Today, we’d like to introduce you to Ermias Hagos. Ermias was introduced to us by the brilliant and talented Ken Miller.
Ermias, thank you so much for joining us today. We’d love for you to bring our readers up to speed – can you introduce yourself and share your story?
Hey! My name is Ermias Hagos. I was born in Asmara, Eritrea and came to Seattle at the young age of 3 with my mother. My father had helped us attain a visa and greeted us here. I grew up in Yesler Terrace (low-income) neighborhood, have three younger siblings I had to watch over and went to Garfield High my freshmen year. In 2016, my family and I had to move north to Ballard due to the low-income housing being re constructed. That transition was brutal for me as I had to make a whole new batch of friends in a new community where most people had already been friends for a year or more. Overall, I enjoyed my time at Ballard High but was still in my shell. I graduated in 2019, and committed to Western WA University. Upon coming to college, my mission was to undergo everything and anything that I was too shy to partake in or couldn’t because of my parents watched over me in high school. Partying and all that. We had a good almost two quarters before a pandemic called Covid-19 hit us and the rest of the world and we had to move out the dorms. My spring quarter and entire sophomore year in college was online. The covid isolation period however, was a blessing in disguise for me as it allowed me to reflect on how I really want to remember my college days and minimize regret as much as possible. I ran for Black Student Union (BSU) retention and outreach position while we were online and became president of BSU fall 2021 once we were back to in person. From that point until my recent graduation this past June, I said “Yes” to any opportunity I believed would push me, grow me, both take and keep me out of my shell and be a joyful experience for me. I got into my Engineering Major February 2022, I began dancing Salsa and Bachata in April 2022, I started my own podcast called The Black Experience in October 2022 and other such things. Looking back at the culmination of experiences I’ve experienced has brought me to this point in my life and made me who I am today. A strong, bold, confident young man seeking to better the world through my God-given talents and gifts.
Let’s talk about your work and career – what else should we know?
I recently accepted an offer from Boeing as a Quality Inspector for Installation and Assembly that will start in August. Working for Boeing has been a dream of mine for years and getting an offer from them wasn’t easy. It took over 30 job applications, 2 interview opportunities and consistency. While that is an exciting career I will soon embark on, im also excited about my podcast, The Black Experience. On my podcast, I bring on black individuals residing in the Pacific Northwest and beyond and have them share their life journey, who they’ve found success in what they do and the advice they’d give to the younger generation. From that, these stories would provide inspiration, hope and courage for both younger listeners and others to embark on their own journey or a similar journey that they now believe they can do and be successful if they put in the necessary work and consistency. This excites me and has made grown me as an individual speaking with dozens of guests thus far and will continue to do so. New episode every Wednesday, stay tuned!
So, as we mentioned to our audience earlier, you were introduced to us by Ken Miller and we really admire them and what they’ve built. For folks who might not be as familiar, can you tell them a bit about your experience with Ken.
I got the honor of meeting Ken at the Brothers to Brothers meeting early in the year and connected with him. Upon meeting him, I valued the fact that he listened attentively to me share a bit about myself and my podcast and I did the same. We exchanged numbers and grabbed some food and chatted a few weeks later. What stood out most to me speaking with Ken, was his openness about himself and his past. I had never met someone be so open about both the good and the things that they aren’t proud from their past so openly and with so much conviction. I knew he would be a great guest for my podcast. From all the guests I’ve had on thus far, I still haven’t had a guest have me as speechless as Ken did with his story. Now, why do I do my podcast? I do it to inspire the next generation of Black individuals that they CAN also find success in whatever field they wish to embark on and establish a community for them to reach out to those who are further along their journey than they are or at the same place. That a listener can hear Ken’s advice on finding success in the business world and that could be the inspiration for him to take the next small step in making that a reality for him. That’s my why. I plan on continuing my podcast well into the future with guests from all over the United States and eventually the world. One person at a time, reaching more and more people and establishing that community between my guests and listeners in more and more places.
Website: https://news.wwu.edu/meet-manufacturing-engineering-alum-and-former-bsu-president-ermias-hagos
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tbe_ermiashagos/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ermias-hagos-a68187223/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TBEermiashagos
Other: https://tr.ee/myyo0AD16g
Image Credits
Photo outside Ross Engineering building: Timothy Spurgeon. Photo of me with WWU beanie: WWU Photography Team