My New Years Resolution

I have a very optimistic outlook about my 2007 year. The Asian Studies classes, the traveling experience to Japan, the culture learning process, the relationships that I will build, the new languages I will face and the many other aspects involved in my trip to Japan are just a few of the reasons why I am so excited about this year. It is because of this that “Nothing will stop me from going, no matter what it costs me”. I know that in the end I will get compensated in many ways, not only guaranteeing a good position in the global business field.
I plan to apply for internships while I am in Japan so I can do my GBM 497 Abroad and gain Asian business experience, preferable as a marketing consultant or something related to my area of marketing or business development. If I don’t get any affordable offers for Japan, then I will apply in Spain for a paid internship. Nevertheless, I cannot control the outcomes, but I am looking forward to experiencing an internship for a foreign company whether I end up staying in the U.S. for the summer or working abroad.

Being Optimistic!!

After all the problems I have gone through, the 2006 year has been full of positive accomplishments. I see this year as a very successful one because I have been able to accomplish many of my planned goals and many unexpected achievements have occurred as well. First, I passed all my classes in my first CSUSM Spring and Summer Sessions. Second, I got accepted to a Study Abroad Program in Japan. Third, I passed my citizenship test. Fourth, I was elected as a president of the Global Business Management Association, and finally I learned a lot of useful information from my Fall 2006 classes.
To conclude my 2006 successful year, I will receive my U.S citizenship and be eligible to apply for a United States passport on December 13th. In Addition, I will start learning Japanese so I can have some knowledge and good understanding of the language to enable a smoother transfer into Japan.

Global Leaders are Born and then Made

As a Global Leader I consider myself very proactive. That is why I don’t think there is time to waist. It is in the blink of an eye that the least expected events can occur and changes can make a good thing bad or vice-versa. That is why we need to keep ourselves awake and be aware of each and every aspect of our lives in any environment we may surround ourselves in.
Maybe it is the truth that Global leaders are born and then made. According to the Global Explorers book, that is the way it goes and there are four powerful ways to develop effective global leaders; Travel, Teams, Training, and Transfers. The first two are certainly two things I am a part of, I have traveled and will continue to travel throughout my life, I like building teams and being part of them. As far as training, that is definitely something I am actually gaining from attending school and will continue to get more of as my career continues to develop. Finally, transfer is a process I have had to go through twice already in my life and that I will go through once again as I go to live and study in Japan in January 2007.
Unfortunately, there have been a couple problems as far as obtaining scholarships and acquiring all the necessary paperwork to get a student visa. First, some of the scholarships offered required students to be U.S. citizens, therefore I did not qualify for them and the one I qualified and applied for was not awarded to me. Without any scholarships my expenses are going to be even higher since Japan is an expensive country to live in. Even though I was not awarded the scholarships or financial aid I have managed to find ways to cover my expenses.
Second, the only thing that is bothering me right now is the fact that I have not yet received my certificate of eligibility from the Japanese Embassy. I am hoping to receive it soon, so I have enough time to request my visa while in the United States, otherwise, I will be forced to do it abroad, which can constitute more expenses.
I learned a lesson though, “No matter how hard I tried and how much work I put into submitting everything on time, I cannot control the outcomes” since the Japanese Embassy may delay or take long time. This is a problem because after I receive the certificate of eligibility I will still have a few more steps to go through to get the student visa through the Japanese Embassy in Los Angeles.

Challenges are Part of Life

I feel pretty good about myself and the things I have been able to accomplish in my life. I always look for new ideas and ways to improve my skills. I used to avoid conflict and ignore difficult situations. Now, I love facing many challenges instead of avoiding them. Therefore, I am able to set my mind to find ways to overcome any difficult situation or conflict that may arise and overcome them.

One of the things I cannot control about my personality is that my mind is in a constant thinking process and I cannot stop it. I feel there are so many things for me to do and I do not have the time to implement them. Whether it is in the house or at school I am always thinking about ideas to improve the systems that are in place. Such as, the organization of my desk, papers or ways to improve the networking in the GBMA I may be a perfectionist and my husband may think of me as an extremely active person, yet I think it is what is in my mind that keeps me going. I cannot stop until things are completed and my goals are achieved.

Going Back to School

In life the more I live, the more I learn about myself. Going back to school after almost seven years has been a challenging but exiting experience. I have learned not only to adjust to a new lifestyle, but also to appreciate my education and learning experience. It has been a pretty cool journey for me and now that I know how much this really means to me, I feel proud I am in the right path trying to accomplish one of my most desired goals “Get my Bachelor’s Degree”. I feel the more knowledge I get the more curious I become about the global aspects of life and business. I certainly have to confess I had learned a great deal with the global management classes and I believe that one of the most challenging projects we have to do is the one of analyzing ourselves and finding our strengths and weaknesses. Finding the solutions to our problems and learning about ways to help our weaknesses disappear are not easy tasks, but we certainly can accomplish them with perseverance and motivation; two skills that leaders cannot lack. I believe that I can become a global leader and that is why I have been doing everything that is within my reach to improve my leadership skills and global expertise.