【推荐1】A Few Benefits of Working a Part-Time Job as a Student

Working while studying seems like a total drag, but there are many benefits of working a part-time job as a student.

●    1    . Not only can early employment help you build up long-term savings, but it also makes you financially aware from a young age, meaning you’ll have better money management skills when you’re older, avoiding falling into debt in the process!

● You gain independence.    2    . As a result, you will be less reliant on those aroundyou, and you will learn how to look after yourself. This new-found independence will also help build your character, which will be beneficial to you both while studying and in your career.

● You learn to manage your time wisely. Going to classes, working a part-time job, socializing with friends and making time for your hobbies make for a busy schedule, but juggling (尽力同时应付) so many different tasks can help you improve your time management skills.    3    , planning ahead to ensure you can fit everything into the limited time you have.

● You build your professional network. No matter where you are working, a part-time job gives you the chance to network with other people. For example, you might meet a client who’s working for your dream company.    4    , so treat every conversation as a chance to progress in your career, and always keep the door open for further discussions.

Working while studying has its advantages, but if you feel that the disadvantages outweigh the advantages, then you should consider discussing your hours with your manager or looking for an alternative part-time job.    5    , you’ll get the benefits of working as a student for years to come.

【推荐2】How to choose a career—for many, it’s a big and scary question. Deciding on the right career path is one of the most important decisions you’ll make in your life.     1     Don’t worry. Here is a practical guide on how to choose a career path.

List your skills.

No matter who you are, I know there are plenty of things you’re good at. Make a list of every single one that comes to mind. What subjects did you ace in school? What talents do people compliment you on?     2     Don’t leave out any skill, even if you don’t think it qualifies as a career skill. You never know how your unique set of strengths could transfer to a job.

Identify your passions.

Passion isn’t just a pipe dream.     3     No one wants to do work that makes them feel like a zombie! Finding your passion doesn’t mean the work will always be easy, but it does mean you’ll be fulfilled while doing it. Make a list of the activities that bring you to life, energize you, inspire you, and make you lose track of time.

    4    

The next factor we need to consider is mission. Who are the people you most want to help? What problems do you want to solve? What causes inspire or concern you? How have you been able to help people in ways that were meaningful to you? These are important questions to ask yourself, because without having a deeper purpose or why behind your work, it will be hard to stay with it in the long term.

Do some research.

    5     Here is where you could find out the minimum requirements for each profession educationally, physically and mentally. As you continue your research, prioritize jobs that are in line with your aspirations and dismiss ones that clash or have little in common with your strong attributes.

【推荐1】An 87-year-old great grandfather in Japan has earned his degree in economics(经济学) in a university. For this achievement, Yoshimichi Harada may be the country’s oldest college student. Although he doesn’t expect to get full-time employment, Mr. Harada intends to learn more.

In Harada’s time, children were expected to start working after completing just five years of primary education. Of his 53 classmates, only ten percent who came from wealthy families went on to attend high school. Harada, like the majority of his classmates, joined the army. Upon returning home, he had to work to support his family for half a century even until his children were already senior citizens. He retired(退休) at the age of 76. The Japanese great grandpa said even when he began working in the building trades, he was always reading textbooks, writing reports and memorizing important knowledge.

One day, he just told his children and grandchildren that he had to cut off their financial support to spend for his own education. Surprisingly, his family welcomed Harada’s decision and gave him new clothes, shoes and bags for use during his schooling. While in the university, this senior student shared notes with his classmates before exams and even joined friends for drinks at bars after school.

In fact, many senior citizens in Japan would like to continue their education. It's sad, however, that many of them find it hard to spare the money they earned because of their responsibility to their children and families. A government survey shows that more than 20% of the Japanese are now over 65 years old and continue to support their families. Harada, however, thinks that they should also make use of their earnings and take new directions in their life similar to what he did. He not only earned his college degree but was able to get modern education and technology in school that most old people haven’t known.

【推荐2】Born in Ryazan, Russia, the hometown of Russian poet Sergei Yesenin, Anastasia Podareva seems to be destined for a similar career.

Podareva, 28, has loved poetry since she was a girl, when her father would introduce her to works by great Russian poets such as Alexander Pushkin and, of course, Yesenin. Growing up, she wrote many poems in both Russian and English. After she came to China to study in 2013, the world of Chinese poetry opened up before her.

She soon gave herself a poetic Chinese name, Tang Xilan, with “tang” referring to the Tang Dynasty (618-907), when Chinese poetry entered a golden age, and both “xi” and “lan” are characters taken from The Book of Songs, the earliest collection of Chinese poetry. Her name means an orchid (兰花) that blooms in the morning.

“One thing that strikes me in reading and writing Chinese poetry is the power of the language-it’s melodious (悦耳的) and rhythmic,” says Podareva in My China Surprise, a video series produced by 21^st Century.

Over the past decade, Podareva has won awards in multiple poetry writing competitions, published her own Chinese poetry collections, and participated in Chinese Poetry Conference, one of the leading poetry-themed TV programs in China. On top of that, her most unforgettable memory is that one of her poems was turned into a song. And even better: She sang it herself. The poem, titled If, was written in early of 2020 at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

After witnessing China’s unity as it faced the pandemic, Podareva felt as one with the Chinese people. “I wanted to create something positive to help inspire and encourage people in times of difficulty,” she says. “Some people may praise China in a very straightforward way, but I prefer to express my feelings about the country through different styles of poems.”

【推荐3】When Jane Goodall was 6, during World War II, she was often woken by alarms (警报). The sound warned that enemy planes were flying over her town. Her little sister would run to the bomb shelter. But Goodall refused to move, “I did not want to leave my bed, ” she said. “They had to take me down with all my bedclothes from my bed. ”

That same stubbornness (固执) led her to become the world’s best-known biologist. In 1960, she stayed for months in the forests of Tanzania in Africa, waiting for chimpanzees (黑猩猩) to accept her. When they did, Goodall was able to observe them up close and discover that they could use tools. In 1962, university professors criticized (指责) Goodall for using human names and emotions to describe chimps. “I was not against them, ” she says. “I just quietly went on doing what I knew was right. ” She believes that chimps are smart social animals, which is now widely accepted.

In 1986, Goodall went to a meeting on habitat loss that changed her ideas about nature. She not only just did research, but also began a schedule of travel and charity work. After 35 years, she’s still on the job. Goodall shares her life story to get people aware of environmental protection.

Before the COVID-19, Goodall traveled 300 days a year. She spoke at school gatherings and talk shows. Since March 2020, Goodall has suspended her travels. However, she has taken hotels and lecture halls as her bedroom for the past year and a half. Her determination to spread her message keeps her there for hours each day. Goodall does, on average, three virtual lectures or interviews between breakfast and bedtime. Her stories leave audiences feeling hopeful about our planet.

【推荐2】After his father was rushed to hospital for an operation, 18-year-old Yanatha Desouvre began to panic. So he did the one thing chat he knew would calm himself—writing.

“I'm so seared,” he started. “I don't know what I'll do if I lose my dad.” Over the next few weeks, Desouvre filled several notebooks writing about his worry as well as his happy memories with his dad - the jokes they'd shared, the basketball games they'd watched and so on. Some times Desouvre cried as he wrote. Often he laughed. “Writing allowed me to face my fear and my pen was a tool to reduce the pain,” says Desouvre.

He is not alone. A lot of research shows benefits of writing about a painful experience or difficult situation in a manner that psychologists refer to as “expressive writing”. They say it can strengthen the immune（免疫）system, help reduce pain, and improve mood, sleep and memory.

When asked about his first writing, Desouvre says it was when he was 12, he survived a shooting in a barber shop in Brooklyn. After it he had nightmares about it over the years, so he started writing about it, then kept going. It helped. He say, “You can't keep things bottled up; it will make you sick.”

Now he thinks of his expressive writing as a recording of what happened and what he's learned. He always starts with “the tough stuffs” and then writes about how he's grown from the experience. Last year, he wrote in a notebook, recording the stress of his study. But he's also written about what he has pained: being stronger. “My expressive writing gave me the courage to face ray fears,” Desouvre says. “And I believe it has helped me discover the hope I need to heal.”

【推荐3】Maria and her parents moved to the US from Brazil one year before the pandemic (流行病). Better education opportunities lay ahead, and they were excited to get Maria into an American high school to prepare for college.

Each parent got a job, and Maria started studying. She also signed up for a service club because she wanted to meet people, practice her English and be a part of the community. “I love to serve,” Maria says. “I think it is my thank-you for the opportunities I have.”

She worked at the local food bank with other kids of her age, organizing bags for families who were having a hard time making ends meet. But when the pandemic hit, she found herself at the food bank for another reason: to bring home groceries to her parents. “We were all shocked when my mother lost her job. My friends at the food bank got me through it,” Maria said.

Luckily, her father kept his job. And with classes moving online, Maria was able to secure a full-time job and do her class work at night. Three of her courses were college prep classes that demanded a lot of work. During her senior year, Maria worked 40-hour weeks and studied even more. Yet, in her spare time, she packed food bags for others before taking hers home.

Just before graduation, Maria came into the food bank. One of the volunteers started getting a bag ready for her. “I don’t need one today,” Maria said. “My mother got a job. I’m here to help.”

Maria supported her family for eight months. She graduated on time and got scholarship offers from three different colleges. She moved to part-time work and has completed her first semester of college.