want to pursue. I went to school studying biology, and later business. Both of these really didn’t strike me as good career options. I decided to take a break from school once I got my associates degree and started working at Walmart. After learning about INTPs I realized why I have struggled with retail. It is not a good fit for my personality because it does not allow me to use my intellect. This is what eventually led me into pursuing a degree in computer science. I have loved my work while at school and hope to continue one using my mind in the next job I get.
