The Tanks Started Firing and That Turned Everything Upside Down

Matt: Lu please tell us a little about you?

‍Lu: I live in Tokyo, Japan but I was born in Beijing, China. ‍

Matt: How were those early years in Beijing? ‍

Lu: I grew up on the campus of the top university in China called Tsing Hua. My father was a professor there and I was born on campus. In 1989, along with all the college students, we went on the street to go protest against the government for corruption. Then the tanks started firing and that turned everything upside down. ‍

Matt: What an incredible event to have lived through! What happened following Tiananmen Square? ‍

Lu: My grandpa and my family were angry about what the government did, and, and our whole family decided that China wasn't a country we think reflected our values. So we decided to leave the country to go somewhere else. Our family decided to go to India, and my dad took a diplomat job for the government, and I went to Japan by myself. Ever since then, my family has never lived in one country, so it changed our family a lot, ‍

Matt: What did you do from there? ‍

Lu: I went from Japan to the USA to get my MBA. Then I went back to China where I started and sold two businesses before moving back to Japan where I am building my third business. ‍

Matt: What caused you to want to write a book? ‍

Lu: When I was in China, I spoke at colleges about my experience in Japan, education in the USA, and as an investment banker and entrepreneur raising millions of dollars of funding. I find myself repeating my story over and over again and thought it would be great to have a book. ‍

Matt: What got you started? ‍

Lu: I met you in the USA (laugh)! ‍

Matt: How did the PublishU ‘Writing My Book’ course help you? ‍

Lu: I really liked the way you helped us set a goal and provided the methodology to enable us to achieve it. You told us, ‘What gets scheduled gets done, and what doesn’t get scheduled doesn’t get done.’ ‍

Matt: You certainly got it done! I seem to remember you wrote 54,000 words, in 100 days, in your third language! ‍

Lu: Yes, it’s pretty unbelievable. I couldn’t have done it by myself. ‍

Matt: How do you feel now your book ‘Understanding the Way’ is published and available worldwide? ‍

Lu: First of all, I feel it's just a starting point. I'm not a successful entrepreneur, like Elon Musk or Steve Jobs but my approach is rather like the ancient story of the poor lady who in the temple gave 2 cents. She didn’t have much, but she gave what she had. I want to tell my story to inspire and help others, and that's my 2 cents. ‍

Matt: Lu, I so love that thank you! I have a feeling this won't be your last book, but for now, we’ll start with your first!