Your Horizons Define Your Mindset

Mengping Li, originally from a small town in Sichuan Province, was prepping for her college entrance exam when the disastrous earthquake of 2008 occurred. Although surrounded by misery, the testing went forward.  Mengping ended up being accepted at Chengdu University of Traditional Medicine. (See post one.) She soon discovered that this second-tier university did not have all she needed, and went about finding ways to make the experience better. (See post two.) The realization that she held the reins regarding her future lit a fire in her soul, and she began exploring as she never had before. (See post three.) She had thoughts about getting a higher degree, but decided instead to try to find a job. (See post four.) While she had heard it would be impossible to find a job, coming from a 2nd-tier university, she thought she'd test the waters during a holiday break. Through persistence, she found a position promoting VIP cards at a manicure/pedicure salon. (See post five.) 

Most of the customers in the shop were either foreigners or rich Chinese women—managers and such from big companies. For the twenty days she worked there (the length of the spring festival holiday), Mengping worked and was given free housing, “in the slum of the Shekou district.”

“But for me it was good…I lived with two other girls who were also working in that shop.  We have one room and there’s a toilet inside the room.“ Mengping remembered her childhood apartment where she needed to walk down the hall to use a common facility. In the winter, that walk was cold.

“Everyday I was so happy. I was doing something I liked. I was exploring.“

Many of the assistants in the shop had become quick to judge potential customers…by the look of their handbags.

“They (the customers) used luxury brands from LV (Louis Vuitton), all those kinds of things. The price of one bag—200,000 RMB (approx. $30,000) you can buy a small house in the county.”

$34,000 dollar handbag

One Friday night, this woman walked in carrying a humble cloth bag filled with vegetables. The other assistants ignored her, (“She was not rich, so they didn’t show their interest.”) Mengping, however, showed her around the shop. Before the woman left, she passed Mengping her phone number. Mengping texted her. Six months later, the woman offered her an assistant managerial position in her electronics company.

That is how life opens up to Mengping. She is always finding connections.  

At the time that this woman made the offer, though, Mengping refused.  “I was so stupid at that time. She was working in the energy industry and I was in the health industry. So I kind of refused her. It should have been a good opportunity. I realized that your horizons define your mindset and your mindset defines how you make decisions.

At that time, I didn’t know how to make decisions.”
This wasn’t the end of the connection—or the opportunities. This woman would re-appear when Mengping least expected it.

(To be continued. Next: One Connection Makes the Difference.)