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It is certainly true in Helen Keller’s times. It is truer in our times.

With the wonder of technologies, individuals as freelancers or solopreneurs can achieve what used to be done by a group of people.

That said, working alone is never something I strive to do, which is why I’ve also seek out collaboration with others.

•  Business beyond profits: Starting Dream Catalyst has rewarded me not only financially but also about making a positive impact in the world.

•  Clients as partners: Looking at clients this way has given me the opportunity to see this client grow during their 10-year period.

•  Working with others: Collaborating with others isn’t just about achieving more; but it’s about creating synergistic value for our clients.

•  Energy for energy: Collaboration goes beyond just working together.

•  Neighbours to Collaborators: Moving to Sentosa has allowed me to meet and now the opportunity to collaborate with wonderful people in the neighbourhood.

•  Jazz and Collaboration: From a chanced meeting to connecting and conversing to collaborating with a Jazz singer!

•  Showcasing Others: Another one of my favorite thing to do, showcasing a client who help a very special group of customers, parents!

•  Helping Others Collaborate: A post of mine resonated with many because it was helping others connect and seek out collaborations.

What kind of collaboration are you looking for?

A successful business rarely succeed alone. It has a network of collaborating partners, from suppliers, customers, community, and beyond.

Clients that have a culture of collaboration are also more likely to succeed than those that venture solely on their own. And in the words of Helen Keller, we cannot not collaborate in our times.

Let’s find out how we can collaborate to help your business define the right culture, establish optimal systems, and achieve revenue growth.

Learning has been an activity I pursue relentlessly ever since I started my own business. It has proved to serve me well not only in business, but also being recognised as a Mentor of Future Talents.

I firmly believe in keeping my mind sharp as I guide business leaders and clients in creating the business culture that lead their companies to greatness.

The last 8 months, I have not only learned, but also shared consistently on LinkedIn to value create for my network.

Here are a recap of the three categories of topics on learning.

1. Everyone of us learn differently. In these three posts, I share how I learn.

·      Sharpen the Saw: As a SkillsFuture Fellowship Awardee, I lead by example through lifelong learning.

·      Learning: Beyond just reading books.

·      Mentors: Getting a mentor is probably the best investment for me.

2. Here are my three key learnings from sharing more consistently on LinkedIn.

·      Learning #1: It’s not about you; focus on the audience instead.

·      Learning #2: You do not need inspiration to post often. You need more than inspiration.

·      Learning #3: No work, even if it’s something you’re passionate about is 100% fun.

3. Learning through experience is probably the most valuable.

·      Misunderstood: I learned there is no need to be understood all the time.

·      Think differently: How you can learn to change your perspectives.

·      Magical words: How this company learned these magical words to transform their culture.

How has learning helped transformed the way you lead your organisation?

The first step in transforming the culture of your business is by learning. Learning must go beyond reading, which is largely at the cognitive level. It also involves training which can help change the way your team perform. Even more effective would be to provide coaching or mentoring because this is where it helps in supporting contributory behaviours.

We can further reinforce your team’s learning through our consultancy on Systems and Processes. Contact us to find out more.

It’s been shown.

Happy workers have:

📈 Higher levels of productivity
💰 Produced higher sales
👍 Performed better at leadership positions
🤒 Taken less sick days
😊 Less tendency to quit

Having the right initiatives to build a happier workplace isn’t only smart.

It’s also great for business growth in the long run.

This afternoon was the perfect way to end the week.

Sharing with a group of human resources representatives from the Small and Medium-sized Enterprises.

That culture building isn’t expensive.

But if done wrongly will be very expensive.

What are your thoughts about the cost of culture building in your organization?

When I started Dream Catalyst, the most given piece of advice was “go and network”. So I went for various business networking events.  In my head, I knew that it was great advice but I didn’t really enjoy them.

Networking at that time wasn’t fun nor was it meaningful for me. It did not match my values in relation to work (purposeful, engaging and creating value) and so I stopped going.

This year, I decided to give it a go again at the firm encouragement of friends. But this time round, it is a totally different story. I am absolutely enjoying my networking experience and have been encouraging others to do likewise.

For those who dislike networking, here are 3 tips on how to start enjoying networking:

Tip 1: Follow Your Heart

I enjoy fun and so I decided to look for networking events that were possibly fun too. Likewise, you have to decide on what type of networking events work best for you. The following are some events I have attended in the past months which were enjoyable.

I stumbled onto LadyBoss through facebook and decided to sign up for the panel discussion. I like the relaxed feel of the event and enjoyed meeting fellow women entrepreneurs and leaders.  The conversations were light and engaging. There were also opportunities to chat about work. Perfect mix.

Jackie Yeo, the co-founder of Ladyboss, shares “In the past, many networking events which I have been to have been mostly dominated by men and it was difficult to find other women entrepreneurs to talk to. So the idea for LadyBoss events was to have events where women entrepreneurs know that most of the other attendees will be women entrepreneurs as well! It will be a place where we can find comfort in knowing we are similar in so many ways, build new relationships, collaborate and more. LadyBoss Asia though is part of a much larger vision where LadyBoss would signify a movement, one that empowers and inspires women through entrepreneurship. The LadyBoss movement would comprise of media, community, events and more throughout Asia.”

When you follow your heart and attend events that you resonate with, often times you will connect with other like-minded individuals. Such was the case with Christine whom I met at my first Ladyboss event. We hit it off so well that we met up separately for lunch.

Through her, I learnt about Flow and absolutely love the positive vibes. Chatted with Jonathan from Meggnify who shared that he started Flow to be a support group for Entrepreneurs and like minded individuals to gather and provide support for each other through the journey. “The Journey of Entrepreneurship is often tough and lonely and others often do not find it easy to understand why we are doing it. Having benefited from a support group like Flow ourselves many years back, we at Meggnify therefore decided to pay it forward and try to benefit the many other startups out there as well.”

Joining a professional body is another way to network. I recently joined Singapore Human Resources Institute as an associate member and attended its #SocialHR. Love the positive vibes and the sharing by the invited speakers.

Another way that I follow my heart to networking is signing up for seminars and talks. Am enthusiastic about ongoing learning and so, I decided to marry the both. So far, it has worked out positively. New learnings and new business opportunities have emerged.

Tip 2: Go With A Friend

During my journey to rediscover and enjoy networking, I realised that some of my friends shared similar concerns about networking. So I decided to start a WhatsApp group amongst my friends so that (1) we could share information on upcoming networking events, (2) to attend the events together for those who are keen and (3) to share resources.

One of my friends Karen Pang who offers personal concierge to help you regain the luxury of time, has found the WhatsApp group to be useful.  “Building a business, let alone a successful business takes a lot of time and drive. It’s so important to have a network of friends and associates to draw energy from and keep me going. By surrounding myself with people who share a similar drive and ambition, we are more likely to move forward as a group. Being in the WhatsApp group gives me the opportunity to instantaneously share information and even cross-sell our service and product, it also allows me to get a ‘booster shot’ of assurance and positivity whenever and wherever I needed one.”

PS: do remember to mingle and not just stick to your friend(s) the whole night. Otherwise, it defeats the purpose of signing up for that event.

Tip 3: Create Value

Like attract like.

If you intend the networking session to be meaningful, then be someone who creates value for others.

When you meet someone at an event, engage them in conversations. And be generous with information or sharing that is useful for them. The key words being useful to them, not just focus on pitching your business or products which you think is useful. 🙂

Creating value for others makes the networking experience a human- and heart-centred experience.

I found that creating value for others makes the networking experience a human- and heart-centred experience. It allows us to flow back into fundamentals of being human – to connect, engage and help each other.