Life Story
I decided after nearly 9 years working for several engineering consultancies to pursue a different lifestyle. In 2021, I decided to leave engineering, experiment with new ventures, create an online business, and move abroad. Yes, in the middle of you-know-what.
When I was a university student, I had previously lived in Hangzhou and Hong Kong for temporary stints. Post-graduation, I returned to work in the Birmingham area where I have been living for most of my life.
My work was mainly office-based where I worked during day-time but the nature of civil engineering meant that I occasionally had to work night shifts on site. Shutting the railways and highways was often only possible at night to minimise disruption to the public. During 2020, I became cooped up working from home like most office workers.
So it was farewell to the old lifestyle. Setting up my own business was one of my life ambitions. I would be lying if I didn't find it daunting, but I was certain that I would come to regret not trying in 5 years time.
I desired the life experience and I know there will be bumps and falls along the way (but one needs to look at perspective). New opportunities come with new environments and I had personal passions to go after. Self-drive is very important.
Another aspiration I held in high regard was being able to communicate in Chinese fluently. Coming from a Chinese family, I naturally learnt to speak my family's local dialect, Hakka.
I started to learn Chinese formally at the age of 7 and attended Cantonese lessons until the age of 18. Mandarin classes were still very rare in my city in the late 1990s plus I always knew I would be working in Hong Kong at some point. So Cantonese it was. It wasn't until I was 20 that I started to actively learn Mandarin.
After university there was little opportunity for me to speak Cantonese or Mandarin since I spoke English full-time at work and Hakka at home. To stand a chance of maintaining and improving my Chinese language skills, my living environment needed to change.
My preferred option was to move to my ancestral homeland and force myself to speak the language in practical situations. Every Single Day. No exceptions, no excuses, no reverting to English. Just keep practising.
You can see my extended language journey
Oh and this is my first ever website! Thank you for visiting :)
