The Weekend Wind-Down #34 - October 20, 2024

Hi all, this edition is a special one, TEDx Singapore event tickets are live, read more below!

Event you need to get tickets to this weekend

TEDxSingapore will hold our annual main stage event on 4 December from 7pm-9:30pm at the Singtel Waterfront Theatre - Esplanade. This year's theme: Telling Time will feature exciting speakers from a wide variety of backgrounds delivering thought-provoking talks that will challenge everything you thought you knew about time. Open your minds as we rethink and reimagine what time truly means — reflecting on the echoes of the past, navigating the realities of today, and imagining the endless possibilities of the future. The first three speakers announced are Khir Johari, author of The Food of Singapore Malays, who will unveil how food connects us to our past and shapes how we understand our identity today. Dr Hishamuddin Badaruddin, a longevity medicine doctor who will reveal how to slow down time and unlock the secrets to optimizing your health span and extending your lifespan.?And Rebecca Toh, the creative force behind Casual Poet Library and an internationally acclaimed photographer, who will share the story behind this unique, community-funded space where time is deliberately slowed down. Be sure to grab your early bird tickets here!

What I listened to this weekend

Tim Ferriss had on Andrew Robinson, the author of twenty books including biographies of Napoleon and Churchill plus many historical and military histories. In addition to discussing history, great leaders, personal legacy, national pride, and much more. I personally especially enjoyed the part of their discussion on the art and process of writing as well as their thoughts on the importance of studying history. It's a fantastic interview to listen to if you're a history lover.

Podcast I was a guest on this week

Cheryl Lau is a coach and podcaster who hosts The Thought Leader Club Podcast. It was great to be a guest on her show and discuss thought leadership and more. Her podcast is usually focused on entrepreneurs and people building thought leadership to grow their businesses. I wanted to discuss how building thought leadership can be beneficial for corporate employees who aren't looking to sell anything, but simply build their personal brand. I've been active on LinkedIn for around 8 years, not creating a ton of content, but slowly building my network and occasionally posting articles, answering questions, and now for the past 8 months writing this weekly newsletter. Although I'm not planning to start a business or sell anything in the near future, I still believe building a personal brand and creating content is beneficial to me. Not only am I building an audience in case there is something I want to launch in the future, but I'm also practicing the skills of writing and promoting. Most importantly I'm reflecting on marketing and what I do for work, which makes me better at my job. There is a common saying that teaching is the best way to learn, this goes for writing about it as well. Overall, it was a great experience, and keep an eye out for more podcast news to come!

What I read this weekend

Talk like TED examines the format and style of TED talks and why they are so popular and engaging. Although unaffiliated with the TED organization, the author interviewed many past TED speakers and public speaking experts to give advice to readers on how to improve their own presentations and public speaking. He also included quotes from the head of TED, Chris Anderson, on how the format came about and why it works. Although most people who have learned about the topic before will have heard the basic points like start with a hook, show don't tell, less is more, tell stories, touch emotions, and create jaw-dropping moments. It is still useful to correlate these ideas back to real examples delivered on the TED stage. As I work on improving my own public speaking skills as well as helping our speakers develop their talks for this year's event this book was super useful and I'm sure you'll get some great tips out of it as well!

Have a great rest of your weekend!

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