On a day of crazy short-circuit sudden idea, somebody suggested that we should set-up a stall to sell Malaysian cuisine (yippee! food the Malaysian way of curing everything) during the Malaysian Manchester Games 2011. I was seriously contemplating joining the netball squad at one point but since it's been years since I play my skill wouldn't be as sharp as it would be, so I end-up cooking instead. (contradiction: one activity burn calories the other one adds it up).
Here's what I learnt, some people who had been a government servant all their life really do have different mentality. I never understand why my dad had to do a 'civilian life course' before retiring since from my perspective what is so hard about living as a civilian, I meant it's not like you need a certificate for that, everybody is a civilian at one point. Now I know why, because after a certain years of living the 'simple' life you do get complacent and anything else that remotely assemble hard work is considered the 'hardest thing on earth' and not worth at all if the reward is small.
After all the hard work (yeah... like cutting onion and cooking by the stove and walk to the store), I really appreciate all the experience I had growing-up, cutting onions everyday so mum can make sardine sandwich and sell it at the canteen, being dragged by dad to all the expo (to pretending you know everything about vitamins), setting up booth, waking at 6 am and only going home at 11pm just to repeat it the next day, having to run at lunch to the store because somebody is at the front and wanted to buy your product, loading and unloading hundred of boxes.
But seeing how my family living status progress from the day I cried over onions (you'll never develop immune system for onion no matter how many you cut) and now when I can literally sit in my dorm in Manchester and able to manage client order through the internet. It does change it bounds and leap. I wouldn't be here if it's not for the money my parents made through our business.
After seeing all of the changes, it wouldn't be a surprise when most of time my siblings and I would throw-out idea on what business to open next. (sometimes it just pure craziness like ' Rob 'R' Us 'tongue in cheek' based on all those fraud travel agency who took your money and run with it promising holiday packages that never existed). My brother and sisters do came-up with crazy business idea at times and to think they are still in their teens is just amazing. They just grew-up knowing business work, all the rich people we've met and heard about had their own business. So it's fairly safe to say that at one point of their life, everyone of them wants to have their own business to command.
My secret wish for a shop would be a mix of Millies cookies, Haagen Daz and Starbucks at reasonable price for students on a budget. (one think that stuck during my entrepreneur course, niche market!). Another would be a specialist imaging or cancer treatment center. (If only I had millions to hire minions to work on it).
Business, more than any other occupation, is a continual dealing with the future; it is a continual calculation, an instinctive exercise in foresight. - Henry R. Luce
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