Glad to be back on The Breakfast Club with Keith De Souza. This time, we chatted about enthusiasm and other mindsets as key success factors at work.

When I first started Dream Catalyst 8 years ago, the naysayers were plentiful. #grateful to these naysayers for they helped me see with greater clarity my “why” of forging my path. #grateful to the small group of champions whose encouragement and support provided the impetus to always move forward.

I coined the term Dream Catalyst around 15 years when I was going through a painful period. I told myself I will continue to believe in possibilities of dreams and also to continue being a catalyst to help others actualise their brighter better bigger dreams too. It was my mission statement.

Grateful to have the opportunity to partner awesome clients who allow us to value create.

Looking forward to continue journeying with progressive business leaders and teams to intentionally design a business culture blueprint for success and which allows their teams to thrive.

It’s a wrap! Thank you Lifelong Learning Institute for the opportunity to partner you for this year’s #lifelonglearningfestival2017. Thank you Learn SG for supporting our Growth Series of 8 different sessions for personal development and professional growth.

As a consultant and learning facilitator, it gives me awesome joy when others embrace learning. There’s lots of other things one could be doing after a working day. Yet the participants made time to learn and some of them have been consistently attending all the sessions in the series.

Facilitating 8 evening sessions within 4 weeks was at times a stretch for us because some workdays started at 5am. Yet when evening time arrives, the #smiles and #enthusiasm of the participants energises us!

Participants also took the time to write us emails to share their thoughts on the sessions. These made our day as their sharing helps us to continuously value create in what we do. Here are some insights received:

• On behalf of my friends whom I asked to join me in these workshops, I would like to thank you & your team of various speakers/facilitators/co-ordinators/cameraman, for all your efforts in making the workshops possible.  You and your team have truly been amazing! I must say that throughout my career with various MNCs, I have been sent to various corporate trainings both abroad and here locally, and none, I must say, can surpass the way your workshop is conducted.  There was never a moment I felt bored in class!  You truly have outshined all other Speakers/Facilitators that I know!
• Appreciate all you efforts in making these events a successful and fulfilling ones. Your events are the most beneficial and wow to me..short but useful. Thank you very much.
• You leave a very good impression on us with your welcoming big smiles at the entrance and throughout the classes. It’s not easy especially after a long day work. So thank you for this.  =) I have been very blessed by the teaching & sharing of Bernadette’s knowledge,
  Hopefully we will have opportunity to meet again or work together in future soon. She remind me of “Oprah” somehow.

Thank you to our 5 co-faciliators who are experts in their respective fields Phoon Kok Hwa, Michelle Ow, Terence Chiew, Lyn Wong and Yeo Xi-Wei, #awesometeam who supported tirelessly the administrative & logistical requirements Yvonne Chua, Jasmine Chang and and TS.

And of course, thank you to the 8 groups of #awesomelearners who participated actively and shared joyfully with each other. Collective #wisdom, #synergy and #lifelonglearning rocks! Much love!

Growth Series

For this year’s Lifelong Learning Festival, we have curated a series of 90 minutes bite-sized sessions on a wide range of topics for personal development, professional growth and value creation.

Value Creation for Success

As market conditions and business environments change, value creation is critical for business and professional success in an increasingly VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, Ambiguity) world. Join us for an interactive and engaging session which explores strategies to further enhance personal performance and contribute to the team success.

• What’s the mindsets needed to be future ready?
• What are the 5 qualities needed to become a Most Valuable Professional in an organisation?

Monday 6 November 2017
7pm to 8.30pm, Event Hall 2-2, Lifelong Learning Institute
To register: http://bit.ly/valuecreationforsuccesstalk

Connect with Your Clients More Effectively

The ability to connect with customers and provide a positive customer experience is essential for greater customer satisfaction and enhanced repeated business. Join us for an interactive session which provides tips for communicating more effectively with your clients.

• The #1 quality to have to connect with your clients
• Communicate according to your clients’ preferences

Thursday 9 November 2017
7pm to 8.30pm, Training Room 1-1, Lifelong Learning Institute
To register: http://bit.ly/connectwithyourclients

Manage Your Triggers, Accelerate Your Success

Certain situations can provoke even the most rational among us into reacting and behaving differently. The ability to understand and master triggers will accelerate success and further enhance relationships. Join us for an engaging session which provide understanding on what are triggers and practical tips to mastering them.

• Identifying Your Triggers
• Designing a Plan for Positive Change that last

Tuesday 21 November 2017
7pm to 8.30pm, Training Room 1-1, Lifelong Learning Institute
To register: http://bit.ly/manageyourtriggers

Gamification: Mastering the Rules of Engagement with Employees and Clients

Games have been played since the beginning of time. We all love playing games, but we only think of it in the evenings, and on the weekends. What if incorporating games could forever change the way you interact with your colleagues, your bosses and your clients?

Explore how you can harness game mechanics, principles and designs to effectively engage your employees or customers, and break new barriers in designing unique experiences with us!

• Understand the principles of gamification, and how it affects engagement strategies
• Use game design techniques as a tool to tackle interactive challenges and problems

Thursday 23 November 2017
7pm to 8.30pm, Event Hall 2-2, Lifelong Learning Insititute
To register: http://bit.ly/gamificationmasteringtherulesofengagement

Building Future Ready Teams with Action Learning

The world is now standing on the brink of the Fourth Industrial Revolution that will fundamentally alter the way we live, work, and relate to one another. Indeed, across industries, there is clear evidence that the technologies that underpin this Revolution are having a major impact on businesses. To sustain growth amidst the challenges and disruptions in the future economy, a key imperative for organisations to be future-ready is to equip teams with a higher level of adaptability, productivity, nimbleness and performance.

The time is now for organisations to quickly to adapt their leadership development approach to build future-ready teams to “Future Proof” themselves. Join us in this talk as our speakers facilitate a discussion on leadership challenges in the VUCA world and how organisations can thrive in the VUCA world through Action Learning.

• Leadership challenges in the VUCA world
• Harnessing the power of action learning to develop teams
• Get to experience a hands-on action learning session
  

Friday 24 November 2017
7pm to 8.30pm, Event Hall 2-2, Lifelong Learning Institute
To register: http://bit.ly/buildingfuturereadyteams

Growth Mindset for Success

As babies, we do not stop learning to crawl, to stand and to walk because we decide it is too hard and not worth the effort. We fall, we get up and barge forward. So what changes this can-do attitude for some of us as we grow up? Why do some people thrive in the face of challenging circumstances while others buckle at the first failure? In this session, we gain a perspective on what world-renowned Stanford University psychologist Carol Dweck has discovered in her decades of research on achievement and success—a simple idea that makes all the difference and creates motivation and productivity in the worlds of business, education, and sports.

• Understanding the Growth Mindset
• Applications of the Growth Mindset for Success

Tuesday 28 November 2017
7pm to 8.30pm, Event Hall 2-2, Lifelong Learning Institute
To register: http://bit.ly/growthmindsetforsuccess

Journey Within to
Your Future Self

One aspect of journeying within, is being able to identify what is truly important – what is it that is most valued? What characteristic/quality is most important to you, that will be your North Star, to guide you into a purposeful future? During the session, we will support you in this exploration and identification. As you leave the session, you will be more focused and gain clarity on how to move yourself, and your team, forward into the future.

• Understanding the Values that Drive You
• Four Questions to Ask Yourself for Clarity on Decisions

Wednesday 29 November 2017
7pm to 8.30pm, Event Hall 2-1, Lifelong Learning Institute
To register: http://bit.ly/journeywithintoyourfutureself

Facilitating Effective Meetings that Work

Meetings are necessary for group work to provide an avenue to share information, reach decisions & get jobs done. However, when meetings drag longer than necessary, with people talking over each other, tensions rising, no decisions being made or all decisions being made by one person who dominates the whole meeting, they become unproductive. Unproductive meetings lead to frustration and inefficiency.

Interested to learn how to make meetings more productive & inclusive? Join us for this interactive session where you can pick up some useful techniques to:

• Make meetings work more effectively
• Involve everyone in the meeting to generate ideas & reach agreements acceptable to everyone

Thursday 30 November 2017
7pm to 8.30pm, Event Hall 2-2, Lifelong Learning Institute
To register: http://bit.ly/facilitatingeffectivemeetings

Supported by LearnSG Seedfund:

I would like to relate an experience I just had as a customer. 

Ms Grace Chai from Bynd Artisan is one employee every business owner wants to have on their teams.

I had time today and called the Holland Village outlet. Grace patiently answered my queries regarding a product that I intend to buy. So off I went to the store. She warmly showed me the products and recommended options. Then as a craft artist, she skillfully and patiently added the foil stamping onto the cover I purchased.

Grace wasn’t a pushy sales person. Instead she just patiently shared about their products. Above all, she was certainly a brand ambassador. When I mentioned I would like to take a photo of her for my post, she asked me if her company’s logo can be seen so she can publicize the company. How wonderful is that?

So love the products and service, I ended up purchasing a wallet and cap from #gentlebones x #byndartisan capsule collection.

Sales people can learn a thing or two from her.

Not only did I became a customer, I became a fan. I uploaded photos onto my social media platforms, featured Grace on my Positivity at Work FB page and certainly will be sharing with others about Bynd Artisan.

Business leaders can think about how to create a culture where their teams are proud to be a brand ambassador. Grace is her company’s fan and brand ambassador. Her enthusiasm about her company and her pride in her work in turn is highly persuasive and happily contagious.

For some insights on how to build a progress business culture, do listen to a recent podcast interview we did: SHRI Power Profile Series

Delighted to be partnering the Lifelong Learning Institute to facilitate a workshop on Value Creation in a Changing World on Thursday, 7 September.

Please register through this link: http://bit.ly/valuecreationworkshop

The first 10 signups will receive a complimentary book by one of the speakers.

I started my watercolour painting lessons in 2012 and through the years, have gifted the paintings to family and friends and kept a few for myself. I also plucked up the courage and auctioned off a few to raise funds for various charities with great outcomes.

I painted this in 2013 as a surprise birthday gift for my boyfriend. It’s the largest painting I have ever attempted and took the longest to complete. Was pretty amazed at my patience in doing a repetitive action, it took 4 hours to paint the blue scales on the dragon.

It was a birthday gift well received and loved. He wanted to get it nicely framed but I refused. I did not think it was worth it to spend the money so I went to buy a cheap frame from Ikea instead.

Through the years, he’s gently broached the topic and each time, I have said no. Then finally, a few weeks ago, I said yes. Based on recommendations, we brought it to Framing Angie. Angie gave a few suggestions for the types of frames and we chose one.

When the shop contacted me that the painting was ready for collection, I was curious as to how it would look with the new frame. When I saw it, I turned to my boyfriend and said “I can paint”.

Through the years, I have received numerous compliments on my paintings. Yet I have never acknowledged nor recognised my own worth as an artist. Hence my reluctance to spend money on a frame that complements it.

It also got me thinking about the topic of how do we ‘frame’ our own worth and value to the people we meet and work with for professional value creation.

It became a discussion focus during a coaching session for a client a few days later. This lovely client is an absolute joy to journey with. She’s diligent, hardworking, solutions focused and exudes joy in her being and doing. My question to her was how does she ‘frame’ what she does to her management that highlights the value that she creates.

By ‘frame’, I do not mean boasting nor being an ’empty vessel that makes the most noise’.

By ‘frame’, it means how do we share in a way that connects the dots to link the various actions, activities, strategies etc implemented to the performance and growth of the company or to value creation.

For example, a number of the key initiatives she has implemented has an impact on the continued growth of the company. It was part of the strategy that she proposed in her annual operations plan. In our discussion, she realised that she has not updated her management on the progress and how the various intiatives are coming along nicely.

An assumption employees often make is that “my employer/ manager/ business leader” will know and recognise the value I bring to the team. Often times, they do. At times, they could be so caught up with their own work agendas that they may not have connected the dots.

In his book Hardwiring Happiness: The New Brain Science of Contentment, Calm and Confidence, Dr Rick Hanson an acclaimed clinical psychologist shares that “the mind is like Velcro for negative experiences and Teflon for positive ones.”

Bearing this in mind, it certainly helps for us to value our worth and choose a frame that highlights the beauty of what we do.

We had so much fun at our previous radio interview that we were back at Mediacorp for a second radio interview yesterday with Keith De Souza on 38Live The Breakfast Club.

We chatted on one of our fave topics “Value Creation at the Workplace”.

How can we value create at the workplace? How can employers create an environment that allows their employees to thrive? These are some of the insights we shared during the show.

For the full interview, you can listen here: Value Creation at the Workplace.

I have often shared about my meaningful journey as a SPRING Singapore SkillsFuture SME Mentor. The initiative aims to enhance SMEs’ capabilities in learning & development and to build up their value proposition as employers of choice offering good career development and growth opportunities.

As such, was absolutely delighted when SPRING Singapore invited me to be part of the panel discussion held during the seminar held yesterday. As an architect for business culture, the topic of placing people at the core of a business naturally resonates with me.

The seminar was held at the Regent Hotel and I was heartened by the presence of 400 business leaders and representatives from SMEs, Institutes of Higher Learning and associations.

My fellow panelists were Ms Lim Hee Joo from Wah Son Engineering and Mr Sherwin Siregar and Alex Chua from atlas Sound & Vision and it was delightfully moderated by Ms Christophane Foo from SPRING Singapore. I shared on what may stop some SMEs from investing in people and how we could influence SME top management to change their mindset about people development.

Following the discussion, the business leaders and representatives had the opportunity to network with the more than 50 SME mentors who were present at the event. Presently, there are 116 mentors with vast HR and business experience in a wide range of industries for SMEs to connect with.

To-date, fifty SMEs have completed or are about to complete the nine-month mentoring programme. So glad to see two of our clients Kith Café and Aries Fresh featured in the Hall of Fame as the early adopters of the programme. Another 55 firms are set to participate in this initiative.

Read HRMAsia article on the seminar: SMEs prioritising employee development 

It’s Mother’s Day today. I bought some flowers, breakfast items and boarded the bus to visit my mum. I spied an empty seat beside an aunty who looks like she was engrossed with typing an SMS on her phone. She and her large plastic bag occupied two seats, with the bag spilled over onto the side of my seat.

As I sat onto my seat, an uncle who was seated in the seat opposite to us took his umbrella to nudge the aunty’s bag and said, “you’re occupying two seats”. The aunty did not bother to reply the uncle and remained engrossed with her phone.

I could see the uncle getting increasingly upset, bless him. So I smiled at him and silently mouthed “thank you, it is alright”. The man seated beside the uncle saw my exchange with the uncle, and he smiled too. Then so did a few other passengers who had witnessed the exchange. The mood lightened.

My take on the situation was that the aunty was probably too engrossed with her phone that she was not even aware of the situation, that the bus had gotten crowded. And that probably explains why she didn’t even hear the uncle’s comment nor felt the nudge of umbrella. I could squeeze onto the seat so did not have an issue with it or I would have gently asked her to move her bag.

I was appreciative of the uncle’s sweet gesture and understood his perspective too. Yet I did not wish for him to have a lousy start to the day by getting overly angry. Glad my smile and thank you acknowledgement calmed him down.

After about 15 minutes, the aunty looked up from her phone and saw the flowers I had bought from my mum. She gave me a big smile and asked me if I would like another flower for my mum. Turns out she’s a volunteer and had prepared lots of flowers to give away (hence, the large bag). I thanked her and said my bouquet was enough. She smiled, wished me a great day and alighted from the bus.

When it came to my turn to alight from the bus, I thanked the uncle once more and wished him a good day. He smiled brightly.

The situation could have turned ugly. With me being irritated, a quarrel escalating between the uncle and aunty, and awkwardness all around for the rest of the passengers.

Instead, it became a pleasant ride.

The experience reinforced my belief in (1) the power of unconditional positive regards, and (2) the power of bringing forth beauty in all situations.

These are two behavious which I do my utmost to practice in my my daily living. They enable me to mitigate stressful encounters and be in control of my reactions and responses. They are also aligned to my work purpose as Dream Catalyst, to journey with leaders and teams to build great work cultures.

These are also behaviours which I encourage my clients to embrace in their daily work life. Imagine how much more engaging, life-giving and inspiring the workplace could be if more of us could practice seeking to understand instead of jumping to conclusions. If we could be more mindful of the impact of our words and actions, and choose to be more life-giving in each situation.