By Tom Riley on

Achievements

This post is a reflection for a course I am taking at Renison University College at the University of Waterloo. The course is titled Positive Psychology and is taught by Professor Denise Marigold, currently the Chair of Social Development Studies.

The topic of the reflection is from the course, though the response is my own.

So, this blog post is going to be a bit harder to write because it is all about things I have achieved. I generally don't try to be too boastful, but this is for an assignment so what the heck.

Here is a list of all the achievements I can think of in the past 10 years (since I was 12):

Some of the abilities, interests, and strengths that helped me achieve these things

One achievement that stands out to me is getting my job at Intel. That was my first job at a well-known company, and it stands out to me because in a lot of ways it is a culmination of all the other achievements. I think it was heavily influenced by my academic achievements, and my work experience from previous jobs. It took all the preparation from these to have a good resume, and then it took all the preparation and my being outgoing to perform well in the interview. I am proud of this because it showed that my hard worked paid off, and that my achievements are not just academic but extend to the "real" world. Looking back, I think it changed my life less than I would have anticipated, as I have since acclimated to it and am thinking about the next thing to strive for. I think from that I have learned that if I put my mind to things, I can do really cool stuff, but that there is more to life than achievements and that I should remember to value the journey and not just the destination.