SMU Convocation Speech by Mr Tommie Goh 

This is the text of the SMU Convocation keynote address by Guest-of-Honour, Mr Tommie Goh, Chairman, 2G Capital Pte Ltd, delivered on Saturday, 19 August 2006, at the Suntec City Convention Centre. I am honoured to be with you all today at your convocation. SMU is close to me. When I decided to make a contribution to a tertiary institution some years back, SMU was my choice instinctively.

I did not make it to any university so I am not qualified to lecture or to teach. What I will do is to share my thoughts and experiences as an entrepreneur for which I have better credentials.

Entrepreneurs are people who start their business rarely wondering whether they should or should not do it. They just do it. Being an entrepreneur is a compulsion. They have been wanting to do it for the longest time. Being an entrepreneur is something that is “in your blood”.

There are three essentials :-

The First Essential. Believe in yourself. Have a can-do attitude. Whatever you set out to do, it is achievable; if you believe you can do it. But you must have the conviction that you can do it, that it can be done, and you will just have to find out how. After the dreaming, and all the analysis, just go and do it.

Be honest with yourself. Know your limitations. Believing in yourself doesn’t mean bluffing yourself. You must know what are your own strengths and weaknesses. Don’t pretend to be something you are not. When I finally passed my “O” levels, I knew that I was not academically-inclined. I know I am not “book-smart”. But I believe in my own abilities. I know I am “street-smart”

After 13 years in the army, I knew that with my “O” level qualifications, Grade 3, not Grade 1; I cannot be promoted beyond the rank of Major. That was my limitation in the Army. But my belief in myself told me that I could succeed further outside the Army. So I left the Army. I founded JIT Electronics in 1988 and when the company crossed the 100 million dollar revenue mark, I knew I needed to recruit professional managers who are more able than me in managing a company this size and growing rapidly. I know my limitations.

Identify your passion. This is part of knowing yourself, and believing in yourself. You must know what moves you, what gives you satisfaction. If you want to be entrepreneur, you must have passion in your work. For me, my passion is in sales and marketing, in interacting with people.

Second Essential. Business life is a marathon, not a sprint. (I have completed 7 marathons).

No short-cuts. If you want to run the race, and most of us don’t have a choice, you must have determination and endurance. Do not think there are short-cuts to take to easy success. There will be a lot of pain and sacrifice you have to go through. If you want to start a business, you must be prepared to slog, very hard, and continuously, for a very long time. Don’t think in terms of one or two years, and then you will succeed! Prepare for a ten-year effort before you can rest. You have to sacrifice your comfort, your lifestyle, or the lifestyle of your friends, If you really want to succeed in business.

Never-say-die . You will make a lot of mistakes. Learn from them. Nobody goes through life without making mistakes. You will stumble, you will fall. Pick yourself up. Start again. Press on. Someone will trip you. Get up. Carry on. Your strength must be the strength of your spirit, to learn, to keep yourself sensible, to be generous to your friends and those who have helped you. If you don’t allow it, no one can defeat you.

There is a finish-line. In a marathon, the distance is far, but after 42 km, you will get there. In the marathon of business; there are many marathons, not just one. But each one has their start point and their end point. If you persevere, you will reach your goal. Your first goal, then your next goal, then your future goal. And when you reach your goals, enjoy your achievements, as much as your effort in getting there. In this race, it doesn’t mean you cannot stop and rest. Just don’t turn back, or run backwards.

I founded JIT in 1988 and sold it to Flextronics in 2000. In 1988, I invested $100,000 in JIT and twelve years later sold it for $1.16 billion; a multiple of 11,600 times. Not bad for a 100 thousand dollar investment. Next, I co-founded 2G Capital, an investment holding company with my partner, Gay Chee Cheong, immediately after. Finished one marathon, moved on to the next.

Third Essential. If you learn how to treat people properly, you have won 90% of the race.

It is very easy to interact with a piece of machinery. You press a button, it moves. The machine does what it is supposed to do, what you want it to do. It is not rude. Interacting with people is a different matter.

People are difficult to deal with. People are complex. People are emotional. They have complicated lives. They do not always do rational things. You have to deal with them.

Dealing with your colleague is one thing, dealing with your customers is another. What about your suppliers, and your competitors? That is why it is often so difficult to succeed in business, because you have to successfully interact with all these different types of people. All of them.

Do not try to deceive anyone in your business dealings. If what you are trying to sell is rotten, the truth will eventually float to the surface. Do not try to camouflage. People will find out you are bluffing, and once you lose their trust, that’s the end of the relationship.

Why are people so important? Because nothing happens without people. It is people who help you to make things happen, to uplift you, to help you along. In a business enterprise, a company is only as good as its people.

SMU has in its short history of 6 years distinguished itself as a university projecting images of freshness, vibrancy and colour. All of you here are contributing to making the SMU identity and you are part of history in the making. I am informed each of you here represents the select one out of eight applicants to join SMU. You are amongst the best in your cohorts.

If, Tommie Goh, can be here as your guest speaker in your convocation – an ‘O’ Level graduate, of ordinary parentage and no capital advantage – just think, how much more privileged and better off each one of you here are. Treasure your studies but remember to thoroughly enjoy your time at SMU. Make it a distinctive part of your life experiences.

Make it happen!

Thank you.