Can you please advise – how do you balance between compliance with rules, and taking initiative? Bewildered Manager Dear Bewildered, Isn’t this another million-dollar question? While is may seem like a simple and innocent question, there is more to it than meets the eye. For one, there are two levels to your question – the personal level, and the organizational level. Next, it deals with mindsets, specifically of the growth and the fixed mindset. And finally, it deals with pe

SMEs in Singapore face several issues. Because they are operating a lean machine, with very little fat to experiment with, or take a breather from, they find that they are always on the daily grind. In this article, we take a look at some of these issues and what they can do about them. 1. Cash flow Any business knows that it is not about profitability, it is about cash flow. You can be profitable for one day a year, and for the preceding 364 days, you are scrounging around t

It’s been one week. Many people have already written and spoken about Mr Lee, and I don’t think this article would contain new ideas. Yet, I would like to pay a small tribute to the strategic thinker that was Mr Lee, using his very own words… On being intent focused "I am often accused of interfering in the private lives of citizens. Yes, if I did not, had I not done that, we wouldn't be here today. And I say without the slightest remorse, that we wouldn't be here, we would n

As they say, the word “assume” means, “making an ASS of U and ME”. While this is not very refined, there is some truth in it, I suppose. After all, if one kept on working on one’s solutions based on an unverified assumption, the outcomes may make one an ass! Assumptions, therefore, are very dangerous in business, and we need to assess them. Over-optimism We like optimistic people; they drive action and point the way when there is nothing but swampland in front of us. Mr Lee K

Who says that the Apple watch will ring the death-knell for luxury watches? Tag Heuer has announced on 18 March this year at BaselWorld, a pre-eminent watch show in Switzerland, that it would be entering the smartwatch market with a partnership with Intel and Google. Tag Heuer is not a stranger to the smartwatch having developed a special edition of the Aquaracer 72 for the crew of the America’s Cup but what is more significant is that it is entering a whole new paradigm for

Many of us are impatient for results. When we have launched a new product, we want to see hordes of customers immediately. When we composed a new song, we want it to be Top 10 tomorrow. When a new movie opens, we want to see the halls filled with people. Sometimes it happens, but most of the time, it doesn’t. As we discuss systems, we need to talk about system lag. System lag Let me recount a situation that you should be familiar with. So you’re jumping into the shower, rushi

Image from kellogg.northwestern.edu Last week I introduced the concept of systems archetypes and how they were linked in an ecosystem of issues. I mentioned that it was important to know that these archetypes exist because, without fully understanding their nature, we might try to solve problems in a simplistic one-dimensional manner when a more in-depth analysis is required. And this has all to do with systems archetypes. In today’s article, we unwrap the first two archetype

Image from animalnewyork.com You’ve heard that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, correct? This is the synergistic nature of things. It just so happens that the reverse is also true – that the sum of its parts is lesser than the whole. What this means that we should tackle a problem by deconstructing it, than attacking it headlong. In 2001, Takeru Kobayashi set his first Guinness Book of world records in competitive hotdog eating. At the age of 23, Kobayashi down

“Everything is connected with everything else”, so said Leonardo daVinci. This is the nature of things, and if we ignored that in solving a problem, we would probably go straight to a symptom, than the cause. This will undoubtedly result in the problem resurfacing, sometimes in a more aggressive manner. Cancers work in just this manner. While I am not an oncologist, and cannot comment on biological systems, systems do behave in similar fashion. In fact, they are so predictabl

Dear Dyason, I am 53 years old and wondering what investments I should go into. I have about one million dollars in the bank after an en-bloc sale, and would like to ensure that I have enough to retire with, and enjoy my passion for photography and travelling. I am currently employed in a senior management position and work is just a means to pursue my passions. Enjoying Life Dear Enjoying, I am wondering why you’re writing to me… after all, you are in a position that everyon