1-WHO YOU ARE MATTERS

My name is Michael Parsa, and I am from Los Angeles, California. I am more specifically from the Brentwood area. I  come from a tight-knit family, and I have two older sisters. I am the youngest sibling and the only boy in the family.My childhood was influenced by many different cultures. Since I was young I would travel to different countries around the world.My parents thought it was very important for me to be exposed to different type of traditions and values. My parents believed traveling is the best way to gain knowledge. Up until 9th grade, I went to a French school called Le Lycee Francais de Los Angeles. Many of the students at my school were from diplomatic families from all over the world which caused me to learn more about my friend's many different backgrounds. I am a first generation American my parents were both born in Tehran, Iran. I come from a diverse background, and because of my youth, I am always fascinated to travel and meet people from different countries. I decided to leave my small French school in order to go to a bigger private high school called Campbell Hall in Studio City. Campbell Hall is where I met most of my closest friends who I still keep in touch with regularly today. I always wanted to attend USC since I was a kid. My father, sister, family friends and many relatives graduated from USC which made me want to continue the family tradition. I am majoring in Real Estate Development and I have always been passionate about real estate since I was young.

My end goal is to own a development company which focuses on mixed-used buildings. I am most interested in developments companies who have their own unique niche in the market and who bring specialty tenants to their sites. I am currently debating between having a career in a commercial brokerage firm or starting out in a development firm because I am interested in both aspects of the industry. In order to achieve my ultimate goal, I plan on first interning and working at different development or brokerage firms to gain experience. I also am heavily networking with people in the real estate sphere. Establishing connections and making good first impressions is very important in this industry because it's so small. In order to attract good tenants to come to your site and get approvals to build a new development from the city, you need to have connections and be trustworthy in keeping your word. I plan on gaining more capital by working and learning more about the operations of the business in order to successfully start my own firm. I have been fortunate enough to have found many young mentors who are achieving the success I plan on attaining. 

I am very similar to my parents and even siblings. I find that everyone in my immediate family all has a positive and optimistic outlook on life which I share with them.My parents are very easy going and love to laugh. I think my parents instilled in my siblings and I to always look on the bright side and realize how fortunate we are to have each other. My parents and siblings are also very driven which I find that I share that with them. I am unlike my parents in many ways because they weren't born in America. I grew up in a very different environment than they did which causes us to have differences in customs and ways of living.

My expectation for myself is slightly influenced by my family, but I find that they are mostly developed by me. In Persian households, failure is usually not an option, so I believe that I do have more pressure to succeed in life. Although, I find that I really want to gain succuss on my own and to achieve all my goals in life. My parents nor family cant force me to have different expectations, so I find they do come from me. My family also has no say in which industry I have to work in, I chose to be in real estate all on my own. The one person whose life I want to model my own is this young CEO of a development company. His name is David, and he started his business with a partner at the age of 24. David's company has significantly expanded and even more prominent companies such as Caruso consult with him.  I find that he indeed is passionate and loves what he is doing which I find is very important in life to be happy. He also is very trustworthy and always has a positive and friendly attitude. 

The one animal I always have felt a special connection with are Monkeys. Since I was a kid, they have always been my favorite animal. I love their goofy nature and how loyal they are to each other. I really can't explain nor don't know why I always had a deep connection with them. I wanted to have a pet monkey which of course I will never actually own because I believe it is not right to domesticate a wild animal. A significant encounter with a tree that I had as a child was this one tree in my backyard at my childhood house. I would always climb it with friends and sit on the branches. This tree had a significant impact on me because as I was growing up, I could gradually climb higher than before. It was a way to hallmark my growth and when I stopped playing on the tree the end of my childhood.