When did my love for mathematics begin? Perhaps it started with family tradition, as my father, mother, uncles, and sister were all once math students at prestigious specialized schools in Vietnam, such as Quốc học Huế, Lam Sơn High School in Thanh Hóa, and Lê Quý Đôn High School in Vũng Tàu.
But maybe my love for mathematics became clearer when I started attending Mathnasium, a Thinking Math program from the United States, when I was still very young. There, I not only learned math but also played math-related games.
I achieved many accomplishments in mathematics during my primary and secondary school years, but I just enjoyed it without fully understanding why—until the moment when…
My math olympiad coach has a saying: “If you can’t prove it, don’t use it”. Whenever he’s teaching us new theorems, he always emphasizes on understanding its proofs, saying “If you know the proof, you know the essence of the theorem, and if you know the essence of the theorem, you will never use it incorrectly.”
This approach allows me to solve complex problems creatively, pushing beyond simple, rote solutions. My focus on understanding the deeper essence of math mirrors your broader life philosophy: I want to look beyond the surface and really grasp how things work. While fear of failure might have held you back at first, my experience in math competitions taught me to embrace challenges and rely on creative problem-solving. This mindset is not only useful in math but will serve me in many areas, including economics and finance, where complex problem-solving and creative thinking are crucial.
MY MOMENT WITH THE MATH
