“I had an obsession with pain and I used to cut myself. I had this tattoo to remind myself to remain grounded. I like to travel, and I don’t have that concept of home like most people do, and I almost moved away from Malaysia to Siem Reap. It can be home, or family, and I never had that anchor. My family dynamics were different. Its to remind me that no matter where your heart takes you, keep yourself ‘anchored’. One big reason that made me grounded was service (volunteering). I know that sounds horrible but one of the reasons I did not move to Cambodia was the people I was helping here in Malaysia. The families and the people who are in need that I look after. I can’t abandon the people I am looking after here. Service is a huge part of my life. When I started dating, I could only date someone who also volunteered and understood it. Its not a fad thing its just how it is for me. “
‘During the interview I told them I can design, do finance, have accounting basics, and they hired me straight away, even though the pay was low (RM2,000).
‘I started on Monday, and they threw me so many tasks on the first day itself. I took it as a challenge and I did it, but I kept on moving.
‘After a few months I realised I cannot take this job, because I could not see myself growing there. The environment itself cut me short, and I was not learning any new skills.
‘Then one day, I received a call from my mother saying there was a company closing down due to bankruptcy, and suggested that we take over it. When she called, I was in the middle of doing one of the spreadsheets.
‘I told her give me two weeks to think, and so I was deliberating the pros and cons.
‘The pros? I would grow and see many more challenges. While the biggest con I could see is that I would put myself physically, mentally and financially out there in a big risk – and fail instantly.
‘But in the end I said ‘Let’s just do it!’. My life is short and even if it doesn’t work, there is always a way to get through life.
‘So, the next few months, I took out all my savings, started working on business plans and strategies and what I could do with the studio. The thing is, just because it is a dance studio doesn’t mean it is just for dancing – it could be a space for birthday parties, networking, events, and anything that requires a physical space.
‘Six months after I started, I stabilised my income and the studio was getting regular customers. I’ve been doing it for two years now and it’s worth it but it takes a lot of effort.
‘I had people who are 40, 50 years old coming to me saying what I am doing now is what people should be doing after they have worked most of their lives, and that I am starting too early.
‘Maybe it’s true, but you know what makes me go on? Fear. That fear of knowing I might not get much out of life. That fear of not being able to do so much.
‘Even if you are earning a lot, if you see yourself not growing, I think you need to go out.
‘You need to ask yourself, what can I get out of life? Especially while you’re still young!’
It is also known as the world’s smartest cruise ship for its advanced entertainment technologies.
‘Taking the ‘Ovation of the Seas’ is one of the highlights of my career. I started my life at sea as a Cadet in 1983 when I was 19 years old, with theDenmark Navy. I got my education there, then went into cargo ships, with the Maersk line. In the year 2000 I switched ships and joined cruise ships and so far I have been sailing for 33 years. I am now the Captain of the ‘Ovation Of The Seas’ cruise ship and many people have told me how beautiful and big it is.
‘So far we’ve cruised from Southampton to Barcelona, Barcelona to Dubai, and then Dubai to Singapore. Now we have a three day trip from Singapore to Malaysia, before heading to Tianjin (China) and that’s where the ship will be christened and named.
‘There’s no need to be worried about icebergs as the ship is a two compartment ship and we don’t really expect any icebergs but all ships try to avoid icebergs. We have radars that can detect them.
‘Navigating the Straits of Malacca is manageable, there’s many other ships out there, but there’s also traffic separation schemes which makes it like a highway so it’s quite safe, and fast to travel by sea. Also you have lots of lightning storms but this ship can handle that. We’ve seen dolphins all over the ocean, and if you’re in for activities, entertainment, dining, and good service then going on a cruise ship is a good place to spend your holidays’.
There was a life changing event that happened to me, and I went from being a no-man to a yes-man, so that helped. Someone would message me at 2 am and say ‘let’s play futsal!’ and I’d say “f*ck yeah! Let’s do it! Let’s play futsal!”
*Interviewing the interviewer, BFM Radio – The Business Station’s very own Daryl Ong. Shout out toMac DeMarco whom we both deeply love!
“A lot of people look for meaning, maybe because they don’t understand it and they want to try and answer it in words; but art is like music. If it strikes you, it strikes you. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t have to. You don’t hear a song and say ‘I can’t understand the beat, I must just not get it.’ You just know that you either feel it or you don’t.
Visuals don’t always grip us the way music does, and I think that’s to do with how photoreceptors were quite late in the evolutionary development of life forms. Before we could really sense light, we had to depend on vibrations to understand our environment. So that’s how you know what you’re feeling can be felt by another without the need for words.”
(2/2) “But one day he drove all the way to my house, came to my door to speak to me. He’ll put the people he loves before himself. He’s never forced me to follow his way, even though my parents say I should follow him because he could be my husband.”
(1/2) “He wasn’t expecting to see me there, and I wasn’t going to go. But then my friend said “what if you regret it later? What if he gets upset that you weren’t there at his convocation?” So I did it. I skipped class and saw him graduate.”
