Early in my leadership journey, I thought I had to be “Miss Nice”—always available to help everyone, as I was growing in this career myself as a newbie. There was this desire that I should not let my team members make the same mistakes as I did. I tried to be of service to every member on my team. I would respond to every question, listen to their personal struggles for hours, and take on the responsibility for underperformance as if it were my own failure. Over time, I also came to the understanding that everybody has their own journey and needs to learn from their own experiences, including setbacks. I also realized that my time and energy are finite, and my role is not to fix everyone else’s problem. This lesson was driven home by a mentor who bluntly told me, “You’re too free. That’s why everyone comes to you!”

From these experiences, I learned several key ideas that reshaped my approach to leadership:

• The 80/20 Rule

Distributing my time equally across all team members wasn’t effective. Instead, I focused on spending 80% of my time developing the top 20% of motivated performers who truly drive results. The bottom 20%, no matter how much time I invested in them, often wouldn’t improve without intrinsic motivation.

• Being a GPS

I view myself as a GPS guiding each team member, who is the driver of their own journey. I can show the best route and offer guidance, but if they choose to stop moving forward, no GPS can get them to their destination.

• Attending Leadership Courses

Continuous learning has been essential. Certifications like CIAM helped me grow beyond theory, gaining practical insights through classroom discussions and shared experiences with fellow leaders.

• Having Lifelong Mentors

Mentors such as Jaden Wang, Michael Seow, Mr. Chan Keng Leong, Mr. Samuel Goh, Benjamin Loh, and Jensen Siaw have been instrumental in my leadership journey. Their wisdom and encouragement have helped me navigate challenges, sharpen my skills, and build both professional and personal resilience.