At 23 I applied for full-time positions with no intention of working five days a week. As a housewife, I had two pre-school children then but wanted to work three days a week.

This was a huge deal for me. I needed to work, but also wanted to spend time with my children while they were young. I didn’t want to miss out on school drop-offs and pick-ups. But I also didn’t want to miss out on the opportunity of promotion.

Before the interviews, I prepared a plan of how I was going to make this work for me and the employer. I saw it as a two-way agreement — the business adapting to me and me adapting to the business.

Finally I became a member of EY at 33. EY was the only firm that seemed receptive to my plan; in fact, we spent time during that first interview talking about how we could make it work together. Most importantly, the person interviewing me worked flexibly too — four days a week.

I appreciated that I’m one of the lucky ones. Even 10 years on, flexible hiring and working remains the exception rather than the rule for most.

What will help shift views and behavior, in addition to organizations updating their hiring policies, is talking more openly about how most of us organize our day around our responsibilities. We all have a life outside of work and we shouldn’t be embarrassed to talk about it, even during a job interview.

It’s a change in the way of thinking, not just for employers but employees too. In the early days I was confident about my ability but I probably did have a preconception (先入之见) that working part-time would limit my career progression. What I quickly realized was that if I took responsibility for my development, I could make sure that I got the same opportunities as if I was working full-time. So I offered solutions to how we could make it work, and it made me stand out.

Nearly 19 percent of teachers of color (有色人种教师) left their jobs after the 2014-2015 school year. Some left for personal reasons like taking care of their families. But 50 percent said they left because they were dissatisfied with their employment situation, such as poor working conditions, student discipline problems and large class sizes. Thus, taking immediate measures to improve it is our top priority.

For years, researchers have proved the benefits of increasing the share of minority teachers in schools, especially as our public school system has turned to one that is made up mostly of minority students. Teachers of color, who are more likely than their white counterparts to choose to work in racially diverse (多种多样的) schools, offer particular benefits to their students. Graduation rates increase among minority students when they are taught by racially similar educators, research shows. They can also serve as positive role models, and their presence reduces the chance of racial discrimination at school.

The Shanker Institute report suggests that the rate of minority teacher hiring is not the whole problem. The problem is what happens after these teachers enter the classroom. These teachers often work in high-poverty rural schools. They are more likely to have less-desirable working conditions.

Diversity is a key component to equality and opportunity. Where there’s a diverse teaching workforce, all kids thrive. So solutions must be found at once to turn this trend around. Firstly, schools should develop mentorship programs that support minority teachers once they are in the classroom. Secondly, more money should be spent in improving working conditions in these schools. Of course, school headmasters should also be evaluated on their ability to retain teachers of color.

When you are choosing a major in the future, will you place a higher value on its future career or on its personal interest to you? Zhong Fangrong, a left-behind girl from Hunan province who scored 676 points in total on this year’s college entrance exam, preferred the latter as she applied to study archaeology (考古学) at Peking University.

However, there was a heated debate concerning whether she had made a wise decision. Some netizens argued that she wouldn’t have a promising future unless she chose a more popular major—for instance, finance, engineering, business, etc.—instead of archaeology. What’s more, considering the financial burden on her family, she had better think twice before making her final decision.

The girl later responded that she had been inspired to pursue archeology by Fan Jinshi, president of Dunhuang Academy, and that she had developed a passion for history and cultural relics (遗址). She also added that she cared little about fame and fortune.

Zhong has increased my confidence because of her attitude towards life. Firstly, she knows clearly what she is really interested in and is determined to devote herself to it. Secondly, Zhong has been able to stick to her pursuit despite the criticism from society.

Zhong’s pursuit reminds me of a lady who walks on a country road and lives in poetry—Li Ziqi. They both try their best to be who they want to be, which is rare and admirable nowadays.

Just ask yourself: Do you have the courage not to follow the pattern that the majority of people repeat? Actually, applying for an unpopular major may help you to avoid fierce competition. And the pursuit of a popular major is no guarantee for a brilliant future.

Following the example of Zhong, I will be more willing to follow my dreams in the years to come.