Actuary, writer, speaker, and entrepreneur challenging others to pursue their deepest interests for a richer life.
What we can do with our lives are shaped so much by what we believe is possible for us. But it you change your mind, you can change your life. I am a proof of that.
There came a point in my life when I achieved most of what I set out to do. I got the promotion I worked so hard for, I had a salary that was more than I thought was possible, I had leadership responsibilities and the accompanied status and respect, yet I felt I was still working everyday to please someone else.
The “aha” moment didn’t arrive all at once; it crept in over time. I wondered what if I let go of the hands holding the career ladder? Going off-script from the template I was following? Will I die from this act of defiance? I decided to find out.
As a first generation immigrant who came to Canada as a teen, I studied and worked hard to become an actuary. My self-defined success was measured by how high I can climb the Corporate America ladder in search for prestige, status and the number of zeros on my paycheck.
I moved our family to New York to double down on the career ascension, but started to notice the work I do did not sustain me.
While the pay was beyond what I could ever imagined*, something essential to me was missing, and I could not put my finger on what that was. (*I charged $5/hour to tutor math in high school, worried about customers will turn me down if I priced beyond that. This speaks volumes to my perceived self-worth, we’ll come back to this.)
In an effort to figure it out, I started writing 300 words a day. With time, I forced a small ocean through the tip of my fountain pen. Like kneading, I slowly folded other things I wanted to do into my life: foster cats, make videos, read much more wildly, take on larger-scale writing projects.
In short, I started pursue my interests, interests that for years I told myself I have no time for as I built my career.
October 2023, I walked away from the most lucrative job I ever had. Although the decision was intentional, it still felt I severed one of my limbs. Who am I without the identity of an actuary and insurance executive?
I also felt lost and panicked, like diving into a body of water and in that split second of head touching the water, not remembering whether it is a swimming pool or an ocean. I am a shit swimmer.
I have since been on a mind-bending journey of self-discovery and cut the word “impossible” out of my vocabulary. I went back to school to study Artificial Intelligence and created Deepwork Academy, where I provide AI-driven education and training.
I launched the podcast Be Brilliant with Jing Lang where I interview movers and shakers who have accomplished amazing things in their respective fields; I finally finished the book I have been working on for four years; and most of all, I started speaking regularly to share my journey and experience.
Two years and five days — no more, no less – here is why. The first two years? Solid survival mode, fueled by a well-curated supply of canned black beans and tomato soup, a knack for hiding and scavenging, lock picking skills, and the ability to look completely delirious to blend in when necessary. On day five of year three, I’d stumble upon the ultimate treasure—a pristine can of cherry Coke. I’d crack open the can... only to realize that sound of the pop echoed through the empty streets. Within seconds, every zombie within a five-mile radius would congregate and mob me down, as I gurgle down the last sip of the Coke. It is an epic death.
