Hi ho, hi ho,
By Lauren Shinjo
it’s off to
work we goAfter 18 years of being in a classroom, I am being thrust into the work force. As a spring 1998 graduate of the University of Hawai'i at Manoa, I reluctantly embark on the journey of careerhood. This is quite a transition.
I enjoyed every minute of my carefree childhood. I had a blast in high school and college was a great experience. Now I leave the security of the school environment. I may have been sheltered from the real world, but I'm sure everyone has gone through this process of maturation.
It all boils down to this, work. Is this what life is all about? Work? I know that I have to make sacrifices, pay my dues. If I want to buy a car, I have to work harder. The more I desire in life, the more complex it becomes.
Of course the economy has been quite discouraging for new graduates. I know some people who graduated from UH last year and do not have full-time jobs in their majors.
I struggled to find a nursing job. Hospitals did not want to hire me because I lacked work experience, yet I could not obtain such experience without working. It's a catch-22 situation. I may easily find a full-time job, however, it would not likely be in my major.
My parents and friends yelled at me to find a job. I asked some of my friends, "If you could do anything in life, what would you do?"
Some of the answers were: nothing, travel, golf, own a business, do volunteer work. Only a few said they would continue to work at the jobs they now hold.
What I wondered after my survey was, if people are not working at the job that they want to be doing, why are they doing it? I assume obligations or financial situations are the answers.
If I could receive pay for anything, I would either like to travel or own a lot of pets. At this point, if I wanted to do these things I would have to work to pay for them instead.
Perhaps I am living in a fantasy world in which I believe we should love what we do for a living. After all, we have to work for a good third of our lives. A "good" job is very difficult to find. I can honestly say, that out of the seven jobs I've had to date, there were only two that I really loved.
Although we must all accept the fact that employment takes up a majority of our time, I want to believe we all can find a happy medium between work and play.
Attitude is everything. If I take in all I can from work and try to gain something with each day, and realize that I am helping people by the work that I do, then it will be rewarding and worthwhile.
My family has taught me some golden keys in life: Two things people cannot take away from me are my college degree (I hope not; I worked hard for it) and experience. Life after school means gaining life education. As Dad says, "In life there's so much to learn and so little time."
Lauren Shinjo is a graduate of Leilehua and the
University of Hawai'i, and has a temporary full-time job as
a nurse at Wahiawa General Hospital.Rant & Rave is a Tuesday Star-Bulletin feature
allowing those 12 to 22 to serve up fresh perspectives.
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