-If you do what you love, you’ll never have to work a day in your life” -Ruth
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Why work?
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Internships
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Where
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How much
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How to work
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How to quit
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Money issues
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Lab work
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How to get one
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Where to work
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How to quit
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What to work on
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Menial Jobs
There are very few kids lucky enough to go through college without having to pay tuition and/or having to work for a living. I knew a lot of kids who worked on campus, off campus, in labs, in bars. That is fine and to each their own. Whatever you choose to do, whether you need money or not, I advise that you do what you like and make sure that it goes along with your life plan. If you work retail and you’re studying biology, you’re wasting your time. On the other hand if you’re studying business, retail may be valuable place of experience.
I fell into my profession by accident. I was at a party and a friend of family happened to be a Professor of Electrical Engineering at my University and invited to come to his lab. I showed up at Shaya Fainman’s small office on the fourth floor of a spaceship-looking building. It was neat and with a bookcase full of books. He didn’t say much, just that I should go to the lab in the basement and talk to his PhD student Wataru Nakagawa. Wataru spoke with me for about five minutes. He asked which classes I’ve taken (pretty much none at the time, I was a freshman) but I did have some graphics experienced having had my own magazine. Wataru told me to come back next day to help with some posters.
I put together presentations and posters for the lab that lined the halls. As I took more classes, I was given more projects, my jobs expanded to working with fiber optic cables, learning about optical-components and eventually to working on things no one had ever worked on before at the time.
I had a tough time showing up to that first meeting. I felt guilty getting this chance through family. Lucky for me, I talked it over with friends first, my best friend told me to take the opportunity and go with it. This one little decision made me change my major and led me to start clubs, meet people across the world and work on some amazing projects. You will have a lot of decisions in your life. Pick three people who know you and whose opinion you trust, they will make your life.
I had a tough time showing up to that first meeting. I felt guilty getting this chance through family. Lucky for me, I talked it over with friends first, my best friend told me to take the opportunity and go with it. This one little decision made me change my major and led me to start clubs, meet people across the world and work on some amazing projects. You will have a lot of decisions in your life. Pick three people who know you and whose opinion you trust, they will make your life.
The lesson is always get advice and always take opportunities that present themselves. Each one opens new doors so don’t worry about a bigger opportunity to come, you have to take the small ones to get the big ones.
At one point I quit college. I’ll go into that in another chapter, but while I was out of college, I worked several odd jobs. Unlike the nice University job where I was paid well and had good hours, and an easy going boss-those jobs were tough, they were menial, the bosses were not great and I learned about what I wanted and what I didn’t want. I learned I did not want to work for minimum wage, that I wanted to get a degree and have a better life than what life without education offered. I learned that real world outside of college is tough and making little money meant a lot more work, it meant struggling, it meant less free time.
Things I learned at jobs:
Be dependable.
One of the jobs during my time off was at a photoshop. I got the job off the street, no interview no application. I told the owner that I used to work as a photographer at a magazine I founded and that was enough for her. I was late the first day, and the third day and on the fifth day I was late again and she fired me. What I learned was that people count on you and when you make a promise, you have to keep it. The work at a small shop relies on customer service and it relied on me be there and me being late meant that she couldn’t rely on me. All of my good work with photoshop and machines counted for little if she couldn’t count on me.
Know which fights to pick.
After I got fired, I had a tough time finding another job. It was the 2001 recession after 9/11 and I was overqualified. I finally found one for minimum wage at a local deli. I had to be there at 7:30 answering the phone, washing dishes and making lettuce. It was humiliating and humbling to go from lasers to dishes.
But I saw myself being more and more valuable to the business. One day the owner came up to me to ask me to make deliveries since delivery driver was leaving for vacation. I said yes and later thought that he should reimburse me more than tips. Instead of saying that at the time, I told him as he was about to send me on a delivery. He fired me.
Lucky for me, the owner’s wife had more sense to talk to him and me or else I really would have been fired. Although, he would have been right, I should have been fired for picking a fight at such a moment.
Lucky for me, the owner’s wife had more sense to talk to him and me or else I really would have been fired. Although, he would have been right, I should have been fired for picking a fight at such a moment.
Tip the poor guys,
At that time I was able to get a second job as a parking lot attendant. I was working a parking lot in the gay area of San Diego and until the business owners of the shops near by realized that I was straight, they were giving me a lot of attention. The look of disappointment upon learning I was straight was classic.
I sat in my little booth for hours on end taking people’s tickets and asking them for money back. It was boring work and I spent a lot of time just reading books and studying for fall when I would be going back to school. For me, the best part of the day after working both jobs was getting 15-20 dollars in tips. It made a difference and I recommend everyone that if you go out there, give the poor people a little extra. It may not mean a lot monetarily for you but it meant a lot to lift the spirit to go home with a little bit of cash in the pocket.
Your work position does not define you, your goals and work ethic do.
It doesn’t matter today that I was a delivery boy or that I had worked at a grocery store when I was young. It doesn’t even matter that I put up Christmas lights when I was thirty because what mattered were my goals. When I worked at a grocery store, I was really just earning money, but I was working on going to college. When I was working on roof tops stringing lights, I was earning money, but I was working on a book. But when I am working as an engineer, I am working on a career, I am working on a product and the work ethic at every job was the same, do your best and that pays off because that is what gets one to the goals.
Work at work hard, but work at school harder.
A lot of people when working at school, will skip classes because they care more about money than classes. But each class you skip counts for ten work days you skip because the money you earn during college is pennies compared to how much you will earn after college. The job you will have after college will give you healthcare, nice hours, kind boss and vacation time in addition to the good pay.
My roommate Masha was once fired from a waitressing job because to her, waitressing was a dead end but school had no limits. She found a tutoring job with better hours and bosses who cared more about her well-being than their paychecks. It worked out for both but that attitude allowed her to get straight As which gave her far more than extra 20 dollars she would have made if she had skipped a class.
So work hard, pick your jobs carefully and never forget why you are working: to afford education to later work less, earn more and have a better life; not to have better things at the expense of education.
Your work position does not define you, your goals and work ethic do.
It doesn’t matter today that I was a delivery boy or that I had worked at a grocery store when I was young. It doesn’t even matter that I put up Christmas lights when I was thirty because what mattered were my goals. When I worked at a grocery store, I was really just earning money, but I was working on going to college. When I was working on roof tops stringing lights, I was earning money, but I was working on a book. But when I am working as an engineer, I am working on a career, I am working on a product and the work ethic at every job was the same, do your best and that pays off because that is what gets one to the goals.
Work at work hard, but work at school harder.
A lot of people when working at school, will skip classes because they care more about money than classes. But each class you skip counts for ten work days you skip because the money you earn during college is pennies compared to how much you will earn after college. The job you will have after college will give you healthcare, nice hours, kind boss and vacation time in addition to the good pay.
My roommate Masha was once fired from a waitressing job because to her, waitressing was a dead end but school had no limits. She found a tutoring job with better hours and bosses who cared more about her well-being than their paychecks. It worked out for both but that attitude allowed her to get straight As which gave her far more than extra 20 dollars she would have made if she had skipped a class.
So work hard, pick your jobs carefully and never forget why you are working: to afford education to later work less, earn more and have a better life; not to have better things at the expense of education.
seven year degree 