Stories

Received a BUV Scholarship and held a high position in an international company, Nam Phuong – our alumna Class of 2015 – twisted her career path to health coach after an unexpected life-changing experience in her family.

Listening to Phuong’s story is heartwarming, inspiring, and awakening. We hope this story encourages you to reflect on your own journey and live a life to remember.

Don’t hesitate to share your story with us to stay connected with your mate!

Sharing her journey at BUV, Nam Phuong said:

“I always remember my experience at BUV (and Hanoi City in general) as one of the best times of my life. Coming from a small city in Central Highland, I’d rarely had any opportunities to expose myself to any English-speaking environment or extracurricular activities before coming to BUV.

The HRH Prince Andrew Scholarship that BUV gave me is a blessing in every aspect: experience in an international learning environment, diverse student activities, teachers who respect different learning styles, great friends with that I’m still in contact, etc.”

Mentioning about the time at BUV, she shared:

“I have learned many meaningful things from my time at BUV. They can be in the form of very kind words that my professors give to me, precious lifelong friendships, or even the pure presence of somebody.

I wanted to shout out to Chris – the Dean of BUV at that time. He seemed very serious at first, but he was among very few people who could humble me and inspire me at the same time. He made me shed tears for my mistakes and very quickly turned into a smile as he showed me the way to correct them. Because of him, I also learned that I can challenge people yet show them respect and care.

There were times he called me a “troublemaker”, but I intuitively knew he cared deeply for me. Yes, I was a rebel and non-conformist for quite a while because it was one of the ways for young people to explore and prove themselves. There was a time when I felt lost, I asked why he chose me to be one of the students to receive the scholarship, and he just shrugged his shoulder and told me: “I trusted my intuition”. That answer has stayed with me until now as simple guidance in important decision-making and even in becoming a whole person”

After working in Marketing for a while, Phuong changed her career path to a health coach. She shared the motivation behind this decision:

“That’s another possibility that I’ve never imagined about myself. When I studied for a Bachelor Degree in International Marketing Management, I thought my career would be in a company or organizational setting. However, life always has surprising twists and turns.

2 years after graduation, I’ve already opened a multimedia office and trained the local team for the tech company. We have had a great performance and made Vietnam into the top 5 markets with the biggest growth potential for mobile content. But right at the time when I was in my peak performance, I received shocking news over the phone: My dad just passed away from terminal cancer – which I didn’t even know anything about.

You can imagine how shocked and devastated I must have been at that time. At first, I still tried to carry on with business as usual. But gradually I started to question the root causes of everything I do.

Eventually, I admitted to myself that hidden behind many achievements I’d accumulated was the need to prove myself to my father. I’d thought that becoming a successful leader according to society’s standards was a sure way to make him proud. Only when he passed away did I realize that he cared for my health and happiness much more. The last time he visited me in my office, he didn’t ask about how much I earned, or which position I was in, he just reminded me to take care of my health because I looked very pale. A long time ago, he encouraged me to pursue a career in medicine like him so that I could take care of people’s health. I didn’t listen.

After that period, I wanted to find my own definition of success and happiness and wanted to find a career that could bring more meaning to me and have a more positive impact. But I didn’t know which path to choose right away. So, I decided to change my living environment instead. I moved to Dalat and received a second job as a marketing manager for a coffee chain.

On one seemingly random afternoon, an image of a health coach who taught me my first nutrition class popped up in my mind. And in that very moment, I just knew it was a job that I would do well and contribute so much to society and the natural environment. I switched careers right away.”

Sharing more about the time establishing Nam Phuong Health Coach, Phuong said:

“There’s a myth that to succeed in this career, you have to maintain your self-image as someone who is always healthy, balanced, and beautiful. However, from my own experience, I can help people just by sharing my journey with both success and failure, strengths and weaknesses. Even my most vulnerable parts can help people find the courage to forgive their own mistakes, stand up again, and eventually redefine their definition of success and happiness – just like I did.

I told all of that in my podcast channel Chầm Chậm Mà Sống (Let’s live slow) and many listeners have written back to me that the channel has helped them go through the most difficult and lonely times of their lives.

What I found the most meaningful is the alignment developed in:
– My brand values are aligned with my personal values.
– My career growth is aligned with my client’s growth and transformation.
– My health and well-being are aligned with the health and well-being of the whole society and environment.

My happiness is about how many lives I inspire and how much I can contribute to their own journeys”