Tribal workers
Copyright The Financial Times Limited
A friend of mine recently met a young American woman who was studying on a
Rhodes Scholarship at Oxford. She already had two degrees from top US
universities, had worked as a lawyer and as a social worker in the US, and
somewhere along the way had acquired a black belt in kung fu.
Now, however, her course at Oxford was coming to an end and she was
thoroughly angst-ridden about what to do next. Her problem was no ordinary
one. She couldn't decide whether:
1. she should make a lot of money as a
corporate lawyer/management consultant
2. devote herself to charity work
helping battered wives in disadvantaged communities
3. or go to Hollywood to
work as a stunt double in kung fu films.
What most struck my friend was not the disparity of this woman's choices,
but the earnestness and bad grace with which she ruminated on them. It was
almost as though she begrudged her own talents, opportunities and freedom
-as though the world had treated her unkindly by forcing her to make such a
hard choice.
Her case is symptomatic of our times. In recent years, there has grown up a
culture of discontent among the highly educated young, something that seems
to flare up, especially, when people reach their late 20s and early 30s. It
arises not from frustration caused by lack of opportunity, as may have
been true in the past, but from an excess of possibilities.
(...)
Whereas the early to mid-20s are seen as a time to establish one's mode of living, the late 20s to early 30s are often considered a period of reappraisal.
In a society where people marry and have children young, where financial burdens accumulate early, and where job markets are inflexible, such reappraisals may not last long. But when people manage to remain free of financial or family burdens , and where the perceived opportunities for alternative careers are many, the reappraisal is likely to be angst-ridden and long lasting.
Podem continuar o texto em:
http://livrosavoltadomundo.blogs.sapo.pt/24454.html
Não é que eu me considere elite nem nada de xpto\\GTI - aliás - nem me identifiquei com a maioria dos perfis mas achei piada a deparar com este texto e reconhecer imediatamente a ansiedade de que ele fala...
olá! pelos vistos não és só minha!
Copyright The Financial Times Limited
A friend of mine recently met a young American woman who was studying on a
Rhodes Scholarship at Oxford. She already had two degrees from top US
universities, had worked as a lawyer and as a social worker in the US, and
somewhere along the way had acquired a black belt in kung fu.
Now, however, her course at Oxford was coming to an end and she was
thoroughly angst-ridden about what to do next. Her problem was no ordinary
one. She couldn't decide whether:
1. she should make a lot of money as a
corporate lawyer/management consultant
2. devote herself to charity work
helping battered wives in disadvantaged communities
3. or go to Hollywood to
work as a stunt double in kung fu films.
What most struck my friend was not the disparity of this woman's choices,
but the earnestness and bad grace with which she ruminated on them. It was
almost as though she begrudged her own talents, opportunities and freedom
-as though the world had treated her unkindly by forcing her to make such a
hard choice.
Her case is symptomatic of our times. In recent years, there has grown up a
culture of discontent among the highly educated young, something that seems
to flare up, especially, when people reach their late 20s and early 30s. It
arises not from frustration caused by lack of opportunity, as may have
been true in the past, but from an excess of possibilities.
(...)
Whereas the early to mid-20s are seen as a time to establish one's mode of living, the late 20s to early 30s are often considered a period of reappraisal.
In a society where people marry and have children young, where financial burdens accumulate early, and where job markets are inflexible, such reappraisals may not last long. But when people manage to remain free of financial or family burdens , and where the perceived opportunities for alternative careers are many, the reappraisal is likely to be angst-ridden and long lasting.
Podem continuar o texto em:
http://livrosavoltadomundo.blogs.sapo.pt/24454.html
Não é que eu me considere elite nem nada de xpto\\GTI - aliás - nem me identifiquei com a maioria dos perfis mas achei piada a deparar com este texto e reconhecer imediatamente a ansiedade de que ele fala...
olá! pelos vistos não és só minha!
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