Ambling Around Asia (Again!)

Ambling Around Asia (Again!)

Alliterations abound, apparently. I had the pleasure to speak at the IAPCO Taipei conference in February and in a grand moment had the fortune to speak directly after the former President of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen. Both she and fellow Taiwanese government official Audrey Tang were so impressive.

Associations are important and especially so right now with the unique nature of business and the intensification of the pace of change over the past few years. The last 5 years have been, well, a lot – and having the layered support in the form of camaraderie and industry specific expertise available through associations is so important right now. IAPCO didn’t disappoint in both their content and delivery – they left their people glowing and fired up!

Thank you to Amber Chen for suggesting me for IAPCO and for Haley So for handling all of the logistics! Haley went to Washington State University so I brough her a little gift. 

The extra sweet icing on the pineapple cake in Taiwan was getting to reconnect with two people I met in the Philippines last year at MICECON who live primarily in Taiwan. Having locals pick the restaurants and choose the walkabouts is priceless – as was the time to reconnect with colleagues in the conference industry. Professional speaking can be lonely work and time with colleagues is always time well spent even if we try not to talk about work.

Taipei and Tainan are both fantastic with interesting history and fantastic food, night markets and temples. I didn’t try the stinky tofu this time, but I had just about everything else including fish skin soup and smoked, grilled and stewed squid – so fantastic.

After Taiwan I headed to Japan for 10 days in Hokkaido with time 5 days in Sapporo and 5 days in Hirafu for some city explorations and snowboarding, respectively. I stumbled upon the well-know, but previously unknown to me, travel writer Pico Iyer leading up to my trip to Japan and Pico is complex, funny and insightful.

This was my second trip to Japan and a friend who I met in Florida in the “aughts” had a good reframe for me. I was taking my current career path for granted a bit and he asked me if 10 or 20 years ago if I thought I would be speaking on a stage in Taiwan and skiing in Japan and my answer would clearly have been to say “No, I don’t see that as possible in my future.”

Why? We’ll that’s complicated and more than can be answered in a blog.

The quick answer? These micro-steps, small changes in course, new directions, development of expertise and sometimes random feeling opportunities have all led to these moments. It takes retrospection to see progress and to celebrate.

But if I can do this, and I never saw this, here and now, what else can I do. What it took to get here will have similarities to what the future might hold for me. Some changes in thinking action and skills will also be required. I think I understand most of what needs to occur.  

For leaders who see themselves as mentors, be clear on what you’ve accomplished and how you got there. When facilitating groups or coaching, I often use a tool called “Your Career in 5 Parts” which explores our careers with a few pointed questions:

1. What mastery did you develop during the earlier parts of your career that seem common to you now, but we’re grown and sharpened earlier?

For me, I would see professional speaking. I was a teacher, outreach specialist and emcee prior to keynoting. I had hundreds if not thousands of hours in front of groups. I was also a researcher who loved learning and as a teacher I created lessons.

2. What do you need the master for the next chapter of your work life?

How to scale my business in a way that fits how I want to live.

3. What mastery do you possess that needs to be passed on to develop others? 

I want to pass on my expertise to others who want to live and work with more happiness and fulfillment. This isn’t for my team, as we run a small office, but for my clients.

How would you reply to the questions above?