This is the 965th real person story we tell
My name is coco, a post-90s Suzhou girl. I, who studied well since I was a child, failed the college entrance examination because of my unrealistic "star dream", and I had no choice but to go to a very ordinary university.
A book called " Harvard 4:30 AM " has rekindled my fighting spirit. During my four years in college, I did not slacken at all. I was either in the library or on the way to the library, and finally went abroad to study with excellent grades.
successfully joined the Fortune 500 after graduation. I thought it would be smooth sailing in the future, but I didn’t expect to encounter a workplace PUA in the first year of work. I reluctantly gave up my high salary and chose to quit naked, and started a business in Silicon Valley , but now I can only stay at home due to the epidemic. But, I never regret my choice.
(My name is coco, I am a Jiangsu girl born in the 1990s)
I think there is nothing smooth in life, but it is all about pressure, sweat, hard work, and gritting my teeth all the way. In the face of setbacks and suffering, I want to ride the wind and waves and go against the current on my stage.
1994, I was born in Taicang in Suzhou, Jiangsu. This is a comfortable, simple and livable small city, and it is also the starting point for the Chinese Ming navigator Zheng He to voyage to the West. In my heart, Taicang is more like a beautiful little garden. Although this city is not big, its economic development is not bad, ranking among the top 100 counties in the country.
Compared with Shanghai next door, most locals do not have that great ambition, and comfortable life will always be the first priority. is in Taicang, girls have a high status. If a new life comes to your home, most elderly people at home think it is particularly good to have a small cotton-padded jacket.
(As the only daughter in the family, the whole family has loved me since childhood)
I am the only daughter in the family. I grew up with my grandparents since I was a child, and my childhood life is worry-free.
When I was a child, I was very naughty. My favorite thing was not the dolls, but playing with mud with a group of children. Every day when I got home, my clothes were dirty. But my grandparents were never angry and always helped me change my clothes with a smile.
Grandpa is a very serious person, very fierce to others, but very nice to me. In his spare time, he often hugged me and told stories about little boys from poor families, going to school barefoot and working to support their families since childhood.
Later I realized that it was not a story, it was my grandfather’s personal experience as a child. When grandfather was young, his family was particularly poor, but he was very sensible and self-disciplined. He worked hard step by step and supported the whole family.
I admire him very much. Sometimes I think the self-disciplined and unyielding personality flowing in my blood may be inherited from my grandfather.
(Learn to pick vegetables at home when I was a child)
After I went to elementary school, my parents took me back. Maybe it’s because I hope my daughter will become a phoenix. My mother has enrolled me in many interest classes, including Guzheng , calligraphy, dancing, painting, singing, and writing. I have learned all of these. Among them, the ones I have persisted in for the longest are calligraphy and guzheng. Because of these experiences, I have longed for the palace of art since I was a child.
In addition to the interest class, my mother has paid more attention to my study and education. I have not disappointed my family's expectations. I have achieved good grades since I was a child and have always been one of the top few in the class.
Because of my strong personality, I have always served as the class committee member. I have been a class monitor for junior high school for three years, and have also served as the propaganda committee member and the art committee member. These class work did not affect my studies before high school.
(Writing brush calligraphy is my hobby)
But after entering high school, I found that I was getting more and more difficult to study. I am a late-mature child. I am in the growth and development stage of high school, and my personality has become much more rebellious.
When other students stay up late to do the questions, I will secretly watch TV shows at home. Watching the wonderful performances of movie stars in the play, I always fantasize that as long as I take the art exam, I will definitely realize my "star dream".
Now I think about it at that time, it was ridiculous! At that time, I had no idea what preparations I had to make in advance if I wanted to pass the performance department art exam.Many students who want to go to major start preparing various examination contents for sound table shapes a few years in advance.
(In 2005, my parents took me on a trip)
This is the harm caused by information gap. I only think about watching the sky by the well, but I don’t make decisions with it. The best way to reduce information gap is to socialize upward and find a social circle with stronger energy. Go out of paranoia and go to a wider and richer world.
When I understand this principle, it is too late. As we all know, the Jiangsu Province College Entrance Examination Questions are all set independently, and the difficulty of the college entrance examination questions is on the list nationwide, and the competition among candidates in is extremely fierce. On the day when the college entrance examination results came out, I fell into endless self-blame.
Yes, I was not able to get into a key university. At that time, the score could only barely go to an ordinary double non- university.
I was so confused during that time that my parents directly made the decision for me which university to choose and which major to choose. I dare not have any idea because I don’t think I am qualified to reject any kindness from my parents.
(Being a volunteer gives me more choices in my life)
The holiday after the college entrance examination, because I have a good reputation, I was invited to attend the entrance banquet of many good friends to celebrate their admission to the university they like.
The lively scene during the day, I am not that lonely. But when I was lying alone in bed at night, I often toss and turn, thinking about my college life in the next four years. There was a fact that I couldn't sleep anymore, so I got up and read books, reading all kinds of inspirational books to cheer myself up.
The book that impressed me the most was "Harvard at 4:30 am". At around 4 a.m., the Harvard University Library was brightly lit and full. I still remember the content of the beginning is to be the best person in ten years . There is no time for , and now is the best start.
(Everyone has a Hogwarts in his heart)
Maybe many people now say that this is a chicken soup article, but at that time, this book really brought me a glimmer of light and hope to me in the dilemma.
Some things do not persist only when you see hope, but because you persist only when you see hope. There may be thorns and obstacles ahead, but as long as you follow the guidance of a ray of light, you can always find the ideal place with flowers everywhere.
With this belief, after the holiday, I packed my bags and stepped into an ordinary university in Jiangsu. During my college years, I showed off the enthusiasm of others to sprint for the senior year, either in the library or on the way to the library. During that time, I didn't feel bitter at all, but I was happy about it.
(Besides working hard, I also learned to stop and enjoy a cup of afternoon tea)
As the Harvard school motto says, learning is not the whole of life. But since even a part of life - learning, cannot be conquered, what else can I do?
I have won almost all the honors in the past four years of university, such as school scholarships, three good students, outstanding class cadres, etc. At that time, I deeply realized that people still need to learn, and no matter where you are, hard work is really useful.
In 2015, I got the opportunity to go to South Carolina, USA to exchange students. That university was actually not well-known in , South Ka , and it was completely different from what I imagined going abroad. But the locals in South Carolina are very simple, and everyone will greet you warmly when they see you, which makes me feel very at ease when I just arrived in a strange country.
(I was so happy on the day of graduation! All efforts will be rewarded)
During the year I went abroad for exchanges in South Carolina, I felt particularly proud of being a Chinese student.
My math scores are not the best in China. I took the math class after going abroad with local American classmates. I found that as long as I listen carefully to the class and digest it carefully, I can get full marks in every exam, which surprised American students: Chinese people are really good at math.
Life needs goals, studying abroad teaches me life.
After the exchange time of one year ended, in 2016 I went to Clemson University in South Carolina, USA to study for accounting master.Because studying abroad costs a lot of money, as a student from an ordinary family, I finally chose , Clemson University, which has a relatively cheap tuition.
(draw yourself a cute makeup)
As a public university, Clemson University has cheap tuition and good cost performance, but its ranking (about 60) is not that outstanding.
Now, when I think about it, I feel that I was still young and ignorant at that time, and I only care about the gains and losses in front of me. Nowadays, when many international students go abroad, the first thing they first consider is geographical factors and the level of urban development. I didn't understand at the time.
Just arrived at Clemson University in the first semester, I realized the extraordinary difficulty of graduate courses. I originally thought I would have the same learning progress as my senior year, but I didn’t expect that the first class would make me miserable. The teacher speaks very fast during class and the courses are very full.
Moreover, the students in the class are both local American students and international students from China, they are all great masters at the top level. We are a major in accounting and we will work together in groups during class. Almost all students in our group took the CPA exam ( certified public accountant ), and their scores were over 90 points, and some students even had internships in the Four Majors.
(The reading plan I made for myself in 2021)
Sometimes the teacher asks questions in class, but I haven’t figured out what the problem is yet. The masters in the same group have already started to answer questions. To be honest, I was really desperate at that time and felt the gap again.
But fortunately, the students in the same group took good care of me at that time. We studied together and stayed up all night during the exam season. I often learn until three in the morning, sleep for three hours, and then get up at 66 in the morning and continue to study.
I always feel stressed when I am with so many excellent students. All my thoughts are focused on my studies and I have no time to care about anything else. This state lasted almost a whole semester, and it was not until the second semester that I adapted a little, which was also a hard work for myself.
(2022 on the beach next to California Highway 1)
As a child from an ordinary family, he also thought about working part-time to reduce the burden. The tuition fee for Clemson University is about US$10,000 in one semester, but my student status in South Carolina is not allowed to work.
searched the campus network and found that the school’s activity scholarship was not bad, so try to get the scholarship. The scholarship in the second semester directly offset nearly two-thirds of the tuition fee. I’m happy!
During my graduate studies at Clemson University, I realized the differences between people and also made me understand that learning is the simplest, effective and high-reward path. Mo Yan once said that what kind of life you want to live, you must learn to study quietly and settle patiently.
(When I am under great pressure, I will go to the beach to relax)
In 2019, I returned to China and entered a Fortune 500 company through social recruitment and worked at the Shanghai headquarters. On the first day of work, I found that my colleagues around me all graduated from Jiaotong University and Fudan . I suddenly felt a deep sense of pride in my heart, and we stood with students from prestigious schools again!
I was a new employee at that time and my colleague in the same group happened to be pregnant. I took most of her job and studied and worked every day.
I use the little free time to prepare for the CPA exam. Before joining the job, I had already passed two subjects. Although I was under a lot of work pressure, I still insisted on using the fragmented time I spent on washing, commuting, lunch break, and going to bed every day, and even video-study with my boyfriend who was a top student in Silicon Valley.
Thanks to the boss at that time for his trust. I think he grew up very fast during that period.
(take work photos)
No one will grow up inexplicably, and the pain behind the growth needs to be done differently than ordinary people. Not long after , I encountered a workplace PUA that newcomers may encounter. It is very hard to face various data every day in financial analysis. It is often overtime, and it is normal to get off work at 11 or 2 o'clock in the evening.
Maybe it was because I was too tired. One night, I had a headache and nausea after going home from overtime. The temperature was as high as 39.5 degrees. The hospital checked that I needed to be hospitalized for pneumonia.
But my direct leader tactfully hinted to me: "You are still in the probation period, and some work still needs to be done." In desperation, I could only ask my parents to go to the workplace to help me get the computer. In this way, I stayed in the hospital for a week and did not lose work, but my body sounded the alarm.
(How can you see the rainbow without experiencing the storm? There will be stars and seas in the future)
After experiencing this storm, my direct leader often "encourages" me with "newcomers should work hard, and sum up more overtime at night if you don't understand" or "Why did you make a mistake again?" to blame me.
My state becomes very unstable, and I will fall into self-doubt and self-negation from time to time. Although I have a five-digit monthly salary, I am very unhappy. I think I may have encountered a workplace PUA! After working for a year and a half, I finally chose to resign from this Fortune 500 company.
After resigning at the end of 2020, I went to Silicon Valley, USA and lived with my boyfriend Lao Wang who has been away from home for many years. Although my graduate students in college have always studied accounting, I still have a yearning for art.
(I believe that hard work will pay off when starting a business from a small town to Silicon Valley)
So during my rest in Silicon Valley, I started to operate my own media. Unexpectedly, the epidemic has become more and more serious in recent years. Air tickets to return to China are so expensive and difficult to buy. I haven’t seen my family for almost two years.
Lao Wang and I have always worked from home and almost never go out. Now my self-media creation is starting to get on track, but in the future I want to pursue another degree, return to the workplace, and be a slash youth.
This is the story of me, an ordinary small town born in the 1990s girl. From failing the college entrance examination to studying abroad, from joining the Fortune 500 to regrouping in the workplace PUA, these ten years of experience have made me understand a truth: there must be a reason for people to grow, and the efforts and accumulation behind it must be several times that of ordinary people. So, the key is yourself.
May all the bustling things turn into a breeze and bright moon, and dreams from all directions become promising in the future.
[Oral: coco in Silicon Valley]
[Editor: Junjunhe]
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