Making the Most of the Dragon Experience

I moved to Jakarta when I was 12 going on 13 years old, attending JIS for High School and graduating in 2000. I graduated from Boston University in 2003 with a BA in philosophy and started working. I wear multiple hats in my career, and having the chance to be entrepreneurial is a blessing that I do not take for granted. 

Here are some of my key focus in 2021: I’m a certified coach and founder of The Governess; I cohost and co-produce The Powder Room Talk, [which] allows us to reach a broader audience and have real talks about topics that are not commonly [covered] in depth; and I’m the business director of the Clique Limited in Hong Kong, [...] a fashion brand management, public relations, and brand consulting company founded by my sister Faye Liu, [which aims to] put Indonesian fashion talents onto the global fashion map. To date, we have successfully garnered international placements and the attention of celebrities like Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, Ariana Grande, and the like. 

JIS’s diversity, in a subtle manner, teaches students about acceptance as we gain an understanding of the cultures of our classmates and teachers. UN Days were exceptionally enjoyable for me. It definitely provides an edge in the marketplace when one understands the various cultural nuances. The integrity demanded of students is also an important value I learned, like no plagiarism, don’t steal someone’s thunder, be happy about your peers’ success, and in order to win, you simply raise the bar but play fair. 

Then, there was the encouragement to embark on social work and leadership. I was always keen on impactful work, but it was during my time at JIS that it was fully lived out. JIS offers a lot of opportunities for students to practice pro-activeness by participating in meaningful activities instead of just focusing on me, me, and me. The key still lies in one’s individual drive, but JIS offered a great environment and platform to do such things. There are also many interesting clubs students can join at JIS, and through them, we learned teamwork, community building, and leadership while doing things we enjoy with peers. 

If there was one thing I would say to JIS students, it’s to never miss out or waste this precious time at JIS; put yourself out there, make the most of your JIS life. It is the safest, most low-risk manner to learn at a very young age how to fail and learn to recover in a safe space while learning important life skills that are very applicable for your entire lifetime. In that process, you will pick up cues on what you are good at and can accelerate your journey of figuring out how to live out your best purpose-driven life. 

That said, stay out of high school drama; it’s a time-waster that distracts the work on yourself. Be kind to everyone, but focus on the solid circle you vibe with. And finally, engage in public speaking. You might hate it now, but you will thank your teachers later in life. 

There were so many excellent educators during my time. They not only taught the curriculum; they taught me how to think and how to be a better person. I had good relationships with many teachers, and each of them left a different mark in my life: Mrs. McCarthy,  Dr. Nespor, Dr. Frank Thomas,  Mr. Detwailer, Mrs. Davies — the list is quite long.