Amy Wong, HBA ’02, EMBA ’14 is the founder of Dreamwriters, a creative writing and self-publishing platform for young writers and artists. It connects artists from all over the world with young writers, helping to inspire their story writing process. Wong founded the company after leaving a 20-year career in marketing and advertising, working with companies like Lenovo, Ogilvy & Mather, and Saatchi & Saatchi.
All entrepreneurial stories need a good origin story.
For Amy Wong, it was starting a pigeon club in grade one - she later realized they were actually seagulls.
“I thought it would be fun to catch them. So, I got kids to sign-up to the club and every recess we’d go and chase these birds,” recalled Wong. “I’m not sure someone without an entrepreneurial tendency would have come up with that.”
In high school, she helped organize a series of events to make profits for the student council as its treasurer, which piqued her interest to study business. In her final year, she privately organized her class’ graduation celebration on a cruise ship on the Toronto Harbourfront. That profit-making exercise reinforced her decision to pursue business school.
It was a significant turn for Wong, who had always pursued science and mathematics with the hope of becoming a doctor. That life goal changed after an internship at an uncle’s medical practice.
“I absolutely hated it… the experience made me decide that this wasn’t for me at all,” said Wong. It was a shock to many of her friends and family, people who knew her deeply.
It’s a lesson Wong wants to pass on to students thinking about their career options.
You really need to try it to figure out what you like and dislike, and what your strengths and weaknesses are. You may have given people the impression that you wanted something. But it's okay to change your mind. You don't need to feel trapped in someone else's expectations of you or one you created for them. Just follow your heart.
