Stanford: Essay 1

QUESTION: What matters most to you, and why?

Đánh giá : 7

- Mở đầu vs hình ảnh bánh mì ngô khá lạ làm tiền đề cho câu chuyện của mình , dẫn dắt
người đọc đến vs điều quan trọng nhất vs mình là những mối quan hệ gần gũi . Những
mối quan hệ vs những người khác tính cách mình đã truyền cảm hứng, cho mình những
cái nhìn mới và những điều cần học hỏi : về tình cảm gia đình, về tinh thần ko lùi bước
trong công việc, sự lạc quan đối diện vs những khó khăn trong cuộc sống.
- Dẫn truyện : hoàn cảnh gia đình, tính cách ban đầu : khép kín, thiếu tự tin ..
- Sự thay đổi : nghĩ về bánh mì ngô và mục tiêu sống : tiếp tục con dg cũ hay expose , chia
sẻ giá trị vs mọi người
- Nêu 3 mối quan hệ giá trị nhất ảnh hưởng đến mình : thầy giáo tư vấn, giáo sư đại học,
học sinh hướng dẫn . các mối quan hệ này đã giúp mình vượt qua khó khăn ntn : thời kì
bị bệnh ..
- KL : môi trường Stanford với sự đa dạng sẽ phù hợp để phát triển những mối quan hệ,
chia sẻ giá trị , kinh nghiệm và học hỏi nhiều điều …

Thiếu : Sự thay đổi qua bánh mì ngô có vẻ chưa thuyết phục lắm !!!

Môi trường Stanford là mội trường đa dạng như INSEAD ? I don’t think so.

Khi nói về tác động các mối quan hệ lên mình : chưa thực sự cụ thể, chưa nêu nhiều kinh
nghiệm chính mình có được do các mối quan hệ đem lại…

A famous saying at Disney goes, "…it all started with a mouse." For me, the equivalent
should read, "It all started with a tortilla." A tortilla? Without over-dramatizing it, I believe a
simple corn tortilla was the catalyst for a significant life change that would lead me to discover
what matters most to me: challenging myself to open up, learn, and grow by building diverse
relationships.
Most of the students from the high school I attended in [deleted] were from middle- and low-
income Latino and Asian households. As a Latina-American, I was comfortable within my high
school environment. However, reflecting back, I recognize that I was raised in a well-intended
conservative household that offered little exposure to people outside of my immediate
community. I was accustomed to the way things were at home and as a result, I was admittedly a
little close-minded and uneasy with change.

[deleted] College was a culture shock. Gone were my Asian and Latino friends with whom I
found it so easy to relate. I was in a new environment surrounded by strangers from different
places and backgrounds. I initially dealt with this by gravitating toward people who were similar
to me or appeared to share the same values I had grown up with. Instead of trying to develop
relationships with students from diverse backgrounds, I put up my guard, with doubts about how
I could relate to them. However, everything changed one fateful night in the college dining hall
at the much-anticipated fajita bar.
For the first time in weeks I had a corn tortilla. What was once commonplace had become a
strong reminder of home. I thought to myself, "That's odd…I haven't had a tortilla in ages. Why
don't we have tortillas every night?" That's when it hit me. Things weren't the same. I was no
longer at [deleted] High School with a fairly homogeneous crowd, living under my conservative
parent's roof. Instead, I was in a different place, with new people and experiences. Gone were the
days of having a tortilla with dinner every night – life, as I knew it, had changed. That was when
I realized I had to make a choice: continue on the same parochial path and remain content with
what I learned back at home, or explore what these new people and experiences had to offer. I
took a chance and decided to make a change.

My decision to breakout of old mindsets and embrace diversity enabled me to open up to new
people and ideas. This openness has helped me build a number of meaningful relationships that
have not only brought me great joy but also changed my outlook on life and my future. As such,
what matters most to me is challenging the way I think and constantly learning and growing by
building relationships with people who inspire me, challenge me, or are otherwise different from
me. By contrasting my experiences and values against those of others, I am better able to
understand the values I grew up with and have opened my perspective to new ideas.
Relationships with three people in particular have changed my perspective, shaped my values,
and made me who I am today: an Admissions Officer who taught me about openness, a Professor
who taught me leadership and self-confidence, and a student I mentor who taught me what
courage and optimism really mean.

I became friends with a Latino Admissions Officer at [deleted] College; [deleted] and I had a
strong affinity with one another because we both grew up in [deleted]. Because of his ethnicity
and place of birth, I assumed we were very similar and shared common views and lifestyles. A
few weeks into our friendship, I attended a panel hosted by the Gay and Lesbian Students
Association to learn more about issues impacting the gay community. I was surprised to see
[deleted] describing the challenges he faced as a gay Latino. Until that point, it never occurred to
me that he could have had a different background, which included being gay. I assumed that
because of a few common factors, we were similar and I knew him well. I was wrong. As a
result, I had inadvertently failed to recognize that [deleted] comprised a set of unique values and
experiences that I could learn from.

That meeting, and my subsequent interactions with [deleted], left an indelible mark in my mind.
As I became more open and recognized his unique qualities and experiences, he could sense my
interest in his life and shared more with me. [deleted] described the challenges he went through
when he finally "came out" to his conservative Mexican family. Coming from a conservative
household myself, I understood how that type of news might be received. I sensed his pain when
he told me that his family rejected him and was "sickened" by his gay lifestyle. I admired his
strength and commitment to himself when he introduced me to his partner.

Our friendship taught me many important values. First, it strengthened my resolve to be tolerant
and to love my family and friends unconditionally. After learning how [deleted]'s family reacted,
I vowed to never let anyone close to me feel that type of rejection or pain. In addition, our
relationship taught me to enter all new situations with an open mind, with no preset notions or
assumptions simply based on perceived background or outward appearance. This was something
very different from what I had experienced in my home community, where most people had
similar backgrounds and values, and were not always open to new ones. I learned that it was
important to acknowledge the unique challenges and events that others have experienced and to
understand how those events could impact their outlook. By setting those expectations for
myself, I was able to learn more about him and others around me. Openness is a value I will
always subscribe to. My ability to be open to new people and ideas has helped me forge many
other relationships ever since.

Another relationship that changed my life is one with a Professor of Economics I regard as a
mentor and good friend. I first observed Professor [deleted] when she gave a speech about the
application of statistical analysis to everyday scenarios. I immediately wanted to meet her. She
struck me as someone I could look up to as a role model – I was interested in her field of study
and intrigued by her confidence and role as the only female economics professor in the
department. In retrospect, part of the intrigue was also the contrast between the professor and my
mother, who was raised on a ranch in [deleted] and educated to become a secretary. Although it
goes without saying that I am proud of my mother and view her as an ideal role model in many
respects, I never had the opportunity to develop a relationship with a woman who was a leader in
her professional field – Professor [deleted] was my first exposure to a successful female leader in
academia.

Ultimately, I learned about much more than how to graph supply and demand curves. I learned
about confidence and leadership. Professor [deleted]'s creativity and initiative inspired me to
think critically and to explore the application of economic analysis to other areas. This prompted
me to complete two summers of research and regression analysis projects on low-income
housing and volunteer labor. These research projects were some of my first real attempts at
thinking "outside the box" while testing and stretching my academic stamina. The work I
completed helped me develop self-confidence in my analytical abilities.

Professor [deleted] also demonstrated effective leadership. Her charismatic style made her
approachable and motivated me even when I was unsure of myself. She helped me set goals that
were challenging yet realistic and structured our research projects so that I could meaningfully
address my educational and developmental needs. Most importantly, I learned that a key to
successfully leading people with diverse interests, as she often did, was uniting them behind a
common vision and ensuring that everyone's concerns were acknowledged. I have applied this
leadership style at [deleted] Consulting to motivate and unite teams of clients and consultants
with very different goals and perspectives. For example, at an aerospace client, I led a team that
included a golf-loving aerospace engineer who was fast-approaching retirement and an
inexperienced analyst. I noticed that because of their specific concerns, they were easily
distracted or discouraged. I brought the team together by rallying everyone around a common
vision, addressing their issues, and ensuring that they felt important and were meaningfully
engaged. This enabled me to bring together competing perspectives to form a cohesive team that
successfully reached our goals. Overall, the leadership and confidence I learned from my
relationship with Professor Brown has been invaluable in both my personal and professional life.
The values I learned through my [deleted] College relationships have enriched my ability to
understand the differences between my home community and the world at large, and to develop
and sustain relationships. These learnings have been excellent preparation for what I regard as
one of my most significant relationships to date: mentoring [deleted], an Education First Scholar.
My role as [deleted]'s mentor was intended to help her adjust to college life. Despite that
arrangement, I think she has made an even greater impression on me!

When I first met [deleted], I was deeply moved by the challenges she overcame and could relate
to some of the cultural issues she encountered. She too was a Latina from [deleted] with a
conservative upbringing. However, her life took a much different course. As a young girl,
[deleted] witnessed her parent's marital problems before her father left the family. Feeling the
absence of a father in her life, [deleted] grew dependent on her boyfriend and became pregnant.
Despite those issues, [deleted] is a teenage mother who beat the odds by completing her high
school education and gaining admission into a number of universities. As her Education First
mentor, I have counseled [deleted] on issues ranging from potential majors to childcare
alternatives. What has impacted me the most about our relationship is her ability to face any
challenge head-on and maintain high spirits even during highly stressful times.

Because of [deleted], I see the world from a new perspective. Her strength, courage, and
optimism have inspired me to face my own challenges more courageously and have also taught
me a deeper level of introspection. Even though we share similar cultural backgrounds, I see how
differently our lives have played out as a result of circumstance. Our relationship has given me a
stronger sense of empathy and a better understanding of issues that can impact the well-being of
colleagues and friends. Rather than fear setbacks and challenges, I have learned to face them as
bravely and optimistically as possible and view them as opportunities to broaden myself. Despite
the obstacles [deleted] faced growing up and the challenges of raising a baby while in high
school and college, she has an incredibly strong and optimistic spirit – an attitude and outlook I
have adopted in my own life.

The values I learned through our relationship were especially important last year when I
encountered a significant obstacle of my own. For much of last year I was ill. It started with
rashes and hives. Severe fatigue and aching joints slowly set in. Throughout this difficult time, I
still managed to complete my client and non-profit work with little disruption. However, after
countless doctor visits and blood tests, I received devastating news: my symptoms and lab work
pointed to lupus, an illness that is manageable but often leads to significant health complications.
I was scared, but drew strength from the courage and optimism I saw in [deleted]. Rather than
succumb to fear, I chose to remain optimistic and do everything in my power to get well.

After several difficult months, my health and my life turned around. My doctors revised the
diagnosis after many of my symptoms disappeared and my lab work alone was no longer
conclusive evidence of lupus. As grateful as I am to have my health back, I also appreciate the
new perspective I gained from this experience and am thankful for relationships with individuals
who have inspired me to reach a new level of courage and determination.

Relationships have shaped my values, enriched my ability to relate to and support others, and
have helped me understand how my family has shaped my perspective. It is important for me to
continue developing relationships because they are a source of continuous education and
personal growth. My relationships have allowed me to establish my own identity as an
independent, tolerant, and free-spirited woman. The greatest outcome from my relationships is
the realization that the better I understand myself, the better I am able to understand others,
making me a stronger colleague, mentor, and friend. Relationships have also enriched the way I
interact with my family and those closest to me and have provided insight and perspective into
my own goals.

One of my primary goals in life is to continue developing strong relationships and the diverse
Stanford community is the perfect environment in which to do so. While at Stanford, I hope to
not only share my experiences and perspectives, but also learn through the experiences and
perspectives of others. I hope to challenge my classmates to look within themselves to
understand how building diverse relationships can help them grow as well. My life is richer and
my goals are greater because I have opened myself to so many new people and ideas. It's hard to
believe there was a time when all I wanted to eat were tortillas!