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Two of the questions that I reflect on as I wind down 2017:

What are some of the most important lessons in Business I took away from 2017?

For me, 2017 was a time when I doubled down on my effort and investment on books, events, seminars and networking to find new ideas and opportunities – during a time when business is slow. Lessons learned were not only valuable for my business – on a personal level; it did tremendous job in lifting my spirit.

Recommendations: 

Online Courses:

Two of the outstanding courses I invested in this year included: Seth Godin’s The Marketing Seminar, a mind boggling learning experience about marketing and quite simply, connecting to people on a human level. It also gave me a sneak peek on what the future of education looks like.

I also enrolled in Masterclass, to learn from the best in the world on – fictional writing, cooking, acting and performing. My teachers include: James Patterson, Gordon Ramsey, Dustin Hoffman and Usher – 90% of the courses have nothing to do with what I do, but the principles taught by each of the guru were not only universal, but critical and downright applicable.

Events: 

A memorable event I paid a lot for this year was a 2 day intensive talk on the Miracles of Capital by Dr Wong organized by a good friend and mentor, Nicky Wong, where I learned about the importance of a well thought after business model, and the power of group think and collaboration in raising capitals to take your business to the next level. 2018’s  session in Brunei will be from 26-28 January. You can contact Nicky directly  here.

If you are looking for new ways to improve your business or looking to expand beyond Brunei’s border – checkout Property Hunter’s Tradescape event in KK on 17^th & 18^th January 2018. You will learn tips on fund raising, opportunities with Alipay, and insights on running successful retail business against the online market space. I had been in the audience of one of the two speakers  – Mr Chris Tan – a prominent lawyer / celebrity speaker in Malaysia who is extremely lively, funny and yet, substantial.

Question 2

If you’re in business/ working for an organization: Beyond driving a profit, how has your business impacted the community this year? 

When we are on survival mode, this is the question furthest from our mind. However, it does not diminish the validity and importance of reflecting on your businesses’ purpose and contribution to the community.

I have been privileged to be involved with Asia Inc Forum in developing a 2 day regional conference next year in Manila on 17 & 18 April entitled The Future Re-Imagined. We will be looking at the future of different sectors through the lens of Corporate Social Responsibility, Innovation, Governance and Greatness of Spirit.

Throughout this experience, I have been exposed to companies after companies with a great conscience and sense of duty that is beyond profit to affect change in the society throughout Asia. In many ways, it changes my perspective on what it means to be in business. The sense of pride and purpose the employees carry when they walked me through their company’s community projects led me to the epiphany of a far superior level of motivating staff to find meaning and loyalty for their work that money can never buy.

Lesson of the year for me?

Doing Good is undoubtedly and simply, just Good for Business! 

2017 has been a year of change and steep learning for me. I couldn’t have survived without the exposure to the incredible minds that I intentionally and unintentionally surrounded myself with.

I encourage you to do the same, and keep on learning!

Thank you.

Merry X’mas and Happy Holiday!

Here’s the slides for

Student of Life

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Best Lessons from Masterclass

For those who attended this session, I hope you will agree – this was something special.

For those who didn’t, I’m glad you didn’t get to see me tear up and choke.  : )

It’s been a tremendous privilege to have shared 8 sessions of my inner most voices to all of you.

Til the next time.

So long!

Wrote a book on Customer Service 7 Years ago:  You can download here –  The Heart of Service ebook final

The thesis was about how to become human again to serve with dignity and heart.

Reading back, the stuff written are more relevant today than ever.

Here’s a copy for your easy reading. (It was written in the Pre-Smart Phone era) hence the PDF design is not smart phone friendly (wait for my updated version!)

Next is the Slides for High Touch! A Timely 2.0 Version of the Heart of Service.

High Touch Slides

Enjoy!

Here’s the Slides for How to 10X Your Creativity

Creative 10x Slides

Enjoy!

I give to you 10 biggest lessons I learned from Inspire.

It’s been hell of a ride.

Funny how there’s a Kung Fu Panda metaphor to almost every lessons from The Journey

Hope you’d enjoy!

What has changed in the World of Media & Publishing?

Everything!

Smarter, more interactive way of content delivery. Algorithm that reads our mind, information customised to our exact liking.

Choices, Control, Options. These are our God-given entitlements.

The Message to Marketers: Attention is the new currency.

Give customers everything they desire in order to win their attention. With that, you’d be able to sell them anything in return.

What hasn’t changed?

1/

The crave for quality content.

Beauty & The Beast, Cinderella and the Sound of Music.

We are all still yearning for a Great Story.

No matter what medium, which platform.

2/

Our desire to worship Influencers – Oprah, Mark Zuckerberg, Jack Ma, Tony Robbins and of course, The Rock…

We do what they preach, we buy what they sell.

No matter what medium, which platform.

3/

And after all these advancement, at the end of the day, we all go back to watching the Stupid Cat humping on the Puppy on Youtube; 14.5 Million views, last I counted.

Does Winning Attention = Winning in the game of Marketing? 

Yes, but that’s the wrong premise to start.

As my hero Seth Godin so eloquently puts it: Selfish Marketing Doesn’t Last!

And neither does Attention.

But Relationships Do!

Build Relationship, Build Trust, Build Tribe.

Add Value. Be Generous.

Here’s my attempt to both:

Slides for The Changing Landscape in Media and Publishing, Your’s to grab. Future of Media & Publishing

Here’s the Words, Influence & Power Slides

This is a session about writing. But really, it’s about creativity, communications, art, self discovery and much more.

My goal is to alter the way you look at writing forever.

There are certain things in which, once you learn, it cannot be unlearned. I certainly hope this is one of them.

Here is the slides I presented on Collective Wisdom Masterclass.

Collective Wisdom Slides

Click here for my Interview with:

Marshall Goldsmith

Richard Tan

Enjoy!

Art of Selling Powerpoint Final

Here is the Power Point Presentation of The Art of Selling (Click above).

You may not get the entire message by looking at it alone. We will be conducting another session in the near future.

Drop me a note if you are interested.

shaun@catalyst.com.bn

for other training details see: http://www.YesInspire.com/training

People know Dato Tim Ong (DTO) for many different things; a world-class speaker; an intellect and a leading thinker in economics, politics and current affairs; and non the least, an influential and wealthy businessman from a much respected family in Brunei.

But to me, he is also one of the most underrated salesperson I know. DTO is not given enough credit for his selling ability simply because most people do not regard what he does as selling.  

What draw me the most to DTO are his unparalleled storytelling skills and the ability to convince others. With every interaction, it is always a treat to hear great stories and a special learning opportunity. Like many, I am often captivated by every word that is uttered out of his mouth. 
I have the good fortune of knowing DTO for over 15 years, and have the distinct privilege of hanging around with him often and hear many of his epic stories first hand. Professionally, I have worked for DTO early on in my career, and have interviewed him periodically for a column on Inspire magazine and have seek many valuable advices from him on life and business.
Here are my 5 observations of what makes DTO such a masterful storyteller / salesperson:
1. The Gift:

• Literacy – DTO has a superior ability as an orator. His exceptional command of English enables him to articulate his thoughts freely, making all his propositions effortless.

• Voice- DTO has a distinctly strong vocal tone and when he speaks, it is often slow, steady and he’s always thoughtful with his words too. As a result every sentence he utters carries much weight and are so unmistakable and clear. 

Notice how we often dismiss the above attribute as a gift rather than a skill set that we can acquire. Truth is, we can improve our English ability if we work hard at it. We may never be as eloquent as DTO, but we can always become better than before. As for voice- there is such thing as voice coaching if you’re serious about improving your vocal tone. Just pay http://www.YippyTune.com a visit.

2. The Effort / Practice

• It is no secret that DTO is passionate about story telling. Everywhere he goes, he will always be pitching stories and influencing decisions. The only thing is, half the time; you would have no idea that you are being sold to. 

• What makes him a compelling storyteller is his ability to notice and retell of the details. There is always interesting interpretation of insights from what he remembers of the incident. And he always leaves you with a lesson or two from the stories he told. 

• Because DTO meets many different people at any given day, it gives him the opportunity to relay same stories to many different people without sounding like a broken record. By the time you hear the story from him, it may be the 10th refined version. As a result, it cannot be bad.

3. The Sources

Where does DTO get all the content from?

• DTO reads a lot, travels widely and networks extensively. Everything he does is an opportunity for him to collect new stories to tell.

• I remember going with him to a meeting years ago when I worked for him, and he orated a current affair story with such interest and clarity that I thought he was actually there. And then, I stumbled into an article Time Magazine. It was the exact same story he recited from the article. 

• As remarkable as DTO is as a storyteller, he is also a great listener too. Whoever he meets, he would always listen intently learn from them. And then, he would share the interesting content to the others.

4. The Simplicity 

• DTO has the ability to breakdown  even the most complex situation into a simple and easy to understand format which a six year old can comprehend. And he does it with such a flair that he can hold your attention without you realizing time passes by.

5. The Closer

• What sets him apart from being an extraordinary storyteller to an effective salesperson is his persuasiveness and his ability to close. DTO is extremely strategic with all his business undertakings. His approach is often deliberate, measured and thoughtful, everything is planned towards the smallest details that leaves no room for error. Even with the sequence of he articulates his pitches.

• The greatest sales person almost never sells you any products. They appeal to your emotion and take your imagination wander into places you have never been. 

That’s what makes DTO the master, that’s what separates DTO from even the best salespeople I know…
I will conducting a Masterclass on selling in the near future. You can learn more about it at http://www.YesInspire.com/training