Phone was born into a family of eight children, about 160 km from Luang Prabang. His parents grow rice and cassava, and raise pigs, buffalo and chickens. Growing up, Phone helped his parents with farmwork and cooking; in his free time he enjoyed making games and toys such as carved spinning tops and bamboo water guns.

When he was fourteen, Phone left the farm and moved to the town of Viengkham to study at secondary school, where he lived in a dormitory for five years. Then he came to Luang Prabang to take the English teacher training course in the evenings at Souphannavong University.

In April 2008, Phone began training with Ron, a Canadian volunteer, who taught woodworking skills at Big Brother Mouse. He learned how to make children's games and toys from wood. In his spare time, Phone likes playing guitar, listening to music, and reading funny stories. He tends a vegetable garden at his cousin's house, where he lives with some friends, and uses the vegetables to cook delicious soups.

Phone's dream is to be a good English speaker, and to teach English or be a tour guide. He would also like to open a bookshop in his home district, which is soon to be a new district called "Muang Mai". He would also like to make games and toys for schools, to help children learn in a fun way.