Who is Darren He?
I'm glad you asked. But settle into your seat and get ready to be here for a while. First, I'm going to share with you my Philosophy of Life (or "current Philosophy," as these things are apt to change every few years).
Life is a Collection of Circles
Hell is a collection of circles too; and if Dante and I are both correct, there are three times as many circles in Hell as there are in Life.
Don't worry though, it's not all so bleak. Fortunately for me the circles overlap:
My goal is to get as many things from the isolated, outer circles to the meaningful, inner circles. I believe that we are most satisfied when our Venn Diagrams merge completely into a single circle.
The Inner Circle
I have more interests and personal details than I care to share publicly online. However, I'll share a few (small) examples from the "white circle" above: where working, playing, and giving all click together.
SeoulSite (and every other terrible soul pun): I was a English teacher in Seoul, South Korea for a few months. One of my students was named "Sue." Sue was one of the brightest and hardest working students that I had, but she lived far from the city and her family did not have much income. This meant that they couldn't purchase the supplemental reading and listening materials that can give students a competitive advantage in class.
But she did have internet access, and that made all the difference. I quickly created a CMS-based website that served as a portal to online practice questions, simulated exams, and college admissions advice. Additionally, I integrated chat box and file drop modules so that we could interact online even after I returned to the United States.
My job at the time was to teach, but I took a few extra steps to help Sue - and had a lot of fun at the same time.
Cracking the Case: I'm a consultant now, but in my senior year of college, I was studying the health care system of the United States. (The experience was also an education in the incongruities of a progressive department at a school older than America in a very liberal state, but I digress.) When I joined Exeter Group, I was certain I'd never use my Health Policy knowledge, but I was wrong. I've worked on several cases related to healthcare, most recently at a local MCO serving predominantly Medicaid patients.
I'm bound by client confidentiality agreements, but I can say that my "job" has been one of my most rewarding experiences in the last few years. I've been able to learn about the complexities of medical care in America, while incorporating and improving my technology, analytical, and leadership abilities.
(Let it be known that I was working on business school apps when I wrote this. It's not so much that the admissions committee will read this far into my website, but that I'm stuck in the writing style of those dreaded essays.)
Feeding the Family: One of my favorite activities is cooking for my family (parents and brother), whether it's just a single dish or a full meal. I'm a six-hour flight away from my childhood home, but seated together at the dinner table, it's like nothing changed. There are really few things better in life than great food.