Self-Improvement

Dealing with mental uncertainties, challenges, and motivation

The Unsinkable Ship: Navigating the Storm of an Unplanned Retirement

There is a quiet, tectonic shift happening in the world of work, a tremor just beneath the surface that many of us in our fifties are beginning to feel. It isn’t a sudden earthquake, but a slow, grinding pressure.

The ground we’ve stood on for thirty years, the reliable bedrock of experience, loyalty, and deep institutional knowledge is becoming unstable. We are being unceremoniously ushered towards an exit we did not choose, caught in a perfect storm of ageism, automation, and the relentless, short-term logic of the spreadsheet.

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By David Tong, ago

How My Rescue Cat Taught Me About Stoicism and Stress Survival

In the relentless, humid hum of Singapore, a city-state that rewards frantic motion and punishes pause, I had become a master of the urgent.

At nearly fifty, my life was a carefully constructed edifice of full Google calendars and anxieties. I navigated the currents of a high-stakes career with the weary expertise of a long-distance swimmer, convinced the only way forward was to never stop kicking.

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By David Tong, ago

The Mat After 40: When Your Body Keeps Score (But Forgets the Rules)

You know that moment when you’re warming up and your body starts listing its grievances like a disgruntled employee? Left knee: “We need to talk about these torreando passes.” Lower back: “I didn’t sign up for this berimbolo nonsense.” Meanwhile, your brain’s back there filing a formal complaint about the new guard retention system it’s supposed to implement.

Here’s what they don’t tell you about jiu-jitsu after 40 – it becomes less about collecting techniques and more about curating survival strategies. The young guys? They’re out there building libraries. We’re building escape rooms.

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By David Tong, ago

Unlocking Your Next Opportunity: How to Use AI Tools Like Google NotebookLM and Perplexity to Nail Your Job Interview

For seasoned professionals like us in their 40s and 50s, navigating today’s competitive job market can feel like stepping into a new technological frontier. The good news? Modern AI tools like Google NotebookLM and Perplexity are not just for the tech-savvy; they are powerful allies that can significantly enhance your interview preparation, giving you a distinct edge. I’ll will walk you through a strategic approach to leverage these tools for a more efficient, comprehensive, and ultimately, successful interview journey.

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By David Tong, ago
Photo by Marcus Aurelius

Did Hybrid and Remote Work Improve Corporate Culture or Gave Presenteeism and Bias a Boost?

I watched a segment on hybrid and remote work maturing in 2022 by The Economist triggered some interesting questions that many of us haven’t had much thought of.

The impact of remote and hybrid work shifted how we approached work over the past 20 months in massively positive ways but also raised some concerns that we may be moving in the wrong direction without seeing the warning signs.

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By David Tong, ago

How I (Am Trying to) Deal With Pandemic Mental and Emotional Work Burnout

Have you ever felt like a part of your brain is shorting out and burning? Or do Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays feel like days to worry about the upcoming Monday more than respute for the current week?

Since the pandemic hit, I think more people are aware of burnout phenomenons be it career or personal life situations and it’s a serious problem that many of us don’t know how to deal with.

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By David Tong, ago

Empathy In The Workplace – As a Boss and an Employee

Empathy is the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experiences of another.

You’d think that this is such a core human trait that everyone practices empathy daily, but unfortunately, empathy tends to vanish when work is involved.

Many of us are not empathetic at work. We easily become insensitive to the feelings of others, use them for their own personal gain, or just don’t care. Working hard, hitting targets, climbing the ladder seem to be the only things that matter in our professional lives.

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By David Tong, ago

6 Financial Changes for a Happier 2022 Without Big Sacrifices

The pandemic that enveloped our lives since March of 2020 has disrupted how we approach life in more ways than one, especially with how we approach our finances.

While there are multitudes of unfortunate stories and experiences many of us have gone through, I’d like to pivot and focus more on the positive spin in this blog post and how we can use this positive experience to solidify our financial future to allow us to continue enjoying these positives down the road.

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By David Tong, ago