Orang KL

Learning to live, living to learn

Interview by: Hafiz Marzukhi and Noor Azam Shairi

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MICHAEL LEE CHEE CHEONG

57, former remisier, currently doing ride-sharing

I was born in Petaling Jaya old town... after that, my father shifted from house to house until finally I am now at Old Klang Road.

I love city living compared to small towns because I have visited a lot of small towns, it lacks the excitement or vibrancy like a big city such as Kuala Lumpur. It is the best, KL, I mean.

LIFE in the big city is full of surprises, a lot of U-turns, a lot of obstacles, and a lot of 'accidents'. It is the big city after all.

ONE of my big 'accidents' is when I got involved in the share market. It started back in 1993, when a Datin interviewed me for the position of remisier. Of course, I am interested. So, I thought to myself, this can bring me big money, so, why not? Although at first I did not have enough capital to start the ball rolling but eventually I raised just enough to start.

THE money I was making back then, decadent. Then, my 'accident' came in 1997. It is called the 'Asian Meltdown'. By 1999, I was down and out but still not critical. It was a major 'accident'. However, remember that nothing is too critical. We will always have a lot of accidents in the city. Plenty. Major. Minor. So, let's say you go through a 'major accident', no big deal. You pick yourself up and observe. Only then you will realise, there are a lot of other opportunities in the city.

Kuala Lumpur
A tourist seen walking down the stairs of the National Mosque in Kuala Lumpur. AWANI / SHAHIR OMAR

WHEN I got hit badly, I was surprised. Then, I observed others and noticed that it is important to learn from your mistakes. So, next time, when I get the chance to make a lot of money, I must know when to stop so that I do not lose even more. I pick myself up by observing others and doing a lot of thinking.

I do believe that 'accidents' give the best lessons. If not, you will learn nothing. Challenges are important, that is how you learn. It cannot always be smooth sailing. If so, then it is easy. When it is easy, you become complacent, you become weaker. I prefer to be tough. Life should be tough, so it will make us tougher. I had a tough life and I am grateful to God, the Creator of Universe for that. God should be the anchor of your life. Don't let the priority be anything else. Be close to the Creator and every moment and you can go through life smoothly.

It is important to have good friends in the city. One will do actually. Be careful because some may use you for their benefit.

OTHER than that, when dealing with crisis, I also talk to friends. It is important to have good friends in the city. One will do actually. Be careful because some may use you for their benefit. So, one really good friend is enough. If you get two friends, then it's a bonus. So, do keep in touch and share your experiences with them. After all, iron sharpens iron. Learn from each other by sharing experiences.

I have this one friend. Sad to say, he already passed away. I knew him since the 1980s. We met at TAR College. He used to work for one of the major banks in Malaysia. He had a disability. He was a polio victim. Somehow, I liked his intelligence and outlook of life. It is not easy to work for a major bank, even harder for someone like him. So, if he can do it, why can't I? We challenged each other subconsciously and it made me better. This proves my point of why we need this one good friend. Where you can help him and he can help you. It must be a two-way friendship. This is the kind of friendships you need to get out of a crisis or 'accidents'.

BASICALLY, what he taught me was it is important to work hard. There are no short cuts in life. Work smart can only take you to a certain level. For those who work hard, they climb up slowly and learn valuable lessons every step of the way. Work smart can get you position and money in the short term but if you work hard, you gain more in the long run.

Kuala Lumpur
Cars heading into Kuala Lumpur on a busy week day morning. AWANI / SHAHIR OMAR

LIFE should not be lived with regrets. At any particular moment, I understand if there is some form of regret but one week, two weeks or at most one month but after that, look back and see - what life lesson I can learn from this mistake? We are all humans after all. There should not be regrets, only life lessons to be learnt. There is nothing to be ashamed of in this world. Really, there is nothing. You can only learn from mistakes. However, you cannot be too positive in life. Be reasonable. You cannot be foolishly positive.

LASTLY, be more forgiving. For example, let's say someone upsets you; tell yourself there are reasons why you face this challenge. Don't be so angry. Learn to forgive and let go. Once you forgive, it becomes a non-issue. But you can choose to forgive or not. People have reasons for doing what they do. Next time you get angry because of some action by somebody or some event, remember to forgive. For it to be easier to forgive, that is when God comes into the picture. However, it is alright not to forget. You can't forget, but you can forgive.