Yo Yo Yo! What’s up everyone?
I’m feeling a little euphoric right now. Yeah, I know, I haven’t written on my blog in a few months… but I’ve been busy man.

Here’s the deal:
Two days after I got back from Mexico, I immediately started an internship with a pretty big company. Since then, I’ve been really busy working fulltime on the 57th floor of this company’s building, searching for an apartment, and planning for my last semester at USC. The last three or four weeks I was working fulltime and then driving to USC to work with my team until 1 or 2 in the morning in preparation for a competition in Florida.

The case competition last weekend was amazing. I have to say it: I’m extremely proud of my entire team. We went there with significantly less time to prepare for our presentation than all of the other teams and we still managed to make it to the finals.

Now, the internship is winding down and I’m preparing to finish strong. It ends this Friday and I’m excited to finish and take a week off before school starts. I’ve been told a few times that I can expect to get an offer from the company. I would really like to work for them, but other opportunities have come up. I’d like to try to interview with some of the big four before I make a decision. By the way, while I was in Florida I was approached to interview for a position at one of the big four.  I can’t say too much, but it was a good feeling to be asked. Hopefully this all works out.

Looking back at the last four years, I really have struggled. It’s been tough not having money, not being able to take my girlfriend out to eat, not being able to go on vacation, not being able to party every weekend, not being able to buy the shoes I want, not being able to… fill in the blank. I’ve sacrificed so much, and the big payoff is approaching. My life will forever be set on sacrificing certain short-term objectives/wants in order to achieve long-lasting goals. Without this balance, I would have likely fail at school and the rest of my goals.

Not to get too preachy, but I think it is important to plan your goals and don’t set them in stone. You have to be flexible, you can’t say “I want to be an Investment banker next week” and expect to be one by next week. Things come up, changes occur, and you have to be able to roll with the punches. As long as you’re working toward that final goal, eventually, you’ll get there. By working toward that final goal, I mean: taking jobs that will set up you for that dream job, or taking classes that will give you the skill-set to thrive in a particular industry or field.

Another thing, don’t focus too much on that goal, give it a little rest every other day or week. You can really stress yourself out trying to achieve you goals. What I mean by rest is: go workout, hang out with friends, joke around, laugh… anything, but take a little break. God knows, when you start feeling the OCD, chill out because the anxiety attacks will soon follow. It’s easy to get caught up in work. Thus, take a little break, enjoy life, and forget about your obstacles from time to time.

Lastly, you have to make moves. Don’t get caught up in one place. Be mindful of who you’re hanging out with, sometimes your friends don’t have your best interest in mind. I can’t tell you how many friends I’ve had to separate myself from in order to get to where I am now. Last I heard my best friend, when I was a kid, was in prison. The last time I seen him I was transitioning from the short-fade haircut to a more clean-cut hairstyle (If you know anything about where I’m from, than you know what I’m talking about). In order to be successful, you have to live it. Be around other people striving for success, change your appearance to reflect who you want to be (i.e. shaved head = gangster, long-hair in the face = “emo” kid, clean-cut = ???). It’s okay to be normal, whatever your definition of it is, if that’s what it takes to be successful, and look like the people you want to be like, than do it. Just make sure, that’s who you are and what you want, not what someone else is trying to force you to be.

A sad part of life is that people are going to judge you on your appearance. You don’t really realize it until you get out of your comfort zone (until you hang around people who are different than you), but it’s true. Take care, and shoot me a line when you have a chance.
Peace.