The Square Apple with Dr. Yong Hsin Ning

56: Bonus Episode

Mon, 14 Dec 2020 15:00:00 +0800

Season 1 Wrap Up

55: You Are More Than Your Job

Mon, 07 Dec 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:
1. Source of reference for the Channel Newsasia article: Tiah, C. (2017, 19 Sept). More than ‘just maids’, they’re athletes who bring hope to others. CNA Insider. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/cnainsider/more-than-just-maids-they-re-athletes-who-bring-hope-to-others-9230164

2. Source of reference for the concept of self-identity is from: McShane, S., & Glinow, M. A. V. (2017). Organizational behavior. McGraw-Hill Education, page 68

3.. The quote "Change the way you look at things, and the things you look at change" in the introduction to the podcast is attributable Dr Wayne Dyer, an internationally renowned author and speaker in the fields of self-development and spiritual growth. Source of quote: Dyer, W. (2009), Success Secrets, Retrieved from https://www.drwaynedyer.com/blog/success-secrets/

54: Loving My WFH

Mon, 30 Nov 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:
1. Source of reference for the misconception on "Multitasking" and the guide to "Chunking": Reh, J, F. (2019, July 4). Why Chunking Is Better Than Multitasking for Improving Work Efficiency. The Balance Careers. https://www.thebalancecareers.com/dont-multi-task-when-you-can-use-chunking-2276184

2. Cyril Northcote Parkinson postulated the law that work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion in 1955: Parkinson, C. Northcote. (1957). Parkinson's law:or, the pursuit of progress. Boston: Houghton

3. My PhD dissertation: Yong, H. (2017). “More free time, more overtime?” An examination of the overtime paradox for part-time employees through the lens of non-working time. Singapore Management University.

4. The quote "Change the way you look at things, and the things you look at change" in the introduction to the podcast is attributable Dr Wayne Dyer, an internationally renowned author and speaker in the fields of self-development and spiritual growth. Source of quote: Dyer, W. (2009), Success Secrets, Retrieved from https://www.drwaynedyer.com/blog/success-secrets/

53: Is Working From Home Here to stay?

Mon, 23 Nov 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:
1. References for Lewin's unfreeze refreeze metaphor: Lewin, K. (1947a). Frontiers in group dynamics: Concept, method and reality in social science; equilibrium and social change. Human Relations 1(1): 5–41 and Lewin, K. (1951). Field Theory in Social Science: Selected Theoretical Papers (ed. Cartwright D). New York: Harper & Row.

2. References for the adoption of telecommuting arrangements in Singapore: How many SG employees are in flexible working arrangements?. (2017, April 6). HRD. https://www.hcamag.com/asia/news/general/how-many-sg-employees-are-in-flexible-working-arrangements/149210

3. Source of reference for the 2016 study on the barriers and facilitators to flexi work arrangements in Singapore: Straughan, P, T., & Tadai, M, E.(2016). Addressing the implementation gap: An integrated approach to identifying barriers and facilitators to flexi work arrangements in Singapore. Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1111/1744-7941.12126

52: I Need a Vacation to Recover from the Vacation

Mon, 16 Nov 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:

1. Reference for the book titled "Switch" by the Heath brothers: Heath, C., & Heath, D. (2010). Switch : how to change things when change is hard (1st ed.). Broadway Books.

2. The quote "Change the way you look at things, and the things you look at change" in the introduction to the podcast is attributable Dr Wayne Dyer, an internationally renowned author and speaker in the fields of self-development and spiritual growth. Source of quote: Dyer, W. (2009), Success Secrets, Retrieved from https://www.drwaynedyer.com/blog/success-secrets/

51: You Will Always Gain Something

Mon, 09 Nov 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:
1. Read more about the article written by Andy Wong: Wong, A. (2020, 14 June). Gen Y Speaks: I am an overseas graduate starting a new career as prime mover driver. And I’m proud of it. TodayOnline. https://www.todayonline.com/gen-y-speaks/gen-y-speaks-i-am-overseas-graduate-starting-new-career-prime-mover-driver-and-im-proud

50: Practise Empathy To Gain Results At Work

Mon, 02 Nov 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References

1. Research on Cognitive and affective perspective-taking: Healey, M., & Grossman, M. (2018). Cognitive and Affective Perspective-Taking: Evidence for Shared and Dissociable Anatomical Substrates. Frontiers in Neurology, 9, 491–. https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2018.00491

2. Source of reference for the concept of "Cognitive vs Emotional Empathy":Clarke, J. (2020, April 7). Cognitive vs. Emotional Empathy. verywellmind. https://www.verywellmind.com/cognitive-and-emotional-empathy-4582389#citation-3

3. The quote "Change the way you look at things, and the things you look at change" in the introduction to the podcast is attributable Dr Wayne Dyer, an internationally renowned author and speaker in the fields of self-development and spiritual growth. Source of quote: Dyer, W. (2009), Success Secrets, Retrieved from https://www.drwaynedyer.com/blog/success-secrets/

49: An Afternoon Conversation with A Chinese Massage Therapist on Digitalisation

Mon, 26 Oct 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:

1. The quote "Change the way you look at things, and the things you look at change" in the introduction to the podcast is attributable Dr Wayne Dyer, an internationally renowned author and speaker in the fields of self-development and spiritual growth. Source of quote: Dyer, W. (2009), Success Secrets, Retrieved from https://www.drwaynedyer.com/blog/success-secrets/

48: There Is No Shortcut to Success

Mon, 19 Oct 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:

1. Source of reference for the 5 stages of grief illustrated by the "Kübler-Ross model": Kübler-Ross model. (2020). Retrieved June 22, 2020, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C3%BCbler-Ross_model#:~:text=The%20K%C3%BCbler%2DRoss%20model%2C%20or,bargaining%2C%20depression%2C%20and%20acceptance.

47: Is It Real or Is It Fake? - Why We Are Tricked By Our Brains But It May Not Matter At All

Mon, 12 Oct 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References

1. The Japanese serial mentioned in this podcast is The Confidence Man, a light-herated and entertaining comedy on how a group of con artists work together to swindle vicious wealthy individuals out of their money: Tanaka, R, & Kanai, H. (Directors). (2018). The Confidence Man JP. [TV Series]. Fuji TV. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8258938/episodes?season=1&ref_=tt_eps_sn_1

2. Source of reference for the concept of "Heuristics": Heuristics in judgment and decision-making. (2020). Retrieved June 22, 2020, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heuristics_in_judgment_and_decision-making

46: Are You The Tapper? Nobody Can Hear You.

Mon, 05 Oct 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:

1. The experiment of tapper and listeners by Dr Elizabeth Newton is from the book Make It Stick by the Heath Brothers: Heath, C; Heath D, (2007).Made To Stick: Why Some Ideas and Some Ideas Die. Penguin Random House LLC.

45: Lesser is Better - Taking Control of Your Life

Mon, 28 Sep 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References

1. The reference for the fun fact that octopus has arms, and not tentacles: Cephalopod limb. (2020). Retrieved June 22, 2020, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cephalopod_limb#:~:text=Barring%20a%20few%20exceptions%2C%20octopuses,suckers%20altogether%2C%20are%20called%20tentacles.

2. The quote "If you don’t prioritise your life, others will" nearing the end of the podcast is attributable Greg McKeown, an accomplished publick speaker and author in the fields of innovation and leadership. Source of quote: McKeown, G. (2014). Essentialism : the disciplined pursuit of less (First Edition). Crown Business.

44: Enabling Digital Adoption Using ADKAR Model

Mon, 21 Sep 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References

1. The reference to the ADKAR Model: Prosci. (n.d). What is the ADKAR Model? https://www.prosci.com/adkar/adkar-model

2. References to the SIngapore government's efforts to drive digital adoption: Baharudin, H. (2020, June 1). New outfit to boost S'pore's digitalisation capabilities.The Straits Times. https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/new-outfit-to-boost-spores-digitalisation-capabilities

43: Old Dogs Can Learn New Tricks

Mon, 14 Sep 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:
1. Source of reference for the concept of "Choice Overload":Geerts, F. (2017, August 17). The Jam Experiment — How Choice Overloads Makes Consumers Buy Less. Medium. https://medium.com/@FlorentGeerts/the-jam-experiment-how- choice-overloads-makes-consumers-buy-less-d610f8c37b9b

42: "Does This Look Like a $1,000 Piece of Work?" Understanding Your Value And Why It Matters

Mon, 07 Sep 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:

41: Call Out My Emperor's New Clothes - Embrace Criticisms To Improve

Mon, 31 Aug 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:
1. The reference to the reality TV Shark Tank on the episode of Skinny Mirror: Taylor, K. (2018, March 15).The Skinny Mirror – Shark Tank Pitch – After Show Update. Kirk Taylor. https://kirktaylor.com/the-skinny-mirror-shark-tank-pitch-after-show-update/

40: Selling Underpants At The Public Bathhouse - Knowing Where You Will Shine

Mon, 24 Aug 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:
1. The korean drama referred to in the podcast is: Misaeng: Incomplete Life, which aired between October to December 2014. The reference for the drama: Kim, M, N., & Lee, C, H. (Executive Producers). (2014). Misaeng: Incomplete Life. [TV Series]. Number 3 Pictures. https://www.netflix.com/sg/title/80165295?source=35

39: Only A Thirsty Horse Will Drink - Cracking the Motivation Code

Mon, 17 Aug 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References

1. The reference to the ADKAR Model: Prosci. (n.d). What is the ADKAR Model? https://www.prosci.com/adkar/adkar-model

2. The quote "If you are not willing to learn, nobody can help you; and if you are determined to learn, nobody can stop you." in the beginning of the podcast is attributable Zig Ziglar, an American author and motivational speaker. Source of quote: Ziglar, Z. (2014, November 20). If you're not willing to learn, no one can help you. If you're determined to learn, no one can stop you. Zig #Ziglar [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/thezigziglar/status/535275622025932800?lang=en

38: Resourcefulness Beats Having Resources

Mon, 10 Aug 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:

37: Adjust Your Side Dish Intake According To How Much Rice You Have - How to Work Within Constraints

Mon, 03 Aug 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:
1. The reference to the familiarity heuristic can be found in "Decisive" by the Heath brothers: Heath, C., & Heath, D. (2013). Decisive : how to make better choices in life and work (1st ed.). Crown Business.

36: Are You Sure People Love Your Ideas As Much As You Do?

Mon, 27 Jul 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References

1. Research on whether entrepreneurs learn from their failures: Ucbasaran, D., Westhead, P., & Wright, M. (2011). Why Serial Entrepreneurs Don’t Learn from Failure. Harvard Business Review, 89(4), 26.

2. Reference to the book "Testing business ideas": Bland, D., & Osterwalder, A. (2020). Testing business ideas. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

35: You Are Not Done With School Yet! - Knowledge Enables Transformation

Mon, 20 Jul 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:

1. The MARS Model is developed by Dr Steven McShane and Dr Mary An Von Glinow who state that there are four factors which directly influence employee behavior and the resulting performance. These four factors are motivation, ability, role perceptions (the individual’s expected role obligations), and situational factors abbreviated as MARS Model. More details can be found in McShane, S., & Glinow, M. A. V. (2017). Organizational behavior. McGraw-Hill Education.

34: Mr Client, I Know Nothing - And That's My Strength!

Mon, 13 Jul 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:

33: I'm Allergic to "You Can Do It!"

Mon, 06 Jul 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References

32: The Side Effects of Action

Mon, 29 Jun 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:

1. Harold and the Purple Crayon is a 1955 children's book series by Crockett Johnson.

31: Your Business Is Your Utopia

Mon, 22 Jun 2020 08:00:00 +0800

References:

1. Reference to Derek Siver's quote: Sivers, D, (2015). Anything You Want: 40 Lessons for a New Kind of Entrepreneur. Portfolio.

30: My PhD Journey

Mon, 15 Jun 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:

29: It's Not My Fault - How To Learn From Failure

Mon, 08 Jun 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References

1. Research on whether entrepreneurs learn from their failures: Ucbasaran, D., Westhead, P., & Wright, M. (2011). Why Serial Entrepreneurs Don’t Learn from Failure. Harvard Business Review, 89(4), 26.

2. References to the book "Thinking in Bets": Duke, A. (2019). Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions when You Don't Have All the Facts. Portfolio.

28: I Look Like I'm Idling But Actually I'm Thinking

Mon, 01 Jun 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:

1. Elastic – Flexible Thinking in a Constantly Changing World. Mlodinow, Leonard (2018). UK, Penguin Books

27: Not One Nor Zero - Lessons in Decision-Making from My Interior Designer

Mon, 25 May 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:

1. "When the outcome is good, it doesn’t mean that you can claim any credit, you may just be lucky." is from Annie Duke's book "Thinking in Bets": Duke, A. (2019). Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions when You Don't Have All the Facts. Portfolio.

2. The reference to avoid narrow frame in decision making can be found in "Decisive" by the Heath brothers: Decisive – How to Make Better Decisions. Heath, Chip & Heath, Dan (2013). Great Britain, Random House Books.

26: Why You See It Why You Don't - How To Systematically Uncover Insights

Mon, 18 May 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:

1. More details about the resource-based view of the firm can be found in this article: Barney, J. (1991). Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage. Journal of management, 17(1), 99-120.

2. More details about the ability of entrepreneurs to uncover opportunities can be found in this article: Alvarez, S. A., & Busenitz, L. W. (2001). The entrepreneurship of resource-based theory. Journal of management, 27(6), 755-775.

25: FOMA: Fear of Missing Again

Mon, 11 May 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:

Books referenced in this podcasts are:

1. Duke, A. (2019). Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions when You Don't Have All the Facts. Portfolio.

2. Elastic – Flexible Thinking in a Constantly Changing World. Mlodinow, Leonard (2018). UK, Penguin Books

3. Decisive – How to Make Better Decisions. Heath, Chip & Heath, Dan (2013). Great Britain, Random House Books.

24: Books that Influenced Me - Switch

Mon, 04 May 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:

1. Switch – How to change things when change is hard. Heath, Chip & Heath, Dan (2010). London, Random House Business Books.

23: Do not use a butchers knife to peel an apple

Mon, 27 Apr 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:

22: Consultants Cannot Drive Your Change Management

Mon, 20 Apr 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:

21: Managing Change is Everybody’s Responsibility

Mon, 13 Apr 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:
1. The 3 components of change capability are detailed in a textbook written by William Q. Judge. Judge, W.Q. (2012). Focusing on Organizational Change. Retrieved from https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/focusing-on-organizational-change

20: Change Management Is Fluff Or Not.

Mon, 06 Apr 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:
1. The influence of value and ability on an individual's likelihood to embrace the change is based on a journal article written by Dr Bryan J. Weiner. Weiner, B. J. (2009). A theory of organizational readiness for change. Implementation science, 4(1), 67.

19: What a Seafood Restaurant Taught Me About Decision Biases

Mon, 30 Mar 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:
1. Source of reference about the name of Jagalchi market: https://zenkimchi.com/korean-food-101/traveling/visiting-jackeys-seafood-at-jagalchi-market-busan/ (retrieved on 12 Feb 2020)

2. Lonely Planet's review about Jacky Seafood's review: https://www.lonelyplanet.com/south-korea/busan/restaurants/jackys-seafood/a/poi-eat/1513087/357415 (retrieved on 12 Feb 2020)

3. Research that shows that in an information rich online world, people do not have the cognitive capacity or time to evaluate information systematically, and instead use various shortcuts. Source of information: Metzger, M.J., Flanagin, A.J., Medders, R., 2010. Social and heuristic approaches to credibility evaluation online. J. Commun. 60 (3), 413--439.

4. Source of reference for the concept of "Bandwagon Heuristics": Sundar, S., 2008. The MAIN model: a heuristic approach to understanding technology effects on credibility. In: Metzger, M., Flanagin, A. (Eds.), Digital Media, Youth, and Credibility. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, pp. 73--100.

5. The quote "Change the way you look at things, and the things you look at change" in the introduction to the podcast is attributable Dr Wayne Dyer, an internationally renowned author and speaker in the fields of self-development and spiritual growth. Source of quote: Dyer, W. (2009), Success Secrets, Retrieved from https://www.drwaynedyer.com/blog/success-secrets/

18: What 2 Korean Folk Tales Taught Me About Decision Making

Mon, 23 Mar 2020 11:00:00 +0800

References:
1. Source of information about the city of Gyeongju is from the UNESCO World Heritage Convention website. Retrieved from: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/976

2. The 3 techniques of reframing are from the book Decisive – How to Make Better Decisions. Heath, Chip & Heath, Dan (2013). Great Britain, Random House Books.

17: What Can Gamcheon Culture Village Teach Us About Individual Motivations

Mon, 16 Mar 2020 19:00:00 +0800

References:
1. Source of information about the Gamcheon Cultural Village revitalisation project:
Urban Sustainability Exchange case study - https://use.metropolis.org/case-studies/gamcheon-culture-village

2. The MARS Model is developed by Dr Steven McShane and Dr Mary An Von Glinow states that there are four factors that directly influence employee behavior and the resulting performance. These for factors are motivation, ability, role perceptions (the individual’s expected role obligations), and situational factors abbreviated as MARS Model. More details can be found in McShane, S., & Glinow, M. A. V. (2017). Organizational behavior. McGraw-Hill Education.

3. Harvard Business Review article shows that signs of progress is a key source of motivation for individuals. Source of information: Teresa Amabile, T. & Kramer, S.J. (2011, May). The Power of Small Wins. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2011/05/the-power-of-small-wins.

16: What Can Gamcheon Culture Village Teach Us About Managing Change

Mon, 09 Mar 2020 19:00:00 +0800

15: Overcoming the Fear of Making Mistakes

Mon, 02 Mar 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:

1. Schoemaker, P. (2011). Brilliant mistakes: Finding success on the far side of failure. Wharton Digital Press.

14: One Hack to Reduce Working Overtime

Mon, 24 Feb 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:
1. The findings referenced in this podcast is published in: Yong, H.N., & Reb, J. (2017). To work or not to work? Asian Management Insights, vol. 8, pp. 66-71. A pdf copy of the article can be downloaded via this link: http://bit.ly/2-work-not-2-work

2. The full research on working overtime in a part-time work context: Yong, H.N., “More Free Time, More Overtime?” An Examination of the Overtime
Paradox for Part-Time Employees through the Lens of Non-Work Time
(doctoral dissertation). Singapore Management University, Singapore, 2017. A pdf copy of the research can be downloaded via this link: http://bit.ly/whyovertime

13: Tackling burnout through the lens of an addicted ant

Mon, 17 Feb 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:
1. Burnout is faced by 1 in 8 employees in Singapore: https://www.pacificprime.sg/blog/employee-burnout-in-singapore/; https://www.hrinasia.com/press-release/cigna-well-being-survey-reveals-decline-in-singaporeans-wellness/

2. Sources of information about Charlie Hoehn's burnout:
Tim Ferris' blog - https://tim.blog/2014/02/13/anxiety-treatments/
Charlie Hoehn's website -
https://charliehoehn.com/2013/05/19/how-i-cured-my-anxiety/

12: Embracing Ambiguity Using the 2-Dot Challenge

Mon, 10 Feb 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:
1. Harold and the Purple Crayon is a 1955 children's book series by Crockett Johnson.

2. The references to Harold's adventures are from the Chinese version of "Harold's Fairy Tale". Johnson, C. (1956). Harold's Fairy Tale. Jieli Publishing House, Guangxi, China.

3. Quote by Greek Stoic Philosopher, Epictetus says “Make the best of what is in our power, and take the rest as it occurs”: https://philosiblog.com/2012/08/15/make-the-best-use-of-what-is-in-your-power-and-take-the-rest-as-it-happens/

11: Seek First to Understand

Mon, 03 Feb 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:
1. Exchange between Chinese Philosophers: The debate between Zhuangzhi and Huizi is recorded in the book of Zhuangzi. This book is an ancient Chinese literature from the late Warring States period 476–221 BC that shows the carefree nature of the ideal Taoist sage. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhuangzi_%28book%29 (accessed 9 Dec 2019) and https://pages.ucsd.edu/~dkjordan/chin/LaoJuang/JoyOfFishe.html (accessed 4 Dec 2019)

2. Quote “If I am a hammer, everything out there is a nail”: This quote is adapted from a similar one which is often attributed to Mark Twain. For more discussion of deformation professionelle, which is the tendency to view things from the perspective of one’s professional experience, refer to Rolf Dobelli (2013), London: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd, p 280.

3. Tim’s podcast interview with Ann Miura-Ko: Refer to https://tim.blog/2018/08/07/the-tim-ferriss-show-transcripts-ann-miura-ko/ (accessed 9 Dec 2019) for details on the podcast interview.

4. Story of the businessman and the fisherman: This story was told to me by a friend. I googled it up and found that there are numerous versions which are largely similar. You can refer to: https://paulocoelhoblog.com/2015/09/04/the-fisherman-and-the-businessman/ for one of the versions.

10: Changing Behaviour Using MARS Model

Mon, 27 Jan 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:
1. The MARS Model is developed by Dr Steven McShane and Dr Mary An Von Glinow states that there are four factors that directly influence employee behavior and the resulting performance. These for factors are motivation, ability, role perceptions (the individual’s expected role obligations), and situational factors abbreviated as MARS Model. More details can be found in McShane, S., & Glinow, M. A. V. (2017). Organizational behavior. McGraw-Hill Education.

9: Keeping Well In The Marathon of Life

Mon, 20 Jan 2020 07:00:00 +0800

8: Time is Money - Reflections of An Enterpreneur

Mon, 13 Jan 2020 07:00:00 +0800

7: Tell Me How To Design A Machine to Replace You

Mon, 06 Jan 2020 07:00:00 +0800

References:
1. Study by McKinsey and Company: https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/the-scary-and-exciting-future-of-jobs

2. OECD study: https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2018/04/24/a-study-finds-nearly-half-of-jobs-are-vulnerable-to-automation

3. Switch Framework: See Switch – How to change things when change is hard. Heath, Chip & Heath, Dan (2010). London, Random House Business Books.

6: Releasing Yourself from Self-Hostage

Mon, 30 Dec 2019 07:00:00 +0800

References:
1. Kohlrieser, G. (2011). Hostage at the table: How leaders can overcome conflict, influence others, and raise performance (Vol. 145). John Wiley & Sons.

2. Schoemaker, P. (2011). Brilliant mistakes: Finding success on the far side of failure. Wharton Digital Press.

5: From Problem-Focused to Customer-Focused

Mon, 30 Dec 2019 06:00:00 +0800

Episode 5: From Problem-Focused to Customer-Focused

1. The course mentioned in this episode uses the Business Model Canvas: See Business Model Generation. Osterwalder, Alexander & Pigneur, Yves (2010). New Jersey, John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

4: How I use Switch Framework to change the behaviour of my child

Mon, 23 Dec 2019 08:00:00 +0800

Episode 4: How I use Switch Framework to change the behaviour of my child

References:
1. Switch Framework: See Switch – How to change things when change is hard. Heath, Chip & Heath, Dan (2010). London, Random House Business Books.

3: How to Turn a Round Apple into Square Apple

Mon, 23 Dec 2019 07:30:00 +0800

Episode 3: How to Turn a Round Apple into Square Apple

References:
1. Reading man and twins puzzle: These puzzles were originally from a 2015 study in the Journal of Problem Solving and reproduced in the book Elastic – Flexible Thinking in a Constantly Changing World. Mlodinow, Leonard (2018). UK, Penguin Books. p 97-98.

2. Thinking the Opposite: Some variations of this technique were mentioned in the book Elastic – Flexible Thinking in a Constantly Changing World (see above for detailed reference), p93-94 and Decisive – How to Make Better Decisions. Heath, Chip & Heath, Dan (2013). Great Britain, Random House Books. p 92-114

3. Business Model Canvas: See Business Model Generation. Osterwalder, Alexander & Pigneur, Yves (2010). New Jersey, John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

2: Who Are You

Mon, 23 Dec 2019 07:10:00 +0800

Episode 2: Who Are You

References:
1. Square apple sold in Busan, Koran: See http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/article/article.aspx?aid=2943440 (retrieved on 9 Dec 2019)

2. Divergent: Divergent is the first novel of a Trilogy written by Veronica Roth. It was made into an action move in 2014. For more details, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divergent_(film) (accessed on 9 Dec 2019)

3. Korean drama “Extra-Ordinary You”: “Extra-Ordinary You” is a South Korean television series based on the Webtoon “Found by Chance”. The series aired on MBC TV from October 2 to November 21, 2019. For more details, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extraordinary_You (accessed on 9 Dec 2019)

1: I Decide To Set Myself Free

Tue, 03 Dec 2019 07:00:00 +0800

Dr. Yong Hsin Ning, Founder of Change Voyage - You Didn't Make All Those Sacrifices and Changes To Just Stay The Same.

In this episode, we have a very special guest. She has worked with clients from across both the public and private sectors in the defense, industrial relations, consumer goods, telecommunications, and airline industries. She’s currently the co-founder and director of Change Voyage Consulting, a multi-consulting firm that provides tailored solutions in the areas of organizational and individual change.

She is also an adjunct lecturer at the Lee Kong Chian School of Business at the Singapore Management University (SMU). She has obtained a Ph.D. from SMU. Her dissertation topic centers around her part-time employees managed non-work time to reduce the tendency to work overtime.

The Glue

Dr. Yong, is known as a “glue”, when asked to elaborate on this, this is what she said:

(3:19 - 48) I realized that using the glue analogy, is something that resonates with people. So imagine your organization is going through a change. Maybe a new system, new performance appraisal system, merger acquisition, etc. But at first, people are all thinking about the change in different ways to see the management, and uses, even the people who come in to do the project. They are all in a space of themselves.

(3:49 - 04:02) So what our company does? Is that we go in and we try to glue them all together, for what? So that they can move towards the goal in a concentrated manner that they can move together.

(04:03 - 4:20 ) But I also don’t want to be the glue for too long. What I want to do is that I hope that one day they will be able to produce their own glue, and they will then glue themselves together to move towards the goal that they want to do. So essentially, that’s what I do for a living.

Time Management Strategies

Dr. Yong shared strategies in order to optimize things.

(05:00-29) So one thing at a time, firstly. Secondly, telling myself it’s possible. So a lot of times we are constrained by our paradigm and constrained by what other people tell us that we can or we cannot do. So if we want to just dissect and peel the onion and think about critically how do I fit things in, how do I reorganize my time to make things possible it can be done.

(5:39-6:01) The first strategy is better optimization of my time. So for me a lot of times I spend working either very early in the morning where there is no disruption and before I go to work and also doing times where I’m waiting for my kids to come off from their enrichment class.

(06:08-32) The second strategy is to leverage other people to collaborate with you to be able to juggle. So for example when I did my dissertation I had to be away from the office for a long period of time. Sometimes for a whole week from Monday to Saturday and I had to work closely with my clients and my team members to be able to continue the work even though I was not around.

Passion makes things possible

Being passionate will lead us to do the impossible and get the expected results not only for ourselves but for the people we are influencing and working with, Dr. Yong shared:

(07:16-8:09) my passion is in creating knowledge as well as delivering knowledge to people. The part that keeps me going is to understand how do I make something so simple that it is very, very easy for the students to consume. So the topic that I teach is around business model design and for students who haven’t been outside into the real world and they need to deal with the real clients is really tall order. So it’s almost like describing a color that you have not seen before. How do I simplify the complex to make something that seems so insurmountable to be something that is really within the comfort zone of students is a challenge that I post to myself and that’s what makes me tick.

Life-changing decision

Not all the decisions we make in life are easy. It will require courage and the ability to see the bigger picture.

(08:46)So I was about 40 years old when I hit a roadblock in my career so at the point in time it was endless juggling with work and with my family, my two children who were very young then. I remembered every time during the journey out to work I would always have this voice in my head, “I wish I could quit”, and very quickly there was another voice that came up in response to that voice which says “why not?”

(09:23)So the list was very long in the beginning but as a very structured person, I tried to cross out the list one by one to clear the hurdles off, to justify and clear the hurdles in terms of why I should or should not quit. After a while, I realized that I was holding myself hostage. Fear was holding me hostage because I was concerned about a loss of financial comfort I was fearful of the loss of professional structure because I was somebody and if I left I would become nobody.

(10:03)After quite a long struggle, I decided to set myself free. So what do I mean in setting myself free? So, there is a book, one of my favorite books which is Hostage at the Table and is written by an ex-police officer, I believe his name is called George Kohlrieser. So what he said was in a hostage situation, you need to understand the needs and wants of the hostage in order to satisfy and establish a bond between the hostage.

Taking a step forward

In life, sometimes the greatest obstacle is our own self. But breaking away from the comfort zone can lead us to do greater things than where we are right now.

(10:36)So for me, the person who is taking hostage of myself is me and therefore I have to come to terms with the fear and also come to terms with how do I overcome the challenges. So eventually I come to terms with that and even on the day that I left, I did not have a clear idea of what I wanted to do. But I had convinced myself enough that I had to take that challenge and I was game to learn new things and to live in some form of ambiguity.

(11:15)So I took the step forward and the first thing that I did was to take on a Ph.D. course.

(12:40)I’m glad I took that step because it has led me on to think about how differently I wanted to deliver change management services for my clients and I was exposed to a network of people that I would have never been able to be exposed to entrepreneurs, CEOs, founders of companies, who gave me very different insights from what I would have gotten if I were to stay as an employee.

The impact of the new network
With new connections come new opportunities and different avenues for personal and professional growth.

(13:40)These people helped me to think about things very differently. My favorite quote is from Dr. Wayne Dryer “If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”
(13:53)Because of the people that are in my new network, my classmates and my fellow course mates. The way that they think about problems is very different from how I would approach them and this gives me the inspiration to do things differently.

(15:08)Because their network is very vast and varied this has also exposed me to a lot more opportunities in terms of my business.

Change management in a gist

Here is what Dr. Yong explained about the work she does.

(15:23)How do you get your entire team or entire orga...