Meet David Prom

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful David Prom a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

David , we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?

My family history has a lot to do with where my resilience came from. After many failures and hardships you learn how to overcome and move forward while gaining strength. My dad would always tell me that there is always a way to go through. He mentioned a metaphor that if there is a mountain, do not go around the mountain but go to the mountain and find the way to approach it, climb it. My dad was always creative and found solutions to obstacles no matter the circumstances and it is from him, my mom, and my past that have helped me gained the strength to be resilient.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

The most exciting part of my job is being able to interact with not only our customers but our community. I love speaking with all the customers and getting to know them. Whether I’m cracking a quick joke or giving someone advice, it is the joy and happiness that comes from the customers that makes what I do so fulfilling. The Kim Heang Market brand is all about bringing community together no matter your race and enjoying good food. We believe in making our customers feel comfortable and excited to try something new.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

After coming to America I had a large change of perspective. I saw a new world and new opportunity. Having a new perspective on life and what life could be like with hard work really motivated me to chase after my dreams. Taking the time to learn the language and the culture was hard but being able to adapt has helped me grow as an individual in so many ways. I believe there is nothing you cannot learn to do. Training myself everyday I always tried to learn as much as I could to help my understanding of America and how I could be successful. Whether that was learning English, Vietnamese, or any subject in general I always found learning to be a large foundation of my success. If I could give advice to the future generations it would be to not be afraid. To be strong or resilient and adapt to changes. Learn what you can to be successful.

What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?

Watching my parents work as hard as they did to keep me alive was one of the most impactful things they could have ever done for me. They sacrificed everything just to make sure we could make it to a safe destination, to have the smallest amount of food on the table. or the clothes I had on. Every time I watched my parents, there was never a moment they were not working hard and did not try and teach me the importance of hard work. I never heard them complain once not even when things were tough. I can remember traveling with my dad in 1979; I was around 12 years old and my dad and I would take two weeks by bike to travel from Cambodia to the Thai border just to get goods to sell and make money to survive. Nothing was easy for my parents and that is one of the biggest reasons why I work hard today. To show how much I appreciate everything they have done for me and taught me.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @kimheangslc
• Facebook: @kimheangmarketut
• Youtube: davidprom.eats
• Yelp: Kim Heang Market

Image Credits

Prom Family