My ultimate goal is to take a leadership position at a rocket company like Rocket Lab or Space X. The amount of innovation and creativity that exists at these companies is incredible. Workplaces like NASA are slow and filled with paperwork. It's understandable, they're working with a budget. But a place like Space X is okay with making mistakes because they learn from them and keep innovating. The pace that these companies operates at is insane. It's because of this that they are able to produce so many flight vehicles in such a short span of time. It's also because of this level of brilliance that Space X has been able to pull off stunts at the level that they are. Landing an orbital rocket booster? It's unbelievable. This is why I want to work at a place like this, because it's a fast-paced work environment where the only ideas that work are the crazy ones. This isn't your average 9-5 job, this is miles above it, and I love that.

Apart from the workplace, I'd also like to set a goal for myself to be active. Physical exercise is a very important part of life, and I plan on staying in shape and continuing exercise after graduating from Boulder. I'm a very outdoors person, and I'd love to continue doing long, hard hikes. I'd also love to continue playing soccer. Maybe I'll join an adult league to stay in shape and continue to play games.

Finally, but most importantly, I'd like to keep the same mindset that I have. I've heard a lot about people burning out after overworking themselves. Staying happy and enjoying what you do is key to not burning out, and that's very important to have a good career. What's the point in working so hard to earn a degree if I'm going to hate the job shortly after starting it? Staying happy is the most important part to life, and it's what keeps my energy high, and what drives my motivation. In the long run, I just want to keep my mindset because it'll help me easily get through rough times.

For the short term, that is, my time here at Boulder, my ultimate goal is to graduate with a degree in aerospace engineering. This degree is going to help me with my long term goals of working at a meaningful aerospace company.

However, I'm not just aiming at finishing me degree. I intend to fully use all the resources available to me here at Boulder while I can. I want to learn as much as possible, and I plan on certifying myself in every machine possible in the workshops.

I also plan on becoming an integral part to the CU Sounding Rocket Lab (SRL) team. I see SRL as a huge learning opportunity to get hands-on experience with real-world applications. The team is currently working on building a liquid rocket engine with turbo pump, and I want to learn as much possible in the next year to aid in the design of the engine.

Finally, in my time here at Boulder, I'd love to build relationships with my professors. I think this is something very important because for the next 4 or 5 years, they're going to be guiding me on the road to my career. After graduating, I'm no longer going to have someone to look up to like I do now, I'll be on my own. It's my job to learn as much as I can before graduating.