Dave Sweede
ADP
Norfolk, VA USA
"The best advice I have been given is to be comfortable being uncomfortable."
Career Roadmap
Dave's work combines: Business, Numbers, and Learning / Being Challenged
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Accounting and Business/Management
Old Dominion University
Here's the path I recommend for someone who wants to be an Accountants and Auditors:
Bachelor's Degree: Accounting and Business/Management
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Life & Career Milestones
My path in life took a while to figure out
1.
High School Graduation and my first "tour" at ODU.
2.
Partied way too hard at ODU and was about to fail out of college and get cut off from my parents.
3.
I joined the Marines in an attempt to get my life right.
4.
I was sent to Iraq in 2003 and experienced a life-changing deployment.
5.
I returned home and had to deal with the effects of my deployment, not fully understanding how I was affected.
6.
I worked retail jobs, and never really could make any decent money.
7.
I started school at TCC to study business, and found I really understood accounting.
8.
I transferred to ODU's accounting program, graduated, and was hired by a fortune 300 (Norfolk Southern) a full year before I actually graduated.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Teachers:
I would not make it through the ODU Accounting program from an adviser.
How I responded:
I had to wear the restraints of my vision. I did not want to work an hourly job for the rest of my life, and I knew I could earn more if I finished a degree in a high demand field. I was investing in my future, and I had to put forth of effort.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
I am ADD diagnosed since I was a young age. It was very hard for me to balance a full time job, being married, and my upper level classes.