My first job experience was not a pleasant one. When I received the offer as a research assistant in a research institution, I was thrilled; since I was not offered for Grad. school, this job allowed me to satisfy my thirst in medical research, while getting paid as a job. I was so looking forward towards to start the job. However I changed my mind soon enough when I found out my boss then only treated me as his secretary (full time) instead of working at the lab bench. I worked from 8am till 8.30pm on the first day of my job. He threw me a stack of papers containing his raw numerical data instructing me to plot in graphs and construct illustration figures for his scientific reports right on the first day of my job. I was all stressed out for the first month because I knew very little about Excel and Powerpoint, let alone performing more advance tools like constructing illustrations and plotting professional charts/graphs. On top of that, I was not demanded to get those chores done given in a short time frame. Although it did not take too long for me to pick up some basic tools, I was experiencing a lot of dissatisfaction from the boring routine as a secretary. Come on, I was supposed to get involved in the front stage in the lab, not as a secretary.
Obviously I am no longer staying in that job. Although I used to complain how unpleasant that job experience was. Although I always thought I learned little from that job. These few years in Grad. school, and especially during the time I have to write my own scientific report, constructing my presentation slides and even at the present moment when I am making illustrations from scratch for my own thesis, I feel so grateful that I was pressed to acquire the Excel and Powerpoint skills from my first job.
Sometime ago, I was watching a talk show. The guest invited used to be a famous singer, but now is a successful rich businesswoman. She mentioned in the show that just prior to the 1997 Asian economy crisis, she was divorced and was heartbroken. She was depressed and hid away from her social cycles for a year. During that year, she sold all the properties she was holding and stayed at her friend's place overcoming her emotional turmoil. Because of her personal issue, she escaped the economy crisis that had affected many at that time. Just when many were trying to sell off properties during the economy crisis to get rid of debts, she managed to make some good buy after recovering from her depression. Hence she's a few digits richer since then.
We tend to be short-sighted in our encounters; we jump to conclusions too quick when something just happened to us. This is good. That is bad. That's why we get upset so easily. Things appear to be bad now, does not necessarily mean it is truly bad later. The same applies to good things. Instead of letting our judgments and conclusions lead our emotions, it's better to try to look at it positively. Thumbs down or thumbs down, it's all depends on how we look at it. We flip the above picture down, the thumb is pointing down, but if we rotate the picture 180 degree, it's thumbs up again. Amazing isn't it? Hah, that's life!
♥ every page of my imagination
