Category: experience

Don’t assume

To my dear readers,

I’m back! Sorry for not posting last week. I was very unwell. Fortunately, I feel better now. 🙂   Anyhow, today’s post is based on one of my real life interactions with a friend.

A few weeks ago, I finally caught up with my friend Nathan (fake name) after four years of not seeing him. Back in the days, we used to go to events and parties together. But due to my autoimmune disorder, I had been too ill in the past few years to attend any of his parties.

Nonetheless, we still stayed in touch via facebook and would update each other from time to time.

When we met up, Nathan was telling me how he had been going through depression and wanted to kill himself. Here was part of our conversation:

Nathan: Grace, you know, last year was so hard for me. I wanted to kill myself because I felt like my life was not worth living. My job contract ended and I didn’t get extended. I turned 30 and I am still living at home. Everyone on facebook seems to be doing better than me. I thought by now I would have a place of my own. I thought by now, I would have my own family.  Continue reading “Don’t assume”

Thinking ahead

long or short term planning or thinking

This post is based on my own views and experiences. My mind has grown a lot in the past year or so.

Some of you may or may not know that I translate a Chinese novel into English. Due to my translations, I have managed to gain over 600k views on my blog. Compared to huge sites with millions of readers, 600k is actually a very small amount. However, I’m very proud of what I have built on my own. From translating, I’ve learnt that:

1. People are giving me views because I am giving them something they want

This is a crucial point. The only reason why 95% of my readers come to my site is because they want to read the novel but they cannot read Chinese. Therefore, they have to come to me in order to read the English version.

So, if I want to gain more views or make more ad revenue, I need to give the people what they want.

2. Translating is short term pain but long term gain

Honestly, translating a novel takes hundreds and hundreds of hours. It is extremely difficult, tedious, and requires tremendous amounts of concentration. In fact, it is so hard that most people quit after a couple of chapters. Continue reading “Thinking ahead”

How to tell if a shy girl likes you

Shy.jpg

Okay, this post is a somewhat continuation of my post from last week (The texting game). Honestly, there are only two things you really need to do in order to figure out whether a shy girl likes you or not.

1. Pay attention to the amount of effort she is putting in

This might sound like common sense, but hear me out.

Shy girls do not tend to be very direct. They’re most likely never going to tell you they like you or flirt (either they don’t know how or they prefer not to). Therefore, some people might be wondering, “Does she like me? Or does she only want to be my friend?”

Here are some things that could potentially mean she likes you:

-She goes out of her way to message you when it is not necessary.
-She is open to hanging out with you one on one.
-She tries to carry on the conversation.
-She makes an effort to look nice when she is meeting up with you.
-She likes to joke around with you.

However, even if the girl does all of the above, it doesn’t mean she likes you for sure. To find out, you need to do #2. Continue reading “How to tell if a shy girl likes you”

Guess who is featured in an interesting podcast!? (me)

To my dear readers,

Last week, my ex neighbour Jack picked me up and we recorded an interesting podcast with his friend and co-host Gavin in his “studio” (his room). Haha.

I haven’t seen Jack since 2002. He was 9 at the time.

It’s crazy how time flew by and we recently reconnected through facebook because he was trying to promote his podcast. Ahahahahaha.

Anyhow, the podcast is super interesting so you should listen.

Here’s briefly what we talked about: Continue reading “Guess who is featured in an interesting podcast!? (me)”

Wedding

I have been neglecting my personal blog posts so badly lately… I’m so sorry to my old readers. (I have some readers who only read my personal posts, no translations). If you have been following me since 2014, you will have noticed that I have gone through many phases..

I used to write about a certain topic (Ex. Social Anxiety, Communication, Attention, etc). I would also share random stories once in awhile (Ex. The Glass, The Tiny Frog, etc).

Then, I wrote a bunch of posts on motivation.

Eventually, I moved onto posting some of my personal views on topics such as the Education System, Gay Marriage, and etc.

After that, there were two months where I consistently wrote a bunch of relationship posts (Those were very popular but generated a lot of controversy from my friends and readers).

Now, my posts are more like diary entries.

——-

Last week, my friend Angela got married! Angela and I have known each other since our Undergraduate years. It’s crazy how time flies.

wedding 1

It was a lovely wedding. I love western venues. Personally, I find them much more organized and enjoyable. Although I’m Chinese, I dislike Chinese weddings very much because they never start on time. In fact, the invitation may say 6 or 6:30, but they usually don’t start until after 8 or 8:30.

Continue reading “Wedding”

Zombie Apocalypse

zombie

This is based on a dream that I had.. I was so scared!!! 😥

It was nighttime. The sky was clear, and the moon was shining bright. For some strange reason, I happened to witness two men carrying a “red white blue” bag (very common in Hong Kong) walking into the back of a building.

red white blue bag
This is the “red white blue” bag, so you have an idea of what I’m talking about.

The first guy flatly stated, “This is the body that we just found. Poor woman. It’s disgusting what humans can do to each other.”

The guy puts down the bag.

The second guy nodded. “We need the forensics now. I’m going to walkie talkie them.”

Neither guys are looking at the bag as they are glancing around at their surroundings. I couldn’t hear the walkie talkie conversation clearly, but at that moment, I saw a hand that raised from the bag.

It was literally like watching a horror movie.

I ran. I didn’t even scream because I was scared “it” would get me first. After a few seconds later, I heard screaming and it sounded like torture.

Continue reading “Zombie Apocalypse”

From the bottom to the top

started from the bottom.jpg

This post is a collaboration post I did with my friend, Alex. Instead of always talking about my own opinions from my own perspectives, I thought it would be interesting asking someone else. In the past, Alex and I would have very meaningful and deep conversations over coffee. Although he currently resides in Thailand, the internet has made it easy for us to stay in touch. I really like his answers, and hope you will as well.

Me: Alex, I want to write a post in regards to confidence because I think it is so crucial if you want to succeed in anything. Tell me, what does confidence mean to you? 

Alex: I think confidence is being fully comfortable with yourself as a person. Being comfortable with all of your flaws and insecurities and not being afraid to show them. Caring less about what others think and doing what makes you happy instead.

Me: How would you define it?

Alex: Being 100% your true self and not being afraid to express it wherever you are.

Me: I like that!! Everyone’s definition is probably different. To me, confidence is knowing that you’re capable of succeeding if you put in the work. Was there a person who has contributed to your confidence? If so, what did that person do or say to build up your self-esteem and feeling of self-worth?

Alex: One of my good friends living in Korea. He has this never-ending drive to improve himself and I just really admired his determination. Whether it was mastering Korean, starting a business or getting a better job, he made it happen. No matter what. Seeing his drive for being the best motivated me to be the best I could be as well.

Continue reading “From the bottom to the top”

Your addictions are toxic

Addiction

This is a topic I have been meaning to write about since last year, but I kept putting it off.

Addiction is something we are all aware of. It’s when you’re constantly ingesting a substance or engaging in an activity that you find pleasurable. For example: drug, alcohol, gambling, shopping, gaming, and etc.

While the substance or activity itself may bring us pleasure, it is very harmful to us in the long run.

Why?

1. You lose self control. You’re no longer able to “live” without it because you’re constantly thinking or craving for it.

2. Time and money is scarce. We only have 24 hours a day. If you spend 5+ (or however long you spend) hours feeding your addiction, you will have less time to do other things, or take care of other responsibilities.

Continue reading “Your addictions are toxic”

Shaming

Shaming

For the week, I would like to talk about shaming.

Shaming happens everywhere. Shaming is when you make a person feel ashamed, humiliated, or inadequate. It is terrible, but in China (or perhaps in all of Asia), they take it to another level.

What do I mean? Well, in school, students are ranked according to their grades. The teacher will actually read out each person’s name and their “rank” to the whole class. For example, #36 (name of the child).

If you are one of the top students, you will be praised. However, if you are one of the poorer students, your classmates will look down on you and may possibly make fun or avoid you (in case you make them stupid).

It’s messed up.

I still remember how one of my classmates had forgotten his agenda in Grade 1. The teacher punished him by making him stand outside the classroom for an hour.

Basically, the “shame” is supposed to make the child never forget his agenda again.

In my opinion, it does work. However, instead of fostering love and kindness, the child is taught to resent and hate.

Continue reading “Shaming”

Why you should start an Online Business

Online business

Disclaimer: I am not writing this to promote any companies whatsoever. I am sharing some wisdom with you! Please take the time to read and digest what I have to say.

First of all, you might wonder, “Why should I start an online business? It’s so unrealistic and too much work. I am realistic and I have a real job. How likely am I going to survive off an online business?”

I’m not telling you to quit your job! Hear me out:

1. You should strive for multiple sources of income. This is a given. Why would you want to rely solely on your job? Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

There are no guarantees you can make money from an online business. But stop thinking of reasons why it can fail rather than the possibilities you could have if you do succeed!

Continue reading “Why you should start an Online Business”