[FULL] Joon Wei: “The Maximum Potential In The Team Is The Foundation” & How He Ran A Cafe Business Using The E-sports Mentality

When we were playing basketball during high school, it didn’t occur to me that he was already morphing and shaping his character to a point he was ready to run a business right out of high school. Meanwhile I was a nerd studying the hard skills which can be obtained any time later in life. He comes off as a person who looks on the outside like he doesn’t care about the people and matters around him, but deep down he understands that teamwork is the only way to success. I learnt that a lot later in life. In this conversation, Joon Wei shares his ways of running a cafe business inherited from his parents, which ultimately led to a failure for reasons uncontrolled by him. In hindsight, he credited most of his methods to his years in the esports industry. He was once in the top 4 in terms of ELO ranking for CS:GO in Malaysia and being at the top of the sport taught him some very valuable lessons. More importantly, he was just like you and me, who skipped class in high school to play more basketball. We talked about: [00:00] His trial period of running a business started when he was in high school [03:17] The foundation of the cafe business and the system he put into the business to maintain the consistency [12:46] How professional gaming taught him how to run his business [18:59] Inside stories of the professional gaming industry [21:19] What sort of moments kept him going [22:56] How managing a basketball team taught him how to be considerate and empathetic towards another human being [23:40] What a successful day at his cafe looked like [25:00] Braving through the pandemic [27:02] If he could do everything again [28:20] His cousin retained the customers because he could do this [29:29] Retaining the kitchen staff during tough times [34:08] Gaining corporate experience to see how businesses are run [37:43] The awkward relationship with his family in the family business [41:50] Making a system for the business [42:48] Taking less than RM2,000 per month as salary vs Taking care of his staff [46:56] Bad habits that brought the business down and finding a system that fits the team [50:31] What would he have done differently? [52:14] What was a low moment for him?  [56:59] The transition into a new F&B business [01:03:35] Feeling relieved when he exited the business & reviewing what cost the business [01:07:07] What did he lose then? [01:12:33] Getting into the esports industry [01:15:13] Picking yourself up all the time & understanding your teammates’ tone, behavior and emotions [01:16:37] All about gaming  [01:23:44] How he handles losses [01:39:45] Do you need a coach for gaming? [01:44:41] Being a perfectionist as a gamer helped him in his business [01:45:36] Improving yourself on gameplay without a coach [01:46:29] Was he happy? [01:50:50] Pushing for genuine feedback for maximum growth [01:55:29] What is next for him? Sound effects obtained from https://www.zapsplat.com