【Origin Stories - Ho Trung Dung, Chip Chip AW#21】
"My parents are one of my angel investors. They invested without expecting anything in return, despite coming from a relatively poor background. Growing up in Vietnam, they sacrificed a lot just make sure I got a good education and access to better opportunities in life. That’s why I've pushed myself to study and become a lifelong learner.
Although majoring in history during university, I eventually fell in love with computers. I read through every computer magazine, cover to cover. I started to learn how to install windows OS and do everything with the computer, including teaching myself how to program.
I eventually went out to start my own digital marketing agency. We were quite successful, making good money, but growth was slow. The business was very labor intensive and we were not helping that many people.
After 6 months of back and forth, I decided to give it all up to start something new. I had to abandon this image of a successful person. It was one of the toughest decisions I've had to make. But I realized that having a lot of money, a big car, big house, will only make us happy in the short-term.
I’ve always been obsessed with building tech solutions to positively impact many people. That’s why I had to do a startup again, this time focusing on English learning. It's been hard, and tiring, and filled with endless challenges, but I feel much more fulfilled than ever."
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Chip Chip (AW#21) is an online platform for Vietnamese students to find and books lessons from a directory of over 40 certified English tutors, now facilitating over 2000 lessons per month. Applications for AW#23 will be officially on 5/12, stay tuned!
