Virtual Internships Abroad The Joy of Challenging Myself

Fourier Intelligence - Singapore

One of my favorite sayings from all times comes from Chinese culture and goes: 世上无难事，只怕有心人 (pinyin: shishang wu nanshi, zhi pa youxinren). In English, the literal translation of this phrase would be "there is nothing difficult in the world, but only people that are scared of facing those difficult matters". Going deeper, what this saying is really telling us, at least my interpretation of it, is that as long as we make up our mind to do something and we are determined enough, nothing will be able to stop us, no matter how difficult the challenge could be.

Indeed, as I wrap up my remote summer internship with Fourier Intelligence in Singapore and reflect on my 10 weeks with them, no phrase would be more suited than this one to summarize what my experience has been. From researching emerging technologies for telerehab to international regulations surrounding telemedicine, from developing a medical device that addresses the Carpal Tunnel Syndrome to self-teaching web development, I have engaged on projects truly outside my areas of expertise, let alone my comfort zone. And while initially, I was a bit skeptical about working on assignments unrelated to my background in mechanical engineering and math, truth be told, the more I learned and researched about these topics, the more interested I became. More importantly, I soon realized the outstanding value there was in moving outside one's own zone of expertise, one’s own zone of comfort. Because as the saying clearly states, no challenge is impossible to overcome, we just need to find ways to push ourselves to do things that we would not normally do; this is how we grow, this is how we learn, this is how we ultimately find greater value in what we do.

My projects at Fourier have made me more excited about embracing new challenges and opportunities. For me, these projects have provided me with a unique chance to not only learn about the rapidly growing global industry of rehab-robotics and pick up numerous hard skills along the way, but also have allowed me to practice critical soft skills like presenting and communicating to a non-technical audience. More importantly, I got to do all of this while immersed in a multicultural environment, which undoubtedly is indispensable given the globalized world we live in. This has made me, more than ever before, ask who my target audience is, what ethnocultural background it possesses, and how should we appeal to its interests. Because simply put, presenting to, collaborating with, or leading a team composed of Singaporeans is not the same as doing the same but with one composed of Americans.

The VIA experience pushed me to new frontiers and to a higher potential than before. Looking into the future, I want to continue embracing a positive attitude towards addressing new challenges and pushing myself even farther away from my comfort zone. More importantly, all while following the saying as my guiding principle, where nothing is impossible to resolve as long as we are resilient until we succeed.