"People are in the rivers and lakes, and they can't help themselves."
The rivers and lakes are sometimes our society, and involuntary self-help is the mantra, and there is a trace of bitterness every time I think about it.
Life forces people to make choices, and often this choice is forced by reality that there is no way back.
In a humble rental house in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, a man has to come to terms with a new reality — from a programmer who graduated from graduate school to a security guard who earns only 4,000 yuan a month.
This is not only a career change, but also a huge gap between identity and self-worth. The struggle and helplessness in it are only known to him.
The man used to be a programmer, and although the salary was high, the work was surprisingly stressful. Every day, except for code, it is code, and home is not taken care of.
Accidents always come suddenly, and the company suddenly declares bankruptcy due to the rupture of the capital chain, and he, like many of his colleagues, becomes one of the layoffs.
After losing his job, he had a hard time, taking care of his newborn child and submitting resumes everywhere, but he faced indifferent rejection without exception. The market is sluggish, and the age is on the verge of being disliked by enterprises.
He tried to be a customer service, but was complained by customers because of his lack of experience; I tried food delivery, but eventually had to give up due to safety and physical strength.
In the end, in desperation, he chose the job of security guard. At least stable, able to ensure basic living needs. But this is undoubtedly a huge self-denial for a former graduate student.
The most painful thing is that his mother is about to come to Shenzhen to help take care of the children, how can he tell this old man that his hard-working graduate school has now become an ordinary security guard?
The man's story is actually a microcosm of many contemporary young people. A high degree of education is no longer a guarantee of a high income, and society is changing far faster than most people can adapt. The midlife crisis is no longer a legend, but a realistic portrayal of many professionals around the age of 35.
In this world, education and hard work do not always bring corresponding returns, and the instability of the general environment and the twists and turns of personal destiny make many people feel lost. We laugh and talk about "people are difficult to dismantle", but we have to face the helplessness behind every "difficult person".
We often say that "academic qualifications are stepping stones", but in the face of the cruelty of reality, this brick may not work every time.
Piercing through this fog, we see a fickle market, old-fashioned values, and every ordinary person's subtle expectations for the future. This is a phenomenon worth pondering, which exposes a slice of the current society, and also reminds everyone that the future is unpredictable, and all we can do is do our best.
The picture of "graduate students going to work as security guards" is shocking enough. What kind of social injustice is behind a highly educated person who bears such a big identity gap? I have to say that this is a very heart-wrenching reality.
Those middle-aged people who have been abandoned by the times, they are not only facing a change of career, but also a double battle of psychology and dignity.
The template of success in the eyes of the older generation is now in the eyes of the past. Their incomprehension is not only because they are stubborn, but because the changes of the times have brought too many uncertainties and challenges to their standards.
Life doesn't hand you a clean blanket when your feet are in the mud.
Do you feel this way? Feel free to share your story in the comments section.