2014, A Big Pivot, and Other Incredible Things

2014, what a big year! I’m so thankful for everything I’ve experienced in 2014. Myanmar. I started the year on Inle Lake in Myanmar. My partner and I stayed at a villa at the ultra quiet and tranquil Inle Lake Resort. We drank cocktails while watching a stunning sunset (many more Myanmar photos here). The Big Pivot. I realized that I wanted to be back in tech and in a startup. I reflected on what worked for me and what didn’t in the past, what I wanted and what I didn’t, and took my time to find the best startup to join. I

Connecting With My Chinese Roots

A few weeks ago, I unexpectedly connected with my Chinese roots in Taiwan. This might not be well-publicized, but Taiwan now seems to me a pretty good (and uncrowded) place to discover your Chinese roots and heritage, in case you were looking to do that. Although there is that big and now-mighty country China, which probably comes first to mind when people think about Chinese history and heritage, on my countless trips there I have found it to be too crowded, too big, and in full economic growth overdrive. Taiwan is a lot more chilled out. If you are looking to connect with

4 Milestones for This Personal Startup

Recently, I’ve been waking up feeling excited to start each day. This is particularly amazing since on most nights now, I tend to stay up, working through as much of the long list of to-dos for this site as possible. I’ve found that I’m excited because I learned to celebrate the little victories and milestones along the way, which keeps me motivated on this personal startup that requires a lot of time but generates no revenue. I think that a crucial part of startup life is learning how to celebrate the milestones, however insignificant or small you might think they

Top 5 Exotic Warm Water Dive Spots That Are Worth the Trouble

Since I got my PADI diving license more than 2 years ago in Aqaba, Jordan, I’ve been itching to explore more wonders in the underwater world. Unfortunately, the first few dives that I did immediately after getting my license were in the famously beautiful, clear and warm waters of the Red Sea in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. I had done myself in. How do you beat diving in the Red Sea?! But luckily for me, I have an equally adventurous partner who loves looking for exotic warm water dive spots too. Together, we have traveled to several far-flung places specially to dive,

How to Adapt to the Digital Economy

Why is it important to adapt to the digital economy? The digital economy has disrupted the post-industrial economy corporate path. Software is now eating the world. It has upended that old economy’s assumption that if you are smart, you will get a good job in a company, and then be able to work your way up (slowly) to wealth, power and prestige. Technology and the internet has leveled off differences in people’s backgrounds and educational upbringings, and brought the creation of wealth, power and prestige back to the basics: how much value you create for others. When I first joined

How to Become CEO of Your Life

A few weeks ago, I was invited to return to my alma mater to give a talk at their Career Day for graduating students. I realized after the Q&A session that Asian education systems still preach the mantra that if you do well in school, you would get a great job and earn lots of money, and the reverse is true as well…End of story. But in this new digital, post-industrial economy that we live in now, the reality is so far from that. The education system hasn’t kept up. This type of mentality that the system decides your worth based on its

How Ellen Degeneres and Taylor Swift Can Help You Find Your Startup Idea

Recently, I found inspiration for a couple of startup ideas from Ellen Degeneres and Taylor Swift. I’m not the first to draw inspiration from showbiz. Ben Horowitz actually begins every chapter of his book, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, with rap lyrics. Beyond the obvious fact that Ellen Degeneres and Taylor Swift are both wildly popular and on Hollywood’s Top 10 richest female artistes list, I realized that they have one more thing in common. They are both at ease in their own skin, largely because they are able to express themselves through a medium that lets them turn their most

4 Reasons Why I Started This Website

This is my first little personal startup! I’m at the time in my life when many of my friends are busy creating weddings and babies, and as my Facebook wall gets flooded with baby photos and wedding pictures more and more each day, I’m beginning to feel quite left out. So, I decided to create something of my own. Just kidding. There were actual legitimate reasons why I started this website. Although this makes no money, I started it to create value for myself and my readers. 1. I Had a Paradigm Shift Up to a few months ago, I’ve always associated myself

.: Qiuyun Song .:

Travel. Startups. Photography.

Author: qiuyunsong13