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Sed ut perspiciatis unde.
SubscribeWe recently connected with Cornelius Bryant and have shared our conversation below.
Cornelius , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. When you were first starting out, did you join a firm or start your own?
When I first started my Electrical Engineering career in Aircrafts and Air Vehicles, I joined a firm called Cessna Aircraft Company, which recruited me straight out of college. I knew I could not go home after college, so I had to go somewhere, and Cessna was the only company that I received a job offer from. Being raised in Memphis and going to school in Nashville Tennessee I was very reluctant to go to Wichita Kansas where there was not much diversity. However, it turned out to give me a great foundation where I grew into the Engineer I am today!
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
When I was in high school my best subject was Mathematics, which made me feel like Engineering was my best route for a career. I always had an interest in Robotics and was intrigued by how robots and machines were built. Once I was in college, I started off majoring in Mechanical Engineering but realized Electrical Engineering was the way to go. In my senior year of college, my capstone project dealt with building a security system for a small-engine Cessna 172 Aircraft. As I think about it, it was God sent that an actual Cessna company came to my college to recruit, saw my resume, and then that was all she wrote.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Working in my career as an Electrical Engineer, I became ungrateful about the opportunity to work in the aircraft field. Much of my attitude centered around the city I started my career in, which was Wichita Kansas. Coming from a Historically Black College and University, Tennessee State University, to a predominantly white city was tough and even at times depressing. Being by myself as a single black only added to my situation. My performance at work suffered and I was on the brink of getting fired from my first job. I felt out of place at work and I felt like an outsider in the community I lived in. I found allies in a few co-workers that took me under their wings and showed me the ropes at work while also showing me new experiences within the community. God began to show me how blessed I was to be in my position and how fortunate I was to have certain opportunities before me. Once I realized this, I began to thrive and take more initiatives in my career. I made sure I always stayed busy and looked for opportunities to gain experience and expand myself beyond my comfort zone. This more than anything helped me to build a reputation in my career as a diligent worker and my employers began to see that I was willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
One of the things I had to unlearn as a working professional is that we are all equal, especially when it comes to race, which is not true. I learned as a Black man I had to work harder and try my best not to make mistakes while on the job. An older fellow Black engineer reminded me that I had to always stay on my toes and put my best foot forward. I quickly learned why his words of wisdom were important after being laid off 2-3 times and fired once. Living and working on the East Coast has provided a more diverse experience in comparison to Wichita Kansas, but my strong work ethic has remained the same. Maintaining the mindset that I have has gotten me where I am today.
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Daniel Carkuff-Corey
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