Who Inspired Me

[This post is a response to PeterAtLarge’s question: Who inspired you?]

I live in Malaysia, a conservative country with limited freedom of speech. Throughout my schooling years, I learned that conforming is virtuous. Today, I consider myself a person who likes to think out of the box, and is occasionally outspoken. In my MBA class, I am the student who keeps asking questions. In one subject, we learned Blue Ocean Strategy. Soon I wrote two posts (here and here) to critique the best-selling book.

How did the change come along? I gather that this has to do with the year I spent in the U.S.

I remember, when I was in the States, a guy told me that “Americans like to challenge the authorities.” (I met this guy in a temple, and no longer remember his name.) He was right in saying so. Americans often poke fun at their presidents. I also learned, in one of the MBA subjects, that Americans are creative and the nation has one of the highest levels of entrepreneurial activities. I believe Americans’ dominance of science and business has to do with their altitude of constantly questioning and challenging the existing knowledge and systems.

Back to Peter’s question: Who inspired you. I find it difficult to pin-point specific people. Perhaps I will simply say:

American culture has inspired me - in this context.

P/S American values are not without flaws, and I am not accepting them blindly. In particular, I find Americans' penchant for guns illogical.