If you’ve ever been in need of a dose of inspiration, chances are you’ve heard of Francis Kong. After all, he is one of the most respected business personalities in the country, dabbling in inspirational speaking, writing a column, being a broadcaster, as well as an entrepreneur.
But he is so much more than just a man filled with worldly wisdom and witty comebacks. He has also led an inspiration-filled journey. This is why we’ve rounded up five interesting things you probably didn’t know about Francis Kong:
1. He doesn’t believe in time management.
One thing that may be surprising to learn is that Francis Kong doesn’t believe in time management. “There’s no such thing as time management in the 21st century,” he said. “I don’t manage my time. I manage my tasks.”
His strategy is to figure out which tasks are essential to his goals and focus on that. He also doesn’t believe in work-life balance, but more of work-life integration, which results in a person having work integrity.
2. He is a father who is comfortable showing his emotions.
First and foremost, he is a husband and a father. All the remarkable accolades only come second to him. He emphasizes that education in parenting is very important and not just in the formal sense. He recalls learning about being a good husband by observing his father be faithful to his mother through the years.
While the older generation of parents are known to not be very showy with their affection, Francis Kong is the opposite. He says that no matter what age his children are, he would still be comfortable hugging them.
3. He was not the greatest student. It took him six years to finish high school.
As a kid, he would bring books or sometimes even a copy of Readers’ Digest and read quietly as his mind wandered in class. His imagination would take him to different places and possibilities. Little did he know, this was where he was able to practice much of his creativity as a child. This usually happened when teachers were not engaging enough.
He said, “My attention span is so short for anything that is not engaging. But anything that engages me, I can spend the whole day doing the same thing.”
When talking about how it took him six years to finish high school, he said, “I was dubbed as the dumbest kid in school. How’s that for a reputation?” But despite people around him thinking he was a hopeless cause, he took this as a challenge to change his circumstance and prove everyone wrong.
4. He does not like being known as a “motivational speaker.”
Yes, you read that right. For someone who helps keep us all motivated, he does not like being known as a motivational speaker. Instead he said, “I would rather be known as someone who can educate, train, and inspire.”
5. The common characteristic of people who inspire him is the immense ability to care.
When asked about where he gets his inspiration, he says he cannot attribute this to any particular person but more of a combination of the best people who shared their stories and opinions with him. However, he said that among all the books he’s read and people he has met, “One common denominator among all of them, is they all really care.” And that’s what truly moves him.
Get to know more about Francis Kong here:
