I love a good meaningful conversation. If you give me a choice of ten casual acquaintances versus one single dinner companion with an open heart and soul, I would pick the latter, any time of the day.
You may find it as an obvious fact, but in a heavily condensed urban city where physical proximity does not equal to emotional availability, we should count our blessings whenever we have the opportunity to enjoy a nice, candid, no-agenda exchange.
Those of you who have read my earliest posts would remember how difficult it is to explain my profession. It’s not in one’s normal vocabulary, and it’s not something that you can describe in one sentence before you completely bore your partner to death. Yet if someone is curious enough to probe, I am more than happy to act as an ambassador for my professional community, or more selfishly, for my own reputation.
I’m always happy to reciprocate, of course. Last night I was introduced to a field called Occupational Therapy. I have heard of Physiotherapy, or Vocational Training, but shamefully not the former. As my friend explained, the Chinese translation of the field is more than misleading, and I conveniently blamed it on the same. After hearing his line of work, and learning about the lack of professional resources particularly in the mental practice area in this city, I find his profession fascinating both in terms of technical knowhow, and of its limitless possibility.
I can’t help but compare what we do as a living, as I always strive to keep myself grounded by not taking myself too seriously. The following conversation never happened last night, but in my imagination, part of which could go something like this:
What are you most proud of with the work that you do?
My friend: The ability to see my patients recover and adapt to the desired state according to prescribed progress.
Me: My stakeholders giving me 30 minutes to convince them that I’m not wasting their time to help them save half a million dollars. Oh, also, to finally get my stakeholders know what it is that they truly want to buy.
Who do you constantly work with in your everyday work life?
My friend: Patients who have a certain disability to achieve the daily “occupations” of life, and their loved ones who see the need to seek professional help for subject’s adaptation and recovery.
Me: People who hate me, underestimate me, abuse me, and set me up as scapegoats for one or more of their supply chain problems.
What is the demand like for your profession?
My friend: There is a growing lack of professionals in our field. The demand is constantly surging and we find it difficult to keep up with the relatively long accreditation process.
Me: Demand? What?
What is the one biggest challenge that you see in your profession?
My friend: The lack of awareness of what Occupational Therapy is. We hope the Health Department could educate the public more so that patients can seek treatment earlier on, and more resources can be injected for those who are very much in need.
Me: To make the case for department heads that the half million dollar savings we achieved for their business equate to jobs saved for their employees.
What are you most frustrated about your work life?
My friend: Below-par recovery progress due to resources insufficiency or uncontrollable physical complications.
Me: Incredibly idiotic, egoistic and insecure morons. And they’re not even mentally handicapped.
What is the one question that you get the most from people about your profession?
My friend: What’s the difference between Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy, or Vocational Training?
Me: Why are we stuck with this crappy ball point pen at the office?
What is the outlook of your profession?
My friend: Instead of containing within the public healthcare sector at present, we see the growing need of increased specialized care that warrants investments from the private sector. Wages and recognition will be on the rise.
Me: Ultimately, we will be helping our companies achieve more cost savings by outsourcing our own jobs.
Confessions of a Corporate Shopaholic 