Asher Wen

Strategist, Marketer, Nerd

The Fallacy of the Perfect Picture

I celebrated my 26th birthday yesterday.  The day was spent with my oldest friends over food and mahjong, and it was also spent reflecting on my life this past 26 years.  Looking back, I thank God for His blessings in my life and the friends and family who have been with me every step of the way.

I am so thankful for my friends and family
Celebrations over the weekend with the gang and my family

While I was thinking back on the bigger milestones in my life, I realised that I never would have been able to guess that I would end up where I am now.  Yet, I am right where I am supposed to be.  I was just telling Teck yesterday that somehow all the skills that I picked up in school has come into use in some way or another at work.  Like what Steve Jobs said in his Commencement speech to Stanford University, you can only ever connect the dots retrospectively.  I now have a newfound understanding of what he meant.

To try to engineer your own future by trying to fit your life into some sort of mould that someone else told you is good would only bring about unnecessary angst and pain.  Unfortunately, so many of us fall into this trap because of familial and societal expectations.  I call this the fallacy of the perfect picture. [Read more…]

The Importance of Internships

Hello My Name is Intern

Last Friday marked the very last day of internship for me, EVER. (okay, I might still have internships when I do my MBA, but you get what I mean right?).  I have just completed my Marketing Analytics internship (more on that in a future post!) with Mondelēz last week, and I have been on a period of ‘unemployment’ since.  Since it’s been so very long since I had so much time on my hands, I thought it would be good write a post on the importance of internships. [Read more…]

2014.

It’s that time of the year again where we make promises to ourselves and hope we keep them. I decided that I had to find time to write this post no matter what because it’s really important to set goals for yourself! That’s the only way you can see if you have grown over the year.

As the new year arrives, it’s also a great time to look back on my resolutions last year to see whether I managed to keep them. So here it goes!

Resolutions for 2013

1. Meet more people, learn more from them and share more with others.

The reason I wanted to do this was because I felt that I learnt most from talking to people and picking their brains. I am glad to say that 2013 was the year that I learnt the most! Besides meeting more people, I also allowed myself to do more things outside of my comfort zone.

On the school front, I organized a Photography Competition all by myself, decided to do an Independent Study Module on “Marketing Happiness” and took part in a musical for the very first time.  Through these experiences, I met people who were passionate about their craft and put in all their heart into it.  It’s something that I want to keep doing as well!

On the work front, this meant venturing into CRM instead of the typical marketing internships to get a more quantitative experience, and subsequently moving into Marketing Analytics.  I am quite blessed to have excellent bosses who put their faith in my capabilities and are willing to teach me the ropes for totally new areas of marketing that I was previously unfamilar with.

Personally, I drummed up enough courage to go skydiving in Sydney!!  For the full action, click here.  2013 was also a year of travelling and self-discovery.  Whether it was going overseas alone or with other friends, I found out more about what I liked and disliked, and my inclinations.

One pity though, is that I did not update this site enough.  There were so many times were I started to write a post but stopped halfway because I didn’t have the time to edit it to the way that I wanted it.  For example, I had been wanting to write a “101” post on CRM since May!  Hopefully I can rectify this in 2014!

2. Go deeper into my passions.

This is a tough one to decide.  Over the past year, my interests and passions have shifted.  I guess it is in part because I have become more realistic with my dreams.  Marketing is a tough industry to be in right now with so many sea changes (think: Digital, Big Data, fragmented media, economic instability, China’s downturn, etc etc).  I have had to adapt and find out what I want to do for a career in the next 5-10 years at least.  Marketing remains my one true love, and is going to be more exciting in the future!  It would be interesting to see how the economy pans out in 2014.

On other fronts, the Photography Competition and musical were extensions of my love for photography and drama.  I am glad I could take my very last varsity year to do these things! ^^  I have also come to realize that at some point in my life, I have to decide what I want to pursue and what I want to leave behind as something that I like but will not be able to excel at.  In 2013, I have come to realise that my prolonged dalliance with music can only remain a hobby, and probably will not amount to much.  And that’s okay!  Because at least I can enjoy listening to the music of others!

3. Find ways to serve others.

This particular resolution panned out in a way that was different from how I expected.  I thought I would be able to serve others by being a good listening ear, be it in my VCF Contact Group or in my residential college.

In 2013, however, service came in the form of doing.  In my church, I began serving in the AV ministry after not touching AV since 2009.  One day, a church member just waylaid me in the social hall and asked if I was interested to help out.  I said yes without a second thought.  Thinking back, that was uncharacteristic.  But I’m glad I agreed!

I also continued to serve as the Logistics Head for our annual mission trip to the Lahu hill tribes in Chiang Mai, Thailand.  The trip this year was particularly energizing because I had the time to interact with the local pastoral team to understand their work a bit more and the difficulties that they faced in the villages.

For 2014, I hope to continue to lend a listening ear to those who need it, and to exercise discernment and patience in my interaction with others.

How was your 2013?

Resolutions for 2014

What about 2014 then? This year started out challenging for me. As I continue to look for my career (not just any job!), it’s sometimes hard to convince myself that I have what it takes. The opportunities just aren’t showing up like I wish it would. And it’s not due to the lack of trying either. I have been applying to different companies as long as I thought the JD matched what I want to do. I just have to keep trying and trust that I will find the right job in the end.

Enough of that. On to my resolutions for 2014!

1. Find a job I love!
That kind of explains itself doesn’t it?

2. Post at least 4 articles a month at MAJOR:MARKETING!
I really want to keep writing about Marketing and keep everyone abreast about what is happening in advertising and marketing. Since weekly updates seems a bit challenging at the time, I want to be able to write at least 4 times each month. I hope you guys will be able to give me some feedback too so that I can improve! My hope is that this blog becomes a community of passionate marketers rather than a 1-to-many editorial!!

It was really encouraging to hear that a junior of mine in College of Alice & Peter Tan read my blog before deciding on whether to enter NUS Business School and choose marketing as a specialization! Thanks for reading this guys!

3. Save up
Now that I have graduated from university, I really feel that it’s time that I contribute back to my family financially. I want to be able to save up and give back to my mother as much as I can! She has sacrificed so much to bring us up. It’s the least I can do I feel!

4. Go for at least 1 beach getaway with the girlfriend
We have been dreaming of Boracay for a long time… Maybe I can finally learn diving! Or maybe even have a kayaking trip with Huey from Kayakasia!

5. That my family and friends stay happy and healthy!
I’m devoting my wish to all my friends and family to stay happy in 2014! I hope all of you starting out on your careers will find fulfilment and joy in what you do! I hope that everyone stays healthy too even as we fight for what we love!!!

HAPPY 2014 EVERYONE!