Actsplore This

Lydia Fenet knows how to own her power in a room. 

Lydia is one of the world's most accomplished and sought-after auctioneers and has raised over a billion dollars for nonprofits globally alongside celebrities such as Elton John, Bruce Springsteen and Hugh Jackman. 

Over her two-decade long career, Lydia served as the Global Managing Director of Strategic Partnerships for Christie’s and reshaped the fundraising landscape as the world’s leading charity auctioneer. 

She has been named one of New York’s most influential women by Gotham Magazine and has been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Vogue, Vanity Fair and more. 

Lydia is currently the founder and CEO of the Lydia Fenet Agency, a boutique agency representing best in class charity auctioneers. On top of that, she is the bestselling author of Claim Your Confidence & The Most Powerful Woman in the Room is You. 

Trust us when we say you don’t want to miss this episode! Lydia drops a ton of inspiration and unfiltered advice in our chat with her.

We get the inside scoop on her wild career journey as a charity auctioneer (including how she bombed her very first auction!), learning to know her worth and tripling her salary, and the accident that changed her life. 

Highlights: 

02:27 A day in the life of Lydia 

08:58 A crash course into the world of auctions

11:00 Lydia’s first auction didn’t go the way she expected 

17:19 Why you need to ‘sell as yourself’ 

18:19 How to apply Lydia’s “Strike Method” to claim your confidence 

23:48 The painful way she learnt to ask for her worth 

27:29 Your company is not your family

29:58 Why you need to be comfortable getting uncomfortable 

34:58 The major accident that changed her life and what she learnt from it

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Welcome to Season 5 of Actsplore This Podcast!

The first episode of the new year 2024 is always a cathartic, nostalgic and illuminating one for us. 

It’s where we reflect on the year 2023 and set our intentions for the year ahead.

Whether 2023 has been a year of wins, painful struggles or everything in between, we invite you to be intentional and join us to reflect on some of these prompts yourself:

1. What are you grateful for in 2023?
2. What do you wish to Let Go from 2023 and Invite In for 2024? 
3. What are 3 things you will do for yourself everyday to build the life that you want?
4. What is your Word or Phrase for the year ahead?

And of course, we wrap up the episode with our surprise question to each other - it’s a good one so you won’t want to miss it!

We hope this episode inspires you to do your own reflection which can help to set the tone for the rest of 2024. We’d love to hear what your Word or Phrase for 2024 is, so tag us @actsplorethispodcast when you tune into this episode!

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What does it mean to be a Friend and weather through different seasons of life together? 

Get cozy with us in our Season 5 finale episode as we wind down for the year and reflect on the topic of Friendship ✨

We spill the beans on our own friendship journey and discuss the role of Friendships in our lives - the highs, the lows and the downright unpredictable. 

In this unfiltered chat, we get real about friendship breakups, the reality of doing business with friends, and put all our cards on the table with a game where.. spoiler alert: we share our audacious goal for 2024!!!🌚

As we wrap up the year with this episode, tag a friend who has been your partner-in-crime through thick and thin and tag @actsplorethis on social media so we can all exchange stories of our how friendships have grown us together! 🤩 

We are excited to be back in the new year with more awesome content for you, so #watchthisspace! 🔥

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How did a young boy from a low income household who failed English at school and who grew up thinking he’d take over his father’s prawn noodles store go on to become Managing Director at UBS Investment bank and write an award-nominated business book? Spoiler alert: it was all in the small actions taken!

A key opinion leader on LinkedIn with over 2 million followers, Eric Sim, served as a managing director at UBS Investment Bank and also an Adjunct Associate Professor of Finance at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Currently based in Singapore, Eric founded the Institute of Life with a mission to help young professionals achieve success at work and in life. As part of that mission, he published a self-improvement book: “Small Actions: Leading Your Career to Big Success”, which was nominated for the Business Book Awards in London in 2022. 

In this episode, we dive into Eric’s story and hear all about: 

•  Lessons he learnt  growing up in a low income family as the son of a prawn noodle shop owner 
• How he carved a successful career in banking despite being an engineer by training and knowing nothing about finance
• How he developed his portfolio career and the actions we can take to develop a successful portfolio career 
• How we can become the CEO of our lives
• The ‘secret sauce’ behind his thought leadership process! 
• ..and many actionable ways on how Eric Sim unleashed the power of small actions to achieve big success! 

Episode highlights: 

03:09 Eric’s bartending stint and his iconic ‘coke & bourbon’ story 

06:18 What it was like growing up in a low income family as the son of a prawn noodle shop owner 

11:20 His journey towards overcoming his inferiority complex 

15:57: Eric’s most defining Failure and what he learnt from that 

19:18 The right ‘moves’ Eric made to attract step-up opportunities in his banking career 

28:35 How to develop a successful career portfolio

33:23 His inspiration behind ‘Small Actions’ 

35:30 What it means to become the CEO of your life 

41:27 Eric’s secret sauce on creating content on Linkedin

You can connect with Eric here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simeric/

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Have you recently thought about what your upper limiting beliefs are, and how they are holding you back from realizing your fullest potential? 

In this episode, we discuss with Joyce Chen, coach and facilitator at the Conscious Leadership Group about:

💫 How we can overcome our upper limiting beliefs

💫 The ways that holding and believing our upper limits can hold us back from our Zone of Genius. 

💫 Practical and actionable steps to address our upper limiting beliefs through the framework of Pausing, Accepting and Inquiring. 

❗Spoiler alert: We also get candid and personal as part of a live coaching demonstration with Joyce on identifying our personal upper limiting beliefs in the current stages of our lives now. 

Joyce is a seasoned executive and coach who supports her clients to create fulfilling careers and lives.

With 20 years of experience in the marketing industry, Joyce is adept at helping clients to access their wisdom and creativity in order to unlock radical transformation. Her coaching clients have included leaders at Adobe, Apple, AirBnB, Google, Microsoft, Meta, Sony and Salesforce. 

Prior to coaching Joyce most recently served as Head of Production for Meta, where she oversaw global production within marketing for brands including Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. 

Stay tuned to the end of the episode where Joyce gives us a sneak peak to an upcoming Conscious Leadership Circle that she is starting in January 2024 for APAC leaders to learn the basics of conscious leadership.

More information available here.

Episode highlights:

📍2:10 What prompted Joyce to take a leap in her career after 20 years in the advertising industry to pursue a new career as a coach at the Conscious Leadership Group

📍6:10 The meaning of upper limits or limiting beliefs

📍8:21 Different kinds of upper limiting beliefs

📍8:38 Joyce personal story of encountering upper limiting beliefs in her own life

📍12:22 The reason people may feel fundamentally flawed when making big life transition

📍12:41 Three core wants of the human ego

📍15:07 Different ways that society reinforce our upper limiting beliefs

📍19:44 Ways that upper limiting beliefs can cost or limit us

📍21:47 Zone of Excellence vs Zone of Genius

📍28:58 Best Stuff Exercise

📍30:57 Janice & Sarah share their recent ‘Zone of Genius’ memory

📍39:59 Joyce sharing how she discovered the distinction between her Zone of Excellence vs Zone of Genius

📍44:42 How to move past our own upper limiting beliefs to achieve our most exquisite life

📍46:23 Live coaching for Sarah and Janice who share their upper limiting belief and how we can apply the pause, accept and inquire framework 

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Known for rescuing companies on the verge of collapsing, Dato’ Sri Idris Jala is a world-renowned transformation guru in driving performance for both Governments and the private sector through his Big-Fast-Results Methodology.

In this exclusive chat, Dato’ Sri Idris Jala shares a more personal and intimate behind-the-scenes view of his leadership perspective, vulnerability through the stories of memorable failures encountered during his career, why it’s crucial for everyone to play their own Game of the Impossible as well his own big Impossible goal that he’s currently tackling. 

Dato Sri’ Idris Jala is currently the Chairman of PEMANDU Associates, a multi-disciplinary consultancy based in Kuala Lumpur that specializes in public sector transformation, business turnaround, and strategic communications.

Prior to PEMANDU, he was the CEO of Malaysia Airlines where he was brought on board to turnaround the airline from the brink of bankruptcy to record-breaking profits. He also held various senior positions in the Shell Group for 23 years and has experience with successful business turnarounds for Shell both in Malaysia and Sri Lanka.

On top of his role in Pemandu, he serves as the non-executive co-Chairman of Sunway Group, the Chairman of Heineken Malaysia, and the pro-Chancellor of Sunway University. Dato’ Sri Idris also lectures annually at Harvard University under the Harvard Ministerial Programme, continuously sharing his secrets to effective transformation to incumbent Ministers worldwide today.

Timestamps:

02:18 The most important lesson his father taught him to succeed in life  

07:48 The events that shaped Idris’s true north and life purpose 

11:26 The biggest lessons from his life-altering time at Shell 

11:55 The power of visualizing the end goal and the future 

13:15 How the Game of the Impossible is crucial for transformation 

15:40 Recalling Idris’s first day at work at MAS 

16:45 How Idris conquered the fear of failure 

24:23 Turnaround strategy for MAS via P&L segmentation 

35:11 Idris’s most defining failure and the lessons he took away from it

42:30 How Idris demonstrates vulnerability in his leadership 

48:08 Idris’s golden advice to young professionals who are aspiring to reach their true potential

50:32 What is Idris’s own Game of the Impossible 

54:43 Navigating situational leadership and resistance from leaders

✨ Watch the Video on Youtube here: https://youtu.be/owU7ekhqOsg

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If you’re anything like us and other listeners of Actsplore This Podcast, you’re most likely on your own journey of discovering your WHY in life. Call it your purpose, north star, ikigai or your ‘reason for being’, it is undoubtedly a never ending journey of discovery!

Wong Ling Yah is the epitome of someone who digs into her WHY. Not only that, she took her interest and curiosity for podcasting and learning about other people’s WHY to the next level! 

In 2020, she started the So This Is My Why Podcast (STIMY) to feature inspiring people about how they found their way & turned it into reality. Within 6 months, STIMY was featured multiple times on the Late Late Show with James Corden! 

The podcast has since hit #2 in Malaysia & Singapore (Business & Careers); #3 in Indonesia (Careers) on Apple Podcast, 125+ episodes, appeared on Tech in Asia and featured a former US Congressman, 4 Star Generals, Olympians, VCs, entrepreneurs, C-suite executives, Michelin-starred chefs & viral TikTokers. 

She has also built a following on LinkedIn & has since had multiples posts go viral (even hitting 1.24 million impressions in one post!). 

A former lawyer herself, Ling Yah now helps other founders, VCs and C-suite executives build a LinkedIn personal brand to elevate their career and company presence.

Tune into this episode to learn about her insightful discoveries of other people’s WHY and her own, as well as learnings from her new entrepreneurial journey as a writer, podcast and LinkedIn personal branding strategist.

Highlights:

6:40 transferable lessons she took away from her past life as a lawyer

10:21 what sparked the inception of So This Is My Why Podcast 

12:48 how she got 15 guests to say Yes before she even came up with a podcast title

13:36 what Guy Kawasaki taught her 

24:10 key learnings she has distilled from interviewing hundreds of guests on their WHY 

26:38 the golden lesson from Lydia Fenet: Network or Die! 

28:30 the secret to her impeccable research skills 

35:15 how taking tiny actions led to her success  

42:29 why we all need to take Personal Branding into our own hands

44:45 her Personal Branding hacks 

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/tLszwZi_XA0

Check out the So This Is My Why podcast here: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ZK3NFTEX2EWXTvwelWHA7

Sarah Feingold does not shy away from creating her own opportunities. 

Born an artist, Sarah Feingold decided the best way to protect creative folks like herself was to go to law school. She then cannonballed into the position of Etsy's first attorney and 17th employee.

For over nine years she helped Etsy scale from an inconspicuous startup to a publicly traded company. After that, she drove Vroom forward as its first General Counsel. 

Tune in to to hear how Sarah masterfully pitched her way into becoming the very first Attorney at Etsy, carving a unique path in the online marketplace world. 

Through sheer determination and a willingness to knock on doors, Sarah thereafter embarks on a teaching career as an adjunct professor at NYU, demonstrating that sometimes, forging your own path is the key to unlocking unanticipated doors of success.

We also delve into Sarah’s exploration of the art of playwriting and theatre, a passion she channels through Dirty Legal Secrets, a play based on true startup lawyer stories. 

Join us for an inspiring conversation that will not only illuminate the power of creating your own opportunities but also shed light on the exciting interplay between seemingly disparate worlds. 

Sarah Feingold's story is a testament to the potential for innovation and growth when you dare to merge your passions, push the boundaries of your career -  and simply dare to make the ask.

Highlights:

6:23 How Sarah pitched her way into becoming Etsy’s first ever attorney

7:37 Advice for aspiring in-house lawyers 

8:29 Key takeaways from her time at Etsy 

9:51 Specific actions she took that made her an obvious candidate for the role

13:24 Tips on landing a board role

14:24 How she landed her role as an adjunct professor at NYU 

16:50 Learning how to navigate imposter syndrome 

19:29 The story behind Dirty Legal Secrets 

26:24 Why we all need to learn to be specific with our asks 

28:01 Even if you love your job, interview for other roles at least once a year?! 

30:15 Her golden advice to exploring other career paths

Follow us on Instagram: @actsplorethispodcast

The topic of fertility (specifically egg freezing) is one that is not often openly spoken about. But for most women, we know that this is something that we’ll start thinking about especially as we inch towards our 30s. 

To unpack this topic, we invited Crystal Cha, a good friend of ours (and also a returning guest on the pod, check out her first episode here) to share with us her personal experience and walk us through every step of the process. 

In this episode, Crystal sheds light on: why she decided to freeze her eggs, concerns she had while doing her research, questions to ask your fertility doctor, the emotions she experienced as she went through this egg freezing, costs of the process as well as some helpful tips she’s learned so far in her journey. 

Whether you’re currently a single woman, in a relationship and trying to conceive, hoping to improve your knowledge further to make informed decisions about your fertility options, or someone who wants to support your partner who’s in this journey, this is an episode you won’t want to miss!

Highlights:

13:20 What is Egg Freezing

15:20 Societal pressures and expectations that women face 

19:30 Questions to clarify with your doctor before embarking on the egg freezing process 

27:21 Breaking down the egg freezing process 

34:53 The egg freezing extraction procedure 

38:38 How Crystal prepared herself leading up to the procedure 

44:22 The costs involved for egg freezing 

54:34 What Crystal learnt about herself through this journey 

PSA: We recorded our first ever studio video recording for this episode with Crystal! Watch the video recording at the link below for a more immersive experience and show us some love on our Youtube channel here by hitting the subscribe button!

Youtube video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tVBM98sN3k

Connect with Crystal here: @_crystalcha

Follow us on Instagram: @actsplorethispodcast

DISCLAIMER: The content of this podcast episode describes medical experiences and is intended for informational purposes only. It should not be considered as medical advice. Kindly consult qualified healthcare professionals for personalized medical guidance, as individual circumstances may vary.

We’re officially in the second half of 2023! Whether it’s been a year of unexpected surprises, milestones or unforeseen challenges, we wanted to take the time to reflect on our journeys and embrace the growth that has unfolded thus far.   

Tune in to this intimate reflection as we share personal updates about a solo Seoul searching adventure, the value of mentorship, navigating grief, hitting refresh in the second half of 2023 and so much more! 

We also took the chance to unpack another shared adventure that we embarked on together – our first ever Powerman Duathlon Race! We unpack all the deets that went down on race day, share some pro tips for aspiring duathlons and some amusing behind-the-scenes anecdotes. 

We’d love to hear your mid-year reflections and what you’re excited about for the rest of 2023! Don’t forget to tag us when you tune into this episode. 

p/s stay tuned to the end of the episode where we share some updates about our very first Actsplore This in-person community hangout! 🙌

RSVP here to secure your spot: https://forms.gle/quN2PHpzuUmAPzkS6

CONNECT WITH US

⚡Subscribe and Follow us @actsplorethispodcast on Instagram/Spotify/Apple Podcasts/YouTube

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