An Encouraging Message

I was reading some updates from UTD this month and came across this blurb about one of our former FOCUS corefas:

I reached out to encourage Justin, and he shared that the award was cool but he has found his experience as a Corefa to be more helpful in his career than his CPA certification. I'm excited to share with you his response:

My job is a business analyst at Capital One, which is a mix of data analysis and strategy. It’s basically using data to make different business decisions. 

I think being a corefa built up a ton of skills for me, but maybe most importantly it has boosted my communication and relationship building skills a ton. My job involves quite a few presentations and meetings, and leading core was great preparation. It has been very helpful for being able to read the room and ask good questions. 

I also feel much more prepared to talk to and relate to people that are very different than me, which is much more important than I expected. Being able to be purposeful in relationships, relate to others, and manage conflict are all some of the most important things to my job and I’m sure many others. Many FOCUS axioms fit in here!

I loved my time in FOCUS and learned a ton - thank you for being a determined, thoughtful, and purposeful leader!

What a testament to our shared work among university students! Your gifts and prayers and support for FOCUS are making an impact on campus and beyond. Thank you!

Spending the next couple of days with this group from our pastoral staff at the Global Leadership Summit. I'm excited to invest in their development as thoughtful, strategic leaders as we prepare for the 2023-24 school year!