Musings of Eric Chong

Dato Lewre Lew & Eric Chong speak at the Erican Success Forum, Oct 2012 I am elated to finally kick-start the first of a series of inspiring monthly Erican Success Forums organised exclusively for the students of Erican College. It all begins this Saturday @ Erican College.  W hat makes me even more thrilled is that my first guest is none other than a very close and dear friend of mine, Dato Lewre Lew, Founder of Lewre International! Dato Lewre, of course, needs no introduction! He is a Malaysian business icon who has single-handedly turned a small local shoe manufacturer into an internationally acclaimed brand! I really hope that my students will take full advantage of this rare opportunity and learn as much as they can directly from this great man who has made Malaysia proud. Eric Chong is the Managing Director of Erican College, an institute of higher education established for the sole objective of developing a new breed of highly successful young Malaysians. H

Some of the energetic and success driven students of Erican College! My children, I love you and I believe in you. I see a bright future in each and everyone of you. I am convinced that you will put your hearts and souls into whatever you pursue in life.  Always remember this - yes, you indeed can! Eric Chong is the Managing Director of Erican College, an institute of higher education established for the sole objective of developing a new breed of highly successful young Malaysians. He is also the President of Branding Association of Malaysia.  

Dato AK Nathan is a truly amazing Malaysian entrepreneur. Dato AK Nathan, Founder of the legendary construction company, Eversendai, is a truly amazing man who has an unbelievable rags-to-riches story. His rise from a printing machine operator to multimillionaire is nothing short of breathtaking! This unassuming man is one of the wealthiest Malaysians. However, he is always humble and approachable. I was most amazed when I first met this great man - he was so friendly and warm that he made me forget I was actually talking to one of the most successful Malaysians around! The company which he founded, Eversendai, is the world's leading steel structure company. Many of the most eye-popping buildings we see in the world today are in existence because of Dato AK's ingenious structural technology - from our very own Petronas Twin Towers to the tallest building in the world, the Burj Dubai. Dato AK Nathan is making Malaysia proud and he has proven one thing - Malaysian companies

Success is both a science and an art.  It is a science because success can be theorised. If you want to succeed, you can follow a certain known formula and the outcome is usually predictable. Successful entrepreneurs are like scientists – they understand the theories of success and consistently apply them in their day-to-day pursuit of entrepreneurship. However, due to the many variances in real life situations, it is impossible to find a formula that fits all. Success isn’t always straightforward. To achieve great success in life, it does take some common sense. Success, therefore, isn’t just a science; it is also an art. Successful entrepreneurs are like artists – they use their gut-feelings and inspirations at the spur of the moment to create something out of the box and extraordinary. So be a scientist like Albert Einstein and an artist like Pablo Picasso in your quest for entrepreneurial success.  Yes, you can! Eric Chong is the Managing Director of Erican College,

I love to interact with students. I always encourage them to articulate their thoughts freely. It is important to encourage young people to express themselves freely. In order to do so, the first step is helping them to clearly articulate their thoughts. In fact, the better one is able to communicate his ideas to a target audience, the more successful he is likely to become. Engaging young people in intellectual discourse should be an essential part of tertiary education. Students must be pushed beyond their routine conversational frameworks and be encouraged to present ideas which are creative, analytical and strategic. This exercise develops their mental capacity and turns them into serious thinkers. A thinking person who is able to articulate himself is one who is more likely to be functional in the many different situations which he will unavoidably find himself in as he progresses through his career. And in order to encourage young people to speak their minds,

Students of Erican College listening attentively at the Erican Success Camp 2012. I've always been worried about how our beloved country will fare, especially in this modern world that has become so fiercely competitive. This is my concern - some of our young people today are pretty spoiled, complacent and slow moving.  These people will most certainly find themselves unable to compete with those from the more progressive countries such as Singapore, China, Korea, Japan, etc. In fact, in the not too distant future, many of our young people may not even be able to match those of our fast developing neighbors; countries such as Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam. Therefore, ensuring that young people will become as successful as they can be is of critical importance. The collective success of our young people will contribute to the collective success of our country. This is the reason why I'm dedicating my life to this mission through the establishment of Erican College. My v

Spending time with my beloved students of Erican College is one of the few things I truly enjoy in life. As Success Mentor to the students of Erican College, I have just spent two amazing days with these incredible young people. We had loads of fun and did a great deal of interesting and enlightening things together. My vision is to create a  new breed of young people - a generation of world class Malaysians who are competitive enough to compete with the best - anywhere throughout the world! I want to mould my students into outstanding people of a great many fields. I want to see all of these students become top Designers, Entrepreneurs, CEOs, Senior Managers, Accountants, Educators and Professionals. That's why I have incorporated a Success Programme into the curriculum of Erican College. It is a two-year compulsory programme that all Erican College students, regardless of their chosen disciplines, must complete. I've pledged my personal commitment towards them. I am comm

Eric Chong: "Branding Association of Malaysia is proud to participate in the judging of the Star Business Award." "I run a small chain of mamak restaurants in the Klang Valley.  My vision is to serve the best nasi lemak and I have lots of satisfied customers. Can I apply for the Star Business Award?" These words came from a humble-looking Indian man who approached me after I had spoken before an audience of potential applicants for the Star Business Award on Friday. I was really touched by his spirit and so I said to him, "Yes, I think you must apply. Since you are so passionate and committed to what you do, have no reservations or fears - go out there and put yourself next to the best players in the country." I look forward to spending time going through all the applications for the Star Business Award 2012 together with my peers in the judging panel. Sincerely, I wish all the applicants the best of luck. :) Eric Chong is the  Mana

The Star Business Award is a prestigious award for outstanding non-public listed companies. I would like to express my sincerest thanks to The Star for inviting me to speak to the participating companies of The Star Business Award for 2012.  I was asked to speak on behalf of the illustrious Judging Panel, which is comprised of such reputable bodies as the Branding Association of Malaysia, Bursa Malaysia , 4As, FMM and the Chinese Chambers of Commerce. I feel very privileged to have been a judge for this prestigious award ever since its inception three years ago. I must say that this is an incredibly respectable award. There is stringent scrutiny of each and every entry and absolute transparency throughout the entire judging process. Simply put – only the most deserving companies, and not necessarily the biggest, shall take home a prize. Also, this is not an award that money buy.  However, if you do win, you will be rewarded with extraordinary prizes. There is a whopping

Dato Jimmy Choo is a global icon. His name is synonymous with ultra luxury, high fashion and elegance. "Jimmy Choo" used to be just like any other ordinary Malaysian Chinese name. However,   today it is a global brand which is synonymous with ultra luxury, high fashion and elegance. Royalty, social elites and celebrities the world over love Jimmy Choo. Women feel sexy and sensual when they walk on four inch Jimmy Choo shoes. I first met Dato Jimmy Choo six years ago through Dato Lewre Lew, another top Malaysian shoe designer who shines on the world stage. It was an amazing experience. I found Dato Jimmy really down to earth and unassuming. I couldn't believe that such a big international star as Jimmy could be so friendly and approachable. Dato Jimmy Choo is indeed the pride of Malaysia. Few Malaysians have achieved fame and stardom the way he has. A name so loved by all fashion-conscious women all over the world - he is absolutely amazing! It is E

I was most pleased to meet this fashion icon who is proudly Malaysian. Zang Toi, an iconic Malaysian-born fashion designer based in New York , is one of those rare Malaysians who have found true international fame. Zang Toi started his fashion career in New York in 1989. After years of hard work, he is now an international icon and one of the biggest names in the fashion industry. Zang Toi is truly world class and, perhaps more importantly, he remains a proud Malaysian. I strongly believe that Malaysians can be just as competitive as the top people from anywhere else in the world, if we truly put our hearts and souls into what we do.  I always tell the students of Erican College to be world class. I want them to position themselves as world class citizens. Whatever they pursue in life, I want them to strive to meet world class standards. It is not always easy, but it is necessary if they want to be really successful in life. Let's all look up to Zang Toi as

Tan Sri Ramon is someone I have great respect for. I ran into a very honourable man a few days ago. He was none other than Tan Sri Dr Ramon Navaratnam. Long since retired from his last government position as Transport Ministry Secretary General, Tan Sri Ramon still pursues his life long passions passionately. Not only  does he advocate corporate governance and fair business practices, he also champions poverty eradication, promotes education and addresses economic issues, both domestic and international. He wears many hats; one of the better known ones is his role as Corporate Advisor to the Sunway Group. He is also President of Transparency International Malaysia. Tan Sri, thank you for your many contributions toward building a better Malaysia. Eric Chong is the  Managing Director of Erican College, a college which unleashes the full potential of young people and molds them into leaders of the design and business fields. He is also the President of Branding Association of M

Some of you might remember that I planned to write a book on success. Well, I didn't just think about it, I took action. I went up to Fraser's Hill on the 28th Dec 2011 with this sole objective in mind. I made a promise to myself - I woul d not come down from the hill unless and until I finished writing the book! And I did!!! I wrote 15 chapters a day. And in 7 days, the book was completed. 120,000 words, 100 chapters, 350 pages. Not bad! However, that was only a draft! You can't possibly publish a book without having a few rounds of serious proof-reading and editing of the draft. However, after I returned from Fraser's Hill I was overwhelmed by a busy workload and activities. There simply wasn't time to proof-read and edit this book. Finally, after months of punishing itinerary, I found time to work at it over this weekend. So I sat down quietly at home and started going through the drafts. OMG!!! I found tons of things that I wanted to change. It isn't th

Eric Chong presented a memento to Dato Lewre after the talk, witnessed by Dato Zulkifli and Datuk Yusra. I would like to thank Dato Lewre Lew, Honorary President of Branding Association of Malaysia, for his wonderful speech at a lunch talk jointly organised by Matrade and the Association on 26th June, 2012. Around 100 entrepreneurs and business leaders attended  the talk. Many were moved to tears when Dato Lew talked about his difficult childhood and how he overcame insurmountable obstacles to arrive at where he is today. After the talk, I presented a small token of appreciation to Dato Lewre, and it was witnessed by Dato Zulkifli, Senior Director of Export Development, Matrade, and Datuk Yusra, Deputy President of Branding Association of Malaysia. My special thanks also go to Matrade for its kind support toward the Branding Association of Malaysia.  “Life is about constantly going beyond limits!” - Eric Chong, Erican Education

Dato Nelson Kwok, MD of Nelson's Franchise & President of MRCA. Eric Chong, MD of Erican College & President of Branding Association of Malaysia. "I'm Malaysia's most famous International 'Corn-Man'!" Dato Nelson Kwok, Founder of Nelson's Franchise, is all about corn. He jokes about his 'corn-man-ship' a lot and passionately promotes the 'art of corn' throughout the world. :) Dato  Nelson, who is also the MRCA President, believes that success in life has no short cuts. And as a socially responsible entrepreneur, he is often seen talking to young people and inspiring them to unleash their fullest potentials and achieve success in life. I am very privileged to have been a good friend of Dato Nelson for 12 years, the man who has built a global empire out of the concept of 'corn in cup'.   “Life is about constantly going beyond limits!” - Eric Chong, Erican Education

Eric Chong receives the 1Malaysia iAward from the  Finance Minister  II, Datuk Seri Ahmad  Husni  Hanadzlah. I received an award at a special ceremony held in my hometown of Ipoh last week - the One Malaysia i-Award 2012. Among the other award recipients are luminaries such as Dato Jimmy Choo, Dato AK Nathan,  Tan Sri Megat Najmuddin,  Dato Nelson Kwok , Tan Sri Tony  Fernandes, Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah, Ms Winnie Loo, etc. ERICAN has been really blessed by having been recognised in many ways by organisers of so many different credible business awards. From the bottom of my heart, I would like to thank YOU - my beloved staff, customers, friends and fans, for all the encouragement and support that you have given me over the years. Lastly, I would like to congratulate the organiser, A2Z, for doing a fabulous job and putting Ipoh on the map. “Life is about constantly going beyond limits!” - Eric Chong, Erican Education

I was honoured to have been invited as a Penal Speaker for Malaysian CMO Conference 2012 which was held at Matrade Convention Centre yesterday. It was organised by ADOI, a leading marketing and branding magazine. Around 350 key decision ma kers of corporate Malaysia came together to explore the latest trends in marketing and corporate communication strategies. My fellow Penelists included Rahul Colaco (MD, Dutch Lady), John Chacko (Director, Pronton), Henry Tan (COO, Astro), Fiona Liao (Director, Prudential Assurance), and Kevin Mackin (Marketing Director, IBM). Harmanda Singh, popularly known as Ham, CEO of ADOI, moderated the session. It was an intellectually stimulating session. Many thought provoking questions were asked and many insightful answers were given by these veteran corporate movers and shakers. I wish all the participants the very best as they pursue their marketing careers and bring their companies to new heights through creative marketing and branding. “Life is a

Question: What are the ingredients for success? Answer: Vision, leadership, drive, creativity and a passion for perfection. Question: Who possesses all the above success ingredients? Answer: One fine gentleman does - Datuk Vincent Lee, Deputy Executive Chairman of The Star Publication. This man is a true legend in the field of media, advertising and branding. It is my absolute honour to have a friend who is this iconic and accomplished. “Life is about constantly going beyond limits!” - Eric Chong, Erican Education