Flying to London

By J -



My wife and I will be flying to London, so this blog won't be updated for about a week. In the meantime, I wanted to share a little bit of the Alpha Asian philosophy. Sometimes people ask me, "Alpha Asian? What's that mean?" 

And I respond, "Being an Alpha Asian means you live a life based on self-determination and duty to your Asian American community."  

I'm sure longtime readers have noticed certain themes pop up when I blog: 

  1. Don't look for a leader. Be one. If you develop yourself and accomplish things, then share your expertise with the community. Improving the Asian American community is best done from bottom up, not top down. Most people think that change comes around when the government intervenes or when a non-profit organization goes on a campaign to improve the community. It's a very top-down mentality that is very condescending: "We lead. You follow." But it is much better when idea viruses spread and individuals change on the inside. How the hell is someone going to help and contribute to the community if he or she doesn't have their sh!t down in their personal lives? If you give people the tools and the psychology to enrich themselves, then the community is better as a whole. 
  2. Create instead of react. If you look around the AA blogosphere and the AA forums, most people are reactionary. Most people use the Internet to vent and rant about how non-Asians are racist. Fact is most non-Asians are prejudiced against Asians. Nothing that whites, Blacks or Hispanics surprises me anymore. I assume they're doing the chinky-eye behind my back every chance they get... those racist bastards! A paraphrased quote from Harvey Milk puts things in perspective, "If I turned around every time someone called me a faggot, then I'd be walking backwards. And I don't want to go through life walking backwards." 
  3. Don't ask for respect. Earn it. Asians tend to be Confucian-conformists, so they constantly worry about what others think: "Gee, what do white people think about Asians?" Who gives a crap? Seriously, if your esteem and happiness are based on what others think, then you might as well get some therapy. 
  4. Pure academics insulates from real world experience. Asians stress academics, and that's great. But real world experience is what counts. I've known plenty of people who had to work through school, and they ended up ahead in life because of their time dealing with people and managing a business. A professor of mine at UC Davis did a survey of all the famous geniuses in history and his findings revealed this: revolutionary geniuses (really smart and innovative people who change the world) don't stay in school past the 4 year degree. Geniuses with rigid thinking (you know, the boring ones who join Mensa) get graduate degrees. These geniuses maintain the status quo, whether or not it is ideal. Bottom line: Do, don't just talk.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Excellent and straight to the point. I agree wholeheartedly. Asians need to realize their own amazing values and qualities. Why acknowledge the bread when you have rice and noodles? Think about it, we tend to value and acknowledge things of western origin. How often do we choose sake or soju compares to tequila, vodka, Johnny Walker, red wine or etc. When we are strong and maintain, they will come our way.
April 5, 2009 at 10:07 PM
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