Thoughts on Graduation

Three years have whisked by in a flash, and before I knew it, I was donning the cape, diploma in hand, and bidding farewell to (yes the saying is true) the best years of my life. So far that is. Seeing as I've come out of it with a First Class Honors and an award for the Best Undergrad Dissertation, I'd say I did not too shabby.

So what's next on the cards for me? Well, while I've definitely had my lion's share of fun at Leeds, it's time for this fresh-faced grad to be moving on from laid-back student town to The big city - London.
I received the shock of my life when I got accepted into LSE for a Master's in Management, so that's where I'll be headed.

I know job experience is the name of the game nowadays, and getting hands down into work is the most reiterated piece of advice, but my decision to keep studying was fueled mainly by two key reasons:

1. Time - I'm still 20, which buys me some time in terms of doing more things before I decide to devote my life to the 9-to-5.

2. Development - Speaking of extra time, I'll be using it to further develop myself. Through the course, I hope to refresh my faded math and econ skills ( long untouched since the dreaded IB) and bump up my Mandarin, which I've come to realize is crucial to getting any decent job in Hong Kong nowadays. Especially if, like me, Chinese happens to comprise (half) your heritage. So alongside the intensive academic pounding LSE is so renowned for, I'll also be dedicating my 2 years to honing my language skills.

I'm not expecting to come out with any accolades or distinctions as per my undergrad studies, but rather, just leave wiser (on financials, strategy and Chinese especially) than I had started.

I will end this post by sharing an Ancient Chinese fable I stumbled across in the paper today that I think summarizes my feelings on how I will face my next coming years after this resonant point:

A man and his wife live on the 80th Floor. One day, they walked up, carrying several bags with them. Till the 20th story, they were energetic. After the 20th story, they realized they were carrying too many bags so left them on the 25th story. Each step approaching 40th, they criticized each other and got grumpy about not bringing the water they left in the bags but kept moving up. At 60th, they had no breath left and just looked at each other. The journey from 60th to 80th was monotonous and when they finally reached 80, they realized that the apartment keys were back in the bag on the 25th floor!

Moral: Most important decisions in life are taken in early 20s. The actions and activities of that age shape ones identity and create the path for life's journey.