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Amelie Leang shares with us how her career as an apprentice at Schneider Electric also coincides with her career in Taekwondo. Work/life balance doesn’t force her to choose between her the two.
My History
I grew up with two brothers, so my interests were similar to theirs. When I first saw my brother practicing taekwondo, I knew at this moment that this sport was made for me.
At age 4, I directly wanted to start sparring and I won my first medal during the same year.
I trained in the same club, located in a small village near Lyon, France called “ASCS Taekwondo” for 7 years. When I was 12, my brothers and I had to find another club, and we found a brand new club that specialized in Poomsae.
Before moving on, you might ask yourself, what does “Poomsae” mean? Taekwondo is divided into 2 practices. Sparring (mostly 1 on 1 fights) and Poomsae (patterns or series of basic attack and defense movements in which precision and motor performance are the keys drivers).
So, I started doing Poomsae Tournaments and won several medals. I entered the Regional Team in 2012, and I finally ended up taking part in the French National Team in 2014.
However, in 2016, my main coach suddenly passed away because of a disease. Since this event, I have never found a better coach, somebody who knew me better than myself. My little brother (who is also in the French National Team) and I decided to take some trainings in Korea for inspiration and since that is where Taekwondo originated.
There, I realized that if I wanted to make up something in my life with this sport, I had to be self-determined instead of counting on others to motivate me. Success only depends on yourself. Just go for it.
“Success only depends on yourself. Just go for it.”
And of course, everything was possible thanks to my parents. Without them, I would not be where I am now. After evolving in the sports world, I needed to focus more on my professional career.
Between Career and Sport
As I did an exchange program in Shanghai in September 2018 for 10 months, I had to quit the French National Team. I kept training in China, but I got seriously injured in January 2019. Coming back to France in July 2019, people kept asking me if I wanted to compete again. But I was focusing on my studies too much to think about that at the time.
Starting in September 2019, I am living a totally new amazing life! Everything was running as I wanted: I entered into the INSEEC school and received an apprenticeship contract for 2 years in this amazing company, Schneider Electric!
It was not my first experience in a company, but it was the first time that I questioned myself about my future with taekwondo. Something was missing in my daily life. Then, I found out that I will never get rid of Taekwando so easily. It is a part of me.
I decided to pursue my trainings again. I used to train by myself, so it was not too hard to start from scratch again.
Schneider Electric makes it easy for their employees to find comfort in their personal lives. I have the chance of not having to adapt to this new environment. It is very convenient to have access to a gym after a long day of work. I just need to take a few steps in the Paris office and there I am. I have no excuses!
I was preparing for the 2020 World Taekwondo Championship which was supposed to be held in Denmark at the end of May 2020, but because of worldwide situations, it was canceled. But I keep training 8 times a week to be ready for the next tournaments.
Being an athlete is not only training physically, but it is also psychological.
I am surrounded by inspiring people in my daily life. Because the majority of my time is spent at Schneider Electric, my environment has a real impact on my improvement in life. Schneider is made up of people from everywhere in the world, with different values and mindsets that strengthen my vision to see further.
I am always taking inspiration from work and transferring it to my trainings and vice versa.
“Take the risk or lose the chance”
Working or competing, I have the same mindset for both. You cannot be different from the others if you don’t look further than them. Continuously keeping your knowledge at the same point and not trying to improve yourself will not bring you to the best version of yourself.
Life is On!
It is because of this great work/life balance at Schneider Electric that I don’t have to lose sight of my goals, in either of my rewarding careers.
Why wouldn’t you want to work at Schneider Electric? Apply here today and see what our work/life balance is all about!
About the Author
Hi there! I am Amelie from France, and I’m currently an apprentice in the Hive in Paris, within the DCX (Digital Customer Experience) & Global Marketing Team for 2 years. I am a student from INSEEC business school, my master’s major is in Digital Strategy and Project Management. During my last year of Bachelor’s degree, I decided to follow an exchange student program at Shanghai University, where I developed my interest in Digital. In parallel, today I am a Triple Taekwondo Champion of France 2020. I’ve been on the French National Team since 2014. Thanks to my experience as an athlete, I have had the chance to be a regional coach (in the Auvergne/Rhône-Alpes region) since 2016. I am known for having a good eye for details and also known for being driven by the idea of continuous improvement.
Follow me on LinkedIn and Instagram to keep up with Schneider Electric and Taekwando careers!
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