The Truth about Hmong Entrepreneurship

[r3b1rth]

Since we're in the Entrepreneur Discussion side of the forum, let's talk the truth about how Hmong people are, good and bad.  Then see if we can explore it more in depth and maybe talk about how to add value to our culture. Please feel free to speak your mind but DON'T personally attack each other. I think you guys are better than that.

With that said starting with the good, though not comprehensive, what are some things that we Hmong people do that are really good? 

We support our families and friends at all sorts of gatherings.
We support tradition.
We enjoy clubs/drinking with each other.
We enjoy traveling and activities.
Our parents get along well amongst each other.
We attend Hmong New Year and Hmong 4th of July events.
We want to reach out to Hmong people in different countries.
We support Hmong convenience stores.
We support Hmong restaurants.

Next what are some of the CONS that Hmong people have?

We have had a long history of poverty and struggle.
We are selfish and greedy (stuck in an impoverished mindset).
We criticize the hell out of each other.
We can't accept constructive critism.
We are mean to each other.
We don't have our priorities in a row.
We are stubborn and fixed in our ways.
We talk bad about each other.
We are weary about each other and always sizing people up.
We can't stand to see each other be successful.
We don't apply our education.
We measure success by degrees.
We are jealous.
We always compare ourselves to others.
We are waiting for 'someone' to fix the problem.
We don't have time.
We don't care.
We have our own lives to live.
We don't give value to our women.
We don't adapt well to cultural changes.
We are bad communicators.
We disassociate with Hmong people to become successful.
We doubt people who want to change things.
We have this notion of hierarchy and inferiority complex (i.e. attacking each other through aggressive behavior.)

Although not comprehensive, this is a GENERAL blanket statement of negativity that Hmong people deal with. Not all Hmong people are like this but there are so many who are. Do you think there's anything that can be done about it?



I'd like to think so. Let me tell you a story about the girl and the starfish.

One day a man was walking along the beach.  And on this beach, he noticed there were a bunch of starfish washed up and stranded on the shore. He thought to himself, gee, they're all going to die. There's no way they'll make it. And as he thought that, he saw a girl pick one up and throw it into the waves. He asked her, "What are you doing? There's too many, you're not going to make a difference." And the little girl replied, "I just made a difference for that one."

So the moral of the story is, things can change. You can be that change. We all can be a catalyst for change. We can be kinder to each other. We can develop a more positive mindset. We can love ourselves and each other. We can support each other in the community.

It's not going to change overnight. This is probably going to be a lifelong endeavor, but if one person reads it and used it in his/her life. This post has done it's job.

I'm also looking to find like-minded individuals for a group. One that is not money-oriented but one that cares for the whole being of the community. It doesn't matter your background or where you came from. The only requirement is that you want change and you're willing to do something about it. You want to innovate, expand, learn, teach and come up with solutions to common problems. Someone who selfishly believes in one common goal--to ultimately make a difference, one mind at a time, to the Hmong community. If you share that common goal with me, PM me with your thoughts. Let's do something with our common beliefs.


If this post sparked some thoughts in you, please comment below.

[thePoster]

You know we just too lazy to respond.

[Yengimer]

As an Internet Marketer, you just need to ask yourself this question:

What are the Hmong people passionate about?

Find out what fueled their emotions and pain. Then solve it.

Not all Hmong people are into Hmong stuff. If you want to market to the Hmong audience you need to be very specific.

I believe it's achievable. You just got to bring in something different.

[w1s3m0n]

Hmong people are not money hungry enough yet.  Or the money hungry Hmong are too stupid.  With that said, there are some successful Hmong business owners.  Most of them lack the business acumen and experience to scale and are very comfortable where they are at: small.  Cannot blame the small business owner who wants to keep it small so they have full control.  Medium size companies around 300 people are much harder to manage and control.  You have to trust people to run your business day to day.  Hmong people are not ready to operate a 300+ company.  I've been at one that had almost 100 Hmong people, hence I know the limitation resides in the owners desire to control all aspect.  Control is a problem of how trusting their nature is too...so Hmong are very hospitable but are less likely to fully be open and trust.

[Renaissance]

Couple more CONS that Hmong people have:

1. they think that Hmong professionals/businesses are inferior to the American professionals/businesses;
2. they have the mentality that prices of Hmong businesses are negotiable so they haggle on the price;
3. they still have jealousy when they see other Hmong businesses succeed.

[Believe_N_Me]

Being an entrepreneur is not about getting rich. It is about being your own boss and not having to take someone else's crappy rules. Obviously, having a profitable business is a big bonus.

The Hmong do not have an entrepreneur spirit. Many prefer to work for someone else instead of having to deal with all the headaches of owning and running a business. The constant regulations can slow down a person's motivation and the prospect of getting sued is very frightening to many.

Again, being your own boss and having loads of money is about freedom from being owned by someone else.