International Tutors' Magazine April 2019 | Page 5

APRIL 2019 Temuulen Ganzorig, International Tutor Country: Mongolia Languages: English, Mongolian, beginner Japanese Q: What did you do before coming to EdUHK? I studied International Economic Relations at the National University of Mongolia. In 2016-2017, I also worked as an English Teaching Assistant at the City University of Hong Kong. Q: How do you feel living in Hong Kong? Do you think you're living a happy life? I'd describe my life here as a fulfilling experience. Living a happy or fulfilling life doesn't mean being happy all the time. I'm living a happy life because I have a lot of time to myself, for my personal well- being. I enjoy talking, sharing opinions, having deep conversations and learning things from different perspectives. These things help me gain inner happiness. Q: How would you define inner happiness? I think it has a lot to do with confidence. Being confident in yourself means accepting who you Left: On top of the world. Right: In Victoria Harbor. really are and not being afraid to show other people your shortcomings. I think I'm confident, although of course I'm always working hard on becoming a better person. Q: Some students may not be very confident, especially in class. Do you have any advice? Confidence is an important skill that we can actually practice. Try being the first to speak up, introduce yourself more, have more conversations and interactions with people. Take risks, and soon you will find that being confident becomes more natural. COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT BY MON ZHANG ZIMENG Juho Valtonen, Senior International Tutor Country: Finland Languages: English, Finnish, and a bit of Swedish, Spanish, Japanese, and Cantonese Q: What did you do before coming to EdUHK? I got my bachelor's degree in software business in Finland and worked in information technology for a while. So I was in IT before I became an IT! Q: How would you define happiness? I think being happy is the moment you feel comfortable with where you are and the people and things around you, as well as with yourself. Q: Scandinavian countries like Finland or Sweden always rank highly in the World Happiness Report. Why do you think this is? I think it's mainly because of our social welfare. Finnish society is very equal and we have policies like progressive taxation that help reduce income inequality. Everyone, not only the rich, has access to good education, healthcare and other resources, and it’s up to the individual to make the most out of it. Q: After living in Hong Kong for 2 years, do you think Hong Kong people are happy? Personally, I feel life in Hong Kong is very stressful. People have less ways to relax compared to Finland, where we have more holidays and can always find beautiful nature nearby. Especially for students, I recommend trying to slow yourself down. Take a moment to take a deep breath and let out your stress. Learn to appreciate more things, even the little things that you take for granted. Look out of the windows around campus; the natural scenery will help you feel calmer and happier. Left: Exploring China. Right: A Finn enjoying nature. 5