My Career

I had never thought about my career when I was a student. It is ridiculous for student in USA because most of them begin to work from they are child. However, in China, we were little princess or emperor in our childhood. Elders spoiled us, and the only job for us was getting high scores. Maybe it is why many Chinese students cannot find a job after they are graduated, and why many of people work only for maintain their life. We were misled that we study for going to a good middle school, high school and a good university. And then? After we graduate, we are conscious that we cannot find a good job because the major we chose to study is not a popular one, or we don’t know how to sale us. Definitely speaking, planning career early is necessary during our whole life. It relates with aspiration, and influence to quality of life.

“Winning” introduces four points of career. They include the right job, getting promoted, hard spots and work-life balance. It says that the fist job is important, we should find it and we’ll never repeat the same job. What should we consider when we choose an adaptable job? “People, opportunity, options, ownership and work content.” There are no shortcuts for getting promoted. For getting promoted, attitude is most important. It mentions how to face bad bosses in hard spots. We all desire to have a good boss to help us, protect us and promote us, but if we meet bad bosses, we should first reflect ourselves’ behaviors. If we confirm that it’s not our problem, there are two choices for us. One is working hard and forgetting it that boss is bad, the other is leaving gracefully. Work- life balance, it’s not a serious problem in his era, so if you are interest in it, just read it by yourself.

Compare to Jack Welch’s experience and consult, I can reflect to my career. I had worked nearly five years in China. Although my experience is not professional than what Jack Welch said, it is more similar with common people. It doesn’t mean that we can ignore the suggestion from the consultant. On contrast, we should learn it and apply it flexibly. Anyway, the situation is different between China and USA.

When I recall my past five years, I always consider that I was lucky. I captured some opportunities and got promoted fast. Still, there are some points are worthy to speculate. My major is E- Business; I didn’t learn any concrete skills, but learned an abstract conception of business, and experienced many failures in my university. I found an OK job but felt satisfied because getting a job is not easy for a graduate student. From the first job, I learned how to apply Microsoft Office assistant me to work. The most important is that I learned skills of communication. I worked in second company for three years because I have another choice after ending this work. I would not work so long if I still in China. The second job brought me ability of negotiation and management. From this job, I built my self-confidence. I gained many opportunities and options from it, but I didn’t like people and work content then.

The spirit supported me to improve myself is a high standard and never give up. Many youth in China don’t comprehend responsibility. They work just for work, and they don’t have a high standard for themselves and never plan their future. Ironically, they always complain their hardworking and pity salary. Everyone experiences failures in their life. I was fired by unfair in my first job. From that event, I comprehend my failure of communication and being a stronger. “Never give up” helped me overcome that obstacle and found my second job, much better than the first one. Never give up is not only applied in facing failure, but also used in seeking for progress. I am not a good student during my study time. I don’t like what I learn. However, which I hate is not learning, it is the study content. After I graduate, I realized that my degree and my knowledge limited my promotion. I began to study in Jiao Tong University in Shanghai, and I got high scores in my study. High score doesn’t represent anything, but at least it brought me much self-confidence. I cannot believe that I can change to be a “good” student. I believe that I can do everything good because I can overcome being a good student, which I have fallen being a good student for nearly ten years.

Many people consider capability is more important than high scores or degree. However, good scores and degree is still important because it likes a decent coat help you open broad doors and capture much more opportunities. I am lucky that I have opportunity to study in USA. I am trying my best to learn, and I want to encourage my friends that try best to improve step by step.

Reflection to "Winning"

I planned to pore over several books for developing my writing during this winter break. Yesterday, I have completed the first one “Winning” Jack Welch by Suzy Welch. Personally, I like this book and recommend it to you. Completing reading this book cannot improve my writhing immediately. However, I learned many skills to enhance my ability for working and perfect myself for living.

This book comprises five chapters, which one is aim at different demands. The first chapter is about the merit, which Jack Welch considered is the most important in career. About mission and values, I don’t want to mention here because it’s companies business. I am interest in Candor and differentiation. Obviously, everyone knows the advantage of being a candor, but it’s easy to say than to do. People always prefer to sugarcoat than giving candid opinions. With my experience, I am a fan of candor, but I think we should be a candor with wisdom. It also mentioned in this book. Being candor doesn’t mean you can speak everything without picking words. It means facing reality bravely, solving problems with determination and communicating artistically. The point is we should be candid in action and be sincere in communication.

Differentiation means people or operation are distinct three genera. Top fifteen percent is outstanding, seventy percent in the middle is ok, and the last fifteen percent is which should be kicking out. The first time I heard this method is from Pan shiyi’s book, whom is one of the most successful entrepreneur in real estate industry. In china, it performed not excellent, and this strategy evolved to be a betrayal. Still, I support this finesse because it is a measure that helps people clarifies their position. It not only active their enthusiasm, but also deliver clear information for people whether work hard or leave out. It is honest and efficient at least. People betray the company because of their complaint of differentiation. I think it’s another way of leaving.

In our life, we should develop and complete ourselves in every step. Around candor and differentiation, we dig other meanings such as brave, competitive, aspiration, ambition, positive and forth. We should possess these merit and more in our career. Face our life; we should possess other spirit to support us owning a wonderful life. Discovering beauty and saving arsenal in our mind.

Next paragraph I will continue to talk about career writing in this book.

Self-confidence

I read an article of news “A Crisis of Confidence for Masters of the Universe” today. It introduces many elites of Wall Street are suffering losing self-confidence because of financial crisis. In this article, the writer also discusses about the difference between men and women by the influence of crisis. It triggered my interests to talk about self- confidence. In a nutshell, self-confidence is an expression of experiencing several successes. It would cultivate other merits such as leadership, determination. Otherwise, it also can develop to be arrogant.

I concerned that many people would experience a process from self-doubt to self-confidence. The only difference between them is early or late to overcome it. When I was a student, I nearly lost all of my self-confidence because my study is terrible. On contrast, my classmates who could get high scores had much self-confidence in the school. They could be a leader only because they were good at studying. It gave them an opportunity to build their self- confidence earlier than students who were not good at studying. It also cultivated their sense of leadership. After we graduated, we confronted another obstacle; finding a good job and standing up in the society. Some grinds couldn’t catch up the style of society, or maybe only because they weren’t lucky, jobs didn’t open the door to them. They should assess themselves from self- doubt. Self- doubt or self-confidence is influenced by the environment. However, if we experience several times from down to up, it can help us enhance our determination and perseverance. Owning a positive heart is the point.

Self-confidence is an important character, but it also would change to be arrogant. Elites worked in Wall Street are examples. They gained more and more money successfully, it made them self-esteem, and they consider they can control everything in the world. I believe that as a professional financial worker, it’s impossible for them to ignore the risk behind their operation. No mention that several years ago, several influential persons like Buffet had cautioned it. Money indicates people from self- confidence to arrogant. Today, confronting with the financial crisis, they are sick. Although they would be good like the economy would be good too, I feel worry about whether they can be educated from its crisis.

Definitely, self-confidence is vital for people to achieve accomplishments. Appropriate self-confidence is necessity for us to fight for, and it’s not easy to gain. Yes, it’s easy to build self-confidence when we get success, but how can we build it if we face one and one failures? No one can be self-confidence without experience of success. Courage is the precondition of self- confidence. After we gain what we desired once, keeping a peace heart can help us keep self-confidence.

Innocent Period

I always consider the importance of friends. Some words saying it’s delightful to have friends from different lands. Moreover, friends contribute a big power in our life to build our character and morals. I find friends around us like an encyclopedia pour much fresh energy into our lives, educate us and reflect us whether or not be satisfy of the status quo. However, the precondition of it is we should possess independent and positive attitude of life, because the main actor of life is ourselves, not others. We only can reflect something from the appearance by having independent and positive heart.

Throughout the way of growing up, except of parents, friends as an influential and tangible mirror that instill various spirits onto our life. On my teenage era, all of my friends were versatile person. They were wild about developing their interests such as performance, presentation, sports and so forth. In china, we teenagers had much pressure of passing exam to be enrolled into illustrious universities. It’s distinctive for us to do different things in that age. My friends cultivate me as an outgoing, aspirational and transparent person. Its wonderful memory always reminds me that how lucky I met those amazing friends. They are treasure in my life in a nutshell.

Still, a group of friends as a small society, it’s pure if you are innocent or insensible of some vague relationships. Yet, it can also hurt you and make you mature fast if you are sensitive of some trivial things. I remember that my friends were come from Middle Class, and they were good at getting high score. Being their friends suddenly differentiate me from a mediocre group to an outstanding group. I learned much from them, but I keep a habit of courteous because I was not a talent student, and I always felt sad about it. It complicated environment built one of my characters: Hardworking. Although sometimes I felt self-humiliation, they like a torch that indicates my way to success.

Time proves that our friendship is not as firm as we believed originally. We hardly connect with each other. Maybe this is life as what we said: Reality is cruel, and cruel is beautiful. My friends in U.S. said that we should make friends in the same environment, which we can have the same topics to discuss. Indeed, we should walk forward and remain past in reflection.

Television

Considering television is one of the Medias which broads information to people, it is easy to comprehend the delicate relationship between television and pop culture. Television is pop culture’s bridge. It more or less increases the delivery speed of trends.

I know a famous show in U.S. It name is “Opera Show”. Because I use computer instead of watching TV, I don’t care of the TV program too much. The first time I knew Opera Show is from news. It said that Opera supported Obama, and it helped Obama won many voters. In that situation, I realized that Opera was so influential, and even though can influence the Presidential election.

The recent time I watched “Opera Show” because I want to investigate the brand of Tommy. I wanted to buy some clothes of Tommy brand, and my family told me that the designer of Tommy brand discriminated Asian. I was so surprised and ask my husband to check this information. We open the page of YouTube, and found a program that Opera was interviewing designer of Tommy brand. The result was it was a rumor. At last, Opera appealed people do not believe the rumor and support brand of Tommy.

With the helping of Opera, Tommy triumphantly overcame the crisis. Opera is a God in her fans’ mind. She is a people as cultural icons. Television is catalyzes of pop culture.

My Glog

Technology

Technology is definitely important in my life. I cannot live without it. There is a distinctive group—Amish people is a unique one that resisting modern conveniences with simple living. It’s the religion that challenging the belief of technology and arouse people to consider how to balance the relationship between humanity and technology.

I think they can live without cars, machines, computers and forth, but I don’t think they can abandon electric light. Because of its common and usual, many people neglect the importance of electric light. If you doubt my words, please try to turn your light off one night. Can you feel cool and alone surround you? What? You feel romantic! My god, you are spoiled by technology.

In my opinion, I cannot live without electric light. It’s not only because it’s function, but also because the special memory about it. I still remember when I was a child. It’s very poor in my hometown. Every day the most thing I worried about was whether the electric light worked or not. We used lamp to work and study in the night if electric light didn’t work. Sometimes we can found many classmates wear their burned hair have class. We all laughed it and imagined maybe he or she was studied so hard that he or she forgot the burning lamp. This memory is my treasure in my life and I cannot experience it forever.

When people enjoy the exciting of technology, we are suffering the lack of energy source. I think the next mainstream of technology will around the theme of “green technology”.

Movies

I watched “Babel” recently. The arrangement of this movie is unique. There are four stories seem independent, but at last you can find they related with each other. Excepting arrangement, the stories are not excellent. Even more, there are many places seem irrational. However, I like this movie, although my friend said this movie seems plagiarize the creation of “Crash”.

“Bible” was directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu. The main actor is Brad Pitt, and the main actress is Cate Blanchett. The stories of this film took place in four countries. It includes Morocco, Japan, Mexico and U.S. It was nominated for seven Academy Awards, and won one for Best Original Score. This movie narrates four miserable stories about two children and their babysitter, a couple, a Japanese girl and two Arabic boys. They speak their own languages, and they encounter different difficulties.

The couple is two children’s parents. They go out to Morocco and leave their children to babysitter. In their journey, the wife is shot by two Arabic boys. Meanwhile, their babysitter’s son is getting married. She brings two children to Mexico without this couple’s agreement, and they cannot come back to U.S. The wired Japanese girl’s father once went to Morocco and took a picture with these two Arabic boys. This strange relationship is a clue throughout the film. This skill made this film unique.

I felt shock when I watched the plot of the Japanese girl. She is an inferiority girl because of her deaf. She is eccentric, and she always bares her body to lure other men in order to prove her value. I feel sad and pity for her. Besides, I don’t know what the certain relationship between this plot and the whole film is. After I watched this film, I signed and felt confused.

Babel is originally from the Bible. It means God is anger with the arrogant of people, and punish them to speak different language in order to made them cannot comprehend each other. In this film, they speak different languages without displaying caption. I think this movie indeed is a Babel that publishes us cannot understand it really! If you have free time and you are interest in it, you can watch it and experience different style.

Roaming about the Music

I have done presentation about my favorite song in class of pop culture. I am not professor of music. Moreover, I found however a song I liked, I always felt tedious after I listened again and again. Therefore, I want to talk about my comprehension towards music.

When I was a child, my teacher enlightened me to learn knowledge by many songs. It likes seeds planted in my heart. In my mind, music is the most antiquated words of humanity. It brought me much happiness and energy in my childhood. I think music can shape people’s character.

When I was a teenage, I listened to much pop music. Music for me is one kind of entertainments. Whenever I happy or sad, music liked my best friend accompanying with me and never betraying me. There is a saying that goes: People who listens songs is alone people. I agree with it because in my teenage era, I don’t like communicate with my classmates much. Besides, music made me feel peaceful and thoughtful.

Time changed many things. Now the music is more and more commercial and the life is more and more busy. I don’t have much time to listen to the music now. One reason is I am tired to listen to the same old songs. There are not many creative progresses in music. In opposite, the themes of music are cliché, they are always about love. The other reason is I am busy now; I don’t have much time to enjoy music, especially the disappointed music.

I know excepting the music what I said, there are rare music likes treasures resistant. This kind of music can bring us enjoyment, peace and inspiration.

One Reading I am Interested in

I am interested in”Why We Crave Horror Movies” because sometimes I crave horror movies without reasons. I generally summarized this behavior was the expression of feeling boring. Still, this article elaborated four reasons about why we crave horror movies. It inspired me to concern this question.

In the article, the first reason is people want to show their bravery. The second, people want to prove they are in normal. The third, they just want to fun. The last reason is they want to forget pressure, and watching horror movies is a good choice.

I think three of reasons the author mentioned are reasonable, even though that’s not my reasons to watch horror movies. Besides these reasons, I suspect the second reason. I think it’s ridiculous that saying people watch horror movies can feel themselves are normal because in my experience, when I watched horror scenes, I felt I was abnormal. I thought that I must be crazy to watch movies like this. Sometimes I was afraid that if it happened in reality, how terrible it would be! I wanted to know what inspired director to create horror movies. Was it inspired from the real stories? It made me more and more feel afraid.

Therefore, in my opinion, at least one reason of why we crave horror movies is we temporary lose our saint, and we feel boring. It made us addict to such crazy thing—craving horror movies.

Pop Culture Reflection

I am not a pioneer of fashion, but I confirm that I was influenced by pop culture in many areas. In my opinion, to be a young people, recognizing some facets of pop culture is important. It can keep us always full of energy. In my daily life, I care about the new movies and music. It makes my life plentiful of fun. I like observe what happen around the world. It shapes my insight. I also have interests about the fashion trends, but I should admit that I am lack of talent about fashion. I don’t reject advanced technological products, but I have my bottom-line. In a word, I know clearly about how is influenced by pop culture.

I have immersed in a new environment since I have been in U.S. The first change for me is the attitude of life. People living here prefer to express themselves with freedom. Most of people here concern their life seriously and enthusiastically. People have regard for being professional. I admire these attitudes because it nurtures people here more advanced and creative than other countries. These attitudes have influenced me, and I am now paying attention to practice my mind professional and creative.

After I took this class, I have become aware of some about different religions. I am impressed about the first class, which is about discussing whether U.S. is melting pot or salad bowl. We then identified ourselves. It made me to consider the change of the society. I think we should keep self-respect, learn the advantages, and change the disadvantages. This is also the essence of learning pop culture.