Category: 1. Boss Better

  • Why Tough Love Bosses Win?

    Why Tough Love Bosses Win?

    There is this Cantonese saying which says, “反轉豬肚就是💩“, (the underbelly of a pig is poop …) I find this to be a very common reaction from people towards managers giving candid feedback, with one interesting exception. Have you ever had a “tough love” kind of boss? Do you remember how they made you feel? One…

  • Drinks Before Dinner

    Throughout my corporate career, the most unsettling experiences for me were “drinks before dinner” at leadership offsites. Dusk, the sprawling green lawn awash with humid, salty, and metallic South China Sea air. Subdued house music, flickering candle lights, the scene was set. There must have been 200 of us. We all had something in our…

  • A Brain Twister That Saved A 45 Year Old First-Time Entrepreneurship

    I have been struggling. As a 45 year old first time entrepreneur, I find being on my own surprisingly difficult. I now truly know what “I am too old for this shit” feels like.  I didn’t realize how much I have gotten used to surviving and navigating in a workplace where the circumstances, context, and rules…

  • Newsletter? Video? Podcasts?

    Newsletter? Video? Podcasts?

    I am building in public. In 2019, I left my comfy corporate life and began my career as a solopreneur. Yes. I am 20 years late and I am that odd old guy, sitting in the front of the lecture hall, trying to keep up with those zealous and youthful undergraduates. Content: I post everyday…

  • Realization from Scaling Up, the 📚

    I finished the Scaling Up book. It was very underwhelming. I figured out why. I was lucky I experienced most of what the book was explaining at Apple and Nike. I disliked many of the “scaled up” things, and so as I read through the Scaling Up book I could not stop thinking, “it takes…

  • Super Heroes 🦹🏻

    “Who is your super hero?” I used to ask this as an interview question. I liked it because it was fun and telling. I am 45 and I am to have some fun answering this question again. Muse like Austin Kleon and master the skill to be in awe with life’s most mundane things. See…

  • A Week To Remember.

    Nov 21st to 27th, 2020. Winter Fair, where 400+ people showed up. I was in charge of pasta. Made two sauces, and they tasted good. I got to use the full size kitchen at the school. Everything was so much hotter! I felt useful. The school is coming alone, albeit all the challenges, albeit the…

  • How did I do? What did I learn?

    How did I do? What did I learn?

    It has been a while since I did a presentation. I was rusty. A few things I observed: I did not become aware during the presentation. This has been a goal of mine – to be more aware throughout my day. I failed at this. As I was unaware most of the time, I rushed…

  • Presenting @ HKU

    Presenting @ HKU

    This is the second presentation I will have since I left Apple. The first one was with WEAVE, which really didn’t do anything for me, except building a connection with Daniel. This one is different. I will be talking to MBA students and recent grads. I will be sharing my experience from Nike and Apple.…

  • ✍🏻{Level: 99} Professional Skills✍🏻

    ✍🏻{Level: 99} Professional Skills✍🏻

    In video games, {Level: 99} is the maximum level. When you reach {Level: 99}, your character has achieved the limits of the game. So what are “{Level: 99} professional skills” like? This is the kind of stuff I work on with my clients. Let’s start with {Level: 99} 🗣Discussion:🤔How did you feel after having a…