#14/120 - The fragment of time in North America
Hi, My favorite people, I am Summerbud.
I am writing this letter from a small hostel in Lake Louise Village, Alberta, Canada. It is a quiet place, surrounded by mountains. Very different from the subtropical forests in Taiwan, where mountains carry many kinds of sound. Here, as winter comes, everything falls multiple levels quieter.
In this newsletter, I want to share three things in three different scenarios. They are close to me and bring a new kind of understanding toward the world, relationships, and my work in progress thought.
The new journey
One thing I look closely at in the journey of creating new things and a startup is questions like: What defines great leadership? What makes a great team? How do people push the boundary? Although I have joined this company for only two months, many tiny details gradually reveal potential answers.
One night, staying late in the office in Sunnyvale, we had a meeting until midnight. Our boss leaned softly on the wall and said, genuinely:
“Hey, I’m so sorry we need to keep you so late for so many days. I’m really sorry, and I’m also grateful for all your effort. So here’s the thing, I have three Linkin Park concert tickets. If you’re interested, I’ll give them to you.”
Usually, words like this in the workplace feel diplomatic. But at that moment, with his genuine tone and small gift, it felt like casual talk among friends. Another evening, after dinner, I walked down the corridor outside our office. He joined me. We had a close and open talk about his path, working, building companies, starting over.
Near the end of my days in the U.S., we went on an offsite at Russian River, camping. Under hundreds of thousands of stars, we sat in a circle at the campfire, speaking freely. He said, through the years, the most underrated skill for progress is building genuine connection with people. You talk not only because of their work, but because you want to be friends.
All these moments came together and shaped a new understanding. When facing people with more skill, status, or experience, treat them as normal people, with daily lives, just like you. When facing people with less, also treat them as normal and connect with them. For me, this skill belongs in the toolbox of leadership.
About The United States of America
This was my first time in the USA. I expected customs to be strict. I expected expensive food. I expected the ugly face of drug abuse. I expected natural wonder. I expected technology.
But I didn’t expect the scale, higher highs, lower lows.
The drug abusing
It is far worse than I thought. I didn’t visit Civic Center or Union Square at night, but even in daytime you see many people on the street, zombie-like, bent bodies wandering. They carry walkers or supermarket carts filled with belongings.
I was warned to avoid the Tenderloin. But to visit a coffee shop, Sightglass, I had to get off BART at Civic Center and cross through.
Bad smell is everywhere but they are easily to adapt, what is hard is a sense of insecurity, even in the daytime, you can still feel that people in the aisle is observing you, I just keep walking fast and only walk on the main street. The nervousness is very real. If you’ve been there, you know.
Later, in Vancouver, my family showed me a similar area. Gastown, especially East Hastings St. Everyone was on drugs, drifting like zombies. And they said San Francisco is worse. This is a serious, life-threatening crisis, born from reckless drug makers and failed public systems.
The tech advancement
My company is in Sunnyvale. Around Palo Alto, Mountain View, and Santa Clara, you see campuses of famous companies. Many began in a garage or small office, now they hold a share of the world.
One Saturday morning, my friend drove me to Sunnyvale CalTrain station. Suddenly, a white car with strange cameras appeared. Looking closer, I saw no driver. It was a Waymo taxi. It sped up, signaled, cut four lanes, and turned into a street.
Not once did I doubt its ability to navigate. We saw more in San Francisco. They drove better than many humans. After seeing it in person, I firmly believe this is the future.
Creativity in the USA, especially in silicon valley
During the trip, I met a friend from university, we once built a symposium together. He drove me across Sunnyvale to a plaza full of Asian food, saying: “I think you need this.” We got boba, then ate at Chipotle, one of my favorite meals of the trip.
We discussed many topics and one thing drew my attention deeply. He said, even this country is problematic, but there has no single doubt about their ability to create unique stuff. They are always pushing the edge, either for good or bad. He thought the reason is because they have very structured methodology about entrepreneurship and creating value.
I thought about this more. Only on my flight back to Taiwan did I form a temporary conclusion about the creativity in the USA, and why it’s so unique.
It is not only methodology, which can be copied. More important is their mindset. People I met in Silicon Valley are always building, or shaping an idea. It feels inborn. They constantly ask: How can I create value? How do I fill the gap in this giant system? It grows from individualism and capitalism. And when someone always asks such questions, their boundary of knowledge expands and converges on the problem.
For me, this is the biggest advantage the USA has.
The life in Canada
After launching our product, I made a short detour to Canada to visit family. I had been here once, 21 years ago, with many good memories. When I was told to be in the U.S. for our launch, I knew I wanted to come to Canada too.
My first impression, leaving Vancouver airport: people here are in better shape, and many speak with Asian accents. I stayed in Richmond. The night I landed, my cousin took me downtown. Compared to San Francisco, Vancouver feels closer to an Asian megacity. Tall apartments glowing with yellow lights, better public transit, cheaper food. Especially Asian food, dim sum, bento, Japanese, phở. Asian supermarkets everywhere.
We entered a Japanese restaurant. My first bite, wasabi squid with seaweed, a sip of Sapporo beer. It felt like home. Usually I try to drop my Asian lens when traveling. But after so many days, this pure Asian dish with normal portion size almost made me cry.
My family moved here over 25 years ago. We rarely connect deeply, schedules are tight when they visit Taiwan. But this time, I met cousins in Vancouver and Calgary. We shared wonderful moments.
On the second days of visiting Vancouver, my niece just got two shots of vaccines and we reward her with her favorite Dim Sum. It’s a wonderful meal, I am a Dim Sum lover, but I haven’t tried such well made Dim Sum before, every bits are like a wonder. After the meal, on the car my niece suddenly said she would like to give me a sticker which she is given due to safely having two shots of vaccines. I know it’s a precious gift since when her mother ask whether she wants to give it to her friend, she firmly wave her head and said “Then I won’t have many. “ That is her reward, she gain it by bearing through the pain. Now it stays on my iPhone case. I will never peel it off.
In Calgary, I stayed with another cousin. That night, after they went to sleep with the baby, I went downstairs to check the door. Quiet filled the house. For the first time, I felt I was not an outsider in these two countries.
Close up
I am deeply grateful for this journey. Visiting places, having great conversations with many kinds of people. I look forward to visiting this continent again.