In the world of comic books, origin stories inform the reader of the identity and motivations of heroes and villains (thankfully, we only have the former here). Like Spider-Man or Captain America, your origin story is important as it defines who you are today. Learn about the experiences, people, and influences that shaped Concord's Sean Emmerson by reading below!
I grew up in Eureka, Missouri, a suburb west of St. Louis.
Every summer, my family hosts the Emmerson Olympics (Elympics) in Iowa. It's the one time a year that extended family and friends get together to battle for the honor of second place. This tradition has been going on since 2010.
The person who has made the biggest impact on my life is my brother, Ryan. I moved around quite a bit growing up before ultimately settling in Eureka, but through all the changes, he was the biggest constant. He wheeled me around for months after I broke my leg, taught me how to throw a baseball, and, most importantly, was always there to lift me up when I was down.
My favorite place I've ever been is Antarctica. We traveled by boat through the Drake Passage and spent 11 nights exploring the Antarctic Peninsula. The abundance of wildlife was truly extraordinary. We saw tens of orcas, humpback whales, leopard seals, and thousands of my favorite animals, penguins.
An experience that helped shape me into the person I am today was moving to Kansas City full-time. I knew very few people in the area, and my closest family was four hours away. This forced me to step out of my comfort zone to meet new people and make new friends. Today, I still live by myself, but I feel as though I have a great support system here, and it truly feels like home.
My go-to comfort food is Whataburger. Sometimes, I just need a greasy patty melt and a strawberry shake.
I enrolled at the KU School of Business not knowing what I wanted to major in. I really liked my first-semester stats professor, and he was the one who convinced me to declare a new major called Business Analytics. Suffice it to say, it translated extremely well to my current role. I was hired into Concord's HAWC program immediately after undergrad, and I've been here ever since.
Two hobbies I really enjoy are reading comics and playing video games. An activity I don’t enjoy but do anyway is running—I’m training for a half marathon in April.
My first job was as a Cast Member at Disney World during college as a participant in the Disney College Program. This was my jumping point into my interest in going into hospitality. This was a no-joke job. Without a doubt, I can say it was both the most fun job but also the most exhausting job I have ever had. Not only is the level of work fairly taxing, but you also must keep up your enthusiasm around guests. I think this experience really rounded out my ability to communicate with others, prioritize, and understand how to control what I can control while also ensuring I am producing a quality experience with and for others.
People are surprised to hear that I am a Big Brother for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kansas City.
A piece of advice I would give my younger self is to pay attention to the little things. Go for a walk, sit under a tree, and try to grasp how incredible it is that you are sitting there in that very moment. Every little thing from the beginning of time has led to you sitting under that tree. Embrace the time you are given and be grateful for every little thing that brought you there.
Not sure on your next step? We'd love to hear about your business challenges. No pitch. No strings attached.
