The myth of ‘Us vs. Them’

The point I’m trying to make is that the concept of an “Us vs. Them” is becoming increasingly outdated – not just from a global job market perspective, but from a career perspective as well. As we become more aware of this, we will begin to exchange our services more effectively, and navigate our careers in more dimensions than before – across cultures, social levels, languages, skills and geographical spaces.

However, there are huge risks in making the transition from a conventional job mindset to a more open, radical global job mindset. This could mean shifting from one culture to another, changing the way we communicate, adapting our products or services, and so on. But it is inevitable – the world is becoming increasingly advanced, and it requires a lot of expertise, collaboration and innovation to get there. But it can only do so if the solutions are applied in its proper context.

I’ll try to illustrate this from my own work experience.

Absorbing culture in the workplace

In October 2001, I got a job as an undergraduate research assistant at the University of Kansas’ technology research arm, and they got me programming Java interfaces for a NASA-funded space project. I was a newbie, but they made sure I stuck to the best practices and I learnt a ton from that. It was partly the culture, process, and project opportunity that I absorbed from the job. I took this with me to my next job after I graduated and returned home to Malaysia, after having no luck finding a job in the US at the height of the dot-com bust.

Cultural differences can create opportunities, and take them away

It was unfortunate that my new Malaysian job resembled primordial soup in comparison with the NASA project, with very primitive software practices, spaghetti code and other monstrosities (a work practice difference). It was also my first job in a completely new culture as almost all of my colleagues spoke in fluent Chinese rather than English (a language/cultural difference). This caused considerable tension that I was mostly assigned to projects where I worked by myself – but this proved to be somewhat profitable as I was capable of solely implementing entire systems from the database to the interface, due to expertise I gained from my previous work experience.

I left after 2.5 years, after realizing there was a corporate ceiling above me. The experience I gained developing bespoke, well-designed web applications was well-received by the next company who hired me, which was more diverse in their staffing. This was also reflected in their products, as cultural compatibility was less of a concern, allowing them to handpick developers that were truly proficient in their technical trade. Thus, the company culture mostly revolved around technology itself, and it was a very positive atmosphere to work in. This was an example of cultural diversity resulting in a positive work culture.

At this point, I was experiencing how culture made a difference to my opportunities and work perspectives in the two different companies, but it was only in my next job that I felt I needed to seek a better cultural fit in my career progression.

Seeking cultural fit for career reasons

Due to an unfortunate legal battle in the “diverse” company, it downsized and I joined a multinational telecoms company for my next job. It was here that I took part in projects that spanned multiple countries like the UK, France, Netherlands, Malaysia, India and Singapore – becoming sensitive to how damaging misconceptions about another person’s culture can be. I was also increasingly frustrated and confused when I found it hard to relate more Western ideas about innovation and design to my Malaysian colleagues. And as more people misunderstood me, I felt increasingly out-of-place and isolated.

Leaving my home country of Malaysia and coming to London to pursue a Masters in Human-Computer Interaction was an attempt to find a “career common ground” – and this is the point I want to stress: I believe that the boundaries that used to mark “Us vs. Them” are dissolving because job seekers everywhere are becoming more specific about their career goals, and because of this they may journey much farther out of their comfort zones (culture, family, language, etc.) to find a right match. It may not necessarily lead one to move from one country/state to another, but the movement of employees seeking “cultural fit” in their careers is already happening.

Some of us are taught to accept whatever opportunities that are presented to us, and not to be overly idealistic about our goals. But I believe that it’s in everyone’s hearts to serve in the areas they fit in best. I feel that as we move deeper into the 21st century, there will be an increase of savvy job seekers who are willing to sacrifice their previous experiences for new ones – and in so doing create new movements in job industries everywhere.

Good life, slower life

I’m quite happy about the progress. Comparatively, there’s a lot more junk on the internet, and being able to consume quality experiences in a much longer duration (preparing a meal, reading a book, going out for dinner with my wife) has been more satisfying to say the least.

One thing that bugs me is the sheer amount of experiences out there I feel I ought to try. And it’s a bit scary – because it feels a bit unsafe, a bit edgy… something that demands a bit more commitment and resources than clicking buttons all day. Because I know I can read the best tutorial about designing a chair and it won’t come close to what it’s really like to build a chair (just as an example).

Today I attempted to cook fried rice again – a dish I’ve cooked countless times, but have never perfected. And although it tasted a little better, it wasn’t good enough. And, it seems I could spend more time perfecting a good fried rice, or I could go learn to cook something else… but again that’s like another lesson all over again.

More risks, more planning

The thing is – I’m at the point in my life where I am calculating more than I am taking risks. I don’t want each attempt to be wasted. Not all risks that are taken will lead to learning and success. Idiots do exist, and I don’t want to end up being one.

I’m shifting my focus away from the younger generation, a generation I learnt a lot from in previous years. Some things in life don’t change, and there’s a reason why history repeats itself. In a single lifetime, I believe it is possible to learn from our past, and make a difference a day at a time towards a better future – my future.

In a sense, I’m going to stop looking to the future in order to fix my past.

It was comfortable, no doubt, but it was hard to say that it was home. The hall was quite empty because we couldn’t afford to furnish it. We didn’t use the swimming pool and gym as much as we’d like. The only thing I really miss about it is the convenient parking space, which offered shelter from the rain. It was hard to say we could afford a place like this.

Outward looks can be deceptive

Now, we’re in London, in a small rented studio about a third the size of the previous apartment, and we both feel more at home here. Maybe it’s because we both made the decision to live here on our own, and that we’re both paying for the rental of the place, and we’ve still got a bit of room to breathe in terms of spending.

I find that I do more homey things, like cook meals at home, and vacuum the floor, and rearrange the furniture, and decorate the place. I feel, for once, that I am in control of my living situation, and that’s quite a breath of fresh air.

Satisfaction comes from inside you

I think that all of us yearn for a place to belong, somewhere along our adulthood. There’s something about enjoying the fruits of our labor, and a home is quite often the place that one does that. Somehow, with the apartment my parents provided us, it felt a bit like a short cut, and somehow that didn’t sit right with me.

The reason I’m saying this is because I’m constantly re-evaluating my life. What is it that truly makes me satisfied? With consumerism often choking out what’s important to us, it’s good to step back and count our blessings. No, we might not be at the top of the game, in the eyes of someone else – but inside us is what really matters – it’s really not faking it, and it doesn’t go away.

More so, I feel lost about this blog. How can I assume to have any advice about work, when I don’t even have a regular job?

Job responsibilities are like scout badges you don’t get in graduate school

All my working friends have very fixed schedules – I understand, because the corporate world lives between 9 to 5. It’s very different executing work in practice than it seems in books. There is constant pressure for employees to perform and meet deadlines – a whole system depends on this. If I screw up my assignments, no one else bears the pain (except maybe those who have put their faith in me).

By not being a part of this pattern of work makes me feel like I’m no longer a part of who I used to represent – the workplace, practitioners, and employees. It’s as though job responsibility acts as a “qualifier” for status – the more responsibilities you have, the better you look in other people’s books.

There are almost no scout badges in graduate school. Previous working experience does blur that line a bit, but there’s almost no politics. To some people, that sounds utopian. But politics is real and unavoidable, and we don’t cover this in class.

The gap between academia and the workplace

I also find that there’s a wide gap between academia and the workplace. Ideally, we want this gap to be bridged well so that we can put into practice the stuff that’s learnt and researched. But this is not always the case.

Company goals and academic goals are two very different things, even though they do contribute to each other at times. This conflict makes it hard for students to compare between what’s taught and what’s practiced.

I subscribe to a lot of blogs and forums in the field I am interested to pursue my career, but I find I have no credibility whatsoever, because I’m not doing the ‘real’ work. The credibility that academic folks impart onto students are often based on academic work, which aren’t always a true reflection of what happens in industry.

Associations, events, blogs, and message boards

I’ve been getting my share of the user-experience (UX) industry goings on through associations, events, blogs and message boards. Even though London is small in comparison to the US UX industry, folks here use the Internet enough to get attention, plan meetups, and share ideas – which are all good to pick up on.

Sadly, though – I feel that not a lot of companies are into making full use of students or interacting with them, apart from getting them to fill up questionaires and showing off how good their brand is, and of course, to attract top talent.

Not all practioners are like that, of course. Associations have student discounts to encourage membership, and their events don’t discriminate between students or practitioners. But students tend to take the backseat – as though we were meant to view things from the sidelines. There’s no PR, no real discourse and interaction, no synergy.

Maybe it gets better over blogs, twitter, and LinkedIn. I have yet to find out.

Reprise

The reason for this post is because I love the brazencareerist community, and I’ve learnt so much from people I haven’t met, I’m encouraged to keep sharing my side of the story – because it is as much as adventure to me as it is to another person reading it. I believe that despite my being in graduate school, my career and life goals are very much alive and kicking – and that’s what this is really all about.

Thanks for reading, and for coming back.

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