THE VISIONARY DREAMER

Here’s a little backstory for you— John-son and I were course mates back in our college days. The John-son Oei I know from memory was easygoing, funny and cleverly charmed his way out of any mischief he got himself into. He is able to find common grounds with anyone regardless of race, religion and creed. These qualities made him a very likable person in campus, even by our lecturers, who were sometimes exasperated by his playfulness. “All of my sons have their own temperaments and personalities. When my husband passed away, they all coped with the loss in their own unique way,” expresses Piek See. “With mum having to work and support us, the three of us experienced freedom for the first time,” grins John-ian as he recalls their formative years. John-son, who excelled academically as a child, coped with the loss of his father by being ‘distracted’ with school. It was all fun and games—until he found out that he lacked the grades necessary to enter into the pre-university course he desired while applying for college. “When the counsellor saw my SPM trial transcript, he commented, ‘Boy, you must be partying really hard.’ My mother, who had not seen my results until then, turned black in the face when she finally had a glimpse at my grades. I was told that I will not qualify for college with these grades.” Ashamed, John-son apologised to his mother, realising he had let her down. But Piek See’s reaction surprised him. She looked him in the eye and told him they will be ‘celebrating’ this moment with a big Japanese lunch party. Her words still burn in his memory: “This is one of the most important days of your life because you have learnt that failure is not fatal and success is not forever.” In the act of encouraging her son to embrace failure, Piek See did not only instil an important life lesson in John-son; she gave him the validation that being true to yourself and your values matter over anything else. Today, John-son is a prominent face in Malaysia through his work with EPIC. He has even earned a spot on the Forbes 30 under 30 Asia List earlier this year.