We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kane Nguyen a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Kane, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?
Resilient would be the last word I’d use to describe myself when I first came to the U.S at sixteen. I was a spoiled teenager who had everything taken care of for him. The first 6-7 years here went exactly as expected, I made plenty of mistakes. With my family being overseas still, I had no choice but to figure things out by myself and yes, It did take awhile. At 29 now, I can’t more grateful all the goods, and the bads in the last 12 years. I’m still here standing and more confident than ever knowing I’ve made it out of every life threw at me so far.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I”m a creative content producer for Oregon State Athletics. With a background in journalism, my approach to content creation hasn’t changed since I first started. Authentic storytelling is at the core of everything I do. Getting to capture the raw moments and find stories at every events bring me so much joy. I’ve always been a huge sports person so getting to do what I love in an environment I love.. It doesn’t get much better than that.
Being at a college also gives me the opportunity to work with many younger creatives. Getting to develop my student interns is for sure one of the best parts of my job,
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Journalism, self-awareness, and imposter syndrome.
Journalism taught me how to storytelling, self-awareness keeps me grounded, and a healthy amount of imposter syndrome gives me the drive to get better everyday.
If you’re early in your journey, please take character building just as seriously. Most of us can pick up the hard skills but how you are as a teammate is just as, if not more important.
What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?
Sending me to the U.S at 16 was no doubt the worst/ best thing my parents did for me. Being alone since 16… I don’t wish that on anybody and spoiler alert – you’re going to make a lot of mistakes. But as mentioned earlier, I would’ve not became the person that I am today without this experience. So thanks, mom and dad!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://kanenguyen.myportfolio.com
- Instagram: kane.nwin
Image Credits
The feature photo of my was taken by Nicho Lin. (@Nicho_lin)
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
