To me, the three personal values that shape the person I am today are loving kindness, compassion, and
integrity. Whether it's my family, my friends or even someone who I just met,
I always try to live and behave according to my core values.
During my time at high school, I once encountered a dilemma, and it was one of the hardest decisions I had to make. My closest friend, Tim, cheated during the final exam whose result was
one of the deciding factors for which university he could get accepted to. On the exam day, I sat behind Tim, and I noticed the cheat sheet he pulled out from his sleeve.
Despite my several attempts of warning him about the consequence he might face, he continued with his unjust action.Though my heart was racing, I decided to adhere to my principle of
integrity and reported Tim’s behavior to the examiner. Obviously, Tim did not want to see me after that moment. I understood his anger, but did not give up on Tim. After thousands of
messages, I eventually managed to calm him down and had an opportunity to explain for what I did. I emphasized that he could deceive people to get what he wanted but that would not be
sustainable and there would be no bright future for those who choose to act dishonestly. Listening to my advice, Tim re-sat the exam three months later and achieved one of the highest
grades which allowed him to enter his desired institution.
Coming from a country that overcame years of colonization and survived wounds of war, I was taught and trained to stay resilient and put up a fighting spirit when facing challenges.
Another characteristic of being a Vietnamese is that I often support and help others, especially the less fortunate, from the bottom of my heart and with all my capabilities.
These are exemplified by my active participation and contribution to the charity events and campaigns in my hometown since 2008.
Two years ago, my team welcomed a new member who was the most senior at the time in terms of age. With his many years of experience, he hit the ground running from day one.
His wealth of technical insights, however, also served as a double-edged sword for his ego. After a few weeks, he started to boss other colleagues around, not in a collaborative way,
but rather in a showing-off manner. When I and him were tasked to work together in an area to which I had more exposure, he also applied the same working attitude where he wanted to be
the center of all communications and would often reject other’s ideas or opinions. Being aware of his personality, I approached by setting up a private meeting with him where we both
exchanged our standpoints on the roles of each individual in the project. On top of that, I stressed that while people valued his knowledge and experience, other employees also brought
complementary sets of skills to the table to ensure a high-quality output for the company, meaning that they deserved the same degree of respect as what they offered him. He seemed
unhappy with my direct approach at first, but we soon managed to remove the barriers between us and started building a more positive and inclusive working environment. Other strategy
that I would try is probably bringing the issue of conflict to my manager’s attention. With their main responsibility of making sure the team function well as a whole unit, managers have
the skills to effectively address any issues that arise amongst team members.