I myself don't necessarily have any experience that is solidly related to business. However, I do believe that it is also not necessary to own or manage a business in order to be an entrepreneur. For me, the spirit of entrepreneurship is loosely defined as bringing new and fresh ideas into action. It has always been interesting to me that special note-worthy stories of successful entrepreneurship were inspired by noticing what was missing or could be improved on in people's daily lives. My favorite examples are, and perhaps coincidentally internet-based services: Amazon.com, Wikipedia, and Facebook. But the key to building a sustainable business or enterprise relies on the continuous effort to bring entrepreneurship skills to the forefront, which is adapting to constant change, and adapt to the dynamics of a growing industry, business, and consumer base. Likewise, this capability to do so is an inherent quality of an entrepreneur: undertaking accountability for a certain amount of risk. This will ultimately guarantee the longevity of the initial aspiring start-up of the entrepreneur.

What experience I have that I would say is the most entrepreneurial would be my most recent summer. I spent almost the entire summer (3 months) in Hong Kong, doing various volunteer work. Without the usual constraint of a formal internship, I was given many opportunities to learn as much as possible, as well as networking along the way. I had taken my own initiative to do so, and was rewarded with a very self-enriching summer vacation, where I did some research assistance work for an Economics professor at the University of Hong Kong, as well as doing some volunteer work for one of the candidates who was running for a seat in the Legislative Council election held last September in Hong Kong. Working in a campaign team taught me about leadership skills and teamwork, and that even the most capable person in the world must work with others in order to achieve something greater. Relating this to my participation in an election, I discovered that (and especially in the political arena), the most-deserving candidate doesn't necessarily win, because it is a system that favours elitism rather than meritocracy.

My goal for this class is to learning more about the process of becoming entrepreneurs, studying cases of entrepreneurship, and eventually applying these principles in my post-college life.

Even if I don't end up opening or running a business in the new future, I do feel that the skills and experience I will acquire from this class will prepare me well in my career, because it also involves leadership, teamwork, and management skills to maintain a venture and realizing aspirations and identifying the opportunities to do so.

Taking one entrepreneur as an example: this summer, I campaigned for one of the candidates in the Legislative Council election in Hong Kong. He was a chartered engineer by profession, but has now since retired, devoting much of his time serving as the board member of various NGOs, including the 'Professional Commons', a think-tank council dedicated to promoting sustainable development in Hong Kong. What I admire most about the person I worked for is utilizing his entrepreneurship and professional experience on worthwhile projects, and spending his retirement or leisurely days in this manner.