Rasanya terlalu naif jika kita terlalu membiarkan satu ruang diri kita berkembang tanpa memberikan kesempatan ruang yang lain berekspresi. Hidup tidak melulu harus dimaknai secara berlebih, secara serius. Kadang memang perlu untuk rehat sejenak, memandangi sudut dan memaknainya.
Kata orang, untuk menghimpun kata menjadi kalimat, ia memerlukan jeda untuk menjadikannya utuh bermakna. Pun dengan hidup, ia perlu jenak untuk melanjutkan paragraf-paragraf hidup selanjutnya.
Hidup adalah sekumpulan sudut, bersinambung menjadi bangunan yang sulit kita bayangkan di awal tapi terlalu indah saat kita pandangi setelahnya.
Sudut-sudut hidup itu terlalu banyak mengandung makna, sampai-sampai kita merasa lelah duluan untuk mencoba mendalaminya.
Siapa bilang sudut itu tepian? Ia tak bertepi, ia bukan batasan dan tentu, ia tiada ujungnya. Hanya ada sudut yang mengakhiri sudut yang lain. Hanya ada kehidupan lain yang mengakhiri kehidupan sebelumnya.
Memakna sudut adalah belajar mendalami kehidupan, berekspresi dan menyelami dalamnya makna-makna itu.
The story was started at 2012. At that time, I occupied as a chief of Student Executive Board of Math and Natural Science Faculty. One of our featured program was the first event for awarding some outstanding students in various categories, covering achievements in research, competition, organisation, sport and art. To succeed this event, my organisation needed a lot of money. Meanwhile, our budget could not support enough to fulfil all needs. Eventually, we attempted to approach the faculty member that probably willing to provide some.
We arranged some discussions with the team. After some meetings, we decided to do such a survey to collect and map the students’ preference about that event. This is the first time for me to do a real survey for an important purpose. At the end, we gathered the data and made a report that attracted how most of students did agreed to have such an event of awarding outstanding students. They supposed that it would encourage students to challenge themselves, compete each other and become the winners. This would create great atmosphere to push everyone becoming extraordinary students in their respective passion. We felt so happy with the result and hope the Faculty member doing so. Then, we arranged a meeting with the Dean and his team to present our finding.
In short, they were finally interested about our finding. Thus, they approved our proposal and gave money up to 10 million rupiah. That makes us surprised, because the amount was a half of our one year budget. It is why I became more believing that data could speak greatly about any hidden things, and also could make big impact to the society. Those are all about insights that caught from data we usually ignored.
Entry into Entrepreneurship
The story above is just only the opening part of the whole journey. A year after having done my duty as a chief of Student Executive Board, I wanted to contribute more for my campus. At the end of 2013, I established an organisation called Lembaga Survei Kampus (LSK) which can be accessed in surveikampus.com. This idea actually had been discussed since 2012 with my friend -I would like prefer calling him as my mentor because of many supports that he gave to me. Unfortunately, this idea could not run well because of some errands especially my busy study in campus. Its realisation had been declined for a long time. I was quite busy with my national seminar project and my community development program from campus at the year. Until I persistently struggle to restart my vision for my campus, to build data-driven environment for every student organisation. That was my little dream by establishing LSK.
Time flies until the early of 2014, my new organisation did not make any progress. My journey continued to an internship in a cancer research and therapy company, called Edwar Technology, Ltd. in Southern Tangerang. I experienced great perspective changing here. I had never thought about entrepreneurship before. But what I saw here is totally contrast with my perception. I do rarely see an academic people changes his comfortable carrier in campus into unpredictable carrier which refers to entrepreneurship. The founder of this company, Dr. Warsito P. Taruno is a doctor of physic, but he turned to a businessman. I really amaze about his decision to move out from his carrier as a lecturer in University of Indonesia and prefer to challenge himself in entrepreneurship by establishing a company that do service and research to cure cancer. This story is almost similar with the SAS Company, one of the most popular statistical software in the world. The founder is Jim Goodnight, a doctor of statistics in North Carolina State University (NCSU) in 1966. Along with Jim Barr, they developed a computerised statistics program to analyse vast amounts of agricultural data collected through United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) grant. After releasing the software in the first SAS user conference in 1976 that attended by more than 300 people from academic, government and corporate entities, Goodnight, Barr, Helwig and Sall left NCSU and formed SAS Institute Inc. – a private company “devoted to the maintenance and further development of SAS.” They opened offices in a building at 2806 Hillsborough Street, across from the university.
Those two cases are really interesting for me, because it could break most people opinion about entrepreneurship that is suitable for those who have less education background, otherwise those who have high education background should be a lecturer in the universities. Goodnight and Warsito are outliers. They had run science and technology into their business. Surely, this is unusual case I meet in the past period and also inspires me to do so. Therefore, my new biggest challenge in my life is able to combine science and technology into entrepreneurship in order to deliver any benefits to people.
In early 2015, I reorganised the LSK’s team to focus more in business. We rebuilt the business model and launched new website design. We sell our services in a big theme: “Analytic + Technology + Art, an incredible combination of data analysis”. Surely, the theme was generated from any inspiration coming from Goodnight and Warsito and their respective companies. Everything did not ran as good as we expected. This was our first experience running business, so that it could not last long. In six months, we became discouraged because of lack of clients that affected to our cash flow. We again found this way so hard to be passed, until I decided to go out from the team and prefer to look for any best opportunities. My first experience in entrepreneurship was failed. But I still kept that dream on my mind.
Becoming Data Scientist
I realised the way Goodnight and Warsito chose were not as easy as I imagined. Yet, it did not mean impossible for me to make it happen. From that failure, I realise something that probably this was not my time to start my business, perhaps in the next time when I would have been ready with advanced knowledge in my passion. Thus I tried to keep learning more about my field of study particularly in data analysis both formally by pursuing master degree and informally through any other ways. The journey continued up to a moment I found fresh thing related to my field of study that more fascinating. It is Data Science. Formally, Data Science is a combination of Statistics, Computer Science and Substantive Expertise which often tends to Business. I eventually set new target to become outstanding Data Scientist. Because, this is more exciting and more applicative to the real world. And many people eager to become expert Data Scientist to deal a lot of big problem in business environment.
I felt so lucky because I met a very expert and massive experienced person to help me achieving that goal. He is Dr. Shorful Islam, a doctor of quantitative psychology coming from UK. He is my employer and also ‘my teacher’. Since worked for him in Stream Intelligence, a data analytic and strategy consultancy offices in London and Jakarta, I got a lot knowledge and inspiration from him and the company he built with his partners. Dr. Shorful become the third people that inspires me about merging science, technology and entrepreneurship. Just like Goodnight and Warsito, he chose to be an entrepreneur rather than a lecturer. Hence, they all have made me more confident that becoming a scientist is not always staying at laboratory but you can jump into the wild domain: entrepreneurship. Combining science, technology and entrepreneurship is the final goal of my life. Learning a lot about data science through Shorful’s company for a couple of year is the first important step to gain my dream. And then keep pursuing my master degree of Data Science is the next big step. Those two ways are crucial influencing what I will do in making my dream happen, just like Goodnight, Warsito and also Shorful did, though I don’t really earn a doctorate as theirs. Hopefully, 2019 will be my year starting my own startup by combining science, technology and entrepreneurship.
XL Future Leaders Batch 2, Yogyakarta 1 Having 2 years experience with many kind of inspirative and creative young people of XLFL is one of excellent and wonderful part of my whole life. Thank you guys, see you on top! Yogyakarta, 29 August 2015
Buku ini berkisah tentang anak-anak muda, anak-anak kampus, yang penasaran akan kearifan negara-negara di dunia, yang ingin mereka baktikan untuk Indonesia yang lebih baik dan bermartabat. Karya buah kolaborasi alumni ppsdms angkatan VI: Jejak-Jejak Mengangkasa
“sometimes a project gets stuck in your mind
it can make no sense
but you cant stop thinking about it
until that time comes and you make the dream a reality”
Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK): A New Hope
Corruption becomes enemy of almost countries in this world, included Indonesia. It happens in government, corporate and also non-government sectors. According to Transparency International, Indonesia was ranked at 107 of the 177 states. By looking Corruption Perception Index (CPI), Indonesia collects 34 point. It means that Indonesia has a low stage, in another word; Indonesia belongs to group of more corrupted country. I believe that this problem causes national development that becomes slow. Present of the corruption eradication commission (KPK) is a new hope for this country.
So far, KPK had covered many corruption cases which most of them could imprison officers who caught corruption. In 2012, KPK succeeded in arresting firstly Inspector General of Polri, Djoko Susilo and Minister of Youth and Sport, Andi Mallarangeng. A year later, KPK could arrest two other ministers: Minister of Religion, Suryadharma Ali and Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Jero Wacik. Moreover, KPK also succeeded in president of parties’ corruption demolition. They were Lutfi Hasan Ishaq as a President of Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), and Anas Urbaningrum as a president of Democratic Party at that time. The next success, KPK had arrested Head of SKK Migas, Rudi Rubiandini at August 13rd, also the former head of Constitutional Court, Akil Mochtar. Simultaneously, The Queen of Banten, Ratu Atut Chosiyah, was also arrested.
Because of those achievements, KPK got Asia’s most prestigious reward Ramon Magsaysay 2013 as an anti-corruption board which is independent and dare to tackle many stakeholders. The representative of Philippine, Miss Rosario Aguinaldo said that KPK became the first institution which awarded by The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation at July, 23rd in Philippine.
Besides eradicating corruption cases, KPK also focuses on prevention of the children. KPK volunteers educate anti-corruption for them. Hopefully children could anticipate kinds of corruption. This aim to eliminate corruption behavior which always be shown at television or news every day. It is very danger for the growing children.
In contradict, although KPK has shown great performance, there is no willing from the President to increase the technology they has and maybe the squad. The stakeholders are still letting KPK with the old technology also few employer that are about 900 people included 150 as investigation team. President should totally support corruption eradication agenda in Indonesia, so that he has to increase the facilities and squad, remembering much homework which is waiting in next time. I believe that KPK will be hero of Indonesia to get better later.
Mari kita selesaikan apa yang mampu kita selesaikan. Biarlah Allah yang menyelesaikan apa yang tidak mampu kita selesaikan. Just working hard, let Allah do the rest!
Kabinet Kerja periode 2014-2019 sudah komplit. Kini saatnya bekerja, bekerja dan bekerja menjalankan apa yang sudah dijanjikan oleh presiden Joko Widodo dan wakil presiden Jusuf Kalla.
“Janji dalam Angka” ini adalah sebagian dari seabrek janji-janji presdien untuk Indonesia yang lebih baik dan bermartabat, yang memiliki indikator jelas untuk dievaluasi bersama.
Mari kita dukung, berpartisipasi dan kawal pemerintahan Kabinet Kerja 2014-2019!
