Such a switch from a white-collar job to "qing ti li huo" (or "light labor" in Chinese) is gaining popularity among younger people in the country. It was only in hindsight that Wang realized she never "personally wanted" to pursue her major, or be in a white-collar job. "I looked back and I realized it was because my parents told me to choose it, people told me that with this major I'd have a really, really great future," Wang said. She earned about 12,000 Chinese yuan ($1,700) a month in her white-collar job. But what may be priceless to her is the self-discovery Wang said she's been able to experience after walking away from her white-collar job.

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Persons: Eunice Wang, I'd, Wang, Jia, they're, Jia Miao, Wu Xiaogang, Wu, That's, xiao bai, Miao, Eunice Wang Barista, Wu —, she's Organizations: NYU Shanghai, New York University Shanghai, CNBC, NYU Locations: China, Beijing, United States