Hey there!

Thanks for stopping by my corner of the internet and welcome to my summer recap. I have to apologize since I haven’t been writing consistently like I wanted. I could make up all the excuses in the world but there really isn’t a good one.

But, I’m planning to change that. Starting next Monday at 1pm, I’ll be releasing weekly short snippets of my mind, inspired by the people I’ve met and the places I’ve gone, on top of my monthly updates.

But for now, here’s an update on my summer months! In short:

I learned what healthcare was really like this summer — and it left me with more questions than answers
I’ve had the opportunity to travel and meet amazing people, leaving me with new perspectives on the world
I learned to be open-minded, to pause and reflect, and also the importance of staying organized

Some Quick Updates

Over the past few months, I’ve been all over the place. I’ve organized dinners and meetups with founders/investors in Toronto, attended Web3 conferences in Vancouver and Toronto, and initiated the beginnings of a Christian basketball ministry.

Healthcare Consulting at KPMG

As my 4 months come to a close at KPMG, I’m very grateful to the team and the firm for this incredible opportunity. Most life-sci kids aren’t exposed to the world beyond the clinic, big pharma/industry, and academia. Over the past few months, I’ve been able to learn about how healthcare is structured and operationalized in Canada, be in the midst of innovative conversations with our healthcare clients, and be able to learn from really smart people. I was able to deliver a Healthcare in the Metaverse presentation to the practice, contribute to two thought leadership pieces on healthcare P3s and metaverse initiatives, and develop a go-to-market strategy on top of my operational engagement.

I’ve had the opportunity to work with a great team who continually encouraged me to do more. You’re never ready for your role — this was a valuable lesson I learned and really the best place to be in when you’re trying to learn. If you’re comfortable all the time, you’re in the wrong place. Heck, I was using a Windows computer for the first time in over a decade — quite the uncomfortable experience (like where’s the Command button??).

Travelling, Conferences, and Meets

In addition to my day job at KPMG, I’ve spent the mornings, evenings, and weekends traveling (on budget) to meet new people and see new places. This summer, I’ve had the incredible privilege to see the beauty of God’s creation — out in Vancouver, Victoria, Calgary, Banff, and around Ontario.

I’ve started going to these things called conferences (a foreign concept before this summer), and was able to visit the Collision Conference (Tech, Toronto) in June, F3STIVAL (Web3, Vancouver) in July, and ETHToronto (Web3, Toronto) and our Nucleate Summit (Biotech, Boston) in August.

I recognize that I’m in a very privileged position to be able to do this, and that’s why I’m always very open to sharing my learnings from these experiences, and supporting others in these experiences as well. Do what it takes to make it work — that was the main learning here. I’ve slept on hardwood floors on my friends’ place at UBC (thanks Annette and Angela), worked till 1am the days before a conference so I could take time off, and always found alternate (cheaper) ways to do things (eg. cooking instead of eating out). As a result, I’ve been able to experiences these for a fraction of what it would’ve cost (eg. spent 10 days in BC for $450 all in).

I’ve learned a ton from people from all walks of life and have learned about some (even radical) perspectives that I would’ve never considered previously — and I’m so grateful :)

Some Lasting Thoughts…

Healthcare consulting made me question everything I understood about healthcare. Seeing the innovation barriers, the bureaucracy in public healthcare policy, and the various motivations for private healthcare providers made me realize how naive we, as life/health science students, really are to the realities of healthcare. We say we want to make an impact but what does that really mean? When there are oligopolies controlling who has access to patients/new drugs, so much red tape around policies and healthcare reform, and too many patients/providers being left behind — it really makes me wonder how change can actually be made. This is an ongoing question that I still struggle to answer, but it definitely put perspective into everything I engage in — my research courses in school, the motivations behind “trusted” sources, and how common these narratives are — and made me question if what currently exists is really the best way to do things.
I’ve learned that we really are one in control of our own lives — you define your experiences. I’ve learned that your experience is really what you make of it. Whether it’s going up to really cool (random) buskers at Kitsilano Beach and learning about their life stories and the influence of corporations on society, to getting invites to exclusive VIP satellite parties based on great vibes following random conference conversations — you can really craft your experience to what you want. This summer, I didn’t expect that I would have ventured into the world of web3, venture, and tech — all on top of consulting. It really was a snowball effect, where introductions would be made and I would jump on them. I’m really grateful to all of my friends and people I’ve met who I owe everything for getting me exposed to what they’re passionate about. I’m living through others and seeing so much of the world because of it.
Pausing, reflecting, and being organized. There were multiple periods of time during the summer when I would have meetups after meetups after meetups. I was drained. Meeting all of these people with such interesting experiences and thoughts honestly overwhelmed me, and there was way too much to process. I’ve learned that the hard way. I’ve personally always wanted to consolidate the learnings I take away from all of my experiences. Setting time up on weekends to follow up on newly formed relationships and to think about how to “drag or drop” the learnings I’ve accumulated has helped me stay parsed and focused on what matters. I admit that I’m still struggling with that but really trying hard to make this a habit.

What’s Ahead

Personal Goals — prioritizing my faith, building consistent health habits, cold showers, continuing to intentionally develop intended relationships
Career Goals — dive into venture capital through the RippleX Fellowship, passively explore non-finance applications of web3, back in my last and final year of school

All in all, an incredibly busy but inspiring past few months. I’m extremely grateful to have had the opportunities and experiences that I’ve had. Excited for the rest of September, and getting back to writing consistently!

Brandon's Bulletin

Summer '22: One Step Closer to Reality