What I'm working on, thinking about, and talking about with leaders around me.

On Wednesday last week I ran a breakfast session on Negotiation with a group of women from the Terra Goddesses community, who lead the charge in addressing climate change and championing women's causes.

In our session we spoke about how negotiation is as much dynamics as it is mechanics. What do BATNAs and ZOPAs look like in a globalized world and what to watch out for when you're negotiating for a better world, rather than for profit.

We also practiced how fairness and irrationality influence the deals we make. And then I shared my tips and tricks about why we shouldn't go for a 'Yes', the power of listening and asking for the 'Anna' discount.

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In a coffee chat with a Head of Product I work with, we spoke about the importance of setting clear expectations upfront, and to align on what success will look like, before we start working together.

It's becoming more and more clear to me that the reason so many leaders struggle with giving feedback is because we never started with clarity on expectations, so we have nothing we can really refer back to.

It's like going to a restaurant and saying: "make me anything, I'm hungry", and then only to see the chef come with a dish you really don't feel like eating. You can't really say anything, because you didn't say upfront that this wasn't what you liked.

A good trick with setting expectations is to ask, rather than tell. I can tell you that I need you to do this, but the real commitment comes when people have self-proposed to do something. So, ask: "What can I reasonably expect from you by then and then?". Humans have an inner need to be consistent with their earlier commitments, so this is a powerful way to tap into that. Then all you have to do is hold them to their own commitments.

A data point that caught my attention - curious to hear your take.

of employees don't want a promotion

For many, career development isn't about that promotion. I was surprised to find out that 2 out of 5 employees are not interested in a promotion. They are happy where they are. Growth to them is defined differently than climbing the career ladder.

In the career sessions I've led in the past few months, we've gone deeper into this: What are other ways to grow, aside from getting a promotion. I wrote more about that in my blog on Substack (the first one!), read it here.

Words that shifted my perspective and thoughts worth keeping close.

Questions I ask myself, reflect on, and sit with to keep growing as a leader.

A tool, habit or trick I picked up that's been making things easier for me.

Resources I created or came across that I found valuable.

As I was preparing for my session last week on Negotiation, I went back to brush up some of the gems Chris Voss shared in his must-read book "Never Split The Difference". If you don't have time to read the whole book, you can start with watching this short 7-minute video with some of his best tips and tricks.

This was one of the first books that got me interested in leadership and behavioral economics and it came up in this week's negotiation session. Although there has been controversy around some of the author's work, I believe the main message that humans are predictably irrational still holds, 17 years after publishing. He has done several TED talks, of which this one in 2008 is a good one to start with.

In-person and online events, conversations, talks I'm looking forward to.

I'll be joining the stage with Dr. Catherine Wu, cultural intelligence evangelist and lecturer at Nanyang Business School. We'll be talking about how to develop and enhance skills for better cross-cultural interactions.

Register for the event here.

Living fully is about purpose-driven work, personal growth, autonomy and flexibility. I'll be joining a panel with Clarissa Choo from Huggs Coffee, Sophia Ng from Kidztropic, Tulika Tripathi from Snaphunt and Trasy Lou Walsh from Fluid, moderated by Sharon Li from CHOYS.

Sign up here.

A sneak peek of ideas, projects and launches I'm working on before they go public.

I'm taking the first steps to develop a network of affiliated facilitators that can come in and help me deliver workshops and training programs in local languages. If you are (or you know) a facilitator residing in Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, China or Philippines, and you are proficient to deliver leadership programs in the local language, do reach out, I'd love to get to know you.

Last year I raised over 20,000 USD to fund my caregiver's kidney transplant by conducting masterclasses in how to use GenAI as a thought partner. Soon I'll be launching a second initiative to raise another 10,000 USD for her remaining medical costs. This time around we'll be focusing on the more recent introductions of AI Agents as well as how to best use Custom GPTs to your advantage as a leader. Let me know if you have any special requests, as I'm still designing the masterclasses.

I'm preparing a podcast with CEOs and executives who are 'in the lead'. We will be talking about what it is like to sit in their chair, especially in a rapidly changing business environment. First guest confirmations are in and I hope to soon be recording Season 1. Let me know if you have any suggestions for guests I should be considering or topics you like me to discuss with them.

I've used the first few weeks of this year to experiment on how to build out an online learning offering. Now I'm taking time to take the insights from these experiments and go back to the drawing board to put together online learning programs. I'm planning to kick this off in April and May, so stay tuned! If you have any requests for topics, do let me know.

Hey, I'm Anna. I'm a leadership expert based in Singapore, helping leaders worldwide get ready to lead next. Over the past six years, I've worked with thousands of leaders across tech giants, MNCs, and hypergrowth startups. Glad to have you here. Let's figure this out together!