Last Updated August 2019, I’m due for a rewrite.

Life’s a work in progress and so is this page. Inspired by Derek Sivers’ Me in 10 Minutes.

Who am I?

Bruce Lee said it takes a lifetime to know oneself, hence this will always be a difficult question to answer. But let’s take a shot at it!

My guiding philosophy

If you were to know three things about me, know the following:

I create work that authentically expresses who I am.

I strive to be the best I can be.

I surround myself with people that give me energy.

These three principles are my philosophy for life.

I’ll go into depth into what each one means to me in a future article, but here it is at a glance.

I create work that authentically expresses who I am

Many of my favorite works whether that be a space company, a jazz standard, or a bao restaurant (best about us page on the internet) are an extension of the creator. Elon Musk creates an ambitious company in SpaceX which is a manifestation of his vision for the future. Louis Armstrong expresses his charismatic personality in his rendition of What a Wonderful World. Eddie Huang combines his Taiwanese roots with his love of hip hop into a OG restaurant in Baohaus. All these men embody their work. Their motivations go beyond money and status, but rather to pursue something higher. As a result, their work is original, and resonates with many people including myself. This is a prerequisite to creating high quality, impactful work and I aim for the work I do to be an authentic expression of myself.

Naval wrote more about this topic here.

I strive to be the best I can be

Fill your cup up first and let it overflow to the others in your life - Oprah Winfrey

The first time I heard Oprah say this I was in the midst of one of the craziest but fulfilling journeys of my life. I was leading one of the largest student run tech events in Canada. It was a huge time commitment and I had no prior leadership experience beforehand. As stressful as it was, I loved every second of it. At the time, my leadership style put my team members first, to the point of self sacrifice. If it was a decision between spending time in service of a team member or spending time on myself, I would choose the team member.

Hearing the above quote from Oprah was a game changer for me. I realized that one of the most selfless things I can do for others, is work on myself, and keep my cup full. When I’m full, I’ll be overflowing and that’s when I’ll have a ton to offer this world.

On a higher level, what motivates me to be the best I can be is for my parents that made huge sacrifices for a better life for my sister and I, for everyone that believed in me, and to create a better world than the one I was born in.

I aim to surround myself with people that give me energy

In Bronnie Ware’s book Regrets of the Dying, she talks about the dying wishes of people on their deathbed. She found that when facing death, nobody regrets not working hard enough. Their main regret was not spending enough time with their loved ones and that those that truly mattered. This is an important truth that many people forget nowadays, including myself. That the quality of your life is determined by those you surround yourself with.

These principles have been a constant in my life for the past year, and every decision I’ve made that kept these three in mind and have progressed my life forward. This is my thesis for living an impactful and fulfilling life!

Tech is my main medium for value creation

Currently, I’m studying Computer Engineering at the University of Waterloo and investing with Front Row Ventures. Previously, I helped build products at SAP, Nav Talent and Top Hat, and ran the largest student run tech conference in Canada.

Through these experiences I learned about the rapid pace, numerous opportunities, and scale of impact in tech. I fell in love ever since.

Right now, the education and healthcare industry interests me the most, but really any industry solving important problems at scale are interesting to me.

My long term goal is to close the opportunity gap and more broadly speaking increase quality of life for all of us.

Other facts about me