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An office job at a multibillion-dollar corporation, that is the dream job, right? Not necessarily.
In the summer of junior year, I took a paid internship at a multibillion-dollar international logistics firm called Global Logistics Properties.
After a prolonged elevator ride to the 43rd floor, the doors opened and the stern office smell took over the scene. The men and women, dressed in appropriate attires, greeted me with politeness and professionalism, as if I were a real employee.
I was pleasantly surprised by the type of work handed to me; they were not the usual "copy this, scan that; print this, deliver that" type of high school intern work, but legitimate company tasks that held responsibility. I worked diligently to live up to my supervisor's trust: 18 translated PPTs, 6 company annual income summary reports, and hand-typed Excel spreadsheets that extended over 2000 cells horizontally and vertically. These were some of my trophies from the internship, safely stored in my computer.
To my own surprise, my work was not the significant part of the internship. Situated in a fully air-conditioned office building high above pedestrians, overlooking the bund, one of the most desired views in Shanghai, and getting paid a good amount, I was somehow miserable. Every morning just the mere thought of stepping into my glorious work space made me sick. There was some inexplicable frustration about that job, like choking on the thick, humid air after a mid-July drizzle.
At the end of my internship, I had to ask my supervisor.
"I know this is a high-paying job, but working 9 hours a day like this is truly exhausting. How do you cope with it?"
"Well, as far as I know, no one in the office has to cope with anything. We genuinely enjoy the nature of the logistics industry. The wage is merely a bonus."
Suddenly, a quote from an autobiography struck me. "The only way to do great work is to love what you do.", I guess Steve Jobs had warned me already. He was exactly right; it truly matters to do things for passion, or else misery will become the theme of your life.
I was proud of the fact that for the first time, I was able to challenge my upholding of money through firsthand experience. To some, this may seem trivial, insignificant or even childish; but to me, it was a great leap forward and a vital correction of my values.
This experience had taught me a lesson, perhaps the most important one: know your priorities. I am no longer that money-driven child who prioritized income over passion. Now that I'm free from that constraint, I am open to pursue my true interests.
That unexpected frustration, that unexplainable fatigue of the "dream job", was the greatest treasure from my internship.
An office job at a multibillion-dollar corporation, that is the dream job, right? Not necessarily.
In the summer of junior year, I took a paid internship at a multibillion-dollar international logistics firm called Global Logistics Properties.
After a prolonged elevator ride to the 43rd floor, the doors opened and the stern office smell took over the scene. The men and women, dressed in appropriate attires, greeted me with politeness and professionalism, as if I were a real employee.
I was pleasantly surprised by the type of work handed to me; they were not the usual "copy this, scan that; print this, deliver that" type of high school intern work, but legitimate company tasks that held responsibility. I worked diligently to live up to my supervisor's trust: 18 translated PPTs, 6 company annual income summary reports, and hand-typed Excel spreadsheets that extended over 2000 cells horizontally and vertically. These were some of my trophies from the internship, safely stored in my computer.
To my own surprise, my work was not the significant part of the internship. Situated in a fully air-conditioned office building high above pedestrians, overlooking the bund, one of the most desired views in Shanghai, and getting paid a good amount, I was somehow miserable. Every morning just the mere thought of stepping into my glorious work space made me sick. There was some inexplicable frustration about that job, like choking on the thick, humid air after a mid-July drizzle.
At the end of my internship, I had to ask my supervisor.
"I know this is a high-paying job, but working 9 hours a day like this is truly exhausting. How do you cope with it?"
"Well, as far as I know, no one in the office has to cope with anything. We genuinely enjoy the nature of the logistics industry. The wage is merely a bonus."
Suddenly, a quote from an autobiography struck me. "The only way to do great work is to love what you do.", I guess Steve Jobs had warned me already. He was exactly right; it truly matters to do things for passion, or else misery will become the theme of your life.
I was proud of the fact that for the first time, I was able to challenge my upholding of money through firsthand experience. To some, this may seem trivial, insignificant or even childish; but to me, it was a great leap forward and a vital correction of my values.
This experience had taught me a lesson, perhaps the most important one: know your priorities. I am no longer that money-driven child who prioritized income over passion. Now that I'm free from that constraint, I am open to pursue my true interests.
That unexpected frustration, that unexplainable fatigue of the "dream job", was the greatest treasure from my internship.
