On Futuristic World View, Gut Feeling & Our Place in the World — Dinner with Prof. Tony Chan, President of HKUST

Sometimes the most meaningful and inspiring conversations happen over casual meals. The Time Auction Blog is a snippet of our meetings with people who have found passion in their life and career, where we get a glimpse into their mentality behind their ventures.

Professor Tony Chan became the President of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in 2009 and since then, has led the tertiary institution to become one of the top universities across the globe — coming in 30th in the World’s Top 1000 Universities 2018, 12th in the Global University Employability Ranking 2017, and much more.

Tony began his career teaching Computer Science in Yale then Mathematics in UCLA, before moving to the US National Science Foundation (NSF) and becoming a widely-cited mathematician. Now a member of numerous engineering and science associations, Tony continues to make substantial contributions to his field.

Over a visit at his office and dinner, he shared with us his love of travel, and the value of consistently learning more about our world.

What is a life philosophy you live by?

I always say in my speeches ‘If you try, you may not succeed, but if you don’t try you fail for sure’. You’ve got to have a willingness to try new things, even when you know there is a good chance that you will not succeed. You should try as long as you have had good preparation, have the confidence and attempt to overcome those difficulties. So I guess if you want me to summarise my life philosophy, that is to

Make a difference.

There will be cases where you fail, but if you don’t try, you will never succeed and you let opportunity pass you by.

If you are to choose a different career what would it be?

I like sport, I play tennis and soccer. I think I’d like to be a sports coach. There are so many approaches when playing sports, not just physically but also mentally. The key is to not have a defeatist attitude and think that someone is better because they are younger or faster. Think smart,

Sports is just like chess, you need to use strategy!

And that is why it’s so entertaining to me.

Care to share a habit that changed your life?

I am always curious, especially when it comes to the world. That is why I went to the US instead of staying in Hong Kong. Instead of deciding on where to go by comparing the value of my degree, I compared how much of the world I could see. I’ve been to many places, Soviet Union, India even Chile and that never grows old. I love travelling on my own to see more of the world. But now since I have a family, I travel with them, since it’s really good experience for them too. One thing I always do when I am abroad, is that I never ask for Chinese food or food I am familiar with, I always go local.

There’s always something new you haven’t experienced.

That’s why I grab every chance to experience it. This world is rich with things and I am privileged to be in a profession that allows me to see more than many others.

What is one thing you want everyone here to do?

Be aware of what’s going around you and the world, especially young people. You will have numerous opportunities and they will pass you by just as fast as they appeared. So prepare yourself to ensure you are in a position to sieze the opportunity when it comes. Make some friends, read about different cultures and technology, you’ll learn a lot that way. Keep learning and talk to you friends about thing happening around the world, do that and after a little while,

The world will make more sense to you.

And when an opportunity comes by you can say, ‘Hey, I’ve read about that before. Maybe I should invest my time, money and energy into it.’ To me learning whenever I can Is both fun and economically rewarding.

Thank you Tony for donating dinner and raising 130 volunteer hours to Action Asia Foundation, KELY Support Group, Hong Kong Volunteers Association, The Home of Love and more!

For more amazing opportunities, visit Time Auction to volunteer and meet inspiring mentors!