Posted by Huiqiang Zhao on
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
It was a rainy morning and I was rushing to meet my mentor Jerry Huffman (Assistant Vice President for Human Resources at SU). I stepped into his office and looked at the clock. I was 5 minutes late. This was not a good impression if I were there for a job interview. A smile from Jerry calmed me down. Once we introduced ourselves, we talked about how to make this partnership meaningful. Coordinated by the Albers Placement Center, the Albers Mentor Program is highly acclaimed by the business community and our students. This program is in its 20th year. It is a unique opportunity for graduate-level and senior undergraduate students to work with upper level executives from leading Puget Sound businesses. Of course, I wanted to learn every single detail from Jerry who had been with one of three largest trucking companies (Paccar) for 25 years. His success and experience inspire me to become a leader someday.
In summary, he mentioned to me the importance of having resilience, flexibility, commitment and willingness to learn and be challenged. In addition, I was told that students must stay focused on their tasks from school, work or home. Moreover, Jerry emphasized that we should work with great and smart people if possible because they are the ones who can teach you along the way. But before someone teaches you, you ought to do your job right and try to improve yourself continuously. Jerry even advised me how to maintain a healthy personal relationship as a couple which was totally beyond of my expectations. I believe Jerry and I will become very good friends.
Written by Derek Zhao, zhaoh@seattleu.edu