Overview The objective of this assignment is for you to present an image of your desired future. Drawing upon all of your reflections and learnings in this course, and applying key concepts from the Boyatzis intentional change theory framework and some of the exercises we practiced, put together a coherent statement of your desired future in a personal essay. This vision for your desired life can serve as your starting point for an ongoing learning plan. Guidelines The paper should have the following three sections, approximate number of pages expected for a double-spaced discussion of each section is indicated in brackets following the item. Complement your essay with a visual (s). It could be a collage, a sketch, an illustration(s), a diagram-your choice. (1) My values, philosophy, dreams and calling [3 pages]; (2) My intellectual agenda [2 pages] (3) My career and life aspirations [2 pages]
Personal Reflection
My background
I have always been fascinated by fashion since childhood, and I loved doing dress collocation for my family. After joining my undergraduate studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, I chose Accounting as my major. However, after I studied Accounting for two years, I found that it was not what I was really interested in. At that time, I felt that even after so many years since childhood, my love and interest in fashion had continued to deepen. So in my sophomore year, I decided to apply for the master’s program of Parsons since the school was famous in the fashion area. I believe that my undergraduate studies have prepared me sufficiently to fit into the master’s program.
Changing my major to Business Administration is one of the crucial issues that I want to mention. Basically, on my undergraduate studies in business administration, I gained vital skills in marketing, market research, as well as business analytics. These skills have equipped me in developing practical management strategies to foster my interests in the fashion business. I particularly liked the insights I gained in marketing as I was exposed to the theories and application of marketing practices on fashion-based brands in the market today. Through the business analytics techniques, I amassed from the course to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the selected business as well as developing workable strategies accordingly.
In actualizing what I had learned through the undergraduate course, I participated in a marketing project at the university that commenced in 2017, whereby, we focused on marketing Nike products. I was tasked with the role of establishing a strategy of reaching the target customers in a bid to boost the company’s revenues. I got a chance to thoroughly analyze the demographic data of the target market, especially regarding the Chinese luxury market. Despite not having much interest in athletic apparel, the experience I got from working on this project was breathtaking, and it gave me a platform to research more of luxury fashion brands that I was more interested in.
Over the years, I have gained skills relevant to fashion by working in different organizations in various capacities. During this time, I was tasked with conducting marketing researches, responding to the current issues, and suggesting a solution to the supervisor, solving the businesses’ problems, and providing follow-up services. By the way, I worked at EDCO Outdoor Products Co., Ltd (EDCO), Beijing, China, as a Brand Operation Assistant. I was tasked with EDCO’s brand market operation and conducting offline researches. Even though I do not know anything related to design, these experiences laid the foundation for my master’s life in Parsons.
How I felt during this semester
Before I joined this program, I used to think that the Strategic Design and Management related to business and fashion. I was curious about everything that I would have to experience at Parsons. However, when I actually got here, I was quite confused by the theoretical lecture. It was not like I imaged before since there were too many readings provided to me to gain theoretical knowledge, just like I used to do in my undergraduate life. At that time, I preferred to do a project like mock companies. However, as I read more and more, I discover a lot of stories that interest me. From these stories, I learned as long as you have a new idea and dare to do it with passion, then the small changes can impact the whole world. Honestly, I am not confident that I will achieve my dream because many talented students have a background in the field of art. Nonetheless, if I can set short goals, then expand them to long goals, with my passion, I believe it can work somehow. “Come on! This is New York City!” And also, in the last class, the professor Adam showed us his works. I can felt that my professor Adam is a life-loving person and he is also very enthusiastic. I believe the greatest happiness in life is that you can combine your interests with your work and contribute to society. After knowing Adam, I firmly believe that this major is a perfect choice for me and I am looking forward to showing my own work to others just like him in the future.
In regards to developing a class inversion, I felt nice collaborating with a team comprising of other four team members- Minerva, Chevara, Shaili, and April. We developed a presentation on developing Human-Centered Solutions together. I feel we came up with detailed insights into how a designer’s thinking can meet a business thinking to enhance the customer experience. A designer thinks and acts on the line of the things they love while a business person thinks analytically. To achieve success in business, designers need to think creatively and analytically to meet business longevity.
Additionally, designers who adopt a business mind will design something new and fantastic. To become a superb and successful designer, we noted that one has to design for experiences and think fundamentally of people, their activities, and the context of those activities. In this regard, the designer will create structures that feed the system and do not eat it. When designing a product, a designer should ask themselves, who is the person I am designing for? What is the activity they are trying to do? And what are the contexts in which they are trying to operate?
My future career plan
I have different plans in my career for the future. One of my career plans is I aim to develop a luxury brand or boutique store in China. My brand aim to provide consumers with digital look book and personal stylist services. And it also provides a unique service for busy independent female elites – private wardrobes, which are designed to save time for these busy women entrepreneurs every month and learn about their lifestyle in advance. It mainly to let these professional women show their perfect style in the workplace through the special experience created by our brand. More importantly, the brand committed to get closer to the consumers’ personal tastes to select products which fit in their life. Trying to show the confidence is not always easy in the daily life; however, the outfit is one of the external reasons that can best enhance women’s self-confidence and express their attitudes. Such independent women are not only constrained by gender in the traditional sense, they have a stronger personality and ideas than men. I would like to equip myself with both knowledge and theories concerning strategic management and a stronger sense of fashion during the two-year studies.
Besides, I have a great concern about what the future hold for the new luxury brand company in China. I also hope to provide a positive impact and support the Chinese company in the strategic business management sector. The current fashion management of the Chinese luxury brand is underdeveloped compared to companies in the west. It is because of insufficient educational curriculums domestically in this field and less long-established professionalism. I am going to use my skill of design as the business management in fashion and the strategies design and impact the Chinese Luxury Brand.
Also, to make up for my lack of experience, I am going to do an internship in the profession and other part-time work next summer. I also want to be a business manager in the fashion industry. By doing this, I will gain professional experience and improve my working ability. I will also build my contacts so that I can understand the fashion world better. I will establish my fashion company that was influential due to the booming fashion market in China.
Based on the insights I gained when developing the presentation in collaboration with my team, I will seek to adopt the designer’s thinking techniques when developing my luxury brand in china. As I learned, I will use design thinking in the application of human-centered techniques to foster creativity and innovation in designing. I plan to use these techniques to understand my target market to provide solutions to problems they might be experiencing. Through design thinking, I will have a deep interest in understanding those people I will be designing for and hence will help me develop empathy for them. Additionally, I will use design thinking techniques to conduct ongoing experimentation, sketching, prototyping, and testing of new ideas that might assist my business to thrive.
Through the semester, I have learned many things regarding Strategic Design and Management. I was able to understand the cultural, social, and economic developments and transformations sparking a shift from the ‘old economies’ to new economies. For my making project, it is more like a challenge for me. I never tried to making a real object before, so I was nervous when I listened the rubric of making project. However, when I met my team member-Zoey, who was majored in industry design, she gave me many help, and we really enjoy to making things which can verify our initial assumptions. Whatever we came from different background, but we all have passion to do it. My master’s program this semester has given me a chance to explore the significant cultural and technological trends giving rise to the modern world.
Assignment 5: My Personal Vision Essay and Visual. Due by week 15.
Overview
The objective of this assignment is for you to present an image of your desired future. Drawing upon all of your reflections and learnings in this course, and applying key concepts from the Boyatzis intentional change theory framework and some of the exercises we practiced, put together a coherent statement of your desired future in a personal essay. This vision for your desired life can serve as your starting point for an ongoing learning plan.
Guidelines
The paper should have the following three sections, approximate number of pages expected for a double-spaced discussion of each section is indicated in brackets following the item. Complement your essay with a visual (s). It could be a collage, a sketch, an illustration(s), a diagram-your choice.
(1) My values, philosophy, dreams and calling [3 pages];
(2) My intellectual agenda [2 pages]
(3) My career and life aspirations [2 pages].
In the “My values, philosophy, dreams and calling” section, describe your values, philosophy from the results of the Philosophical Orientation Questionnaire, dreams and calling. Look for themes or patterns among them as to what is really important to you. Explore your purpose in life, legacy, or “calling.”
In the “My intellectual agenda” section, describe the ideas you wish to study, conduct research and experience moving forward. Often, the process of discovering one’s intellectual agenda begins with listing the ideas or observations in life that have fascinated you, bothered you, or you believe are linked to a better life or better work organization performance.
In the “My career and life aspirations” section, you will be integrating the thoughts from the previous two sections into a specific image and direction for your life and career. In describing your career aspirations, please describe long-term possibilities beyond five to ten years. If your desired and/or predicted image of your career over the next seven to ten years involves a sequence of jobs and moves, please describe them and your rationale for this being the desired or likely sequence. If you are not sure, but have identified two or more desired paths, please feel free to elaborate each one. Regarding the life aspirations, please describe your desired life style, including a description of the “type of person” you want to be.
