Interview with Havital founder You Wenlin: The power of women is to be good at making things better

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Life is like a divergent garden, there are always beautiful things to discover by accident

In 2018, You Wenlin was selected as one of the Forbes 30 under 30 Asia Entrepreneurs. As the founder of biotech company Havital, she is in Hong Kong and has a heart in Taiwan. We made an appointment for a video interview at the Women's Fan Paradise. On the other end of the screen, she sat in the office answering the phone with a warm smile. Without the style of an entrepreneur, she greeted us intimately, but with the enthusiasm of an entrepreneur, and soon began to talk to us about the field of health care that she was good at.

If you pay attention to health issues, you will know that Havital talks about preventive medicine, focusing on frailty prevention, which is not only a new blue ocean of medical care, but also an important social issue in an aging society. Her father is also a boss in the biotechnology industry, but the way she inherited the mantle was not to directly inherit her father's business, but to choose to start a new stove in Hong Kong.

Very young, but see far. She said that Taiwan is the root, Hong Kong is the base, and the world is the goal.

This is her life story.

Photo provided by You Wenlin

It started with an art therapy in a nursing home

Studying in Canada since he was a child, when he was 14 years old, You Wenlin accidentally bumped into a nursing home to accompany his elders to paint. "The teacher encouraged us to become volunteers. I love to draw and wanted to teach children, but I thought there was a nursing home near my house that could be reached on foot. So I cheekily asked them, can I help? The hospital originally thought I was too young to refuse. But I find it interesting and chat with them all the time. Finally, they finally said, "Well, there is an art therapy event on the weekend, so I can go play with the elderly with dementia and paint with them."

This painting is four years. You Wenlin accompanies the elders with dementia to paint and read every Sunday. As a result, we see many diseases that are outside the stereotype.

"We know very little about dementia. When I was a child, I watched the movie "Notebook Love" and thought it was romantic, my wife was mentally ill, and my husband took care of her selflessly, but when it really happened to us, it was actually not so simple romance."

"I was in charge of taking care of a mother-in-law, she was 70 years old and lived there for 5 years. At first, she only had symptoms of dementia, but in the following years, the rest of her deteriorated faster and faster, and her language skills slowly disappeared." She said.

"On the day I left, I took her to the yard and said grandma, I'm going to college, it's the last Sunday. Because of the degradation, I usually didn't respond much when I read to her, and she couldn't speak very well, but that day she suddenly turned around and kept looking at me. Later, I often wondered, did she remember me that day? Actually, I can't be sure. But for four years, every Sunday, she only saw me except for her family. If she remembers, that's great.

"That's why 'preventive medicine' is important." She returned to the topic: "What I would like to see is that people can age healthily and feel happy in old age."

In 2018, Taiwan's elderly population exceeded 14%, officially entering an aging society. According to the National Health Insurance Administration, the average elderly person needs to be cared for for up to 7.3 years before death (6.4 years for men; Women 8.2 years. And our imagination of the elderly is often accompanied by frailty, comorbidities, and care difficulties. However, as You Wenlin said, if we start with preventive medicine and systematically reduce the risk of disease, the entire meaning of "medical care" to human beings will even be overturned.

When she first met You Wenlin, she was shy and shy, and she was very sensitive. When it comes to biotechnology medical and caregiver issues, she is very keen and understands the difficulties at the junction between medical care and society. This experience in nursing homes also laid the foundation for You Wenlin's entrepreneurial opportunity: to help others live a better life.

Photo provided by You Wenlin

Unexpected discovery of good things: Broken bits and pieces will take you where you want to go

You Wenlin's dazzling education: graduated from the Department of Economics of New York University and the Institute of Medical Psychology of USC. She worked as a volunteer in a nursing home, a fast food restaurant clerk, and an intern at the State Bank of China, but finally returned to her original intention and devoted herself to the biomedical industry.

"However, if I were the boss, I would have a headache when I saw my resume. After all, everything I do is jumpy." She laughed at herself. Although he has a dazzling academic degree, he spans arts and sciences, and has heterogeneous work experience, which may be a sign of lack of expertise in the eyes of some employers. However, in the entrepreneurial circle, cross-field experience can actually bring a lot of multiplier energy. Yau Wenlin said that many people will be limited by the concept of "four years of university", so they have been studying the same major, but their learning is mixed, and their performance may not be relatively inferior.

"I found myself in a position to bridge R&D and marketing. Because I study economics and medical psychology, I understand both business language and R&D terms, so I can explain complex medical concepts and marketing concepts to investors in colloquial language."

She quoted Jobs' speech at Stanford University, saying: "You can't string things together first, but looking back in the future, you will notice that those bits and pieces are strung together into the present. So trust that they will take you where you want to go in the future."

In fact, there is no need to quote Jobs, she herself said it very well:

"I also want to share with you my favorite English word. It is very romantic, called 'serendipity'. I think that's how my life is."

Photo provided by You Wenlin

The volunteer experience in the nursing home taught her the importance of preventive medicine; Her work experience in a state-owned bank inspired her to start a business based in Hong Kong. People are always groping and stumbling in various fields. But don't panic. These seemingly unrelated matters will always be gradually connected as they grow and become paths of meaning.

I'm a shy entrepreneur, what should I do?

In everyone's imagination, entrepreneurs who can be selected for the Forbes 30 under 30 Asia must be full of confidence and clear speech. But You Wenlin honestly said that he also has a "social destiny" as a woman: "The very difficult thing about starting a business is that I am a shy person."

She admitted that when she grew up, she was on the side of catching up. From Taiwan to the United States, she can't speak English well, and then to Hong Kong is not familiar with the place, after entering the entrepreneurial circle, she must re-explore the medical industry, adapt to marketing packaging, and have to bite the bullet and persuade investors from all walks of life.

When I talk about business, I am often looked down upon at first. Many investors believe that you are a girl and have no medical background, so things must not be trustworthy. That often reminds me of people saying that women can never be as confident as men in expression. Even if her idea is good, her movements and volume are not easy to be trusted by others. So I always have to spend more time than others to prepare what I want to say.

She would be upset when she realized that society was prejudiced against female entrepreneurs. But her unyielding personality also allowed her to quickly develop a fighting mindset: "When I think I am being made difficult, I first think, is this person's words really aimed at me? Think about it again, is it because I'm a girl? Or is it just that my expressive ability is misunderstood? Finally, think about it, if it is the ability to express, how can it be changed?"

"I often have to talk to investors who are much older than me, so I really need to be confident." You Wenlin began to study a lot of medical trends and take speech training courses at his own expense, "Slowly, investors are gradually willing to listen to talking about medicine with others, which is a good start."

The way society upbrings women often makes us lack self-confidence. However, the first step to self-confidence often comes from understanding your personality. It's like a game competition, recognize what cards you have in your hand to know how to play. If you are shy by nature, there is no need to force change. Instead, start with your ability to express yourself, read more materials, take speech classes, give yourself enough backup, and then slowly adjust your pace. (Extended reading: Influence quotes that give you strength: Don't be afraid of becoming that light just because the world is dark)

My female influence: Girls have the power to "we can make things better"

During the interview, I found that You Wenlin's personality is still a bit perfectionist.

I asked her, "What is your definition of female influence?" Unexpectedly, You Wenlin's first reaction was panicked: "Wow, I don't know if I will answer wrong." Don't be afraid of answering wrong, I quickly answered, laughing and saying that there is no wrong answer, just fill in freely.

She thought for a while: "The power of girls is probably our ability to make things beautiful."

The power of girls is probably our ability to make things beautiful.

I want to see women turn love and care into action. Boys often want to do a big job, and girls want to do a good job. The power of girls is that we have the power to make things beautiful. It only depends on whether you believe in each other and whether you are willing to act.

"We don't need to target men, what we want to do is how to make ourselves better than ourselves," she said. I enjoy being a girl, for example, women are usually more empathetic. This is an important trait, because many things in today's society need to be resolved with empathy. We must believe that we have the power to make the world a better place." (Extended reading: Gentle and resolute regardless of gender, be your favorite self!) |Womany)

Building women's influence sounds huge and distant, but practice is small and everyday. Let's start by affirming ourselves. Shyness, kindness, and carefulness, these feminine traits are not bad, but they can allow you to see a world that is different. We understand You Wenlin, from not knowing how to get along with them, to being able to share "I enjoy being a girl".

The story of entrepreneur You Wenlin is like a divergent garden, with trails stretching between the flowers in the forest. However, no road is in vain. There are also scenery at the fork in the road, and even dripping water can pass through the stones. The trails are still winding, but even if you pass through the scenery, trust that they will eventually lead you to the unexpected and the beautiful.