David – the Untold Story of Who I Am

“David” – The Untold Story of Who I Am

        On a regular day he is described as a 6’3, average built, handsome, young African American male casually walking through campus.  For whose may not know him, he is described as quiet, passive, and sometimes “unapproachable”. For those who have interacted with him & know him on a personal level he is the most well rounded, focused, and goofiest person they have met with a smile that is contagious to everyone he is around. His parents describe him as the most unique, innovative, and charismatic spirit you would find. University records will only see him as a 19 year old sophomore, Management Information Systems student that was raised in the city of Atlanta, Ga. There are so many descriptions of who this young man is. Who is better to give an accurate depiction of this young man than he himself? My name is Zachary McWilliams and this is a rare moment where I will let the world know who I really am.

I come from humble beginnings, one of four boys to my parents who worked night & day to make sure that my brothers and I was taken care of and had every opportunity to excel when it was possible. In a world where some only view me as a black male and the stereotypes that come along with it, I am living proof that those stereotypes do not exist. I am not a threat to society. Instead, I am innovative, always seeking opportunities to think outside of box and create new solutions to problems that may have been difficult for others to solve. I am bold enough to take risk but also very smart about the risk I take. One thing that I have always found unique about myself is my ability to connect and communication with different type of people. I could be put in a room full of strangers and be able to spark a conversation. My energetic and charismatic attitude can be defined as contagious to others that are around me. Determined to make an impact on society I have never been the type to follow the crowd, instead I follow my own path. Yet I am very supportive of those that are close to me and everyone that is around me. Most importantly, I am healthy enough to go out each and every day to live life at its full capacity.

Every person has their strengths, but the most important thing in life is to state your flaws to design self-improvement technics to overcome them. The biggest strength that I have is my unique perspective on situations. Most if not all people have the problem of only seeing a situation from their point of view and not the other side. Even though it is natural to do so I have the ability to assess a problem or situation from both viewpoints to then create an optimal solution to the problem. Listening is a critical attribute that draws the line between success and failure. If you cannot listen, you cannot learn and grow. Because I have the ability to just listen, it has presented many opportunities for me. But at the end of the day I do recognize my weaknesses as well so I can improve on them. An example of this would be the fact that I can be very selfish sometimes. Even though I have learned to share and be selfless growing up with siblings, I still have moments in which I only think about myself and not others around me. Then to add towards the selfishness, I can also be quite stubborn at times. My grandma has told me that it is always good to be strong minded & to stand your ground, but at times I feel as if my stubbornness has prolonged situations and made some problems that I have had worst. But the first step to self-improvement is to state the problem, so that I will be able to evaluate myself, try to work on my weaknesses, and turn them into strengths.