Uncle Dan’s Blog: And a crisis of the future…

Posted by Uncle Dan on December 24th, 2007 | Categorized as Blog | 747 views and 13 Comments

I think a lot of TCKs wonder about what to do with their lives. I meet some people who have tremendous direction in their lives, such as some of the people I meet in my hospitality college. There’s the 19-year old Thai DJ talent, whose main purpose for studying is to get a degree in the general area of his interest and family business, entertainment and hotels, respectively. There are also people who float, and there are a lot more of them. There is, for example, the girl I grew up with, who floats around the world, spreading her empathy for peoples and cultures, always wishing she had more money to do it with.

There are some who have family businesses to return to, the degree being a bit of an opportunity but more of a credential. There are some who hate the idea of a 9-5 job in the same place all their lives. I haven’t met any, but I’m sure there are people who’d enjoy that.

And it’s important not to look down on that, because it all comes to points of view. I walk back to my parents’ flat in Zürich and I wonder what I’ll do for the rest of my life. My career options seem… well they never seem to fit. And the question is whether YOU should be asking yourself if it fits you, or whether you should be getting yourself to fit the JOB… At least for a while.

Perhaps a bigger question is whether you should be spending so much time thinking about it. I discussed earlier the difference between Europeans and Americans in the sense that in the US, your job becomes your life, whereas in Europe, it tends to be a means to an end, the end being the rest of your life.

So in a sense, I can also just take a job which looks like something I can do, use it as an engine to do interesting things, and live my life. OR I can work hard for it, get promoted, earn more money, get somewhere where I can do a lot in a potentially fulfilling way, and make my own destiny.

There’s no right or wrong, and it’s a choice we all make, or we get slid into a decision without much thought into it.

The thing is that most people go into it unthinkingly. This is what they want to do, and they do it. Some people, including quite a few TCKs I know, never get to a decision. Sometimes it falls into their laps, and sometimes they float. Culturally, my parents aim for direction and achievement. It virtually ensures comfort, family obligations, and of course, makes nice gossip in any Asian community. It’s part of the reason I’m studying hospitality. I was talked into it, when we were considering what to do with my life after the crash and burn situation, and it’s based on the very business-focused mindset my parents have.

But I’m not my parents. 2+ years studying hotels, and I’ve gained a lot from it, and part of what I’ve gained is that I don’t entirely see myself in real management. So I looked at my skills and interests… and found that, yes, I used to study Political Science. I maintain an interest in international relations which, while not as deep as some I know, nevertheless has potential. Following this road, I see myself teaching, at best at university level. It’s not a bad place to be… but the practical experience of having worked in a hotel shapes my perception too. An active job is a fun one, not to mention that hotels are an international industry, and makes it so easy to travel, that favorite TCK pastime.

Anyway, my thoughts are heading in this direction because I’m finishing soon. And in typical Uncle Dan style, I’m thinking about how I’m thinking about what I’m thinking.

Daniel Nguyen-Phuoc

Vietnamese in ethnicity, born in Houston, Texas. Lived in Jakarta, Indonesia for 14 years while going to a British International School to finish with the International Baccalaureate. Survived only two years in the University of Michigan before ending up in Switzerland. Graduated from an international (and that's meant in every word) hospitality college. Interesting life, to be sure. But not the only one.