The most important decision I have ever made is to leave my peaceful life in my small home town of Dalat after getting a BA of English there in 1995 for Ho Chi Minh City, thinking that a young man should challenge himself in a harsher environment, pursue further education and find a good way to contribute to his community.
I started my new life in the most expensive city of Vietnam with only a bicycle and a small amount of money that could raise me in one month since my family was too poor to financially support me. It was nothing but a strong desire for a better life that helped me overcome severe difficulties in those days. I did everything to survive and pursue further education: a waiter in a coffee shop, a worker in a construction field, a part-time market research employee, a night-shift security guard, an English tutor... All these jobs, together with my scholarships won during 4 years at university, helped me complete my BS of Journalism with good grade in 2000.
Having been completely attracted by Advertising and PR, two subjects in my Journalism course, after graduation I tried hard to access the advertising industry. In May 2002, I started working for Vietnam Marketing Center (VMC) as an account executive. I worked diligently days and nights and at weekend to learn about advertising processes and marketing principles. My efforts well paid me back when the managing director let me handle 2 key clients only after 6 months, challenging and bettering me with tougher responsibilities. I continued serving these clients so well that 3 months later, I was promoted to the position of account manager. More splendidly, due to my innate leadership abilities, I was assigned to manage the Client Service Department of 8 persons a year after joining the agency. Continuing to deliver excellent performance at this new role, I was rewarded the title “Man of the year” at the end of 2003. Although always appreciating VMC for giving me a chance to work in my desired...