- As a graduate student at Stanford, Alex Yin, 32, had to decide between two internship opportunities
- He chose an internship in Bhutan, even though it was less relevant to his career.
- During his monthlong stint as an IT consultant, he learned how to grow from discomfort.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Alex Yin, 32, an options trader from New Jersey. He graduated from Stanford Graduate School of Business in June. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
As a Stanford Graduate School of Business student, deciding where to intern was tough.
I had two offers under the school's international program, the Global Management Immersion Experience. In order to graduate, fulfilling this program is required — either through the work abroad program or by taking a course on international business.
My first option was to work for a family office in Madrid, analyzing various investments. I had studied finance and statistics undergrad at New York University and had spent seven years in Chicago trading options at a large firm. It seemed like a natural fit and could be useful for anything I wanted to do in the future.
But I also had a second offer — a monthlong internship as an IT consultant at a hazelnut farm in Bhutan.
I had wanted to go to Bhutan ever since I went on vacation to Tibet when I was 17. It was such a magical place, and I wanted to return to a similar environment. I also knew it was a difficult country for visitors to visit as the government limits tourism.
It was a battle between my heart and my head. My heart was screaming, "Go to Bhutan! It doesn't matter what the job or company is. It's a cool opportunity."
Usually, I trust my head, but for this, I just listened to my heart.
I took the second offer
In August 2023, I flew 14 hours from New York to New Delhi and another five hours to Bhutan.
On the night I arrived, I met the CEO of Mountain Hazelnuts — an eccentric and friendly British man. The next morning, he took me to Tiger's Nest, an iconic monastery in Bhutan. It was an intense two-hour hike with steep and muddy trails.
Before the trip, I told myself I wouldn't care how uncomfortable it was and that I could spend a month without complaining. But it was day two, and I was like, "Wow, this is not easy. It's hot. I'm sweaty. There's a lot of poop around me. I'm about to fall." Still, I pushed through, and it was a magical experience at the top.
Later, we took a 16-hour car ride to Lingmethang, a small town in the eastern part of Bhutan, where I would work. I stayed in a three-bedroom home above the corporate office.
My week was divided between days in the office and field visits. As an IT consultant, my job responsibility was to manage a very limited IT budget and improve the security of their backup systems.
There was a point when I realized I'd actually never done any of this stuff before. "Am I qualified for the role?" I wondered to myself.
However, I learned that you can achieve a lot if you spend your time fully focused on solving a problem, even if you haven't had that direct experience before.
After work, I'd go to the village, drink a beer, and eat some momos, a type of dumpling, with my colleagues. They were locals between the ages of 25 and 45, and could all speak English well. I had to adjust to the simplicity, but I really appreciated it after a year at Stanford, where social events were nonstop.
Growing from discomfort
My biggest takeaway was that transitioning from a comfortable to an uncomfortable state isn't easy. But once you're in that uncomfortable state, it's pretty easy to maintain it.
In the village, I didn't have a lot of creature comforts. I had a pretty spartan life. But I was just as happy there, without the technology and distractions I had in Palo Alto. It's such a beautiful place that I didn't feel bored.
At night, I'd fend off mosquitoes, as locals don't kill them. I ran out of mosquito repellent in the first week, which was hard. The food also took a bit of getting used to, as it was mostly vegetarian.
Now, I live in New Jersey and am back in options trading. Although the internship was not entirely relevant to my career, it helped me gain confidence that if I try my best to solve a problem, I can still accomplish something.
I also appreciated how cohesive the company in Bhutan was. Although it wasn't doing well, everyone wanted to contribute their best. They held company barbecues where people would bring their families, dance, and sing into the night. I never heard anyone complaining during my time there.
I have found that this cohesiveness is hard to find in the US, where firms incentivize loyalty with money. I'd like to apply that to my future work places.
I will never regret choosing Bhutan, and I plan to return for a visit at some point.