Jeff's Blog

As time passes by, my perspective of the world has changed drastically at least more than 20 times. Sometimes, my hope for a better world stems from personal problems I go through. Other times, it's poverty or environmental issues that get sourced through media. What I want to see in the next few generations of our society is an equal access to opportunities. We complain when we don't have enough balance in our bank account to go to a rave or when we have four essays to write in two weeks. This is commonly called, "first-world problems." I believe that these complaints can be justified because our perspectives are defined and restricted by the content of our life experiences. But, I want to live in an environment where every individual has at least similar amount of access to opportunities to "be great." For example, we witness at least one or two great prodigies who are accepted to great Ivy League schools despite their unfortunate personal backgrounds....

Last week, as I was subconsciously scrolling down my Facebook feed like just any other day, I came across my friend's post. It was a video in which college students argue against a social figure on a variety of topics regarding social system that favors the wealthy, value of education after graduation and quality of life. The video grabbed my attention until the end because this topic is more relevant to me as I am approaching my college years. The most interesting part of the video was when the social figure tells students to stop blaming the social system that has existed for years for their failures, but instead advises them to start developing skills that not many people have. Initially, this sounds ironic because we live in society which forces us to become the resume-perfect individual to beat the competition. But, after watching the video twice, I realized that being the vice president of a finance club or having the perfect GPA may put you ahead, there are certain character...

Chuck Collins describes a social phenomenon that seems to exacerbate as our generation continues to age. On one side, the wealthy maintain the power and privilege to keep the social system in their favor while the other "not-so-lucky" lose the opportunity to even try to climb to the top of the ladder. Chuck Collins addresses this dilemma in our society by encouraging the wealthy to come back home and invest their wealth in helping out struggling communities. Chuck gave away his inheritance at 26 and spent rest of his life striving to close the gap of inequality. Although he admits that not many wealthy can or will follow his footsteps, he still has hope in some wealthy who can do the same for society. I personally believe that both sides of the system exist in USC. Coming in as a freshman, we can see numerous international or domestic students who are extremely well off on campus. However, students mingle together regardless of their backgrounds and are offered the same lev...

I have 3 more months left in college until I graduate. It feels surreal to become an adult and to be honest, I am not ready yet - I won't be able to wake up at 2pm after missing two morning classes. USC is a great school, but most of the seniors like me probably agree that I've learned more about my life than academics. Below are 7 lessons I've learned in college that I will take with me after graduation. Make it a habit to call your parents  As much as I grew up as an individual for 4 years in college, I can see my parents gradually aging. Their energy isn't the same, their wrinkles are getting deeper, and they don't have much time left with us. After graduating from college, most of us will be living our lives, striving to support ourselves. As I started to support myself this year, I realized how difficult it would be to make sacrifices and try best to make children happy like our parents do. This senior year really opened my eyes and I have the utmost respe...

A Roadmap for Re-Glorification How the LA Lakers can rebuild their dynasty People can judge me, but I had tears in my eyes while I was watching Kobe Bryant’s legendary 60-point retirement game. I am sure you guys grew up throwing a crumpled paper into a trash can yelling, “Kobe!” Besides Kobe Bryant, legends like Magic, Kareem, The Logo, and Shaq probably ring a bell for even non-basketball fans. These cultural NBA icons have made the LA Lakers arguably the best franchise in the league with 16 NBA championships and 31 conference titles. But, ever since Kobe’s retirement, the Lakers has been redefining their approach to the game as one of the youngest teams in the league. Let’s be honest here – even after drafting top young players such as Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle, and Lonzo Ball, Lakers is still one of the worst teams with probably the most potential. As a die-hard Lakers fan since ’05, I will be presenting a specific set of strategies required to bring back Lakers ...

Towards the end of the book, we start to see Timmermeister's view of world embedded in his farming practices. He obviously failed several times because of his lack of knowledge in farming, but I really enjoyed his honesty. He never tries to hide his mistakes, but he writes as much or more about his failures than struggles than his success in farming. He gradually reveals his perspective throughout the book. He says, " If I wanted to live in Europe, I would pack my bags and move. My goal here is to live my American life on my little farm, eating great food; food with integrity, not food that is imitative of my counterparts a continent away.” He is exactly aware of what he has to do, but his goal is solidified - regardless of failures, he insists on carrying his plans and actions because he feels greater satisfaction in finding success at the end this way. His lifestyle reflects something truly American: striving to achieve success by walking on our own path. Overall, this boo...