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Original text special to chinadaily.com.cn
How many of you have ever felt bored by your current job and thought it was time for a change? Just remember you are not alone.
Here
in China, there’s a group of people who call themselves as "freeters".
Not only do they feel bored and think about a change, but also put
their thinking into practice. These freeters quit their jobs and start
living on temporary jobs or off their savings. To know find out more of
what their lives are like, read on.
Mr.
Li is in his early 30s and single. Most recently he was a salesperson
in a foreign company and earned about 7,000 to 8,000 yuan per month.
Yet a few days ago, he resigned.
According
to Li, as a salesperson, he often needs to have dinners with his
customers and they will drink a lot of Chinese wine. However, given
such hot weather, drinking too much of this strong alcoholic beverage
will put his health in great jeopardy.
So
once for all, he resigned and decided to stay jobless for sometime.
When asked whether he regretted quitting, Li replied, “As a
salesperson, I have too much pressure at work. I just feel I need some
rest. And I have confidence in myself. With my working experiences and
my social network, I don’t think it will be hard for me to find a good
job. And as long as I have tens of thousands of yuan in my banking
account, I can stay jobless comfortably for several months,” he added.
Miss
Xiaowen is also single, and in her middle 20s. While majoring in
architecture at university, Xiaowen was also fascinated with
photography and drawing.
After
graduation, she first taught in a college for two years, but she just
felt that her creativity was totally dried up by the complicated
interpersonal relationships at work. So she quit and started her
freeter life.
She now lives on
temporary jobs, like teaching at a drawing course, or fashion and
product photograph y for some ad companies or fashion magazines. When
she has no work to do, she takes her cameras out, and wanders the
streets and snaps whatever she thinks is interesting. According to
Xiaowen, she feels quite content with her current life and her
creativity also seems to be rejuvenated. Xiaowen now plans to set up
her own design firm. Jack
started his freeter life ever since he left graduate school. The single
man in his late 20s is a programmer at an IT company, which is a
relative stable income to him. But he doesn’t need to sit in the
company.
Instead he can stay
at home as long as he delivers his work in time. In addition, he also
writes software reviews and online games handbooks for some websites
and magazines, which earn him a good amount of money and which can also
be done from home.
According
to Jake, the great difference between freeters and non-freeters is that
non-freeters work for a better job, while freeters work for a better
life. Working at home saves him the time from commuting. And unlike
those employed by a company and need to sit through eight hours a day
at the office, as long as Jake finishes the work on time, his down time
is more flexible.
And through
his varied workload, Jake gets to know many industries and companies
through socializing with people from different sectors. He says,
“Although many people say freelancers don’t have a stable income, I
believe as long as you can finish the work in time and it’s of good
quality as well as have a good personal network, you can manage to
maintain a stable customer base.”
Tips on how to become a freeter
First
and foremost, before quitting your job, make sure you have two to three
months’ worth of savings in your bank account to support you, because
when you move into a new lifestyle, it always takes time for you to get
started.
Secondly, freeters
live on reputation. If you do your work well, people will give you more
jobs and through word of mouth get recommended for work. But if you
screw up one job, it may kill a string of potential jobs.
Socialization
makes a good part of freeters’ lives. Working at home doesn’t mean not
leaving your place. Go out and meet friends. Casual conversations may
also give you some inspiration or more directly, job opportunities.
About the history of freeters
The
word “freeter” was first used around 1987 or 1988 in Japan and is
thought to be an amalgamation of the English word free, or perhaps
freelance, and the German word arbeiter, or "worker".
A
Japanese part-time job magazine started using the term. “Freeter” in
Japan, refers to people between the ages of 15 and 34 who lack
full-time employment or are unemployed. They do not start a career
after high school or university, but instead usually live as at home
with their parents and earn some money with low-skilled and low-paying
jobs.
Unlike the negative
images associated with Japanese freeters, ever since freeter was
imported into China, it refers to those talented people who are
pursuing a dream and opt for a freeter life voluntarily. According to
them, being a freeter is a better existence than being employed.
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