Light Seeker | 找到你的光

What’s the hardest decision you’ve ever had to make? Why?

When I reflect on the hardest decision I have ever made, my thoughts return to a moment earlier today. My business partner and I revisited our university — nearly nine years after graduating — to share our entrepreneurial journey with current students. Standing in our old classroom made one truth unmistakably clear: the most difficult decision of my life was choosing to start a business.

Establishing a brand felt very much like raising a child. It grew alongside us, shaped by our values, discipline, and imagination. What began as a simple idea in 2020 evolved into a physical fitness studio in 2022, and has since become a living record of our dedication, creativity, and resilience.

From a career-development perspective, our decision was not merely about launching a company. It represented a deliberate shift from a traditional, linear career path toward a self-directed, values-driven life design. Instead of climbing an established ladder, we chose to build a path that aligned with our sense of purpose — a choice supported by contemporary theories of career adaptability, adult learning, and intrinsic motivation.

Ironically, the greatest challenge was not the fear of failing.

It was learning not to let failure define my identity.

I discovered that when the definition of success comes from within — shaped by personal values, meaningful work, and service to others — the outcome of any single venture does not determine the worth of my life. Research on intrinsic motivation suggests that people experience deeper fulfillment when their work supports autonomy, competence, and connection. Our brand emerged from exactly those elements: we created classes we personally loved, crafted services we believed in, and built a community rooted in movement and well-being. Work became not just output, but expression.

I thought that an older classmate shared his own story. Now in his fifties, he has taken many different occupational paths — elder care, technical repair, bakery work, even running his own business. Some attempts flourished; others ended quietly. Yet his message was simple and powerful: he kept going. Every role taught him something. Every setback strengthened his adaptability. Today, he is a manager in his field, and the diversity of his experiences is one of his greatest assets.

His story reflects principles found in resilience research, growth-mindset theory, and experiential learning. Adults grow through cycles of doing, reflecting, reframing, and trying again. In this light, “failure” is not a verdict but a formative stage — a necessary ingredient in becoming someone wiser, steadier, and more capable.

With this understanding, I can now say that choosing to start my own business was not just the hardest decision I have ever made; it was also one of the most transformative.

Our brand is more than a commercial entity.

It is an extension of our lives.

It embodies our values, our willingness to grow, and our commitment to serve.

From the outside, our story may appear to be a business narrative.

But at its core, it is a life-design narrative — a record of choosing authenticity over certainty, purpose over predictability, and growth over safety. It is a journey of accepting the developmental role of failure and embracing work as a meaningful expression of who we are becoming.

And that, more than any outcome, is what makes the decision worthwhile.