BIO: Jimmy Lee is a Venture Builder and Humanitarian.
STORY: Jimmy and his partner got into a partnership with two other businesses for a huge project that would bring them big returns. One of the businesses wanted Jimmy to collude with them and kick the third company out of the project. He refused and got cut out of the project, losing everything he had invested in it.
LEARNING: Get your downpayment at the start of the project. When you receive help, pay it forward.
“If you have a firm belief in yourself, and you know what you want to do, you should go for it. Things will come into place eventually.”
Jimmy Lee
Guest profile
Jimmy Lee is a Venture Builder and Humanitarian. Believe in yourself, and you can make the impossible possible!
Worst investment ever
Jimmy was introduced to entrepreneurship by chance by a friend. He went into it without experience, capital, or contacts—just a law degree and an idea. His first startup was a creative agency doing motion videos. Within four years, he grew the business into a multi-million business.
The year 2007 was a very great year for Jimmy and his business partner because they got two huge projects. They were engaged as a contractor for the celebration of the 50th anniversary of Malaysia. Their job was to project the first prime minister in a hologram.
The following year, everything fell apart. Jimmy’s company got into a partnership with two other companies. Jimmy got called for a secret meeting with one of the companies and was told not to inform the other company. He went for the meeting with his partner out of curiosity. The value of the project was about 4.5 million Malaysian ringgit. The other company wanted to sideline the third company and divide the profit between their company and Jimmy’s.
Jimmy and his partner said no to that idea because it was unethical. A week later, Jimmy’s company got terminated from the project. All the payments he was supposed to receive had been pending due diligence, and now he couldn’t get paid. He lost everything overnight. They had focused on that one huge project for the past few months, and many resources went to it.
Lessons learned
- Don’t give up even when you face failure and other hurdles.
- Get your downpayment money at the onset of the project.
Andrew’s takeaways
- People do help people sometimes out of the blue.
- Once somebody has helped you out of the blue, you have an obligation to pay that forward.
Actionable advice
Continue exploring opportunities and learn from your failures and be better. From that, you can do something even bigger.
No. 1 goal for the next 12 months
Jimmy’s number one goal for the next 12 months is to set up a venture fund in Singapore. The venture will fund projects focused entirely on food, technology, and social enterprise.
Parting words
“Do things that are out of the box. Don’t be afraid because sometimes it’s just internal fear. So be bold and mighty force will come to your aid.”
Jimmy Lee
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