Why he returned to Vietnam after being in America for 5 years
Summary
TLDRIn this engaging interview, Andre, a proud Vietnamese, shares his journey from a traditional upbringing in Hanoi to studying abroad in the US. He discusses his initial ambition to thrive in the corporate world, his struggles, and eventual realization that finance wasn't his passion. Andre's transition to a more creative career, launching his own show 'Syia,' highlights the importance of self-discovery and the courage to change paths. His story is a testament to the value of perseverance and the impact of past experiences on shaping one's future.
Takeaways
- 🌐 Andre moved from Vietnam to the US for high school and college, attending Hanoi Amsterdam High School before studying in New Mexico and Rhode Island.
- 🏫 He initially aspired to work in corporate settings, influenced by his peers in college who pursued careers in finance and consulting.
- 📉 After graduation, Andre returned to Vietnam and worked in finance for several years, feeling unfulfilled and unmotivated.
- 💡 During the COVID-19 pandemic, Andre decided to leave finance and pursue a more creative career, taking a career break to explore his interests.
- 🎬 Andre created 'Siya', a show with an interview format infused with his unique sense of humor, inspired by Western shows like 'Between Two Ferns'.
- 🎭 The show 'Siya' has been well-received, with audiences appreciating its humor and the opportunity it provides for artists to showcase their personalities.
- 🔄 Andre's experience in finance indirectly contributed to his creative career, as his knowledge and confidence in the field led to hosting a finance-related podcast.
- 🌱 He believes that the challenging years in finance were essential for his growth and the foundation of his current success.
- 📈 Andre plans to expand his content universe with more formats and videos, using his YouTube channel as a platform for diverse content creation.
- 💌 In reflection, Andre is grateful for his past self's perseverance through the difficult years in finance, which he sees as a stepping stone to his current path.
Q & A
What was Andre's initial ambition during high school?
-Andre's initial ambition during high school was to study abroad, which was influenced by his peers and the reputation of his school, Hanoi Amsterdam High School, for sending students overseas.
How did Andre's experience in the US for high school differ from his expectations?
-Andre did not find the transition to the US difficult and was prepared for the experience. He was surprised by the cold weather and the long winter in New England, but overall, he felt he fit in well.
What was Andre's initial career goal after college?
-Andre initially wanted to become a successful corporate person, thriving in corporate settings, which was influenced by his friends who went into investment banking, finance, and consulting.
Why did Andre decide to return to Vietnam after graduation instead of staying in the US?
-Andre never had the drive to stay in the US and make a living there. He felt that coming back to Vietnam was not a failure and did not see it as a waste of opportunity.
What was the reaction of Andre's family and friends when he decided to return to Vietnam after his studies?
-Andre's family was supportive and respectful of his decisions, but his relatives and friends were surprised and thought it was a waste of opportunity to not stay in the US.
What was Andre's first corporate job in Vietnam?
-Andre's first corporate job in Vietnam was at a bank, and he later moved to an investment fund after almost two years.
How did Andre feel about his career in finance after several years?
-Andre felt unfulfilled and unmotivated in his finance career, even after moving between different finance jobs, and eventually decided it was not for him.
What led Andre to make a career change and pursue a more creative path?
-Andre felt a disconnect between his corporate ambitions and his true desires. He decided to make a change during the COVID-19 pandemic, seeking a more creative and fulfilling career.
How did Andre come up with the concept for his show 'Syia'?
-The idea for 'Syia' came about when Andre was looking for an assistant and thought about turning the interview process into a format for having conversations with people, infused with his personality and humor.
How has the reception been for Andre's show 'Syia' after six months?
-The show has been doing better than expected, with viewers appreciating the humor and style, and it has successfully created a space for artists to showcase their personalities.
What does Andre have planned for his future in content creation?
-Andre plans to create more formats and videos, as he sees 'Syia' as just one part of a larger content universe he wants to develop.
Outlines
🌟 Early Ambitions and Transition to America
Andre, the interviewee, discusses his early life in Hanoi and how his aspirations evolved during high school. He talks about his pride in being Vietnamese and his exposure to the idea of studying abroad at Hanoi Amsterdam high school. Andre received a scholarship to spend a year in the US for high school and later attended college in Rhode Island. He reflects on the transition from Vietnam to America at the age of 18, noting that he was open-minded and adventurous, which made the transition smoother. He also mentions the cultural differences he encountered, particularly the cold winters in New England.
🎓 College Experiences and Initial Career Choices
In this paragraph, Andre describes his college experiences and ambitions. Initially, he was extroverted and eager to explore all opportunities, including meeting new people and professors and visiting different cities. As he progressed through college, he found his group of friends and started to carve out a place for himself. Andre reveals that he initially wanted to become a successful corporate professional, influenced by his peers who went into investment banking, finance, and consulting. However, after graduation, he chose to return to Vietnam instead of staying in the US, which was a decision that surprised many, including his relatives and friends. He explains that he never had a strong desire to stay in the US and always felt that he would return to Vietnam.
💼 Corporate Life and the Shift to Creativity
Andre shares his experiences working in the finance industry after college, including his time at a bank and an investment fund. He admits that he didn't enjoy corporate life and felt unfulfilled, despite trying different finance jobs. After four years, he decided to leave the finance industry and explore a more creative path. He talks about the process of resigning from his job and reaching out to a college friend who founded a company, considering joining the firm. Andre also discusses taking a career break at the age of 30 to rest and observe his surroundings, which eventually led to the creation of his own content.
🎬 The Birth of 'Syia' and Future Aspirations
Andre explains the inspiration behind his show 'Syia,' which started as a concept for an assistant but evolved into an interview format with a comedic twist. He draws inspiration from Western shows like 'Between Two Ferns' and incorporates his own dry humor and awkwardness into the show. Despite initial concerns about whether the humor would translate to a local audience, the show has been well-received. Andre talks about his plans to create more content formats and expand his YouTube channel beyond 'Syia.' He reflects on the importance of his corporate experience, which provided the foundation for his creative career and gave him the confidence to start his own show.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Show
💡Vietnamese
💡Study Abroad
💡Transition
💡Corporate
💡Finance
💡Creative
💡Podcast
💡Inspiration
💡Humor
💡Content Universe
Highlights
Andre discusses his initial exposure to studying abroad during high school.
He shares his experience of studying in the US for a year during high school and then college.
Andre talks about the influence of his peers on his desire to study abroad.
He reflects on the transition from being Vietnamese to living in America and how he found it surprisingly easy.
Andre mentions the cultural differences he noticed, particularly the cold weather in New England.
He discusses how he initially wanted to fit into specific communities in college.
Andre shares his initial career aspirations to work in a corporate setting.
He explains why he chose to return to Vietnam after graduation despite opportunities in the US.
Andre talks about the reactions from his family and friends regarding his decision to return to Vietnam.
He discusses his first corporate job in Vietnam and his progression in the finance industry.
Andre explains why he felt unfulfilled in his finance career and his decision to leave.
He shares his experience of taking a career break and the inspiration for his creative pursuits.
Andre describes the concept and creation process behind his show 'Syia'.
He discusses the reception of 'Syia' and how it has exceeded his expectations.
Andre talks about his plans for future content creation beyond 'Syia'.
He reflects on his time in finance and how it contributed to his current creative career.
Andre shares a final message to his younger self during his challenging times in finance.
Transcripts
how do you start your show you don't
just they just walk in they just walk
in today we're here with
Andre don't know he runs a Big Show Now
by show independent the upand cominging
top Rising what's it called s like who
did you identify as when you were like
living in Hanoi were you pretty certain
that you were going to live in Vietnam
and then you were you like proud to be
Vietnamese oh very proud to be
Vietnamese um I guess from 0 to 18
like
I I just grew up as a normal kid in
Hanoi um went through the public school
system I think it was when I got into
high school which was um Hanoi Amsterdam
high school that I really became exposed
to the idea of like studying abroad um
because that's a school that a lot of
students um get into and you know have
start having that ambition um so the the
school is known for just sending kids
abroad um yeah so when I got into high
school and saw that a lot of the friends
or a lot of the the the the people
around me were you know applying for
study abroad opportunities and and going
overseas that's when I started thinking
about um where I want to go for for
college and luckily I got a scholarship
in high school and was able to spend one
year in in the US uh for high school and
then College after yeah so I want to
touch upon like is it cuz I'm not like
I'm not born than viam right so is it a
common thing when you're in high school
be like I want to like you help right I
want to go live abroad is it like a
split like a 50/50 or like most people
like I want to go study abroad I think
my worldview back then was a little bit
more biased towards going abroad because
that that's the kind
of people the kind of group that I was
around um so definitely in my circle
there was this tendency to um go to
college overseas um After High School
but outside of that Circle I feel like
it was predominantly like people that
were still um going to take the college
entrance exam and go to local
universities yeah but yeah I think it it
all it all boils down to personal
preference and and um the the family's
financial situation and and and what you
want to get out of your college
education yeah so you went one year
abroad first and from high school from
high school and then where did you end
up uh studying in the states High School
one year of high school in New Mexico
and then
College I was in Rhode Island the
smallest state in uh the US how was that
like transition from being 18 years old
completely Vietnamese to just jumping
into America it was wow I haven't really
like sat down and reflected upon that
experience honestly looking back like I
didn't feel like the transition was that
difficult yeah I I've always been this
kind of like open-minded and adventurous
type of kid yeah it wasn't that much of
a shock was there anything where you're
like okay this is what not I wasn't
expecting this yeah I expected
everything sounds like you're very
prepared it's more it's more like the
the daytoday stuff that was like okay
this is a little bit different but like
overall it wasn't like winter the cold
it get cold Ino though yeah but you know
not you all have snow there in the in
Hanoi no East Co East Coast I mean we
were deep in snow but um but you know
winter is long in New England and um
that was just like that that that that
seasonal shift was very very obvious and
it was just like months of winter and
cold and and that kind of vibe in what
idland is it Four Seasons or is it um
there uh Four Seasons yeah but mostly
winter mostly Winters what do you mean
by
that cuz we cuz the school year um
starts in September and ends in May and
I feel like between the moment you get
to to school it's like 2 weeks of fall
which is nice and then the rest until
like April is like just cold and and
brutal probably you fit in I fit in but
obviously in very specific communities
or spe A specific group of people um I
think first year going into college I
was
very I guess extroverted um I had a lot
of energy that I wanted to um been
outside I wanted to meet new people and
just like really get to know everyone
and take all the classes meet all the
professors and explore all the cities
and whatever but I think like slowly as
I went through college um I found my
group of people and I guess built like
or carved out like a place for myself um
just to be comfortable and just to be um
to like plan out what who I want to
become in the future who did you want to
be come my that time I wanted to believe
it or not I wanted to become like just a
really good like corporate like person
like someone who thrives in corporate
settings because I think again I was
very much influenced by the people
around me and a lot of the friends that
I made in college ended up going into
Investment Banking Finance Consulting
just very corporate jobs how long did
you work in the states for though I
didn't work in the states at all oh yeah
I came back right after graduation right
after yeah and then was how was your
family's reaction strangely they didn't
really have a
reaction I think
they um I was very fortunate in that
they my parents were very respectful and
they they were just very respectful of
my decisions cuz I think they after a
while they figured out that you know
this it's his life he knows what's best
for him um right off the bat from
beginning
like I think three years into college
that's when they like um they came to
that
realization um but everyone around me
like my relatives and like a lot of the
friends that I had back then they were
all like what like you're not trying to
stay in the US cuz I think that's what a
lot of people everyone's like my God
like it's such a waste like why are you
wasting his opportunity um but I when I
went to the US I never really had that
drive to be like okay I need to stay
here and I need to like like make a
living in the US um coming back is going
to be a failure no I didn't have that
that kind of thought so but did you get
the the com like the I don't know from
people just ha hang or like uh hang like
neighbors or relatives that be like you
know how much people would give up to
have that opportunity and you're like
giving it away like that yeah yeah when
I first came back that's the initial
reaction that a lot of them had um yeah
but I mean it's my own life like I I
guess like my way of arguing with them
or not arguing but my way of proving is
just to you know just um do my best here
and show through the process and the
results yeah so then uh what was the
first corporate
job in
Vietnam I was at a bank um so I I joined
the finance industry uh I started at a
bank and then
and after almost 2 years I um moved to
an investment fund and uh yeah for the
longest time I let's make this let's
make this clear I I really value my time
in in finance but it was just not for me
and for 4 years I thought the solution
to it was to move to a different
investment fund or move to a different
Finance job and then maybe I'll enjoy
this side of Finance maybe I'll enjoy
like this investment fund more but after
four to five of those moves I was like
yeah maybe this just not maybe I should
just stop trying cuz it's been four
years and I still haven't really felt
like myself um I don't feel motivated
waking up in the morning I don't feel
like
I'm I don't feel fulfilled um so yeah
after four to five of those moves I
and it this happened during Co um I was
like yeah I I can't do this anymore I'm
going to try to do something a little
bit more creative which I think I've
always had in me I just haven't
really um I haven't I just haven't been
brave enough to to bring it out life
hasn't given you enough pain to force
you what you really want to do mhm cuz
like there must have been like a
disconnect where like when you're like
18 I want to be corporate and then
you're like oh I I did what I want but
it's not lining up yeah exactly so how
was that like how painful did it need to
be for you be like I'm going to do
something completely left right wing
type of thing um so surprisingly when I
made that switch to um just being more
creative and to a more creative job it
didn't feel like it felt right it didn't
feel like I am going out of my way and
like I'm like uprooting my I mean I was
uprooting my entire life but it didn't
feel like that because I because it was
like a decision that I have kept in me
for so long um yeah but the four years
that I spent in
finance was it looking back it doesn't
feel like a dark time but I guess going
through it at the moment at that time
going through it was just painful I've
been thinking about it but that day I
woke up and I was just like yeah I can't
take this anymore so I opened my laptop
and um basically typed out like a
resignation letter uh to my manager
then
and right after that I also called up
my um longtime friend um he went to
college with me and he founded V I
called him up and I was like cuz we did
talk about you know the possibility of
me joining um the company a few years
back but at that point I was you know I
wanted to be very successful in
corporates and just like built that
career in finance working at vited for
how many years and what were you doing
what was your main role uh I was a vitet
for 2 years I think exactly two years um
I started out as like a business manager
I mean the the title was was a little
bit uh questionable mostly because I
didn't feel like I was like a business
manager but I knew that I wanted to do
something on my own um but when I left V
I didn't really have like a clear idea
of what that was yet so I mostly wanted
just to take a career break cuz
I basically I haven't had any in the
last like 6 years um and as I turned 30
I was like yeah maybe it's a good time
for me to take a break and just rest and
use this time to
I guess observe what is going on around
me and um draw inspiration from like
just dayto day uh materials and and
interactions and
observations
so yeah I took I took that leap of faith
thinking
that I was going to come up with
something during that time and I
eventually did but it took longer than
expected
um so how did syia come about oh it's so
goofy it's so silly um so I genuinely I
was like thinking
about um looking for an assistant just
to help me out with um with my um I
guess like my job now um so when I
throughout that process I was
like yo
like I'm playing the role of like um
recruiter and I which I never had to in
the past and I am interviewing people
and like I'm asking these really like
yes these are like very typical in drop
interview questions but it can reveal so
much about the other person it can be
very
intimate so I thought to myself I was
like why don't I just turn this into
like an interview format um and and use
a setting to um I guess um have
conversations with people and um but
then you know that format wasn't going
to be I guess special enough and um so I
I thought like maybe one more layer is
that I something that I haven't showcase
a lot about myself is that I actually my
personality is very much like informed
by dry humor and and comedy and and just
awkwardness and and like that kind
of you know like basically like you a
lot of self-deprecation kind of uh
humor um so I thought to myself okay how
do I Infuse that personality into like
an interview format and um yeah I mean I
I reference a lot of um American and
Western shows like um chicken shop date
uh Between Two
Ferns um a lot of people will think of
the office when they watch my show but
to be completely honest with you guys I
haven't seen a single episode of The
Office I know what I know what the show
is um but it just happens that I want to
do like an like a drop interview style
kind of format so I I um I guess the
resemblance is is there how long have
you been doing it now Sy it's only been
6 months I started in March and how is
it
going it's going
no it's it's doing way better than I
expected um mostly thanks to the people
that I've um been fortunate enough to
have on the show these are all very
bright and talented upand cominging
artists um or um
profiles and originally I thought that
this kind of humor and style was going
to be difficult to translate to the
local audience but surprisingly everyone
like not I don't know I don't know about
everyone but the people that watch the
show like the people who get it get it
and uh it seems like a lot of people get
it so I'm I'm happy that that um a lot
of people are tuning in but I through
this format I want to um I want to I
guess create a uh space for artists to
come on and um show their personality
more um instead of just talking about
music and their creative process and and
whatnot um yeah so I I think in a way um
the show has been able to achieve that
in a way yeah what's next for you now
what's next for
me definitely more formats more um more
videos um because now that I have my own
YouTube channel I have to invest um in
it as well and ceden V is just one tiny
part of the kind of content universe
that I want to to uh to bring out um so
yeah I'm I'm in the process of coming up
with new formats and um tweaking the
current formats here and there and just
trying out different things final
statement um what would
you want to say to that dark time that
you went
through you back then you didn't say but
now you're reflecting back you're like
oh that was kind of rough right mhm so
like what would you tell to that younger
you thank
you like thank you for I guess thank you
for persevering through those four
years um to be honest with you guys I
wouldn't be where I am now without those
four years and as cliche as it sounds it
literally like like those four years
were
the basis
of
basically my creative career if you
think about it
because I worked in finance um and the
first podcast that
I did with
vitera was about
Finance because ironically they think
that okay okay like he probably knows a
lot about Finance especially personal
finance and money um I mean I dabbled in
it when I was in finance just because it
was like my worldview but I know where
I'm an expert in it and know where I'm
comfortable um talking about it in that
kind of um or like delivering the
content in the most like helpful way to
the viewers as possible I was just not
comfortable with it but they were like
yeah but you're probably the best fit
because you know you you know the lingos
you know the the the people
um
so yeah the the the finance career
basically gave me that position as the
host for that podcast and it gave it
gave me the confidence and um and the
experience to
really think about starting something on
my own yeah so thank you
to my uh Finance um corporate self
yeah thank you thank you cheers that's
the rep is that it yeah it was it bro
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