Mountain View, CA
My 3 life goals are: create a new company that starts a new industry; make a positive global impact; and make everyone around me successful.
Who are you?
I am a serial entrepreneur and a power coach. Being the child of a diplomat from Taiwan, I moved to the states when I was 13. I lived in Kansas for four years and then moved to California, graduating UCLA with a degree in International Economics within 3 years. I started my first company when I was 18 and have then started five more. Currently, I am the founder of Viralogy, Inc and also do a lot of career and life coaching. My 3 life goals are: create a new company that starts a new industry; make a positive global impact; and make everyone around me successful.
What do you do?
I am the Founder and CEO of Viralogy, Inc. We initiated as a social media rank, gathering up to close to a hundred thousand unique visitors a month in traffic. We later then involved in a recommendation engine company, building tools to help e-commerce sites increase onsite conversions. I also advise many companies on their social media and web marketing strategies. Previous to that, I created a social network that Mashable.com rated as one of the Top 10 Social Networks for Gen-Ys. I also try to coach as many people as possible towards their life goals since that helps furthers my own 3rd goal.
Why are you proud to be of Taiwanese heritage?
I am proud of my Taiwanese heritage because I believe we are one of the most resourceful and balanced cultures out there. Taiwan is but a mere small island, but we have made it a nation that is recognized by everyone in this world and has truly made a big impact. When I talk to foreigners who travel a lot in Asia, they say that the Taiwanese people have the best balance between being personal while being polite. Also, like it or not, the Taiwanese have preserved more of the 5000 years of rich Chinese culture than China has (after they took everything out with the cultural revolution). I am proud to be a Taiwanese in every single way.
Sensitive topic here but I assume the 5000 years of Chinese culture you mentioned are the stolen artifacts or “booty” of the KMT army when they sacked the Forbidden Palace along with the Palace Museum. China’s artifacts were brought across the straight along when the Nationalist forces fled to Taiwan sometimes 1947. I think the Nationalist Chinese were flaunting across the straight that the ROC was the sole preserver of the traditional Chinese culture midst the social change of Red China’s Cultural Revolution with the stolen artifacts. I am proud to be Taiwanese and Taiwanese-American, but I don’t want to associate myself with theft and stolen artifacts as a sense of pride. In fact I don’t understand why China’s artifacts are still housed in Taiwan.