Will Lukang, PMP, MASCL, MBA

I recently attended a networking event and was fascinated by one of the speakers.  She was born to a family whose father and mother were gardener and maid to a wealth family.    But that did not stop her from aspiring to be someone she wants to be.  She is now a CIO of a company.   It reminded me of Mahatma Gandhi saying, “Be the change you want to see in the world.”

Her story reminded me of the challenges that I had to overcome growing up when my parents had no confidence in my abilities because I was not like my siblings who performed well in school.  It was tough growing up in an environment when no one believes in you, because you don’t have the support group that enables you to succeed.   But I took it as a challenge to prove to every single person that I’m capable of achieving things that they otherwise thought was impossible.   I draw my energy from the criticism and channel that energy toward achieving my goal.

Time and time again, we read about how our mind is very powerful, when people tell us that we are not smart and will not amount to anything.   It reinforces that message; we might believe in it.   When we believe, the perception becomes the reality. In effect, it is a self-fulfilling prophesy.    

How does one overcome such challenges?  In order to succeed and make something for yourself, you need to understand your strengths and weaknesses and work on highlighting your strengths while continue to improve your weaknesses.   You are the only person who knows your capabilities.  No one can tell you what you can and cannot do.   It starts with a dream.   Imagine what you would like to be and work toward achieving that goal.   I’m not saying that by imagining and dreaming it will come true.   The fact of the matter is you have to work hard and persevere and commit to getting it done.   Seek the help of people you admire and respect.  Emulate people who have the skills or capabilities that you don’t have.  Seek their advice and help to improve.

Why is dreaming and imagining very important?  It is important because dreaming and imagining help you see and perhaps feel what it will be like to reach your goal.  Such images will help motivate you and push you toward achieving your goal.   There will be mistakes made and failure along the way, but without perseverance it is impossible to reach your goal. 

Knowing what I know now, what would I change?  My answer is nothing.  Every experience and challenge I encountered helped me to be the person that I am.  I would not be here if not for all my experiences and challenges.  Why am I telling my story?  It is my belief that I want to pay it forward.  It is the very reason why I wrote this blog.  The purpose is to share my knowledge and experience and to touch people’s hearts and inspire people to carry on and keep their hopes up.