“I was 26 years old with a B.S.B.A in Quantitative Methods and five years trapped in a corporate maze. I never spent more than about a year pursuing anything. My last spot was in a cubicle for a large insurance company. Riddled with anxiety and uncertainty over my present and future, I received the gift of a Johnson O’Connor aptitude test that changed my life forever.
[My JOCRF counselor and I] dug in and walked around various career possibilities to which I could only muster a tangential view. We surveyed ideas of becoming a judge, a commodities broker, an entrepreneur and about two dozen other potentials.
Then in an almost passing moment, I heard, ‘Performing Arts.’ This struck a chord…I was always seeking the spotlight in non-traditional ways and I loved an interactive audience. After the consultation, I signed up for a comedy writing course as a hobby. Eight years later, I was headlining rooms throughout the Northeast. Within this journey, my needs also took a turn.
Today, I reside in Florida with my wife as I have been a parish pastor since 2000.
I don’t believe I would have ever found my calling in public speaking without Johnson O’Connor. I can’t encourage you enough to get yourself to a JOCRF office and begin to explore your potential and possibilities.”
– Rev Fr. Mark J. Niznik, Pastor