Meet Fong Wai Hong, a 28-year old entrepreneur who hasn’t stopped going since he discovered the exhilaration of running an e-commerce website. The moment he left university, he co-founded OZHut, a multi-niche online retailer. Under his helm, revenue soared from from hundreds of thousands to millions, all in the first four years.
Fong was named the Best Young Entrepreneur by Startupsmart back in 2011, and made it to the list of Hot 30 Under 30 by Smartcompany three years in a row (2010-2012), he was celebrated as the 100 most influential people in Melbourne by The Age Melbourne Magazine in 2011.
After 15 years away from home, and with several awards and achievements under his belt, Fong decided to sell his stakes at OZHut and return to Malaysia for a brand new challenge — building another profitable business up from scratch.
StoreHub, his latest venture, is a cloud-based retail management system that’s been constructed to replace the antiquated, inefficient and overpriced point-of-sale systems currently being used. Most of Fong’s daily 24 hours is spent refining the system and driving the budding business to newer heights, but also makes time for health and fitness.
We talked to Fong to see how he finds time in his busy schedule for both business, family, and health:
1. With your busy schedule, how do you commit to a healthy lifestyle?
I think the first thing I set in place is a right mindset and belief system. I used to think that growing a business involves long hard hours and pulling multiple all-nighters. I now realise that my personal health is actually a huge part of being able to function at my peak which is what the business needs me to do. As such, I’d commit to sleeping 8 hours a day and working up a bit of a sweat each day in the morning.
2. What workout routine gets you in the groove?
I try to get in some basic exercises like push ups / sit ups every morning and go bowling 1-3 times a week. I actually really like table tennis as well, but I haven’t been able to find time to play.
3. When it comes to meals…
I usually start the day with a lot of water and then work through a big lunch and an average-sized dinner. I try to focus on getting a good amount of meat/proteins into my diet and a good balance of carbs, sugars, fats and fibers.
4. What keeps you going?
When I wake up in the morning feeling dead, I remind myself that if I were to die today, I would be deeply dissatisfied with my life and what I’ve done with it. The biggest inspiration for me is knowing that I haven’t quite achieved/become the person I want to be remembered for when I die.
5. Do you believe that taking care of your health helps you be more productive?
Definitely. A healthy lifestyle is essential in maximising our potential in work, our enjoyment of our leisure and even the quality of our relationships. When we’re healthy, we typically have more energy, are more creative, and are able to engage people better.
6. If I have a huge billboard this is what I will put on it…
Live Full. There is nothing more beautiful than a person fully alive.
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