Last month I was invited by Halogen Foundation and the SCWO to speak at National Young Leaders’ Day Women’s Edition (NYLDWE), part of Halogen’s central effort to reach out to and influence Singapore’s young leaders.

The event brings together four women leaders to share their life stories and leadership lessons with over seven hundred young women participants. This year’s theme was ‘The freedom to be…what’s next”.

I have to be honest, I was both honored to be invited and terrified at the idea of it.

And that got me thinking about fear…

The funny thing about fear is that we can’t escape from it. We are all afraid. Every day we are afraid.

We’re afraid of missing deadlines and appointments, of running out of money, failing our exams, we’re afraid of being late, of losing our jobs, of disappointing our families. Of not being perfect.

But what exactly is it that we are afraid of? Mostly, we are afraid to fail. Because failure is scary.

Then I realised that I am probably less afraid of failure than most people – mainly because I have already failed. A lot.

I often introduce myself as someone who has failed many times because I believe it is my failures not my successes that are most significant. It is the failures that made me the person that I am today and they will continue to shape who I become.

I arrived on the morning of the event and sat in the audience at Kallang theatre. I was completely daunted by the huge stage with giant pictures of me all over it.

When I stepped onto the stage, the first thing I did was share with the audience how afraid I was when I agreed to speak at the event. I told them that even though I was afraid, I decided to do it anyway, because I made myself a promise a long time ago that I would never let fear of failure hold me back.

This is the story I shared that day:

At age 16 our family lost everything when our business in the Philippines was blown up by a volcano. My parents returned to the UK where my mum took a job as a domestic helper and my father was homeless relying on hostels to keep a roof over his head.

I stayed in the Philippines hoping to help save the business, but within a year the business failed. I felt so ashamed that I could not do more to save our business that at 17 I dropped out of college and ran away.

I eventually used up all my money and ended up living in slums. I almost died of typhoid fever before I finally returned to the UK to be with my parents.

By 20 had I turned my life around and embarked on a very exciting career as a flight stewardess for British Airways.

When I turned 24 I was happily married but in just 5 months, when I was 3 months pregnant with our first son, my husband had a serious car crash and was severely brain damaged. My life had fallen apart. All of my hopes and dreams meant nothing. I felt hopeless.

At just 25 I was in unhappy broken marriage with a baby son  and a disabled husband. And my marriage failed.

Then I met the man who would pick up the pieces. He became my best friend, my business partner and the father of our children.

In 2001 we started our first business. We worked hard and we did amazingly well, but we had no commercial experience and as we started to grow we made mistakes.

We almost landed a deal that was worth millions but it fell through and we eventually lost our business. That was my biggest business failure – and yet it taught me the most about business.

Then we started our second business – we did it differently. We were finally making it. We went after bigger deals, bigger clients. And we got them. But we did not know how to grow a business and the fast growth of the business almost shut us down.

We were down to our last £20 and almost bankrupt, before we managed to turn it around.

All of these crazy things happened to me.

I failed over and over again, yet I was not a failure – because I never gave up.

Edison said

Many of life’s failures are people who did not realise how close they were to success when they gave up.

They gave up. That is when they failed.

So now I have dedicated my life to helping others succeed. And I build communities where professionals and entrepreneurs can help each other succeed.

I often introduce myself as someone who has failed several times, not because I am proud of my mistakes but because I value failure as a catalyst for success.

I believe that only through failure can we begin to understand what success really means.

Failing is a part of life, so we need to give ourselves the freedom to fail.

Everybody fails.

Oprah was fired from her job as a reporter because she was “unfit for TV”, Disney went bankrupt four times. He was told he lacked imagination and had no good ideas.

Einstein couldn’t speak fluently as a child and his parents concluded he was mentally retarded. Edison was told by a teacher that he was too stupid to learn anything.

In 2001 Psy was fined by South Korean government authorities due to his 1st album’s “inappropriate content”. In 2010 he ran out of money to produce and release his own songs.

JK Rowling was a penniless, depressed, divorced, single mother, attending school while writing her most famous novels.

Winston Churchill failed the sixth grade. He was defeated in every public office role he ran for before he became the British prime minister at the age of 62.

Just a few examples of people who failed before they found success.

I believe that failure is the greatest teacher.

But remember:

• Failure is not the opposite of success
• Success is not the opposite of failure
• Failing is part of success

(Thank you Charlotte Ong for reminding me of this)

Failure teaches us humility. Because we are not perfect. Failure teaches us empathy. Because no one is perfect. And failure makes us stronger.

These are all lessons for success.

What does success mean to you?

Everyone’s idea of success is different. Our friends, our parents, our brothers and sisters, our teachers, our colleagues – even our partners. We all have different measures of success.

To me success is having people around me when things fall apart. It is having strength to carry on when everything is going wrong. It’s picking myself up and celebrating what I have, when there isn’t much left. It’s doing what I love for the right reasons.

To me success is having the conviction that I can make a difference and having the courage to take action – even though I am afraid.

If at the end of it all, I have touched someone’s life in some small way and made it just a tiny bit better than it would have been otherwise – perhaps then I will be a success.

Success means different things to different people and only you can define what it means to you. I believe this is one of the most important considerations of your life.

I closed with this quote by Ralph Emerson:

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”

And with a reminder to never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, EVER give up.

Here’s the full video of my speech, courtesy of Halogen Singapore:

BREAKING NEWS:

Sorry folks Business Rocks Social Media Week Edition is fully booked!
The good news is the event will be streamed live on  www.businessrocks.sg from 7:45pm – so grab a comfy chair and nice cold beer and join us! You can also follow the Twitter BUZZ #businessrocks #smwsg

MISSED OUT?

Book now for our next Business Rocks on Wednesday 27th February:

Business Rocks! Intuit Edition – ‘Life after receipts’

The super cool guys and gals at INTUIT SG have sponsored us so on Wednesday 27th ONLY your $25 now gets you – not just 2 drinks – but an open bar with standard drinks from 7:30-10pm!

Business Rocks! It’s like TED. With Beer.

This week’s Business Rocks Social Media Week Edition is just a few days away and BOY are we excited!

We invited 7 of the most talented and influential speakers on Digital Strategy to come to Business Rocks and each share 7 minutes of their insights on the world of social …
… And for some weird reason they said yes!

Here it is folks:

Business Rocks! Social Media Week Special Edition – Digital Rockstar Line Up!

OPEN AND CONNECTED 

7 Principles for a Collaborative world

1

Carlie Guy
Research & Insight Director Asia at We Are Social Singapore
TOPIC: Openness – The impact of the “tech geek” on social insight!

On Twitter:
@CarlieJ52

“Love travel, friends, good food and anything Digital. With@wearesocial as Research & Insight Director for Asia…”

We Are Social is a conversation agency with offices in New York, London, Paris, Milan, Munich, Singapore, Sydney & São Paulo. We help brands to listen, understand and engage in conversations in social media.

About We Are Social
We’re a new kind of agency that combines an innate understanding of social media with digital, PR and marketing skills. With an international team of over 300, we work with clients worldwide including adidas, Heinz, Unilever, Heineken, eBay, Jaguar, Intel, Moët & Chandon and Expedia on global, regional and local projects.

Specialties
social media, online PR, strategy, branding, marketing, advertising, conversational marketing, word of mouth, influencer marketing, advocacy programs, social media relations, buzz, blogs, blogging
We’re already helping Coca-Cola, Skype, Unilever, Expedia, Tesco, Orange, Eurostar, Absolut, and Heinz.
www. wearesocial.com

2

Yusef Hamid
Copy Editor at Digital Boomerang
TOPIC: Inclusivity – Social Media, Man’s Best Friend

Yusuf is an editor at Digital Boomerang, and loves pursuing random ideas like starting social media pages for animals or taking nude photographs of dogs and cats. He loves living vicariously through the lives of others, especially animals, and currently spends full-moons roaming the countryside as a Corgi.

Tweets on behalf of:
@Sir_Rupert_

“Rupert is the Office Manager of Digital Boomerang. Responsibilities include being taken for walks, being fed, being petted, being hugged, and being cleaned up.”

About Digital Boomerang
Digital Boomerang is a professional web consultancy offering content development, copywriting, writing, usability, user research, information architecture and other web consulting services in Singapore.

Our development team specialises in building user-friendly, user-driven websites where content is easy to find, effortless to understand and a pleasure to consume.

Specialties
content strategy, information architecture, usability, web strategy, web research
www.digitalboomerang.com.sg

3

Scott Bales
Scott Bales Mobile Chief, #1 Mobile Payments, Banking. Futurist, Blogger, Entrepreneur, Innovator, Lean Startup Ninja
TOPIC: Transparency

Scott Bales grew up with dreams of being a fighter pilot…a Top Gun influence that quickly took a back seat when he discovered the exciting and ever-changing world of technology.  Now, instead of dodging rapid fire, Bales travels the globe dodging and fighting the traditional thinking behind how customers are behaving.

A big proponent of user centered design, Bales maintains that organizations need to start listening to customers before they design a product. He shows them how customers are behaving with mobile and promotes technology as a way to create experiences, insisting that it’s more important for an organization to know the customer, not their account number.

The Chief Mobile Officer for Moven, the world’s first-ever card-less bank, Scott is a self-proclaimed extrovert who has meshed his fascination with people and what motivates them, with his enthusiasm for technology. An Australian, who currently runs the Asia Pacific sector of User Strategy in Singapore, Bales is “the most influential on social media in the advancement of financial services and mobility.” With over ten years of international experience in innovation, thought leadership, implementation planning, and strategy, he is a sought after consultant and speaker who communicates his unorthodox ideas with passion and charisma.

On Twitter:
@ScottEBales

“Scott Bales Mobile Chief @getMoven. Global #1 Influencer Mobile Payments, Banking. Father, Futurist, Blogger, Entrepreneur & Innovator, @Lean Startup Ninja
1.305342,103.824196 • scottebales.com”

About Moven
Moven (formerly Movenbank) is the complete re-imagining of the banking experience for retail customers. It is a concept that appeals to both the banked and unbanked, but empowers customers in a way that could never be conceived of by a traditional commercial bank. Moven creates a new way of engaging customers that will define retail banking for the future to come. It is not an understatement to say that this will change the future of banking…

Moven is the service you use to live better with your money… making the way you spend, save and live smarter.

Moven will be the first bank to be launched globally that has no paper, no plastic and no fees. No cards, no paper statements, no cheques (checks) just great capability, simple products, and a banging Mobile and Social capability.

Specialties
Mobile Banking, Mobile Payments, Online Banking, Peer-to-Peer Payments, Mobile Wallet, Innovation, Retail Banking, NFC
www.moven.com

4

Andrew Chow
Social Media & Public Relations Strategist
Topic : Collaboration is the New Competition

Andrew is a social media strategist with Ideamart, his latest book Social Media 247. He has produced many talk shows in mainstream media in Singapore and Malaysia.
He is also the current President of the Asia Professional Speakers – Singapore (APSS)

On Twitter:
@IdeasAndrew

“Life & Business Coach, Author & Speaker on Branding,Social Media,Public Relations, Communication, Marketing, Strategic Alliance, Personal Branding & Networking.
ÜT: 1.306637,103.790981 • http://www.andrewchow.sg ”

Specialties
Brand Communications, Social Media Training and Consultancy, Media Management Training and Consultancy, Personal Branding

5

Jamshed Wadia
Asia Pacific Social Media Strategist – APac Brand & Campaigns Team Intel Corporation
TOPIC: Co-Creation – Breaking the divide between Brands and its audience

Jamshed Wadia has over 15 years of experience in the ‘Information Technology’ industry that span areas like Product Management, Retail Marketing, Sales Management, Digital Marketing and Social Business Strategy. He holds a ‘Masters in Business Administration’ and ‘Bachelors Degree in Engineering’.

He is currently a part of the Asia Pacific Brand and Campaigns team at Intel, with his focus areas being Social Media Strategy, SEO and Intel Inside Program. He is also a certified ‘Social Media Practitioner’ at Intel and has been working in teams that have executed several innovative social by design campaigns. Prior to his current employer, Intel, he has worked for organizations like Wipro Infotech, H&R Johnson, and Tangerine.
He is an avid blogger and maintains a personal blog called ‘Igniting thoughts’ and professional Blog called ‘Corridor Conversations’.

On a personal front Jamshed is passionate about mentoring ‘Social Community Enterprises’ that have the objective of making profits but as part of their business model offer a meaningful solution to a social problem in the communities we live in.

CorridorConversations.com
JamshedWadia.com

On Twitter:
@JamshedWadia

“ Social Media Strategist @Intel Asia Pacific | Tech Marketer | Avid Blogger | Published Author | God Chaser | Views are my own here | BTW you can call me Jam : )
Singapore • http://www.corridorconversations.com”

About Intel Corporation
We are Intel Sponsors of Tomorrow™, not only through our technical innovation, but through our endless efforts in education, environmental sustainability, healthcare, and much, much more.

The range of computing products based on Intel® architecture is expanding beyond PCs and servers to netbooks, handhelds, consumer electronics devices, and more. We are the world’s largest semiconductor chip maker, based on revenue. We also develop platforms, which we define as integrated suites of digital computing technologies that are designed and configured to work together to provide an optimized user computing solution compared to components that are used separately. Our goal is to be the preeminent provider of semiconductor chips and platforms for the worldwide digital economy.

Step inside our world and you’ll find one brilliant mind after another working together in a spirit of collaboration that is simply contagious. And through this shared dedication—this culture of innovation and exploration—we do more than deliver the latest technologies. We deliver the future.

Specialties
semiconductor design and manufacturing

6

Kristine (Molnar) Lauria
Community Building, Social Media and Marketing. Sometimes I throw amazing events.
TOPIC: Networked power

Kristine is a community builder, digital media dynamo and world explorer. She began her career promoting truth and reconciliation at the Desmond Tutu Peace Foundation in NYC and took her messaging digital as the Community Evangelist at PBworks.com. In 2010 Kristine left the United States for a year on the road where she met Egyptian protesters, drove a rickshaw across India and lived with Shaolin Monks in Buddhist Monastery. You can read about the adventure at www.urbanhikers.com.

Kristine is currently runs Mission Street Media where she helps companies focus on customer acquisition, retention and community building. Off-line, Kristine runs large community events including Asia’s first Walkabout and The FailCon.  Get involved with Singapore’s startup community, check out TheList.sg – a weekly list of fun, free events in town.

www.missionstreetmedia.com

On Twitter:
@KrissyMo

“Living a simple life in a quiet town. Threw #walksg, organized #Failcon & working some digital marketing magic for awesome clients. @vlauria is not my brother
Singapore, San Francisco, NYC • www.Krissymo.com ”

7

Christel Quek (郭蕙萁)
Global Social Marketing Manager at Havas Media Group, Huffington Post Columnist
TOPIC: Agility

Christel Quek (@ladyxtel) is the Global Social Marketing Manager at Havas Media Group, the 5th largest global communications group. A fan of storytelling and campaigns which matter, Christel’s adventures include working on Social Media campaigns for DBS Bank, KLM Airlines, Intel Corporation & Toshiba Digital. Christel has a contributor’s column on The Huffington Post where she writes for the Business, Technology, and Women verticals. Christel was also a finalist in the “Best Young Talent under 30″ category by the Interactive Advertising Bureau of Singapore, listed as one of Singapore’s Top 100 Most Inspiring Women by Cozycot in 2012, and was highlighted by The Guardian as one of the top 10 digital strategists to watch out for in 2013.

Christel has been quoted on Warc, Yahoo! Finance Singapore, Tech in Asia, Social Media Today, Singtel Innovation Exchange and Marketer Pulse, and has spoken at industry events such as Ad Tech Singapore, Next Bank Asia, and The Annual Convention for the Association of Service Professionals in Life Insurance in the Philippines.

Christel has also conducted Social Media Workshops on Professional Communications & Crisis Management in both Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, and worked with brands such as Globe Telecom, Unilever, and Unilab in the Philippines.

On Twitter:
@ladyxtel

“ Global Social Manager @HavasMedia, @HuffingtonPost Business Writer http://www.huffingtonpost.com/christel-quek  Inspired by Creativity, French Wine, & Brand Stories #twitterpowerhouses Singapore • http://ladyxtel.com”

About Havas Media
Havas Media is the main media brand for global communications group, Havas. We have a simple structure that has been specifically created to promote integration and digital fluency. All of the Havas Media teams are supported by specialist units that span digital, data, mobile, content marketing, sports and experiential. These include Mobext (our mobile specialists), Socialyse (our social media specialist unit), Artemis (the group’s global data management system) and Affiperf (Havas’s global Trading desk).

Due to our simpler brand hierarchy, management team and scale, Havas is the only major communications network that is agile enough to offer our clients the option of integrated service to this level.

The company’s Meaningful Connections strap line describes how we connect brands to people and create shared value for brands and communities. It is also supported by Meaningful Brands – our unique framework to analyse and track the connections brands have with our quality of life and wellbeing. We are the only group that is able to offer a global analysis and framework on this scale.

Specialties
Digital Marketing, Content Marketing, Sports Marketing, Performance Marketing, Data Management, Social Media, Mobile Marketing, Search (SEO), Entertainment, Trading, Consumer Research, Events & Experiential

Your MC for the night

Dave Rogers
Visionary Business Coach, Motivational Speaker, Long Term Investor

Self motivated,  dynamic, and energetic, Canadian born Dave Rogers is a former bond trader, banker and since 2001 has been a social entrepreneur with business activities in Cambodia, India, New Zealand, Bali and Singapore.  Dave is the Past President of the Asia Professional Speakers Association and founding President of two toastmaster chapters in Singapore.  in 2012, Dave gave keynote presentations, personally coached, and ran entrepreneurial workshops in 22 countries including South Africa, Romania, Budapest, Australia, India, and the UK.
www.daverogers.net

On Twitter:
@continualshift

“Reformed banker – keynote speaker , investor , executive coach – play a bigger game
Singapore · daverogers.net”

YUP.

THEY’RE GOING TO ROCK YOUR SOCKS!

Media Sponsors

Instaroid makes your event memorable by allowing your guests to keep a Polaroid souvenir photo of themselves. An unusual and entertaining concept!

www.instaroid.sg

Don’t forget to watch us on LIVE STREAMING from 7:45-9pm!

And follow the Twitter BUZZ #businessrocks #smwsg

Book now for the Business Rocks Intuit Edition – Life after Receipts!

Image via the Janis Joplin Facebook Fan Page www.facebook.com/janisjoplin

Sorry folks, Business Rocks – Social Media Week edition is sold out! HOWEVER, due to enthusiastic demand, we’re holding an extra Business Rocks event Wednesday 27^th February. You can book now via our website: www.businessrocks.sg [a HUGE thanks to the team at Digital Boomerang for creating our brilliant new website!]

Oh and by the way… for this month’s event the super cool guys and gals at Intuit SG have sponsored our drinks so your $25 now gets you – not just 2 drinks but an open bar from 7:30-10pm – yeah baby!

Here’s an awesome guest post by Amanda Blum, sharing her take on the last fantabulous Business Rocks with the DB Crew!

Beer. With Ideas.

We were warned it would be weird. Told it would be random. Promised it would interesting.

Did it deliver?

Let’s put it this way. I had such a eureka moment at the last Business Rocks, I now feel morally obligated to share why the community is so freaking awesome – to share why anyone who’s curious, quirky and hungry to grow should get in on it.

Because it’s like finding a tribe. A tribe of beer loving, mad people who are keen to laugh, share ideas, and achieve what really makes them happy in life. People who just bloody go for it.

Last Business Rocks Charlotte Ong and her crazy-talented team at Digital Boomerang shared some nuggets on creating an environment where people are actually happy to go to work. A holy type of trio mixing business with pleasure with productivity. They shared unconventional practices for inspiring creativity, for recharging, for creating responsible, autonomous teams who care for each other like a family, who incidentally, create ridiculously hot-shit work. As Gina says, radical, right?

So somewhere through my second, third or maybe even forth beer, it hit me. This is what Business Rocks is all about. The gung ho who mix business, with pleasure, with productivity while being ruthlessly authentic to who they are. It’s not just an event, it’s a community; a place where you can feel inspired and feel like you belong.

It’s like Cheers, that 80′s TV show. Cue theme song:

“Making your way in the world today takes everything you’ve got.
Taking a break from all your worries, sure would help a lot.
Wouldn’t you like to get away?
Where everybody knows your name,
and they’re always glad you came”

That’s Business Rocks, that’s Digital Boomerang and that’s the type of mass movement of awesomeness we’re forming here. Get in on it.

Beer? …And ideas.

I’m super excited! Business Rocks has been selected as one of the 30+ official event partners for Social Media Week when it returns to Singapore next month and we are thrilled to be part of such a great global event:

SMW is a global conference connecting people, content and conversations around emerging trends in social and mobile media. Delivered through a network of creative conferences and streamed online through social media, SMW reaches an extensive network of people (including C-level executives, entrepreneurs, journalists, bloggers, brand managers, social media strategists, artists, activists and the technology/media digerati), connecting and communicating ideas and experiences to advance our understanding of social media’s role in society.

Hosted by AKA Asia AKA Asia an independent boutique PR firm, Social MediaWeek is a worldwide event exploring the social, cultural and economic impact of social media.The mission is to help people and organisations connect through collaboration and the sharing of ideas and information.

But hang on a minute I hear you ask! How does Business Rocks fit in?
Isn’t Business Rocks just about beer? Well … yes and no.

Here’s a short presentation about Business Rocks Social Media Week Edition!

February 19th 2013, 7:00-10:30 pm + optional beer networking till late!

REGISTER NOW
Limited seats available!

Here’s some official info about Social Media Week:

Social Media Week hosts two global conferences each year.Each conference takes place simultaneously in multiple cities around the world, with thousands of individuals and organisations working together to host panels, workshops,talks, parties and industry networking events.

Local conferences are hosted by City Organisers, who work collaboratively with leading practitioners, industry professionals, content partners, brand partners, event hosts and local advisory boards to produce more than two thousand events across 24 cities.

Social Media Week Singapore 2012 saw over 4000 registrations / 5 days / 33 events / over 3,965 tweets Over $2 million of media coverage

Putting Singapore on the map with SMW’s first ever cross-city social experiment, “Can Man Live on Social Media Alone?”

This year’s Global Theme

‘Open and connected: Principals for a Collaborative World’

There is an innate feeling in all of us to achieve progress, to advance, to solve problems. Emerging technologies have changed how we communicate and how we engage with the world around us. One voice can now ripple to millions and we can now share our passions openly and across cultural and geographic boundaries.Change is happening everywhere, start ups are disrupting entire industries and scaling their businesses globally. Groups are self organising to take positive action. Transparency, accountability, information sharing and collaboration are accelerating progress to levels never before seen.

Open & Connected will serve as a framework for the thousands of individuals and organisations around the world,to draw inspiration from and utilise to develop their own original ideas content and discussions as part of Social Media Week 2013.

Praise for SMW:

“Social Media Week is like a collective mind getting in touch with itself – an autonomous being reaching for new levels of intelligence. The facts everyone exchanges – though valuable – seem less significant than the acknowledgment we’re all thinking and caring about the stuff that matters.” ~Douglas Rushkoff, Author Program or Be Programmed.

“Social Media Week does not disappoint. It is a real-world manifestation of some of the bestthat new technology has to offer – ideas, strategies and insights shared by the people who areshaping the future.” ~Ellen McGirt, Senior Writer, Fast Company

“AKA Asia’s cross-country social experiment, Can Man Live On Social Media Alone, was the first of its kind in the history of Social Media Week (SMW). We used this experiment as the headlining activation for the SMW global press conference, not only because the content was highly engaging, but because the message was well aligned with spirit of SMW – the power of collaboration can be harnessed for greater social good. AKA Asia’s social experiment has set the benchmark for other social experiments we hope to see at future SMW’s.” ~Toby Daniels,Founder and Executive Director, Social Media Week.

Photo by Linda Nylind via The Official Social Media Week Blog

Our family are huge Lord of the Rings fans and we have been waiting for The Hobbit movie for what seems like FO-E-VA.

The big day finally arrived and we were not disappointed – the Jackson-Tolkien mash-up rocked as always and heaps of even more advanced special effects meant that the movie stole us away from the misery of the day’s reality for a sweet three hours of blissful fantasy realm escapism.

As I watched the epic tale of bravery and unlikely heroism unfold, I remembered a recent presentation by Grace Sai (local Social Entrepreneur and co-founder of The Hub Singapore) at Athena Cappuccino Connections meeting where she introduced the concepts of social entrepreneurship.

Inspired and awakened to the idea that socially responsible business is a necessity – not a choice, here are 9 quotes from ‘The Hobbit – An Unexpected Journey’ that social entrepreneurs can relate to:

1.
I’m going on an adventure! ~Bilbo Baggins

Bilbo (although initially apprehensive) bought into the romance and excitement of the journey ahead as well as the aspiration to be a victorious champion of a worthy cause. Although he lacks a natural propensity to heroism, the need to be part of something bigger encouraged him to step up as an unlikely hero.

Being a social entrepreneur is all about connecting to your cause and the overwhelming urge to make a difference. Although perhaps initially inspired by the idealism of creating change, the journey itself will probably not be as glamorous as initially expected.

By the time you realise that what you have embarked on is hugely more challenging than initially expected, it may be too late to turn back.

2.
“I do believe the worst is behind us!” ~Bilbo Baggins

After the initial thrill of being on the open road wears off, the reality of adventuring sinks in, a hero’s journey is a never ending grind. It’s an exhausting, treacherous and thankless job.  It was only after Bilbo and the dwarves experience several dangerous encounters, that the enormity of the quest became apparent. As the budding hero begins to emerge, tenacity prevails over common sense – he embraces what is necessary over what is likely or possible.

Describing social entrepreneurs, Grace Sai said “they are very unreasonable people, they are a bit crazy, they are very stubborn and they think they know the future better than anyone else. And very often they also don’t have resources  at hand, they just want to do it and they will make it work.”

With a mammoth task to tackle, few resources and little or no financial reward along the way – eternal optimism is essential for your survival as a social entrepreneur.

3.
Elrond: So that is your purpose? To enter the Mountain?
Thorin Oakenshield: What of it?
Elrond: There are some who would not deem it wise.

No matter how well thought through, planned or justified, our heroes struggled to gain support for their expedition. The elves were previously unwilling to risk their people for a battle against Smaug in Erebor and against the orcs in Moria. The White Council were disapproving of the quest, dismissive of their cause and pessimistic about the potential outcome. The fourteen adventurers were forced to decide whether to take heed of the warnings or throw caution to the wind.

To be a socially responsible leader, our decision making must look beyond ourselves to the need in others.  Solving larger social problems means going up against existing policy, being disruptive and breaking rules.

Weighing up when to take council and when to find the courage and conviction to take up arms is the bane of a social entrepreneurs existence.

4.
Bilbo Baggins: Why don’t we have a game of riddles?
Gollum: And if he loses? What then? Well if he loses precious then we eats it!
If Baggins loses we eats it whole!
Bilbo Baggins: Fair enough.

Faced with a seemingly impossible situation (and having already narrowly escaped death several times) our heroic Hobbit needed to quickly weigh up the odds of outsmarting Gollum or finding his own way out of the depths of the underground lake. Recognising that his chances were dire either way, Bilbo had to make the best choice he could – and quickly.

Social entrepreneurs seem to be obsessed with their ideas, committing their lives to changing the direction of their cause, driven by the opportunity to uproot injustice and inequality despite the risks involved.

Just like an adventuring Hobbit, learning how to calculate risk over is a critical component of survival on the social entrepreneurship journey.

5.
“I would take each and every one of these dwarves over the mightiest army.
Loyalty. Honor. A willing heart. I can ask no more than that.” ~Thorin Oakenshield

As the leader of the group, Thorin must inspire their loyalty and dedication to the cause, despite all the adversaries that lie in wait.

Although Thorin and his men initially thought very little of Bilbo and could not understand why he was Gandalf’s choice as the 14th member of the group, the Hobbit eventually earns their respect as a worthy member of the party after proving his bravery and honour.

Successful social entrepreneurs are visionaries and problem solvers who are capable of bringing their visions into reality. Essentially, they are evangelists for the cause and must persuade and influence others to be equally dedicated to the mission. In order to make change happen, leaders must select their team with great care.

Shared purpose and values, unlike skills, are pretty much impossible to train. Finding people who have ‘got your back’ are far more valuable and rare.

6.
“Saruman believes it is only great power that can hold evil in check, but that is not what I have found.
I found it is the small everyday deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay.
Small acts of kindness and love. Why Bilbo Baggins?
Perhaps because I am afraid, and he gives me courage.” ~Gandalf

Bilbo was no great warrior, he had never even wielded a sword and in fact he was not even a burglar as Gandalf suggested. Why then was Gandalf so keen to have the humble Hobbit join the thirteen dwarves? Certainly for his stealth and nimbleness but Gandalf also remembered the eagerness and curiosity about the world outside The Shire that Bilbo possessed as a child. Perhaps more than anything he believed that Bilbo’s spirit of adventure and humility would be of great value to the group.

It is said that the purity of intention is what defines a social entrepreneur. By defining and rooting themselves in ‘why’ they do what they do and finding strength and courage in purpose social entrepreneurs will do whatever it takes to make change happen.

Letting go of the ego – which encourages us to put personal gain ahead of the higher, selfless purpose – will strengthen your conviction to make your dreams happen. And remember – big change starts with small change.

7.
I know you doubt me. I know you always have. I often think of Bag End. That’s where I belong. That’s home. You don’t have one. It was taken from you, but I will help you get it back if I can. ~Bilbo Baggins

Bilbo was once perfectly happy in Bag End, smoking his pipe, stocking his larder with cheese and wine and quietly gazing over the rolling hills of The Shire. He knew little of the suffering of others and had very little empathy for the dwarves and their plight. Once his awareness was engaged and his eyes opened to see more than his own little world, he began to evolve.

Social Entrepreneurs look beyond themselves and relate deeply to the needs of others. They accept that they have a role in solving larger social, cultural and environmental problems.

Cultivating empathy is key to creating meaningful social change.

8.
True courage is not about knowing when to take a life… but when to spare one. ~Gandalf

Despite his disgust for the loathful Gollum, Bilbo remembered the words spoken by the wise wizard and was overcome with pity for the creature. He chose to act with compassion and not hatred, and to spare his life.

Einstein said, “A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”

Understanding why people behave in a certain way is not enough. Social Entrepreneurship begins when we feel compassion for the pain of others.

9.
May the wind under your wings bear you where the sun sails and the moon walks. ~Gandalf

It all started with the opening line of a book, ‘In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit,’ the story enchanted readers for 75 years before being reborn onscreen this year.

Through their adventures, turmoil and tragedy – we were gripped with their fear, distraught with their losses and heartened by their victories. Aspiring social entrepreneurs and reluctant leaders can perhaps relate to our unlikely heroes – up against the odds, driven by purpose regardless of heartache, discouragement and failure. Perhaps on some level we all want to save the world.

Ferdinand Foch says it beautifully with this quote:

The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire.

Photo credit: James Dayap, MP Boxing

I love boxing. Yes I know it’s barbaric, but there’s something spectacular about watching the inconceivable power of mind, body and spirit a human being can muster when challenged to overcome an opponent in physical combat.

Today’s fight between Pacquiao & Marquez was a heart thumping thriller from the offset, only to climax prematurely with a sensational punch that knocked the Pacman out cold in round 6. Throw in a hysterical wife, an utterly astounded audience and the hyped up overexcited commentators, it was pretty much all the drama I could handle over Sunday lunch.

In fact the only one who seemed to be taking it well, was Manny himself.

Looking back at this incredible fight, here are 6 tips entrepreneurs can learn from the indomitable spirit of Manny Pacquiao.

1. Focus, focus, focus.

Like all great success stories, Manny’s prowess in the ring is a result of an excruciating training regime, discipline to the point of insanity, razor sharp focus and fanatical drive.

“I don’t look ahead… I keep focused on my next opponent. I am looking forward to my next opponent, I don’t think past that point.”

You will not reach the top of your game with anything less than obsession. Full stop.

2. Have immense self belief (and faith in something more).

Whether you are religious or not, you will have to agree that Manny’s display of unwavering faith in his own ability and God gets him back on his feet time and time again.

“Only in death will I relinquish my belts.”

A sense of greater purpose and faith is fuel for the soul. Find it, grab onto it and never let go.

3. Learn to get back on your feet. Quickly.

In round 3 Manny was knocked to the ground by a swift right hander from Marquez. He was dazed, smiled slightly at the realisation of what happened and was able to get back up on his feet almost immediately.

“It was a good shot, but I was able to come back and take control of the fight,” Pacquiao said.

The ability to get back in action after a knock-back is even more important than not getting knocked down in the first place. Accept that you aren’t invincible and learn to roll with the punches.

4. Let your team do their thing.

Manny constantly reiterates that his job is to fight well and keep his fans happy. He never makes assumptions about what he will be doing next and even though he is the star in the ring, he is very clear that the other decisions are not up to him.

“All those who are around me are the bridge to my success, so they are all important.”

When asked after today’s match if he is willing to fight Marquez again, he immediately replied “It’s up to my promoter.”

Empowering your team and trusting them to do their job is essential. Success is never a solo game.

5. Stay grounded. Always.

Despite his incredible rise to global fame, Manny is the epitome of gratitude and humility.

Never cocky or arrogant, he has won the hearts of fans with his easy going, nonchalant attitude. He is quick to learn from his mistakes and is open and honest about his performance. He compliments his opponent and doesn’t rise to the bait of disparaging the other team.

“I was just doing my job in the ring and doing my best to make people happy.”

Never underestimate the importance of staying humble and grounded in your success.

6. Be the best loser that you can be.

Today Pacquiao fans shared the devastating moment of shock, horror and heartbreak as the Pinoy hero fell motionless at the ringside. We all breathed a collective sigh of relief as we watched him rise, stunned but still vaguely smiling and – once he gained his senses – reaching out to congratulate the victor Juan Marquez.

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum summed up the match perfectly with these words “We haven’t seen such an exciting fight in years. This fight will go down in history as a ring classic.”

Despite his loss, Manny graciously puts it all into perspective:

“That’s boxing. Sometimes you get hit.”

Apart from enjoying the movie itself I was completely enamoured with M and her no-nonsense, pragmatic and ballsy leadership. As we were driving home in the cab I jotted down a few lessons we can learn from M’s in her role as the formidable Head of MI6.

[Contains quotes but no spoilers, read on without fear my friends!]

Image via The Telegraph

007 – Leadership lessons from Agent M

001. “Take the bloody shot”

Whether you like it or not, as a leader you will have to make tough decisions. They may not be easy and you will often be faced with choices which you don’t want to make. Sometimes you need to take one for the team.

Calculate risks, think outside of the box then decide. Somebody has to.

002. “I’ll leave when the job’s done”

Commitment to delivering builds credibility. People don’t buy into what you say you are going to do, they buy into what you actually do. Bailing on your team when a project isn’t going to plan will never, ever bring you the respect you need to be a successful leader.

Even when the pressure is on, stick it out, get the job done. And do it well.

003. “I’ll find whoever did this”

Make sure your team know you’ve got their back. Trust breeds loyalty and builds the solid foundation you need as a leader.

Foster a culture of accountability without blame where everyone is equally committed and equally responsible for the successful outcome.

004. “Regret is unprofessional”

Actually that one pretty much says it all. If you make a mistake, learn from it and move on. There will always be failure and regardless of fault there is no point in dwelling. The best lessons come of the biggest failures, be grateful for the opportunity and use it to take your game to the next level.

Encourage your team to take risks and learn on the job – it will build resilience and character.

005. “Go on then, eject me. See if I care”

Know your own worth. If you know your own value you won’t live in fear. Having confidence in your ability as a leader is key to gaining the confidence in others. People can smell fear and they don’t want to see it in someone they are expected to put their trust in on a daily basis.

If you are ever put on the spot you may have to call their bluff. Don’t bullshit though – and watch the ego.

006. “I ******  this up, didn’t I” (Bond: “No. You did your job”)

Own up to your own mistakes. Once your team realise that although you can get it wrong, you are willing to take ownership and not pass the buck when things don’t go according to plan, they will respect you for it. Humility fosters more respect than arrogance especially when the decisions you made have clearly not paid off as expected.

Showing that you are in control of the situation and are able to steer things back on track will gain you back the support you need to rally your team forward no matter how bad the situation may be.

007. “To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.”

A line from Tennyson’s poem ‘Ulysses’, as quoted by M in the film. Wise words that all leaders would do well to live by.

I was honoured to have been included on a panel of experts at Singapore Polytechnic to share my experience as an entrepreneur. The students were such a bright and engaging bunch, I really enjoyed talking to them during the Q&A session.

Thanks to my friend George Mathew and his fantastic team at Servolve Singapore for giving me the opportunity to take part in this valuable session with other entrepreneurs, I learned a lot and it was a really fun day.

Here’s the lovely testimonial I received from Roy, the Senior Lecturer who makes these things happen at Singapore Poly:
“We invited Gina to speak at an entrepreneurship workshop conducted at Singapore Polytechnic and she was fabulous from the word go.

I have never seen young students get so interested in pursuing their dreams as wannabe entrepreneurs, as I did after Gina’s amazing pep talk. Gina’s honest, straightforward, from-the-heart answers struck a chord with young Singaporean teenagers and since then we cannot wait to have her back to inspire our students.” ~Sourav Roy, Senior Lecturer, Singapore Polytechnic.

Here’s a short video of me presenting my answer to the question “what makes a succesful entrepreneur?”.

Photo By: aloshbennett
Available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial license

"With great power comes great responsibility"

This week is Comic-Con, the annual geek fest in San Diego and a gathering of all things related to the comic book industry. In honour of Stan Lee, the revered Marvel Comics editor writer, this post looks at how his management style revolutionised the creative process at Marvel and how we can use the same method to manage our own teams more efficiently.

Stanley Lieber (later known as Stan Lee) joined the Martin Goodman’s publishing company as an assistant in 1939. By the early 1960s the company now known as Marvel Comics had become immensely popular and Stan Lee had worked his way up to the position of editor writer. As Lee became pressured to deliver several titles a month, he created the Marvel Method to streamline the production process.

Instead of using the traditional technique where the writer scripts the entire plot and dialogue of each story to be drawn by the writers, Stan Lee would give a loose outline of the story and the artist would then complete each scene. Once the pencilled pages were completed and approved the artist would return the pages to Lee to add dialog, captions and effects to the illustrations. While unconventional, Stan and his team not only found that working this way was extremely conducive to the creative process, it also increased productivity allowing the comic to keep up with the demand for new stories while maintaining a lean team of writers and artists.

As business owners and managers, we can learn a lot from Stan Lee & the Marvel Method. While it’s often difficult to let go of control when managing our teams, assuming that we can do everything better than everyone else is counterproductive. It also takes away the opportunity for others to learn and grow.

Here are 7 lessons on collaboration we can learn from Stan Lee:

1) Hire wisely – choose team members who compliment, not replicate existing skill sets and hire on drive and personality. Someone less experienced who is passionate about doing an exceptional job will probably deliver better results than someone more experienced with less enthusiasm.

“When you work with people whom you respect and whom you like and you admire because they’re so good at what they do, it doesn’t feel like work… It’s like you’re playing.”

2) Encourage innovation – is your way the only way or the best way to do things? Continuing to do something in the same way, just because it works is a sure fire way to fail. The best most successful companies out there are innovators. They know when to change something that isn’t working anymore – they also know what must never change.

“All of my life in comics I have worked with artists, so I’ve collaborated with them. . . . I feel, when you collaborate with talented people, they inspire you. I would hope that you spark them also. And I find that working with people whom you respect, and who are as eager as you to do things that will excite an audience, that’s the best way to go.”

3) Trust and respect your people – you hired them for a reason, so don’t hold them back from reaching their full potential. If you don’t trust them to do a good job without constant supervision you may need to consider if they are the right fit for the team.

“All I had to do was give Steve a one-line description of the plot and he’d be off and running. He’d take those skeleton outlines I had given him and turn them into classic little works of art that ended up being far cooler than I had any right to expect.”

5) Give credit where credit is due – giving people the opportunity to share the glory is a great motivator and creates a vested interest in the success of the project.  Stan Lee gave his team written credit for their work where this was previously unheard of in the comic book industry. They were credited on the splash page of each story, naming not just the writers, artists but also the inkers and letterers.

“Comic books is a collaborative medium. Had I not worked with artists … my stories wouldn’t have looked as good”

6) Don’t micromanage – create guidelines rather than rules and encourage your team make autonomous decisions that are in line with the vision and values of the business  or project. This promotes responsible decision making and accountability rather than creating a dependence on supervision.

“In the early days, I was writing scripts for virtually all the books, and it was very hard to keep all the artists busy; poor little frail me, doing story after story. So I’d be writing a story for Kirby, and Steve Ditko would walk in and say, ‘Hey, I need some work now.’ And I’d say, ‘I can’t give it to you now, Steve, I’m finishing Kirby’s.’ But we couldn’t afford to keep Steve waiting, because time is money, so I’d have to say, ‘Look Steve, I can’t write a script for you now, but here’s the plot for the next Spider-Man. Go home and draw anything you want, as long as it’s something like this, and I’ll put the copy in later.’ So I was able to finish Jack’s story. Steve in the meantime was drawing another story…..Okay, it started out as a lazy’s man’s device…but we realized this was absolutely the best way to do a comic…..Don’t have the writer say, ‘Panel one will be a long shot of Spider-Man walking down the street.’ The artist may see it differently; maybe he feels it should be a shot of Spider-Man swinging on his web, or climbing upside-down on the ceiling or something.”

7) Allow people to fail - innovation takes risk and while it’s great to reward success, celebrate failure too – it means someone cared enough to take a chance to do something differently. Create a safe test environment for new ideas and encourage your team to learn from mistakes.

“While no one is expected to leap tall buildings in a single bound, our aspiring heroes will be tested on their courage, integrity, self-sacrifice, compassion and resourcefulness – the stuff of all true superheroes.”

Stan Lee who joined the company at its inception in 1939 as an office assistant, led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.

Although Lee continues to receive credit for his brilliant storytelling and his extraordinary gift to connect with readers, he attributes his success to his ability to select and motivate artists and the process by which he led his creative teams.

How much initiative do you trust your team to take?

Photo by By Daniel Y. Go
Available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial license