The Doctor who heals diseases and the souls — Dinner with Dr Lam Ching Choi, CEO of Haven of Hope Christian Service

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.

Dr. Lam Ching Choi specializes in pediatric and community medicine. He is now the CEO of Haven of Hope Christian Service, a non-profit making Christian organization which pioneers to provide elderly services, health care services, rehabilitation services, and evangelistic work.

This CEO wasn’t born with a silver spoon in mouth, he had been through poverty and grief in his childhood. However, religion changed his life since form 4, he turned to be a devoted Christian and fought poverty with his dedication and strong religious belief. He graduated from Hong Kong University Medical School and started his journey to healing people’s diseases and souls.

He is a non-official member of the Executive Council of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. He also chairs the Elderly Commission. He heads the Elderly Commission Working Group on Ageing in Place and advises the Government on related policies. He is also the Chairman of the Community Investment & Inclusion Fund Committee and Ex-officio Member of the Family Council.

With Dr. Lam’s contribution to society, he has been honored by the HKSAR Government with the Justice of Peace in 2003 and the Bronze Bauhinia Star in 2008.

Over dinner, Dr. Lam shared with us how he, as a devoted Christian, combines religious beliefs and medical health to help people in need in Hong Kong’s society.

What is your life philosophy?

My life philosophy comes from the Bible.

As a Christian, I deeply believe that the Bible is a blueprint for life management. It’s a book full of life wisdom, some are even about wisdom, like Ketuvim.

I don’t have an MBA degree, but attended a few courses at Harvard Business School. Many of the business philosophy and knowledge can actually be found in the Bible. So the simplest way to learn about life is to read the Bible. You don't need to be a Christian to learn all these. What makes the Bible amazing is the principles inside. From the surface, many of the principles seem conflicting, but you need the wisdom to “juggle” the principles. In certain circumstances, we will need to apply 5–6 principles, “juggle” them around and make the best decision.

What is that one habit that improves your life?

I like exercising.

My goal every week is to cycle 200 km. Cycling is energizing and clears up my “CPU”, also makes it easier to accept new things. It can also influence our “age”. Our “chronological age” is counted up since we were born, but our “biological age” can be changed by the extent of exercise we do. So far I can achieve my goal every week, which makes me feel younger and energetic to deal with my work! If I am too busy to go out, I will still ride my bike on the trainer at home. It is also good for my mental health!

What’s the life lesson that took you longest to learn?

Being humble.

The most difficult thing to achieve is to “disrupt” ourselves. We have our own understandings and knowledge about the world, but in new circumstances, can we disrupt ourselves and learn new things again? Our stance needs to be humble. The most difficult thing to disrupt isn’t the business model but ourselves. Being humble is a thing I need to learn for life.

What is one action you want everyone to take away from meeting you?

Most of you here are teenagers. I hope everyone can be both “disruptive” and “inclusive”.

“Inclusive” sounds conflicting with “disruptive”, but it’s not true. We will need to disrupt ourselves, the model and the business case, at the same time, to include every stakeholder to build consensus. It is a very difficult goal to achieve in today’s society. If we are willing to disrupt ourselves and include more people, we can build a better world!

Thank you, Dr. Lam, for having dinner with us, and thanks to everyone who volunteered and took part in raising 79 volunteer hours to various charities. Also hats off to WeWork Tower 535 for providing us with such a wonderful venue.

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