Principles for Success (5) Become Aware of the Resources You Have and Make Good Use of Them (Are You in a Small Pond? Prepare a Big Bucket)

“Zhe ga pen dei shi shei lieu?–?”?(“Whose basin is this?”) I asked a question in my dormitory but heard no response.?

“Oh, no! My dialect won't work here. What is that in Mandarin again?”?I thought to myself.

I was speaking my dialect, a variety of Mandarin with heavy southern Hebei accent, to my five new college roommates. We were given the same-sized plastic basins to wash our face and clothes. Some were blue. Some were green. I couldn’t tell which one was mine.?

I thought for a moment and forced myself to speak Mandarin:?“Zhe ge pen zi shi shui de?”

This time it worked! My roommates understood me.?

This was the start of my university life in Zhengzhou, the capital city of Henan province. I felt as though I had been air-dropped into a foreign land, a big city with millions of people. Up until that time, I had never taken a train, a bus, or a taxi. For my entire life back home, I never needed to speak Mandarin. The moment my dad dropped me off to my dormitory in this?“foreign”?province, my adventure began.

Prior to arriving at my university, I really didn’t know much about the university or the city in which it was located. All I knew was that I was going to study English. Henan University of Economics and Law was not my first choice. It was one of the?“back-up”?universities my friend circled quickly on the guidebook for applying to universities. The guidebook only had basic information of university names and majors. My friend had an uncle who lived in a nearby city and her uncle had a computer and access to the internet. I entrusted her to help me pick some universities because she?“did research”?on her uncle’s computer. My dream university was Peking University, but it was impossible to get in.?

It turned out in my entire department, there were only two students from my province. The other girl was from northern part of Hebei province, and we spoke different dialects!?

The first semester of college was very difficult. My roommates were from another class, and I was always the one who had a different class schedule. I would get lost all the time. I was not used to the food. I was not used to the city noise and the crowd. I was experiencing insomnia and I was homesick. I missed my farm, the quietness at night, the fresh and abundant vegetables, and the homemade food. Soon I started thinking about quitting! I kept thinking about the alternatives. Could I go home and repeat the last year of high school and try the entrance exam to college again? Perhaps I could get into a better university??

The good news is that I really don’t like giving up.?At this?“miserable”?transitional time of my life, I met a student mentor, a junior student who was assigned to guide my roommates’?class to adjust university life. When she came to?“help”?in the dormitory. I told her my complaints and worries that I was not in a good enough university. Then a story she told me changed my college life. Let me call this story?“the Small Pond, Big Bucket story.”

She said:?“There are two people who need to collect water. The first person had access to a big pond, but he only prepared a small bucket to get water. The second person only had access to a small pond, but he prepared a big bucket to get water. In the end, who can get more water?”?I answered,?“The one with the big bucket.”?She said,?“Correct.”

The answer was clear. She explained to me that even though I was not in the best university, if I prepared a big bucket?–?a strong desire to learn matched with consistent hard work?–?I would end up learning more than going to the best university without that strong will and effort. This analogy has helped me so much that I remember it even until today, and I have shared it with others. It’s a very simple analogy, but it prompts people to think about their attitude and how to best use what they have.?

I changed my attitude about my university. I shifted my focus from worrying that my university was not good enough, to searching for resources to help me become a successful student. I became grateful that my university gave me a chance to study.

I borrowed many books from the library. I listened to English radio. I made friends from attending student clubs. I went to English-speaking sessions called the English corner at my university, to the English corner at a university near our university, even to the English corner in a public park of the city. I found part-time jobs in the city as a translator at an international trade company, and at English language schools. I also went to large bookstores in the city at weekends. My university actually had a lot to offer. I made hundreds of friends in my university and in the city.?

I worked hard consistently, inside and outside of university, for four years. I spoke literally zero English when I arrived at my university, but by graduation I was fluent in English, and passed every English test designed for college students in China.?

There is only so much we can do about our environment, but there are endless things we can do to?“look inward”?and fine-tune our inner self, cultivate our own mind and soul. My learning attitude or my willingness to prepare the biggest bucket?–?to be the most eager learner?–?has positioned me for success.

Are you going to a small pond? How big is the bucket you are bringing with you?

NEXT:

??Principles for Success (6) - Be Diligent - ‘The Heavenly Way Rewards Those Who Are Diligent’ (Chinese Idiom: ‘Tian Dao Chou Qin’ 天道酬勤）

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