A Weekend, A Market, A Learning Experience

Never having done anything related to retail before, I spent the weekend at a market - as a vendor.

Based on my photo albums, you may guess that I sold something related to something that I love - and you'd be right: gemstones.

It was a great experience and I learned a lot, saw things in new perspectives, and had a new appreciation for trading, economics, and human behaviour.

The main learning point had to do with the great disparity in foot traffic. There are times of intense activity as well as periods of dull lull. This spoke to me of the need to understand human motivations - why certain times brought certain people or their lack.

From this I started to understand the temptation of immersing yourself in your smartphone and simply serving the most interested people who started asking questions while ignoring those who casually browsed or glanced over. It was so easy to do this that I had to mentally remind myself over and over again to treat every browser as a potential customer.

Not everyone bought something, of course - economics at work here - but I was glad of the opportunity to share what I knew with my browsers. To see their smiles, receive their thanks, and hear their appreciation at learning something new  as they left inevitably reminded me of appreciative learners that I have had in schools.

All in all, it was a fantastic learning experience. The amount of insight I gained cannot possibly have been gotten elsewhere. I'd do it all over again.

SG50!

Something I posted on 9 August after a great celebratory SG50 NDP:

On this, our 50th year of independence, it was a privilege to be able to see the SG50 fireworks display from the Singapore Flyer Lounge.

To have become a nation of such immense prosperity from our humble beginnings is truly an incredible feat.

To witness the solidarity of so many Singaporeans saying the pledge and singing the national anthem was a moving experience.

To hear the outpouring of well-wishes and prayers for our country's continued elevated position in the regional and international community, that we may always be a pillar of influence and moral fibre, a hand of assistance and compassion, as well as a mentor and blessing to other nations, was a reminder that we must not rest on our laurels but continue to strive in excellence, innovation, and progress.

I am proud to be a Singaporean, to live, work, and play on this little island, to call this place home.

Life Management (from The Introvert Teacher)

Managing your life by de-cluttering your schedule and spending time in the right places will provide you with nothing but benefits:

1) You will be more relaxed and happier

With time set aside to relax and do things that you enjoy, you will be able to release stress from work and life in general. You will also likely be better organised, more well-balanced and more confident as a result of better planning building up your sense of readiness.

2) You will be healthier

With less stress, a higher level of happiness and more energy, you will be able to better enjoy life. Also, you will feel much less need to binge on unhealthy food or rush your meals. You can also fit in more time for exercise – even something as simple as a 15-minute walk after dinner.

3) You will enjoy better relationships

Giving the right amount of time to the right relationships, you will be able to spend more time with your loved ones and they will appreciate the effort you are making. You may be able to meet an old friend for lunch or dinner more frequently and be happily immersed in conversation without worrying about your looming deadlines.

4) Others will benefit more from you

You will be able to give more time to those who need you. Perhaps you can volunteer more often with your favourite charity organisation, support a cause you believe in, or get things done around the house that you have been putting off. You will be able to help prioritise tasks at work, increasing overall efficiency of your team, and, with more time to relax, you will be more likely to come up with great ideas.

5) You can be a positive role model

When others see how together you have made yourself, they will want to learn more from you. Everybody wants to know how they can get their act together. You can show them how.

Slower Second Half

After the hectic activity of the first half of 2015, the second half seems a lot quieter for some reason.

It feels almost as if the schools decided to spend all their budget in the first half of the year.

Maybe that's what they did.

Well, this gives me way more time to finish writing The Introvert Teacher and I'm well on my way to finishing my first draft. Time to start thinking about the book launch!