Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast So This Is My Why
| Titre | Date | Durée | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pinn Yang: How He Built A RM75 Million Media Empire & What Drives Him [CEO, Foodie Media Berhad] | 27 nov. 2025 | 01:21:01 | |
Meet Lim Pinn Yang, co-founder of Foodie Media Berhad - IPOing today at a RM70 million valuation! He once sold woks at the morning market with his dad, scored 1A in SPM exam and earned $0.20/day from his 1st blog But he’d always dreamt of being a “business entrepreneur”. And today, his dream comes true. That little blog he started in 2016 has turned into a 46M+ follower digital media empire. And just in 2024 alone, it hit:
But… who IS Pinn Yang? What drove him to do what he does? How did he end up with an investor like Bryan Loo of Loob Holdings? And… what does success mean for him? Listen to find out. Thanks Foodie for sponsoring this episode! 🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/lhIUOf7jSKs 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/155 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/profile | |||
| 🎬 I Built Rotten Tomatoes... for Jackie Chan (& nearly collapsed) | Senh Duong (Co-Founder, Rotten Tomatoes) | 09 nov. 2025 | 01:04:12 | |
When Vietnamese refugee Senh Duong fled after the fall of Saigon, he could never have imagined he’d one day co-found one of the most influential movie sites in the world - Rotten Tomatoes. A kid who grew up on Hong Kong kung fu flicks, Senh was obsessed with Jackie Chan. So when Jackie tried to break into Hollywood again, Senh went looking for honest reviews... But couldn’t find any. Every critic said the movies were great (even when they weren’t). So Senh decided to build a site that told the truth. What began as a side project coded through sleepless nights turned into a cultural phenomenon - one that raised $1 million (2 months before the dot com bubble burst!!), sold for $10 million, and changed how audiences everywhere judge movies. In this episode, Senh opens up about: 🔸 Fleeing Vietnam and growing up in a refugee camp in Hong Kong 🔸 How Jackie Chan inspired the birth of Rotten Tomatoes 🔸 Almost quitting Rotten Tomatoes due to burnout 🔸 Being treated as “second-class citizens” by film publicists at screenings (and when that changed!) 🔸 Raising $1M, surviving the dot-com crash & selling too early?! 🔸 Why he says he’s proud to be a “one-hit wonder” This is the story of how a movie-obsessed refugee created one of the most iconic brands in film history - all because he wanted Jackie Chan to get the credit he deserved. Highlights:
🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/pWO2IVYZvlI&list=UULFSZlcS5ooyCjj_MkrmH_WhQ 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/154 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/profile | |||
| Ep 153: From Being Told to "SHUT UP" to RM150+ million in 5 years?! | Hui Jing Lee, Co-Founder of Bila-Bila Mart | 26 oct. 2025 | 01:11:43 | |
Hui Jing’s life reads like a TVB drama. Her mum was forced to be the sole provider for the family after her dad landed them in bad debt. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Hui Jing understood the importance of money & joined the work force young - at the below-legal age of 15 - for a mediocre RM4/hour. It wasn’t easy. But it kickstarted a series of jobs that saw her go from working as at McDonald’s to The Body Shop to becoming a finalist for the Red Bull Female Driver Search in 2009 (they were offering a cash prize) to becoming an insurance agent (where she learned the joys of passive income) to joining a radio station as a road runner and finally… Co-founding one of Malaysia’s fastest growing local convenience store chains, Bila-Bila Mart. Which is on track to hit a whooping RM150+ million in revenue & 100 stores by the end of 2025, with an IPO on the horizon! Not bad for a Brickfields girl who was once kidnapped & held ransom due to bad family debts. If there’s one thing that clearly stands out about Hui Jing’s story, it’s this: Taking risk During the interview, she spoke of how: “Throwing everything outta the window (i.e. leaving corporate) sounded like an adventure. I wanted that adventure. Because I was just thinking, okay, now I have no commitments. I don't have a family… If I don't do it, if I don't risk it, I don't really see how is the world outside, when am I gonna do it?” That said, life hasn’t been without its challenges. Once at a bar, she was told, “Jing, you talk too much as a female. Can you shut up?” And also advised to stop working and to “ask your husband to feed you.” Needless to say, that lit a fire in Hui Jing that led to the founding of Bila-Bila Mart, where she also spoke about: ✨ How Dettol saved Bila-Bila Mart (they opened their first physical store during MCO) ✨ Their first breakthrough (pivoting from the idea of selling hot food → kedai runcit model) ✨ The process for local SMEs getting their items into Bila-Bila Mart ✨ Dealing with chauvinistic men who question Jing’s very young team ✨ Why you are the decision maker of your own fate Don't forget to subscribe for future STIMY episodes! Special thanks to Bila-Bila Mart for sponsoring this episode. 🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/MyM_uFevyJI&list=UULFSZlcS5ooyCjj_MkrmH_WhQ 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/profile ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 152.2: Art World's Greatest Conman Escaped the Mafia & FBI Using This Tactic?! | Ken Perenyi | 17 juin 2025 | 01:16:03 | |
We're back with Part 2 with Ken Perenyi, arguably one of the art world's greatest and most successful conman?! In Part 1 of Ken's STIMY interview (do check it out if you haven't already done so), we covered his journey including how he first launched his art forgery 'career' (hint: it involves a broken bathroom that crashed through the ceiling to the restaurant below!). In Part 2, Ken discusses his motivations, the thrill of creating and selling fake art, and how he managed to avoid capture by both the mafia and the FBI. Highlights include a $750,000 art piece he painted, adopting his daughter due to a CNN documentary by Christiane Amanpour, and the psychological tactics he employed to fool art experts. Despite the rather questionable nature of his work, Ken views his career with a mix of pride and reflection, acknowledging missed opportunities and his philosophical outlook on life. He also recounts his controversial friendships with high-profile figures like Roy Cohn (the notorious lawyer/fixer who helped Donald Trump gain a footing in New York) and his thoughts on the challenges for contemporary artists breaking into the industry. Highlights:
🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/MoZ5YOdHyJ4 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/152 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/profile | |||
| Ep 152.1: Art World's Greatest Con Man: How Ken Sold Fake Art For Millions & Escaped the Mafia & FBI! | 06 janv. 2025 | 01:12:32 | |
Would you break the law if it made you a multimillionaire? That’s what happened with Ken Perenyi - one of the most “successful” art forgers in the world. His works have been sold all over the world, including in Christie’s and Sotheby’s, with one painting going for as high as $717,000! He was also close friends with Roy Cohn - the notorious lawyer who helped Trump enter the New York market. The Independent called him the evil master architect who mentored Donald Trump (to Ken, he was just a great friend and protector). Was hunted for decades by the Mafia and the FBI. And got away with it all without even a slap on the wrist. When the statute of limitation passed for his “crimes”, Ken then published a book telling everyone exactly how he did it. 😂 (Talk about giving everyone the finger!!) And lest you wonder whether that’s all there is to Ken’s story, believe me. It is not. Ken’s childhood was spent hanging out with Tony, an influential Mafia member, who introduced him to the world of fine art. He was so enamoured with art that he taught himself to paint. To crack the paintings and mimic the black spots that flies would leave on very, very old paintings. He was also neighbours with Andy Warhol. One memorable incident: He was sharing a flat with Tony who found an abandoned bathtub in the streets. They didn’t have a bathtub so they decided to steal one (in a stolen car) and install it themselves in their flat. The installation wasn’t done well. Water leaked. The flooring cracked. And one evening, everything - the ceiling, bathtub and all - crashed from the first floor down to the ground floor, on top of a bustling Jewish restaurant. Needless to say, Ken and Tony were kicked out of said flat. And he spent a miserable 2 weeks wandering around New York before eventually finding a new place that would lead him to Roy Cohen’s doors. * This is just the tiniest glimpse of Ken’s life and it’s so epic - we ended up having a 3 hour conversation! - that I had to split his story into 2 parts. Are you ready to get started? Highlights:
🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 🧠 Build Your Why course: https://ling-yah-wong.mykajabi.com/joinus 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/152 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/QmsqswrOCN4 💌 Subscribe to the weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/profile | |||
| Ep 151: There is NO Joy in Film Production 😫 | Jared Lee (Founder, The Grim Film) | 01 déc. 2024 | 00:53:58 | |
Imagine growing up in a hair salon. Being thrown out of the house and sleeping in an abandoned cupboard. Being bullied in school and almost failing SPM. But knowing deep down inside that you love storytelling. You just… don’t know what that means. And how to make that dream a reality. That was Jared Lee - one of Malaysia’s most famous YouTubers and the founder of the award-winning production house, Grim Film. Jared started his journey in an event company, while also freelancing as a storyboard artist and production assistant. Being passionate about storytelling, he decided to create a short film called The Long Distance Relationship. A film that, for him, he had to make happen, no matter what. And it blew up. ✨ Within a day, it hit 10k views. ✨ Within a week, it hit 70k views ✨ Within a month, it hit 1 million views This short film opened doors and led to the creation of his production house, The Grim Film. Which has since bagged multiple awards, including Best Drama at America’s Soul 4 Reel International Film Festival 2013 for The Long Distance Relationship and Best Pilot and Best Special Effects at the 2018 Vancouver WebFest in Canada for The Last 7. His most recent piece of work, Horologist, even won Best Animation at the San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC) Film Festival 2023 and USA Film Festival! It was also a finalist for Poland's Animator Film Festival (Best Animation & Audience Choice Award) and nominated for the 2024 Eisner Award in the Best Single Issue/One-Shot category. Proving how Jared’s wild gamble has paid off. Although… life wasn’t easy. In 2018, Jared was diagnosed with stage 1 testicular cancer. And he later found out that he could not have children. But in spite of these challenges, Jared is someone who has always believed in pursuing his dreams and hustling against the odds. Which is why I’m so thrilled to share his story as the latest guest on STIMY! If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to triumph against all odds and pursue your passion, what it takes to go from being a YouTuber to a legitimate film producer, and the personal struggles with cancer and childlessness, then this episode is for you. So are you ready? Let’s go. Highlights:
🧠 Join the Build Your Why course: https://ling-yah-wong.mykajabi.com/joinus 🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/151 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/jsbc2xuaj0I 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/profile | |||
| Ep 150.2: I committed career suicide?! | Jonathan Mildenhall (ex-CMO, Airbnb & ex-SVP, Coca-Cola) | 04 nov. 2024 | 00:50:54 | |
Jonathan Mildenhall is the former Managing Director of TBWA, SVP of the Coca-Cola Company, first CMO at Airbnb and Independent Board Member at Peloton Interactive, Co-Founder of TwentyFirstCenturyBrand and current Chief Marketing Officer at Rocket Companies. And we are back this week with Part 2 of our interview with Jonathan. Last week, we dove deep into his childhood growing up & how everything was stacked against him: he was the only black person in his family and community, was working class and grew up in a housing estate, attended a polytechnic, experienced blatant racism and physical abuse and also had zero connections in advertising The very industry that he rose to the very top in. In Part 2, we delve deep into his career. What it means to join Coca-Cola when it was creatively bankrupt, the stories behind some of his biggest and most successful advertising campaigns including have two ads being featured at the same Superbowl, why he gave it all up for a then unknown startup called Airbnb, what it takes to ‘make it’ in his team and so much more. And in case you didn’t know, this interview is also available on Youtube. Check it out via the links below. Now are you ready? Let’s go! Highlights:
🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/150 🍿 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cumagnVOlRQ&t=1s&list=UULFSZlcS5ooyCjj_MkrmH_WhQ 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/profile ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 150.1: I was the poster child at Coca-Cola... | Jonathan Mildenhall (ex-CMO, Airbnb & ex-SVP, Coca-Cola) | 27 oct. 2024 | 00:54:52 | |
Jonathan Mildenhall is the former Managing Director of TBWA, Senior Vice President of the Coca-Cola Company, first CMO at Airbnb and Independent Board Member at Peloton Interactive, Co-Founder of TwentyFirstCenturyBrand and current Chief Marketing Officer at Rocket Companies. In other words, someone at the very top of the marketing industry. Who was once treated as an experiment. Growing up in Leed, Jonathan faced tremendous physical and racial abuse. It got so bad that he once ran to his mum, telling her that he didn’t want to be black! But his mum responded by saying, “Unfortunately, there are ignorant people who will always be frightened because you look different. And they're going to say hurtful things and sometimes they will do hurtful things. You can't change your packaging but they can never ever damage what's inside of your packaging.” Eventually, Jonathan found his calling - in marketing! Even though the odds were stacked against him: he was from a polytechnic, grew up in a council estate, was black and had no family name to fall back on. But as it turns out, he had a spark. And that spark was what drew people to him. Allowed him to rise to the top of the London marketing scene and dominate the global scene later as he became a Senior Vice President at the Coca-Cola Company and the first CMO at Airbnb. If ever there was a story of someone who has triumphed against all odds, it would be Jonathan. So are you ready to learn how he did it? Let’s go. Highlights
🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/150 🍿 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cumagnVOlRQ&t=1s&list=UULFSZlcS5ooyCjj_MkrmH_WhQ 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/profile ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 149: This Is Not Going to Work! | Rodney Wong (CEO, Munchy's) | 16 sept. 2024 | 00:53:11 | |
Rodney Wong is the CEO of Munchy's, one of the largest Malaysia-based snack food manufacturer with presence in over 60 countries globally. Which makes him the Willy Wonka of Malaysia! And he's had quite the varied career. From tobacco to Coca-Cola, Petronas and now the world of snacks and sweets, Rodney is testimony to the fact that we all need to take charge of our own career and personal development to get to where we want. The question is... how? While everyone's path is different, Rodney's shared his personal journey, highlighting the people who were significant in his journey, why paying forward is so important him, what it's like working with founders on their 'baby' and his vision for the future. Want to hear what one of Malaysia's top entrepreneurs has to say about building success career? Stick around and you'll find out! Highlights
🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/dx_ePevgoRU&list=UULFSZlcS5ooyCjj_MkrmH_WhQ 🎙️Show notes/transcript for this episode: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/149 💌 Subscribe to the weekly STIMY newsletter: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/ebf231f605 | |||
| Ep 148.2: The Impossible Game + Scared of Wives Club?! - Dato Sri Idris Jala [Chairman, PEMANDU] | 10 sept. 2024 | 00:59:03 | |
We're back with Part 2 with Dato' Sri Idris Jala - the former CEO of Malaysia Airlines, Managing Director of Shell Sri Lanka and Senator & Minister in the Malaysian Prime Minister’s Office, and current Chairman of PEMANDU. In Part 1 of this So This Is My Why feature, we delved into his tribal origins, how becoming top of his class was a matter of life and death, and his journey to becoming the Managing Director in Shell Sri Lanka - still his toughest gig to date. Listen here: https://youtu.be/KekuCGZJYlk In Part 2, we go even deeper, exploring things like: 🔸 If Dato' Sri Idris would act the same way if he had a chance to redo everything? 🔸 How Shell moved Idris out of Sri Lanka because he was taking huge risks and they thought, “We should take you out before you kill yourself!” 🔸 What he learned from Michael Black 🔸 How he put Eddy Leong as the first CEO of Firefly because “he’s a bit crazy but he has the tenacity to push it” 🔸 Why he gave up the job he really wanted - to be the Chairman of Shell - to become the CEO of Malaysia Airlines 🔸 The advice he has for his sons Want to learn more? You’ll just have to tune in. Highlights:
🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/lhIUOf7jSKs 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/148 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/profile | |||
| Ep 148.1: "I Wrote the Cockiest Letter!" | Dato' Sri Idris Jala (Chairman, PEMANDU) | 05 août 2024 | 01:01:57 | |
When Dato Sri Idris Jala became the Managing Director of Shell Sri Lanka, he wasn’t expecting to hold the country on ransom. The Sri Lanka unit had already experienced 27 years of continuous losses when he took over. And on Day 1, what Idris had to handle was: bombs strapped to his depot, the kidnapping of his transport manager, a major labour strike and… Threatening letters sent by a professional sniper who knew where he lived, where he worked, when he left each place and the exact route he took each other. Tough doesn’t even begin to cover it. But Idris turned it around. And in the latest STIMY episode, he shares how, why he took on such a tough gig and what continues to drive him. There were so many gems in his 2-hour interview that it’s only right to have split it into two parts. This is Part 1. Which opens up with his childhood in the Borneo Highlands - where his dad would throw him into the pigsty when he misbehaved. And also insisted that they sleep on the floor of the stinky fish market - because they were travelling with neighbouring tribes who couldn’t afford a tribe and “they shouldn’t act different from others”. Education, for him back then, was a matter of life and death. His North Star then was to be the top of his class. So he asked his dad, a teacher, for advice. He was told, “Very simple, son. Find out who’s currently No. 1, be his or her best friend, and do exactly what he does but put it to the power of 10.” And so Idris just did. 😂 Others highlights: 🔸 Surviving ghostly encounters & treacherous rapids in the Borneo Highlands 🔸 His spiritual awakening as part of the Bario Revival 🔸 The concept of “ketuit” (which is kelabit for ‘kiasu’ or being very competitive) 🔸 Why his cocky job application letters were successful - he began his letters with the words, “Dear Sir, I’m the man you’re looking for”! 🔸 Why ‘the graveyard is full of indispensable people’ 🔸 The impossible game Highlights:
🙊 Support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day! - https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 🎙️Show notes/transcript: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/148 💌 Subscribe to weekly STIMY newsletter: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/ebf231f605 | |||
| Ep 147: "I landed the dream job because my dog was sick!" | Arthur Kiong (CEO, Far East Hospitality) | 16 juin 2024 | 00:56:39 | |
When Arthur Kiong, CEO of Far East Hospitality, failed his A Levels, he thought his life was pretty much over. His dad even told him, "I’m sorry, you had your shot but you missed it" and in Arthur's own words, "I was lost and I was discouraged and I was in a great deal of pain and despair." Arthur ended up selling slimming products on the streets because it was the only job he could find before applying to Mediocorp to become a stage technician. Things took a turn when he was asked to take a voice test and he ended up with a celebrity radio DJ because he could pronounce "Thursday the Thirteenth”! Overnight, Arthur found himself rubbing shoulders with the who's who and celebrities of the world and you would’ve thought that this was where Arthur’s career was on a rapid trajectory upwards save that he gave it all up to work to become a greeter at Prego. People were astonished. Why would he take on such a 'demeaning' job?! But Arthur was adamant. And Prego signalled the first step that Arthur took into the world of hospitality, where you'll find that he's had more than his share of incredible luck, ingenuity and adventures. Including:
To find out more, you’ll just have to listen to this STIMY Ep 147 with Arthur Kiong. 😏 Highlights:
Special thanks to Limpeh Studios for making this in-person interview possible! 🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/147 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/lJkY_8igcxQ 📚 Download 5 Stones & a Sling: https://www.fareasthospitality.com/-/media/StayFarEast/Five-Stones-and-a-Sling 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 * Official Biography Arthur Kiong is the Chief Executive Officer of Far East Hospitality, which is part of Far East Orchard Limited, a listed company under Far East Organization. Since Arthur joined the organisation in July 2012, he has been instrumental in growing the company’s hospitality management business through joint-ventures and acquisitions. Over the last nine years, Far East Hospitality's portfolio grew from 18 properties in Singapore to 105 hotels and serviced residences in nine countries – Austria, Australia, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, and Singapore, with more in its development pipeline. In more than 35 years of his career in the hospitality industry, Arthur has worked at prominent international hospitality brands including Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts, The Ritz-Carlton (Singapore and New York), Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group (Hong Kong), Hyatt Hotels Corporation and Westin Hotels & Resort. Arthur also plays an active role in championing change in the hospitality industry, and currently serves as First Vice President of the Singapore Hotel Association. In 2020, he was appointed as the hospitality representative in the National Jobs Council – a task force set up to establish jobs and upskilling opportunities during the Covid-19 pandemic. In Nov 2022, Arthur received the Executive of the Year – Hospitality & Leisure award from the Singapore Business Review Management Excellence Awards for initiating transformative changes to FEH’s operations and steered the group’s expansion in recent years despite the pandemic. Arthur was a recipient of the Special Recognition Award from Singapore Tourism Board in 2016 for having played a key role in rallying support for driving productivity and manpower development initiatives in the hotel industry. | |||
| Ep 146.2: Waiting to Die + We Don't Have to be that Woke?! | Woon Tai Ho (Founder of Channel News Asia & Author) | 11 juin 2024 | 00:28:14 | |
“When people say it’s ok, I don’t need a family, I don’t need a partner, I say bullshit.” Woon Tai Ho is most known for being the founder of Channel News Asia & author of prolific books like the trilogy by George Yeo (Singapore’s former foreign minister). But has the success been worth it? What are some of his biggest regrets in life? In Part 1 (which you should listen to if you haven’t), we explored all of his big career achievements and the challenges that came with it, including being summoned by China to answer for their coverage of Falun Gong. But today, we cover something very different. Deeper. More personal. Starting with Tai Ho’s major pivot from broadcasting to author. Because nowadays, it’s common to make career pivots. It’s hard enough when it’s just jumping from one company to the next in the same industry, but Tai Ho has made that huge jump so… ❓ How did he do it? ❓ How does he think about the ‘Second Act’ of his career? ❓ How should people plan for their own Second, Third or even Fourth Act, especially when it comes to retirement? And is there such a thing as living for too long and just ‘waiting to die’? We also talk about some of his deepest regrets, his relationship with success and thoughts on relationships. His advice to people: Go marry, have kids, then go back to your career. We don’t have to be that woke. 😅 Do you agree? Time to hear from Tai Ho again in the latest episode from STIMY! Highlights:
🙊 Want to support STIMY for $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/ 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/146 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/U0_pVl_RsGM 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 146.1: I didn't know I was poor! | Woon Tai Ho (Channel NewsAsia founder & Bestselling Author - George Yeo trilogy, Soul of Ink, Riot Green) | 20 mai 2024 | 00:43:38 | |
Growing up, Woon Tai Ho - Channel NewsAsia founder & Bestselling Author of books like the George Yeo trilogy, Soul of Ink, Riot Green- didn’t know he was poor. Until he invited his friends over and was asked questions like: ❓ Where’s your phone? ❓ Where’s your sofa? None of which he had. Which made him realise that actually, he was pretty poor. 😅 But he was never ashamed of it. When his sister invited him to stay at the house she was working at as a domestic helper, that changed his world. “I couldn’t believe it, the way they stayed… these people had a dimension of luxury that I didn’t know about. So I told myself, I need to work very hard.” And work very hard he did. We know Channel News Asia as one of the preeminent TV news channels in Asia, but that wasn’t always the case. As Tai Ho shares, the earliest days of CNA was very much a ‘wait and see’ game. It was hardly easy too. “Television is a very, very hungry animal. A news channel is a very, very hungry animal. Every hour, every minute, every second needs content. Otherwise it's black.” ❓So how did Tai Ho build CNA from the ground up? ❓Position CNA amidst other giants like CNN & the BBC? ❓ Gain support from the likes of former Singapore foreign minister, George Yeo? ❓Handle challenges like when he was summoned to China for their coverage of Falun Gong? You’ll have to listen to Part 1 of this STIMY episode to find out. 😉 Part 2 will come out next Sunday! Highlights:
🙊 Like STIMY? Buy us a ☕️?: https://beacons.ai/sothisismywhy 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/146 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 | |||
| Ep 145: Are You a Masochistic Book Lover? | Kenny Chan (ex-diplomat & ex-Senior Director at Kinokuniya Book Stores (Asia Pacific)) | 30 avr. 2024 | 01:04:12 | |
“Are you a masochist?” “Do you love books that much?” If you want to be a bookseller, than those are the questions you need to ask yourself - according to Kenny Chan, the former Senior Director at Kinokuniya Book Stores (Asia Pacific) - he spent ~20 years of his career there prior to his retirement! But prior to bookseller, Kenny was a foreign diplomat at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore, where he was posted to London as their Trade and Culture Attache. He then switched to bookselling, first at Popular Holdings Limited, then MPH Bookstores Sdn Bhd, and back again at Popular when they launched their IPO! And finally interviewed for a position at Kinokuniya. The President & Chairman of Kinokuniya flew from Japan to Singapore to conduct the interview and asked Kenny just one question: “Do you love books?” As it turns out, Kenny gave me the exact answer he was looking for! And even after retirement, Kenny remains deep in the bookselling world. If you haven’t already guessed it, Kenny is the latest guest on STIMY! And we dive deep into all things books & the art of evangelising. ❓Why does Kenny not judge people by their educational level? ❓Why did he initially become a foreign diplomat? ❓What was it like opening bookstores throughout Asia Pacific, Dubai and New York? ❓What was it like working at his dream company? ❓What is the secret to buying books & why is bookselling a spiritual experience? ❓How can aspiring authors can get Kenny’s attention? Are you intrigued yet? The YouTube version is out now too. 😎 Highlights:
🙊 Like STIMY? Buy us a ☕️?: https://beacons.ai/sothisismywhy 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/1uCeI8LOI5Y 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/145 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 144: Going viral with 500k following as an Italian Chef | Gero DiMaria Mohammed Omar (Kucina) | 31 mars 2024 | 00:52:40 | |
Gero DiMaria knows what it means to go truly viral. He's an Italian chef & owner of Kucina - Singapore's first authentic halal food restaurant. But he's also a bona fide Italian culinary superstar with over 500k followers on social media - 256k on Instagram & 252.6k on TikTok! He took the world by storm with his recent series of viral reels on choosing the best pasta/cheeses in grocery stores, and that had a real trickle down effect on his business. So we dig into all the juicy stuff, including: ❓ What does it mean to actually go ‘viral’? ❓ What kind of measurable impact has social media had on his business? ❓ What is his advice for leveraging social media for businesses? ❓ What have his toughest moments been? ❓ And who exactly is Gero?! The goal: To understand the role of social media today, what it really means to go viral & how one can leverage on that social media reach to build your own business. Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/144 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 143: Becoming Singapore’s 1st Professional Adventurer - You Never too Old to Take Risks! | Khoo Swee Chiow | 24 mars 2024 | 00:52:50 | |
Would you die for your passion? Most wouldn’t but for 58-year-old Swee Chiow, Singapore’s first professional adventurer, it’s a question he must face every day. And it all began when he caught a glimpse of Mount Everest from a plane. He was working in IT (Singapore Airlines) then, but he decided from that one glimpse that he wanted to climb Mount Everest - a dream that took him a mere 10 years to achieve! The journey was hard. He knew nothing. So he read many books & even went on a 10-day mountaineering course at Mt Cook that he flunked because he wasn’t fit enough! In 1998, he joined Singapore’s first Mount Everest expedition. It was a disaster at first because: ❌ Their tent collapsed during a freak storm ❌ Their first attempt at the South Pole failed as they didn’t have enough rope - the Singapore media hounded them & issued headlines declaring that the expedition had failed But they didn’t give up. Their second attempt was a success! But an exhausting one. In the midst of the media glory, Swee Chiow knew he had to take advantage of it so he immediately launched Singapore's first Antarctic expedition. Since then, he has:
Highlights:
Special thanks to Limpeh Studios (Hepmil Media) for the studio! 🙊 Like STIMY? Buy us a ☕️?: https://beacons.ai/sothisismywhy 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/143 💌 STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 142: I've Done Something Many Haven't Had the Opportunity to Do | Lucas Lu (Head of Zoom Asia) | 17 mars 2024 | 00:56:26 | |
Meet Lucas Lu - Head of Zoom Asia. And also a fellow Sarawakian! Lucas has had an illustrious career going from GM of Systems Technology Group at IBM Malaysia where they closed large deals within the first 6 months, leading to Lucas winning ASEAN Rookie of the Year - his first big recognition. He ended up staying at IBM for 10 years and won 2 Global Golden Circle Award before moving on to become:
Prior to his current role heading the Asian arm of Zoom, covering ASEAN, South Korea, Hong Kong SAR and Taiwan. While at first glance, Lucas appears to have had a very varied career, he has also been very intentional about every career move he’s made. And has had no zero regrets with how it has turned out. So we dive deep into this episode into all things career development: ❓ How has Lucas chosen the roles that he has? ❓ What is his secret sauce to climbing the corporate ladder? ❓ How should one find mentors/career sponsors? ❓ How does he plan his career & life (he has a plan for everything, including for his family members!!)? Please do listen & leave a rating & review! Highlights:
🙊 Like STIMY? Buy us a ☕️?: https://beacons.ai/sothisismywhy 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/142 💌 STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| ICYMI: The 6 Powerful Women in the Room - Jacqueline Novogratz, Lydia Fenet, Nicole Quinn, Pink Pencil Math etc | 13 mars 2024 | 00:43:10 | |
This episode is a compilation of 6 of the most powerful women featured on the So This Is My Why podcast, discussing the milestones that led them on their journey to success Ep 124: Jacqueline Novogratz Jacqueline is the founder & CEO of Acumen - a non-profit global venture capital fund that aims to use entrepreneurial approaches to address global poverty. As the OG of impact investing, she shares her experience in Rwanda and learning that the most important thing is to build something where you leave no footprint behind. And how there is no such thing as black & white. Everyone has an angel and demon within them that comes out at different times. 📍 Listen to Jacqueline's full episode: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/124 Ep 115: Lydia Fenet Lydia is the former Executive Director of Christie's New York and for 10 years, she thought it was a privilege to be working at Christie's. She never asked for more. Until she realised that you are just a number in the P&L, and you have to fight for what your worth. In one conversation, she managed to x3 her salary, obtain an international director designation and start a new department on strategic partnerships. 📍 Listen to Lydia's full episode: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/115 Ep 125: Tanya Zakowich Tanya has worked at NASA, Boeing and Hyperloop and shares her journey in making big career pivots which led to the creation of Pink Pencil Math with 2 million TikTok followers, 507k Instagram Followers & 99k YouTube followers. 📍 Listen to Tanya's full episode: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/125 Ep 79: Nicole Quinn Nicole is a General Partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners. She's known as the celebrity whisperer who's worked with the likes of Lady Gaga, Tom Brady, Gwyneth Paltrow and Jessica Alba. 📍 Listen to Nicole's full episode: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/79 Ep 77: Lily Wu Lily is a two-time 7 figure business founder who shares how she got started on her entrepreneurial journey in Australia as a teenager 📍 Listen to Lily's full episode: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/77 Ep 56: Lauren Hom Lauren is a California-born designer, illustrator & hand lettering artist with a 250k strong following on Instagram. She is known for her use of bright colour palettes & playful letterings and has worked for clients such as Starbucks, YouTube, TIME Magazine, Google and AT&T. She has also been recognised by Communications Arts, the Art Directors Club, the One Club, the Type Directors Club and the Webby Awards She shares how she's built her enviable artistic career including with Daily Dishonesty. 📍 Listen to Lauren's full episode: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/56 * 🙊 Like STIMY? Buy me a ☕️?: https://beacons.ai/sothisismywhy 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/ncLfbdQ7XQA 🌍 Website: https://www.sothisismywhy.com 💌 Sign up for the weekly STIMY newsletter: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/ebf231f605 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 141: Inheriting a 100-year-old family business | Fong (Co-Owner, Tong Heng) | 10 mars 2024 | 00:45:39 | |
Sponsor: Descript - an AI-enabled software that makes it possible to edit weekly videos efficiently because it transcribes a 1.5 hour interview in 1 minute - and allows all editing to be done via the transcript! To find out more: https://www.descript.com/?lmref=sjT9JA * It’s not every day that you get to inherit a 100-year-old family business, but that’s exactly what Fong Wai Kheng has done. Fong is the fourth generation of his family to run Tong Heng - Singapore’s top confectionary shop most known for its trademark 💎 diamond-shaped egg tarts. Ask pretty much any Singaporean (I did), and it feels like 99% of them will have heard, eaten and love those egg tarts! So of course, I got curious. And asked Fong if he’d be up for a STIMY interview! After all, family businesses are tricky. There is: 🍿 The legacy you’ve inherited & must now maintain 🍿 The relationships you need to navigate (you can’t split family/work) 🍿 The challenge of keeping your brand relevant (a huge issue for Tong Heng at one point until they went through a massive rebranding exercise) 🍿 All the ups and downs of keeping a business alive. A business that first came about because of Fong’s great-grandfather who fled China in 1901 (end of Qing Dynasty) to work as a coolie in Singapore. His great-grandfather eventually earned enough to start his own pushcart coffee business but… the local “gangs” came around for protection money. The great-grandfather had none, but promised to have the money ready next time. Unfortunately, the gangsters won’t hear of it. And proceeded to beat him up. Or at least, they tried too. Because what they didn’t know was that Fong’s great-grandfather had been trained in martial arts by the soldiers in the Qing Court (+ he was also 1.87m tall!). So Fong’s great-grandfather beat up those gangsters instead. 🤣 News spread. The community gathered and gifted him with a pistol before appointing him as its protector!! Want to know what happened thereafter? 😏 You’ll just have to listen to this STIMY episode with Fong to find out. Highlights:
🌟 Special thanks to Limpeh Studios for making this recording possible! If you want to do any studio recordings while in Singapore, be sure to check out: https://www.hepmil.com/limpehstudios 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/141 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/kSXxRHrWWas 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 140.2: The Secret to Picking F&B Winners & Winning Michelin Stars | Loh Lik Peng (Founder & CEO, Unlisted Collection) | 05 mars 2024 | 00:36:18 | |
Hey STIMIES! Welcome back to Part 2 of the So This Is My Why Podcast with Loh Lik Peng - CEO & Founder of Unlisted Collection. In Part 1, we covered Lik Peng’s journey from wanting to become a doctor (just like his parents) to becoming a commercial litigator and purchasing his first hotel property: Hotel 1929. The property that kickstarted his crazy career pivot. But the F&B industry is a tough place to be. You need a good dose of hard work, luck and… a talent for spotting F&B talent (which Lik Peng has!). In this episode, we dive into the intricacies of his international hospitality business, tackling questions like:
If you haven’t heard Lik Peng’s origin story, listen to the previous STIMY Ep 140 Part 1 episode first. And if you have, then stick around for Part 2! Are you ready? Let’s go. Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/140 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/w22CAJupO48 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 140.1: The No-Nonsense 'Lucky' Hotelier?! | Loh Lik Peng (Founder, Unlisted Collection) | 04 mars 2024 | 00:44:53 | |
Want to know how a lawyer became a successful hotelier with 40 hotels & 9 Michelin-starred restaurants in Singapore, London, Ireland, Shanghai & Sydney?! Look no further than today’s STIMY guest: Loh Lik Peng, the founder of Unlisted Collection. Lik Peng grew up expecting to be a doctor, like his parents. But ended up practising as a commercial litigator for 3 years. During that time, the world was hit with the Asian Financial Crisis and a rundown property called Hotel 1929 came onto the Singapore property market. Hotel 1929 was located in Singapore’s red light district and Lik Peng saw potential in it, so he took a year off from law to develop the hotel with the full intention of going back to being a lawyer thereafter. But life didn’t turn out that way. He ended up opening his first restaurant at Hotel 1929, then another hotel and restaurant, and another and… In fact, he bought so many properties in the area that his friend once remarked that the street should be renamed “Peng Road”! 🤣 Lik Peng has now become one of Singapore’s most established hoteliers (he struggled with imposter syndrome for a long time when people called him a hotelier!) despite starting out by taking projects “by the seat of his pants”. And his Michelin-starred restaurants include: ⭐️: Burnt Ends, Marguerite, Nouri ⭐️⭐️: Cloudstreet, Da Terre ⭐️⭐️⭐️: Zen So do you want to know how he did it? Let’s go! P/S: This is Part 1 out of 2 of Lik Peng’s episode (Part 2 is coming out this Weds). Highlights:
Special thanks to Limpeh Studios (Hepmil Media) for the studio! 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/140 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/w22CAJupO48 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 139: Sneak Peek - Singapore Subseries! | 25 févr. 2024 | 00:20:01 | |
It’s finally happening! The launch of STIMY’s special Singapore subseries. Where you’ll be hearing from a range of fascinating Singaporeans/Singapore-based tech leaders, entrepreneurs, and daredevil adventurers on how they’ve built their careers, their journey in finding their why and the legacy that they want to leave behind (if any!). We ran the whole gamut: the media broadcasting space, F&B (what it takes to build an empire of nine 1 - 3 Michelin Starred restaurants + inheriting a 100+ year confectionary brand), hospitality, tech and so much more. To whet your appetite, you’re getting snippets from some of the guests that you’ll be meeting over the next few weeks. Are you excited? I know I am! 😉 * Also a special shoutout to Karl Mak (STIMY Ep 55) & his team at Hepmil. They’re the ones who made this subseries possible and generously allowed me to record all my interviews over a span of 4 days while in Singapore. I definitely couldn’t do it without them - thank you Hepmil! P/S: Let me know if you’re interested in doing a studio recording in Singapore! There’s plenty of space to do so at Hepmil’s Limpeh studios. 😉 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/139 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 138: I Don't Believe in Prince & Princess Journalists - Steve Chao [x2 Emmy-nominated investigative journalist & Al-Jazeera Senior War Reporter] | 18 févr. 2024 | 00:59:15 | |
Steve Chao was just a kid from Toronto who loved reading encyclopaedias. Who later chose a career that would lead him to the middle of opium fields during harvest time surrounded by hundreds of Taliban fighters in Afghanistan. Just another “day in the life” of his career as a x2 Emmy-nominated and multiple award-winning investigative journalist and filmmaker who’s led programming for the likes of CNN, Al Jazeera, VICE, CTV (Canadian Television), CBC, ABC News, Tencent & Channel 4. Steve has also spent decades covering conflicts, including America’s longest war in Afghanistan, and produced programs and feature docs like HBO’s Traffickers, Netflix’s Midnight Asia, and Discovery Channels’ World’s Biggest Druglord. In STIMY Ep 138 - which was recorded in front of a live audience at KL Podfest last weekend! - we uncovered his journey as a war correspondent. Some things we talked about: ✅ Going undercover to report on the Honduran drug cartel, human trafficking rings, selling of Nepali ancient artefacts & a Chinese spy ✅ Being nearly crushed in Egypt during the Arab Spring ✅ Uncovering the UNCHR “mafia” & notorious wildlife traffickers in Malaysia (his feet was stuck in a fire ant hill for 5 minutes!!) ✅ The sacrifices he’s made & friends he’s lost ✅ Why Steve doesn’t believe in Prince & Princess journalists ✅ Why journalism is dying & the impact of cancel culture ✅ How he wants to raise the next generation of journalists and the vision behind his new production house, Signal Flare It’s an exciting episode so get ready for a wild 1 hour ride with Steve Chao! Highlight:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/138 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/KnoMe-pTbJc 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 137: Stupid to call myself a coach! | Simon Alexander Ong (Bestselling Author, Coach, Keynote Speaker & Business Strategist) | 10 févr. 2024 | 01:11:17 | |
Simon Alexander Ong grew up often feeling like he didn’t fit in. Which is weird when you look at his CV: He graduated from LSE before going to work at Lehman Brothers (until it fell into administration) then a hedge fund as a junior trader. Along the way, he attended a 2-day coaching seminar that transformed the way he saw coaching and kickstarted his journey into becoming a bestselling author, international keynote speaker and business strategist. His work has seen him invited onto Sky News and BBC to be interviewed, while he has been featured in the likes of Forbes and Harvard Business Review. He has also spoken at some of the planet's most successful organisations such as Barclays, Salesforces, Adobe, EY and Microsoft. And his debut book Energize, published by Penguin in 2022 became an instant bestseller, receiving endorsements from the likes of New York Times bestselling authors Simon Sinek, Marie Forleo and Marshall Goldsmith. In 2023, Energize was also awarded Book of the Year within the Wellness & Wellbeing category at The Business Book Awards! But… how did it all begin? ❓ Why does Simon believe that the best leaders are great coaches? ❓ How did he get big names like Simon Sinek and Marie Forleo to endorse his debut book? ❓ How has he built his coaching business? ❓ What gave him the confidence to take The Leap? ❓ What’s been the real game changer for his business? ❓ And why does he advise people to not wait because life has already begun? To find out, you’ll just have to listen to Simon’s episode on the So This Is My Why podcast. 😎 And to all those celebrating - Happy Chinese New Year! Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/137 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 136: I don't want to hang out with famous influencers because… [Prestine Davekhaw, Founder of MalaysianPAYGAP & Disappearing Jobs] | 14 janv. 2024 | 01:06:56 | |
Prestine Davekhaw knows how much you earn. Thanks to a viral IG platform she launched called MalaysianPAYGAP, where she has Malaysians anonymously submit [payslip verified] details about their job, including:
So you can see why people are obsessed with MPG. 😉 But what about the person behind MPG? Well, Prestine grew up in a drug-infested home with her grandmother, who was her best friend. She was told that her father was a dangerous man and that it was good that he wasn’t in her life. When she moved to the US for studies, she found herself homeless for a period. She ended up doing all kinds of insane jobs to make ends meet, including grilling 100 chicken wings in the Chicago South Side where she was at risk of being shot at at any moment! She also spent her last $900 on a camera out of desperation - she only had 2.5 weeks to make rent! But as it turns out, it was the start of good things in her life. Clients came knocking & she was doing well but... something wasn’t quite right. In 2020, she had her first taste of going viral when she published an article sharing why she was unfollowing famous influencers on Instagram - many of her clients then were famous influencers and they were, as you can imagine, not happy. Prestine shares her life journey with remarkable candidness. Not just the highs but also the lows like how she bombed her Bvlgari campaign because she was “a cocky photographer”. And how MPG came to be. Want to learn more? Highlights:
P/S: Don’t forget to subscribe to the STIMY newsletter! I share the behind-the-scenes of running STIMY, personal branding, storytelling marketing and news on a personal branding course that I’m building so that others can also their own brands on their own terms. 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/136 💌 Subscribe to STIMY Newsletter: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 135: Final day of 2023?! | 31 déc. 2023 | 00:24:45 | |
It's the final day of 2023! So I'm doing a solo episode where I answer questions that you've sent in. I hope you enjoy this episode and find it helpful. Also, if you've been following STIMY and would like to support what's happening here, please do leave a rating and review. It truly makes a difference in spreading the word about this podcast! 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 134: Build Your Why - STIMY Updates, Highlights & A Special Offer?! | 26 nov. 2023 | 00:53:55 | |
Welcome to STIMY Ep 134! Today, you have the pleasure of hanging out with me. 😉 What we'll cover today:
I'm also in the midst of prepping for a new course! Tentatively titled "Build Your Why". It's based off my learnings from working with my existing 1:1 personal branding clients, where I noticed that people often struggle with:
The course aims to help professionals build their unofficial collection of stories aka autobiography, so that you can pick and choose the stories to tell in whatever situation you're in. Apart from the course, I also highlight some of my favourite moments in recent STIMY episodes!
To subscribe to the STIMY Newsletter: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 P/S: I'll be doing a mini beta launch of the Build Your Why Course and the special offer will be available only to newsletter subscribers. So keep your eyes peeled! | |||
| Ep 133: If It’s Easy, It Must Be A Scam + Hunting for 100 Cockroaches?! | Adlin Yusman (Managing Director, Endeavor Malaysia) | 19 nov. 2023 | 01:26:38 | |
Adlin Yusman, Managing Director of Endeavor Malaysia, will work for anyone he’s hired. A huge contrast to when he began his entrepreneurial journey with the mentality of, “I pay you a salary, you work for me and you do as I say.” Which, as you can imagine, created quite a lot of issues. That said, Adlin has had an eventful life. One that’s sprinkled with a generous serving of failures and spooky occurrences (e.g. receiving a 3am call from a female ghost?!). He’s founded several startups that failed, but managed to stay friends with his former employees and investors, who don’t regret a single day of giving money to him. And has held past positions as:
So how did Adlin go from featuring a Maybach in the first edition of his luxury automobile publication to: ➡️ Making major hiring mistakes (e.g. hiring a wimp) ➡️ Hunting for 100 cockroaches ➡️ Raising USD 500k in 2 days ➡️ Working at Endeavor Malaysia, where he helps the likes of Bryan Loo of Loob Holdings in the startup ecosystem?! You’ll have to listen to the latest STIMY episode to find out! Highlights:
Fun Fact: Adlin has said that this interview contains quite a few stories that he’s never shared elsewhere before! 😏 P/S: Does anyone know where I can find Adlin’s blog?! Please send help. 😫 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/133 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/MX3BTIhi1Xg 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 132: The Inside Scoop on Asia's $30 Million Media Empire | Terence Lee, Editor-In-Chief at Tech in Asia | 13 nov. 2023 | 00:45:15 | |
Who's got the juiciest gossip on startups these days? Well. The journalists, of course! And today, we have Terence Lee - Editor-in-Chief at Tech in Asia - to share the inside scoop on their organisation (TIA just sold for a reported $30 Million to Singapore Press Holdings!). Fun Fact: Terence Lee really didn't want his position. He's an introvert & does not consider himself a natural leader. ❓So what changed? ❓How has he adapted to his leadership role & navigated through 2 brutal layoffs at Tech in Asia? ❓How does journalism work for them, e.g. determining the stories to cover, the verification process required and also balancing objective reporting with friendships with the people in the space? So are you ready? Let's go! Highlights:
📍Show notes: www.sothisismywhy.com/132 🌟 Special discount for STIMY listeners to TIA: techin.asia/sothisismywhy 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 131. Becoming The Greatest Professional Prankster - Charlie Todd [Founder, Improv Everywhere] | 30 oct. 2023 | 01:10:30 | |
Meet Charlie Todd - a professional prankster & also the founder of Improv Everywhere (a New York City-based prank collective with a twist!). Rather than pranks that embarrass people, Improv Everywhere organises large-scale pranks that create chaos & lots of joy in public. The kind of thing that’d make you go, “You’ll never believe what just happened!” E.g. ✨ A bunch of strangers ride the subway - without pants! ✨ 200 people freezing in place for 5 minutes in NYC’s Grand Central Terminal - with 37 million views on YouTube! ✨ A man going to work in his socially distanced office - located in the middle of the East River in NYC! ✨ Thousands of people putting on headphones and following the narrator’s every word: Walking backwards, freezing, slow dancing, wrapping themselves in toilet paper etc. ✨ Turning the NYC subway into a spa, complete with complimentary water, sauna station, hot stone massage & a steam room misting station... You get the picture 🤣 The key to these “pranks” is that there is no official ending to the performance. Once done, the performers just disappear. And leave everyone else behind, baffled! To date, these pranks have hit a collective view of 487+ million times on YouTube. So the obvious questions are: ❓ How did Charlie turn pranks into a career? ❓ How does he pull these crazy stunts off? ❓ What does it take to go viral? ❓ What's next? Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/131 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/hv7v_qIio78 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 130: Breaking into Hollywood - coz Asians Take Sh*t Very Well?! | Alvin Wee (Grammy, CAS & Golden Horse Award-Winning Music Mixer, Encanto) | 15 oct. 2023 | 01:00:54 | |
Meet Alvin Wee: Grammy, CAS & Golden Horse Award winning music mixer from Kuching (now based in LA)! You might've heard some of his work: 🔸 Disney's Encanto - it won the Grammy! 🔸 "Loyal, Brave & True" - sung by Christina Aguilera in Mulan 🔸 Top Gun: Maverick - with Hans Zimmer 🔸 Kung Fu Panda 3 🔸 Kingsman Series 🔸 "Arena Cahaya" - sung by Zee Avi 🔸 Video games like Final Fantasy XIII, Kingdom Hearts 2.5, Resident Evil XII, PUBG Mobile x Arcane Collaboration & Kena: Bridge of Spirits As you might have guessed it, all these achievements didn't come overnight. It took a lot of effort, grit and good luck to get to where Alvin now is. And we're diving deep into all of them. Including: ❓ What kept him going as he studied music & waited for hours at the RTM studio for gigs to come? ❓ Was Berklee instrumental to his career? ❓ How did he "break" into Hollywood & get to collaborate with the likes of Han Zimmer, Harry Gregson-Williams, Pharrell, Jay Chou & Yuna? ❓ What was it like performing (+ winning Best Original Song!) at the 53rd Annual Golden Horse Film Awards 2016? ❓ His advice for other Asians who want to "make it" in Hollywood? Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/130 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 129: Bringing Moulin Rouge & Abandoned Warehouses to Life?! | Fabien Riggall (Founder, Secret Cinema) | 30 sept. 2023 | 01:10:39 | |
What does it take to bring a movie to life & have the general public participant as actual characters in said movie?! You need only ask Fabien Riggall - founder of Future Shots and Secret Cinema. Fabien has always loved films and began his career working as a runner before becoming an assistant producer of short films. In 2003, he set up Future Shorts: A series of mini pop-up film festivals that took off in 2003. That eventually evolved into the creation of a skate park under London Bridge, where around 400 strangers showed up to become part of the skating community & be part of the murder mystery story! Secret Cinema is premised on the idea that films can be turned into large-scale real life, cultural experiences in abandoned spaces. The location and details of each World are never reveled and the film title is often kept secret (the reason for this was that it was entirely by accident!). Secret Cinema grew into such a phenomenon that it eventually sold to TodayTix in 2022 for £89 million! And some of its most famous works include: The Great Gatsby, Star Wars The Empire Strikes Back, Blade Runner and Moulin Rouge. If you're curious in learning what it takes to build a whole movement & transform the way people see and use abandoned spaces while bring film to life on an epic scale, then this is certainly the episode for you! Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/129 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 | |||
| Ep 128: The Bamboo SWAT Team | Ewe Jin Low (Founder, TENTEN & Better Bamboo Buildings) | 25 sept. 2023 | 01:15:22 | |
Imagine spending 30 years working as an architect. Then deciding to uproot your entire life from the UK to move to Bali to work in a new field of architecture - bamboo! Because that's exactly what Ewe Jin Low. When he made the big move to Bali, he worked as Lead architect at IBUKU covering buildings like the Green School and in 2018, began his own bamboo journey by founding his own bamboo architecture firm TENTEN and Better Bamboo Buildings in 2020 - a platform that shares information and insights on bamboo design. Ewe Jin’s bamboo journey to date has included designing and building more than 80 bamboo buildings in many different regions. In 2022 he published a bamboo architecture book titled ‘Bamboo Ark 1’. He continues the journey to give talks, run courses and workshops and to create more buildings and installations in bamboo. So if you're like to learn more about this relatively new form of architecture, this is the episode for you! Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/128 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Hey STIMIES! Here's a special September check-in | 10 sept. 2023 | 00:07:43 | |
Whoops. We've been gone for the past few weeks. It's been hectic here at STIMY - securing new guests in Singapore while prepping for 2 exciting guests that we'll be recording in person this week. So rather than a new episode, I'm experimenting with this new, short solo episode where you'll get updates from me on what it's like running STIMY the podcast & STIMY the personal branding company, as well as takeaways from some conversations that take place off air. In today's mini episode, I provide 4 main learnings from my recent Singapore trip (+ 40 appointments altogether!). They include:
Two upcoming STIMY guests that we'll be recording with:
If you'd like to submit your question for either Prestine or Dominic, or just want to drop a note to let me know what you think of this episode & whether you'd like me to continue doing them (+ topics to cover), just email me at sothisismywhy (at) gmail (dot) com. Have a great week! P/S: Dominic was the subject of my first viral LinkedIn post, which you can read here: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/lingyah_reflection-activity-6972349532596576256-pD-N | |||
| Ep 127: Pain Makes Us Grow | Alejandro Navia (Co-Founder & President, nft now) | 19 août 2023 | 00:50:19 | |
Alejandro Navia is the co-founder and President of nft now, the premier source of NFT content and analysis. As an advisor, coach, and early supporter of web3 and the creator economy, Alejandro has helped numerous founders and creators scale their communities and raise over $92MM in funding. Prior to NFT Now, he held leadership positions at startups and enterprises in AI, aerospace, and media, including Verizon, where I led Strategy and Acquisitions, and Elite Daily, which I helped lead to a $50MM acquisition. This is a story where Alejandro transparently shares some of his lowest moments, e.g.:
Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/127 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 | |||
| Ep 126: Rejecting $200k for the Pathless Path?! | Paul Millerd (Solopreneur, Author & Podcaster) | 05 août 2023 | 01:01:47 | |
How do you: 😳 Reject a $200k/year paycheck? 😳 Blow your life up in a systematic way? 😳 And build a pathless path for yourself? Paul Millerd - former McKinsey consultant (aka the Lean Guy) turned solopreneur, author and podcaster - would know, because he did just that. And along the way, wrote a book called the Pathless Path, which has since sold over 20k! At the time of our recording, I was just about to embark on my own Great Leap from the world of corporate law so as you can imagine, I slipped in a couple of personal questions of my own on what to expect! So if you are interested in learning what alternative career paths and lives exist, then this is the episode for you. 😉 Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/126 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/FHcKezbyv78 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 125: From Building NASA Launch Pads to 1.9 Million TikTok Followers?! | Tanya Zakowich (Founder, Pink Pencil Math) | 31 juil. 2023 | 01:06:11 | |
It takes guts to quit your job. But what if it was NASA? BOEING? Or Elon Musk’s Hyperloop One?! Because that’s exactly what Tanya Zakowich did. Tanya grew up with a fascination for space & like most kids, she wanted to be an astronaut. But unlike many, that fascination held even when she grew up, which is why she ended up studying mechanical engineering at Columbia. An internship in India helped her land a job at NASA, but she soon left for BOEING! Only to realise that at BOEING, she was just a cog in the wheel. She wasn’t being challenged. Hence her third role at Elon Musk’s Hyperloop One, where she lived the ultimate startup life. That is, until she realised that what she truly loved & cared about was her family and home in Singapore. So she gave it all up to return home. Now if you listen to this STIMY interview, you’ll soon realise that Tanya is quite the go-getter! During the pandemic, she strategically launched a new TikTok channel where she teaches maths in a fun and interesting way. Within 6 months, she hit 1 million followers! Then quit for 2 months because of the toll it took on her mental health. She now stands at 1.9 million followers. 🤯 That said, Tanya doesn’t have everything figured out. She’s constantly experimenting, learning to give up on things that don’t work to try something else again. And if there’s one takeaway I hope you’ll receive from this episode, it’s this: Failures make us stronger. Don’t let it hold you back. Now are you ready to listen to Tanya’s episode? Let’s go. 😉 Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/125 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/wclFmzVbMmw 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 124: More Than One Way to Live | Jacqueline Novogratz (Founder & CEO, Acumen) | 25 juil. 2023 | 00:51:21 | |
Jacqueline Novogratz is the founder & CEO of Acumen - a non-profit global venture capital fund that aims to use entrepreneurial approaches to address global poverty. She was also born for crisis. As the OG of impact investing, her impressive list of accolades include:
She also sits on the board of:
When she graduated from the University of Virginia, she described herself as someone who was "excited, idealistic & had dreams in your head of changing the world and didn’t have a clue how to start”. That start ended up being at Chase Manhattan Bank - despite telling the interviewer that she had no interest in banking & was only there because her parents told her to! She did so well, the then COO, Tony Triciano, wanted to fast track her career and have her be his right hand person. She said NO. She wanted to change the world. And left for Africa. There, she suffered failure after failure after failure. She learned that while she had gone to try & save the African continent, Africa neither wanted nor needed saving. But those lessons were invaluable and led her down the path of founding Acumen. Even when building Acumen felt like - in the words of Acumen’s first COO, Dan Toole - “Standing at the 5th floor of a brick building & we’re trying to build a terrace brick by brick with no safety net underneath!” So: ❓ What is it like to live a life of such purpose? ❓ Who are the people (+ life partner!) that you need to surround yourself with to keep the mission alive? ❓ Why did her mentor, John Gardner, use to say that “the key to life is to be interested. Not interesting”? Well. You’ll just have to listen to STIMY Ep 124 to find out! 😏 Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/124 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/Fzi9iVKCo_4 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 123: Regret What You Tried, Not What You Gave Up On | Dr. Giovanna Graziosi Casimiro (Ex-Metaverse Producer, Decentraland Foundation) | 15 juil. 2023 | 01:01:18 | |
Dr. Giovanna Graziosi Casimiro has had a unique career. She is the current Head of Production at Phygicode and former Metaverse Producer at Decentraland Foundation and Head of Metaverse Fashion Week. She has more than a decade of experience in digital design and the XR industry and also serves as a mentor at MIT during their Hacking Arts 2016-2018, and as a Senior Professor at SENAC University Centre, a renowned public federal University in Brazil. For Giovanna, she believes that life is a short experience. She wants to have a portfolio of experiences that really enriches her soul and mind and would rather regret what she's tried, then over what she's given up on. It's ok to fail. Just don't give up. Bearing in mind this principle, this episode digs into Gigi has led her life and the career choices she's made to date. Maybe it'll inspire you to take the unconventional step too? 😉 Highlights:
📍Show notes: www.sothisismywhy.com/123 🙊 Like STIMY? Buy us a ☕️?: https://beacons.ai/sothisismywhy 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Tribute: The King of Singapore | Adrian Tan (President, Singapore Law Society) | 09 juil. 2023 | 02:13:05 | |
Yesterday, we lost the King of Singapore. I never had the privilege of meeting him, but a year ago, I sent a cheeky email to Adrian Tan asking if he’d share his life story on the So This Is My Why podcast. In a true spirit of generosity, he said yes. And we spoke for over 2 hours! 🤯 Podcast hosts shouldn’t have favourites but… Adrian was one of my favourites. It is true. Today, Adrian’s episode has been rereleased as a tribute to him. It is the almost 💯 unedited version (minus the umm & ahhs), so you’ll hear some of the parts that didn’t make the cut the first time around in 1 full episode. I hope this interview did justice in showcasing the kind of person that he was. If you don’t know Adrian’s backstory, here are some highlights (found in the episode too): 🔥 Adrian grew up in a HDB flat that had zero concept of privacy. His neighbours crowded outside his flat every day to watch their TV & would get mad if it wasn’t available! 🤣 🔥 He was the subject of maternal gaslighting 🤣 which helped him become very, very good at English 🔥 His English was so good, he was refused a scholarship to do law and told to do English instead! 🔥Adrian ended up writing multiple bestsellers - The Teenage Textbook & The Teenage Workbook (they’ve been turned into a play, TV series & movie!) 🔥 Ironically, Adrian was very embarrassed by the success of his novels. Because he was a tough, hardened litigator but his clients just wanted to talk about his silly teenage romance novels?! 😫 🔥Despite being a lawyer, he found it impossible to stand up for himself in real life. 🔥 But he realised that he needed to start speaking up. On LinkedIn. Because it was time to strip away the “mystic” around the legal profession & that begins with lawyers becoming legal influencers. 🔥 Finally, his vow as the President of the Singapore Law Society to “fight cancer, fight my cases in court & fight for lawyers as their President, until the clock runs out”. I hope you enjoy this re-released, unedited episode with the King of Singapore. 📍Show notes: www.sothisismywhy.com/101 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/QOEeOIiQvyk 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 | |||
| Help! I Wanna Quit My Job ASAP! | Peter Yong aka Mr Money TV (153k YouTube subscribers) | 05 juil. 2023 | 00:11:20 | |
Welcome to a special Questions from the Audience episode with Peter Yong aka Mr Money TV - one of the top personal finance YouTubers in the region. In this episode, we feature questions that came from you! Which include Peter's own co-founders & staff. If you haven't done so already, do check out Episode 122 Parts 1 & 2 to learn more about Peter's journey from being a replacement child to abandoning his lucrative career (+ selling his BMW!) to go in to his YouTube business and all things entrepreneurship. Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/122 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/saQkikbcwaY 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 122 Part 2: I Am NOT Your Father! | Peter Yong aka Mr Money TV, the 7-figure YouTube Businessman | 01 juil. 2023 | 00:57:49 | |
What does it take to build a 7-figure YouTube business on personal finance? Peter Yong aka Mr Money TV spills the tea on STIMY Episode 122 Part 2. That includes telling us:
And that's just some of juicier takes. 😎 Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/122 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/saQkikbcwaY 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 122 Part 1: The Replacement Son Who Refuses to Drive a Porsche?! | Peter Yong (aka Mr MoneyTV the Personal Finance YouTuber) | 25 juin 2023 | 01:08:19 | |
Hey STIMIES! It’s time to meet the Replacement Son who refuses to drive a Porsche: Peter Yong aka Mr Money TV. One of Malaysia’s most beloved personal finance YouTubers with 153k subscribers! It’s one thing to start another YouTube channel; quite another to turn it into a thriving 7-figure business in Southeast Asia, but Peter has done just that. And today, we dive deep & personal, touching on things like how: 🔥 Peter was born to be a replacement son, which severely affected his confidence & self-esteem 🔥 His father was a gangster!! Who taught Peter to clean his gun when he was just 5 years old?! 🔥 He thought money was evil. Until he realised it wasn’t 🔥 He was thriving in his RM 250,000/year insurance job then gave it all up & sold his BMW, to go all-in with his YouTube channel. Just when his son was born. Peter has so many gems to share that I had to cut this interview into 2 parts! This is Part 1. I hope you enjoy it! Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/122 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/saQkikbcwaY 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 121: I'm OK, Man! | Dr Ong Kian Ming (Former Deputy Minister of Malaysia's Ministry of Investment, Trade & Industry) | 18 juin 2023 | 01:13:38 | |
❓What is it like becoming a Deputy Minister in a government that’s never been in power before? ❓What was the relationship really like between Malaysia’s then Prime Minister & Deputy Prime Minister, Mahathir & Anuar? ❓How does one pick a constituency and why even politics in the first place when you can make good money as a BCG consultant? If you haven’t already guessed it, today’s STIMY guest is Dr Ong Kian Ming aka imokman. He went from being a BCG consultant to a lecturer and policy analyst at UCSI University and director of the Malaysian Electoral Roll Analysis Project (MERAP). He then entered politics and eventually became the Deputy Minister, Ministry of International Trade and Industry of Malaysia in July 2018! If you don’t know anything about Malaysian politics, here’s a heads up: Kian Ming (legitimately) thought he would always be in the opposition. The then incumbent government had been in power since Independence Day for the past 60+ years! So as you can imagine, today’s conversation focuses on politics. A lot. Touching on things like why Kian Ming chose to enter politics, what it was like becoming a Deputy Minister, what went so wrong (e.g. the Sheraton Move!), why he’s setting up a PPE course and so much more. Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/121 😮 Interested in building your personal brand on LinkedIn? Just shoot me an email at sothisismywhy@gmail.com & we’ll get started! 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 120: 40 Secs to Win & The Power of Psychotic Obsession | Apolo Ohno (Most Decorated US Winter Olympian with 8 Olympic Medals & 21 World Championships) | 11 juin 2023 | 01:20:52 | |
Apolo Ohno has won 8 Olympic medals & 21 World Championship medals, which makes him the most decorated US Winter Olympian in history! He was the state champion swimmer at age 13 & national speed skating champion at age 14, but it was short track speed skating that really caught his eye. Because to him, they were like Superman! After 6 months of training, Apolo won the 1997 US Championships. He was a shoo-in for the 1998 Winter Olympics but then... Apolo grew complacent. He self-sabotaged & threw away his training, finishing last in the Olympics trials. His father was so upset, he sent Apolo to an isolated cabin at Copalis Beach and said: "You'll stay here for as long as it takes for you to figure out what you want to do with your life!" That was traumatic. Apolo decided he would give this sport a real shot & that's when everything changed. But there was a price to pay for such "psychotic obsession". He was ruthless to everyone, including himself. In this STIMY Episode, we talked about how he finds FLOW, sports psychology, self-sabotage, the importance of recovery, and being obsessive without being "mindlessly handcuffed to it". So if you want to live your life to the fullest the way an Olympic champion does, then this is the episode for you! Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/120 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 119: Building a Global Media Empire | Justin Byam Shaw (Chairman, ESI Media - Evening Standard & the Independent; Founder, Felix Project) | 21 mai 2023 | 01:07:08 | |
Entrepreneurs must be ruthless, obsessive and willing to cut corners. Something that Justin Byam Shaw, Chairman of ESI Media, would know. He co-owns (alongside Evgeny Lebedev) the Evening Standard & the Independent, and also co-founded the Felix Project - one of the biggest food redistribution charities in the UK! If you've ever been in London, you'll notice the Evening Standard lying around Tube stations. It's a 100% free quality newspaper and I'd always wondered - what does it take to run it? How do you manage to keep a newspaper free on such a scale? Well today, Justin shares it all. He takes us through his decision to: 🔥 Study classics at Oxford University - even when everyone told him it was good for nothing! 🔥 Pivot from advertising - when he realised he was terrible at it 🔥 Drop out of British Telecom within 1 week of finding a market gap to launch his own startup - at a time when it wasn't the "cool thing" to be a founder 🔥 Buy both the Evening Standard & the Independent (alongside the Lebedevs) And also his thoughts on: 🤔 How George Osborne faired as Editor of the Evening Standard 🤔 How to turn around failing media companies 🤔 Launching the The i newspaper (within 7 months of acquiring the Independent!) 🤔 The rise of superstar journalists turned media personalities 🤔 The media publication he'd be most interested in taking over & what he'd do differently! Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/119 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 118: The Uncharismatic Leader We All NEED | Chen Chow Yeoh (Co-Founder, Fave & KFit) | 25 avr. 2023 | 01:26:31 | |
Not everyone has to be a Steve Jobs. The charismatic, big picture, visionary leader that everyone gravitates towards. We also have (and need) those who execute. Who double down on the nitty gritty and ensure that things actually get done. And well Which brings me to today's STIMY guest: Chen Chow Yeoh. Speak to anyone in the Southeast Asian startup scene and they'll likely have heard of Chen Chow and have a tremendous amount of respect for him. He's an OG in the space:
But he never had a plan. 😅 Chen Chow: ❌ Was one of the top 8 people who scored the worst in his English exams at Cornell University; ❌ Didn't get a promotion at Accenture (and cried about it ☹️) ❌ Landed his role at Jobstreet by chance ❌ Was rendered obsolete in Groupon when he joined - he was hired for a sales role but by the time he finished serving notice at his previous company, that role was obsolete! But: 🔥 At Accenture, he did eventually get that promotion. By buckling down & putting in the work. 🔥 He did odd jobs at Groupon & within 3 weeks of joining, was promoted to COO! 🔥 He worked with Joel Neoh to turn Groupon Taiwan from a $1 million loss making monster to $8k in profits in 8 months! 🔥 He has never formally applied for any jobs - people always go to him But he is not like his charismatic, visionary counterpart. He just does the work. Great work, in fact. And this, is his story. So are you ready? Let's go 😎 Highlights:
📍Show notes: www.sothisismywhy.com/118 🙊 Like STIMY? Buy us a ☕️?: https://beacons.ai/sothisismywhy 💌 Weekly Newsletter on upcoming STIMY guests/interesting reads to make you smarter: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 | |||
| Ep 117: From an Intervention by the Pope to Overhauling the US Financial System, SVB, Signature Bank & Trumplestilkin | Barney Frank (former US Congressman, Chairman of the US Financial Services Committee) | 16 avr. 2023 | 01:17:51 | |
Former US Congressman Barney Frank has been described by the New York Times as "one of the people most responsible for overhauling financial regulation after the 2008 economic crisis". Little surprise, given that this acerbic politician was: 🔥 Member of the US House of Representatives (1981 - 2013) 🔥 Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee (2007 - 2011); and 🔥 Lead co-sponsor of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act - which introduced the greatest Wall Street reform in history. He hit the headlines again given the Silicon Valley Bank meltdown & ironically, his role as director at the now defunct Signature Bank. ❓ But how did Barney end up in the top echelons of politics? ❓ Why did the Pope have to intervene with his appointment to the US House of Representatives? ❓ How did staying silent about being gay impact him, and why did he decide to out himself in a Boston Globe article? ❓ How does he get along with his peers? Specifically, in his own words, "You learn how to ingratiate yourself with them and how you can help them and make them value your friendship. And that becomes particularly important when you move up." ❓And what does he think of Trump (p/s Trumplestilskin) & the upcoming US Presidential Elections? This episode is full of gems that we can apply to our own lives (even outside of politics). So do give it a listen, and let us know what you think! Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/117 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 ✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442 | |||
| Ep 116: The EPIC Life in Building Homes in 3 days?! | John-Son Oei (Founder & Chief Epic Officer, EPIC Collective) | 09 avr. 2023 | 01:00:14 | |
John-Son Oei’s EPIC social enterprise was born out of guilt. This former Rain oppa lookalike (time to check out his photos! 😏) knew the importance of giving back. Wanted to give back. But never did. And it wasn’t as though he hadn’t dabbled many things in his life prior to graduation: He’d worked retail with Polo Ralph Lauren, did video production, was a fitness instructor & a Marshall at Camp 5 (rock climbing) and even modeled (yes, you really want to see his photo now, don’t you? 😉). Yet despite all that, John-Son wanted to become a jet ski operator. A bona-fide “beach bum”, as his mother declared! Until a toilet came along. Because you see, he’d been told that while it was great to want to give back, he couldn’t stay idealistic for too long. “The moment you go into the real world, it’s a dog eat dog world.” And that troubled John-Son: “It’s not that I couldn’t be a dog. To eat other dogs. But I said, is that really what life is about?” * The opportunity to explore this ideal came when he visited an orang asli community & discovered their need for a functionable toilet. He set up a Facebook group, and 64 strangers came. Not his friends or the ones who said they were into charities, but complete & utter strangers. And that sent John-Son down a rabbit hole. He realised that we all need a purpose beyond ourselves. It wasn’t as though he, and many others, didn’t care about giving back - but that we all felt alone. And honestly, “What impact can one person have?” As it turns out? An EPIC amount. * But this won’t be a STIMY interview if we didn’t talk about the “darker sides”. The difficulties in running EPIC as a social enterprise, figuring out their business model, convincing companies that they weren’t a “con job”, the pandemic and also, how John-Son would even question his own purpose. This, despite the numerous international awards and recognition showered upon him, e.g. being accepted into the Ashoka Fellowship; Forbes 30 under 30 2016; The Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award for Dedication 2017; SME Malaysian Social Entrepreneur of the Year 2017; Tatler Malaysia—Force for Good Award; The Edge Inspiring Young Leaders Award; the Iclif Leadership Energy Award 2015; and Microsoft’s Global YouthSpark Star award. He was also Malaysia’s official flag bearer for Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee and 2012 Commonwealth Day. So if you want to know the realities of giving back to the community, why it’s important to have a purpose beyond ourselves and how you can do so too? Then this is the episode for you. Highlights:
📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/116 💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter that deconstructs how you build a portfolio career to prepare yourself for the future of work: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062 | |||