How Do We Live With Rigour In A Time of Pandemic? (Part 1)

Caveat: These opinions are entirely my own, and I share my perspectives with those with a sense of optimism and adventure. If we can't be hopeful, what's the point?

Over the weeks, I have been collecting perspectives from senior managers, entrepreneurs, and employees. The common thread is: Everyone is struggling in their own way and braving their private battles. We are faced with threats to our way of life, both work-wise and leisure-wise. The disruptions and chaos that has ensued may lead many to and review and revise the way we think. Here are three key areas to ponder over, and we will go into detail, shortly.

1) Working From Home (WFH): This is inevitable, and the flexibility of working one-day-weekly from home has expanded into a lengthy period of home-based work. This is no different where educators have to, occasionally, teach from their homes via webinars, and the like. WFH may be the ‘New Norm’ as we have to figure out how we can work best in-separation. In my interviews, many managers believe that their staff are, probably, working more productively in this situation. There seems to be more focus and concentration when employees are at their desk, whether conducting a project meeting, or attending an online workshop. When you exclude traveling time to/from work, and ‘water-cooler conversations’, the working day is better spent.

2) Competencies and Skill-sets: It would be opportune to begin planning strategically (firstly for yourself, then for your team) what your career options are. How much of your Job Description and Job Scope will change? Which skills may become obsolete? Which skills will be valued more? Which new skills will you need to adopt? If your profession and vocation runs the risk of becoming obsolete, or easily replaceable with digitalisation then which parallel professions do your current abilities and capabilities allow you to migrate to? If you were, unfortunately, subject to furlough and were laid off, what can you do to pitch yourself for your next job opportunties? Rest assured that if you have specific and endearing skills and are unafraid to venture into new pastures, you may shorten your incubation time before your next employ. Skills like selling, influencing, instructing, relationship, counseling, communication (reading, writing and mathematics, however up-sized and expanded) and negotiating, may still augur well for most industries and businesses. Now, if you are open to the ‘dirtiest and deadliest’ types of work, these will require specific training and an aptitude/appetite for such labour. You will also need to ‘fit’, and ‘fit-for-duty’.

3) Activating Your Values: What does this mean? You, often-times, hear the need to be resilient, enduring, agile, and creative. What do these values entail? Which knowledge, skills, behaviors and mindsets will you need to develop to keep you valued as an employee? Our DNA – core values – when aligned with a company’s can open doors of opportunity for us. In relationships, we need to build mutual trust and respect. We need to develop the tacit experiences and wisdom to work in/with teams? Our ability to manage conflict, confusion, distortions of the important messages, and rising expectations are points of consideration. Applying your knowledge is more valuable than gathering data and information. Almost anyone with access to the Internet can source information, but connecting to sources and resources require more than touching the keypad. We will need to remain connected with customers, partners, and collaborators and be able to appreciate the myriad ‘touch points’ that connect us with purpose and poise towards our collective future.  

I leave you with these considerations. Meanwhile, stay safe, be healthy, and decide to be diligent and discerning.

Sustaining Your Interest (Part 2/3)

After making your entry, you will proceed to the second phase called Sustaining. What will you do to stay interested? How do you keep your business running? Many people progress to a certain point, and then begin to experience diminishing gains. Generative leaps become incremental gains, or even stasis. They reach a stalemate before getting a checkmate. Distractions and disruptions usurp their sense of direction. What started off as a sprint, now, has to be paced like a marathon. Large strides have to make way for smaller, high-cadence footsteps.

From research and observation, we realize that enthusiasm begins to wane after the start of a new pursuit, position, hobby, lifestyle shift, or business. This is when engaging and activating your motivational strategies become crucial. When you begin to lose track of the bigger picture, or falter due to new challenges, then you will need to sustain your interest. How would you assure that?

1)    Fix your eyes on your expected results (eye on the achievement and accomplishment).

2)    Focus on enhancing your performance (don’t fire them, fire them up!).

3)    Earn your results through your team.

4)    Engage the your core values to help sustain you (endurance, persistence, purpose, patience, determination, optimism)

5)    Review your sense of purpose (what and why did I choose this?).

6)    Review your motivation.

7)    Monitor your energy, and notice when it begins to fade (use EFT, change your physiology, eat well and natural foods).

8)    Seek inspiration and encouragement from your mentors, teachers and guides.

9)    Encourage and assure others, especially when they are beginning to slide.

When running a race, how do you continue to feed your body, as you keep moving? Malnutrition can severely affect your physiology (mental, emotional and physical condition). It can also affect your position and business. How do you stay engaged, engaging, and engage others in the process?

Read this article by HBR about the Seven Seismic Shifts that can affect the performance of an emerging leader.

Leadership Lessons: what are your contingency plans? How do stay motivated? How are you driven by your purpose? If the expected outcome differs from your original, what will you do to continue in your quest? How will you overcome obstacles, curve balls and unpleasant surprises? What are you doing to nourish your mind and body?

There should be no dead-ends at this point of the process. Keep moving. Stop being assimilated by the environment of negativity and naysayers.

Why Do The Ironman? (Part 4)

‘A man who is a master of patience is master of
everything else.’ – GEORGE SAVILE

Patience is what you learn very early in triathlons. You will be close friends with loneliness, and being alone. Incessant stroking in the pool-lanes, long runs, and longer rides. You can get philosophical as you perform repetitive work with little promise of payment, or a promissory note. We do all these laborious work for self-satisfaction and self-fulfillment.

Triathlons – whether its faster powerful cousin, the sprint or Olympic Distance or its relative of humble beginnings, the Ironman – is a sport that tests more than three disciplines. It is a personal test of will, willpower and many other values, including tenacity, patience, determination, diligence, endurance, persistence, and sense of purpose.

It is a sport not without its risk. You can drown, break your bones, and suffer seizures. Yet, it still attracts many new entrants every year. Are these individuals, risk-takers or those with a personal death wish? Not many, as I believe that there are more extreme sports where eminent demise is a higher and likelier possibility. This sport invites 'the pedestrian of us' to shy from its allure of pain. Pain is not so attractive, when it can manifest itself from the start till the end of the race. And, we are not talking about muscle cramps (from riding or running) or a bruised cheek from a swim. We can be defeated by stomach disorders born of stress, nutritional setbacks, or a bodily meltdown. The body will fight you to surrender after a few hours of prolonged physical assault. It is only natural to resist and battle any instance of pain or discomfort.

In spite of these potential ‘let-downs’, the purveyor of the 226K-triathlon may be intrigued by the possibility of having the ‘perfect race’. A personal best time is reward enough for many; for others, it is the fact that you completed a tough course, harsh weather and testing terrain. Every course/race is different. Same course, vastly different weather patterns on another year. The variables are too many to compute accurately, and it is consistent and specific training that reduces the chances of disappointment.

There are no easy days ahead. The military special force units would state vehemently: ‘The only easy day was yesterday!’

Julie Moss's crawl towards the finish-line of the Hawaii Ironman, demonstrated part of the essence of the human spirit and allure of Ironman triathlons.

Working With Whatever Washes Your Way

Swimming in open-water (river, sea or lake) has its moments of danger and excitement. For one, there are no guides except the persons north, south, east and west of you. For another, you may not get the best visibility of what is below you. The sense of danger lurks at any moment from a swift, deft kick to the face or torso from an oblivious swimmer to strong waves that threaten to toss you over like a capsized boat.

Nevertheless, swimming in natural elements can be an achievement. Malaysia hosts the Kapas-Marang point-to-point, island-land 6.5K Swim. It is a relatively safe warm-water swim, where you need to be self-sufficient and hydrated. Survival skills for open-water is a must, and a competency that may just save your Speedo-ed behind when waters around you turn temperamental. The ability to stay calm and composed is a requirement in case the conditions for swimming change. With experience and time, and swimming with reliable swimmers you may just accomplish a deeply satisfying goal.

Leadership Lessons: How often do you switch you resilience on? How much of your values of tenacity, adaptive, choice, composure and decisiveness do you activate? Swimming through tough times may just strengthen our resolve to build the capabilities and potential of our team. Wade through shallow waters, then test the deeper waters and stroke through with smooth and fluid strokes. Stay alert to danger, and enjoy gliding through the environment for it may be supportive. Swim through the floatsam and jetsam of confusion, and make sense of it. You don’t have to understand everything, all the time.

Going Long

I found this week to be a busy one for me. In common parlance, I experienced a ‘long week’. This weekend will be no different for Coach has designed my program to comprise longer sessions, with immediate runs off the ride, and longer running sessions. I have been tossed the ‘bricks’ (two disciplines done back-to-back).

This morning, with minimal sleep for the last 48 hours I rode 4.5 hours (easy/moderate/hard) followed by 45 minutes of running in the pool. I coincided my ride with friends from TriFam (Desmond, Hui Koon, Matthew, Craig, Robert and Conrad). I caught up with them after my late start, and did three loops of Selarang (30K each with some mild hills) and the dreaded Hendon Road hill (a nice spanner to thrown in after hitting Selarang Hill). I was supposed to run on the road, however decided to play it safe as I was not sure of the physical condition of my left heel (residual plantar fasciitis?). By far, in the last two meso-cycles today has to be my longest session I have undertaken. I missed a similar cycle last week as rain wiped out any chance I had for a similar hard ‘hit’.

I have found that riding solo (save for other riders I meet on my ride) develops my sense of independence and alertness. It is also a useful simulation of race-day conditions: no-drafting and keeping to 7-10 metre rule; focus on nutrition and pacing; playing its strategically, as it is all about the marathon, not the ego.

On Sunday, I will have two sessions for running: A two-hour morning run (with intervals), and a shorter afternoon/evening (with short bursts). I look forward to the discipline in my pacing and accessing how my body holds after a 15-hour week (within a tight working schedule). Coach focused me on running stronger off the bike, as that has been my relative weakness within an Ironman race. He believes I can hold a 4:50-5:00 minutes/K pace, and score a sub-4 hour marathon that has eluded me for years. I have my work cut out for me for the remaining 6 weeks till I arrive in Lake Taupo, Auckland.

Leadership Lessons: What is your comfort level about working alone? How well do you take to autonomy? How do you take to prolonged projects? How do you respond to extensions on deadlines? How tolerant are you of delays, distractions and indecisiveness? Endurance, tenacity, persistence and determination are values to latch on when going long and far.

Circa 2012: Leadership Now

‘I love the smell of napalm in the morning!’ ~ Captain Willard, Apocalypse Now

To lead is to influence. When we influence others, we are taking the lead. So, be influential.

With the epic failure of corporate leadership in developed countries, we are responsible for reviewing, rethinking and reconfiguring leadership.

Leadership has succeeded. Leadership has failed. The balance sheet does not look encouraging. Where leadership is expected to be clear, committed and competent, instead we perceive confusion, indifference and incompetency.

Do you question the ludicrousness of corporate leadership where an enticing package awaits those who resign or who are asked to resign? Shame on the promoters and perpetrators of ‘false’ leadership! Resignation is such a cop-out. Real leadership expresses itself with diligence, discernment and decisiveness. Stick to your guns, and not gun the stick!

The values of leaders need to be audited: Not only by others, but also by themselves. Is conscience a static thing? Do moral codes stay the same way? Is character a measure of a leader? Who measures the fibre, values, beliefs, behaviors, pre-judgements, instincts and perceptions of leaders? Certainly not only by the experts or the impertinent.

Questioning leadership is not about being perched on a moral high horse. It is the right and obligation of followers to challenge authority at times. Blind obedience and allegiance may be counterintuitive to support for a leader. Leaders build capability in their people. They support, encourage and engage followers. They do not exploit them for selfish ends.

Leadership Lessons: Be your own leader. Lead with your values. Lead with your head, heart and hands.

No Pain, No Gain is Out-Dated

I recall in the 1980’s – due to the emergence of the aerobic-dance movement – the term ‘No pain, no gain’ was successfully promoted and promulgated by actress-activist, Jane Fonda. Her mantra included ‘feel the burn’, which referred to the lactic acid searing cause by repetitive resistance work. Through time, even bodybuilders sang the song of ‘no pain, no gain’ as a means to an end. It was not funny when some muscle-heads collapsed under the sheer weight of their egos and weight-stacks.

Pain is a major indicator that something may have gone wrong within our body. Pain is detected through nerve endings and our central nervous system (brain and peripheral nervous system). Pain is detected on our skins and deep within our organs. It can be described as acute or chronic – is it sudden and short-lived, or long and debilitating?

As endurance athletes, we learn to cope with varying levels of pain and discomfort. We can build some tolerance to lower levels of pain, or by directing our focus elsewhere. Pain may indicate that we are alive, yet prolonged pain suggests a forewarning. Western medicine treats the symptoms of pain, but fails to address the organic causes of it. If we attend to the cause of the pain, we can reduce its impact on our well-being. Being pain-less and pain-free can be a precursor of a blissful state.

Deliberately creating pain for pain-sake may not be useful. There are other useful ways of inducing pain to draw upon abject lessons. Pain from physical fatigue can teach us discipline, determination, patience and tolerance. Inflicting pain on others can reflect on our poor leadership, character and lack of humaneness. Emotional pain needs to be dealt with early, for it can be crippling to almost anybody. Part of the grieving process involves managing our pain through denial and resistance; subsequently, we progress to exploration and commitment. The pain becomes distributed and diminished through time.

Leadership Lessons: Be aware of signs of pain. Pain signals possible trouble, and a need to slow down and inspect. Pain within a team can multiply, and accelerate so it has to be moderated and monitored. If this pain is due to hard work, and then the sense of achievement and accomplishment sets in then this pain is perfectly normal and acceptable. Pain that leads to relief is useful. That is why we need to resolve the conflict, or the pain nags us.

Learn By Speaking To Experts

Dr Cal Lightman is an expert on lie-detection in the hit TV series. It is based on real-life social anthropologist, Dr Ekman's work and research on facial recognition and micro-gestures.

One of the lessons in business and in endurance sports I have learnt is: Talk to experts.

This approach seems to be a common pattern among people of excellence. Virgin Group founder, Richard Branson suggested that he ‘surrounds himself with experts’. He manages this ‘team’, while they help manage his numerous businesses he has created. Macro-manage instead of micro-manage. Tap on the expert’s expertise and breadth of working experience. Learn to leverage on their lessons.

I was at Adidas retail-outlets last week, looking for minimalist shoes to train and race in. I met one of their experts, Sean who asked me questions about my running needs. He surprised me pleasantly by identifying some of my discrepancies about my feet; I had a broken toe that has caused my foot to be slightly wider. Together, we decided on the most comfortable shoe size, design and weight for my running needs. I respectfully asked him questions that intrigued me, however naïve or ignorant I may have sounded. Ask, and ye shall find.

Working with an expert such as a coach – whether in sports, business or career – can be an edifying experience. You learn much about collaboration, perspectives, and developing capability. You also learn to recognize the values of performance, respect, potential, broad-mindedness, and choice. When choosing to work with experts, interview them as you would any job candidate. How close do they fit your profile and expectation? How wide is their experience? Which unique skill-sets would you find complementary? Which personality type would you prefer? Would you prefer an astute critic, or an engaging encourager?

A coach who walks their talk is highly relevant. Being consistent in their thoughts, words and deeds is important. Certainly, coaching is a partnership. Once you engage a coach, you will need to trust them and the process. You will have to commit to the active processes of exploration, analyses and prescription. Constant feed forward and feedback are crucial pieces of the strategic equation for performance.

If you are keen to enhance your swimming performance during a race, here is an expert’s opinion.

If you would like to change your tire, and this is crucial during a race when the technical support team is not immediately available. It is important to be self-sufficient through your technical skills and working knowledge.

The Sum of All Our Beliefs

'If you think you can, or cannot - you're right.' ~ Henry Ford


Our behaviors are driven by our beliefs and values. Renes Descartes wrote that we are govern by our thoughts, words and actions. Our beliefs are our motives and motivations for what we do. Our beliefs can limit or enhance our actions, and thus our results.


Sports and sporting activities include how we involve our beliefs. If our beliefs create choices for us, then they become relevant and useful for us in our future. When our beliefs reduce our choices and flexibility, then they need to be updated or removed from our mental programming.


When you earn achievements and accomplishments, they shift our beliefs about our capabilities. Each success in our sporting endeavours springs forth new beliefs about our abilities. I have noticed that the recent recepients of the Ironman Western Australian Ironman triathlon were eager to sign up for a new race. In fact, some attempted to sign up for next year's edition, which sold out this morning within 69 minutes! For those who did a personal best, tehir mental programming suggested doing another one in the near future, so as to crack new mental and physical barriers.


Shift your beliefs, update them, and restructure them - and enjoy new results and personal success!

Films, Fans & Fortitude

My friend, Adam sat through almost 100 hours of films during a movie marathon and won S$11,000 and earned his spot in the Singapore Book of Records. I wonder if they played any abstract, art-house films that may either intrigue or annoy one’s senses. Consider this: you are already tired. They screen a plethora of films that are not your cup of tea (or Nescafe Coffee, in this case). Previously, the well-known elite-level, physically challenged runner-ultra-marathoner touched a car (with hundreds others) for several days before fatigue forced him to bow out; the prize was the car itself that the eventual winner earned held ‘in touch’ for four days. Congratulations, Adam!

Onboard my flights on my recent trip to India, I watched a couple of films: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, Friends with Benefits, and Larry Crowne. All are watchable, with the final Potter film is, probably, the most relevant film for fans since it was the last in the installment of boy wizard-to-adult wizard series. Made at a hefty budget of US$125M, it grossed more than US$1.3B worldwide. It reveals what happens to the boy-wizard who was destined to find his place in the magical universe, and have his burning questions finally answered. The dynamics of the firmly established characters makes this film highly watchable even if you missed a few episodes along the way. 'He who shall not be named' is now uttered openly as a formidable threat to the school of Hogwarts and its denizens. 

Larry Crowne is about a mid-life divorcee who is shockingly retrenched, and has to seek further education despite being highly competent in his long-time job in retail. He becomes smitten with public speaking, economics, and his teacher, while his likability makes him stand out among the younger students. Life-skills do help!

There is a celebrity snow-boarder on Friends with Benefits. Shaun White is a twice-Olympic Gold medalist in the half-pipe snowboarding over two Olympics in 2006 and 2010. Last month, we featured swim coach Sheila Taormina who is a 4-time Olympian and gold-medalist in the 1996 Games; she was also the ITU world champion in 2004. Yesterday, Singaporean swimmer Joseph Schooling qualified for our team to the London Olympic Games, when he broke the SEA Games record. The 16-year-old did very well for his showing in the pool in Indonesia. It takes heaps of hard work, sacrifice and commitment to train for years just to compete for your country.

You can glean many lessons from films – provided you focus on the abstract components. Films use a variety of devices including analogy, metaphor, fable, and allegory to express its story. Some films have noteworthy scripts, and these may be used to tie in with your presentations, meetings or classes. A film attempts to bring the conversations of worth to life to a larger audience. In the case of these three films I watched, the common thread among the onscreen characters are the values of resilience and fortitude; values that reflect many world-class athletes, too.

Leadership Lessons: What are your ‘touch points’ with your colleagues today? How much of social media do you use to connect with people you know? How often do you track the ‘signs of our times’? How sensitive are you workplace changes, environmental shifts, people’s emotions and global issues?


Photo-credits: Adam 1Armed Runner & Tony Ang

Lead With Your Values: Choice & Courage for Enhanced Performance

Your values matter! Every moment that you interact with somebody, you are expressing your values. Even during a race, you are exuding expressions of your values. Values support our beliefs, and both prop up our behaviors. Choice determines if we do something, or nothing. Yesterday morning, hundreds stepped into the holding pen of the Big Splash area to be flagged off for either an 18K or 30K run. To sleep in, or to run a hard race - what's your choice?

Courage is activated when we intend to complete a mission. This value takes on many forms: from deciding to signing-up for an event to training for it. It is expressed not just as bravery, but also daring to do something in the face of adversity and doubt. To plunge into a physical challenge while poorly prepared, is a demonstration of stupidity and recklessness. Planning, following a plan, making adjustments, considering feedback and learning from your mistakes add up to Performance. We need to measure, and measure up to expectations.

My friend, physically-challenged athlete Singapore Blade Runner activated his sense of courage yesterday. As such, many supporters expressed their recognisation for this leader in our running community. Mohd Shariff was inspired by a double-amputee world-class sprinter when he lost his left stump in 2008; and he now runs for many worthwhile and worthy causes. His leadership value saved his life when he switched his perspective – I am proud to call him my friend and one of my running inspirations.

Leadership Lessons: Which value are you expressing at this moment? Which values are parts of your signature? How do you breathe life into your personal values? How do you express yourself clearly as a leader? Who inspires you, and which part of their expression affects you positively? Do you sell with your values, or is it just another transaction?

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Yesterday’s morning race yielded a windfall of photographs for me - thank you, my friends for your consideration! I was so intent on completing the tough race that I was less aware of my surroundings at some points. One friend teased me as being proud, as I did not respond to his call. I was nursing early symptoms of a cough that I refocused my energies to other mind games; thus, I occasionally overlooked external cues. Perhaps it is time for me to get a new set of eyeshades, to give the illusion that I am watching my surrounds.

My focus throughout the two-loop challenge was to focus on my running gait, being relaxed, and engaging my intuition. I hoped to marry all these factors and have a good performance. I am pleased to announce that I did, and my decision to stay alert to my internal balance, awareness and senses equated to a personal best timing.

Photo-credit: Le Giang & Teh Eng Tiong

Giving Back To Your Community

‘It is better to give than receive.’

How many of us were raised with the values of charity, generosity of spirit, care and consideration? I am sure, most of us have. Which leaves us to consider its corollary question: When was the last time you gave back to your community?

People, who challenge themselves with extreme sports and other physical challenges in order to raise funds for a disadvantaged group, inspire me. At times, these monetary collections may pale in comparison to the challenge, yet the initiator of this fund ends up bigger and brighter, for longer. And, the Tribes support these minor causes – as long as it clicks with them, and resonates with their values and beliefs.

On Twitter, we return the favour by connecting the online presence of a Follower with our followers, through Re-Tweets (RTs). It is conventional to retweet the 140-character maximum text message when you like it, and like to share its usefulness with our Tribe. The Twitter community does easily promote timely news, worthy causes, and useful information to its highly connected network. Certainly, reckless and rampant re-tweeting has its repercussions and implications since ‘one person’s meat is another person’s poison.’ By re-tweeting, we are affirming a person’s cause or preference.

Talk-show mogul, Oprah Winfrey organised a reality television series called the Big Give Back, which emphasised the human spirit of wanting to help, and philanthropy. The viewing audience may have perceived the eventual prize of $1 million as the antithesis of pure philanthropy, so it lasted for one season only.

There are ways to give back, including:

1)    Actively raising funds for a cause (organize a club-level running race, and entry is by ‘as you wish’ contribution) that matters.

2)    Conducting a free skills workshop for a ‘not-for profit’ organization, club, or community (‘teaching them to fish’).

3)    Mentoring and coaching, face-to-face, ‘at risk’ youths.

4)    Monitoring ‘online help-desks’ and helping counsel the needy, disparate, and desperate.

5)    Helping somebody extensively and effectively promote his/her cause, business, passion, or pursuit.

6)    Teach, educate and coach others in a field of your expertise (coach swimmers or runners at your local tri-club).

7)    Volunteer at a local sports event in various capacities and capabilities (handing out medals, security, bag-collection, aid-stations, sports massage, first-aid tent, road marshals, etc.).

Leadership Lessons: Giving and giving back are personal choices, not requirements. If you feel obligated to give back to the larger need, then you might want to review your intentions. Give freely of your time, effort and resources. Place yourself in a place of most potential, so you may benefit from your thoughts, words and deeds. Above all, feel good about doing good for others. May you go forth and prosper!

Awesome YouTube concert video of Trace Bundy and young guitarist wunderkind, Sungha Jung in respectful musical collaboration.

Auditing Yourself

On Tuesday evening, I did a 10K tempo run on the East Coast Park (along our artificial beach – essentially, reclaimed land). This evening, I decided to do a half-marathon tempo run prior to my trip tomorrow. I aimed to complete it at a 5:00 min/K pace. I managed to complete the run in 1:43, at an average pace of 4:55 min/K. I was pleasantly surprised, considering that I have barely run over the last few weeks, except for a 21K race and a 5K cross-country time trial within the last three weeks. My last long run was the Gold Cost Marathon on 3 July where I did a 3:32:07 (two minutes off a second BQ timing). My recent, additional riding and swim drills sessions may have engaged my body to handle more intensity for harder runs.

Throughout my long run, I kept reminding myself to be aware of several salient points:

1)    My Rate of Perceived Exertion: How I felt on a scale of 1-10, so I did not flat-line prematurely.

2)    Checked my measurements on my Garmin 310XT watch (heart rate, distance, average pace per kilometre).

3)    Leaning forward instead of upright (Justin Granger reminded me that I was reducing my speed because of the braking effect).

4)    My thirst and hydration level; as well as my blood-sugar level (I lost some steam towards the second-half of my run).

I met medical doctor, Derek Li, who was obviously running hard this evening; he is an elite age-grouper over the Olympic Distance triathlon. I also met 12-time Ironman triathlon finisher, Clifford and his partner, Min (who is getting fitter and consistent in her running sessions). As I run mainly in my triathlon race-gear, I do attract the occasional curious looks.

Leadership Lessons: Be aware of your surroundings. Conduct systems checks occasionally. These personal audits keep you in good stead, so that you do not deviate or lose focus on your purpose. How often do you audit your values and beliefs? How do you stay accountable to yourself and others?

Valuable Finds and Charitable Deeds

I found three $2 bills yesterday evening; they just lay there, unimportantly, like litter, however my curiosity confirmed that this was cold cash. With no body around, I picked the bills and decided to drop it off to charity today (with a minor ‘top-up’). Since they were not mine to keep, why not give it away? There was no loss for me, but a potential gain. Few people will know what I did.

When was the last time you gave something away? Must everything be for an abject gain? Sometimes we gain by giving things up. In negotiation, we are taught to consider what we are willing to trade, give up, and not give up. Compromise is about give and take – what will you give in order to take?

There are many things to be found at the Transition areas, T1 and T2 of a triathlon. In our haste to secure a shorter ‘changeover time’ (a term I gleaned from my days in manufacturing), we tend to chuck unimportant things aside. However, when we return to the area after area to collect our bikes, we may notice missing personal items such as the speedometer, goggles, sun-shades, excess gel packets, etc. That is why bags are provided during longer races such as the Ironman 70.3 and Ironman triathlons to reduce the chance of carelessness. Seasoned and educated athletes bring a small basket to contain all their personal items, so as to track them easily in one common place. That is why we use pigeon-holes like In-box and Sent-Box to distinguish our electronic mails.

What would possess a high-powered executive to give up a cushy job for a stint in charity? Perhaps, his personal values mattered more than his plentiful paycheck. An ex-colleague of mine did just that, and later found his dream job helping others indirectly. Sometimes, we lose in the short term so as to gain more in the long term. How do you compare personal achievement and satisfaction with financial success? Does continued economic gain buy you happiness, or is it overwhelmed by your sense of ambition or desire to prove yourself right? At the end of the day, how much does status really matter to you? When you get 'chicked' during a race or presentation, how do you respond? Chucky V writes a hilarious but poignant essay on this.

Leadership Lessons: How do you locate things and others? How connected are you to your ex-colleagues, former-clients, customers, consumers and contractors? How do you create value out of things and opportunities? How often do you return a favour? How do you discern between generosity and obligation?

Working Across Borders

Have you worked overseas? Have you considered how you would enhance your conversations with your colleagues, customers and consumers?

With the advent of the Internet, borders have shifted from physical ones to digital to psychological ones. We talk about ‘border-less’ connections, which means we are closer to somebody than we think we are. With the Six Degrees of Separation, we may be more inter-connected than we think and apply.

Having worked in about 19 countries, I continue to learn about what makes people tick differently and similarly. Differences make for uniqueness, whereas similarity builds familiarity. Finding out what matters to people can be integrated into each conversation you engage in.

Which would be useful skills and competencies when working across borders?

1)    Build courage and confidence with each face-to-face interaction.

2)    Speak to internationals and be inquisitive about their culture.

3)    When you are next onboard a plane, engage in mild conversation with the persons next to you (where appropriate).

4)    Observe how proxemics (distance), touching, and seating arrangements matter at meetings and dining.

5)    Apply values that build rapport and trust such as respect, recognition and reassurance.

6)    Asking questions when you are unsure, and especially when you think you are sure. Calibrate your understanding of people, processes and culture.

Enlist a coach to guide you: in-house, external, business, or career. These facilitated sessions can yield many new perspectives so that you can ‘venture boldly where you have not gone before!’ These coaches are sounding pads, sparring partners and platforms to launch ideas from.

Leadership Lessons: How open are you to travel? How quickly do you build rapport with strangers? How do you dissolve your self-imposed barriers to unfamiliar territories? Which are the unspoken rules when you operate across borders? Does the quality of a handshake, smile and nod make a difference?

Serious People Have Serious Expectations

This morning, I completed a half-marathon and gained a hard-earned personal best. My Garmin 310XT recorded a distance of 21.2K at a time of 1:39:36.

I am not a particularly fast runner but I think I can hold my own with the fast ones. I bumped into Poon before the race, who is a 10-hour Ironman finisher (and superb rider) and we discussed our race pace. I caught up with him early and we ran side-by-side for the first 10K before I faded in the middle chapters due to insufficient fluid intake (aid-stations were far apart). The highly competitive and mentally strong Poon, came home three minutes earlier, and alluded that he expected me to hold the pace. I cheekily replied that I did not know I was his designated pacer/rabbit, and thus it was stressful to do so with his running ability. We agreed to push the pace harder at the Bay Run in September – which buys me more time to develop a 4:30 pace strategy, and allow my mild case of plantar fasciitis to heal. Fortunately, my heels did not give me grief this morning. I suggested that he be the rabbit in the pack and I would tail him.

Looks like Matthew is recovering well from his pre-Ironman fatigue as he secured a 2-hour finish, and I knew he was holding back. This was a new route, fraught with bridges, slopes, stairs and a significant bay view. We ran past landmarks like the F1 Pit Stop, Marina Bay Sands (casino), Singapore Flyer, Floating Platform, Esplanade (arts and concert hall), and the Central Business District. The post-race recovery chat at the F1 pit stop with friends Brian, Jacky, Teryn, Jolene, Izza, Winston, Poon and Adam ‘One-Armed Runner’ was rich and gratifying.

There was a flurry of displeased adrenaline-drenched comments after I emerged from the finisher’s chute. Apparently, runners were annoyed with the lack of clear directions-signs and race-marshals at strategic junctions. The water-point was also spread wider than expected so hydration was a key issue. I surmised that the prize-giving ceremony would be compromised as leading runners ended up later in the pack due to the additional distance covered. We discussed the possibility that the eventual winners would not want to collect their prizes because they felt it as unfair to the better runners who took a wrong turn. The apologetic organisers bravely and immediately surveyed runners for their feedback. 

Having hitched a ride home, I discussed with my tri-buddy Jolene about our observations about people and their working values (mainly respect and gratitude). One topic that emerged was that people could get personal in an argument over professional matters. One may be thrilled with holding an argument based on fact, observation and perception yet others may be annoyed or threatened by it. I said that there will be haters, and haters will hate. There is not much we can do to change their perception, prejudices and perspectives unless they choose to do so. We also discussed catching people doing right, as well as wrong. If we catch people doing wrong all the time, it may breed cynicism, criticism and paranoia. Be constructive in your feedback and influence people to care about important things. Simple, yet not easy – got to start sometime, soon. This morning, Poon gave me useful feedback of my running posture which I will process seriously - as I am always eager to run injury-free and faster.

Live and let live – I suppose.

Leadership Lesson: Review your values that activate you into action. Explore new values that can enervate you and move you to accomplish new results. Learn to discern conditions where you can accept or reject outcomes and shortcomings. Empower with encouragement and constructive feedback. Correct yourself when wrong. Work towards your next better performance.

Walking Your Talk & Running Away With Your Ideas

‘Be the change that you wish to see in the world.’ - Mahatma Gandhi

Eric Clapton sang the definitive song ‘Change The World’. It is about making way for your dreams and aspirations. The Buddha taught: ‘Do good. Be good.’

If we want to experience something, we will have to initiate it. We need to start off with something others can see, hear and feel. They will need to be convinced before they decide to emulate the new behaviors. People seek meaning, their raison d’être. Without meaning, there will be no relevance or reason to change. Change must present benefits, or it will be met with indifference and stasis. Your first steps will determine the likelihood of you completing your marathon, building your new team, and achieving your goals, targets and dreams.

To promote peace, we have to be peaceful. To promote health, be healthy. To enhance quality, raise our personal and professional standards. We are likely to be more effective when we lead with our intentions and commitment. Practise what you preach. Lead and follow with values and actions.

Demonstrate through your actions. Be the change you want to see. Go out – and do it!