I was initially hired to clean fish tanks, but I ended up saving the company from having its assets seized by the U.S. government. In my freshman year, Dave, the local aquarium store owner, offered me a job at his shop. I jumped at the opportunity. I was the first of my peers to have a ‘real’ job, and who doesn’t like having some extra money? At first, I took care of aquarium maintenance, like hand-feeding the Epaulette Shark, siphoning dirty gravel, and scraping algae off the glass. Once the pandemic hit, I started working more hours. As I spent more time at work, I observed several concerning business practices and potential solutions. For instance, Dave struggles with ADHD, which often caused him to forget to respond to emails and voicemails. To provide better customer service, I began responding to these messages, setting a new standard for communication. By the following March, I gained Dave’s trust and assumed the role of operations manager. The quality I value most in myself is my ability to identify opportunities for improvement and my dedication to implementing them. This characteristic has benefitted me tremendously, including with an intimidating task thrown my way at work. One day, I was sorting through the mail and saw a daunting letter from the California Franchise Tax Board titled “Suspension and Forfeiture Notice.” I immediately ripped it open. It read that our company could no longer operate due to failure to file and pay taxes. Confused and in disbelief, I immediately called Dave to tell him about this letter. I worried on his behalf but also worried for myself. Dave had not filed taxes for the business in four years, and though he didn’t seem overly concerned, I decided to take the lead in resolving this. I called accounting firms, consulted with a bookkeeper, and began preparing records for tax filing. This wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be. Dave told me he had statements and files in the storage shed at his house. When I arrived, I unlocked it using the spare key under the flower pot next to the door and saw a mess of boxes overflowing with papers. As I began to sort and organize records, I struggled to understand how he could let this situation get so out of control, but I was determined to fix it. I answered many of the bookkeeper’s questions but needed Dave to provide context for those from before I worked at the company. It was challenging to get answers from Dave, who seemingly didn’t prioritize this urgent process. Despite my many frustrations, I enjoyed the challenge, and after months of work, I filed business tax returns for 2018 through 2021. Today, the business is in a much better place. While my time at the aquarium store has been highly demanding, it has also been an incredible learning experience. As someone who may want to open my own business, I gained valuable insight into managing one. This fall, I will attend Northeastern University to pursue a degree in Political Science and Business Administration. I’ve always been involved in my community and interested in politics, interning on campaigns, participating in protests, and engaging in other forms of advocacy. I want to seek a political career because of opportunities to drive positive changes, either by campaigning to place leaders in office or potentially running myself. My fervent determination, shown by my time at the aquarium store, is one of my most impressive strengths and will set me up well to achieve my ambitious goals.