The Lack of Spirit for Service

Hi Readers,

I just realized that I never really mentioned in the previous posts what I was doing this summer. So I'll give a brief overview.

I am currently working at National Instruments in Austin, Texas. I am a hardware intern in the RF group, and I am currently working on validation and verification for some very cool things that are being worked on right now. When I tell people about my internship, the most common thread that comes up from other people is usually, "oh NI...don't they make calculators or something?" NO. That's Texas Instruments, not National Instruments. Even my dad said to me, "...are you sure that it's not Texas Instruments?" It is quite understandable, since NI is still only a medium-sized tech company, not like many of the tech giants here in Texas like TI or AMD.

However, even though NI is not a giant company, it is the perfect place to work. I love the people and resources that are available at NI for all of the employees, from the employee appreciation, to the culture of cooperation inside the company. I have heard from many people in different companies that foster competitiveness (such as Exxon or Intel), and I think I would not really fit in at one of those companies, because they lack the human element that makes a good team.

This blog post is just somewhat of a rant on human nature that I've been observing among the interns at NI. As I am currently the intern service committee chair, I am in charge of making sure that service activities happen. However, it is so frustrating to see the lack of desire for service in the interns. They seem just so apathetic to service work of any kind. I have heard the phrase here so often, "volunteering is just not my thing." Why not? You'll spend your precious time on Facebook or partying, but you can't even spare 2 hours to do some volunteer work? How misguided are your priorities?

The moment I fully realized that people out in the real world are selfish, despite their friendliness, was the first moment that I felt so lucky to have experienced Engineers Without Borders. I am so lucky to have been surrounded by people with such open hearts, people who dedicate so much of their lives to the pursuit of perfection, not only for themselves, but for other people as well. I feel like, through joining EWB, I have dodged a bullet. The bullet of apathy and self-centeredness. Though I understand that people have different priorities, I hate seeing time and potential wasted. If they are discovering the cure for cancer or learning new knowledge, fine. But to waste time on Facebook and then to diss service work as a waste of time, just makes me so angry.

How is it that, despite having 200+ interns, only 2 showed up to a volunteer event? And it wasn't even a boring event - it was taking apart computers and recycling their components. I would have expected engineers to jump at this chance. But instead I was disappointed yet again by the turnout. If it wasn't for the fact that so many full-time NI employees showed up, it would have been a complete disaster. That by itself showed me the citizenship that NI employees felt, and the culture of service in the company.

People are living life as they see fit. I respect that. But I pity these people who live a self-centered life, without realizing the fullness in living a life of service. In the Chinese proverb, they are like frogs who live at the bottom of a well and believe that the well is all there exists in the world. There's a whole world out there. If only people would open their hearts, and climb up the rope that leads out of the well, they will discover the joys of service, and welcome it into their hearts.

-FCDH