Proud graduate of University of Otago with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and Bachelor of Laws.
Investor whose investment portfolio allows me to invest in the future I want to live in, but has also outperformed the S&P 500 Index since inception.
Since I was a teenager I have valued saving and investing so that I am not dependent on work for income. This is not to say that I do not value work or creating value for others, rather I want to minimise a lot of negative emotions and unhealthy relationships people can develop around work and finance when they lack any degree of flexibility or independence.
We only get one body and we are not young forever! It is important to me to at least try and do my best during everyday exercise and be mindful of what I eat and drink. This does not mean training all the time like it is a competition, instead the focus is maintaining a routine I can keep doing indefinitely.
This can be distracting at times but I think it is important to be curious about how and why things happen. Sometimes it may lead to useful knowledge and insight, but that is just a bonus.
Learning should not end at graduation. Learning can be uncomfortable or painful, but gives a feeling of progress and achievement to life. While giving you interesting topics to share with others.
It is easy to be afraid and pessimistic. I would rather be optimistic and wrong than pessimistic and right.
This is the feeling of riding on a motorcycle through a Wellington traffic jam while it is pouring rain. It is dangerous and uncomfortable but you have reclaimed the freedom that is lost to every one who chose to sit safe and warm waiting patiently in their cars.
It is the freedom that comes with investing in a high-volatility asset or stock in the hopes of outperforming putting your money safely into the bank or only into a home.
If you are going to do something make sure you do it well and are proud of your work, even if your efforts will not be celebrated. At least you will know you did things correctly to the best of your ability.
Once you have decided to do something you have to keep at it. Only stop or make a change if there has been a change to your original thesis - not just because things are tough.
Last tested as a ENTJ but probably more of an INTJ.
ENTJ indicates a person who is energized by time spent with others (Extraverted), who focuses on ideas and concepts rather than facts and details (iNtuitive), who makes decisions based on logic and reason (Thinking) and who prefers to be planned and organized rather than spontaneous and flexible (Judging).
Your Score: Owl (50%) You are the Detail Seeker and have:
Logical, mathematically minded, methodical and sometimes seen as a perfectionist. They can be slow to make decisions and inflexible if rules and logic says otherwise. They are not big risk takers but love detail.
Members of law firm were strict on time management - this went too far in my opinion and they refused to provide communication or support to clients that was not billable hours under the Legal Aid system.
I would talk or listen as long as the client wanted (while others were telling me to hang up), ensure that they understood what was happening, what their rights were, and what was going to happen next.
It was sad to discover that many clients had no understanding of what their current legal situation was, even while imprisoned. It seemed as if nobody had taken the time to explain this to them. I felt this required their legal representation to intervene, and I felt capable I was able to explain things to them.
The lawyers continued to hold the view that their time was wasted because they could not bill $300/$150 per hour to support these clients beyond ticking the boxes required to provide the required representation for Legal Aid. Only my parents commended my actions here.
I have a varied skill set with a dual background in science (Chemistry) and the humanities (Law). This gives me at least two ways of thinking about the world. Law taught me to identify issues, research the relevant laws, and how to apply those laws to a situation - and identify where others have skipped this process. Science taught me that a failed result is still valuable data, that hard problems can be broken down into digestible chunks, and those parts can be assembled into evidence in support of your result. Being able to engage in this slow and analytical mode of thinking is very important and I hold it in high regard. We need to be mindful about our thinking where it tends to be faster, more emotional, and more intuitive - as your emotions and intuition can be wrong.
Despite my academic achievements I have always struggled to maintain focus when either studying or working. My learning bias is towards more practical hands-on learning which has not always been compatible with my chosen academic focus.
While I am keenly aware of how important socialising and team fit is to all employment, I have always struggled with cultivating and maintaining these relationships. My intuitive working style is doing the work and getting things done; and less about socialising and team building.
Web development involves computers, which are logical machines. Programming can at times be hard and documentation can be intimidating. Identifying the issues, taking failure as feedback, and being able to break hard tasks into their easier components are all strengths I have learned.
I will however need to remain focussed on the task and avoid getting distracted or procrastinating on a task. Problem solving of new and difficult tasks requires a steady commitment and cannot really be solved with the adrenaline rush that comes with trying to tackle a task moments before a deadline.
I had a group project in Forensic Chemistry back at University, where we had all agreed to take on separate components of the final report to share the workload. With the deadline approaching I found that the shared document was looking very sparse.
I had already got into the zone and had considered a lot of the material which would form part of other's work segments. So I decided I would write out a draft for other's segments. This way nobody needed to stress that parts were incomplete, as we had a minimum viable product of sorts. I also thought this would help get them started in completing their segment as they could overcome any 'activation energy' hurdle.
The next morning I found that the document was looking ready to present and every group member had completed their segment sometime overnight.
In hindsight, this was a very passive approach to project management. We should have had a group chat going where I could still put my draft into the document instead of having it blank, but should have communicated with the other team members to see if they were having issues with their segment, needed to discuss the work, or when they expected to complete their work.