I spent 4.5 days in Singapore and managed to cover 14 appointments, 3 meetings 1 book launch & an evening watching Hamilton! π€―
The strangest part: I have no regrets.
Which might seem surprising for an introvert like myself but Iβve realised that I might also not be quite the introvert that I thought myself to be.
And a large part of that has to do with autonomy.
I chose to have this trip.
I chose to organise those meetings.
I chose to have these early starts.
The βlove your work & youβll never work a day in your lifeβ cliche is true! Though it doesnβt mean that thereβs no work work.
Thereβs always going to be parts that no one enjoys (tax π€’), urgent deadlines and a to-do list that never ends. β But the busyness is manageable.
Enjoyable, even.
I can finally understand why so many founders say, βI could never work for someone else again!β π€£
That said, I learned a ton during this Singapore trip.
Especially about the book/publishing industry.
With Ho Kwon Ping (co-founder, Banyan Tree) & Hong Koon Chua (Publishing Director, World Scientific Publishing)
Starting with the book launch for the founder of Banyan Tree, Ho Kwon Ping (a future STIMY guest?!!), where he talked about:
How he didn't want the book to written in 'SMU business school language'. Instead, it should be an easy, breezy, grab & go book that younger people could easily read
He wasn't born with a huge passion for hospitality. Instead, what truly drives him is the determination to not waste time and sleepwalk through life.
Looking back, many of his businesses had failed because he didn't know what he was passionate about
Banyan Tree started because he loved backpacking with his wife and they 'fell into it' by thinking that it 'looked fun' to create something like Banyan Tree.
Be careful of JVs. When you set one up, always prepare for an exit!
His biggest warning to young Singaporeans: Mediocrity. Given Singapore's wealth and success, its people can be lulled into a state of complacency, hubris and entitlement.
Another exciting development from this Singapore trip was having lots of chats about writing a STIMY book!!
The book will extract lessons learned from STIMY guests as well as the (secret) ingredients to success which, surprise surprise, has little to do with having found your why.
With almost 150 STIMY interviews, it's going to take time to get this done.
I need to first come up with a clear structure for the book, and that means going all the way back to STIMY Episode 1, and extracting the highlights / lessons learned / memorable stories that can be compiled into a coherent narrative.
So expect lots of throwbacks over the next few months as I dive back into the STIMY archives, personal reflections & sharing on how that's impacted what I do today, and also...
How I'm going to compile some of the best questions/lessons into the STIMY Course that I've spent forever trying to get off the ground. π₯΄ β Itβs crazy how one podcast can make such a difference, but here we are.
Figuring things out on the fly!
[Turns out, this is pretty common too]
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πDid you know that STIMY is on YouTube? Start listening here. π€
Interesting Discoveries
I spend hours on LinkedIn & love finding interesting posts that inspire thought. Often times, the true value of such posts lie not just in the original post, but in the comments.
Are people using LinkedIn to submit customer reviews/call out CEOs now?! Whoops Chipotleβ
βAre dev shops a scam? - If you're raising a $500k round with $200k set aside for product development, would you accept free development (worth $200k) from a dev shop & take it as an investment?
P/S: Part 2 with Woon Tai Ho, the founder of Channel News Asia, is coming out tomorrow!
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Where he explore how he pivoted his career from news to becoming a full time author (he helped George Yeo write his book on his career as Singapore's former Foreign Minister).
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