This job is just a steppingstone for me. At thirty thousand [US$1,150] a month, the pay is not terrific, but it's pretty good for a young man just getting out of the military. It's not a highly respected job, but it's stable. Of course, it would be great if I could get a job I liked, or one that was related to my field. If not, I just hope I can earn the maximum amount of money in a short period of time. Then I can start my own business.
My work hours are from eleven at night to seven in the morning. My store is in a sleepless area, where there's a night market, a movie theater, and a KTV. I'm very busy from eleven to one or even two in the morning. Nowadays, people don't go to sleep until after midnight. They make money easily and want to spend more.
The business at my store is very good. Customers are always lined up in front of the checkout counter. The sales volume for an average night shift at most stores is fifteen thousand dollars [US$570]. But the sales volume at my store is double or even triple that. It varies greatly. Yesterday, the KTV nearby was closed because their electricity went out, and it really affected our business.
My customers include all kinds of people—night market vendors, young people going to see the midnight movies. Some are not educated, and some are very rude and start swearing. A few even come in drunk. The company has taught us how to deal with customers. We're in the service industry. The customer is always right. Anyway, you try not to get into any conflicts with anybody. Some customers are picky. For example, we might put all the stuff in one bag, but the customer thinks one bag is not enough. He needs one more bag. This kind of trivial thing happens all the time. You try not to let it bother you. When I'm dealing with this kind of customer, I just say yes, yes, yes. Never argue with them. My own principle is just enjoy your work, and you can have a good time. (Laughs.)
After one o'clock, I do some cleaning up, like mopping the floor and using alcohol to sterilize the Coke machine. You know, we don't want our customers to get the runs after drinking our Coke. (Laughs.) If I don't clean the machine, it will get ants. I also put in orders for the snack foods, like buns, popsicles, and ice cream. Then the night is almost over. I also need to take some time to restock the shelves. I definitely have to be fully alert when I'm in the storeroom getting stuff. I don't want somebody to steal five things off the shelves when I'm in the storeroom getting one thing. (Laughs.) An experienced worker knows how to handle this.
Even though we have a videotape running all the time, things still get stolen. Big stores as well as small stores all have shoplifters. All we can do is try to keep the loss to a minimum. Kids like something and they just take it. I won't send them to the police. It's too cruel. Usually we ask them to write a pledge saying they won't commit the same offense again. I'll call their parents, too.
Nowadays, kids are all spoiled by their parents. They have a lot of pocket money, five hundred or a thousand dollars [about US$20 or $40]. They have the money, they just want to keep it to buy something else. They think it's fun to take something. They don't know how serious it is. Kids are smart, too. If one gets caught in our store, all the kids in the area will know. They dare not do it again.
When I started working here, I heard that one convenience store was robbed. I was a little scared. Basically, we don't keep much cash in the store. The company has instructed us that if a robber wants money,just give it to him. Life is more important than money. (Laughs.) Also, we have security personnel [who drive by] on patrol all the time. Anyway, all jobs have some risk. In the beginning, my parents were sort of worried about me. But a construction worker can have an accident at a construction site. It's more likely a salesperson riding on a motorcycle will get in a traffic accident on the way to see a client. In comparison, working in a convenience store is much safer.
Beginning at five or six in the morning, I start getting busy again. The newspapers come in. I have to put them on the stand. Then people come to buy breakfast and newspapers. I get off work at seven, but I don't go home to sleep. I do something else. Now I'm taking some classes. I also do some machine maintenance work—I majored in electrical engineering in junior college. For example, I was responsible for the maintenance of an air-conditioning system in an office building for six months.
I go to bed around three in the afternoon and wake up around ten at night, then go to work. As long as my sleeping time is fixed, my body can adjust to it. My girlfriend is a nurse. She suggested I take more vitamin B.
I think the service industry will be the main trend in the future. I want to learn more about it. I also buy some stocks. Taiwan's commodity market will be opened soon, too. Now I'm taking some foreign exchange classes. I read Money magazine. I'm interested in personal finance. (Laughs shyly.) I have some plans. I already have the know-how for running a convenience store, like how to place orders, control the inventory, and do promotions. I also worked for a real-estate agency for a little while. I'm looking for an opportunity to start my own business.
I've been steady with my girlfriend for four years. I want to get married. But I want to have my own business before I'm thirty and be financially stable before I get married. In this society, a man always has to bear more pressure. I'm twenty-four now, and I'm going to be thirty pretty soon. I don't want to lag behind my friends.
The pay at the convenience store is stable. The machine maintenance jobs also bring in some money, not steady, but pretty good. I've earned some money in the stock market, too. I think young people should try new things. (Laughs.) Early this year, I bought an apartment for three million dollars [US$115,000]. I had seven hundred thousand in savings and my parents loaned me three hundred thousand. I will definitely pay my parents back. Now I'm paying eighteen thousand [US$700] a month on a loan from the bank. Buying an apartment is a good way to keep the value of your money. The inflation rate is 5 percent a year. The value of real estate will go up, too. It's better to buy an apartment now. If you wait five years, the price will go up.
I don't want to count on my family. If I always get money from my parents, I won't be motivated to reach my potential. I've got to earn my own money. I started working part time when I was in junior college. I saved my money to buy a computer. I really believe that if a man has a good time when he is young, he'll definitely have a hard time when he's older. I don't want to be just a salary man. I want to have my own business. I want to become a boss and hire a college graduate to work for me. Now I'm looking for opportunities. Last year, I thought about opening a passion store [selling sex-related paraphernalia]. I'm still observing market trends. I may get into something a little bit late. I'm cautious. I may be one or two years late. It doesn't matter. I want to find exactly the right kind of business to start out with.
—interview by Yvonne Yuan