Ping Fu, author of Bend, Not Break, founder and CEO of Geomagic, and incoming Chief Strategy Officer at 3D Systems (DDD -3.74%), tells the incredible story of her struggles as a child.
Brendan Byrnes: Hey folks I'm Brendan Byrnes and I'm joined Ping Fu, the author of Bend, Not Break and also the founder and CEO of Geomagic, which was recently sold to 3D Systems. First of all, thank you for your time.
It was a really interesting book, an incredible amount of life experiences and really a tough upbringing back in China in the Mao era and you were separated from your parents in prison and subject to some terrible abuses. Can you talk about how you persevered through that and what, if any, impact that has on you and your successes now?
Ping Fu: Yes I happened to be born in 1958 and the cultural revolution started in 1966. I missed my K through 12 education and went through lots of atrocities because I was one of those groups being deemed as black elements, we were not even people.
I was gang raped at the age of 10; I lost both of my parents at the age of 8 and brought up my sister who is 4 years younger than me. We didn't have food, I worked in the factories throughout the 10 years of the cultural revolution and until it was over I didn't have a chance to go to school. It was pretty tough.
Byrnes: Wow that's a really incredible story.
