United Nations interns, research assistants, Latin dancers... restless "slash youth" searching for self in exploration. slash youth | conflicts | graduates | becomes | needs | Hu Jun | fields | professions
In 2021, Zhou Murong gave a speech at the Shanghai Open Data event. Respondents provide pictures
United Nations intern, research assistant, entrepreneur, Latin dancer, photographer... Zhou Murong, a graduate of East China University of Science and Technology in 2022, bears numerous labels. Since high school, she has been exploring careers that suit her. During her university years, she conducted academic research with her supervisor while also working as a public welfare consultant in social organizations. As she neared graduation, she also interned at the United Nations.
Young people like Zhou Murong who are not satisfied with a "specialized profession" are called "slash youths", and they strive to have a place in different fields of society.
In Zhou Murong's view, choosing a career in multiple fields is a long-term development process. Having experienced different identity roles can also be said to be a repeated attempt, constantly exploring and minimizing the cost of trial and error. Different identity labels give her more confidence when choosing a career during the graduation season.
"Walking on multiple legs"
Being restless and restless is a characteristic of many "slash youths". Hu Junshan, who identified himself as a "slash youth" when he was in college, also dabbled in various vocal art fields such as recitation, hosting, drama, and dubbing.
Due to his love for media, during his university years, he studied international economics and trade and considered switching majors. But after comprehensive consideration, he decided not to give up his major. With a trial and error mentality, he joined the school's journalist team and added extracurricular practice in the field of journalism. Since then, he has been prepared to "walk on multiple legs" and planted a seed in his heart: "Perhaps in the future, I can become an economic media person."
After graduation, Hu Junshan joined the media and became an editor. When he was only three months old, he independently took charge of the editing and operation of the financial portal, realizing his original vision.
There are many college students who share the same ideas as Hu Junshan. During their time in school, they began to "show their skills" and explore the industries they are interested in. Huang Chuqi, a junior student majoring in film studies at Beijing Film Academy, works as a host at a script inference hall in Beijing during the summer vacation and occasionally makes guest appearances in historical costumes for characters in the script.
Huang Chuqi said that during the student stage, trying out areas of interest can increase the possibility of career choices after graduation. "Diversified attempts can also enhance one's own abilities and lay the foundation for future career development."
Nowadays, Hu Junshan still has a slash. In his spare time, he also hosts events, conducts online recitation teaching, and performs plays on stage. He occasionally feels tired, but it's because of love that he has the drive. Not long ago, he started to get involved with dubbing again. He recorded his attempts in a new field on Weibo: "The first breakthrough in July was becoming a new audio novel performer."
Having already obtained a stable job, Hu Junshan's goal for developing a multidisciplinary career is simple: "I would rather convey truth, goodness, and beauty through the art of spoken language."
Many young people find themselves in "slash professions"
Hu Junshan feels that the personal value brought by profession is very important for many young people.
Liu Yucheng, who graduated from China University of Political Science and Law, participated in a career observation reality show before graduation and gained a group of fans. After becoming a lawyer, he used his spare time to share some life insights and learning experiences on social media, answering questions for netizens. "Being a blogger can be said to have fulfilled my dream of becoming a media person to some extent."
During this process, Liu Yucheng constantly pondered how to truly help more people. Rather than solving an individual's problem, it's better to broaden the content and create some common things that everyone can master and learn. Getting attention and recognition is his motivation for his second career. He hopes to play a good role as a blogger, so that the legal knowledge he has learned can be truly applied to the world and help more people.
Due to his "slash" profession, Hu Junshan immediately made the interviewer remember him during job interviews, and he also felt smoother in interpersonal communication. In his view, developing in multiple fields can enhance competitiveness and personal recognition.
Many young people find themselves in "slash professions". After graduating from a computer related major, entering the IT industry was Zhang Jingtian's career path that did not require much thought. But after becoming a programmer, sitting in front of the computer day after day, he felt "unable to find himself", "this is just a job, and there is basically no sense of gain."
Zhang Jingtian, who loves sports, came into contact with outdoor organizations through a mountain climbing experience. He hates meeting on foot too late, and every weekend, he picks up his equipment and goes into the mountains and forests. By a stroke of luck, he was temporarily appointed as the "experience leader," experiencing for the first time the need and irreplaceable sense of responsibility. In less than two years, he grew from a loyal fan who climbed mountains with the team every week to an official team leader.
Although leading a team can earn a certain amount of income each time, what Zhang Jingtian values more is the added value brought by developing diverse professions.
Now, Zhang Jingtian's weekly life is divided into two parts that do not conflict with each other, "working days are for mental labor, and weekends are for physical labor.". He felt that "life suddenly had hope.". Even sitting in front of the computer coding program, Zhang Jingtian doesn't feel empty anymore. He needs to work from Monday to Friday without finding any bugs in order to safely throw away his phone and computer and immerse himself in the embrace of the mountains.
The development of "slash" also requires rational planning
In the outdoor organization where Zhang Jingtian works, many team leaders have resigned from their jobs and become full-time team leaders. But Zhang Jingtian didn't have this idea. In his opinion, no job is completely satisfactory, and even if hobbies are considered a profession, they will inevitably be influenced by various factors, leading to decreased enthusiasm and increased pressure. "Therefore, allocating the focus to different social roles is also a form of balance."
Most "slash youth" have side jobs that are different from their current job, without the basic guarantee of five insurances and one fund. They pursue rational "power generation with love". The conflict and balance, risks, and uncertainties between multiple identities have become concerns for these "slash youths".
After becoming a team leader, Zhang Jingtian needs to shift from "taking care of himself" to "considering the overall situation". Faced with unexpected risks that may arise at any time during outdoor activities, he has higher expectations for himself. "It's not just about improving physical fitness, but also about enhancing professional skills, such as organizational and management skills, to be able to solve conflicts and emergencies in a timely manner."
In order to avoid risks as much as possible and ensure that team members can participate in activities with greater peace of mind and peace of mind, Zhang Jingtian is considering arranging a dedicated week to receive professional training from junior mountain instructors. "Outdoor sports have high risks, and many team members' lack of experience requires a more professional team leader to take full responsibility for their team members."
Like Zhang Jingtian, many young people also have higher requirements for sideline planning. It's not just a superficial experience. In their career planning, interests and hobbies are the starting point, and long-term development is the "vast sea of stars".
The parallel relationship between lawyers and self media bloggers has enabled Liu Yucheng to realize his former dream. But he also has concerns: "For example, when expressing legal opinions on social media, it is inevitable that people will directly link me with the law firm, so it is even more important to be cautious. For example, when I am representing a company in a lawsuit, and at the same time, I personally receive a promotion for a certain brand, I need to understand whether there is a conflict of interest between the two companies. These all need to be considered within the scope."
In order to balance the two professions well, Liu Yucheng needs to have a deeper understanding of non compete restrictions. For example, rules on conflicts of interest, intellectual property, advertising laws, etc. "In this era of encouraging diversified development, your main business will not limit you from doing what you want to do. I hope to improve my business while also considering issues more comprehensively and maturely," said Liu Yucheng.
Employment courses can provide graduates with more ideas from diverse fields
Although many of his classmates are striving to achieve success in the civil service exam, Hu Junshan remains unmoved. "I still have a clear understanding of myself, and it would be great if I could find a job I like through hard work," he said
In Hu Junshan's view, it is better to bravely explore the fields you like than to have no direction and follow the trend. He feels that there is a lot of room for choice in his future career planning. "My current job does not conflict with my side job. Perhaps continuing to explore integrated careers in different fields would be a better direction for my development."
More and more young people are opening up their minds and bravely exploring when choosing careers. "Life is not limited. If you choose a path, you can only walk it to the end," said Liu Yucheng. He has always had a risk awareness of "not putting all the eggs in one basket", so he is fully prepared, opens up more diverse development paths, and seeks development in more fields.
Zhou Murong is currently a strategic consultant. Although her job is stable, she does not like to follow the routine. She also became a video blogger and began to try out "unrestricted new tracks". She thought that one day she might bid farewell to her position as a strategic consultant, but at any time, she would always carry the blogger's "personal professional image card" and continue to venture the world.
"Even if one day I lose my job or want to take a break, at least these side jobs are my future and can make me live well." Hu Junshan said, "Of course, forging iron also requires one's own hard work and cultivating the ability to specialize and be versatile, in order to be ready to welcome opportunities at any time."
In Hu Junshan's view, under the current employment situation, the government, society, universities and other aspects have gradually formed a joint force, providing sufficient employment information, platforms and opportunities to guide and help young people find employment. However, in response to the need for diversified career development, he believes that employment guidance in related areas is still insufficient.
He hopes that universities can provide more targeted employment guidance for young people who are seeking jobs, sharing more relevant, personalized, and diverse information based on their strengths and interests, rather than widely sharing the same job search content.
Zhou Murong also believes that vocational education during university is very important. In her opinion, the current vocational education in schools is relatively single and traditional, with many students lacking self-awareness and choosing careers blindly. She hopes that the school's employment curriculum can provide graduates with more ideas from diverse fields.
Hu Junshan hopes that more companies can break the restrictions on professional matching and provide recruitment for positions in multiple fields. "Perhaps there are some treasure youths and slash youths waiting to be discovered."
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