Nash Fung is a public speaker, magician and CWU alum that came to speak and perform at CWU’s leadership conference on Saturday. From his time on the Seattle Crisis Line, to speaking at TEDx, Fung’s journey has been full of twists, turns and tricks along the way.
Fung grew up in Hong Kong, eventually moving to the US as a teenager. In the early 2000’s he found himself in a campus leadership role early in his CWU tenure.
“I took on a small leadership role when I was an Resident Assistant (RA) at Hitchcock & Davies Hall. RAs can have bad reps sometimes, people think we are out there to police them,” Fung said. “But for me, I only cared about them having an amazing first year experience on campus. Perhaps that’s where I learned to be a leader, you must genuinely care about the people you serve.”
After graduating from CWU in 2005, he pursued a joint career in public speaking and magic, combining his skills as a leader with his passion for magic. Now, Fung has spoken on various tv shows, and most notably he had his TEDx talk selected as the “top pick” by the TED editors.
Fung credited his time on the Seattle Crisis line, a hotline for people seeking emotional support, as a leading example where empathetic leadership was at the forefront of his education. “I believe an empathetic leader is someone who genuinely wants to empower others so they can all thrive together,” Fung said. “From my time serving on the Crisis Line, I have had many amazing supervisors who are empathetic leaders. They don’t micromanage. They always encourage you. They are always candid about sharing areas where you can improve because they want you to improve. And by doing so, they help you become better at serving the people in need to further their shared mission.”
Being a leader isn’t just about being empathic, as Fung attributes part of his craft to having good instructions, in both aspects of his career. “Having clear instructions is equally important in magic as it is in leadership,” Fung said. “Oftentimes the success or failure of a trick depends on how well your volunteer follows the instructions. Have you ever worked a job where you failed because you weren’t clear on what your role is? Being clear in guiding my audience on stage taught me that it’s equally important in leading a team.”
From Hong Kong to CWU, Fung’s life has taken him around the world and across many different stages. His success is hard sought, and he shared his advice for others who want to follow their passions as he has.
“Step one, look for people who have achieved what you are looking for,” Fung said. “Step two, ask if they can mentor you, if not, put your thinking cap on, analyze what made them successful and try to deconstruct their steps to success. Step three, no matter if you are given the advice from your mentor or if you have deconstructed what the first step might be, take action immediately. The faster you try, the faster you’ll fail. The faster you fail, the faster you’ll learn. The faster you learn, the faster you achieve your goals.
Fung shared one final piece of advice for the students of CWU, looking back on the connections he made during his time at Central. “The relationships you foster in your college years will be some of the strongest, most fulfilling relationships you’ll ever create in your lifetime. Be kind, be uplifting, be a value added to others,” Fung said.
