message from the founder, mable chan
TRANSCRIPT
Connecting young people in China and overseas. Join our network,connect with students and young professionals, and share your Chinaexperience.
View this email in your browser
Message from the Founder, Mable Chan
Hello friends,
Greetings from New York!
May is a momentous month for tens of thousands of college graduates.
While commencement speeches are still ringing out loud from many
campus corners across America, the one that resonates most with me is
the 2005 address by Steve Jobs of Apple.
Believe it or
not that rousing speech was shared 645K times
on the Stanford website alone. On YouTube? 19
million views. Here are my favorite quotes:
"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living
someone else's life."
"Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living
with the results of other people's thinking."
"Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice."
"And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know
what you truly want to become."
As we know, Steve died six years after that speech at age 56. His life and legacy serve as a powerful
reminder of the brevity and uncertainty of our time on earth. We have a finite period and bandwidth to make
a mark.
Every day is an opportunity for us to "max out your humanity" in how we live and love. I love this quote
from Oprah's 2013 commencement speech at Harvard .
Mind-Over-Matter
We all know the phrase "Mind Over Matter" - if youdon't mind, it doesn't matter - right? This month,Alexandra Tirado (CP website editor), suggests thatwe share our experiences that speak volume of ourmind over matter.
DJ Furth(Beijing)
Mind Over Matter: Learning Chinese
The mastery of some things in life requires a certainartfulness - a means through which you can manipulatecertain elements and shortcut your way to an otherwisedaunting end goal.
The Chinese language is not one of these things.
More than anything else, gaining a mastery in Chinese simply requires a combination of rawdetermination, near blind persistence and semi-masochistic tendencies.
I used to be of the opinion that Chinese people learned Chinese easier. It's a genetic thing, I toldmyself. Five thousand years of cultural trickle-down have imbued them with other worldlylinguistic competencies we non-Chinese simply don't have.I decided to get to the bottom of this. And so for my go-to method of gauging the nature of theChinese populace at large: I asked a bunch of taxi drivers. I dare you to find a faster, simpler wayto get your hand on the pulse of China. Cabbies are China's weathervane.
After a statistically significant sample of taxi drivers from which to generalize to the entire 1.3+billion population, it was concluded that it is no easier for Chinese people to learn Chinese than forus non-native speakers.
Among the choice quotes from my conversations:
"I still have a dent in my forehead from hitting my head on the table, trying to memorize idioms tooutscore the other students."
"There's only one way to learn Chinese. Force it into your mind with a knife. And keep that knifesharp."
"I can't even speak good Chinese. The language of poets, artists and professors? A mystery tome."
"You're lucky that the central government created pinyin (Chinese romanticization), otherwise youguys (foreigners) would have no chance, haha!"
"Anyone who says learning Chinese is easy is a ** (expletive that starts with sha and ends with aletter of the alphabet)."
So there you have it. Straight from the source.
The pain you feel as you struggle to permanently etch stroke orders and tone marks into yourlong-term memory is felt by all, Chinese and foreigner alike.
Anyway, ask your next cabbie about his experience learning Chinese. Or better yet, conduct yourown cabbie survey on an entirely unrelated topic and report back to us here.
Sanyee Yuan (Los Angeles)
I live in LA without a car. A San Franciscanthrough and through, I have my license, butI've never driven on a freeway before. WhenI moved out here, many friends thought thatit'd be impossible for me to get aroundanywhere. However, with patience and thehelp of the every-trusty Google maps, I'velearned to navigate LA on publictransportation and just plain walking for thelast two years. I'm always looking on thebright side: I get my exercise every daywithout a gym membership. When I carrymy make-up, extra shoes, spare outfit, notes, and work with me, I'm lifting my own weights. Icarpool with friends to and from events and develop our friendships, getting to know each otherwell. It's a constant test of endurance and stamina that I impose on myself and I know that if I'mdetermined to reach my destination, I will find my resources and forge my own path.
Fang Guo Brown University'17(Providence, RI)
It’s unbelievable that I’ve finished myfreshman year at Brown. I reread my diarythat I wrote before entering college, trying tosee what my dreams were at the time. I hadhoped to make friends with different people;
hoped to make friends with different people;I had hoped to try different courses; I hadhoped to be more independent. Nowlooking back into my freshman year, I saw
myself gradually moving toward the way I had hoped. I can’t say that I’m “mind-over-matter”, butI’ve let my “mind” guide me to be the way I dreamed. I believe myself, and I believe that my dreamswill always motivate me to become the person I wish to be.
Kevin Slaten(New York)
A prime example of the existence andimportance of the mind-over-matterconcept is self-confidence. While selfconfidence is supplemented by real-worldachievements, it is first and foremost aproduct of one's resilient hope for oneself. Iknow people not blessed with generationalmaterial assets or innate mental capacitieswho are very self confident, whereas I alsoknow people who are more intelligent orless wanting than the average Jane/Joeand yet lack confidence in their ability tosucceed in goals they set out for themselves. This discord between objective resources andpsychological outlook is underpinned by the significance of self-confidence. As much as somepeople, who feel that their achievements have imbued them with self confidence, might not like toadmit it, confidence in our abilities and outcomes is more will than destiny. In this way, self-confidence can be a great equalizer. This is the power of mind over matter.
What's New With You?
Lauren Dai(New York)
At this exact time last year, I was hugging
Oprah at graduation and looking forward to
starting work full-time as an investment
research analyst in NYC. I officially started
work in mid-July, and I've been on a
treadmill ever since. Ever time I get
comfortable at one speed, the treadmill
suddenly accelerates and I find myself
sprinting ever faster to keep pace.
As I look back now though, one year later, I realize I've been on more of a bullet train than a
treadmill. On this bullet train, I've actually crossed many streams, valleys, mountains, and yes--
even lava pits.
A year ago, I could hardly tell you whether a Chevy Silverado was a pickup truck or an SUV. Now
as an auto industry analyst, I read Automotive News every week and find myself actually getting
excited about pickups!
A year ago, I would feel a pang of nervous butterflies whenever I picked up the phone to talk to
clients. Now, I regularly make small talk with my clients and remember their weekend plans and
kids' names.
A year ago, I felt a sudden vacuum when I moved to NYC and became separated from the home
that Harvard and Cabot House had become to me. Now I've learned to build a community around
myself and nurture the relationships that I care most about.
It's been a challenging workout, this past year, but as I look back to where I was a year ago at
graduation, I realize that I haven't just learned to run faster in place--I've also learned to run
farther.
Here's to another summer, another year, and another new stop on the bullet train!
Chase Hu(San Francisco)
Hi CP Network! It's an exciting month at work for me - I just returned from Kenya and Tanzania,where we met with telecom partners and conducted on-the-ground research into the state ofinternet access. I also took some time to explore the blooming tech scene, go on a safari, and visit
slum areas. Many of us havepreconceptions about countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, but it wasn't until Iexperienced them firsthand that the realitiesof life there really registered. These realitieswere beautiful - determined schoolchildrenand the teachers determined to help themescape the slums; thousands of zebra andwildebeest thriving in a land their own - aswell as startling stories of children lost topolice corruption, guards who walk downcity streets grasping machine guns. I'mabout to fly off to India and Nepal now forfurther internet.org business - see you guyson the other side!
Sichun Liu Cornell University '17
(Beijing)
My college freshman year is officially over and I am backin Beijing for my three months' summer! I'm so glad to beback after 9 months because I could finally catch up withmy family and friends here in China! Besides a fewweeks' travel within China, I'll do an internship in astartup called SeekPanda about translation andinterpretation between English and Chinese. I can't waitto work in this company whose goal and vision resonatewith mine! It will be a rich and exciting summer and I
can't wait to start it!
Yifu Dong (Yale '17)
I have finished my first year of college (how time flies!) and now I am workingon campus for commencement and reunions. This summer I'm learningSpanish in Ecuador and, as always, keep up with my reading and writing. Imiss my friends at home in Beijing. I'm excited to go back home at the end of
July to catch up with them!
What’s New with CP?
1. Seeking Bloggers Want to get your writing published? Want to share your stories and inspirations?Sign up to write for China Personified (CP)'s new feature, "Personal Blogs"! Thisplatform enables you to create a unique "brand" and meet people who share yourinterests. See an example of a CP Personal Blog:http://chinapersonified.com/my-first-marathon-mongolias-genghis-khan/If interested, please contact Mable at [email protected], Xiao [email protected], or Alexandra at [email protected]
2. ChinaPersonified.com Target Re-launch Date – June/July 2014
Our CP organizing team has come up with some great ideas to make our website–
a. more interactive for members to connectb. more cross-link friendly to members to showcase their professional work orpersonal website. (i.e. – art, comedy, photography, poetry etc.)c. more informative and inspiring through personal blogs or personally “liked” linksd. more beneficial to members who need personal resources/recommendation tofind job, school, social groups, housing and other useful links.
If you have new ideas, we’d love to hear from you. Send them [email protected]
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: Alexandra TiradoCongratulations Alexandra!
My Master’s program in East Asian Studies at Columbia has proven that the only limitations
we have are those that we place upon ourselves. The first day I sat in a political science
class taught fully in Mandarin by a Chinese political dissident, and I immediately felt the
class taught fully in Mandarin by a Chinese political dissident, and I immediately felt the
urge to drop it. I did not want to be the only non-Chinese in the class, and I knew the
readings on complex political theory and philosophy would be challenging for me to grasp
in Mandarin. I remained in the class though, because I have learned the events and tasks I
want to run away from most are generally the ones that bring the most reward and
gratification in the end. Everyday in that class was uncomfortable, as there was always a
part of the professor’s lecture I did not understand, a comment from a student I missed, or I
stumbled when trying to express my own viewpoint. However, I recorded all of those
lectures, and on walks to and from school, I would replay them over and over again. The
night I returned home and realized I fully understood an entire lecture, I was grateful to
myself for having embraced and befriended discomfort. Furthermore, this year I discovered
I am quite adept at law, as I took classes from the law school and familiarized myself with
all facets of Chinese law. My Chinese teacher also pushed my writing beyond my self-
imposed limitations. She worked with me until they were perfect and would not accept an
assignment as completed until it had undergone weeks of editing and revising. This
process was extremely frustrating and it was only until after school ended that I was able to
fully appreciate her approach to language acquisition. Because she constantly pushed me, I
had created a seventy-page anthology of my Chinese writings by the end of the semester.
Graduation approached and for the first time in my life, I did not know the next step. This
year of self-discovery, however, left me with the realization that boundaries and limitations
are an illusion of the mind. In only a year, I had taken ten classes, written a thesis, kept up
my health and had a healthy social life. So, I walked across the stage uncertain of the
future, but more assured in myself, my abilities and direction than ever before.
CP / NYC MINI SOCIAL EVENT
CP NYC members are welcomed to join a China lecture series hosted by Mable atthe Harvard Club of New York.
September 10th 7pm. “Speaking Up Online in China"
With hundreds of millions of Chinese online, Beijing canno longer completely control the flow of information.Ordinary citizens write in code to evade censorship, andspeak their minds to assert their rights.
Emily Parker is a leading expert on the ChineseInternet. Her new book, “Now I Know Who MyComrades Are: Voices From the Internet Underground,"published in 2014 - is a groundbreaking look at how theInternet and social media are transforming China. Emily is a former member of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s Policy PlanningStaff, where she advised on Internet freedom and digital diplomacy.Previously, she was a staff editor at The New York Times and a staff writer at TheWall Street Journal, where she wrote the series “Virtual Possibilities: China and theInternet.”Emily is fluent in Chinese and Japanese, and holds a Master’s of Arts from Harvardin Regional Studies—East Asia. (Seats are limited: Please RSVP by August 30th to
(Seats are limited: Please RSVP by August 30th [email protected])
Remember – you can find out more
about our members & their stories on
ChinaPersonified.com – Click
Bloggers/Blogs, Dreams/Dreamers
Share
Tweet
Forward to Friend
Copyright © 2012 China Personified, LLC, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you are a friend of the China Personified team. Our mailing address is: China Personified, LLC 165 W END AVE, NEW YORK, NY 10023-5506 NYC, NY 10023 Join our mailing list Add us to your address book | unsubscribe from this list | update subscription preferences