Don’t go to business school: ESCAPE theme parks’ founder on being anti-conforming

Dato’ Sim, the founder of Sim Leisure, might just be one of the most controversial entrepreneurs I’ve ever met. And at the same time, he might just be one of the most inspiring. 

And of his various controversial-yet-inspiring insights, the most notable one may be on conformity—and why it goes against the very essence of entrepreneurship. 

They don’t teach you this in school 

“The very nature of entrepreneurs is not to conform. If you can conform, you can never be an entrepreneur. That’s it.”

This is a belief that Dato Sim sincerely believes in, if my hour-long conversation with him is anything to go by. 

One might argue, though, that conformity is ingrained into human nature. As children, we learn how to act by conforming to our parents. Then we go to school, and conform to the rules. 

That’s where Dato Sim dropped one of his wild but honest lines, “The worst thing you can do to a child is sending them to school.”

This elicited a bark of laughter from me—but you could tell that the entrepreneur meant it. School is a conformity, he said. You wear the same uniform, same shoes, even the same haircut sometimes. 

“This,” he pointed to his mop of spiky, gelled hair, “is not conformity.” 

“True entrepreneurs don’t go to business school,” he mused. “They go to business school by accident. They will never rely on what they learnt in business school—the same as any great musician.” 

He later added, “If you go to school to learn, you can only be as good as your teachers. Who are… losers, most of the time.”

Alright, maybe that last bit is a bit incendiary. But for the most part, I can see where the man is coming from. Having had the honour to speak to various entrepreneurs, it’s clear that founders are a unique breed of people. 

Sure, some of them went to school to pick up various skills, but very often, most typically learn by doing. Admittedly, not a single entrepreneur has ever told me that their chops were earned from school. 

Believing that entrepreneurship is “anti-academic,” Dato Sim said that he thinks universities with entrepreneurship degrees or subjects are “bullshit.” 

“Sure, you can study what entrepreneurs do, but you can’t get them to become one,” he said. “You need to get out of the system.”

Of course, there are many entrepreneurs who graduate from school. Some actually go back to school to pursue an MBA or other business-related degrees. But Dato Sim’s argument is that they do not actually rely on their academic achievements. 

Which begs the question, why are many so concerned about academic performance?

Kids need to behave like kids 

Of course, there are reasons why school and academics are important. One might argue that they lay the important groundwork for traits like discipline. And for specific industries and career paths, schools are absolutely required. Doctors, for one, should definitely conform to standard healthcare protocols. 

But it’s also true that a lot of schools tend to squash children’s creativity. Sure, certain schools and courses may encourage students to think outside the box. But, as Dato Sim pointed out, who built the box in the first place? Who put you in the box? 

Dato’ Sim believes institutions such as schools govern and regulate children’s curiosities, which then limits creativity. A lack of inquisitiveness leads to the snuffling of creativity. 

In a way, that’s why his creation, ESCAPE, exists. To help children be like children, allowing their imagination and creativity to run free. 

We need more entrepreneurs

But you might be wondering, what’s so wrong about conforming and not being an entrepreneur? I mean, if no one conformed, we’d probably live in anarchy. 

In that sense, there’s no shame in not being an entrepreneur. But Dato’ Sim argued that Malaysia needs more of them so we can stay on top of the food chain. 

Although the Malaysian government has been bringing in foreign direct investments and creating thousands of jobs, Dato Sim believes that it’s vital for us to go beyond that and create homegrown entrepreneurs and IP. 

“We are at the mercy of the Americans, Europeans, and Japanese who come here and create jobs for us, and we’re always affected by their foreign policy,” he reasoned. “We need new ideas, new brands, new IPs that provide local jobs. We need to be able to invest in other countries, become international champions.”

So, who should be an entrepreneur?

We know that entrepreneurs shouldn’t be the kind to easily conform. There’s also a myriad of other qualities that Dato’ Sim believes makes a “true” entrepreneur, which you can read about here. 

How do you determine whether you have the chops, though? Does it come down to just trying it for yourself? 

Well, Dato’ Sim thinks you have to be honest with yourself. You’ve got to reflect on your own qualities. 

If you have always felt like you’re a non-conformist, or you feel frustrated about the status quo, that might be a good sign. If you’ve always desired to learn things beyond school, that’s another marker, too.  

“If you hate to wear uniforms, that is one sign,” he determined. “If you get into trouble with teachers, that is another sign.” 

(No surprise here, but Dato’ Sim himself was quite the troublemaker in school.)

Ultimately, as controversial as his takes are, it’s clear that Dato’ Sim just wants the best for entrepreneurship—Malaysian entrepreneurship, to be specific. 

“I want people to start noticing their traits, and parents to notice it and encourage them too,” he added. 

So, if you think that you have traits of frustration and anti-conformity, entrepreneurship might just be the right path for you. If you do give it a shot, though, do remember—the best entrepreneurs do not conform. 

Featured Image Credit: Sim Leisure