Myint Soe Hlaing - Letter to Aung Sithar

Po Si....

I can't talk on the phone, so I'll just write. You said you wanted to open a library and publish a magazine, so you asked me to translate books and write articles for the magazine. But I thought of you as a child (no matter how big you are), so I thought, "Is it true that you are a child?" I thought, "Oh, even though you are a child, you have the will to do something." I just wrote it down and left it at that.

But now you call me and tell me that you have permission to publish the magazine, that it will be published by the end of January, and that you need to write another manuscript. What should I write? “ Like an article from the book ‘First Class Man’ that I wrote before.” “Okay... I will write it,” I agree.

As I was about to write, the first thing that came to mind was your age, as I mentioned earlier. Actually, you're only 18 years old, so is that too young to be in business?

As I was thinking about this, I suddenly remembered my own writing. In the article “One Step Can Make You a Millionaire” in the book “First Class Man,” Bill Gates, who co-founded Microsoft, was only 19 years old when he entered the business world. Yet, Bill Gates and his company were founded in 1975. That was 35 years ago. At that time, the personal computer revolution called “C” was just beginning. In this era of rapid IT development, how young is 18? Oh, I was wrong.

Okay, then do it, and if you do it, don't be lazy. Make it first class.

Here, I would like to note a definition of work by a man named William Weld. He said:

The best preparation for work is not thinking about work, talking about work or studying for work: it is work.

William Weld

“The best way to prepare for work is not thinking about work, talking about work, or studying for work. It is working.”

His words, if you listen to them at first glance, may seem like a deliberate joke. If you think about it carefully, it's not a joke. He just said it concisely. So, let's analyze it a little to see what he meant.

When you are about to take on a job, it is customary to prepare yourself in advance to be the best you can be for the job. This preparation includes thinking about the job yourself, consulting with your community and colleagues, and studying to understand the nature of the job you will be doing.

But there are also those who prioritize only those issues and do not know where the actual work will lead. If you keep thinking about it, talking about it, and studying it endlessly, it will no longer work, and it will no longer be work.

There is a saying in our Burmese language: “A new village is near when the field is cleared.”

Work is something you do with interest. You have to do it. If you don't do anything, it can't be called work.

The best way to prepare for the job I just mentioned is not to think, talk, and study about the job separately, but to think while doing it, talk while doing it, and study while doing it. Only then will you become “like a hunter, and your skills will depend on the experience you gain while doing it.” So I think I understand the meaning of work that William Weld meant.

In the workplace, don't always follow the old-fashioned, traditional way of doing things. Don't just follow the traditional, conventional way. Use your own insights and be creative and innovative.

Hey, being innovative is easy to say, but not so easy to do in practice. You will definitely face mistakes, failures, and criticism. You can't do it because you're afraid of them. You have to be brave and innovate. Here, a person named Faith Ringgold once wrote about one thing that entrepreneurs and business people understand and practice.

The great enemy of creativity is fear. When we're fearful, we freeze up-like a nine-year-old who won't draw pictures, for fear everybody will laugh. Creativity has a lot to do with a willingness to take risks.

Think about how children play. They run around the playground, they trip, they fall, they get up and run some more. They believe everything will be all right. They feel capable; they let go. Good businesspeople behave in a similar way: they lose $15 million, gain $20 million, lose $30 million and earn it back. If that isn't playing, I don't know what is!

Faith Ringgold

“The enemy of creativity is fear. If you are too afraid of yourself, you can’t do anything. It’s like a nine-year-old boy who can’t draw because he’s afraid of being laughed at. Creativity is about doing what you want to do, with a strong desire to do it, and giving up everything you have to do it.

Think about how kids play. They run around the playground. They stumble, they fall, they get back up, they keep running. They believe in themselves that everything will work out. They just feel like they can do it. Then they let people go. That's how successful business people do it. These people lose $15 million. They make $20 million. They lose $30 million. If that's not playing, I don't know what else to call it."

That's it... Phoe Si. You too, just enter the game and try to run with enthusiasm in the big playground of life.

Hey, have some courage.

You know, running in fear can make you feel worse and hurt more.

May you have confidence and enjoyment in your work,

Po Si....

On March 2, 2011 (Farmers' Day), at the press launch event held at the Bagan Hall, Merchants' Hotel, Sule Pagoda Road, Yangon, the bookstore you wanted to establish (The Essence Book House) was launched, and the magazine you wanted to distribute (Our Ways) has been published. As I said in my first letter to you, you have entered the playground of life.

Hey.. When we enter the playground of life, we need to be active and have fun. In other words, we need to have faith in our work and enjoy it. There is a saying that the English writer and art critic John Ruskin once said.

Po Si....

I can't talk on the phone, so I'll just write. You said you wanted to open a library and publish a magazine, so you asked me to translate books and write articles for the magazine. But I thought of you as a child (no matter how big you are), so I thought, "Is it true that you are a child?" I thought, "Oh, even though you are a child, you have the will to do something." I just wrote it down and left it at that.

But now you call me and tell me that you have permission to publish the magazine, that it will be published by the end of January, and that you need to write another manuscript. What should I write? “ Like an article from the book ‘First Class Man’ that I wrote before.” “Okay... I will write it,” I agree.

As I was about to write, the first thing that came to mind was your age, as I mentioned earlier. Actually, you're only 18 years old, so is that too young to be in business?

As I was thinking about this, I suddenly remembered my own writing. In the article “One Step Can Make You a Millionaire” in the book “First Class Man,” Bill Gates, who co-founded Microsoft, was only 19 years old when he entered the business world. Yet, Bill Gates and his company were founded in 1975. That was 35 years ago. At that time, the personal computer revolution called “C” was just beginning. In this era of rapid IT development, how young is 18? Oh, I was wrong.

Okay, then do it, and if you do it, don't be lazy. Make it first class.

Here, I would like to note a definition of work by a man named William Weld. He said:

The best preparation for work is not thinking about work, talking about work or studying for work: it is work.

William Weld

“The best way to prepare for work is not thinking about work, talking about work, or studying for work. It is working.”

His words, if you listen to them at first glance, may seem like a deliberate joke. If you think about it carefully, it's not a joke. He just said it concisely. So, let's analyze it a little to see what he meant.

When you are about to take on a job, it is customary to prepare yourself in advance to be the best you can be for the job. This preparation includes thinking about the job yourself, consulting with your community and colleagues, and studying to understand the nature of the job you will be doing.

But there are also those who prioritize only those issues and do not know where the actual work will lead. If you keep thinking about it, talking about it, and studying it endlessly, it will no longer work, and it will no longer be work.

There is a saying in our Burmese language: “A new village is near when the field is cleared.”

Work is something you do with interest. You have to do it. If you don't do anything, it can't be called work.

The best way to prepare for the job I just mentioned is not to think, talk, and study about the job separately, but to think while doing it, talk while doing it, and study while doing it. Only then will you become “like a hunter, and your skills will depend on the experience you gain while doing it.” So I think I understand the meaning of work that William Weld meant.

In the workplace, don't always follow the old-fashioned, traditional way of doing things. Don't just follow the traditional, conventional way. Use your own insights and be creative and innovative.

Hey, being innovative is easy to say, but not so easy to do in practice. You will definitely face mistakes, failures, and criticism. You can't do it because you're afraid of them. You have to be brave and innovate. Here, a person named Faith Ringgold once wrote about one thing that entrepreneurs and business people understand and practice.

The great enemy of creativity is fear. When we're fearful, we freeze up-like a nine-year-old who won't draw pictures, for fear everybody will laugh. Creativity has a lot to do with a willingness to take risks.

Think about how children play. They run around the playground, they trip, they fall, they get up and run some more. They believe everything will be all right. They feel capable; they let go. Good businesspeople behave in a similar way: they lose $15 million, gain $20 million, lose $30 million and earn it back. If that isn't playing, I don't know what is!

Faith Ringgold

“The enemy of creativity is fear. If you are too afraid of yourself, you can’t do anything. It’s like a nine-year-old boy who can’t draw because he’s afraid of being laughed at. Creativity is about doing what you want to do, with a strong desire to do it, and giving up everything you have to do it.

Think about how kids play. They run around the playground. They stumble, they fall, they get back up, they keep running. They believe in themselves that everything will work out. They just feel like they can do it. Then they let people go. That's how successful business people do it. These people lose $15 million. They make $20 million. They lose $30 million. If that's not playing, I don't know what else to call it."

That's it... Phoe Si. You too, just enter the game and try to run with enthusiasm in the big playground of life.

Hey, have some courage.

You know, running in fear can make you feel worse and hurt more.

May you have confidence and enjoyment in your work,

Po Si....

On March 2, 2011 (Farmers' Day), at the press launch event held at the Bagan Hall, Merchants' Hotel, Sule Pagoda Road, Yangon, the bookstore you wanted to establish (The Essence Book House) was launched, and the magazine you wanted to distribute (Our Ways) has been published. As I said in my first letter to you, you have entered the playground of life.

Hey.. When we enter the playground of life, we need to be active and have fun. In other words, we need to have faith in our work and enjoy it. There is a saying that the English writer and art critic John Ruskin once said.