I started my career as a Customer Service officer (CSO) in a call centre.
My job involved a single task. That was to retain (‘winback’) at least 7 subscribers per day who called to cancel their service subscription with MobileOne (M1).
That single task proved challenging. I struggled to deliver 5 winbacks on most days. This would become a consistent theme in my first year on the job.
As a rookie, I was embarrassed and guilty. I tried to add value by suggesting ways to improve our results in team meetings. Looking back, it was a strategy that kept my job in that first year.
One afternoon, my manager called me into her office.
I feared for the worst.
To my surprise, I got promoted to Team Leader that day. I felt relieved and confused at the same time. Later, I came to understand why.
I was fortunate that I had an ‘𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭’ supervisor. Sharon Chiam was in her early 20s, younger than me. She had risen through the ranks as a CSO the year before I joined her team.
As my supervisor, Sharon looked past my glaring underperformance. She saw my raw leadership. She looked beyond my role and recognised my unique strengths as an individual.
She saw my potential which I did not. 💡
Sharon gave me 2 pieces of advice that afternoon. Her words stayed with me till this day.
🔅 My new responsibility: “𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘶𝘱 80% 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦, 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘬𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘶𝘱 20%.”
🔅My new purpose: “… 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘴 ‘𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦’.”
⌛ I took 5 seconds to understand my new responsibilities.
⌛ Another 10 years before I understood what would become my purpose.
Later, I was privileged to lead teams across Southeast Asia as I progressed in my career.
I experienced firsthand the powerful influence we hold as people managers. When I empowered my team to reach their potential and achieve beyond their current abilities.
I felt a sense of deep fulfilment that I could help unlock new perspectives and make positive changes in someone’s life.
These experiences shaped my mission at 𝗣𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘀 today.
As a coach, I want to empower aspiring executives and emerging team leaders. I want to help them develop a growth mindset and self-confidence to become their best selves.
So, here I am. Looking to help others find their true potential.
In the same way, I am grateful for how Sharon helped me find mine.
𝗣𝗦: 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹? 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 ⬇
Do you know your TRUE potential?
