Hunter Lee Soik

About

Hunter Lee Soik was a creative consultant for Kanye West and Jay Z’s Watch the Throne tour, and consultant for brands including Stella McCartney, Vitra, the CFDA Awards and Art Basel. He is now an entrepreneur and co-founder of New York based start-up, SHADOW, a mobile application that aims to harness your dreams the moment you wake up, and build a web of global dream behaviours and themes.

Hunter Lee Soik, Definition Of Success | To me, success is creating something that lives beyond you. That’s our vision for SHADOW. If we can pull off the kind of community we imagine on a massive scale, we can make something that connects people all over the world, that takes on a life of its own. That’s success.

What Drives Me | A relentless curiosity. I was adopted as a baby, so I’ve always lived with a bit of mystery surrounding my origins. That wonder has translated into a kind of longing—a desire to learn as much as I possibly can about the world and the people in it.

My Highlights | I’m proud of charting my own course, of creating my own myth. I was adopted from Korea, raised in a small town in Wisconsin. I never finished college. I had a fairly ordinary life, and the odds were sort of stacked against me achieving big things. But I realized early on that if you work hard, if you go for the things you want, people are willing to give you a shot. All you have to do is make the most of those opportunities. I’m proud of doing that at a young age, and of being at the point now when I can extend those opportunities to other people.

The Difference Between good And Great | The ability to dream really big. I always took the idea that something was impossible as a challenge, not a limit. People who are great at what they do use things that are discouraging as a motivation, not an excuse to give up. That moment when things seem insurmountable and you just press on, that’s what separates the people who are good from the people who are great.

My One Key Talent | Collaborating, working as part of a team, and generally just asking people for help. In every successful endeavor I’ve had, it’s been because we’ve built a team of people who are the best at what they do and asked them to show us how. People love sharing knowledge, and are more than happy to.

Daily Actions That Lead To Success | It’s actually really simple: keep moving forward. I’m restless by nature, always moving, always looking for new things to try. And that’s allowed me to keep making progress when I should be overwhelmed or exhausted. At that moment when most people overthink, I do. And it’s brought  me to where I am today.

My Critical Skills| I’ve focused a lot on personal development, things like self awareness and pushing my boundaries. It’s helped me immensely in building empathy, and that desire to understand others and create experiences where people can connect with one another is a driving force behind all my work.

Dealing With Doubt | My approach to dealing with self-doubt is: Don’t think, just do. Fear and negativity can be paralyzing, and the best way to combat that is to not overthink it. To just keep moving forward, working toward your goal. That’s what I’ve always done, and it’s made an immense difference in my life.

Performing At My Peak | It sounds cliché, but it is all about finding a balance. I tend to stretch that activity/rest cycle over a longer period of time than most people. I’ll spend months or a year focused intensely on a project, and then take some time to recharge and reinvigorate. I think when the time is too short between those inputs, you can lose momentum. But when you push yourself to the brink then take the time to recuperate, you’re ready to tackle the next big thing much sooner than you think.

Building Wealth | Creative people become wealthy by doing what they love, by conquering self-doubt, and by constantly producing in the face of insurmountable odds. Wealth is a pleasant byproduct of finding a thing you can’t live without doing and investing all your energy into doing it. Whether that’s a startup or a café or a book. Of course, certain jobs have greater potential to become wealthy, so if that is your goal you should choose the sector you enter into wisely. But usually the jobs that you can make a lot of money at, particularly the creative ones, come with great risk. There’s no guarantee you’ll make it. You have to pour your heart into it. If you do, and you’re as good as you think you are (or better), the success will follow.

Inspiring Others | By giving them a lot of space and trusting them to make things happen. The people I work with are the best at what they do, and I don’t want to get in the way of that. I just want to create a supportive environment where people feel like they can do interesting work and be part of something great.

Interview Questions

[everest_form id="26923"]

View further interviews.

The Legacy Project

Taryn Lock is the Executive Director of Read to Rise, the NGO she co-founded with her husband Athol Williams. Having now interviewed them both on The Legacy Project I formally declare this couple as one of South Africa’s most special jewels. What hearts and passion they have for a better South Africa. In 2013, Taryn […]

The Legacy Project

Mike Ruiz is a world renowned celebrity and fashion photographer, director, television personality, former model, spokesperson, creative director, and actor working with an impressive list of clients including beauty and fashion brands like L’Oreal, Schick, Dark and Lovely and Garnier along with a host of A-list celebrities including Kim Kardashian, Betty White, Katy Perry, and […]

The Legacy Project

As a graduate social entrepreneur from TSiBA Education, founder director of a social enterprise – Nebula, I possess a variety of skills and 5 years’ experience in facilitation, coaching and organisational development. Combined with a deep-seated passion for social change, I thrive on working with like-minded individuals who are committed to personal growth and creating […]

Jason Silva Legacy Project

As host of National Geographic Channel’s Emmy-nominated series, Brain Games, Jason Silva Legacy Project will guide you through the twists and turns of your grey matter. Through a series of man-on-the-streets and experiments, Silva will be joined by top experts in the fields of cognitive science, neuroscience and psychology, who will give you the “why” […]

  • Keynote Speaker
The Legacy Project

Maria Popova is a reader, writer, interestingness hunter-gatherer, and curious mind at large. She has previously written for WiredUK, The Atlantic, The New York Times, and Harvard’s Nieman Journalism Lab, among others, and is an MIT Futures of Entertainment Fellow. I Am Driven By | The yearning to learn how to live, how to lead […]

The Legacy Project

Vera Songwe serves as The World Bank’s Country Director for Senegal, Cape Verde, Gambia, Mauritania and Guinea-Bissau. She is also a non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institute with the Global Economy and Development and Africa Growth Initiative. Dr. Songwe holds a Ph.D. in Mathematical Economics from the Center for Operations Research and Econometrics from […]

The Legacy Project

Rachel Goble grew up in an interconnected and multicultural world. Whether traveling to Central America with her family to survey land for the founding of a non-profit or trudging through the Sierra Nevada mountains as her parents sought to awaken Christians to our role as creation’s caretakers, Rachel learned early that the world’s peoples and […]

The Legacy Project

A Boston native, Asha began playing violin and viola at age six and is a graduate of the New England Conservatory Preparatory School where she studied privately with Boston Symphony Orchestra members Michael Zaretsky and Edward Gazouleas. In 2004, Asha moved to Los Angeles to pursue a full-time music career on her electric 7-string Viper […]

Disclaimer
The profiles and images embedded on these pages are from various interviews conducted by The Legacy Project.

These remain the property of its owner and are not affiliated with or endorsed by WeSpeak Global.

Our Mission

We are your partner creating memorable and engaging experiences that go beyond the event itself.

© All rights reserved 2025. Created using VOXEL THEME