Hi I'm Cheif

Hello.

This was last updated Saturday, January 18, 2009 (2 years & 3 days since the update before that!)

I'm a 26 year old, 6'4", 175 lb, guy.

Once upon a time I was an avid video gamer. Then, I was an overworked software engineer (infospace, then limelife). Now I'm a University Professor (that's the title I'm given at work, though I don't have a PHD, or tenure).

I love teaching, and learning. My job through college was tutoring at my school (DeVry University in Fremont). Now I teach full time at the same campus. I teach Game Development courses (technical, creative, and business oriented), and do extra-curricular programming lectures for enthusiastic students.

My live journal is lame. I don't update often. But I do update it with things I think are important every now and then.


I started writing a list of personal values for myself in college. It’s been evolving it ever since, re-posted here so I don't forget it. Perhaps one day I might be quoted, and some of my quotes might come from this list.

-Never put yourself in a position where you can't account for everything in your life. Do not compromise your values. Breaking your own rules is trouble.

-Try to understand the reason why. Use that knowledge to fix bigger problems.
-Learning takes precedence over using knowledge.
-Confidence is the first step. There are more steps.
-There is no such thing as luck. Change brings opportunities that you are ready for, or opportunities that you have missed.
-Life is change. Life is also the proliferation of organized systems.
-You can see the future with the right information. Life is largely deterministic.
-Make decisions based on reason. Better, more focused reasons make better decisions.
-Know when a decision isn’t yours to be made. If you are forced to make it, make it your own.
-You are known by reputation. Everything you do will be known or felt by everyone.
-Show the people you care about that you care about them. It will make you happy. And more importantly, it will make them happy. Don’t force it, but don’t hide it either.
-Never feel bad about spending time with people instead of doing something else alone. Relationships are more important.
-There is a difference between being independent and being alone. You don't have to be both at once.
-Enjoy the instances in your life when everything is ok. They are fleeting and beautiful.
-Realize that when you think everything is ok, you have lost perspective. Know you will pay for it.
-Realize that when everything is bleak, you have more opportunity than at any other moment.
-Do not be afraid of change. Take advantage of the limits that have been removed.
-Do what you can now.
-Be passionate about something!
-Fewer things to focus on will give you more focus (passion and focus are hard to separate)
-Too much focus on one thing will blind you to everything else.
-Remembering is awkward. If it’s important, make it a habit.
-A mistake will educate you. Accept it.
-Success will advance you. Strive for it.
-There is a reason for existence. Go do something with it.
-Let the music take control. But, dance to the beat before moving to a different one.
-Think outside the box. Be different. It’s more fun for everyone that way.
-Rules are for people who don't know any better. That doesn't mean you don't need rules, it means real knowledge will set you free when rules aren't good enough.
-Keep clean, and don't be afraid of getting dirty if you know how to get clean again.
-Lead by example. Be consistent.
-Know when people are ready to listen.
-Never miss a good chance to communicate, especially about something important.
-Have faith in your abilities as a human being to deal with whatever stresses or pressures come.
-You don’t need to dumb things down for empathic people. Dumbing things down might mean you aren’t being empathic enough.
-Great things happen unexpectedly after good things that made them possible are forgotten.
-You follow the path you create and create the path you will follow. You will reap what you sow.
-Being who you think you are is not enough. Prove who you are by example.
-Things change eventually. Don't push change alone.
-There is good karma in understanding that anybody could be somebody.
-Know where your food comes from. You are what you eat.
-Owning up to failure is better than making shit up. Problems get fixed better that way.
-the mind of today must distribute thought so that the mind of tomorrow may transcend itself
-Better does not mean louder, faster, bigger, or harder. Better means nuanced balance. If you're trying to be Better, don't just pump up the volume and call it a day.