> I feel bad for the student from China. There's probably more to the story
I doubt that there was. Almost certainly, the reason that student's career goal was running a textile factory was that his family already had the factory available.
A friend of mine once dated a girl from a rich family in Indonesia. She said that her goal in life w…
> I feel bad for the student from China. There's probably more to the story
I doubt that there was. Almost certainly, the reason that student's career goal was running a textile factory was that his family already had the factory available.
A friend of mine once dated a girl from a rich family in Indonesia. She said that her goal in life was to avoid working for the family business, because it was all politics.
Yes, the factory already existed for sure, but is it really the case that his career goal is to run a textile factory? He was probably somewhat proud of his family’s wealth. Does he even have to work? Saying that you’re going to run the family business might be a way of saying. “I’m set for life. I don’t have to work. I can be an intellectual.”
Dad would be proud if he took over the family business. He’s probably still trying to figure out what he wants to do for his career. And so he’s exploring various options. His family is wealthy enough to pay for a PhD in whatever field he wants, but he’s trying to balance a number of competing goals. Some have to do with status. Some have to do with his dreams, marriage, independence from his family, intellectual pursuits, bringing more freedom to his country. Some have to do with practical realities - he already knows the textile business. Running the business would, in the short term, allow him a nice car, maybe a luxury apartment. So he’s tossing around ideas. Sorting things out. He’s seeking advice from Bryan, an economics professor, with a completely different set of goals and constraints. Bryan lives in America. Bryan is free (to the extent that Americans are). Bryan doesn’t understand this guy’s situation. So does Bryan’s advice really work that well in this situation? We don’t really understand this guy’s situation well enough to conclude that his thinking is irrational or backwards. There’s not enough information. I feel bad for the guy because he’s living in a communist country. To leave China permanently might mean not seeing one’s family again or not seeing them as much as he would like.
From Bryan’s perspective...I’m not sure Bryan wants to eat lunch with this guy on a weekly basis. So Bryan is saying. It’s not a great fit. We don’t really want you.
> I feel bad for the student from China. There's probably more to the story
I doubt that there was. Almost certainly, the reason that student's career goal was running a textile factory was that his family already had the factory available.
A friend of mine once dated a girl from a rich family in Indonesia. She said that her goal in life was to avoid working for the family business, because it was all politics.
Yes, the factory already existed for sure, but is it really the case that his career goal is to run a textile factory? He was probably somewhat proud of his family’s wealth. Does he even have to work? Saying that you’re going to run the family business might be a way of saying. “I’m set for life. I don’t have to work. I can be an intellectual.”
Dad would be proud if he took over the family business. He’s probably still trying to figure out what he wants to do for his career. And so he’s exploring various options. His family is wealthy enough to pay for a PhD in whatever field he wants, but he’s trying to balance a number of competing goals. Some have to do with status. Some have to do with his dreams, marriage, independence from his family, intellectual pursuits, bringing more freedom to his country. Some have to do with practical realities - he already knows the textile business. Running the business would, in the short term, allow him a nice car, maybe a luxury apartment. So he’s tossing around ideas. Sorting things out. He’s seeking advice from Bryan, an economics professor, with a completely different set of goals and constraints. Bryan lives in America. Bryan is free (to the extent that Americans are). Bryan doesn’t understand this guy’s situation. So does Bryan’s advice really work that well in this situation? We don’t really understand this guy’s situation well enough to conclude that his thinking is irrational or backwards. There’s not enough information. I feel bad for the guy because he’s living in a communist country. To leave China permanently might mean not seeing one’s family again or not seeing them as much as he would like.
From Bryan’s perspective...I’m not sure Bryan wants to eat lunch with this guy on a weekly basis. So Bryan is saying. It’s not a great fit. We don’t really want you.