If you want to start a business, you must first learn and have knowledge.

This is one of the activities within the program "Supporting Youth Entrepreneurship" for the period 2017-2020 implemented by the Central Committee of the Vietnam Youth Union. Through this program, the aim is to create an environment, conditions and other factors to promote and support young people in the process of starting a business and innovating. At the same time, it promotes and builds the entrepreneurial spirit for young people and students; gradually meeting the needs of young people to start a business.

Dr. Vo Van Thanh Nghia talks with students. Photo: My Ha

At the talk with many years of experience in the business field and participating in management activities with enterprises, Dr. Vo Van Thanh Nghia shared with young people many ideas about starting a business today.

He also affirmed that students who want to succeed need to have ambition and should not hesitate to come up with startup ideas. However, to be successful, Dr. Vo Van Thanh Nghia advised students not to follow the "startup" movement but to determine their own startup path: If we want to start a business, we should start by working for hire. Or we have to learn about startups from the most ordinary people such as sticky rice sellers, coffee sellers, and tea sellers. To start a good business, we also need knowledge. If we don't learn, forget about starting a business.

Students interact at the talk show Photo: My Ha

At the talk, Dr. Vo Van Thanh Nghia also pointed out the formula for starting a business and answered students' questions related to career choice and experience to be successful at work. With many years of experience in the field of business administration, he also frankly pointed out the limitations of today's youth in the process of starting a business and the need to have a clear orientation before building a career plan for themselves.

Answering a student’s question about why individual startup ideas fail, Dr. Vo Van Thanh Nghia also gave advice: In youth, there are always setbacks. Failure is sometimes due to oneself, due to subjectivity. Starting a business does not mean “it has to be something new”. Taking this as an example, he suggested: We do it later but we have to do it better. The Japanese also make pens, the Germans also make pens. I can make a pen but a pen that fits the hand, suitable for Vietnamese people.

Students of Vinh University of Industry do internship at Nghi Son Oil Refinery, Thanh Hoa. Photo: PV

Referring to the issue of entrepreneurship, through this conversation, the famous CEO also fanned the flames and desires of students who are still in university today to want to establish themselves, start a business, and get rich. More importantly, it helps them realize the value of the entrepreneurship process and have the will and determination to rise up to realize their ideals.

Dr. Vo Van Thanh Nghia is the former CEO of a large corporation in Vietnam for 3 terms from 2008 to 2016. He was the former Vice President of the Vietnam Marketing Association, a visiting lecturer at the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City and a familiar speaker at the Nantes Chamber of Commerce - France and the Australia - Vietnam Chamber of Commerce in the 1990s and 2000s.

Previously, Vo Van Thanh Nghia was known as a person who started his career from many different jobs such as cycling to transport goods, helping blacksmiths, working as a secretary, interpreter... During that difficult working process, he learned many lessons about will, patience, capacity, the value of knowledge, experience... He is also the author of the book "When you are a CEO" which is quite famous recently and is the Chairman and General Director of VAL Making Organization, an organization specializing in supporting, consulting businesses and serving the community and society....

Currently, VAL Making is cooperating with the Center for Supporting Youth Entrepreneurship (Central Committee of the Vietnam Youth Union) to implement the program "Supporting Youth Entrepreneurship" for the period 2017-2020. In particular, VAL Making will support the Center for Supporting Youth Entrepreneurship in evaluating ideas, appraising, debating the feasibility of joint projects and supporting the implementation of feasible projects within one year. In addition, it will coordinate to organize seminars and sharing sessions nationwide for students and young people with entrepreneurial spirit and ideas.