Career Profile Paper

David Gijon’s Autobiography

David Gijon

Georgia State University

PMAP 3211

REFLECTIONS .

As I take some time to do some soul searching and reflecting back into my past life, the events that marked my growing up, the journey that has been my life. I relive all the time the emotions and experiences which are still fresh in my mind which have been reference points and the anchors that hold me in place keeping me focused on the goals ahead of me and the plans I have for my life as well.

The largest part of my life has been marked with times being spent with my amazing family. Having such a huge family has given me the opportunity to see things more ways than one. This has shaped me to develop my perspective on people and gave me the ability to step back and let the other person speak so I can listen and acquire information about them so that I can fully understand them as a person. I was born in beautiful Los Angeles, California to wonderful and caring parents. My father Jose Gijon and my mother Margarita Felix were both born in Mexico and migrated to the US in search of better lives and for the opportunity to better the lives of their families.

My parents are one of the most hardworking people that I know. They are my heroes. My role models who have always emphasized in me and my younger brother Ruben and our dear last born sister Carolina, the importance of working hard and pushing ourselves to attain the best out of our lives and to make sure we live better lives than them. My parents started from the bottom when first coming here but started progressing up exponentially fast given the stakes they were thrown when coming here. My father started from doing masonry work, to eventually running a 30 man crew. He then expanded his skill set by dipping his hands into roofing, plumbing, and landscaping which happens to be his favorite work. He is now retired but because of the passion for the job, he is still improving and renovating houses from time to time. During this whole time, I have been fortunate enough to pick up many useful things that will help me as a future husband and father. The skills he passed on to me will allow me to not only save on expenses but allow me to pass on what I’ve learned to my little ones. I have also accumulated skill sets which are highly sought after by employers. My father to today still teaches me things that will only make me a better me.

After much delegation and fighting, my mother left her family of 10, and came to the US at the age of 18 years. She left with the idea of making something of herself rather than staying in Durango to work hard with little reward till she died there. Coming here, she started off doing maid work at different hotels in L.A. before being employed by several different wealthy estate owners. It is here at these extravagant mansions that she learned to pick up English. It is also here where she met my father Jose. They ran into each other outside in the garden as my dad was clipping roses and while she was running outside to check on the children of the homeowner. Since then, they have never stopped loving each other. Although they have never been married, they still are together both support me and my siblings to the fullest. This aspect of my life, I have learned the value of commitment. Even though nothing was ever signed on paper, they are committed to each other. I take this into every aspect of my life, wether it be with my relationship with my current girlfriend of 6 years, or it be with school. I must stay committed to accomplish the goals I have set for myself.

My younger brother and I are currently best friends and the greatest thing that we share is the passion for soccer. Although soccer has not always shared the same admiration back towards us, we have always decided that this is what we want to continue to do until we can’t juggle a ball anymore. The greatest lesson I’ve learn from picking up soccer is to never give up on anything. I have had five knee surgeries and two other ankle repairs which stalled my soccer career from ever truly progressing into college soccer. It was a horrible time for me and I honestly did not know what else I wanted to do. It is here where I had to get up and realize not all was lost. I was able to get back in shape and still get the chance to play from time to time and be able to watch all my young cousins begin their soccer journey of their own. Watching them has given me the strength and realization that although I may not play at a higher level one day, I will always have the game with me, which is more than what I can ask for.

In school I’ve had very few mentors that guided me more than that of my middle and high school soccer coach who motivated and encouraged me and made me believe than anything is possible with the right mind set . This was applicable for me outside the field also. I carried this attitude into many job interviews and different speeches I have given in college. He always pushed us for more than 100% and made us achieve what we could not have otherwise believed possible. He has always been a great inspiration and motivator. He was also a great public speaker and always had our attention when he was making his speeches during preparation or after matches. He was quite vocal and we all had to listen to him one way or the other.

My work experience has seen me work in Chick Fila, and also in the housing department of Gainesville. I have also been an assistant at Remax and am really looking forward to getting my real estate license this year to become a broker. I believe I will do well with my experience from the housing department and my family background in construction and houses from my father telling us what to look for and the different types of houses and the best ones too. I hope this input will give me the edge I need as a real estate broker to differentiate me from the other. I do believe it’s a good combination and hopefully it will work out well.

One of the hardest jobs that I have had to do was at a company called Kubota it involved tractor manufacturing which was really labor intensive and basically all the labor was manual labor. The work was in 12 hour shifts and included very few breaks in between I was having to work at squat positions holding 80 pounds on a regular basis. This job is what made me realize that manual labor is the last thing I ever want to do with my career. Although I love being outside working with my hands, I realized through this job that getting a degree and working just as hard but not actually breaking a sweat or an arm is much more of a better route for me. I am currently an economics and public policy major student. I do not have a certain job that I am currently looking to attain but it involves urban policy and perhaps being a planner of the city or transportation sector. Being here, I believe will give me the most satisfaction with having a career and I believe within the next few years David Gijon will be out in the world working hard to support his future family.