Hello Steem Blockchain!
Since high school, I've always wanted to be an engineer. When I got accepted to the University of Toronto's Mechanical Engineering program, I was jumping up and down ecstatically and couldn't wait to tell all of my friends.
I was so excited because I was going to learn how to design and build things. Things that people use and benefit from. I couldn't wait to begin because I always like building things and putting stuff together.
Two projects I worked on in my final year of university.
But upon working as an engineer for only 1 year, I left.
I decided to turn my life into a new direction. My next chapter was moving to China to become a teacher. Why would I do such a thing. What happened along the way that made me leave my engineering career and do something almost completely unrelated?
Let me explain.
Engineering: Reality vs. Expectations
I always liked hands-on work. As a child, I always took apart my toys and then tried to put it back together. Sometimes I magically ended up with some extra parts after doing so, hahah.
When I was in university, I joined the Formula SAE racing team. A team that builds a racecar from the ground up annually and competes internationally. It was an awesome team to be apart of. I learned so much and go to contribute a lot. I felt like an engineer. I felt like I was learning practical knowledge that could be applied in my life in the future.
I am in the back row, 2nd from the left.
The University of Toronto has an internship program called PEY: Professional Experience Year, whereby students can take a break from their studies after 3rd year, and work for a company in an engineering-related job. I participated in this program.
I worked for a very large automotive company that designs, manufactures and tests parts for cars. I essentially did the exact same job an engineer at this company would do. It was a great experience. I learned a lot about what an engineer does on a daily basis and got experience in the corporate world.
Concurrently, I saw reality. I saw what my life would be like if I graduated and become an engineer in the future. And to be honest, it wasn't something I was too excited about anymore.
Engineering wasn't what I thought it would be. As a matter of fact, it just felt like any corporate job. A job I have to wake up early in the morning to go to, get stuck in traffic jams, work from 8am to 6pm and then head back home (in traffic). I have always detested this kind of lifestyle. I hate it when someone tells me I have to wake up to go to work and it conflicts with what I want to do. I don't like having to be at a certain location for a long duration of time without the freedom to get up and go somewhere else as I please.
Call me spoiled and stubborn, but that is how I have always felt and it has never changed.
What Creativity?
I always dreamed about working for an aerospace company: Think NASA or Boeing. I was even excited to work in automotive. In my mind I thought I would have the freedom to design a whole car and bring it to life. Well, that dream went poof.
Corporations don't like to waste money on brand new ideas. It's akin to reinventing the wheel. Instead, in order to minimize risk and save money, corporation will make slight modifications to older versions of a part and you are responsible for making sure that this new part meets the customer specifications.
Just look at most car manufacturers. Every year, they come out with a new car, but it's not like its a complete overhaul from the previous year. Even look at cell phone manufacturers. They don't need innovation, they need results and revenue. Making something completely new can take a turn for the worst and ruin profits.
Why I Teach in China
I wanted something different. I wanted to have the freedom to travel and wake up when I wanted to. My job in China does exactly that. When I don't have class, I am free to stay in my apartment and work on other things. I am not expected to work solely on school work everyday. That allows me to make awesome posts on Steem and record videos for DTube & YouTube.
What I'd like to mention is that I am not only an English teacher. I teach math, science and business. Not everyone can teach these subjects. I teach my students advanced mathematics that they will learn when they go to university if they major in something like math or engineering. I am happy to do this, because I don't feel like I completely wasted my degree by only teaching English. I still am putting my knowledge to use!
Creating Multiple Streams of Income
My job also allows me to live in the manufacturing hub of the world and find other ways to make money. A typical 9 to 5 (or 8 to 6 in my old job) would be too time-consuming to work on other projects. Here in China, I get to live in an awesome country with very low expenses, and check out factories to make products that I want to sell.
I have been able to try out Amazon by making glass straws in China and I learned a whole lot from that experience.
If you are interested in buying these, CLICK HERE
Travel
I now get to work an awesome job with a good salary in China. I have so much free time to travel around the country and Asia and this is what I have always wanted. I feel so fortunate to be able to escape the rat-race at 23 years old (2014, when I first came to China)
Dalian, Liaoning
Sure, my salary would probably be higher if I worked as an engineer, but so would my expenses and I'd have to sacrifice a lot of time. If you factor in the cost of rent, a car, insurance, etc., then I might actually be making the same amount of money. I can save so much money here because my expenses are so low. Also factor in the fact that I have so much free time these days and I think that alone is worth a lot!
Nowadays, I don't see how I could ever go back to a 9-5 type of job. I have too much freedom here and am excited to create multiple streams of income. I plan to make all of my money online so that I am free to go wherever I want.
Conclusion
I am glad I got to get my feet wet by participating in a year long internship. I don't have any negative feelings towards the company I worked for. It's just that I didn't get to do what I wanted. Engineering is a lot of paper work and there are a lot of legal restrictions involved.
I would love to take engineering and use it to design a new product or create something of my own. For now, I know that I don't want to work in the corporate world anymore and would rather follow what makes me happy and try to monetize that. I think I am doing a good job so far since I am happy with how I am doing on Steemit/DTube.
Thanks for reading & watching!
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