I was born in Saigon, Vietnam and came over to the US as a refugee. It was my parents, my brother and two sisters. We stayed in Fort Chaffee, Arkansas which was a refugee camp at the time. Can you guess how I got my name? So here we were, a family of six with nothing except the clothes on our backs! Fortunately for us, a wonderful group of families from a St. Louis church decided to sponsor us and help my family get acclimated into the United States. They helped my parents find a job, taught them English, put the kids into school, and helped us find a place to live. Were it not for the kindness of complete strangers, I wouldn't be where I am today.
Growing up, I lived a very simple life. We had very little money and a lot of love! That's what got us through at times. My father worked on an assembly plant at Ford Motor Company while my mom worked at the church that sponsored us. While we didn't have a lot growing up and very little money, I don't remember ever lacking for anything. We appreciated everything we had and were thankful for being alive really. We didn't have the cool toys the kids have today - we just played outside a lot.
Because I only spoke one language at the time, when I went to school, I was placed in the "special" kids group. While in my mind I was doing fine, I guess the school couldn't understand my genius and stuck me with the special group. This lasted for a couple of years until I learned the language and then I excelled and was placed in the advanced kids group. My how things change.
Still, growing up, while living a very meager lifestyle, I knew there was more out there. I knew at a very young age that I wanted more out of life and that the possibilities were there. By the seventh grade, I knew exactly what I wanted to do - I just didn't know how to do it yet.
College was a struggle. My parents really didn't have any money to help any of the kids through college. We had to work and pay for our own way through college or get student loans. I remember getting several scholarships which were all gone by the time I had to pay for books. I ended up getting a lot of student loans and working several different jobs just to pay my way through college. The funny thing was that I didn't qualify as a minority at my college because there were so many Asians attending school there. So while I was a National Minority, I wasn't one at my school - The University of Illinois - so I didn't qualify for minority student aide. What got me though was that my roommate - who was an African-American - did qualify for the aid, received his money, and then proceeded to spend it all on a new leather trench coat and a stereo boombox. And then he proceeded to complain the rest of the semester how he had no money. Funny guy. I'm not sure if he knew the meaning of having no money.
Regardless, I graduated in a major that I never wanted in the first place - Industrial Engineering. I never wanted to be an engineer. My father did though. He gave me two options - either be an engineer or a doctor. You see, he worked on the assembly line at Ford Motor Company. That means manual labor in 100 plus degree temperatures. And then he would see these young engineers wearing ties coming in bossing everyone around getting paid twice as much as he was. So I just had to be an engineer. Or a doctor - who he also knew made a good living. Didn't matter what I wanted. Just had to go to school, get good grades, get a good job, and the company will take care of you. Has anyone ever heard that before?
So in order not to break my father's heart (He would have been like the father in Sanford and Son for those of you old enough to remember that show - It's the big one!!!), I became an engineer AND I never enjoyed it.
After getting a job and working as a Manufacturing Engineer, then a Software Engineer, a Software Programmer, a Project Manager, and then an IT Business Analyst, I was done. Working the gambit I knew I needed to do something else. I was wasting my time and life is too short to waste time doing something you don't enjoy. So I decided to do something about it and I started my own business.
If you've never started your own business, I must say, it's quite an adventure. It's an adventure in personal development and growth! It's exciting, scary, fun, frustrating, energetic, depressing, amazing, and incredible all at the same time! I've learned so much about myself these past few years. I've met so many cool people and gone to so many great places! Instead of sitting at a desk looking at a computer screen all day long, I get to travel the country meeting people and sharing stories!
So what do I do? I'm a Success Coach, Public Speaker, Entrepreneur, Investor, Marketer, and overall fun guy! I invest in Real Estate. I'm involved in Network Marketing. I trade stocks and options; I'm writing several books; I speak at events; I travel all over the place helping other people find their passions and achieving the greatness within them! I love what I do - which is quite a change from being an engineer (unless of course that's what you love to do). I'm living the American Dream!
It hasn't come without struggles, mistakes, and sacrifices though! As one of my mentors says, "No Risk, No Goodies." The challenge is that when you take some risks, sometimes, you make mistakes. We all make mistakes. That's o.k. The only time you really fail though is when you give up! So if you've got a dream, if there's something out there that you want to do, then go for it. Take some risks, make some mistakes, grow and learn from them, and keep on keeping on until you reach your dreams!
I know that if a poor kid growing up with nothing - literally not being able to speak the language - can make it in this country, anyone can. I know that when we put our minds to something, we can achieve anything we want! I know that life is too short and precious to be wasted away at something you don't enjoy or love to do. As the saying goes, "Yesterday is the past, tomorrow is the future, today is a gift. That's why we call it the Present." So enjoy life. Celebrate Life! Live it to the fullest! And share it with as many people as you can.
I'm so thankful for everything in my life. I'm thankful for the kindness of strangers that opened their hearts to a group of refugees and are now life long friends and family. I'm thankful for all the people in my life that helped me get to where I am. And I'm thankful for the future... because my future so bright, I gotta wear shades...