A JOURNEY TOWARDS WHOLENESS
I was born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia as the youngest of four in a Chinese family. When I was 4 years old, my family moved across the world and immigrated to Houston, TX. I lived those early days in Houston loving my life as a little Asian square-dancing Texan. When I turned 12, things became uncertain at home.
To make a long story short, one day we packed up and my parents flew across the world, and they dropped me off at a hostel in Singapore. They left me there for four years to care for myself and attend a local Singaporean school. Having suddenly left Texas, my home, and everyone I knew, I experienced severe culture shock, despair, and loneliness. It was the most confusing and suicidal time of my life. It was also the start of an accelerated journey of self discovery and growth.
The focus on personal development saved my life. From the time I was a teenager, I led my actions according to self-help books like "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People," "Awaken the Giant Within," and "The Road Less Traveled". I drove myself to overcome all of life's obstacles and become a high achiever at anything and everything.
In my twenties and thirties, I had an incredible career as an engineer working on billion dollar projects, and later as a CEO of influential and highly admired nonprofits in China and the U.S. Throughout my international career working on U.S.-China relations, I have had the privilege of collaborating with the smartest, most creative, and most powerful people in the world. I even led workshops at Harvard, Johns Hopkins SAIS, and UC Berkeley on "Leading Change."
Life was exciting and I was good at the hustle. Intelligence and hard work were my badges of honor. I understood the science of success, and I thought I understood the art of fulfillment.
But in 2017, I started to burn out. I was in charge of running two philanthropic organizations with major programs on two different continents. For months on end, I only slept 90 minutes a day, always worried that I was never doing enough. I ran programs with a big inspiring mission to "serve, inspire, and transform lives". I saw myself as a fearless warrior that could overcome anything. But deep inside, there was a piece that felt broken. I didn't know who I was other than what I could accomplish or how I could do helpful things for others. I became physically and spiritually exhausted, and I needed healing.
A couple years later, I walked away from all my work responsibilities. It was one of the most difficult decisions I'd ever made. I felt I was letting every person I knew down. I started to ask "Why am I so tired? Am I a failure? What is my true purpose? Who am I if I am not doing anything or helping anybody? What is the real meaning of life?"
For the next few years, I did nothing but ask questions and seek answers. I attended hundreds of workshops and training around the world, explored all kinds of healing modalities, read hoards of books, sat for hours in meditation; I spent hundreds of thousands of dollars learning from the best life and spiritual teachers I could find. I dove deep and tried everything under the sun to deepen my understanding of the world and my place in it.
After over a thousand days of seeking and asking, I am pleased to report that I found grace. I found healing. I found joy. I found inspiration. I found wisdom. I found peace. I found magic. I found profound meaning. I found eternal love. I found wholeness.
I found my soul - my higher self. And from this day forward, she will forever be in the driver's seat of my life.
Spiritual awakening is not a linear process, and I don't believe it is sustainable without support and community. When the COVID pandemic started, I began to understand that part of my purpose is to serve others on their own path of self-exploration and spiritual homecoming.
Today, I am privileged to share my heart and lessons with a growing tribe of leaders and seekers. I believe leadership is a devotional practice of love. I'm not here to fix or save anyone, but I can help you tune into your own built-in guidance system. If you're ready to live a life with more possibility, joy, and meaning than you ever imagined, I'd be deeply honored to co-create with you!
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