I find the word "dek" interesting, it is a form of expressing negation with an emotional attitude that makes the negative meaning stronger. Den Vau has also said: "Anh dek can gi nhieu than em", it is different from "Anh cha/khong/khong can gi nhieu than em". It is like saying "don't need" but also with a bit of indifference, challenge and confidence. When using the word "dek", it also shows an approach and communication of information that is close, simple, everyday, not heavy on dogma. Life is inherently suffering, something that in American English sometimes has the saying: Life fucks you hard. Therefore, if you want to talk about life, you must have "dek", "f***", and similar things. Swearing is simply expressing true feelings about this life.
When I saw the word Dek in the title of a Vietnamese book (which seems to have never been seen before?), I immediately felt the attitude and the simple closeness of the group of authors. And when I knew it was about the journey to the world and achieving a revenue of 1 billion dollars after 25 years of FSoft belonging to FPT, a leading technology corporation in Vietnam, I was not surprised, because it made sense. The book is full of storeytelling with direct, practical, and experienced language, the passion of Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nam and the group of authors for the next generation of FPT leaders. The attitude of "Dek knows nothing" of Mr. Nam and his colleagues somehow makes me feel close to the phrase Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish by Steve Jobs. It is both thirsty, bloodthirsty, hungry for prey but at the same time very foolish, deaf to guns, naive but not self-conscious.
There is no shortage of books about the million-dollar and billion-dollar startup journeys of outstanding founders around the world, but there are very few books about the technology startup journeys of Vietnamese people through the country's development and integration stages over the past three decades.
The 25-year journey of the Fsoft team, the people who admitted that at that time they “knew nothing” but were still determined to step out into the world full of hardships and challenges, is a story that I believe anyone starting a business, especially in technology, should hear. But in my opinion, those stories are also necessary for anyone who is Vietnamese with the desire to rise up, to escape from their comfort zone, regardless of what industry they are working in or what role they are in. Being behind does not mean we cannot reach the destination. Just because Vietnam is small and has many shortcomings does not mean we do not have the real ability. Just because we do not know anything does not mean we are ignorant.
Like the story of Fsoft in the early days of international war, inferior in every aspect, so how did they conquer difficult customers? The world needs international generals to fight big battles, how did Fsoft recruit heroes? What does Dek know actually mean Dek knows nothing and knows what?
As mentioned above, the book was originally intended to be circulated internally and aimed at the next generation of FPT leaders, but by some fate, the group of authors decided to disseminate these messages more widely to all those who are interested. I thank Mr. Nam and the group of authors for this decision. This will be a different book because it is not for sale but to build a community of knowledge to continue to discuss, debate, and share so that we can all progress together. Fsoft's 1 billion USD is just the beginning, there will be many bigger goals. And all of us, especially business owners, can we learn any lessons from Fsoft's 1 billion USD journey and move our businesses forward, move Vietnam forward?
1. For those who just want to gain knowledge, or are curious to preview the content, or simply need to save for more necessary expenses, please go to the link below the comment and select "Trial version". If you want to download in PDF format, click on the arrow in the upper right corner. This free version will be available to readers within 25 days from January 13 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Fsoft.
2. For those who want to experience the hard copy, give it as a gift to your friends and partners, and more importantly, join the Fan Club with activities such as discussions, meeting the author group, listening to podcasts or experiencing "book retreats", to better understand what is written, click the "Buy Now" link below so that the hard copy of the book can reach you before Tet. Buying the book to join the Fan Club "No matter what, go ahead" is a necessary condition to participate in the above activities.
(MC - Host Tran Quoc Khanh, Founder Vietsuccess)