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C.) You’ve always been a straight-A student growing up, and you graduated with top honours almost a year ago.Why did you choose to take time off school even though you could have gone to any colleges you want?
Taking time off school was really a no-brainer for me. It’s no secret to everyone around me that I am not the biggest fan of school. It’s been like this since I was little. I know it sounds strange, but I don’t understand why I have to show up at school five days a week at exactly the same time of the day performing more or less the same task. The repetitive monotony is emotionally draining. I find most lectures tedious and there is so much more I want to do with my time. In my senior year, I finally had the opportunity to have most of my courses waived and I am a much happier student for that. Originally,my post high-school plan was to take a sabbatical and study abroad (Belgium, to be more precise), which quickly fell through after the terrorist attack in Paris and subsequently in Brussels. I wasn’t prepared for this as I have been looking forward to leaving my comfort zone and being on my own for the first time in my life. My parents didn’t exactly tell me not to go, but I know it’d be tremendously selfish on my part to leave for Europe in this climate. I’m very blessed that I have very understanding and supportive parents. Growing up, they never really impose any rules on me. There are of course boundaries and they draw the line whenever they need to, but my upbringing is relatively rule-free comparing with other kids my age. They’d offer me advices but they don’t make decisions for me.
D.) I can relate to your frustration with schools,or institutions for that matter. I gave the same answer whenever people ask me why I started my own business in a field I knew nothing about, and they’d look at me as if I’m crazy. For me, quitting my 9-5 job wasn’t difficult at all, dealing with the reaction of the people around me was a lot more challenging. You’re very lucky that you have supportive parents so that you can tackle the task at hand 100%, which brings me to my next question. Aftre your plan fell through, how did the idea of working as a programmer come about? Was it an easy transition for you, emotionally?
I was a miserable mess after I found out I couldn’t go. For the first time in my life, I was going through what now looks like major existential crises. It suddenly dawned on me that I have no legitimate role to play in my life and that I no longer have a fall-back option. I knew that I needed to find a purpose for myself, and I’ve been teaching myself programming for quite some time up to that point. I thought, why not give it a try and the rest is history.
E.) Do you ever revisit your decision, do you look at your school friends, the lives they have now, and have FOMO? (fear of missing out.)
I’m fully aware of the fact that I’m missing out on the typical college social scene, but I also know that’s not something I’m looking for. In a way, I’m actually relieved that I get to socialize on my own terms. There was no pressure for me to conform or to behave a certain way just because I’m at that age. So far, I’m pretty happy with my decision, which I think is the best arrangement for me at this point. What the future holds for me is beyond my control. I try to live in the present.
F.) Tell us how do you go about scoring your first gig as a programmer and as a French tutor, considering your young age and lack of experience, what’s the process like ? Can you walk us through a typical work-day?
I consider myself extremely lucky in that my family knows quite a lot of people.My parents helped spreading the words within their circle of friends. It didn’t take long for me to get offers. Considering that I have nothing to show for on my CV and my age, I knew that I had to work harder to prove to my employer that I am capable of getting the job done. My very first group of students are twice my age, and in a hierarchical society such as ours, a lot of questions were raised concerning my legitimacy as a working professional, but it doesn’t bother me that I have to work harder to convince people that I’m capable of bringing something to the table, and as a teacher, I had credibility and authority in class. All my work opportunities come about quite organically, meaning that most of them came to me because they had heard about me from their friend or friend of a friend.Juggling two jobs and my personal life definitely isn’t easy, a lot of it comes down to discipline,discipline,discipline. To maintain a good work/life balance, I’ve developped a routine and establish some rules. I work 5-6 hours a day for 6 days a week and I only take one programming project at a time so I don’t get overwhelmed with work. If I don’t have tutoring classes, I get out of the house midday and work in a cafe, which I find relaxing enough for me to work but not too relaxed that I cannot get the job done. I also take dancing lessons once a week, and I still practice cello and read as much as I can in my free time.
To be continued. (The last part of this interview will be available online next Wednesday.)
新世代創新力襲來! 深受數位科技文化洗禮的八年級生世代, 透過接觸數位世界而產生新世代不同的觀點, 創造自身不同的未來。繼上週的{MetaFormose x 惟惟專訪Part1}，這週的Part2 將深入了解資優生惟惟在人生的轉捩點如何做出如此”反骨”的決定?
3.
Q:一般人的觀念是：讀完高中就是要上大學。台灣傳統的觀念也帶給我們沒有上大學會沒有好工作的迷思，但是惟惟在校成績向來優異(資優班),為何選擇不繼續升學? 爸媽對於妳選擇這條路有無任何意見？
A:事實上，原本的打算是休息一年準備到比利時唸書(高等教育免費,只要有相等學歷並且申請成功且通過語言能力測驗即可入學), 我的法文測驗已達到申請學校要求的級數, 也有準備學測要用台灣的大學入學證明申請。但因為政治情勢(連環恐攻)而作罷,雖然父母沒有禁止我去,但我不想當一個自私的孩子給他們帶來不必要的擔憂。在我的成長過程當中, 我的爸媽一直扮演著支持者跟陪伴者的角色,他們會適時地給我建議, 但絕對尊重我的決定(不管他們認不認同我的決定),這點跟我身邊的同齡朋友教育方式有很大的不同。
確定無法成行後, 我歷經了一段短暫的低潮,人生第一次深刻體驗到存在感危機。覺得突然之間好像沒有正當身分可以扮演了,也沒有退路。這個強大的存在感危機讓我不得不在短時間內做出決策找到自己的purpose。畢竟跟同儕選擇不一樣的決定，總會有些不安，但我始終認為自己不是個適合台灣教育體制的人，我不喜歡，或者說我不甘願被課程、考試、成績束縛。從小就是一個不喜歡上學的學生, 我喜歡學習, 但學校有太多框架限制, 我無法用我想要的學習方式去汲取知識。我在高三時用學校成績來申請免修學分,多出的時間讓我能夠做更自由更有效率的分配,運用時間做我自己想做的事情,像是學習語文或是增進我程式寫作方面的能力。我認為能夠規劃自己的時間才能夠學到我真正想學到的事物。大部份的人認為上大學是為了有好工作，對我來說這是一種壓力性的學習 。我想先挑戰職場以及自己的能耐, 日後要回學校也不遲。
4.
Q:會羨慕大學生的生活嗎?或是有想過生活中可能缺少一個跟大家共同的話題，或是朋友圈變小了?
A: 我知道我做了這個抉擇是有得失的。我的19歲跟大家的19歲過的很不一樣。
我沒有典型的大學生共同經驗-聯誼,翹課等等...不過其實還好欸（笑）。畢竟我的個性是我習慣跟親近的三五好友來往。但換個角度看,因為工作跟嗜好的關係,我跟其他年齡層的社會人士接觸機會比同齡朋友多出許多,見過形形色色的人都讓我覺得十分有趣,並不會因此而感到有失落感。
5.
Q:工作上是否有因為年紀小缺乏經驗而受到歧視? (畢竟東亞文化有根深蒂固的階級觀念) 工作呢？可以跟大家談一下工作模式嗎？
A:我認為我算是蠻幸運的，家人人脈蠻廣，所以剛開始的工作機會來源通常來自於家人的朋友圈,但剛開始,因為年紀輕又沒經驗常常得花一番心力來說服僱主我的能力,雖然得加倍努力的去證明自己,但我覺得這種對我能力提出的質疑都是健康的,談不上歧視,雇主要求的是我能達到他/她的要求,我工作就算完成了,並沒有因為年紀輕沒經驗而被為難。我現在接程式案子的模式是一次只接一個案，能專注進行，增加整體的完整性，達到自己及雇主的要求。加上家教,一週工作六天，平均每天工作5-6小時, 通常沒有家教的課當天中午之後都會去咖啡廳，讓自己能夠在舒適的環境下工作提高效力，一周會給自己休假一天，做自己喜歡的事情(學習阿根廷舞蹈ING)。
我覺得紀律是我兼顧生活跟工作很重要的一個特質 我很滿意現在的生活，能規律又逐步達成我的計畫，做自己想做的事情，實現自己的目標。