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What are some dedications you all did to get to where you are now?
This is a question to have a better understanding of what I can do for my future
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James Constantine Frangos
Consultant Dietitian & Software Developer since 1972 => Nutrition Education => Health & Longevity.
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James Constantine’s Answer
Hello John,
My uncle had a coronary when I was in senior in 1974 and he died. That kind of changed my career direction. Then his boss Professor Colin Masters turns up at my university lecturing in biochemistry. I was going to be an astrophysicist or an astronomer but after my uncle's death, I changed course especially since my uncle's boss was now at our university. The mathematics and quantum physics were too much anyway. The Bachelor of Science in Biological Chemistry finished in 1977.
I went on to do 4th year biochemistry at Queensland University where my uncle worked. I was doing a master's qualifying degree. I was part-time tutoring in laboratory supervision in the biochemistry department. My wife was unhappy with the $50 a week pay for me so I had to stop the master's degree and drive taxis. Then my father followed suit with a coronary in 1985 he died too.
Then in 1986, I commenced the postgraduate diploma in nutrition and dietetics. I graduated in 1988 and commenced working in New South Wales. I did 3 years of private practice in Brisbane then started as a regional dietitian in Western Australia helping the Aboriginal People. After that, I spent 5 years in Queensland as a visiting contracted dietitian to 16 hospitals and 5 Aboriginal Health Centers.
In 1994 I combined 32 years of software programming experience to write NuTrimEd nutritional education software. My course coordinator failed the master of public health project I was evaluating the efficacy of my software. He called it a 'financial conflict of interest' and said I 'would make a million dollars if the software proved effective.'
For the next 30 years, I continued programming, writing MenuWise, Engnosis, and Diet Wizard. I have my own YouTube.Studio site showcasing my software
https://www.youtube.com/user/yimi90125/videos?app=desktop
I have had 52 years of computer software programming experience. I have produced graphics art programs drawing skies, stars, and planets, and I give free code.
GOD BLESS YOU!
JC.
My uncle had a coronary when I was in senior in 1974 and he died. That kind of changed my career direction. Then his boss Professor Colin Masters turns up at my university lecturing in biochemistry. I was going to be an astrophysicist or an astronomer but after my uncle's death, I changed course especially since my uncle's boss was now at our university. The mathematics and quantum physics were too much anyway. The Bachelor of Science in Biological Chemistry finished in 1977.
I went on to do 4th year biochemistry at Queensland University where my uncle worked. I was doing a master's qualifying degree. I was part-time tutoring in laboratory supervision in the biochemistry department. My wife was unhappy with the $50 a week pay for me so I had to stop the master's degree and drive taxis. Then my father followed suit with a coronary in 1985 he died too.
Then in 1986, I commenced the postgraduate diploma in nutrition and dietetics. I graduated in 1988 and commenced working in New South Wales. I did 3 years of private practice in Brisbane then started as a regional dietitian in Western Australia helping the Aboriginal People. After that, I spent 5 years in Queensland as a visiting contracted dietitian to 16 hospitals and 5 Aboriginal Health Centers.
In 1994 I combined 32 years of software programming experience to write NuTrimEd nutritional education software. My course coordinator failed the master of public health project I was evaluating the efficacy of my software. He called it a 'financial conflict of interest' and said I 'would make a million dollars if the software proved effective.'
For the next 30 years, I continued programming, writing MenuWise, Engnosis, and Diet Wizard. I have my own YouTube.Studio site showcasing my software
https://www.youtube.com/user/yimi90125/videos?app=desktop
I have had 52 years of computer software programming experience. I have produced graphics art programs drawing skies, stars, and planets, and I give free code.
GOD BLESS YOU!
JC.
Updated
Charly’s Answer
Hi good morning! In my personal opinion: Goal, purpose, discipline, focus, perseverance, positive mind and a strong good heart.
Updated
SARAH’s Answer
The most important thing, I believe, is starting with a specific goal and working backwards to where you are now. "Start with the end in mind" as they say.
Something to consider is your starting point:
1a) If you don't know the career path you want to go down, I'd suggest thinking about what challenges you in a way that you enjoy and what interests you. For example, if taking on strategic challenges brings you satisfaction and you enjoy technology, perhaps a strategic business operations/leadership career path would be a good fit.
1b) If you know the career path you'd like to pursue, research if it provides more than a livable wage (because living costs more money than you'd think), study what is required to attain that (whether it be an academic path, career training school, etc.), and develop a plan with milestones laid out. If you like what you see, then...
2) Research what is required for the final milestone, then the one before that, then the one before that, working backwards to where you are now.
3) Determine how you'd like to meet each milestone - if a longer academic pursuit is required, for example, determine which schools offer the required degrees and which could offer good career exposure and internship connections because those will be your post-education connections (e.g. the people who can help you get a job and make money)
4) As you prepare to embark upon your journey, figure out who you want your support community for this journey to be and let them into your world, challenges and all - it's imperative that you're surrounded with support, even if it's simply one person.
Key characteristics that will help you:
1) Practicing discipline and commitment. If you struggle with discipline, practice doing a few things a day that are good for you even if you don't feel motivated to do them simply because they help you.
2) Integrity. Do what you say you will to the best of your ability. Do it like someone is watching, even if no one is watching.
3) Humility. No one knows everything - ask for help and ask questions, even if you think they're dumb. If you don't ask, it's possible no one will, and then you'll never know the answer.
4) Curiosity. You will develop a greater understanding of whatever you decide to pursue if you are curious about it and ask the aforementioned questions.
5) Friendliness. People want to work with and help people that they like - if you are a friend to others, it's amazing how many friends you'll have.
I'd say my answer to how I got to where I am now is a little more convoluted than that, but what I recommend above is what I'd do if I could do it all over. It would have saved a tremendous amount of stress. I'd really only planned out as far as immediately post-college, only to find that what I'd intended to do wasn't really what I wanted to be doing (a career exploration program and supportive family would have done wonders) and I got really burned out working hard but not making much money, and I was so stressed out that all I could think about was putting myself in a better position for other career opportunities. So, I made a plan to move to a place with more job opportunities, applying like crazy to be hired by anyone who'd give me a shot. I ended up getting a job in a field I didn't really love, but it paved the way for opportunities to do work that I actually do enjoy. So from that initial job I didn't enjoy, moving in the same field to a different company, I narrowed down what I did and didn't like in those jobs and a couple years later was given an opportunity to switch jobs within a company to something I enjoyed much more and challenged me in the way I wanted to be challenged which paved the way for me to work for the incredible company and team I do today, and I'm living in a location I love. It's all taken well over a decade to figure that out, and better planning could have expedited it. The only thing you can't really expedite is critical experience for the next step of whatever your goals are, so embracing whichever phase you are in and learning as much as you can is critical.
I hope this is helpful. Wishing you all the best!
-SM
Something to consider is your starting point:
1a) If you don't know the career path you want to go down, I'd suggest thinking about what challenges you in a way that you enjoy and what interests you. For example, if taking on strategic challenges brings you satisfaction and you enjoy technology, perhaps a strategic business operations/leadership career path would be a good fit.
1b) If you know the career path you'd like to pursue, research if it provides more than a livable wage (because living costs more money than you'd think), study what is required to attain that (whether it be an academic path, career training school, etc.), and develop a plan with milestones laid out. If you like what you see, then...
2) Research what is required for the final milestone, then the one before that, then the one before that, working backwards to where you are now.
3) Determine how you'd like to meet each milestone - if a longer academic pursuit is required, for example, determine which schools offer the required degrees and which could offer good career exposure and internship connections because those will be your post-education connections (e.g. the people who can help you get a job and make money)
4) As you prepare to embark upon your journey, figure out who you want your support community for this journey to be and let them into your world, challenges and all - it's imperative that you're surrounded with support, even if it's simply one person.
Key characteristics that will help you:
1) Practicing discipline and commitment. If you struggle with discipline, practice doing a few things a day that are good for you even if you don't feel motivated to do them simply because they help you.
2) Integrity. Do what you say you will to the best of your ability. Do it like someone is watching, even if no one is watching.
3) Humility. No one knows everything - ask for help and ask questions, even if you think they're dumb. If you don't ask, it's possible no one will, and then you'll never know the answer.
4) Curiosity. You will develop a greater understanding of whatever you decide to pursue if you are curious about it and ask the aforementioned questions.
5) Friendliness. People want to work with and help people that they like - if you are a friend to others, it's amazing how many friends you'll have.
I'd say my answer to how I got to where I am now is a little more convoluted than that, but what I recommend above is what I'd do if I could do it all over. It would have saved a tremendous amount of stress. I'd really only planned out as far as immediately post-college, only to find that what I'd intended to do wasn't really what I wanted to be doing (a career exploration program and supportive family would have done wonders) and I got really burned out working hard but not making much money, and I was so stressed out that all I could think about was putting myself in a better position for other career opportunities. So, I made a plan to move to a place with more job opportunities, applying like crazy to be hired by anyone who'd give me a shot. I ended up getting a job in a field I didn't really love, but it paved the way for opportunities to do work that I actually do enjoy. So from that initial job I didn't enjoy, moving in the same field to a different company, I narrowed down what I did and didn't like in those jobs and a couple years later was given an opportunity to switch jobs within a company to something I enjoyed much more and challenged me in the way I wanted to be challenged which paved the way for me to work for the incredible company and team I do today, and I'm living in a location I love. It's all taken well over a decade to figure that out, and better planning could have expedited it. The only thing you can't really expedite is critical experience for the next step of whatever your goals are, so embracing whichever phase you are in and learning as much as you can is critical.
I hope this is helpful. Wishing you all the best!
-SM