I am currently pursuing the hospitality industry hoping to land a position in management. I want to show my values in leadership which include competence, empowerment, and open-mindedness. Below is an outline of my time learning HTM at SDSU

HTM Context

Why am I pursuing HTM?

That is a question I often asked myself. Did not fully answer my question. I always thought it is because I like working with people. That is part of my answer. The full answer is the fact that I want to fulfill the social aspect I lost as part of my childhood. I had to skip four grades, I stayed home during that time. Through hospitality, I can fulfill that missing part of me.

Why have I Gravitated toward hospitality?

As I started college, I changed my major a few times. I never found myself fitting into the programs I tried. Eventually, my counselor talked to me about hospitality. I did my research on the hospitality field and found out what it entails. I like the fact that I will get to work with people often. I will get to do hands-on work which is something I really enjoy. Opportunities for leadership in the hospitality field are all over. There are many sectors you can choose to take that will help me gain leadership experience.

Insights Gained from Working in the Field

The hospitality industry takes a different breed of person. You have to learn to have patience. I learned to be patient with learning, adapting, people, teammates, etc. It is not an industry for everyone. I learned that I really do enjoy working with people. All I need is patience.

Major Project

The one project that really stuck with me is many of my 432 HTM course assignments. Of course, there are many other group projects that helped me develop my group work skills, but the one I will take and have used in the hospitality field is Excel work. HTM 432 was basically a bunch of Excel work that included timelines, budgets, etc. I currently use Excel for my work, and the skills I learned from that class are very helpful. I did not have much experience with Excel at all. I actually missed the very first assignment of the class for that course. I had already fallen behind. That in some way encouraged me to put in extra work and effort. Google was my best friend to help me figure out formulas and whatnot. I also started actually doing my work before the due date so I could ask the professor questions. I guess that helped me manage my time better. I always leave things to the last minute, but that project taught me to not do that. Excel is widely used in businesses, I found that class to be very helpful for real-world work. I can prove that through the work I complete on daily basis in my current job.

Proficiency in People-Centric Settings

I am in most cases the only Arab in the team. Regarding working in the hospitality industry, my first job at a hotel at L'Auberge included a diverse front desk team. The managers' goal was to have a diverse group. As time went by, the people I worked with left the company. The team became the opposite. So as my current job. I work mostly with one specific race. Of course, I come from a different background. I have learned to embrace my background. I talk about it often. I will tell jokes as well. I am very open to sharing my culture. That is how others will understand me. Most of the people I have met are usually curious about my culture. It is a way for the team and I to get along.

Self-aware Leader

Straight out of high school, I would say I was not and did not have any leadership confidence at all. My first job gave me my first taste of leadership. I was a shift manager. I realized there how hard it is to manage people and understand their needs. In school, during that time I was changing my major many times. I did not have the leadership confidence in my group work. When I started my journey at SDSU, I saw a huge difference in my leadership skills. We did a lot of groups, such as the group work from the 490 class. That group involved many people. Or the interviews we did with industry professionals. That assingment was definitely one of the hardest. Currently, I have been training new hires. That is teaching me a lot about patience with people. It is teaching to have different teaching techniques.