sycep-cm

[sycep-cm]

Week Six: August 4th-August 7th

As this program is quickly coming to an end, I could only reminisce about so much. To be honest, I don't quite remember what happened day to day, but I do remember the people I've met. Not just Jonathan, Dennis, and Kimberly or the staff in the PAACH office, but the random strangers and faces that became familiar in the workplace. Although I learned a lot through physically working, the people that I've met are what made my experiences valuable and memorable. One of the semi-superficial things that positively influenced my SYCEP experience was the money I had to buy things. Yes, I enjoyed shopping and buying food (this is deep). I enjoyed paying for people because I was able to. I enjoyed buying my mom things on random days. However, there's a profound (hehe thanks Kenneth for explaining this to me) reason why I like to have money. It teaches me that if I want anything I have to work for it. There is always a reward for our actions, whether it is mentally or physically. You are probably wondering why I said random strangers made my experience valuable. I love nice people. It's refreshing to see a random soul reach out with compassion on their own will. There were the strangers who let me know that, if I stood at that bus stop I'd be standing there all day because it doesn't run on Saturdays. The ones who were interersted in my experience and work. Those who helped me around the campus when I looked lost. The students who were interested and interesting enough to converse to about their experiences prior to and during college. More importantly than the strangers, the PAACH staff and BPSOS team including the students (that I know) are important to me. I came into this program completely unsure of "what I want to do with my life"; however, as I leave I am leaving with values, strengths, friendships, and opportunites that I never had if I hadn't joined SYCEP. All it took for me was a question with Hong on the train on where she was going, and a little signing up to be in SYCEP. I'm super excited to be involved with this organization in the future, especially this upcoming school year for YPOP. Again, all I have to do is a little signing up, then hopefully I could encounter more amazing experiences and people.

[sycep-cm]

Week Five: July 29th - July 31st

PAACH was the first true work experience I've ever had. Ever since my first day, I look at each opportunity as a chance to practice; practice with communication, responsibility, time management, and adaptability. Although these qualities are developed during work, they are what contribute to my character in everyday life.

It's great that my first experience was an internship rather than the common teenage fast food restaurant worker or retail worker. It gives me a chance to experience the true duties in the working world, and it gives me a chance to grow and learn about myself. That being said, it sets standards for what I wish to do in my part time job during school and later career. One of the things I don't want is to work solely for money. I want to work to make a difference, with a purpose, and I want to learn something important everyday.

I like to take on opportunities because it makes me different from the people in school. Yes, we're all different but there's a line between those who are proactive and those who get by. In this internship, I become experienced and acquire knowledge that I wouldn't have otherwise. It's always beneficial to know outside information because I know later down the line, it will help me. I also value talking to other students in the program. It's refreshing to know that so many young people are so motivated to become successful and make a difference that the same seed is planted in my brain and is slowly blossoming to do the same.

This six week summer program has really opened my eyes to the endless opportunities available. My mind has evolved realistically and proactively. It shows me if I want something, I have to go get it. Short term, working has allowed me to buy what I want, but long term it'll allow me to become successful, stable, and happy. I am thrilled by the fact that I learned so much in my first job; fortunately, there will be so many more experiences and opportunities to come. Whatever opportunity arises, I'm fully receptive to it because each opportunity is a chance to practice, learn, and grow.

[sycep-cm]

Love this. Thanks for your thoughtful reflections!

If I had it my way, my dream job would be to travel the world; to become an adventurer and be immersed in the culture of the country I’m in. Sadly, I don’t have the money to do that. Obviously and realistically, if I want to do any traveling I have to have a job to make some money. Although I’m...

[sycep-cm]

Week Four: July 21st - 25th

If I had it my way, my dream job would be to travel the world; to become an adventurer and be immersed in the culture of the country I’m in. Sadly, I don’t have the money to do that. Obviously and realistically, if I want to do any traveling I have to have a job to make some money. Although I’m not sure exactly what my dream job is, I already know what I don’t want; I don’t want to be tied down to a desk and work in an office from 9 to 5; I don’t want to do work that is so overshadowed by the boss I don’t receive any recognition; I don’t want to wake up everyday and loathe what I’ll be doing for the next couple of hours of my life... for a week… all year. 

So, the first paragraph was written on Thursday and it is now Friday, after the professional development session. I always look forward to Fridays. Despite what is planned, I always find them interesting and a fun way to spend Friday mornings. Today I was inspired by the speaker. One of the first things he told us is that (I'm not sure if I'm exactly right but something along these lines) he works for himself, while wanting to work with other people. That alone sums up what I wish to do in my future. I don't want to be treated as a worker, I want to be treated as a colleague, a partner, someone appreciated and needed.

I was that person who found "college questionable". I thought it was a scam because of the price we have to pay to receive an education. But after some thought and a change in perspective, it's the price we pay to get an education to become successful (obvious... but I guess the last three words of that sentence were hidden by my stubbornness). Even today, speaking with Angela from PYN opened my eyes; just a slice of the conversation. She said she didn't know what she wanted to do after high school. She spent a lot of time working at restaurants but soon decided she should go to college because she didn't want to be waitressing the rest of her life. 

Of course my first job will never be to work for myself, but ultimately that's the goal. Now I see college as the outer core of the Russian Nesting Dolls, and every step I take is a shell closer to what I want. Once again, I'm not sure exactly what my dream job is. Angela suggested volunteering in various programs and organizations can give me experience in many different areas so I will definitely take that into consideration. It'll help me figure out my interests, non-interests, likes, and dislikes. It's funny how a couple hours could change my perspective so quickly. It all depends on who we surround ourselves with; then, inspiration can lead to great things.

[sycep-cm]

Week Three: July 14th-17th

Out of all of my strengths, adaptability is what stands out to me the most. I say this because when everything is constantly changing, readily adjusting is significant, especially in this day and age. Throughout my life (anyone else can agree), I've been faced with dramatic changes, whether or not I wanted them to happen. Being adaptable at my work site is important because some days I would walk in with no clue what to expect. I have to be able to work according to; this could be dealing with mishaps, starting conversation with someone I don't know, answering the phone when I least expect it, or walking through the campus to complete a task. A lot of unexpected things could happen, so adaptability helps me go with the flow, move on, and not look foolish. According to the sentence above, I believe connectedness ties in with adaptability. This trait comes as half of a surprise to me though; I do believe things happen for a reason, but I also believe in coincidences. I'm not sure how that's possible. But generally, there's a coincidence in fate (???) Since unexpected things happen, one, we must adapt and two, if it's something bad I don't dwell on it. I try to get something good out of it. Say, if I made a mistake at work the only thing to do is to learn from it and do better next time; the same thing applies to my personal life. Connectedness is important in the workplace because it makes me more empathetic and friendly. Any how, it is what drives me.

Another strength I'd agree to is intellection. I enjoy thinking and having "far off" conversations, things more than talk of the weather or what I had for dinner last night. PAACH is a place that helps student get in touch with identity, culture, etc. These are things that I've never thought too much about as an Asian American. However, while working at PAACH I became curious about my parents' lives when they were my age, and I got to know them a little better. Now that I know their life changing adversities, it makes me appreciate my life more. I feel blessed to have such an easy life despite the stereotypical angsty teenagers' personality. Intellection ties into this subject because my mind wanders on the spectrum on what could have happened and what did happen. As a result I do a self evaluation of and what I can do to improve as a student and a human.

I was surprised to find the StrengthQuests quiz pretty accurate. Although they seem more philosophical than scientific, I'm pleased with putting them together to find out what kind of person I am. I just hope these collectively philosophical strengths push me into a career that I'm passionate about, since these traits do reflect my personality. Now I know these are actual strengths and not just themes I'm interested in, if that makes sense.

[sycep-cm]

Week Two: July 7th-10th

This week's tasks required more thinking, creativity, and definitely more responsibility. PAACH's lenient and relaxing vibe allowed me to finish the work given to me with my best effort. I found myself answering more phone calls and communicating my thoughts and ideas among the PAACH staff. I feel that a big part of responsibility is knowing what's going on. How could we accomplish anything if we aren't sure what the goal is. A way I got there was to ask questions, to communicate.

Carrying on from last week's post, the books I checked out had to be put to use. I had to write an annotated bibliography for PVD. I didn't know how I could possibly analyze the books if I hadn't read them. However, PVD said it's fine to use outside sources and if I had to, to skim through it myself. I asked questions for clarification of what he was looking for, then I started reading. I found myself frustrated at times; unfortunately, some of the books didn't contribute to the study. However, I still remained calm. After researching and skimming, writing and analyzing came easy to me... After I got over the first source; it's like my ideas were stuck until I got over the pothole, then everything turned into a smooth ride. I made sure he read the first source to make sure my writing and content was what he was looking for.

Another project was improving the website for PAACH. This was easy since all I had to do was give honest judgement on the website. During this time, we had to communicate effectively and think outside of the box. The other intern, F (not a part of BPSOS) had to attribute to this project too. When PVD, F, and I met to discuss the website, F's first suggestions were general so I input an abundance of ideas (which is something I would do, according to Strength Quest's "ideation"). Taking the wheel is a part of responsibility because communication and progression is important- especially towards achieving a common goal.

I know I will be challenged with accountability every day I go to work. So it's my responsibility to ask questions, communicate, and do things that an employee should. However, my boss and I talked about college and the future which I could relate to this post; it's a time where we can grow so it's okay to still make mistakes. After this week, I find that I'm not as afraid to speak up as I was before, because my work has had good impacts- which'll probably help my self esteem in school since I'm the semi-quite one.

[sycep-cm]

Week One: July 1st-June 3rd

I work at the Pan-Asian American Community House (PAACH) at the University of Pennsylvania. It is called a community house for a reason; a home away from home for Asian American students. The title makes it look like a three day week, and it sort of was. As we know it, the first time for anything is usually filled with confusion and obstacles. However, as a student each problem is followed by a solution. Three words that were important to me this week were understanding and integration/ assimilation; three of which I had to apply everyday.

The first thing we accomplished was getting me a Pennkey ID card which was the "key to all doors" (literally) at Penn. On my first day, June 30th (yes, I actually worked on the wrong day so I'll have to make up my hours- strike one for an obstacle) my Pennkey code wasn't working! I couldn't log into the computer and the basis of my job was using one. My boss, PVD called three different people to find out what the problem was; turned out we had to speak to the Pennkey account makers at their office. Long story short, everyone was in a misunderstanding but an hour later the problem was solved. The first two days were easy; I just entered business cards into excel, a very repetitive task. July 2nd was where I was granted with another challenge. PVD is teaching a class next year, and I had to find sources for one particular subject. I found many great sources online at the Van Pelt Library, but obviously I had to retrieve the physical books. My time range was 11:30-12:15 and I thought that was enough time since I looked online of the books' locations and call numbers (for the fear of getting lost in the library). However, I found the FIRST of many books at 12:10. The call numbers had 5 or more different sections, and the library was five floors. I quickly emailed PVD about how disastrous my time at the library was and asked for more time, luckily he gave me until 2:30. My brain felt like scrambled eggs, but I quickly got myself together and found all of the books by 1:40. It's easy to see why understanding was important to me this week, because I lacked so much of it. Now that the first week is over I understand the basics of what I had done so far.

Now integration and assimilation are very important- at my work-site, with my supervisors, bosses, other interns, and my own life (I want to use those words together because I feel like they go hand in hand). We've all heard something along the lines of "Your job is not your life", and I fully believe that; however, only as an intern my life is supposed to revolve around my job. Since my supervisors and bosses are taking their time to help me grow I should do what they say. So work and home have to work together without clashing. On a different note, I have to assimilate PAACH's work atmosphere into how I should portray myself at work. I should be relate-able yet not too casual to build relationships with those around me. After all, PAACH is a place where one should feel comfortable and at home!

Overall, this week was a week of transitioning and adapting. I had to know my way around the campus, library, and work-site itself. I had to remember to not be too casual but still relate-able and personable. It was exciting and nerve wracking to be around college students and older people who were working to become professionals or already professionals. Everyday is like a study session to me because I'm watching how other people behave in their workplace and with their colleagues, then I apply that to how I should act (if I agree). Even though I have been skeptical and unsure about my future, career, and passions I am glad to be in SYCEP and PAACH. I am excited and hopeful to find out more about myself because I wouldn't know how to do this alone.