Let Kids Grow Like Ryu Kintaro

I’ve been quietly observing the story of a boy named Ryu Kintaro, and I feel it’s time I spoke from the heart.

In a world where social media rewards controversy more than compassion, I find it both amazing and heartbreaking to see how a 9-year-old boy pursuing business and personal growth can become a magnet of criticism from grown adults.

🧒🏼 Ryu is still a child, bright-eyed, experimenting, learning the ropes of entrepreneurship, and testing what works (and what doesn’t). At his age, most kids are still discovering how to tie their shoes, or endlessly scrolling TikTok. But Ryu? He’s building brands, learning public speaking, managing risks, and selling jamu.

He’s not perfect.

But since when did a child have to be?

✨ For me personally, Ryu represents something we don’t talk about enough:

the courage to try in public, with the world watching, and judging.

Yes, he comes from a privileged background.

Yes, he has strong support from his parents.

And yes, that gives him access that most children do not have.

But here’s what many people miss:

➡️ He still chooses to wake up and try.

➡️ He still learns from every failed idea.

➡️ He still builds things, speaks up, and shows up.

That choice (especially in the face of ridicule) takes more character than many adults I know.

Some say, “He’s too mature,” or “He’s being coached.”

Some accuse him of being a product, not a person.

But what if… we’re projecting our own discomfort?

Our society is quick to praise children for achievements in sports, memorizing the Quran, or winning Math Olympiads. But when a child is confident, vocal, and business-minded, we don’t know how to respond.

So we mock.

We dismiss.

Or worse, we bring him down.

🌱 I think we need to create a safe space for kids like Ryu to grow, a space where they can try things, fail loudly, laugh it off, and still be loved. Not turned into symbols of privilege or targets of cynicism.

I want to raise kids (God-willing) who are like that.

Kids who dare.

Kids who build.

Kids who learn by doing.

And kids who are kind to others doing the same.

Because the world desperately needs builders.

Not just critics.

💬 So to you, Ryu Kintaro (and your parents): keep going. Keep learning. Stay humble, but stay bold.

And to fellow adults: let’s be the kind of grown-ups who protect childhood, even when it shows up in the form of a tiny entrepreneur with a million-subscriber YouTube channel.

Let’s be the village that helps the child grow, not the crowd that tears the child down.