Thank you so much Ben for hanging out with us on the playground today! I promised you an interesting chat and I believe it was.

Our career chat included a lot. Ben spoke about belonging, culture and identity, and what it was like being typecast as the Asian kid in his cohort. We talked about the smart vs sexy Asian stereotypes, and what it meant to suppress your feels.

He spoke candidly about his mental health crisis, and his need to leave home as a result of disagreements with his father. And he also spoke about how his future career was impacted by his financial challenges, and how he closed doors to his future by turning down archeological opportunities.

We talked about what it was like to be living someone else’s dream, not his own, and what it was like to be motivated by fear. I shared one of my favourite quotes from the character Robert California in the American version of The Office – “Fear plays an interesting role in our lives. How dare we let it motivate us? How dare we let it into our decision-making, into our livelihoods, into our relationships?”

Speaking of fear, Ben also spoke about the role of anger in his life, and how it masked the presence and the motivation of fear.

We also touched on the reward that came for being his authentic self during his job interview with the government, and the ensuing leave without pay he took for his self-imposed exile.

We discussed the imposter syndrome, and his motivating words “it was in the unlearning that I learned the most”.

Thank you Ben for giving me a lot to think about, consider and reflect on. I appreciate your honesty and openness in sharing your career and life journey, and wish you the very best as they continue to unfold.

Speaking of the very best, I am so excited to invite you to hang out on the playground with me again next week. My mystery guest is a force to be reckoned with, and I can’t wait to introduce you to her.

Please remember to tell a friend (or more) about the podcast. And if you would like to share your story on the playground, please do send me an email at [email protected].

Until next time, I wish you a beautiful week of learning and unlearning. See you again on the playground next week, when we will jump into the future together.

Ben Park on LinkedIn

David and Mary Thompson Collegiate Institute

Scarborough

unassuming grace: Lessons from the Little Things in Life by Richard D. Patterson