Are you crazy enough to fail? Leeor Groen – Blockchain Valley Ventures

Listen to the episode here.

Leeor Groen is currently a partner at Blockchain Valley Ventures. He draws on a wealth of experience having lived and worked professionally in Zurich, London, Melbourne, Oslo, Brisbane and Singapore.

First and foremost, what is a venture capitalist?

A venture capitalist is an investor who provides funds to a startup business in exchange for a share in the company’s profits.

Are their essential skills necessary to become a venture capitalist?

Leeor finds that individuals must possess a robust skill set; one that consists of the basic principles of finance and the understanding of how to grow and propel companies. 

Throughout the interview, commitment was emphasised as an important attribute. Leeor Groen is a determined global entrepreneur who believes that in order to succeed in any field, especially as a venture capitalist, one must be fully committed.

A venture capitalist, according to Leeor, is the “most exciting profession in the twenty-first century.” Regardless of whether or not this statement is true, it demonstrates Leeor’s enthusiasm for his work. He is adamant that you must find your passion in life, and Leeor has. He has now turned his passion into a successful reality as a partner at BVV. When Leeor reflects on his career so far and some of his own entrepreneurial pursuits, he says that in order to become successful, you must be ‘crazy enough to fail’ in the first place. Fearlessness is second to none in this line of work, alongside commitment and a strong skill set.

What has Leeor gained from his international experience that other candidates lack?

A global citizen from London to Zurich to Melbourne to Singapore. Leeor has moved around a lot and yet through all of these experiences, he is now able to reap the many benefits of living internationally. He asserts that by being able to adapt to new environments and to different cultures, you become more resilient. Life is about seeking discomfort and learning to work under different circumstances. 

How can we cultivate the rewards and benefits of these experiences?

Try as much as you can and take every opportunity that you may encounter. Internships, according to Leeor, are one of the most valuable assets in today’s world. They enable a myriad of diverse experiences, augment your network and allow you to build relationships with new people. 

What is one piece of advice you would give to the youth?

Leeor buys into the notion that winners forget they are in a race, they just love to run. What he means by this is that if you do things just for the sake of doing things, you will not achieve the same results as those who are truly committed to their work.

Discover your true passion. Find something about which you are truly passionate! Only then can you commit to a future that you want to pursue.

Emre Buyukkilic on how Generation Z is influencing the future!

Listen to the full episode here.

In our most recent interview, we were fortunate enough to meet with Emre Buyukkilic. Emre is a country advisor and works at the Investment Office of the Presidency of Turkey. As a country advisor, he is responsible with the promotion of Turkey’s investment opportunities worldwide. Currently based in Singapore, Emre speaks on the value of being open-minded and explains how important multi-cultural openness is. 

Emre’s life has seen him progress from the commercial capital of Turkey to one of the world’s leading financial cities, Singapore. Singapore is evidently a leading insurance and wealth management marketplace with deep capital markets, and as a result, Emre is responsible for utilising such a financial centre to promote Turkish interests elsewhere.

Advice for the next generation:

Accomplished, but always hungry for more. Emre is more than capable of launching a business overseas, but he wishes he knew how to run a business. He feels that he lacks the knowledge and the skills to operationally run a business. This is one piece of advice he wants to pass onto the younger generation; spend more time developing entrepreneurial competencies and an entrepreneurial mindset. He believes that this is one of the most important qualities to have when entering the business world.

Emre also wants to impart to the younger generation the importance of never limiting oneself to a single activity. It is essential to maintain market disciplinary and multi-cultural openness. It is critical to maintain an open mind in a world that is as dysfunctional as it is ever-changing. 

Emre’s outlook on Turkey’s future:

The Turkish population is one of the youngest in Europe, and the importance of the youth’s contribution to the community is second to none. Although, according to Emre, there is already a large focus on the youth in Turkey in order to provide promising futures for Gen-Z, he believes that the government must continue with initiatives to engage the younger generations in the workforce.

The rest of the world must take notice! The younger generation is the future, and while they are often overlooked and marginalised in society, many professionals, including Emre, recognise the value and importance of investing in and focusing on our youth. Before it’s too late, maybe the world ought to listen and pay attention.

Oh Tepmongkol-Wheaton on overcoming prejudice and discrimination

Tune into our podcast here with Oh Tepmongkol-Wheaton.

Oh is one of Forbes’s next 1000 honoree and is the CEO and co-founder of Ohzone (a 3D fashion tech startup that has been awarded Top Fashion Tech 2021 by Retail Tech Insights.)

Oh’s initial goal was to create a social shopping experience as if you were all in the same place at the same time. Oh places a lot of emphasis on inclusivity and the importance of embracing family values.

As a woman and an ethnic minority, she has often spoken about the attitudes and perspectives she has encountered along her journey in numerous work environments. Oh explains how it is possible to go above and beyond the expectations of others and prove them wrong:

• She wanted to show how women invent; in a largely male-dominated field, which technology and fashion predominantly is, she wanted to show how women can achieve in the same way that men can.

• Through creativity: Oh has a unique perspective on creativity. She purports that creativity is how you solve a problem based on experience. As an under-represented minority with a unique background, she is able to bring the experience of how she survives and even how she succeeds. She then uses her inventiveness to solve a problem and innovate for the future.

An example of the prejudice and discrimination that Oh has confronted as a woman and an ethnic minority:

Between 1989-1996, Oh worked at Hewlett-Packard, the computer hardware company. She describes how her boss approached her when she first started as a research and development engineer. He expressed his gratitude for hiring Oh to work at Hewlett-Packard because she ticked two boxes as a company employee: she was a woman and an under-represented minority in the company. He explained that he usually needed to hire two people, but that because of her, he only needed to hire one. This was only the beginning of Oh’s discrimination throughout her life. Despite the abhorrent workplace discrimination displayed at HP, Oh made it her goal to prove people wrong and express what women and minorities can achieve in society, and now more precisely in fashion.

Why should hard work pay off?

Oh describes how hard work has aided her throughout her life with a powerful anecdote. After failing her college entrance exam in Thailand, Oh relocated to the United States. She grafted in almost every aspect of school life, but most specifically in mathematics, despite having very little know-how of the American school system. Through a lot of hard work and dedication, everything seemed to fall into place. Oh needed a breath of fresh air, and mathematics provided it. In the face of prejudice and discrimination, Oh returns back to maths. She says that in times of hardship and difficulty, one must find an activity that feeds your ego and something that you know you through hard work, you can do well in. 

With the use of your technology, do you see this platform taking over traditional fashion shows? 

The whole premise of Ohzone is to become more inclusive and accessible. Oh’s use of 3D technology is designed to make fashion more inclusive; she wants her technology to include people who have been left behind or who have been unable to be a part of traditional fashion shows. She feels that her technology is democratising virtual fashion for the better. This demonstrates Oh’s commitment to allowing small and/or medium-sized fashion brands to participate in the next wave of fashion.

The fashion industry is exclusive, or rather focuses on exclusivity. Through this new form of fashion, it will open a whole new world for people who haven’t yet been able to experience it. Oh divulges that it is finally time to hear different voices from a younger generation! 

What is one piece of advice you would give to the younger generation?

Apply yourself; failing to try is the first step toward failure. It’s fine to fail, but failing to try is unacceptable. You must strive to succeed in life!

Byron Dempsey: why it’s important to fail before you succeed?

Listen to the podcast here

This week on Insights with Experts, we were fortunate enough to have an interview with Byron Dempsey. Byron is the founder of Stream Digital Marketing, a content creation agency and the host of the Driven Young podcast, a podcast that aims to educate and to inspire the younger generation.

From a very young age, Byron had a particular focus at school. His primary focus was on creating videos, with much of his motivation stemming from his desire to become a filmmaker. Byron’s passion was palpable throughout his childhood, and he believed that ATAR and the university system would be futile when pursuing a career in creative video.

Byron’s biggest fear for Generation Z:

Byron values the importance of finding a niche. Having a niche, in any form of life, is important because it allows for you to be memorable. He is quick to point out, however, that the educational system downplays the value of such a quality. In the interview, Byron explains how there is not enough focus at school on finding what we are good at. He does, however, present the problem and propose a solution, which is an important aspect of podcasting.

Byron Dempsey: on how to be successful → 

There is no one formula; there are a number of common traits found in successful people. 

1) Network: “Who you know, rather than what you know.’ Outside of the classroom, it’s all about making connections, meeting new people, and working your way up.

2) Real world experience: It is important to get out into the workplace and try a selection of new things. 

3) The fundamental value of taking risks: Stepping outside of your comfort zone is a truism that is extremely relevant. Byron believes that between the ages of 18 and 25, we have a window of freedom to take risks and try things we wouldn’t normally do. During this time frame, the ability to recover will never be easier. So if you fail, pick yourself up and go again! 

Byron is a firm believer in surrounding yourself with high-quality people. As a result, he believes in the resulting idea that if you surround yourself with four idiots, you will become the fifth idiot. Whereas, if you surround yourself with four winners, you will be the fifth winner.

As a student, how do I network?

• The 1000 door concept: behind a single door, may be another 1000 doors. But, behind each door is a room with more doors. And behind THOSE doors will be other rooms with EVEN MORE DOORS. If you keep opening doors, you will end up on an amazing journey that is filled with new experiences, new people and new cultures. 

• Volunteer: go to volunteering events, put yourself out there and most importantly be curious.

• Be genuine: the value of sincerity cannot be overstated. Too many people nowadays are only waiting for their turn to speak, rather than being genuine and appreciating what others have to say. If you truly listen to others and care about what they have to say, you will have a different perspective on life; one that is enriched and genuine.

Do you have any advice for young people who are starting podcasts or making videos?

If you want to start a podcast, start a podcast. Ignore any criticism or hate that you receive. It is important to be resilient and persistent, otherwise you will fall at the first hurdle. 

Whether you succeed or fail, you are going to grow. That is an important mindset that you have to adopt. Embracing failure is essential; it is a fundamental building block for growth.