In Chapter 5 of 16 in her 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, art director Lulu Chen answers "Where Did You Learn Your Work Ethic?" Chen considers nature versus nurture when thinking about the origins of her work ethic. She finds influences do come from outside forces such as parents or work experience but also feels much of work ethic is inherent and part of who you are.
Lulu Chen is a photo art director working in retail e-commerce in New York City. Previously, Chen worked as a freelance stylist for leading fashion catalogs and magazines. She earned a BFA in design and art history from the University of Michigan.
Transcript:
Erik Michielsen: Where did you learn your work ethic?
Lulu Chen: I don’t think you learn it. I think it’s just who you are. I think it could be developed, you know, the whole nurture versus nature argument. I think my parents always worked really hard. And so they were good examples of working really hard and I learned probably some of the work ethic from them but also I just—it’s never really a question—you just always do the best that you can. But I don’t know if that was learned or just who I am.
Erik Michielsen: And do you have people ask you about that?
Lulu Chen: I don’t think people really talk about it. I mean I think you get hired again as a freelancer, if they know that you care and that you work hard. And that you’re invested in their project as much as they are, or, you know, I think that it becomes expected when somebody knows who you are, and you—if you’re having a slacking off day, you know, they’ll notice it, but it’s ultimately not because you’re trying to be lazy or something, you know.