An Interview with Alain Wong, Community Manager at Akoha

You may know Alain Wong as Akoha?s community manager, but Alain is actually much more than that. He is the brain behind many of the most popular missions in Akoha (as well as the strangest ones!). He is our Gifts Gardener, our Facebook Chef, our Twitter Ninja, our Blogger Extraordinaire and our Vimeo Guru. But wait? there?s more! Alain is also involved in every daily decision made at Akoha ? he is a key contributor and we love working with him. So today, let?s get to know him!

You are a passionate, award-winning Swing and Lindy-Hop dancer and teacher. When did you catch the Lindy Hop bug, how did it all start?

Alain: I was introduced to swing dancing during my first year at McGill University in 2000. At the time, I?associated dancing with going to clubs and ?shaking it?. And although I had always loved it, I felt out of place in dance clubs because I found that most people didn?t go there to dance, but rather to look cool and to pick up.?So when I saw these students just dancing for the fun of it with each other, I knew I had discovered something special.

Watch Alain swing out at 1:09 in the following Gmail: Behind the Scenes video:

Ten years later, the passion for Lindy Hop and all things?swing is still there. Swing dancers are genuinely warm, open and welcoming. And the dance itself is full of history and culture, from the social struggle of African-Americans in a segregated America to the wonder that is jazz music.

Through?swing?dancing, I discovered more about myself both physically and emotionally. I also discovered and continue to discover great music from true musical geniuses who lived in the 1920?s, 30?s and 40?s. Finally, I?ve made many life-long friends because of?the social aspect of swing dancing. The Lindy Hop community is my third home.

Beyond dancing, you seem to have many other passions. A few of them are Jazz music, biking, and reading. You?ve studied marketing and law before getting into web startups. You?ve also recently started learning Kung Fu! It?s not easy telling who you really are, so we?ve compiled a few numbers for you, and see if it helps. Read on!

You?ve played over?250 Akoha missions. Your most popular missions are:

You received?429 gifts for your mission plays. These are the ones you received most often:

• Party Hat (19)
• Holy Grail (13)
• Champagne For Two (12)
• Mister Hello (12)
• Golden Trumpet (12)
• Happy Muffin (11)
• Cuddly Tiger (11)

You?gave 845 gifts to other Akohans. Here are your favorites:

• Wreath of Inspiration (25)
• Hungry Lion (24)
• Blue Ribbon of Patience (23)
• Rainbow of Hope (22)
• Dragon Monster (21)
• Laughing Baby (21)

So, if we were to define who you are based on these numbers, we?d say something like this:

• You live in the moment
• You are playful
• You are a party animal
• You are a foodie
• You have a great heart
• You are still trying to find yourself :-)

How far away is that from the truth?

Alain: I think it accurately describes me.?I would describe myself as a spontaneous person who lives in the moment. I truly believe in carpe diem and remind myself daily that I could die tomorrow. I know, it sounds morbid, but this acceptance of death allows me to live without regrets and more importantly, to be open to experiencing and learning by living.

On Akoha, I find that many missions allow you to live?new experiences. And the resulting mission plays are inspiring. I learn a lot from fellow Akohans, which is why I give the ?Wreath of Inspiration? gift so often. I?m pleasantly surprised by how candid and authentic people are ? Akohans are not afraid to share their fears, their vulnerabilities, their deep emotions. I think being truthful and authentic is the greatest gift that one can give to another human being, and that?s what makes it such a pleasure working with the Akohan community.

In my own life, I try to be as open as possible and to be in touch with my emotions. So when other people do the same by sharing personal stories and experiences of themselves on Akoha, it resonates with me as a human being.

You also enjoy traveling. What are the top 3 places you?ve never been to that you?d like to visit?

Alain: These days, I travel mainly for dancing. I?ve been fortunate to have danced in London, Paris, Montpellier, Barcelona, New Orleans, Seattle, Washington, San Francisco, New York and many more locations.

In my top three places I?d like to visit, two of them have huge swing dancing communities. One is Melbourne, Australia, and the other is Seoul, Korea.?The third place I?d like to travel to is China. Although I have deep Chinese roots and have watched countless Hong Kong movies, I?ve never been back to the land of my ancestors. So if I could afford to, I would enjoy visiting Hong Kong and Tibet.

What is it like working at Akoha?

Alain: I enjoy working at a startup. I?ve worked in tech startups during the last three years of my life, and have discovered that the environment fits my personality.?I like the challenge of being in an early stage company, of having to take on many roles and responsabilities and of having to adapt to ever-changing situations. Every day is exciting!

I also strongly believe in the mission and values of Akoha. After reading John Wood?s book ?Leaving Microsoft to Change the ?World? and subsequently embarking on a bike ride from Vancouver to Tijuana for micro-credit, I realized that it?s important that my work be meaningful. Through Akoha, I can make a difference in people?s lives.

When Alex Eberts & Austin Hill founded Akoha, they believed that they could make the world a better place. That?s exactly what we?re doing.

Thanks a lot Alain!

P.S. Here?s an image generated using words that appeared in Alain?s mission plays. See if you can recognize him.

And finally, here?s another one of Alain?s performances for you to enjoy!

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