On or Off campus job?

When I was in college, I found myself some “time” (a few hours here and a few hours there).

I immediately thought I should find a job to trade my time at work to make some money. (Mainly, I was motivated to make enough money to buy a digital camera. Yes. Digital camera was a thing back then before smartphones.)

I was naive.

I followed my thought and found a job in Yoshinoya ( a Japanese fast food restaurant) off campus. I had to clean the kitchen, greet the customer, do the cash registry etc.

Two weeks later, I lost 15 pounds. There was some physicality and demanding efforts. I needed to dedicate hours…I was beat, every shift. Needless to say, I wasn’t thinking starting up a company or creating any ground-breaking technologies.

My mom strongly suggested me to quit Yoshinoya. She said she and my dad did not pay for my college so that I can make $10 per hour. (It was a bit harsh, but it is the reality.) She suggested me to consider jobs on campus if I wanted the experience of make-a-living. She then even suggested that I channel my energy to do more creative and meaningful projects; use my brain instead of just sweat.

Frankly, I didn’t get it. I just thought I had the hours to kill…even just $10 per hour…I just needed 30 hours to buy the dang camera. In my mind, I could absolutely manage that….and still submit my assignments on time, go to classes, and graduate.

Until I was 30 (a few years ago?) working & living in NYC, one day I was getting my pedicures at upper east with my friend. These two little girls working on my nails. I couldn’t help noticing them, they are probably just half my age. Then, suddenly, I was remembering those two weeks working in Yoshinoya….it was freaking tiring. I couldn’t imagine if I kept on working there, would I even have graduated college? would I have skipped all classes? would I have even been here today getting pedicures? All of a sudden, I worried about these two young girls’ future, I worried they would lose sight of doing something bigger, reaching stars of doing anything they can possibly dream of. I did quit Yoshinoya as my mom suggested. I then got a website manager / teaching assistant job on the campus. That period of time, I was surrounded by people that challenged me intellectually. I was inspired to go study abroad, to travel, to blog, to explore careers, and that led me to do what I do today, professoring!

I finally understood what my mother said, “use your brain instead of just sweat“.

When you were young and energetic, you wouldn’t have thought that your energy will run out one day.