The study trip to Taiwan is easily one of the highlights of my university life. As much as I had to experience an arduous, obstacle laden visa process (including my first ever visa rejection), I was lucky enough to clutch in two visas on the same day. Although I was not able to join the Seoul leg of the trip, I was very glad that my classmates and professors welcomed me with open arms in Taipei. Within a span of 4 days, I experienced personal growth, conquered my fears, found significant motivation to kickstart my own company one day, all while making friends that make me want to be a better version of myself.
To start off, the visit to AppWorks made me realize how important it is to get the business model right. The discussion with their team revealed how financial feasibility is key to survival, and so often it is the case that a founder with passion is one of the key drivers to success. I now know that my next business does not need to have a $1 million dollar funding from a fancy VC, but it can start off as small as my mother’s savings, which funnily enough is exactly how AppWorks started. This made me relate to the more successful startups out there that ended up being the Big Tech as we know it, the likes of Apple, Microsoft, Amazon all started in someone’s garage with a crazy guy beaming with passion. Of course, there are a host of other factors involved but a heart full of passion, your mom’s money and a garage is not a bad start after all.
The visit to Digital Domain, however, has to be the climax of the trip for me. The day before, I accepted my groupmate Eunice’s request to present the next day at the Digital Domain office. Little did I know, my public speaking phobia would creep in throughout the next 36 hours. The only thing I could think about was blanking out in front of everyone, not knowing what to say and making a complete fool out of myself. I mentioned this irrational fear to Eunice, and she became my biggest cheerleader. The night before the presentation, she pushed me to rehearse in front of her, pointed out the sections that were good and the ones that were not fully there yet. Despite my multiple attempts to pull out and escape from this fear, she calmed me down by saying “it is chill” and “you will be fine”. Professor Linda picked up on my anxiety during our visit to NTU and was really supportive as well. When I was finding it hard to keep at ease during the presentation, her warm smile gave me courage. As scary as it was before the presentation, I realized how the best things in life are often achieved through discomfort. And when you are surrounded by compassionate beings like Eunice and Professor Linda, that journey is all the more easier.
The visit to Digital Domain in itself was quite inspiring for our project. We got to talk to the industry professional directly, align their expectations with our own and asked them about their aspirations in the web3.0 domain. We were quite delighted to hear that they could see a real potential in our idea, and it was in line with what they were trying to achieve themselves. The constructive feedback on the pricing was also useful for us to rethink how we can reach a greater demographic in Hong Kong, including lower income groups.
On the last day of the trip, the sharing by the founder of Isle was immensely interesting to me. Although much of the sharing was in Mandarin, Professor Chan came to rescue with his very articulate translation skills. What I loved about this sharing was how simple the idea was, yet so innovative and impactful in its wake. The whole premise of using web3.0 and cryptocurrencies to support traditional liquidity problems was fascinating. Even the fact that he was using a UI that makes use of the web2.0 banking interfaces also made me realize how we can adapt to changes, and can always make seemingly un-intuitive technologies by simplifying it down for the layman to consume. The liquidity crunch in the supply chain is something that I have experienced myself and the founder’s use of design thinking was very helpful for me to take initiative to put on the shoes of the consumer in order to solve the pre-existing problems surrounding mental health.
Perhaps one of the more personally gratifying parts of the trip for me was to be able to deeply connect with so many people, that too from such different backgrounds. I indulged in conversations with my dear friend Brady, conversing in the deeply serious problems regarding modern geopolitics to the more lighthearted ones as to why Taiwanese people are so nice. Cherry shared her passion in music, and her aspirations to become a prominent pianist. Eunice gave me company in the night markets, helping me navigate the maze of restaurants serving mouth-watering 牛肉面. Edrian conversated with me in 3 languages simultaneously (English, Mandarin, and French) and made me realize how language can diminish all sorts of barriers. Gini gave all the good poses and good-naturedly laughed at my dark, offensive jokes. Christie told her stories of Mexico and demonstrated her impressive planning skills of thinking ahead for breakfast the night before in a 7/11. Venus was compassionate, offering company to her friend needing her support on the phone while we wreaked havoc at the night market. Masaki, Donald, Sharon, Stephanie, and Professor Linda were all very warm, and made me smile wholeheartedly. Special thanks to Professor Chan, who read all my emails and replied to me within minutes. Navigating the bureaucratic visa process would have been impossible without his patience and conscientiousness.
When I came back home from the trip, I felt a little empty. The kind of emptiness that you feel after something great. I would like to share a quote that resonated with me “Grief is the price we pay for love”. And how lucky am I to have experienced love in a foreign city, with people who have left a permanent mark in me.
