Nhung does nothing but she does everything

Nhung always does nothing but she does everything. When everybody was over their ears with deadlines and pressure, Nhung hit them differently. You will see her chill at 11:59 PM leisurely finishing her deadline at 12, jiggling in the joyful karaoke room with her friends while having an online meeting with others, starring on the stage as the main actress while studying 21 credits and working for department A, company B, agency C, and vendor F,...

I once exclaimed: “We can not predict your next move, Nhung” when I saw her recently. Every time you meet Nhung, she always produces new stories. And yes, even though being a Business Administration student, Nhung falls out of any typical business student image that you might think of.

Despite her radiantly positive energy, Nhung does experience hard struggles during her journey. She once shared: “I desire to try everything as I still can not figure out what is the right thing for me”. That authentic “eureka” feeling is still not there, which motivates her to experiment and go with whatever flows.

I always take two or three tasks at the same time, not because I am a workaholic, it is rather because rushing multiple tasks simultaneously allows me to constantly switch from one to another, which will not bore me and boost me to be more productive” - Nhung explained.

In other words, Nhung chooses to resolve her easy distraction by putting herself in the context of having less spare time to wander around.

However, also because of that disturbing easy distraction, Nhung found it hard to intensely focus on her academics. She struggles to catch up with complicated concepts conveyed verbally in the class, and often finds herself demotivated when trying to comprehend and link different sources of knowledge together. Hence, in mentioning an excellent student in the College of Business and Management, people rarely think of Nhung. The image of an outstanding student that we usually portray is someone who typically gets a high GPA, owns a long list of prestigious achievements ranging from awards, recognitions, and experiences in big names.

As the academic year ended and summer approached, Nhung turned to be more funky through the expression of her true self. Not the long-haul classes, tiring group assignments, and the haunting peer pressure of the normal academic life, summertime empowers Nhung to move closer to her Eureka. Her summer starts with a trip to Cuc Phuong National Park in Ninh Binh with her friend gang, then a flight to Nha Trang for a sudden, yet exciting summer program with her former boss, and back to Hanoi rushing to finish the 2-day hackathon with the script writing that she and her team are planning for the upcoming play at VinUniversity. And if last summer, our Nhung wore a white shirt, black pants and worked from 9 to 5, this summer allows her more flexibility in her favorite industry: the entertainment industry. Nhung is currently taking an internship in an entertainment company and working on a super duper cool project that involves renowned Vietnamese artists. She might take another flight to Ho Chi Minh City during the summer to coordinate the current tasks. And yes, Nhung was just elected to be the President of the Student Council and Chief organizer of L’Oneiros, both works are in grand scale, and require complex specialized techniques.

Busy as she was, Nhung never shows you tiredness and intense depression. In contrast, she always gives you a big smile, and motivates you by sweet quotes and gentle actions that brighten your bad days. Nhung hits them differently, and she has her own approach to process her journey. And for many people who worked with Nhung, you might realize that Nhung might not always give out the best results, but she will deliver the most memorable journey.

However, it does take Nhung tremendous time to realize and normalize that philosophy, especially when she studies in an academic environment like VinUni, surrounding her with talented, bold, and competitive peers.

At first, I was scared as I always feel I am not good enough. Through observation and interaction at diverse levels, I am now aware that each one will have their own talents and you will then have your own stage, so don’t be too harsh on yourself with the sound-nice pathway of others”.

Others’ definition of an excellent individual should not be a barrier that prevents you from finding your best version in your own ways. Nhung does not aggressively push herself to win the recognition of any typical role model but rather occupies her time actively sourcing and experiencing as much as to define her own benchmark of excellence. To Nhung, finding joy in what you do and taking it because you are genuinely into it is the key to success. The whole process needs time, and the summer would be perfect for someone like her to immerse in another funky self.

We might not see Nhung rushing to her progress like other CBM students, but we do when looking at her journey entirely. She has her own pathway, and you do.

Eureka! Nhung does nothing but she does everything.

Sincerely,

VinUnians.