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GENDER DISCRIMINATIONin the workplace. Does itreally exist?

EXECUTIVE PRESENCEcan be cultivated byanyone. Find out how.

Pg 11Pg 11

USE SOCIAL MEDIAto elevate your companyto new heights.

Gratitudefor successKnowing and acknowledgingthose that contribute to yoursuccess makes you a betterleader, writes Roshan Thiranin Be A Leader.

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Saturday 17 auGuSt 2013

where no man haS Gone beforeLeaderShip LeSSonS from Star trek. paGeS 6-7

mystarjob.com, saturday 17 August 2013�

EDITORIALAdviserRoshan ThiRanEditorLiLy Cheah

Assistant EditorevaChRisTodouLou

Contributing EditorPRemaJayaBaLan

Operations Leadhyma PiLLay

Sub EditorLee KaR yean

Layout, Art & DesignTung eng hwaZuLhaimi BahaRuddinahmad fadZuL yusofadZnam saBRimohd KhaiRuL

KaLai KLingonhafis idZLamuhd hafeeZRaZZiahshawn ng

Writers & Contributorssu-ann ChienimRan hashimJohan meRiCanemiLy wonganna Tan

ChRisTine yoongmiChaeL heahnaLLena devendRanSales Managerian Lee

If you have any suggestions or feedback on our content, get in touch with the Leaderonomics team at mystarjob@leaderonomics.com.For advertising and advertorials, contact ian.lee@leaderonomics.com - 016 974 7087

Career Tips

LiLy says

The opinions expressed in this career guide are those of the writers orthe people they quoted and not necessarily those of Leaderonomics.

CAreer tips from stAr trek

BoLdLy go where no man has gone Before The Enterprise crew had to leave earthto go out to explore different worlds. You can do that too, from your very own office. Just be bold enough tothink out of the box. Venture into possibilities and ideas that are different from the ordinary.

emBraCe diversiTy Captain Kirk and his team consist of people of different races, species andorigins, yet they are able to successfully work together. Our Malaysian workplaces are just as diverse.Sometimes, there are colleagues that sometimes seem like they are from a different planet, aren’t there?Embrace the differences and appreciate the joys of working together. Diversity, when managed well, is astrength.

TrusT your CoLLeagues Whenever the Enterprise was in trouble, Captain Kirk consulted andrelied on his team to find a solution. Each of your team members can bring different information and ideas tothe table, so work closely and trust them.

Take responsiBiLiTy for your aCTions Captain Kirk exposes the Enterprise ship toa group from a primitive civilisation to save Spock’s life. When held accountable for his actions, he makestons of excuses instead of accepting responsibility, which results in him being demoted from Captain of theEnterprise. It is normal for us to make mistakes at work, but accepting responsibility earns us more respect.

Take The Lead At the end of Star Trek Into Darkness, Kirk sees that someone needs to turn on thepower manually and he takes charge and fixes it. At work, there will always be occasions where someoneneeds to take charge. Don’t be afraid to stand out and take the lead. It could also be a great learningopportunity.

By EVA CHRISTODOULOUeva.christodoulou@leaderonomics.com

“DISOBEDIENCE, in the eyesof any one who has readhistory, is man’s originalvirtue. It is through disobedi-ence that progress has beenmade, through disobedienceand through rebellion.” Well,Oscar Wilde was not themost conventional of char-acters, but he does make avalid point.

It is not easy, in an envi-ronment heavily regulated,for individuals to shine andcome up with outstanding,original ideas. Under “auto-cratic” leadership, it is hard ifnot impossible for individualsto think outside the box and

come up with new ways ofsolving problems.

We are in luck though,because more and moreemployers are now look-ing for individuals that arecreative, and are willing tocome up with new, inno-vative ways of tackling oldproblems.

A little bit of disobedience,when carefully orchestrated,can be successful and will berewarded. History has ampleexamples to prove that diso-bedience is what makes thehumanity progress.

What if Galileo Galilei

followed the scientific think-ers of his time and carriedon believing in geocen-trism rather than advocateheliocentrism? Or what ifArchimedes followed whatwas known during his timeand never bothered to ques-tion anything? Would wehave the Archimedean screw,or the principle of buoyancy?

Or, if Leonardo Da Vinci wasnot fascinated with the flightof birds and did not initiatethe study of its mechanicsin search of a machine thatwould allow people to dothe same, would we haveaeroplanes and helicopterstoday?

It is unfortunate that rulesare always there to controlour actions, keeping us fromdoing things that may havea significant impact in ourlives and the lives of othersaround us.

However, there is always away to break the mould. Bybeing methodical, puttingthought and dedication intoan idea, there is always away to achieve somethingextraordinary.

The Chain meThod, To BoosT produCTiviTy.BREAK a project down into simple daily actions. For example, if you areplanning an event, research may be a good first step.

For every day that you complete the listed action(s), mark an “X” on that day inthe calendar. The trick? Don’t break the chain. Keep at your tasks daily and tryto get the “chain” of activity continue for as long as possible.

PROPENSITY refers to our natural behaviours and tendencies.Someone with a propensity to criticise will always look at theglass half empty, another with a propensity to be generous,will find it natural to give to others.

My question today is about our propensity to learn. Hownaturally do we learn? Do we have a tendency to search for learningpoints? Do we search for lessons and insights in the situations we findourselves in or in things that we observe?

I’ve been spending a lot of time with my young nieces lately, asthis period is one of the rare times that we are in the same countrytogether.

As three-year-olds, they love listening to stories. Their current favour-ites include Little Red Riding Hood and Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

Unsurprisingly, they constantly ask me to tell them stories. I tryas best I can to recount these well-loved tales as faithfully as I can(though admittedly I struggled with the details of Jack and theBeanstalk last week).

Through this whole process, I noticed again how every childhoodstory is geared towards a thought for the child to take away. At the endof the story, we say “And so, the moral of the story is...” and proceed toexplain the learning point.

Interestingly, we seem to do this easily when telling stories to chil-dren. We are able to extract the crucial life tip, whether it be not talk-ing to strangers, or being respectful of property that doesn’t belong toyou.

However, as working adults, how often to we say this to ourselves?After a difficult and stressful project at work, instead of just forcingourselves to continue charging forward, do we have a propensity toidentify the “moral of the story”? The moral could be needing to bemore thorough in risk assessment, or being a better listener.

Stopping to consider the learning point is a simple thought. Yet wecan often be too caught up with the next thing to do, that we fail tostop to reflect.

That’s in the work context. What about asking ourselves what the“moral of the story” is after reading a book or watching a movie? Wemay discover powerful life-impacting learning points where othersonly see entertainment value.

Take Captain Kirk of Star Trek for instance. His rebelliousness playsout in ways to help us see when going against the grain is a goodthing, and when it is unproductive. Sometimes, breaking the rules is afantastic thing to do. Other times, it can jeopardise the stability of anentire organisation. Great things can be learned by observing Kirk’s suc-cesses and failures.

It’s for this reason that we push our Movie Wisdomcolumn once a month in our career pullout. Moviesprovide illustrations of dynamics that parallel ourrealities. Even better, they can demonstrate theinteraction of these dynamics and the consequenc-es that can flow.

Our centrespread pages this week dive muchdeeper into the iconic sci-fi movies, Star Trek,listing five leadership lessons we can learn.

Whether you’re a fan of the movies (andseries) or not, the beauty of films is thatthey are natural analogies, making learningpoints easier to capture and to retain.

I hope you get something valuable outof this week’s pages. Do continue towrite to us at mystarjob@leaderonom-ics.com with your suggestions and feed-back on our content.

If you have any films that you wouldlike to see covered in our regular spe-cial film editions of the career guide,do write in and let us know.

I challenge you to use this well-usedphrase on yourself at work this week:“The moral of this story is...”

Happy learning.

Until next Saturday,

LiLy CheahEditor, myStarjob.com

Theof The sTory is?

moraLBreakThaTmouLd

TryThis!

mystarjob.com, saturday 17 August 2013 �

Who Packs YourParachute?

Gratitude keY toYour success

By ROSHAN THIRANroshan.thiran@leaderonomics.com

Irecently read the ordeal of USNavy jet pilot Charles Plumbwhose plane was destroyed by asurface-to-air missile on his 75thcombat mission. He parachuted

out but was captured and spent sixyears in a communist Vietnameseprison. He survived the nightmare andnow teaches leadership.

Years later, when Plumb was at arestaurant, a man came up and said,“You’re Charles Plumb! You flew jetfighters in Vietnam from the aircraftcarrier Kitty Hawk. You were shotdown!”

“How in the world did you knowthat?” questioned Plumb.

“I packed your parachute,” the manreplied.

Plumb was taken aback by thisman. The man looked at him and saidsmilingly, “I guess it worked!” Plumbquickly responded, “It sure did. If yourchute hadn’t worked, I wouldn’t behere today.”

Plumb couldn’t sleep that night ashe thought about the man who pos-sibly saved his life. He wondered if hehad been nice to him when they werein the army. He was a fighter pilotand that man was just an ordinarysailor so he probably would not havethought much of him back then.

Plumb thought of the many hoursthe sailor must have spent in the bow-els of the ship, carefully entwining theshrouds and compacting the silks ofeach chute, holding in his hands thedestiny of someone he didn’t know.Then he felt thankful he had someonein his team who packed his parachuteso well that it worked.

This led me to ask myself, “Who’spacking my parachute?” Each day,there are numerous challenges inbusiness and life and we need thehelp and support of many people toensure that our ‘parachute’ workswhen a pivotal moment arrives. Itmay be ensuring our presentationslides are perfect, or our proposals to amajor customer are beautifully bound,or just ensuring our products workeach time.

Everyone is highly reliant on peoplein our teams to provide what we needto make it through the day. Runninga business today is so involving, it isfolly to think you can single handedlydo everything. Yet, many of us neverreally think about our teams thatsupport us or even show gratitude tothose who “pack our parachutes”daily.

Sir RichardBranson loves people. Heclaims “the people factor is the basisof many entrepreneurial successesand, because many business lead-ers discount it, innumerable failuresresult.”

The entire business model of hisVirgin Group is centred on people.Branson has built Virgin to becomeone of the biggest brands in the worldsimply by listening to and caring forpeople.

Early in life, he started his studentmagazine because he felt that the bignewspapers didn’t care for students.He set up Virgin Records because hefelt that big record labels didn’t carefor young people and their music asthey charged exorbitant prices. He didthe opposite and showed he cared.Similarly, Virgin Atlantic was set upbecause he realised that people hadbad service during flights and hesought to change that.

“Having a personality of caringabout people is important. You can’tbe a good leader unless you genuinelylike people. That is how you bring outthe best in them,” he claims.

In 1990, British Airways launcheda secret campaign that hacked intoVirgin Atlantic’s computer system tosteal their passengers.

BA’s so-called “Helpliners” over-stepped boundaries by lying to Virgin’spassengers that their flights were can-celled and that they should re-bookon BA.

This went on for months beforeBranson realised the route. He suedBA, which settled the case, awarding£500,000 to Branson and a £110,000to Virgin, plus £3mil in legal fees.

With that conclusion, Bransondivided his “BA bonus” compensationamong his employees as a “thankyou” token for supporting Virgin. Howmany leaders today are like Branson,sharing their “limelight” with theteam?

Branson has developed a level oftrust with his team by showing grati-tude. He knows “who packs his para-chutes” and makes time to acknowl-edge and recognise his employees. Bybeing a good listener, lavishing praiseto your “parachute packers” for a jobwell done constantly, and never open-ly criticising people,

you canalso display grati-tude, he shares.

Branson adds, “Tobe a good leader,you’ve got to con-centrate on bringingout the best in yourpeople. Peopleare no differentthan flowers - theyneed to be cared for andwatered all the time; if not,they will shrivel and die. This is truewhether it’s a switchboard opera-tor or the chairman.”

How would you rate yourself?Do you care about those who sup-port you or do you only care aboutwhat they can deliver? Employeesaren’t just resources working in thebusiness; they are the business. Aneffective business is not the product,service, supply chain or its magnificentbusiness plan. It is the group of enthu-siastic and passionate people calledemployees who carry out your well-designed business plan.

One of the most successful soccercoaches in the world, Jose Mourinhoclearly believes that all jobs are impor-tant. While coaching at Chelsea, hetreated the cleaning lady with thesame respect and gratitude as hedid Didier Drogba, its star player. Hebelieves if one person was ineffectivein his/her role, the whole team suffersand he would ‘lose’. He thus ensureseveryone on his team shows gratitudeto all in the ‘family’, regardless of hisrank or position.

As a leader, I am indebted andextremely grateful for those I have thehonour to work with daily. But howdo I show my gratitude? Simply say“Thank you”. Treat your people withrespect and acknowledge their com-mitment and contribution throughoutthe year.

Many of us say thanks once a year,probably at annual dinners. Researchshows that for it to be effective, youneed to say it often. “If you don’t do itregularly you’re not going to get thebenefits,” says Professor Lyubomirsky.“It’s like you went to the gym once

a year. What would be the good ofthat?”

But as work piles up and deadlinesloom, it is easy to slip into barkingmode. It is times like this when I

remember a simple rule: Treat yourpeople as if they were volunteers.

I know for a fact that thehigh-performing employeesof Leaderonomics can leaveat any time. Their skills and

expertise are in demand.So, it’s not just about pay-

ing a competitive salary, butalso ensuring they know that

they are valued.In our communitywork, the opposite

holds true and youneed to “treat your

volunteers as ifthey are employ-

ees”. In manyNGOs, volunteers are essentialbut are often left out during

important decision making,causing feelings of being unappreci-ated and offended.

The key lesson is to continu-ally remind ourselves that everyoneshould be accorded respect and berecognised for their contributions.

Research on gratitude indicatesenormous benefits including healthand happiness to the giver and opti-mism and energy to the receiver.Additionally, psychologist Dr RobertEmmons concludes that those whooffer gratitude are less envious andresentful, sleep longer, exercise more,and report a drop in blood pressure.

Psychologist David DeSteno foundthat “gratitude leads people to act invirtuous or more selfless ways”. Thismeans that if you constantly showyour gratefulness to the people that‘pack your parachute’, they in turnwill be inspired to give more of them-selves selflessly to your cause.

There are myriads of ways to showyour thanks. The key is that you takethe time to do so.

Henry Ford was named Fortune’sBusinessman of the 20th century. Hewas obsessed with helping peopleby ensuring that even the “poor”could afford cars. He ultimately suc-ceeded by reducing the price of a carto an affordable US$950 per car (thecheapest in the world). While mostpeople who sell “cheap” products will

try to cut costs, espe-

cially wages, Ford did the opposite:he rewarded his employees by pay-ing them the highest wages in thecountry.

Everyone wanted to work at Ford.He went one step further. To trulythank his employees and show grate-fulness, he cut their working hoursfrom the typical nine or 10-hour work-day (back then) to eight hours per day.So you got paid more and worked less.

When you thank employees, theirconfidence grows. Looking back, dif-ferent leaders probably inspired andspurred you forward through encour-agement and gratitude. You need todo likewise. Best of all, leaders whoare grateful are never depressed. Youcan’t be depressed and grateful at thesame time!

Thankfulness is infectious. Whenyou brighten someone else’s daywith a word of thanks, it puts asmile on their face. Starbucks CEOHoward Schultz built his empire onthis. Starbucks was set up becauseSchultz’s father was mistreated byhis employer and he wanted to builda company that cared for every sin-gle employee, even part-timers thatworked there.

His philosophy was “Care morethan others think wise”. His employeessimilarly got infected by his caring andpositivity and either intentionally orunconsciously, started passing it backto their customers. Starbucks grew asa result.

Final ThoughTsIs there someone in your team youowe a debt of gratitude to? Build theattitude of acknowledging and valuingother’s contributions.

People are the lifeblood of anycompany. They need to be thankedand celebrated frequently. So thankyour troopers today and you will besurprised what those two little wordscould do to a person. Be a thankfulleader!

n Roshan Thiran is CEO ofLeaderonomics, a social enterprise pas-sionate about developing grateful lead-ers across the globe through its action-learning based approach. Roshan urgeseveryone to send a note of gratefulnessto just one person this weekend. It onlytakes a spark to get a fire going…

mystarjob.com, saturday 17 August 2013�

By ANNA TANmystarjob@leaderonomics.com

AS you manoeuvre the corporateterrain, I am sure there are manyinstances when you have had yourhot buttons pushed. Think of a timeyou felt unjustly critiqued or dealt

a harsh reprimand which did not commensu-rate with your mistake. What did you do andhow did you react? Did you brush it off, walkaway or fight back? What makes you reactthe way you do?

Flight or Fight?Our emotional response to perceived

attacks or threats boils down to our “cave-man” instincts which tell us to fly or fight– both of which do not serve us well in acomplex modern urban jungle.

Uma, an experienced project manager,was summoned to the corner office ofthe finance head, Looi. She waited nerv-ously, anticipating trouble for a substantialbudget over-run. Five minutes into the dis-cussion, Looi was obviously very upset andhe started berating Uma.

“This has happened before and it is hap-pening again; why can’t you get it right? Anintern can do a better job!” He continued witha litany of examples how the PM (ProjectManagement) office has fumbled before.

Not able to get a word in, Uma decided toshut up instead of defending her position.She figured she was not going to emerge awinner from this blame game. Looi is, afterall, a high-ranking officer and one who wields sig-nificant influence over her performance review.

Ending his admonishment with “Not sure ifanything I have said helped in solving the prob-lem, but boy! Does it feel good!” At that, Umahastily made her exit.

Although she managed to put a lid on apotentially explosive incident, she walked awayfrom the altercation feeling shocked and dis-turbed. Uma was also worried that taking flightwould be construed by Looi as an acknowledge-ment of her lapse in performance.

C.r.A.P.Corporate life has its fair share of emotional

challenges, setbacks and adversity. To be suc-cessful, according to Richard St John, best-sell-ing author of the book called 8 to be Great thereare eight traits which successful people have incommon. One of the traits John laid claim to isthe ability to, well, persist! To do that, one mustbe adept at dealing with C.R.A.P., as follows:

C = CriticismR = RejectionA = Autocrats*P = Pressure

*In Richard St John’s book, ‘A’ stands for somethingwhich is not appropriate for newspaper readership,hence I have replaced it with Autocrats.

In this article, let’s talk about Criticism (at thetop of the C.R.A.P. list), in the context of officeinteractions. I unearth some tips to help readersdeal with criticism better.

Finger Pointing At lArgeWilson, marketing extraordinaire and his

team, were taking stock of the quarter’s per-formance after launching their latest productwhich was to steal a march on their competitor.

Alas, the quarter’s numbers were grim.Barbos, his boss, was making an impromptuvisit to KL. From the grapevine, Barbos was onthe warpath. Wilson was not surprised whenBarbos unleashed a torrent of emotionallycharged comments about how bad the adver-tising was and how slow sales have been. “Idon’t like to point the finger but I think theadvert clearly missed its mark. What have yougot to say for yourself?” he said pointing his fin-ger towards Wilson.

retAliAte or resPond?Being put in the hot seat and blamed for

something not entirely his fault naturally madeWilson angry and intuitively, wanted to retaliate.Controlling our responses takes a real effort ofwill.

With this in mind, Wilson decided to ignorethe attack and calm down. Instead of thinkingabout how unfair it all sounded or how severethe criticisms were, he started to consider thesituation from Barbos’ point of view. With a calmhead, he started to form a structured line ofquestioning to address the outburst:

Wilson: Yes, I admit this is a serious situation.What do you think we ought to do?

Barbos: It’s your job to figure it out. I want toknow what you are going to do about this situ-ation.

Wilson: While the idea originated from me,management had signed off the advertisement.As a team, we’re capable of turning the situationaround. Your direction and experience will be agreat help now.

Barbos: I expect the product to start movingat the supermarkets as the ad campaign was tar-geted at that channel.

Wilson: Ok, is there anything else we can do tomove the product faster?

Barbos: Mobilise the promoters – I want usto have 50% of our sales staff at the identifiedsupermarkets.

Through a “calm-under-fire” approach, Wilsonsuccessfully manoeuvred a minefield andengaged his boss to provide ideas to improve thesituation. To sum up what Wilson did:

helP YourselFLet’s revisit Uma. She needs to get better

at responding to Looi’s disparaging remarks.Her first step is to recognise that Looi’sbehaviour is not within her power to change.She can, however, change how she views thesituation.

Rather than belabouring the notion thatmanagers, by virtue of their positions, shouldknow how to speak to people in a respectfuland engaging way, she suspends her highideals and judgement.

AnAlYse thesituAtion CAlmlY

First she analyses the situation. Whatwas Looi’s intention? Was Looi trying to helpher or trying to belittle her? As she does notknow, she is glad she didn’t say anythingduring the first meeting.

When we are “hijacked” by our emotionalbrain during times of intense pressure, ourrational thought process and decision-mak-ing prowess are compromised.

When we cannot “think straight”, ourreactions tend to be flawed. In hindsight,walking away from the explosive situationseems wise.

CleAr the AirSecondly, Uma decides to clear the air with

Looi. This takes courage and I assure you it isworth doing, especially when you know thecriticism is unjustified.

Uma: When you criticised me about themistakes I made, I felt put down. Was thatwhat you meant to do?

Looi: (Surprised) No, it was not meant toput you down. I just wanted to highlight themistakes your department has made in thepast so you will not repeat them.

Uma: I was also very troubled by yourcomment about the incompetency of thePM’s office. Especially when you said “anintern can do the job better.”

Looi: I am very sorry my comment hasupset you. I was upset and under a lot ofpressure to deliver cost cutting measures.

Uma: Thank you for the clarification, Looi.I am open to receiving feedback and obvi-ously concerned by your emotional approach.Going forward, I would like to have yourcommitment to address issues in a calm

manner.The following steps can help you

respond to criticism in a constructive waywhere both parties can strive for a “win-win” outcome:

FinAl thoughtsCriticism and workplace incivility

are common like traffic jams in KL. It issomething you can’t do much about.Similarly, it is also not within your controlto change other people’s behaviour. Butwhat is possible is your ability to respondto an emotional situation in a construc-tive way.

Whatever it is, your initial reaction israrely your best. Do not make a bad situ-ation worse even if your brain goes intooverdrive and asks you to fight it. Often,this plays right into the offender’s hands.

Your habitual fast thinking may per-ceive criticism as attacks or threats; hencewarrant a rejoinder to put the offenderin his or her place. I encourage you to usethe tips in this article to stay calm andbetter equip yourself to deal with criti-cism.

Remember, you have a choice - eithergive in to your “caveman” or respond in aconstructive way where both parties win.

n Anna Tan is a bean counter who foundher calling in HR. Her journey in corpo-rate HR has led her to pen STRETCHED!Unleashing your Team’s Potential byCoaching the Rubber Band Way, a bookwhich likens human potential to be asflexible and agile as the rubber band.

Fight or Flight?responding to criticism

STepS

Ignore the attacks.

Stop thinking aboutyourself or treat thecriticism as a directfailure on your part.

Treat the criticism as atemporary setback.

Think rationally and askquestions.

OuTcOme

Calm down or stay calm.

Depersonalise – it isabout the situation, notyou.

Ability to see resolutionor light at the end of thetunnel.

Asking questions is a firststep to finding solutions.

STepS

Tell the person how you feel.

Ask if that was his or herintention.

Don’t tell the person whathe or she did was bad orwrong.

Tell the person what youwould like him or her to dodifferently.

OuTcOme

Your thoughts areheard and the person’sintentions are validated.

Suspend judgementand refrain frommaking personalassumptions or beliefs.

Alignment of approach.

mystarjob.com, saturday 17 August 2013 �

By PREMA JAYABALAN and LILY CHEAHprema.jayabalan@leaderonomics.com,lily.cheah@leaderonomics.com

THE way to become more charismatic,trustworthy and creative is to be mindful,says Dr Ellen Langer, psychology profes-sor at Harvard University at an interviewwith The Leaderonomics Show.

A PhD holder in social and clinical psychologyfrom Yale University, Langer was the first womanto be tenured in psychology at Harvard Universityin 1981.

She is also a recipient of the GuggenheimFellowship and has published more than 200research journals and numerous books, oneof which has been made into a movie starringJennifer Aniston (Counter Clockwise), who playsLanger in the film.

Langer specialises in the theory of mindfulness,having done in-depth studies on topics like the illu-sion of control, perceived control, successful agingand decision-making.

“We’re more mindless than we think,”saysLanger. “A lot of the time, we’re not there.” Thephenomenon of driving and arriving at a destina-tion wondering how we got there, is only a smallindication of this.

Mindlessness isn’t ignorance, and isn’t the sameas a habit. “Mindlessness comes about by default,not by design. It’s when you assume you know, andbelieve there is no reason to pay attention,”sheexplains.

“But things are constantly changing, and theyare different from different perspectives. As aresult, we are frequently in error but rarely indoubt.”

The cure for mindlessness is mindfulness. It’sremarkably simple, Langer shares. Yet many of usspend most of our lives “without being there”. Sheterms it being “trapped in an unlived life”. We don’tstop to think about things we perceive as “norms”.

Mindfulness is the very simple process of notic-ing new things, no matter how small or silly. “Itmakes you sensitive to context and perspective,”she continues. “In this noticing, you becomeengaged in what you are doing. It becomes literally

and figuratively enlivening.”It’s a misconception that being mindful

is tiring, explains Langer. “Thinking itself hasgotten a bad name,”she offers. “What is tiringis when you begin worrying that you’re notthinking the right way.”

Studies show that you will live longer,become more productive, healthier, and morecreative if you live mindfully. As a result ofbeing more engaged, there will also be feweraccidents, and fewer occurrences of burnout.

LongevityLanger shares the outcome of a study she

conducted in a nursing home. She dividedresidents into two groups. One group wasleft to their own devices, but the other groupwas actively engaged in decision-making, forcing them to think aboutdifferent factors and take ownershipof consequences.

“A year and a half into the study,twice as many people in the mindlessgroup had died than in the mindfulgroup,” she comments.

“I know that it’s hard to accept, but all youneed to do is notice new things. To notice newthings, you have to be aware that you don’tknow the things that you think you do know.”

“As you notice, more neurons fire. It indirectlyimproves your health. It’s the essence of beingalive.” Langer uses the example of someonemindlessly riding a horse. The rider is fixed onavoiding branches, but vigilance is not the sameas mindfulness, she argues.

While vigilance is pure focus on one thing,mindfulness takes into account the wholescene. The rider who concentrates on thebranches, omits to notice the big boulder thatthe horse eventually trips over.

Mindfulness naturally has its implications

in organisations.We do everything either mindlessly or mind-fully. “Everything can be improved by doing itmindfully. In organisations, we have ways ofdoing things, but people never question whywe are doing them this way. What you do maybe based on decisions taken in an earlier timethat may not be relevant any longer. If you aremindful, you’ll constantly keep updating. If not,you’ll just accept that that’s the way it shouldbe done.”

“When you take ordinary people and givethem these experiences of mindfulness, theyare evaluated as being more charismatic, moregenuine, more trustworthy. People notice whenyou’re mindful. When you’re there, you feelalive, and all the products you produce are justbetter,” she beams.

Be mindfuL aLL the timeLanger’s advice is to be authentic. When

you are authentically doing what you aredoing, you’ll care about it and do it better.

“People are often afraid to be authenticbecause they feel that the rules set are per-manent. They fail to realise that these ruleswere actually set by people from anothertime and might not be applicable in thecurrent era,” says Langer.

Once you recognise that there is nocertainty about anything, and that often

norms are socially constructedand possibly decided by people ofa different time, you’ll be able tomove with greater confidence andmore freedom to do things yourown way. When you do thingsyour own way, you’ll enjoy itmore.

Langer shares that the firststep to being mindful is to avoidlooking for single answers. “Beaware of what you don’t know,and when considering some-thing, try to look for five differ-ent solutions,” she advises.

“When learning something,learn it conditionally.” Recognisethat it is from one perspective.”

“When you are more mind-ful, you become more creative,productive and happier. It pre-vents accidents from happen-ing and it actually helps onelive longer,” explains Langer.

Langer believes that CEOsin organisations should recognise that theway things are being done may not be theright way. They should realise that eachemployee has something to offer, thusshould be given the opportunity to do so.

“Behaviour makes sense from the actor’sperspective, or else the actor wouldn’t doit”. It is crucial to try to understand themand recognise the behaviour from their per-spective before taking any action.

This will work towards steering theorganisation to greater heights and towardscreating a more mindful establishment.

n To access the full interview of Dr EllenLanger and to access other videos of inspira-tional personalities, visit www.leaderonomics.com/theleaderonomicsshow

mindfulnessThe

Show

Turn off auTo-piloT forgreaTer success

The power of

gotten a bad name,”she offers. “What is tiring

Langer shares the outcome of a study she

left to their own devices, but the other group

certainty about anything, and that oftennorms are socially constructedand possibly decided by people ofa different time, you’ll be able tomove with greater confidence andmore freedom to do things yourown way. When you do thingsyour own way, you’ll enjoy itmore.

Langer shares that the firststep to being mindful is to avoidlooking for single answers. “Beaware of what you don’t know,and when considering some-thing, try to look for five differ-ent solutions,” she advises.

learn it conditionally.” Recognisethat it is from one perspective.”

ful, you become more creative,productive and happier. It pre-vents accidents from happen-ing and it actually helps onelive longer,” explains Langer.

greaTer success

iSnap me for a video > http://thestar.com.my/isnap

By JOSEPH TANmystarjob@leaderonomics.com

WHEN I typed the word ‘leadership’in Amazon.com, it gave me a list-ing of 70,594 possible book titles.Another word, ‘servanthood’, yieldedonly 267 titles.

There is something that sellswhen you are promised the poten-tial of leadership – rising up to theranks and attaining the success youdeserve.

What is the essence ofauthentic Leadership?

Author Jim Collins says, “the keyto successful leadership is a mat-ter of intense professional will andintense personal humility.”

Many desire to enjoy the fruits ofsuccess, not realising that the rightroots need to be in place first. Rootsthat grow deep in my life depend onhow I respond when things don’t gomy way. When plans fail, people dis-appoint and projects collapse, howcan I even think about the possibilityof success?

an attitude of serv-ice is the surest steptoWards promotion

It is interesting that whenpeople need a motivational boost,the normal treatment is for oth-ers to affirm and praise you. Youwill then begin to have the good‘vibes’ about yourself and thepositive energy will start to flow.

I beg to differ. The way toovercome life’s adversity is not toboost up your leadership attitude.Rather, it is to submit yourself to acause that is bigger than yourself.

Think about it – if you do nothave a purpose in life that isbigger than yourself, then theonly one you end up serving, isyourself. A leader who is self-serv-ing is hardly leading at all – he ismanipulating others for personalgain.

Here are three practical waysby which you can incorporate thepractice of service in your leader-ship which will lead to a greatersense of personal humility (andthe promotion):

suBmit to authorityRegardless of what job position

you have, there is one descriptionthat is common to everyone. Youwork to make your boss look good.

It is disheartening to hear lunchconversations which centre ongriping and complaining aboutthe “management” – the focusappears to be on making the bosslook bad so that I will look good!

The practice of service requiresthat you put aside your ownpersonal agenda, embrace yoursupervisor’s agenda as your ownand begin to serve his or herobjectives.

Eventually, you will begin tothink and act like your boss andpresto, when opportunity for pro-motion comes, your boss wouldwant to pick someone who thinksand acts like him. Guess who willbe the one ready for such a move.

do someone eLse’s JoBYou are never going to go far

in the company if the only jobyou care about is your own. Thepractice of service requires thatyou look beyond just meetingyour own KPIs and think from thebigger perspective of advancingthe organisation’s reputation andinterest.

It is a paradox: the more youconsider the needs of others, the

more of your own needs are met.Authentic success is achieved

by helping others be successful.When a leader invests in the suc-cess of his followers, you can beguaranteed that this will eventu-ally roll up to his own success aswell.

stop compLaining!A person who complains is

never a productive one. Why dopeople complain? It is becausethey are not being served!

Never, never promote someonewho constantly complains becauseyou will then be exalting thatperson to the next level of incom-petence.

The practice of service can neverbe expected from a complainingand whining individual.

So, are you still interested inbeing promoted to the next levelof leadership? From the perspec-tive of servanthood, the way up isto go down. Think about it.

n Joseph Tan is a trainer that aimsto equip leaders to achieve consist-ent results at work, at home andin life through the developmentof personal character and thediscovery of unique strengths. Ifyou are interested in attendingone of his courses, email people@leaderonomics.com

road To promoTionservice leadership aT iTs besT

mystarjob.com, saturday 17 August 2013� mystarjob.com, saturday 17 August 2013 �

LeadershipLessons Fromstar trek

space,the FinaLFrontier

1 surround yourseLF withsmart peopLe and Listento what they have to say

In the beginning, Kirk is mostly a solo act, a rebelnever reliant of others. His own style of bulldozingthrough challenges (and cheating on a test) moreoften gets him into trouble. Aside from his trustedconfidant, medical officer “Bones” McCoy, Kirk doesthings his own way – even when he takes over thecaptain’s seat on starship Enterprise.

Very soon though, as the Enterprise runs intobattles (fighting the advanced Romulan enemy),Kirk has to depend on his team of experts. Heknows that he has to listen to what everyone has tosay, no matter whether they are poles apart to hisleadership style.

Kirk is inherently a serial rule breaker; Spock onthe other hand is a walking rule book devoid ofemotions. Among Kirk’s circle, McCoy appears tobe always in some sort of urgency and short-tem-pered; Scotty a wild mannered, yet very principledand outspoken genius engineer.

An odd mix of characters, but they gel really welland watch after each other.

They are stronger together than apart – theymake up for each other’s weaknesses, and pull eachother towards the centre.

Every one of his crew brings not only variety, butalso a different point of view which is valuable indecision making.

A good leader always needs a team of excellentcounsel. Hiring knowledgeable people is critical, butit is also important to hire a diverse set of people.

Kirk appears to have a very important aspect of a

great leader – always welcoming others’ construc-tive opinions.

Valuing others, and allowing a sense of owner-ship to team members are fundamental to assem-bling a great team, and Kirk does that masterfully.

Small wonder that the crew manages to out-smart their enemy and find their way out of trou-ble, saving the lives of many along the way.

Another important characteristic of Kirk is that,while he delegates when he knows his crew mem-bers are more capable, he takes full responsibilityfor their actions. He may not lead every single mis-sion, but he is actively involved and gets his handsdirty most of the time.

Kirk knows that as a leader, he holds the ultimateresponsibility of making sure all his crew membersare safe.

2 do your homeworkIn the movies, the crew of USS Enterprise is

always outgunned by their adversaries. From theRomulans to John Harrison/Khan, more oftenthan not the enemies have bigger battleshipsequipped with more ammunitions than the Enter-prise can handle. Surprisingly, Kirk and crew stillmanage to overpower their opponents throughsheer tactical brilliance.

Kirk and Spock normally would take some timeto understand their enemies before confrontingthem head-on. For one thing, the Enterprise isprimarily an exploration vessel, not adequatelyequipped for combat (phasers are mostly defen-sive measures). And while Kirk is perfectly finewith hands on melee, his brainstorming withSpock usually provides a breakthrough of winningblows.

While Kirk will not hesitate to just jump intoaction, he would also attempt to study all abouthis opponent. In this aspect, Spock makes avaluable ally, as his analytical and data-drivennature often proves very critical – be it defeat-ing Romulan threats or outsmarting Khan. Moreinterestingly, their battles are won after capitalis-ing on the enemy’s weaknesses more than theEnterprise’s own strength (not a warship).

Similarly, in a competitive environment, it’swise to take note of what others are not look-ing at. Successful entrepreneurs have long beenlauded for observing others and going againstthe tide. In fact, among the world’s super afflu-ent, Warren Buffett attributed his wealth to hisextremely comprehensive groundwork. The Sage

of Omaha always does his thorough researchbefore parting his money into investments (and italmost always makes positive returns).

If their methods are tested and proven timeand again, surely there’s a wisdom to the advice.Analyse, but don’t over-analyse – or as they say,analysis paralysis.

Of course, doing your homework alone willnot necessarily get you to where you want to be;there are other variables that could potentiallyaffect the outcome. And when that happens, fol-low the next advice: improvise.

At the very core of it, Enterprise’s ultimatemission is to explore new civilisations andalien worlds. Its journeys are not withoutdanger and often full of unforeseen surprises,both good and bad.

When facing the dangerous Romulan froman alternate universe in the future, Kirk andcrew had to respond fast even though theyare not prepared. Still, they manage to over-power and defeat the threat.

In the next movie, Star Trek Into Darkness,Kirk takes the Enterprise on an unofficialmission to Kronos to locate and bring backHarrison after a crime he committed. Theplanet is out of bounds for the Federation asit is home to their archenemy, the Klingons.

The mission must be undercover so as tonot start a war with the alien race. Kirk takeswith him a small landing crew, encountersa group of Klingons and transports Harrisonback to bring him to justice.

Kirk and his crew have to leave earth,embracing any forthcoming challenge as

they explore new worlds. Along the way, theylearn a great deal about themselves, realis-ing each of their own strengths and fears.And with each new adventure, they boldly gowhere no one has gone before.

Back on earth - and real life - we canreplicate a similar tenacity that Kirk and hiscrew embody. Leaving our own comfort zoneis scary, but the rewards are limitless. Evenwithout leaving our offices, we can openour minds to endless ideas and possibilities.Dream big and you will most definitely be agame changer yourself. Maybe that new ideacan propel your organisation to a new level,or a new process flow to revolutionise thewhole industry. Every new idea has value andpotential to go really big – just like electriccars and space travel!

Our fear of failure might have been thebiggest stumbling block, but that is besidesthe point. What really matters is that youreach for the stars and believe that you canget there. If there is a will, there will always

be a way.In retrospect, Kirk has the best mix of crew

to be by his side during all his journeys. Thediversity surrounding Kirk gives him a greatadvantage when dealing with various situa-tions. He has built a great team representinga host of skills instrumental to exploring theuniverse.

Ultimately, Kirk shows his capacity as agreat leader. His character might be fictional,but the leadership qualities are real – some-thing that we all can aspire to and emulate.

Before life with Starfleet, young Kirk wasalways getting himself into trouble, not reallyknowing his purpose and quite simply beinga lost soul. Captain Pike discovers him andencourages him to enlist in honour of hisfather’s memory (Kirk senior sacrificed himselfto save many lives).

After rising up through the ranks (in his usualswashbuckling style), Kirk goes all the way torescue his captain under the captivity of theRomulan. Upon his promotion to captainship,Kirk takes command of Starship Enterprise andcontinues to report to Admiral Spike.

In Star Trek Into Darkness, Kirk violates thePrimary Directive (never to interfere with othercivilisation development). He finds himselfdemoted, leaving the command of Enterprise

back to Admiral Pike. The event leaves him dev-astated, but Pike puts in a request to keep Kirkon the Enterprise as first officer. Pike plays animportant figure in Kirk’s life, imparting soundadvice when he needs it, especially in realisingthe need to have humility and not to put hiscrews’ lives in unnecessary danger.

Even in real life, a good leader would andshould have a mentor to guide him/her.

Simultaneously, a good leader should alsoaspire to become a good mentor to others.

The Enterprise cannot operate efficientlywithout the help of a well-oiled team. Thevoyages under Kirk rely heavily on its crew.Although the starship is effectively run under amilitary hierarchy, Kirk often plays the role of amentor to his crew instead of an autocrat. Heguides them towards a unified objective, even

if he has to put his life in danger to save them.A good leader-mentor has to realise the

importance of putting the team above every-thing else. You have to put your people firstbefore yourself. It is highly important that agood leader helps and guides the rest of theteam to succeed. Additionally, you cannot letyour chain of command keep you from get-ting the best advice, just like how Kirk alwaysrelies on his crew for important information oradvice.

Of course to play the role of a good leader-mentor, you do not ask your people to do whatyou wouldn’t do yourself. Kirk may be willing toput himself in harm’s way, but he wouldn’t askhis crew to take on risks he himself wouldn’tface.

In Star Trek Into Darkness, the opening sceneshows Kirk and McCoy running away from analien race after stealing a sacred scroll. Kirk’s realintention for his actions is to distract and savethem from impending danger after a massive vol-cano eruption, threatening their entire civilisation.Spock is then tasked to neutralise the volcanoright at the heart of the explosion.

With very limited time to escape and serviceshuttle unable to get close to Spock, Kirk is pres-sured to save Spock before he is caught in themiddle of the blast. Acting on his intuition, Kirkbrings Enterprise close to the volcano and beams

Spock up just in time to save him. Had he notdone that, Spock would have died, but in doingso Kirk violates the Federation’s Primary Directive.Still, Kirk had to improvise to save Spock.

In a later scene, Enterprise is stranded inspace after being intercepted and attacked bya Federation battle cruiser. Severely damaged,and still under real threat, Kirk has to act fast toensure Enterprise is safe from total destruction.

But they have one big challenge (aside fromnot having firepower) – they have to take controlof the enemy ship without being detected. Noteleportation.

Their solution? Kirk and Harrison go on a spacejump to get to the other ship. An extremely dan-gerous approach due to a massive field of debrisfrom the battle. Midway through, Kirk’s visorcracks, compromising his navigation assist andputting him in real danger. Kirk is helped back ontrack after Harrison guides him using his bearings.

In our daily lives or at work, sometimes ourplans do not necessarily go smoothly. Therewill always be obstacles along the way. What isimportant is how we respond to the situation– intuition and improvisation can work wonders.Kirk had to take the Kobayashi Maru (no-win situ-

ation) test to progress from a normal cadet. Hissolution? Change the programming logic. Whilethat particular act is not legitimate, that verytendency saves Kirk from great danger during hisspace travels.

Just a caution, while improvisation and intui-tion might work in your favour, you might needto have some sort of guidance before makingthat leap of faith – actions still have consequenc-es. It is best to learn from those who have gonethrough it before and share great wisdom withyou. And for that, you might want to search forsuitable mentors.

3 improvise and FoLLowyour intuition

4 have a mentorand become one

5 boLdLy go where noone has gone beFore

n Imran Hashim is a talent acceleration managerwith Leaderonomics. Admittedly a fan of StarTrek, he is of the view that Captain Kirk sets agood example when it comes to leading his crew,although in his own unique ways he still makesmistakes. What’s more important is that he learnsa great deal from them, just like any great leadershould. To find out more about the LeaderonomicsTalent Acceleration team, email people@leaderonomics.com

What areyou thinking,

Bones?

Brainstormingsession, guys!

Time toimprovise...

You’re achallenge forme, Harrison.

It is highlyillogical!

Yes, yes, I getit Sir.You’remy mentor.

It is highly

Take aleap of faith,

Spock.

By IMRAN HASHIMimran.hashim@leaderonomics.com

THESE are the voyages of the star-ship Enterprise. Her five-yearmission: to explore strange newworlds, to seek out new life andnew civilisations, to boldly go

where no one has gone before.”The lines above are arguably one of the

most recognised sci-fi title sequences in theworld. The original Star Trek series debutedin 1966 immediately turned into a cult clas-sic, and has had a major influence in sci-fifilmmaking ever since. The latest (and bold-est) reboot of the iconic title by JJ Abrams,Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness

(2013), have managed to reignite the dec-ades of fandom, as well as capture new andwider audiences.

From the beginning, the original Star Trekseries has created a phenomenon for legionsof Trekkies due to its futuristic nature. Thelate Gene Roddenberry, creator of the origi-nal series, is highly credited for the series’major influence on the world of science fic-

tion. In fact, several advanced technologiesin Star Trek have served as inspiration forcurrent inventions - mobile phones, hand-held scanners among others. Decades havepassed but the impact is still strong withscientists still figuring out ways to make StarTrek technology a reality.

A quick disclaimer – this piece covers onlythe recent reincarnations of the Star Trekfranchise. Before devoted Trekkies begin toargue the appeal of the latest installations(Kirk vs Picard among others), the focus ispurely on the takeaways from the movies,for both personal and professional intent.

Now that the course is set, let’s look atthe five main leadership lessons from StarTrek.

By CHRISTINE YOONG YILINmystarjob@leadership.com

THE dawn of the 21st cen-tury saw a new breed ofstronger, smarter and inde-pendent women. Financialand emotional independ-

ence have become a norm in theworld today.

While we haven’t yet had afemale Prime Minister in Malaysia,the list of powerful women aroundthe world includes ChancellorAngela Merkel in Europe, OprahWinfrey in the media world, IndraNooyi of the Pepsi conglomerate,Sheryl Sandberg of Facebook andAung San Suu Kyi of Myanmar.

These women serve as pioneers inthe key roles of politics and execu-tive management. These are womenwho have fought through the bar-riers that their industries and situa-tions posed to them.

Women’s contribution to anyeconomy is often rarely regarded asa driver of economic growth eventhough female employment has directimplications on household income andsavings, providing a positive effect oneducation and health.

This cycle subsequently leads togreater social cohesion, reducedinequality and fulfilment.

Discrimination in the workplace isbased on characteristics such as age,gender, race, marital status or ethnicbackground. In gender discrimina-tion, an employee earns more moneycompared with another of the oppo-site sex, despite possessing the sameexpertise.

According to the InternationalLabour Organisation (ILO), the genderpay gap still exists, with women’swages being on average 70% to 90%of men’s.

The “glass ceiling” – invisible barri-ers that prevent women from climb-ing the ranks of male-dominatedmanagement – still persists.

Sexual harassment is still a majorproblem in workplaces with young,financially dependent, single ordivorced women being the most vul-nerable. As for mothers, discriminationrelated to pregnancy and maternity isstill common.

Gender discrimination is a phenom-enon that still prevails in society today.Though education and opportunitieshave erradicated most of the discrep-ancy, a degree of bias in the workingworld still exists.

It is more pronounced in certainindustries that are more male-domi-nated, such as politics, investmentbanking and especially in executiveboard rooms.

The factors for the disparitybetween the genders include educa-tion, economic incentives, family plan-ning and opportunities.

That said, today’s age of Internetand equal rights movements havebeen catalysts in bridging the gap.

Limited access to education andtraining causes a discrepancy betweenmale and female work participation.This goes on to stagnated career pro-gression in women.

For every 100 boys who go to schoolin the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)economies, 95 girls accompany them,

compared withonly 84 in low-income countries– the ratio being par-ticularly low in India andSub-Saharan Africa.

This discrepancy is similar for terti-ary education in these developingcountries, whereas in the matureeconomies, women outnumber menby 15% at universities.

Women also experience pay dif-ferentials and missed opportunitiesfor promotion due to the fear of themprioritising family over their careers.

Based on data from 17 UK finan-cial services companies in the FTSE100 and FTSE 350 (that responded toCranfield University’s annual FemaleFTSE Board Report survey in 2012),more than half of their employees at ajunior level are women, but this dwin-dles to 28% at a senior managementlevel and to 13.5% at board level, indi-cating that the average female head-count for these companies (47%) isskewed heavily by younger employees.

However, the Internet has beenan enabler and should create moreopportunities for women going for-ward.

This is true for female employees inindustries where the amount of travelor the number of hours that must bespent at work has decreased thanksto the flexibility that the internetprovides.

For women as consumers, onlineretail has brought more choices and,more importantly, greater conven-ience, thanks to its flexible, time andlocation-indifferent nature.

Workplaces that look out for their

diverse environment with abigger pool of talent.

The key question for our societytoday is – what can we do?

We recognise that part of theproblem is that there aren’t enoughwomen in the higher ranks of organi-sations for female interests to belooked out for.

As women progress in the pro-fessional careers, mentorship andincreased awareness will be fostered.

Companies and policy makersshould enact legal protection againstdiscrimination, arrange for trainingprogrammes to build up the skill levelsof female workers and encourage flex-ibility in the work environment.

Facebook chief operating officerSheryl Sanberg’s best-selling book,Lean In, has helped spark many discus-sions about career ambition, parent-ing and the state of women in theworkplace.

These conversations are surprisinglydifficult to have in one of the placeswhere they matter most: in the office,between bosses and staff.

Many managers, especially men,shy away from such discussions due tofear of saying something inappropri-ate, or worse, illegal.

Sandberg advises managers, bothmen and women, to have an opendoor policy, to invite workers to talkabout any concerns on how child-rear-

discriminate against staff basedon gender or whether they arepregnant or planning to havechildren.

That means managers shouldnot make job decisions or denystaff coveted assignments basedon those factors.

In conclusion, a more diverseworkforce will reduce inherentbias, provide employers withaccess to a broader talent baseand a bigger pool of ideas.

For businesses that are increas-ingly competing and acquiringglobally, being more inclusive andemploying women helps buildrelationships and integration.

Although the role of women inAsia-Pacific economies is growing,most of them have had to over-come significant barriers to getwhere they are today. In the yearsto come, the need for inclusion ofboth sexes will be more importantthan ever.

n Christine Yoong is an investmentbanker at Goldman Sachs. Bornand raised in Malaysia, she con-tinued her studies in London andis now based in Los Angeles. Sheis the founder of Inspire Yourself(www.inspireyourself.co.uk), anon-profit organisation aimed atempowering Malaysian youths.

mystarjob.com, saturday 17 August 2013�

compared withonly 84 in low-income countries– the ratio being par-ticularly low in India andSub-Saharan Africa.

This discrepancy is similar for terti-ary education in these developing

female employees aregaining recognition as adiverse environment with a

ing or pregnancymay affect their

career paths.Workplace laws

are often a murkyarea, but one thing is

clear: employers should notdiscriminate against staff based

Gender

By TERRY SMALLmystarjob@leaderonomics.com

HOW do you persuade a child tocomplete a homework assign-ment? How do you persuadeemployees to embrace a change?How do you persuade anyone to do

We often use rewards. But dothey really work? Do they reallypersuade the brain? I read an inter-

Stanford University rounded uptwo groups of school children. Thechildren were given paper, pencils,and crayons and they were asked

they would receive medals forgood effort.

The second group was just askedto create pictures.

Several weeks later the twogroups were reassembled. Drawingmaterials were again handed outand the scientists measured howlong the children played withthem.

What happened next was asurprise. The children who hadreceived the reward of a medalspent much less time drawing thanthe children who were not given areward.

Why did this happen?It seems like the little voice in

your brain says, “Well, let’s see...they usually give me rewards forthings I don’t like doing”.

This effect has been replicated inmany studies.

The conclusion seems to be thatif you reward children for doingsomething, the long-term resultcan be de-motivating. The “carrotand stick” approach only seems toproduce short-term change.

It appears to destroy the verybehaviour that it is designed toencourage.

I don’t think adults are muchdifferent.

What does work? Unpredictablecelebrations. Something like, “Heyyou did a great job on that assign-ment! How would you like to....” Or,“You put a lot of effort into this.How would you like to celebrate?”This approach seems to create longterm change! Even simple, smallcelebrations work wonders on yourbrain.

Congratulations on learningsomething about your brain today.

alWays remember:“You are a genius!”Enjoy your brain.

n Terry Small is a brain expert whoresides in Canada and believes thatanyone can learn how to learneasier, better, faster, and that learn-ing to learn is the most importantskill a person can acquire. To inter-act with Small, email mystarjob@leaderonomics.com

employees to embrace a change?How do you persuade anyone to doanything?

We often use rewards. But dothey really work? Do they reallypersuade the brain? I read an inter-esting study this week on thistopic.

Stanford University rounded uptwo groups of school children. Thechildren were given paper, pencils,and crayons and they were asked to create pictures.

The first group was told that

Punished byreward

in the workPlacediscrimination

By PREMA JAYABALANprema.jayabalan@leaderonomics.com

FROM a young age, Norhasniza Mohamadhad always known that she wanted toone day work with the government. Bornand bred in the historic state of Malacca,Norhasniza – the youngest of three sib-

lings – obtained her bachelor of pharmacy fromUniversiti Kebangsaan Malaysia in 2005.

A few years later, she decided to further herstudies. This time, she decided to do somethingentirely different. Her interest led her to com-plete a master’s degree in enforcement law fromUniversiti Teknologi Mara in 2012. She is now alaw enforcement officer with the Malacca statehealth department.

Duties of an officerAs a law enforcement officer, Norhasniza’s

job requires multitasking. It seemed daunting atfirst, but seven years later, it is something whichshe has now mastered.

The main part of her job consists of her carry-ing out inspections at licensed premises such aspharmacies, pharmaceutical factories and alsoany factory licensed by the Healty Ministry thatdeals with poisons.

“I also inspect registered premises such asprivate clinics and hospitals. Besides that, mysurveillance also extends to unlicensed premisessuch as grocery stores, supermarkets, spas, gymsand medicine shops. The main objective is toensure that premises that deal with drugs andmedicines abide by the law enforced by theministry.”

In addition to these, Norhasniza can be calledto conduct sudden raids at any time of the day.Sometimes, this includes days when she is offduty. Usually, after a raid is conducted, an inves-tigation follows.

“As head of the investigation and prosecutionunit, I am responsible for checking the investiga-tion papers before they are passed to the deputypublic prosecutor to be registered in court. Themain concerns are whether there is enoughevidence to convict the perpetrator, whether thecharge is correct and the investigation papersare in order.

Norhasniza is also head of internal auditfor MS ISO 9001:2008 for the Department ofHealth, Malacca. Her responsibility is to ensurethat the internal audit is carried out twice ayear and the standard operating procedures areadhered to by all the employees.

a typical work DayIt is difficult to say that a law enforcement

officer has a routine because the scenariodepends on whether sudden situations arise.

However, on a typical day that has no suddenoutbursts, Norhasniza begins work at 8:30am.She checks her planner on her tasks for the day.She then goes through her emails and respondsto them, focusing on the ones that need immedi-ate action.

Meetings and discussions with superiors andcolleagues are usually scheduled in the morning.If there are meetings that require her attend-ance, that would take up most of her morning.

“After that, I am busy with inspections. Auditsand inspections involving pharmaceutical facto-ries, pharmacies and clinics are scheduled on amonthly basis. These inspections and audits cansometimes take a long time to complete, espe-

cially when discrepancies are found.“Reports need to be written for all inspections

and audits. If a raid is carried out, then an inves-tigation file is prepared. This file will then behanded over to an investigation officer who willdo the necessary to complete the investigation.”

If the investigation leads to a court case, thenmore time will be required as the trial for thecase will take at least two days.

Most days, after all these, Norhasniza’s timewill be taken up by conducting exhibitions andgiving talks to the public about the quality ofmedicines and how to recognise the registeredproducts and those that are sold illegally. Amidstall of these, she will also be closely monitoringadvertisements that deal with medicines andlicensed drugs.

“I receive complaints from the public oncertain products from time to time. In order toverify these complaints, I need to purchase theseproducts for analysis in our forensic laboratory.Sex stimulants and slimming products are themost popular items on the complaint list.”

Applicants applying for licences to sell medi-cines tend to drop by the office occasionally forupdates on their application. They need to knowwhen their premises will be inspected, prior togetting an approval. Applicants usually comprisecommunity pharmacies, factories and wholesal-ers. Norhasniza’s day usually ends late in theevening. If an emergency arises, she has to settlethat before heading home.

Managing obstaclesEvery job has its own challenges and this one

is no exception. According to Norhasniza, like allother public departments, her department alsofaces a shortage of manpower and resources.There are still a lot of unregistered productsbeing sold everywhere. As long as there isdemand for them, they will continue to be avail-able, thus frequent checks are necessary.

Another challenge she faces is the struggle tochange the consumer mindset. Educating thepublic is an important step towards eradicat-ing unregistered products from the market.Norhasniza believes this can be done onlythrough raising awareness – hence the need tohold talks and exhibitions.

“The most challenging part for me is facingperpetrators during raids and prosecutions. Younever know how they will react. One incident Iwill never forget is when we raided a house in akampung; the father of the perpetrator becamevery angry and took out a parang. Thankfully hiswife calmed him down,” reminisces Norhasniza.

The dedicated officer is optimistic that herdepartment can achieve greater heights as theyall work hard as a team. Being able to contributeto the department and watch it progress andkeep moving forward gives her much satisfac-tion and motivation. Norhasniza believes goodleadership, willingness to be bold and acceptingresponsibilities will drive her department for-ward.

an iMpassioneD vocation“I have learned that one has to be sensitive

towards the needs of the public. Enforcementwork is not a ‘likeable’ job because it involvesconfiscating products from traders and busi-ness owners and ultimately prosecuting themin court. Losses to them can sometimes be quitesubstantial. Thus, enforcement officers need tobe professional and at the same time respectothers. Upholding integrity is absolutely neces-sary as it is expected by the public.”

Norhasniza feels that an enforcement officerhas to be assertive and effective. She empha-sises that officers should never abuse the powerbestowed on them and should make the rightdecisions at all times.

“Though my job tends to get hectic at times,I am very contented with it as it gives me thesatisfaction of knowing that what I am doingwill help save lives and the public is assured thatsomeone is looking out for them.”

mystarjob.com, saturday 17 August 2013 �

EnSURInG PUBLICHEaLtH SaFEtY

a DaY In tHELIFE OF a LawEnFORCEmEntOFFICER

“Audits andinspections

involvingpharmaceuti-

cal factories,pharmacies

and clinicsare scheduledon a monthly

basis.”

By NALLENA DEVENDRANmystarjob@leaderonomics.com

AFTER years of grind in the univer-sity for a diploma or degree, freshgraduates are ecstatic to embarkon their career journey and expresstheir capabilities in the workingworld.

Being new and inexperiencedcan be a rather tough challengefor “freshies” to prove their skills atwork. The various hurdles that theyencounter during this period maycause great frustration.

Nevertheless, to support the ideathat “nothing is impossible”, hereare five essential work ethics thatcan make you stand out as a newbiewhile increasing your success rateat work:

1 Be OrganisedThe first step to being a suc-

cessful employee is to be organised.Make sure all work documents areneatly and accurately arranged infolders; that includes your elec-tronic documentation as well.

Store all important emailsin folders that are easilyaccessible when requestedfor.

Having a clean andclutter-free work stationalso keeps your mindclear. A clutter freeworkstation ensures youhave easy access to everythingand this will make you an efficientand productive employee.

Besides that, you may also besetting a good example for yourcolleagues by spreading good hab-its; a crucial ability to help you gofurther in any of your future careerventures.

2 Take OnassignmenTs

Stand up and raise your hand!Volunteering for projects andassignments at work is a key stepto prove that you are a proactiveperson and willing to take up chal-lenges.

However, do make sure that youwill be able to carry out the task

Build a team to help you andnever be afraid to ask if uncertaintyarises. Once you have done yourresearch, be confident with yourknowledge and present your ideasand solutions boldly.

3 manage YOurTime WiselY

Time management is significantin every aspect of life. You shouldbe able to identify which tasksare most important and addressthem with the appropriate sense of

Have a checklist with you so youdo not leave any task incomplete.

Saying “I forgot” is very unprofes-sional and shows lack of disci-pline. Forgetting to completetasks may also label you as lazyand inefficient, which can be abane in your career growth.

BeCOurTeOus

Being courteousmay seem paltry,but actually plays a

major role in deter-mining your career.As a newbie, always

remember your man-ners.

Greeting your col-leagues, regardless of

their position, can helpyou sustain yourself in

the organisation. Everyone

would like to work with someonenice and friendly, and if you are thatsomeone, you would see yourselfgiven more responsibilities.

When you are nice, people tendto go out of their way to help youand this is imperative when you arenew in an organisation, trying togain knowledge, skills and experi-ence. So remember your P’s and Q’s,do not forget to smile, and alwaysgreet your peers!

5 Be POsiTiveWhen you are new to the

working world it is normal to feeldown and de-motivated. You tendto make small scrapes here andthere which might hurt your pridemore than once throughout theday, but this should not discourageyou.

Remember your mistakes, learnfrom them and don’t repeat them.To do this, a positive attitude isimportant. Mistakes are bound tohappen, but always be optimisticand get back on track.

A positive mindset also makesyou more productive and leads youto making wiser decisions. Positivityis most crucial when there is a prob-lem at work.

Nobody wants an employeethat laments over a situation. Theywould prefer one who finds a solu-tion. If a problem arises, be optimis-tic, find a solution and do not letapprehension conquer you.

By MICHAEL HEAHmystarjob@leaderonomics.com

COACHING is still in a “confused” stateas to its actual identity. I have been inmany situations where I have had tocome to its defence to prevent it fromlosing its integrity as a replacement

name for training, mentoring, consulting andcounselling.

“It is the same thing, only with a differentname,” is a common remark I receive. After somany experiences with this, I found that themost common thread that runs through theminds of these ‘misguided’ perceptions is thatcoaching is nothing more than a common activ-ity of teaching and advising people on how theycan improve their competencies by doing a taskin a predetermined manner.

But is this what coaching really is? Far from it!Coaching is packed with many more ‘ingredients’than what many expect.

defining COaChingThe clearest meaning of coaching is a “deep

learning partnership that empowers a person togain courage, competencies and commitment toachieving their fulfilling goal”.

Going by this, it means that the coach is a“deep learning (and not any ordinary) partner”who has the ability to deepen partnerships withpeople.

Coaches have the capability to enter into theclosely guarded “inner world” or the “heart level”of the person to be in contact with their deepseated emotions, inner motivations and unde-clared feelings. This is a “sacred place” for peopleand is therefore not easily accessible except for

those who have “special” skills and powers tomake the entry.

These special skills are usually concentrated ina number of areas, and include the ability to wintrust, listen deeply, ask insightful questions andraise self-awareness for discovery making.

Unless you are specially trained to acquirethem, they do not come automatically to anordinary person; not even to a capable managerwho is very sound in advising and telling theirpeople what to do. Conversations will only tendto take place at the “head” level consisting ofknowledge, information, experience, logic andreasoning.

But one may ask why a coach needs to getdeep into the person’s inner world. The fact is,without getting in there, a number of break-throughs cannot take place. The person needsto be led to a state of self-awareness in order todiscover how to tackle their issues.

The importance of knowing and understand-ing emotions, feelings and inner motivations ofpeople cannot be underestimated because theyare the true generators of action in people. Forinstance, it is not being unable to wake up earlythat causes a person to be late, but his/her dis-like for the work itself or the lack of congenialityin the working environment.

So if a manager only advises this employee ontime management or dishes out a punishmentfor coming to work late, the same problem willrecur as long as the deeper-seeded issues are notaddressed.

Furthermore, trust and intimacy can only bebuilt through these deep conversations. So whenmanagers are only concerned about getting workdone, this will not help to improve their relation-ships with their team members.

The effeCTive COaChThis finally brings us to the coach him-

self who is at the epicentre of a coach-ing relationship. Let’s get it straight.The coach is not just an “ordinary”person with seniority and yearsof experience.

A coach must be passionateabout helping people excel intheir lives. Only then can com-mitment, sincerity and authen-ticity be clearly demonstratedto build relationships of trustand intimacy, so the person canshare truthfully. Only with truthcan a coaching relationship reallysucceed.

A coach also needs to possessthe skills of listening and ques-tioning. A good coach listensboth at the “head and heart”level of the person to reallymake sense of what is not said aswell as what is said to make fulland accurate sense of their mean-ing.

Powerful listening helps the coachto become a powerful facilitator as well.He/she is armed with the right questionsto help people search in places of their mindsthat they seldom visit.

Using his/her questions as the ‘searchlight’helps the person gain insights and self-aware-ness to find resources, options and opportuni-ties to move forward in a faster and better wayto his/her goal in the most fulfilling manner.

It is hoped that by demystifying coachingand the coach, leaders and managers will look

at gaps in their coaching skills to be filled sothat they can fortify their ability to lead andinspire people to greatness.

n Dr Michael Heah is the CEO of Corporate CoachAcademy and is a professional certified coach whotrains and certifies leaders of all backgrounds tobecome true blue coaches.

COACHING DEMYSTIFIED

A COACH MuSTbE pASSIONATEAbOuT HElpINGpEOplE ExCElIN THEIr lIvES.

mystarjob.com, saturday 17 August 2013 10

ESSENTIAl WOrk ETHICSFOr ‘FrESHIES’ TO bOOST THEIr CArEErS

are five essential work ethics thatcan make you stand out as a newbiewhile increasing your success rate

Be OrganisedThe first step to being a suc-

cessful employee is to be organised.Make sure all work documents areneatly and accurately arranged infolders; that includes your elec-tronic documentation as well.

Store all important emails

accessible when requested

have easy access to everythingand this will make you an efficient

Besides that, you may also besetting a good example for yourcolleagues by spreading good hab-its; a crucial ability to help you gofurther in any of your future career

will be able to carry out the tasksuccessfully and that it is not some-thing above your league!

Once you have agreed to do anassignment, make sure you see it

through and don’t backoff mid-way.

Time management is significantin every aspect of life. You shouldbe able to identify which tasksare most important and addressthem with the appropriate sense ofurgency.

Have a checklist with you so youdo not leave any task incomplete.

Saying “I forgot” is very unprofes-sional and shows lack of disci-pline. Forgetting to completetasks may also label you as lazyand inefficient, which can be abane in your career growth.

4

remember your man-ners.

leagues, regardless oftheir position, can help

you sustain yourself inthe organisation. Everyone

By EVA CHRISTODOULOUeva.christodoulou@leaderonomics.com

WHAT makes people’s heads turnwhen they see certain indi-viduals? Why do certain peopletend to attract the attention oftheir colleagues, superiors and

employees despite their position, while othersseem to be invisible despite having some bril-liant ideas?

It all boils down to how we carry ourselves,behave, and mould people’s perception of us. Itcomes down to our ‘executive presence’.

Executive presence is our image and per-sonal brand. It is through this image or brandthat people form opinions of us. They judgeour professionalism, seriousness, character,strengths and everything else that may swaythem towards giving us more attention.

‘Executive’ is a tern often used withouta clear understanding of what it means. InMalaysia, for example, an ‘executive’ positionusually refers to one at the beginning stages ofthe career ladder.

However, executive presence, according tocoach, speaker and writer of the book The NextLevel, Scott Eblin, may be defined as “your abil-ity to get results, especially when the expecta-tions around results are continually changing.Second, it’s about the behaviours you exhibitat the personal, team and organisational levels.When your behaviours align with the expectedresults, you have executive presence.”

In an increasingly demanding work environ-ment, you need to have the ability to carryyourself in a way that others would want tolisten to you, have you lead their teams andorganisation, and would trust that you canmake an impact on clients, collaborators andcompetitors alike.

Suzanne Bates, executive coach and CEO ofBates Communications, argues that there areseven elements to executive presence. Let’shave a look at each of them individually, and bythe end of this article, you can perhaps evalu-ate yourself and see how you can improve yourexecutive presence.

SUBSTANCEEven though this is the most obvi-

ous attribute of a strong leader and asuccessful professional, it is often notmastered. Substance means havingthe knowledge and expertise to carryout your duties in your role, but also gobeyond that. It entails being able to com-municate this knowledge to your team ina manner that they can easily understandyou and that is professional, well-docu-mented, and convincing.

PERSONAL STYLEPersonal style is crucial in improving

your executive presence. Image does mat-ter, and it is important to dress for therole we hope to one day hold. Dressingin professional attire that exudes power,after all, gives us the push we need to also act assomeone more powerful.

PHYSICAL PRESENCEThe way you come across to others influences

your executive presence immensely. From theway you greet people, shake hands, use eyecontact, smile, and the way you deliver your mes-sage (enthusiasm and energy being of coursepreferred to a lifeless narration), to the way yousit, eat, and move, you make impressions on theminds of those around you who then classifyyou as someone that is sophisticated, composed,energetic, enthusiastic, full of ideas and charm,as opposed to someone who is shabby, boring,pessimistic, and difficult to deal with.

VOCAL SKILLYour voice has much to say about what kind of

person you are. Clarity and tones are very impor-tant, as well as the ability to convey and controlemotions when necessary through the voice.After all, having a conflicting body language andtone of voice may send out mixed signals.

MANNERS/ETIQUETTEManners and etiquette at work are not much

different than in our everyday lives. Like forany form of interaction between well behavedhumans, make sure that you treat everyone, nomatter what level they are at, as equals.

Value the help and opinions of everyonearound you, be grateful for help that is offered to

you, and make sure you do as much as you can tohelp those around you as well. In simple words,be a nice person.

RECEPTIVITY/LISTENINGThe importance of listening to those around

you, no matter what your position is, cannot beoverstated. Listening means really taking in andprocessing what your colleagues are telling you,discussing with them and understanding theirviewpoint irrespective of whether you agreewith them or not.

WORKSPACEA person’s desk can say a lot about the kind

of person he/she is. A tidy, well-organised andclutter-free desk indicates someone composed,calm, organised and grounded. The opposite

would indicate a person who is constantly in astate of chaos and disorder – not a great imageto portray to your colleagues and bosses.

GET STARTEDHow do you improve yourself now that you

read this? Make some time to think through thedifferent areas discussed here. Which of theseare you actually doing, to some extent, andwhich are lacking?

Speak to trusted friends and colleagues,someone who would be honest with you, andlisten to how they perceive of you. And one ata time, work towards cultivating your executivepresence. Before you know it, people will start tonotice the difference. Before long, they’ll be turn-ing their heads and listen to you more.

mystarjob.com, saturday 17 August 2013 11

10RAISE

AWARENESS

IMPORTANCE Of

Harvard Business, the most effective users of

social media have top level manage-ment who prioritise social media inbranding and marketing efforts.

These result in allocated budg-ets and people, capitalising onthe potential of these mediastreams. It’s important to getkey people on board the socialmedia train so that it doesnot seem like a superfluous

EDUCATE,ORGANISE

AND TRAINOnce social media is

recognised as a priority, execu-tion is crucial in determining

its outcomes. Ensure that thosewho have been assigned to tend

to these public profiles areequipped with the necessarycommunications and public

relational skills.

It is also essential that these peo-ple are fed with the most updatedinformation to avoid misleading thepublic!

8 TRACK AND QUANTIfYWHICH ONLINE

ACTIVITY LEADS TO ROIIt’s difficult to explain to other

people the potential of social media ifthere’s no evidence to back that claimup. Relate your social investments tobottom-line objectives such as thereturn on investment or ROI, increasein sales corresponding to social mediablasts and other more tangible meth-ods of measurement. Capitalise onwhat works for your business andeliminate redundant profiles.

7 DON’TUNDERESTIMATE

THE POWER Of GOODGRAMMAR

There is a reason why grammar‘Nazis’ exist in the cyber world, so doensure that your posts and tweetsare screened to avoid grammatical orlexical errors.

Well-articulated posts would alsohelp the public to distinguish yoursocial media account from any otherpotential impostors.

6 DEAL WITH NEGATIVECOMMENTS PROPERLY

Social media is an interactive tooland (potential) customers may postenquiries or complaints on your prod-ucts so do ensure that you respond intime to avoid angering them.

This also means that there arebound to be negative customers whowill criticise your business or yourproducts publicly. Learn to handlethese people tactfully to avoid lookingunprofessional in an arena where eve-ryone is watching.

5 RESPOND PROMPTLY!Do ensure that if you open a

forum for questions, there is a skilledperson who will be able to answerenquiries. In an age where everythingis instantaneous, customers expecta certain amount of promptness inreplies. Anything more than a day ortwo would be considered unprofes-sional.

4 GET YOUR AUDIENCETO PARTICIPATE, GET

INVOLVEDDon’t just post notices or updates,

but conduct activities to get yourtarget audience involved in yoursocial media platform. Ask questions,

conduct general surveys, host com-petitions and other interactive toolsto engage the crowd. That way, thepublic will feel more connected to thebusiness, leading to better public rela-tions for your company.

3 UPDATE PROMPTLYAND APPROPRIATELY

What’s worse than having toomuch empty content is not havingany content at all; post frequently toensure that your page remains visible.Sporadic updates would leave yourcustomers disappointed and uninter-ested.

Plus, it would also give the impres-sion that your business isn’t seriouson gaining popularity amongst yourcustomers.

2 STRATEGISE YOURACTIVITIES

In the hands of the wrong person,social media can damage your effortsto brand your company. Don’t justbellow statuses or publish tweetsrandomly without a plan or a targetaudience.

Doing so, you’ll only add bulk toeveryone’s notifications. You’ll defi-nitely increase your Internet presence,but not in a good way.

1 IDENTIfY WHICHSOCIAL MEDIA

PLATfORM SUITS YOURNEEDS

Different social media platformswould have different purposes andfunctions and not all of them wouldsuit your organisation’s needs orimage. For example, Instagram focus-es on mostly visual or pictorial feeds.

Top 10 Ways To

10RAISE

AWARENESSON THE

IMPORTANCE OfSOCIAL MEDIA

According to the Harvard Business, the most effective users of

social media have top level manage-ment who prioritise social media inbranding and marketing efforts.

These result in allocated budg-ets and people, capitalising onthe potential of these mediastreams. It’s important to getkey people on board the socialmedia train so that it doesnot seem like a superfluousactivity.

9 EDUCATE,ORGANISE

AND TRAINOnce social media is

recognised as a priority, execu-tion is crucial in determining

its outcomes. Ensure that thosewho have been assigned to tend

to these public profiles areequipped with the necessarycommunications and public

relational skills.

IMPORTANCE OfSOCIAL MEDIA

According to theReview, the most effective users ofsocial media have top level manage-

ment who prioritise social media inbranding and marketing efforts.

These result in allocated budg-ets and people, capitalising onthe potential of these mediastreams. It’s important to getkey people on board the socialmedia train so that it doesnot seem like a superfluousactivity.

9AND TRAIN

recognised as a priority, execu-tion is crucial in determining

its outcomes. Ensure that thosewho have been assigned to tend

to these public profiles areequipped with the necessarycommunications and public

relational skills.

MaxiMise social MediaiMpacT for your Business

develop yourexecuTive presencebeyond that. It entails being able to com-municate this knowledge to your team ina manner that they can easily understand

your executive presence. Image does mat-

VOCAL SKILL

you, and make sure you do as much as you can tohelp those around you as well. In simple words,be a nice person.

RECEPTIVITY/LISTENINGThe importance of listening to those around

you, no matter what your position is, cannot beoverstated. Listening means really taking in andprocessing what your colleagues are telling you,discussing with them and understanding theirviewpoint irrespective of whether you agreewith them or not.

WORKSPACE

of person he/she is. A tidy, well-organised andclutter-free desk indicates someone composed,calm, organised and grounded. The opposite

would indicate a person who is constantly in a

iSnap me for a video > http://thestar.com.my/isnap

Dear rachel,Thank you for your question

and also thank you for attendingTalentCorp’s flexFair, which we heldon July 8 in conjunction with thelaunch of www.flexworklife.my, a por-tal working in partnership with lead-ing employers to share best practicesand enable Malaysian employeesachieve work-life integration.

I am surprised that your husbandfaces difficulties because he does nothave a degree. In my experience, thesignificance of paper qualificationsdiminishes with the number of yearsof work experience.

For experienced hires, paperqualifications matter less. Especiallyin areas of design and web design.It is really one’s portfolio and pastprojects that secure the job. There areCEOs in Malaysia, for example, in thecreative fields and also ICT, who donot have degrees.

Perhaps one challenge in apply-ing to large organisations is that thehuman resources departments thatfilter CVs may not be familiar withthe domain experience that your hus-band has. Especially with the numberof years of work experience that hehas, one should speak directly to thehiring manager or department head.

After 20 years in the industry,your husband should leverage onpast organisations and colleagues tohelp identify possible opportunitiesand recommend as well as help linkdirectly to those hiring in areas rel-evant to his field of expertise.

I am confident that there are jobsout there, which are relevant andopen to your husband’s extensiveexperience.

I therefore believe that the issueis not so much the lack of degree.It may be a combination of age andalso, not being in a job currently.Malaysians tend to secure their nextjob whilst still in employment. In fact,the longer one is not in employment,the more diffucult it is to secure

employment. There are organisationsthat view the period of not being in ajob as an indicator of employability.

TalentCorp is looking into this area,particularly in assisting women on acareer break to return to work. We areworking with leading organisationsto develop “return” programmes thatlook to re-skill women on a careerbreak and/or provide “handholding”to ease them back to work. It is achallenging area as despite the talentshortage faced by many employers,many are averse to recruiting thosethat have been on a career break.

This is partly a mindset issue,which TalentCorp hopes to addressthrough a combination of advocacy,awareness and implementation ofsuccessful pilot programmes.

Our work in relation to www.flexworklife.my is particularly rel-evant, as other countries, especiallydeveloped countries, have found thatflexible work arrangements helpfacilitate integration and retentionof talent, whether women who seekto balance work life commitments,or older individuals with lots of workexperience.

Best practice talent policies andhuman capital management practic-es help in optimising the talent poolfor the organisation’s requirements.

Leading organisations in the pri-vate sector have increasingly devel-oped their competency frameworks,which therefore anchor selection,promotion and renumeration basedon competencies to deliver workoutcomes rather than being dictatedby one’s original paper qualification.Such a trend should help reduceexperienced people facing discrimina-tion in pay due to lack of a degree.

Many organisations are alsodecentralising hiring functions, withthe hiring decisions being made bythe respective business functions.This trend helps as well in ensuringthose undertaking the hiring andselection are better versed with what

is required for the job and able toassess the experience of individuals.

In the public sector, there is cur-rently an initiative looking into therecognition of vocational qualifica-tions, in terms of its equivalence forpurposes of entry in the public sector.

Employers are transforming andimproving their talent practices inorder to ensure they are best able tosecure the talent they need for theirbusiness. This includes leveragingon top talent like your husband withthe right experience and capabilities,who do not necessarily have paperqualifications.

I would like to wish your husbandall the best and encourage him topersevere in finding the job that fitshim. With the strong growth of theICT sector, including regional sharedservices operations, there is a strongdemand for ICT-related talent.

Best regards,

Johan

Dear rachel,I understand and empathise

with you as I also have friends whofaced similar predicaments regardingtheir future without a degree in hand.

These friends have successfullyfound jobs in their respective fieldsand built decent careers. Whilst adegree can certainly be an advantage,it is possible for those without degreesto succeed in their career of choice.

Before we proceed, it would behelpful to understand that equalopportunities is about giving every-one the same chance without bias interms of race, religion and gender interms of employment, pay and pro-motion.

It is rather surprising to note thenumber of rejections your husbandhas received on the ground of the lackof a degree. We can only assume thatthey must have some good reasonsbehind the absolute requirement for

a degree.As a general rule of thumb, degrees

have been used as the first filter forsome positions, as employers are nowautomatically listing it as a require-ment to help manage hundreds ofapplications being received. However,this is usually limited to entry leveland some junior mid-level positions,where candidates may lack strongwork or corporate experience.

If your husband feels that he isqualified for a particular job with theyears of experience he has, do contin-ue to encourage him to apply for theposition even if the requirement maystate that a higher level of qualifica-tion is required.

In view of your husband’s in-depthknowledge and skill-sets that he hasacquired over time, it would be bestif he could focus on how his acquiredskills, industry exposure and experi-ence would place him as the best fitfor a job.

On this note, perhaps your husbandcould re-look at his resume. Focus onshowcasing his past industry expo-sure, assignments, achievementsand skill-sets he has accumulatedthroughout his career in his chosenfield. I notice that your husband spe-cialises in IT and web solutions, a fieldthat generally demands a practitionerto continuously keep abreast withthe latest technological trends andadvances. It would be helpful if yourhusband could highlight the followingin his resume:

> State the total years of experi-ence and the type of experiencein the different industries.

> List any professional certificationsundertaken to up-skill himself.

> Highlight achievements,such as:a. Past projects which were suc-

cessfully implemented.b. Examples of IT solutions

he has designed andimplemented.

c. Details of the projects he hadmanaged previously and theoutcomes achieved as a resultof his leadership.

As your main objective is to securean interview so that you can shareyour knowledge and expertise with afuture employer, detailed informationlike salary expectations need not beincluded in the resume.

How you present yourself duringinterviews will directly or indirectlyimpact your marketability. Your hus-band would need to:

> Know his self-worth and markethimself based on his skills andindustry experience.

> Be confident in his ability to meetthe demands of the new role.

He does not need to be apologeticabout the lack of degree, but addressthis concern by highlighting his over-all abilities. Employers like confidentcandidates as they need the assurancethat the one they employ will be ableto deliver on the expectations of therole.

Your husband may also want toconsider pursuing a part-time degreeor a master’s programme. This couldhelp open more doors and opportuni-ties for him.

However, it is worth understand-ing that in any given situation if thereis another candidate with the sameexperience and skillsets but who alsohas a relevant degree, the recruitingmanager in any organisation wouldalways pick the best candidate for thatparticular position.

Best wishes,

emily Wong hie ling

n The opinions expressed are thoseof the authors and not necessarilythose of Leaderonomics ormyStarjob.com

mystarjob.com, saturday 17 August 201312

Executionis the keydeterminantof a successful leader

Dazzle your interviewer byasking the rightquestions at theend of your job interview

Nurture the cultureof talentdevelopmentin your organisation

If you have any suggestions or feedback on our content, get in touch with the Leaderonomics team at mystarjob@leaderonomics.com.For advertising and advertorials, contact ian.lee@leaderonomics.com - 016 974 7087

Your wordsimpact thosearound you, aswell as yourself

Also next week

WE have experts on career manage-ment, HR and office issues whowill address your questions weekly.We refer to them as careernomers– experts in career matters whowill help you in your career journey.So if you have burning questions,send them to dearcareernomers@leaderonomics.com and we will getthe panel to answer your questions.

This week, Johan Merican, CEO ofTalentCorp, and Emily Wong Hie Ling,vice-president, head of organisationaldevelopment & learning, AllianceBank, answer Rachel’s question.

Dear careernomers,My husband is a diploma holder in graphics.

He started in graphic design 20 years ago, andhas experience in web design programming.

He can design solutions based on web appli-cations and has acquired project manage-

ment skills.He has exposure in the IT, mobile and

oil and gas industry. Although some ofhis bosses were willing to overlook thefact that he did not have a degree, interms of compensation, he was discrimi-nated, as his juniors received a higher

salary. He has been trying to find a job,but it seems that two factors are against

him; the lack of a degree, and age.One of the companies he applied to – a

large oil and gas corporation – responded bysaying that he did not have a degree and hencehis application would not be considered.

I admit that I was flabbergasted, and when

I read that employers are complaining abouttoday’s graduates, I wonder why they do notgive diploma holders or people with the rel-evant work experience a chance.

I attended the flexFair recently, and askedsome of the corporate figures if a degree was akey requirement. Most of them, who claimedto be equal opportunity employers, gave thestandard response – that all applications wouldbe considered on the basis of skillsets andexperiences.

My question here is, what are the steps orinitiatives being taken by the private and publicsector to employ diploma or non-diploma hold-ers who have the required experience? Andhow can people, who are nearing middle age,be integrated into the workforce effectively?

Thank you.

rachel