Community / October 11, 2016

David Potter '18 Commands His Career

David Potter '18 Commands His Career

Victor Mullins, associate dean of the undergraduate program at the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business, recently interviewed Smith Junior David Potter ’18 to discuss how he is “commanding his career” during his Smith Journey.

So what does the Smith journey entail? During their freshman year, Smith students begin to build their personal brand through the SmithStart program. Sophomores dedicate their second year to pioneering their path to success by focusing on an overall academic and career strategy. Junior year focuses on students taking command of their careers during to ensure that they are well positioned for their professional journey. Finally, as a senior with an arsenal of tools, knowledge, and networks, Smith students are able to embrace their experience and celebrate their success.

Dean Mullins: Reflect on how you “built your brand” during your freshmen year.

Student Response: I built my brand by envisioning my desired future then reverse engineering it. This began with diving into self-awareness, developing a thorough understanding of my goals, my strengths, and my vision for the future. From this assessment, I set out to seek opportunities that align with my goals and have proceeded to develop the brand of a hard working and ambitious leader with a passion to improve the way finances are managed.

Dean Mullins: How are you going to “command your career” during your junior year? I do recognize that this year is still beginning.

Student Response: One of my values is to create the most powerful of spaces - in the lives of those I am fortunate enough to touch, as well as my own. I follow a career path of entrepreneurship and work to create a powerful environment to command my career through Hinman CEO’s living and learning entrepreneurship program, the Dingman Center, and through actively connecting course material to real life applications and to my larger life goals. As an entrepreneur, I am not applying to internships like many of my peers, but rather pursuing accelerators which are geared to take an entrepreneur’s venture to the next stage through funding, mentoring, and industry specific support.

Dean Mullins: What advice would you give to your fellow Smith peers and community?

Student Response: I am a big advocate of self-awareness. Take the time to understand yourself and figure out your life goals, then drive your future actions in accordance to your new realizations. I encourage my Smith peers and community to stop splitting their attention amongst so many interests and to rather focus on the one thing that they really care about. I follow the belief of Warren Buffet, who is a huge advocate for putting all your eggs in one basket and watching them carefully. For those willing to take it one step further, I challenge you to restructure your days. Remove any obligations that you have placed in your life that do not add value to that which you have identified as personally valuable.

Dean Mullins: How are you making your mark on campus?

Student Response: I am working with Abhishek Kapoor on the venture called: “Curu.” Curu is an application that improves the user’s credit score without getting in their way. Through analyzing the user’s bank accounts, Curu identifies the ideal actions to take in order to automatically optimize the user’s credit score. Credit is a mystified system, where the less people know, the more they end up paying in interest. I am proud to make my mark on campus by hacking this system and empowering people within their financial space.

Dean Mullins: What is your dream?

Student Response: My dream is to create the most powerful spaces. Through Curu I am pursuing my dream by empowering people in their financial space. I often face conflict between entrepreneurship and university, but I believe that education plays a vital role in both. I seek to create an alternative to current schooling where I will design the ideal learning environment for world changers. I will call it an “Academy of Innovation.”

Dean Mullins: Why are you passionate about the Smith School?

Student Response: I am passionate about the Smith School because it is my ‘Powerful Space.’ The Smith School has been a big part of my development and I am proud to be part of this community.

For more information about the undergraduate program at Smith, visit: www.rhsmith.umd.edu/undergrad.

Media Contact

Greg Muraski
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301-405-5283  
301-892-0973 Mobile
gmuraski@umd.edu 

About the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business

The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research. One of 12 colleges and schools at the University of Maryland, College Park, the Smith School offers undergraduate, full-time and flex MBA, executive MBA, online MBA, business master’s, PhD and executive education programs, as well as outreach services to the corporate community. The school offers its degree, custom and certification programs in learning locations in North America and Asia.

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