Derrick Kwa

I left school at 16, with no network and no idea what I would do. I just knew I couldn’t keep going through the motions anymore. I had to forge my own path. So I left school, and started living the life I wanted to, on my terms.

It was extremely scary, but I did it anyway. And I’m pretty happy with the results.

Since then, I've had stints as a web-developer, digital marketer, and chef (also had a period in between of playing poker semi-professionally)

Some of the things I’ve done that I’ve most proud of include:

• Completing a virtual internship with Seth Godin
• Being one of the first 100 graduates of Seth Godin’s altMBA program
• Traveling to 10 countries in two years
• Playing in professional poker tournaments against some of my favorite celebrity players
• Co-organizing the Social Media Breakfast | Singapore
• Participating in the StartupBus 2011
• Contributing to the Age of Conversation 2
• Starting Thousand True Fans, a marketing agency where we worked with brands like QuickBooks Asia and ONI Global
• Worked with multiple startups in Europe, Asia and North America, in all aspects of digital marketing, including content strategy, paid ads, email automation, and more.
• Creating and hosting a podcast to showcase the stories of people who have made a career switch to do what they love
• Working in the kitchens of award winning fine dining restaurants in 3 different continents
• Created menus for a number of boutique hotels around Sri Lanka
• Held my own fine dining pop-up dinners, with menus and food that engage the diner and built around encouraging connection