International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 6, Issue 2, February-2015 78
ISSN 2229-5518
Personal and Professional Development Plan
Mishari Saad Alabdullatif
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My childhood behavior was not in any way different from what other children do as they grow. I slowly advanced from being a toddler and independence as well as the ability to handle more responsibilities increased in me day after day. Growing in Saudi Arabia gave me the opportunity to learn about important customs that one has to learn as a child so as to apply elsewhere all over the world. My parents taught me and my young brothers and sisters on how to practice humility, just like what any parent teaches his children. Kindness was modelled in me and I was taught on how to stop being harsh or rude to others. Sincerity, kindness and honesty were among the key things I learned from my parents as I grew up. When I take a close look at both my present and my past, I can boldly say that there lies a connection between the two. I am actually applying most of what I was taught at that very tender age.
The experiences of my past have made me into the person I am today. My personality has been greatly shaped by the events in my life that have occurred in my life, both good and bad. Moreover, the places that I have been and the different people I have met have contributed to the firm decisions that I have made about my future. Through my parents, I have learned on how to be strong during the times when things seem to get tough as well as how to better a bad situation. I have been molded to the person I am today majorly by the personal failures that I have experienced alongside my road to success. My teachers as well as my Muslim leaders have played a great role in creating confidence in me. They taught me how to be succeed in my whole life.
I have been in situations where I have actually wondered why such a thing happened to me and why did it happen at that particular time. Little did I know that events do happen and occurrences do occur for a reason, weather to teach us lessons, shape our future or to benefit us.When I look back and view my current state, a ten year experienced accountant, and all of corporations I have worked for in Saudi Arabia, I thank everything that happened in the past. Every single step in my life and each single moment that goes by make me up as an individual person. I have become a student through out my life, not just in the classroom. Though I make mistakes as a normal
human being, I have the consideration of not doing them twice.
I am very proud to say that my religion has greatly shaped my future. Being a Muslim, and growing up in Saudi Arabia, which is considered the heart of the Islamic faith, has taught me about so many life issues. I have observed and followed the five pillars of Islam which include the testimony of faith, fasting at Ramadan, alms- giving, daily prayer and the pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina, the places where Mohammad the prophet was from and where he received the revelations from God. I can therefore say that Allah has seen me through and He has been my strength all through my life.
I believe that everybody has experienced a life changing event, that which has changed them or the way they live. Throughout the day, people experience many events that can change their outlook on life completely. My unexpected admission to the university was an event that shaped me into the person that I am and it made me realize hoe fleeting fragile and valuable life is. This was a great turning point in my life. Up to date, I have never been able to get the difference between what happened on that day and a miracle, but to me it seems more of a miracle than a life changing event. My passion for becoming an accountant started a long time ago. My primary and secondary education was surrounded by a hell of challenges and it seemed that the days I reported to school nearly equaled the days that I did not report.
Despite all those challenges, I managed to complete my secondary school education and got a good grade which could allow me get admission in any of the universities in Saudi Arabia. However, that seemed to be the end of my education journey because my dad could not approved me to study in one of the most famous university in Saudi Arabia which is the King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals in Al Dahran city that located in the east coast of Saudi Arabia’s. The reason was because he did not want me move to another city and he needed me stay beside him in Riyadh taking care my family. I had to comply with the desire of my father, and this is what I learned from him. I eventually decided to submit my documents to the King Saud University in Riyadh. Because
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International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 6, Issue 2, February-2015 79
ISSN 2229-5518
of the high volume of students submitting their certificates every semester, it is difficult to get the acceptance. Therefore, I was trying to find someone qualify me to enter the university. I loved to watch my dad smile every time I brought something home and he was happy to see that. I too cared about the education of my brothers and sisters too. “All will be well someday”, is what he used to tell me almost all the time we happened to sit down together.
I remember this day very well, when I came back home and found we had a visitor, who happened to be my uncle, a brother of my dad, who lived in Austria. I was very pleased to meet him and I could not believe that I shook hands with someone who had come all the way from Austria, on an aero plane. What I came to realize later is that I was the reason for his coming and he wanted it to be a surprise for me because my parents did not inform me earlier about his coming because he had directed them to keep me in the dark. He had heard about my story and had come to help. I could hardly believe it when he asked me which university in Riyadh I would love to join given the opportunity to. When I chose my favorite, his words were very brief, “tune your mind back to education, because next week you are reporting in that university to further your studies.” That is when my life took a completely new course. I am now thankful for everything that Allah gives me and willing to take on anything he puts on my path. I now set my goals high and work hard to achieve them. I look back and thank the almighty God for the far he has taken me.
What I believe in is that if I live just for today, to make today the most successful happy day of my life, I have the assurance that I will have an extraordinary life. This is because I believe that a successful life is nothing more than a series of successful days. Mary Ann Radmacher’s quote, “Live with intention. Walk to the edge. Listen hard. Practice wellness. Play with abandon. Laugh. Choose with no regret. Appreciate your friends. Continue to learn. Do what you love. Live as if this is all there is,” is what motivates me and has kept me going. It is a motivation that drives me and I also know that there is no better teacher then life. Try. Whether you fail or succeed, it will be an experience. I view myself as a person who can fit in any kind of situation provided others have passed through the same or a similar path path and have made it in life.
I have principles that guide my conduct as well as my relationship with the outside world. These are what I call my core values which include accountability in that I am always very responsible for my own actions that influence the lives of others. Integrity is also one of my core values that I have embraced since childhood. I have learned to act in honesty and integrity without compromising the truth and above all I have taught myself to give the best and world class service as well as achieving excellence each
passing day, and therefore service excellence in also one of my core values. Love, honesty, generosity, faithfulness and kindness are most of the things I practice.
Having a ten years experience in accounting and all of the corporations I have worked for in Saudi Arabia, I know believe that I have the required knowledge and ideas to do what I have ever desired to do in my life. Due to the love I have when it comes to playing with numbers, it has been my set objective that I study accounts and start my own audit firm. My personal mission in life is to offer a broad range of services to meet the requirements of my clients by nurturing an environment that encourages personal and professional growth and a passion for my firm’s core values. I will look forward to being recognized as a leader in our community, known for delivering timely and eminence professional services through a multidisciplinary approach. On the other hand, my vision has always been to be nationally recognized as a professional who has accomplished the definitive poise between outstanding client service a focus on family as well as the financial success of my firm. I am planning to achieve this by through creating a culture of desire and vanity that will enable me to continue attracting and keeping the best professionals, who will in turn be compensated, documented and appreciated for their massive contributions to a firm which is established on shared fundamental values.
I am assured that Allah has blessed me with the strengths that I need for accomplishing my goals. I have extensive skills in mathematics, which is the primary requirement for all accountants and anyone wishing to become an accountant must know how to crunch numbers. I have taught myself about accuracy, which has turned out to be one among my strengths in my race to achieving my objective. This is because I know accounting leaves little room for error and a slight miscalculation can lead to a massive loss and lose of trust. Lastly, but not the least of my strengths is efficiency. This sounds a great advantage to me because I have an idea that sometimes the profession needs to work for longer hours or work quickly so as to meet a deadline.
Working at professional corporations has helped me greatly on my road to becoming a professional accountant. I have gained a ten years experience in this field and I trust that I can now start my own accounting firm. Accounting field is quite interesting and extremely varied despite what others think that accountants are boring people with uninteresting lives. Being honest with me and improving my attention to detail is a learning need that is required of me so as to reach my goal. I know there are the specific actions that I need to do in order for me to become the accountant I have ever desired to be. I know that I have to earn a bachelors degree for me to be termed as a certified public accountant and I have to pass all the
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CPA examinations underway. Likewise, I will have to check the requirements through Saudi Arabia’s state board of accountancy that licenses CPAs. I greatly appreciate the support given to me by my uncle and I am very sure that he will stand by me until that time I will realize my dreams, because he promised to do so. That is a firm social support for me.
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