Story of my life | Jason Siu

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Aug 30, 2024 07:10 AM

My story

How I Have Become a Techthusiast

My passion for technology began in my childhood when I dreamed of becoming a creator instead of a consumer. Although I was motivated to earn a Nintendo DS by my parents, I didn't achieve the satisfactory grades, leading me to explore computer hardware and components instead. Since then, I've become a fan of anything tech-related.

An Exchange Changed My Life.

My tech-savvy mindset did not fit well in high school. I was stifled by the academic work. In the Asian education system, everyone was expected to be a lawyer, doctor, or teacher; however, I always knew that I did not want to be another brick in the wall built for a factory. My aimlessness became inertia.

Until 2016, my mindset about education and life shifted significantly during a year-long exchange in Bassano del Grappa, Veneto, Italy.

I was staying in Bassano del Grappa, Italy during my exchange. — **I was staying in** **Bassano del Grappa, Italy** **during my exchange.**

In life beyond school, it was possible to score higher than 100.

As an Asian student with poor English skills, I was initially hesitant to go. But something inside me urged me to take the chance, and it turned out to be the best decision I ever made. Being immersed in a completely foreign environment forced me to adapt and learn quickly. I had to learn Italian just to survive, and that experience made me realise that life outside of school is much bigger than what we are taught rotely in the classroom. It showed me that there is more to life than just chasing grades and trying to fit into a prescribed mold. I learned that success often requires taking risks, asking the right questions, and pursuing our own paths. That exchange changed my mindset and set me on a journey of self-discovery, exploration, and personal growth that continues to this day.

Everything was learnable; it is a matter of time and asking the right questions.

After my exchange program, I came back to Hong Kong to finish my dull high school education diploma. However, I knew that the world was too big to just stay in one place, so I decided to stay in Melbourne, Australia for my tertiary education. YouTube became life-changing for me as I learned almost everything there. I love going beyond what the curriculum taught me and doing projects. Research is my passion whether academic or not. It allows me to explore the gap between new and existing knowledge. It gave me another lens, typically a deeper one, to look at the world.

YouTubers who inspired me to learn IT

I stand on the shoulders of these giants. Here are my tech heroes in no particular order: Telusko, Caleb Curry, Krish Naik, Part Time Larry, Alex Lee and 50+ other YouTubers that I follow.

Hobbies that rock my world

I play sports with rackets, especially Table Tennis. I am a bookworm with a never-ending reading list. Check out my book review page if you're curious. And music is life. I jam to tunes everywhere I go.

What music means to me

I'm a music fanatic, and I love sharing my tastes with others. Check out my article on the different genres I'm into, from rock to jazz and classical.

Intellectual Openness: Embracing the unknown

It’s a good bet these present-day hobbies will seed future industries. What the smartest people do on the weekends is what everyone else will do during the week in ten years:

"All he cared about was what was right, not who was right. That's what makes Bill very very dangerous." — Larry Ellison on Bill Gates being an absolute savage.(‘Softwar’) April, 2021 (Twitter)
A reminder that most of the time we 1) are not right, 2) do not even know if we are right.

Stay childish and stay hungry.
Most of us don't know what we're talking about. So let's stay humble, curious, and open-minded.

The significance of hobbyists in driving technological advancements and encourages people to pay attention to their interests and hobbies to gain insights into the future of innovation. Mar, 2013 (What the smartest people do on the weekend is what everyone else will do during the week in ten years)
Embracing the hobbies and interests of innovative thinkers and being intellectually open to unconventional ideas can lead to breakthrough technologies and future industries.