This blog post requires some background story.
When I was still in highschool I, like many of my fellow classmates, agonized over which faculty to attend at UBC. I was dead set on attending UBC, but deciding which faculty to attend was a whole different story. Between the two choices of Science or Arts, I ultimately decided on a third option: Commerce.
Never in my life had I ever thought of attending a Business school, let alone the Sauder School of Business. Yet, I was hooked onto the thought when my parents suggested that perhaps my love for communication and human interaction would be best cultivated in a faculty where I was not stifled in labs (no offence to Science) or subject to the monotony of the multitudes (Sorry, Arts. I love you.).
Quite a few of my friends were against the idea of my attending a Business school. I have heard more than once about the insidious nature of such schools, warping one’s personality until human interaction became nothing more than an exchange of assets, of “success,” of personal gain. At the time, I brushed away the thought. I was keen on taking business to suit MY goals: helping people. I believed that the world is run by an economy, but the economy is not run by numbers. It is run on the individual choices of the individual, and that businesses will ultimately improve the world. Sure, there are downsides like the unequal distribution of wealth, but only successful businesses will improve technology, and technology (or, more accurately, the EFFECTIVE USE of technology) will make or break the world. I had a dream to become familiar with businesses so that I could pursue ideals to improve the lives of others.
I was, and still am, happy with being in the Sauder School of Business. I’ve met a lot of friends, and am interested in (most) of my course. I have no regrets. But on the flip side, I’ve also met a lot of people who have their lives planned. They want to make money, be successful, and nothing will ever stop them. I don’t condemn that; I admire their determination. But something always felt off, that I wasn’t of the same material to pursue success with such passion. As some of my friends still remind me, I’m just not of competitive material. I’m a softie. I’m a squishy. I have good ideas with determination, but I’m “not willing to step on the next guy to get to the top” and that will break me.
Needless to say this was bothering me for quite a while.
Now to the main event. Today I attended an excellent conference called Me Inc. Me Inc is a conference aimed towards 1st and 2nd year Sauder students to supply them with information about the various specializations they can pursue, aiming to match all Sauder students with “their perfect specialization.” I attended mostly to go with the flow, and because I had nothing to do today. Boy, was I in for a surprise.
Apparently something went wrong and I didn’t appear on the guest list (even though I paid the night before, gawsh). I was hastily added to the schedule and was assigned to random sessions I wasn’t even half-interested in. The most disturbing aspect of this “mistake” was that I was assigned to “Table 1” for my lunch session-a table designated for Business Delegates. Uh oh.
So I reluctantly put a smile on my face and a swagger in my step as I confidently approached my lunch table. Four business delegates already seated, and one other fellow freshman to back me up. It was going to be a rough ride, or so I thought.
With all the Business conduct I could muster, I professionally introduced myself to each of the Business Delegates at the table. I then took my seat and started networking with the delegate to my left. Apparently she was a CEO and owner of three companies. Eeep.
What happened next was the reason why this blog post is titled “The greatest lesson someone else has ever taught me.” Though it may not be the *greatest* lesson (that would be my mom teaching me how to write, I mean, c’mon), this surely changed my perspective about Business.
Heather White was a CEO and owner of three companies, but we found that we shared a lot in common with each other. Apparently she lived a block away from me at one point, and almost went to my highschool (she’s much older than me though, so It wouldn’t matter much anyways). But I was surprised to find that she graduated with a degree in Psychology, and shared my love for the philosophical analysis of human interaction (wuuut?).
So we talked about a lot of things, from Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to our uncanny shared interest in Martial Arts. Mostly we talked about Business, but the whole system in general rather than an individual aspect. I shared my thoughts about the money-based system of firms and my discouragement to find so many individuals so focused on their sole passion to become successful. As a relatively laid-back person, I questioned the need to be so focused, and instead questioned whether or not success was valid without meaning.
In other words, I pretty much talked about many of the things I’ve already blogged about (except the one with the children’s card game; that would be embarrassing). And, amazingly enough, Heather White agreed. She was just as passionate about the importance of happiness within the work force and shared my conviction that success was relative. Soon enough, we were talking about weird things like how emotions transcended time (Shakespeare) and space (African Literature) and how communication should be established between generations. We discussed social problems like working your butt off for something meaningless (I talked about Death of a Salesman for that, and she surprisingly understood) and how psychological effects like cognitive dissonance and positive emotions would affect the work force.
As I held this intriguing conversation, something dawned on me. A CEO, owner of three companies, shared my idea that Business was more about the people and less about the money; that the happiness of individuals is ultimately what mattered. This packed a punch. This was more meaningful than talking to my friends, or defending my position from my fellow classmates. This was confirmation that good people, or at least people with good ideals, could be successful within the business world.
This change in paradigm, or a renewal of hope, was strengthened the more people I met. Almost every success story I heard today came from individuals who found success randomly, almost from serendipity, often turning 180 degrees from their goal to pursue what they thought was right. Andrew Hewitt, our closing keynote speaker, summed up the things I learned into one impressive presentation: The Game is changing, and Businesses are no longer the transactional service that existed in the past. Rather, success can be found from the innovation and ingenuity of HAPPY workers who strived to find MEANING in this world, to devote their efforts to GREATER the value of the world that we live in, and the people that inhabit it.
Today, my sense of hope in Business was renewed (lit?). I was taught this lesson from a successful CEO and owner of three companies, and this lesson was quickly reinforced through the positive speech of many other successful individuals.
I could be wrong. The world could still be a cr*phole. We may all be corrupt. But one can hope, right?
Christopher Lam, signing off.
