Lopez Martin
a PIE student - Friends of Fulbright 2022
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My goals throughout my life were changing while I grew up, and every time I got close to achieving one, another came up that was even more ambitious and challenging.
Two years away from finishing my studies in high school, the following questions came to my mind: “What kind of job do I want?” “What do I want to achieve?” “How do I want to live my life?” As a result, I was able to focus my interests in one direction and discover my real passion: computers. With forward thinking, I started to do some research about majors which were more suitable for me and my interests. As a result of this research, I found a Systems Engineering major that was taught in a university where I was living – a university that I had never heard of until that moment.
The first step
Because of my experience, I feel that the most difficult part of starting to commit yourself either to learning a new skill, trying a new workout routine, or moving to another city is to have enough encouragement to make the first step that would take you out of your comfort zone to experience something new.
“Quite the comfort zone is difficult, but worth it.”
For me, studying a major at the UTN (Universidad Tecnológica Nacional) represented a big challenge for the simple reason that I was in a new institution, on my own. Thanks to that, I had enough courage and started to socialize with new people (whom nowadays I consider friends) and learn how to get along within a university’s lifestyle. Overcoming such a challenging situation represented a big improvement in me as a person and an enrichment that was beyond what I had ever imagined.
Photo taken at IUPUI - Library
Because of my new friends, I got more support for my crazy ideas. One of them, for example, was to create a QR extension for the Edge browser, which would let us get a particular website we were currently reading on a computer and, by using a phone camera, switch between both devices. It is highly probable that you would start to feel more ambitious with future goals when you are part of a group where you are able to share and see different accomplishments.
Good people, good habits, good Life
Our surroundings affect our personality and the kind of lifestyle that we have, implicitly changing our behavior and generating good habits, such as starting to eat more healthy food, working out or even reading a book a week.
A perfect example of how our surroundings affect our productivity is how a group of friends who have ambition and commitment to achieve their goals can have a positive impact on us. Being in this kind of environment of proactivity helps us to uncover new passions, focus on our dreams, and also help others to achieve their goals.
On the other hand, if we are surrounded with people who don't care about learning new skills or having a healthy lifestyle, it can affect our ambition. In this case, there would not be a sense of competition; therefore we would be satisfied with only the few goals that we had achieved in our life.
Friendship will change through time. It is something inevitable. Taking a moment to reflect on our surroundings and to ask ourselves if it is what we want will help us to understand where we are going with life and take action if we decide that we deserve something else.
“Engineering is the closest thing to magic that exists in the world. - Elon Musk”
Engineering and society
Over time, I started to appreciate the knowledge that I had gained through years of study. Bearing this in mind, I got a better understanding of what it would represent for me to be a systems engineer, my role in society and, given that I am going to be in charge of the development of new technologies, the impact that my job will have on others and also their quality of life.
“…If there is more work for Lawyer it means there is more crime, if there is more work for Doctors it means there is more illness, if there is more work for Engineers it means the society is progressing…”
It is a well-known fact that the evolution of technology means new ways of living in our world. Let me exemplify this concept with some h inventions that changed humanity:
One of the most famous: the Internet. Something that is currently being developed to have more speed and that improves connectivity in our world .
Secondly: The press. It was the first way to share knowledge.
Last but not least: Electricity. Without such an invention, none of the world that we know nowadays would even be possible.
I have come to the conclusion that being an engineer is what I want to do. In other words, I would have to do a great effort to continuing learning and applying those knowledge with the aim of bring a sense of wellbeing to our society
Leadership and Commitment
Leadership and Commitment
As I am studying, I have to develop leadership skills. Why? Well, something that stands out about my major is that I will work with different groups to carry out projects. With this in mind, communication, stress management, and humility are essential skills that I must learn in order to succeed in this field. But how am I supposed to gain those abilities?
One instance could be to travel and study abroad in order to develop such skills. By doing that, we are able to stay in touch with different cultures and also experience how societies get along with different obstacles – obstacles which were unthinkable to us before.
Does being a leader exist without commitment? The short answer is no, it doesn't. But why?
Commitment is something that is not common in people. The idea of being capable of trying several times to achieve a goal, failing, and then trying even harder the next time emphasizes the dedication that a person has. What is more, it is a contagious behavior. To sum up, the main purpose of a leader is to be a source of inspiration for the team and increase their faculties.
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