2018年海外夏令营
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还记得那个有趣的灵魂吗？那个见解独到且十分风趣的Gary Wang同学，他于2013年入读美高Seven Hills七山中学，并于2016年录取WUSTL圣路易斯华盛顿大学（US综合排名18）。每年回国都会来分享会做嘉宾，为大家讲述他的美高经历，留下了令人印象深刻的故事。
点击链接 进入Gary的有趣分享
Gary在以往的分享会中就提过：“我通过优步，和美国社会不同层面的人打交道，从他们的故事和交流中对美国社会有了更多了解，这是在课堂中学不到的。我现在在做一个关于优步司机的项目，希望可以通过自己的项目引起社会更多人对优步司机这个群体的关注。”
所谓“知之非难，行之不易”，前段时间，Gary登上了TEDx@WUSTL的舞台，为大家分享了他与Uber司机的故事与经历，以及由此产生的独特想法。下面一起来看看Gary的精彩演讲吧！
* 什么是TEDx？——基于传播有价值想法的初衷，TED 创办了其旗下的组织 TEDx。TEDx 是非官方、自发性的活动项目——及在全球任何地方，只要当地团队申请得到批准，便可以以TEDx的名义来组织活动。其形式与 TED 基本一致——邀请一些有趣、想法奇特的人来做18分钟以内的演讲。
Gary同学在TEDx@WUSTL的演讲视频
演讲简述：
作为一位国际生，Gary在美高期间出行都需要使用Uber，现在每周平均会遇到10-12位Uber司机，每次乘车过程中，他会抓住机会，与司机展开有趣、深度、有意义的话题。由于被Uber司机们的经历和智慧深深吸引，Gary决定通过博客记录下有关这些司机的一切有趣的事。
通过与Uber司机的聊天，Gary意识到了这种单纯的对话的魅力，我们生活中的对话往往存在一定的目的，为了得到某件东西或是完成某件事，渐渐地我们便失去了感受聊天本身的能力。所以我们需要机会去无目的地与别人展开会话，被好奇心和趣味所驱动，感受聊天的内在魅力。此外，你还能收获很多，比如一堂人生课、一个工作建议、一个可以常联系的朋友……
Imagine your typical Uber experience. You take out your phone, tap on the app, and wait for no more than 5 minutes before you hop in what is usually a prius. Then, for the next ten to fifteen minutes, you are stuck in the car with a stranger and try to avoid awkwardness by engaging in some small talks or not talking at all. Finally, when the trip is over, you hop off and say goodbye to the driver whom you probably won’t ever see again. When you call the Uber next time, you repeat the routine all over again. Hopping in and Hopping off. Just sounds linear as going from point A to point B. But what if I tell you today that there is a chance that we can break this mundane pattern and make our Ubering experience fun, meaningful, and even addictive ? After taking over 5000 Uber rides, yes 5000 Uber rides, in five countries during the past four years, I am here to tell that there is a possibility.
As an international student, I have to use Uber a lot to get around in the States. During high school, I ubered to school in the morning. I ubered back home in the afternoon. I ubered to rehearsal. I ubered to sports practice. I ubered everywhere. Now, it has been four years since I took my first Uber. Now, I meet about 10-12 Uber on average each week. Each time when I am in a Uber, I seize the opportunity to have fun, deep, meaningful conversation with the driver. I even grew so fascinated by many drivers’ life stories and wisdom that I decided to start a blog about Uber drivers.
But, before I became such a Uber addict open to strangers, I was not a rider who was open to conversation with Uber drivers. As a student enrolled in a competitive high school, I was always in the state of hurry. I had a task-driven mind, which only cared about completion and efficiency, not quite so about the process and journey. During my first few Uber rides at the beginning, I saw my backseat as a shelter from stress and social exiciety. I saw it as the space for my complete privacy.
The conversations happened on those 5000 rides made me reflect on my daily conversations with friends, teachers, families. Upon reflection, I found a big difference between what I call “ubersations” and our daily conversations, like the ones that we might’ve had with our professor in the morning, with our parents last night, with potential employers at a recent career fair. The difference is that a Ubersation happens for the sake of just conversation itself while most of our daily conversations happen because of an ulterior motive. In our daily lives, around 30000 words are exchanged between us and others. But, many of our words serve to communicate a goal or purpose. We go visit and talk to a professor during his office hours to get some points back or maybe ask for a rec letter. We talk to our parents because we want to get our spring break plans figured out. We use conversation as a tool or medium to get what we want, to get things done. We do this so often that we start to lose our ability to appreciate conversation itself.
While I do think purposeful conversations are a necessary part of our daily life, they should be balanced out by conversations that are purpose-free. Through those thousands of laidback, carefree conversations that happened on Uber, I discovered conversations’ beauty and intrinsic quality. A ubersation happens when the lives of two complete strangers intersect for a mere 20 minutes in the confined space of a car. It grows as two strangers converse and share with no ulterior motive. It is driven by genuine curiosity and interest in the the life of another human being – making our lives more interesting and exciting. Without curiosity, I would’ve never found out that the driver next me in his modest camry was a billionaire and would’ve missed the lesson he taught me on humility. Without curiosity, I would still be ignorant of the black community living in suburban Cincinnati. Without curiosity, I would never have experienced the music album that allowed me to appreciate an Uber driver’s creativity and artistic dream.
Uber facilitates our past-paced lives, transporting us from point A to point B. But, to some degree, Uber also offers us the opportunity to slow down, by allowing us to take a moment in our hurried lives and refresh our minds with the light of another human being.
Being curious is easy. It is simply a choice between the front and back seat.
Through these meaningful ubersations, you may encounter a driver who becomes a mentor providing life and career advice in exchange for Chinese lessons. You may get a frequent grocery buddy. Someone might agree to give you driving lessons.
And you never know, maybe your uber driver will be in the audience for your TEDx talk. Thank you.
美 高 留 学 家 长 交 流 群
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