About Yu
If you wish to achieve YOUR definition of success, you need to set out goals, and build your own strategies – something that WORKS for YOU.
Sounds intimidating, right? Well,I’m here to share my stories with you about how I achieved my goals, I understand there are many strategies that are just not for you – but don’t let this deter you. In our physical world, everything has its own laws of operation, and so does success.
My blog is dedicated to dissecting all the aspects of life one post at a time, and to provide insight and advice from an established Registered Nurse, who has achieved all of the above, despite not living in some multi-million dollar mansion in the Bahamas.
MY STORY
CHILDHOOD
My name is Yu Zhang, and I was born and raised in mainland China (Sichuan Province), to 2 loving parents who were often away for work. Because of this, I had to live with my Aunty who was already retired and had a son of her own. This situation is not uncommon in China, but nevertheless, it is not an easy environment to grow up in.
I learned at a very young age to take care of myself as a result. I learned to cook my favourite dishes, help out with the cleaning around the house and entertain myself by reading books and studying – with my favourite subject being the human body and how it all worked. I became almost obsessive with the subject – the more I read, the more I learned and wanted to learn. This reading time was also somewhat of an escape for me – everyday I would look forward to finishing my chores after school so that I could read.
REALISING MY PASSION
In China, having an illness or injury is quite costly, and it often involves going straight to a hospital rather than going to a general practitioner, even for minor injuries. We would try to avoid going to the hospital unless it was really necessary. Because of this, I was often reading up on how to heal minor injuries and illnesses so that I could help my family whenever there were any issues.
I really enjoyed being able to help – you wouldn’t believe how much pain and suffering some people would go through in my hometown when taking a simple antibiotic or vitamins, or just dressing a wound correctly is all that it required. I decided from a young age that I wanted to become a nurse and from that moment on, I felt I found my calling in life.
MOMENT OF CLARITY
After graduating from college, I was working as a full-time registered nurse for one of China’s elite Army Hospitals for a number of years. I had become a well recognised name in the facility and my seniors respected me. I felt I had a pretty good life at that time – I was doing what I loved, helping people in our community and I was also earning a good salary.
One day, we had a patient in the oncology ward that had breast cancer – the patient had just received surgery to remove the cancer and it was my job to monitor the patient and replace the dressing on the wound every so often. I noticed over time that the wound was getting worse, but we were doing everything we knew to heal the wound. I decided to do some research on the internet to try and find some information from countries with better developed healthcare, hoping I may find a solution, however my ability to find this information was limited due to google and many other websites being blocked.
At this time, I felt so helpless and it was the worst feeling I had ever experienced. The patient deteriorated and eventually died before I could do anything to help. I was heartbroken. After some time of deep thought and reflection, I decided I would move to a country with better developed healthcare so that I could continue to advance my knowledge and share this knowledge to people around the world, especially to my colleagues in China and people in countries with less developed healthcare.
MOVING TO AUSTRALIA
After doing some research, I decided that Australia would be my destination – the only problem was, I could not speak a word of English. I signed up to take English lessons when I was 27 year old. I started with single words like “Apple”. At first, I would study after work and on my days off but then I realised this needed more time. So I went all in, and decided to quit my job and study English full-time. I had saved a fair amount of money which helped keep me afloat during this time. Finally, after 2 years of full-time study, I was able to pass the IELTS test and move to Australia.
HEALTH, FITNESS AND STUDY
I started to study a Bachelor of Nursing in Sydney, Australia – this degree would take me 2 years to acquire. Even though I had the equivalent degree in China, I knew there was still so much to learn, especially having such an open knowledge base, accessible to anyone and everyone. And I was not disappointed. I found I was particularly interested in aged/community care – I really felt that this was the area where I could have the most impact. I learned so much, and whilst I was happy that I was gaining all of this knowledge, I also felt sad knowing how this knowledge could have changed a lot of situations I faced in China.
My days consisted of studying during the day and doing some part-time work in the evenings, so I found I didn’t really have much me-time and my eating habits were completely random. This combination left me with a severe lack of endorphins and feeling generally exhausted and unhappy. I decided that I needed to change – I found a good diet which involved eating 4 times a day, and I started a workout routine which I would complete in the mornings before I started to study. Whilst it was initially difficult to adjust to this new routine, I eventually started to enjoy the benefits which included having much more energy and a general improved mood – this provided me the motivation I needed to continue with it. Since that time, diet and exercise have become an extremely important aspect of my life – you just have no idea how much it can change your life if you haven’t tried it.
After about 12 months into my study, I found I was feeling lonely. Whilst I had made some friends, I missed my family and genuine companionship. After doing a bit of research and asking some of my friends, I decided to try using a dating app. With a bit of time and perseverance, I found someone that really understood me and what I wanted to achieve. We had similar outlooks on life and we were both hungry and motivated to achieve our goals. He was so caring, and an old-school romantic. We were constantly messaging each other and seeing each other whenever we could. We were in love.
My partner supported me and provided me with extra motivation – he helped me with my study and would always remind me why I’m here and what I am capable of whenever I felt like giving up. A few months later, I graduated and shortly after, I passed my PTE test, allowing me to become a Registered Nurse in Australia.
FAST FORWARD TO NOW
5 years on from arriving in Australia, I am happily married to a loving husband, I’m working in my dream job in the community care sector, we are financially secure, and we are living in our dream home that we purchased together.
MY MISSION
Last year, one of my previous colleagues in China asked me if she could pass my details to one of her connections that was in the process of writing an article for a medical journal. Her connection reached out to me and asked me some questions – specifically around aged care and the systems and processes that are in place in Australia to aid those in need of care. The purpose of this article was to highlight how much room for improvement there is in less developed countries and how following a model similar to what’s in place in Australia could provide much benefit and security to the general population. I was so glad that I could share my knowledge on that platform – and as a result, I have since been a source for many others as well.
Over the years, I have made connections from many different industries and walks of life and my focus is now to share my knowledge, insights, experiences and provide advice on aspects of everyday life, hoping it can help others realise and achieve their goals.
The moral of my story is, anything is achievable with the right plan – a plan that suits you and your situation.
I Want to Take a Moment and Thank You For Being Here.
I appreciate the time you took to read this and deeply value every relationship I make from this blog. If you have any questions or would like to collaborate, please don’t hesitate to reach out!
Kind Regards,