Podcast
Parents in Tech
Hosted by Looi Qin En · EN
You are a loving parent and a ambitious technology leader. How do you manage it all?
Join me as I go in-depth with parents who are technology leaders, founders and investors about what it really takes to balance career ambitions with family aspirations.
My name is Qin En, your host. When I started my first company at the age of 20, I struggled with over-work. I believed that my 20s and 30s should be a relentless pursuit of career achievement. Family & parenting can wait.
A few years later, I met my wife, Gladys. She helped me discover a new happiness - one from a balanced life and engaged family. When we welcomed our daughter, Gabrielle, that happiness amplified. So did stress, disagreements and challenges.
I know I am not alone. Parents in Tech is where we share stories and lessons about parenting, entrepreneurship and technology. Each and every one of you is welcome.
Season 1 spotlights mums in tech, followed by dads in Season 2. We also partner up with like-minded organizations including Microsoft, Stripe and Workato to feature unique stories on parenting and working in tech.
10episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Microsoft x Parents in Tech: Embracing New Cultures with Kevin Chan
Jul 27, 202300:30:44Tap to summarizeMeet Kevin Chan, a proud father of six-year-old twins and Global Partner Solutions Lead. He and his wife moved from Seattle, USA, to Singapore to raise their children closer to their own Southeast Asian roots. With over 20 years of experience in the tech industry, Kevin has a unique perspective on balancing technology and parenting. He's passionate about helping his children build strong connections with their cultural heritage and believes that moving abroad has benefited their family in many ways. Kevin's experiences and insights make him a perfect guest for parents considering a similar move. To get in touch with Kevin Chan, find him on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/kevinhpchan Don’t forget to head over to www.parents.fm to stay up to date with new and previous episodes, join our community of parents in tech, or drop me a line.
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Microsoft x Parents in Tech: Achieving Career Success & Parenting Bliss with Cynthia Yeo
Jul 20, 202300:23:05Tap to summarizeGet ready to meet Cynthia Yeo, a powerhouse in the tech industry and a dedicated parent to three beautiful children. With over a decade of experience at Microsoft, Cynthia has climbed the corporate ladder while expertly balancing her career and family life. As the leader of the Enterprise Commercial Team in Microsoft Singapore, Cynthia inspires others with her resilient spirit, which she attributes to her strong and resourceful mother. You'll love her candid and honest stories of overcoming personal challenges and her commitment to helping her children flourish through independence and accountability. Cynthia's journey is a true testament to the power of resilience and determination. To get in touch with Cynthia Yeo, find her on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/cynyeo And the websites available are: microsoft.com (Company) microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics/crm.aspx (Customer Engagement Solutions) microsoft.com/en-gb/dynamics/crm-trust-center.aspx (Dynamics CRM Trust Center) Don’t forget to head over to www.parents.fm to stay up to date with new and previous episodes, join our community of parents in tech, or drop me a line.
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Microsoft x Parents in Tech: Balancing Career and Family Goals with Bryan Chua
Jul 13, 202300:25:12Tap to summarizeBryan Chua, a Senior Solutions Architect at Microsoft in Singapore, talks about his family, his views on technology and parenting, and the values he and his wife want to teach their children. Bryan believes in exposing his children to technology and educating them on its benefits, but also setting boundaries and limits on usage. He emphasizes the importance of caring for others and sharing as values he and his wife want to teach their children. This conversation also touches on AI, its impact on the future of work and creativity and provides valuable advice for parents looking to balance their career and family goals. To get in touch with Bryan Yang, find him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ykbryan/?originalSubdomain=sg Don’t forget to head over to www.parents.fm to stay up to date with new and previous episodes, join our community of parents in tech, or drop me a line.
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Microsoft x Parents in Tech: Managing Career and Family Goals with Seow Khun
Jul 6, 202300:31:38Tap to summarizeIn this episode, I speak with Seow Khun, a mother of four who embraces a hybrid lifestyle offered by technology as part of her efforts to provide her children with an equitable upbringing. Seow Khun is the Public Sector Lead for Microsoft in Singapore. A mother of four boys who is fervently pursuing a certificate in disability studies and has a strong interest in utilizing technology to assist children with special needs. In this episode, Seow Khun discussed how to provide employees the flexibility to truly control their work and home life balance, and how this is enabled by Microsoft's core principles of respect and honesty. To get in touch with Seow Khun, find her on: https://sg.linkedin.com/in/lumsk Don’t forget to head over to www.parents.fm to stay up to date with new and previous episodes, join our community of parents in tech, or drop me a line.
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How to Successfully Work with Your Spouse: A Couple's Guide to Work-Life Balance with Dan and Michelle
Jun 17, 202300:40:07Tap to summarizeMy special guests are Daniel and Michelle. Daniel and Michelle, co-founders of Nimbus Group, an office and home cleaning service provider. They share their experiences working together, building a business, and parenting their nine-year-old daughter. Daniel and Michelle discuss their previous attempts at working together and how they learned to separate their work and personal lives. They also talk about the importance of having clarity on roles and responsibilities and how they have divided their responsibilities to avoid conflict. As the business has grown, they have been able to improve their work-life balance and set boundaries to avoid work talk before 9 am. The couple also shares their approach to parenting, which centers on fostering their child's individuality and intrinsic motivation. They prioritize cultivating their daughter's love for learning and exploring diverse interests, rather than solely focusing on grades and academic success. To get in touch with Daniel and Michelle, find them on LinkedIn:https://sg.linkedin.com/company/nimbus-for-work Don’t forget to head over to www.parents.fm to stay up to date with new and previous episodes, join our community of parents in tech, or drop me a line. PARENTS IN TECH - MIXPANEL EPISODE SHOW NOTES Guest: Daniel and Michelle Daniel and Michelle are co-founders of Nimbus Group, a provider of corporate and residential cleaning services. They discuss working together, establishing a business, and raising their nine-year-old daughter, Camellia. Working Together as a Couple Daniel and Michelle have been together for over five years, and they know that a successful relationship requires effort from both parties. They understand that working together as a couple is the key to making their relationship last. From communication to problem-solving, both Daniel and Michelle are willing to put in the necessary effort to ensure that their relationship is strong and healthy. They recognize that it takes two people to make a relationship work, so they strive to be understanding of each other’s needs and compromises when necessary. By working together as a couple, Daniel and Michelle hope to create an environment of mutual respect, trust, and love in their relationship. Separating Work and Personal Life Daniel and Michelle have been struggling to keep their work and personal lives separate. They both find it hard to switch off from work when they get home, which is taking a toll on their relationship. Fortunately, there are methods that can help them achieve a better balance between their professional and personal lives. These include setting boundaries around when they can talk about work, such as avoiding talking about work after dinner or during weekends. They can also try using tools such as time blocking to make sure they stick to their schedule and have dedicated time for both work and leisure activities. Integrating family and relationships Family and relationships are complex, yet incredibly important aspects of life. Daniel and Michelle are no exception to this rule as they have gone through initial challenges while trying to integrate their family together. Learning the importance of consistency in parenting is key to building a strong bond between parent and child. It is essential for parents to understand that their children depend on them for stability and security in their day-to-day lives. Creating an environment where both father and mother can equally contribute helps foster a sense of trust, understanding, and respect between the family members. Daniel and Michelle have taken steps towards working together to provide a loving environment for their child so they can continue growing up healthy and happy. From commercial to residential cleaning Daniel and Michelle, a couple who used to run a commercial cleaning business, found themselves in an unexpected situation during the COVID-19 crisis. With the closure of businesses and offices, they had to pivot their business model and focus on home cleaning services instead. But it wasn't just a matter of changing their services. They also had to develop new systems for marketing, customer service and operations. After some trial and error they were able to successfully build systems that allowed them to offer high quality residential cleaning services without sacrificing efficiency or value for their customers. "We try to be open-minded and we try to be modern parents." "I think any family run business when they want to bring in their family as well, I think usually the approach, the sensible approach at least, is not to parachute to the top straightaway.” "Even though sometimes the paths may not necessarily be what us as parents envision or hope for the child, I think it's fine. I think that most people, if brought up well with good values, they eventually find their own way and they learn on their feet most of the time." “And I think meritocracy being a very core value to our society, to my company, it's very important that people must see that, you know, this even though this person is the son or daughter or related, they are equally willing to learn and be do a 360 and progress from there because I think it also helps the person better if you're parachuting straight away as a manager.” Episode Timeline: [00:01:25] Daniel and Michelle discuss their experiences working together as husband and wife, including the challenges they faced and how they overcame them. [00:05:43] The couple shares their methods for separating work and personal life, including avoiding work talk at certain times of the day and having serious work conversations in a proper setting. [00:08:57] The founders talk about the importance of work-life balance, especially as a startup founder, and how they have improved their balance as their business has grown. [00:09:24] Michelle and Daniel discuss the challenges of balancing work and family life, relying on each other and family support, and how it gets easier as the business matures. [00:11:16] Daniel explains how the pivot to home cleaning came about due to the COVID-19 crisis, the challenges of providing 24/7 support, and the importance of building systems rather than relying on people. [00:15:35] Michelle and Daniel share their experiences of introducing their daughter to each other, the initial challenges, and the importance of consistency and building a bond with the child. [00:18:35] How Michelle and Daniel align their parenting styles and values, including reasoning things out and being firm but fair with children. [00:21:33] Daniel talks about how he tries to add value as a stepfather by complementing Michelle's parenting and contributing to shaping their daughter's moral values. [00:25:00] Michelle and Daniel discuss their philosophy of developing their daughter's intrinsic love for learning, rather than forcing her to do activities she's not interested in, and exploring different interests beyond academics. [00:27:22] Discussion on the relevance of traditional education and parenting styles in the changing world. [00:30:09] Daniel and Michelle's thoughts on bringing their daughter into the family business and the importance of not imposing it on her. [00:34:36] Daniel's advice to his past self on being more empathetic towards his child's feelings and building from there. [00:35:51] Michelle shares advice on letting children find their own path and not controlling them too much. [00:37:44] Daniel introduces Nimbus Homes, a home cleaning and service provider, and their mission to provide job opportunities to those in need.
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Book Club: Raising Confident and Secure Children - Raising a Secure Child and Raising Good Humans
Jun 4, 202300:19:09Tap to summarizeThe theme for this episode is raising confident and secure children. We examine two books — Raising a Secure Child and Raising Good Humans. Raising a Secure Child, written by Kent Hoffman, Glen Cooper, and Bert Powell John, was published in 2017. This book helps us as parents to understand how our childhood experiences, psychology, and attachment styles affect our parenting, and is packed with practical tips. The book introduces a concept called the "Circle of Security" to frame Attachment Theory ideas. At the top of the circle, children need a secure base from which they can explore the world. At the bottom of the circle, they require a safe haven to return to. Children go around the circle, sometimes very quickly, and it is the job of their parents or caregivers to follow their needs while being "larger, stronger, smarter, and kind" throughout the process. The book is divided into two parts – the first introduces us to the circle and how healthy development happens when parents understand attachment and the importance of security. The second talks about how parents can create and maintain the circle. The second book we are going to talk about is Raising Good Humans, written by Hunter Clarke-Fields. With mindfulness as its focus, this book examines ways in which increasing our awareness of what is occurring inside our bodies can help us be more purposeful and present parents. This book delves into the reasons why it is so difficult to be a good parent, as well as what we can do to effect long-term change. It also offers a peek into a child’s brain that causes difficult behavior. The book is also divided into two parts. In the first part, parents learn how mindfulness can help them lessen their stress response and become more compassionate. Parents can then become conscious of their own stories and figure out what is triggering them. Self-compassion comes after as the most important attitude for positive change. The first section concludes with tools on how to deal with unpleasant emotions. The second part teaches parents communication skills that will result in greater cooperation from their children and an improvement in the relationship. It suggests how we, as parents, help our children solve their own difficulties by listening to them, without resorting to threats. The common principle across these two books is the importance of developing a healthy attachment with our children, in addition to being aware of the triggers and challenges as parents. So, what will we be discussing in the next few minutes? We will summarize the key takeaways across three key areas: Attachment Security and Support Exploring our core sensitivities as parents Welcome to the Parents in Tech Book Club! In each episode, we summarize lessons and takeaways from two best-selling parenting books, so you can save time, get your dose of parenting advice and get back to our families and careers.
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Book Club: How Children Learn - How Children Learn and The Montessori Toddler
Apr 30, 202300:19:38Tap to summarizeThe theme for this episode is how children learn. We examine two books – the eponymous How Children Learn by John Holt and The Montessori Toddler by Simone Davies. These two books discuss different foundations and methods to help understand how our children acquire and absorb information. How Children Learn by John Holt was first published in 1967, and then revised in 1983. In 2017, a 50th anniversary version was published with a new prologue, although the content remained substantially the same. He wanted to create change by dissociating education from schooling, with the belief that children do not need and, in fact, would be better off without compulsory schooling. He concluded that learning in freedom for children was best. In this book, he describes in detail and with several examples, what natural learning is. Natural learning is when there is no anxiety or fear, pressure or manipulation by the parents. The book helps us understand why it is important to allow children to develop their own mental processes and discusses how children learn to speak, read or pick up other skills like sports, art or math. In addition, the book discusses the importance of games, fantasy and, curiosity on the child’s mind development. The second book we are going to check out will be The Montessori Toddler, written by Montessori educator Simone Davies. Montessori is a word we as parents hear a lot – from the advertisements of pre-schools to conversations with other parents. This book introduces what the Montessori method is, and talks about the practical parenting strategies that will support a child's development. So what is the Montessori method? Most teachers in traditional education stand up in front of the class and decide what kids need to learn. This is called a "top-down" approach. In the Montessori method, there is a dynamic relationship between the child, the adult, and the environment. In this dynamic, the child is in charge of his or her own learning. The child is then supported by the adult and the environment. The materials for learning are laid out on shelves in sequential order from easiest to hardest. The child works at their own pace with the material, following their interest at that moment. Next, the teacher or parent observes the child, and when it seems he or she has mastered it, the teacher or parent will give them a lesson with the next material. In other words, the kid is in charge of what they learn, how they learn, and how fast they progress. Simone' book describes how educational values utilized in a Montessori classroom can also be used at home. She describes a variety of Montessori activities, that we as parents, can conduct with our children. I believe that both books complement each other well. The common principle both emphasize is to trust our children in the learning process. Joh Holt’s book provides a foundation and concepts about children's learning, such as the impact of us parents pushing our kids to learn. Simone’ book then comes in with a vast catalog of activities on how we as parents can avoid exerting this pressure. So, what will we be discussing in the next few minutes? We will summarize the key takeaways from each of the 6 topics. Creating a safe space to learn Curiosity Language & Reading Sports, Art, and Experiential Activities Fantasy Other takeaways on learning Welcome to the Parents in Tech Book Club! In each episode, we summarize lessons and takeaways from two best-selling parenting books, so you can save time, get your dose of parenting advice and get back to our families and careers.
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Book Club: Developing & Nurturing Children's Minds - The Yes Brain and The Whole Brain Child
Apr 2, 202300:21:57Tap to summarizeThe theme for this episode of Parents in Tech Book Club is developing and nurturing our children's minds. We examine two books by New York Times bestselling authors Daniel J. Siegel, M.D., and Tina Payne Bryson, Ph. D., in which they deep-dive into the “why” of our children's behavior and the “how” for our kids to reach their full potential. The first book is titled "The Yes Brain: How to Cultivate Courage, Curiosity, and Resilience in Your Child", and the second is titled "The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind". The first book takes a more practical approach, distinguishing the yes brain from the no brain, and then categorizing yes brain characteristics into four fundamentals: Balanced yes brain Resilient yes brain Insightful yes brain Empathic yes brain The book includes strategies and ideas for implementing these fundamentals. The second book provides a science-based explanation of how a child's brain works, dividing the brain's integration process into five concepts: left and right brain integration, vertical and horizontal integration, memory integration, self-integration, and self-integration with others, as well as providing 12 tactics based on these concepts. So, what will we be discussing in the next few minutes? We will summarize the key takeaways from each of the six topics. Understanding the child's brain Balance Resilience Insight Empathy Memory Welcome to the Parents in Tech Book Club! In each episode, we summarize lessons and takeaways from two best-selling parenting books, so you can save time, get your dose of parenting advice and get back to our families and careers.
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Book Club: Communicating with Children - How to Talk so Little Kids Will Listen
Mar 5, 202300:21:16Tap to summarizeThe theme for this episode of Parents in Tech Book Club is communicating with children. We look at two best-selling parenting books. The first book was first published in 1982 and has been called “the parenting bible” by many media outlets such as The Boston Globe. This book is none other than "How to Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will Talk" by Adele Faber and Elaine Malzish. Fast forward 3 decades, the daughter of one of the authors, Adele, was inspired by her mum and wrote her own book, which is the second book we will talk about today - "How to Talk so Little Kids Will Listen: A Survival Guide to Life with Children Ages 2-7." by Julie King and Joanna Faber. Joanna is the daughter of Adele, and more than 300,000 copies of her book has been sold to-date. The two books complement each other very well, and when read in conjunction, they provide fantastic tools to help improve a parent-child relationship. They are very similar in content because they follow the same philosophy, although Joanna and Julie in their book provide more tools targeting kids with special needs. Both have sample dialogues, role-playing exercises, and cartoons that are both funny and insightful – if you are interested to practice the advice you have heard on this podcast, definitely do check the books out. So, what will we talk about in this episode? Both Adele and Joanna's books focus on helping us as parents to communicate with our children. We will summarize the key takeaways across 8 topics. Here goes: Helping children deal with their feelings Engaging cooperation Alternatives to Punishment and Tools for Resolving Conflict Problem Solving Encouraging Autonomy Praising Freeing children from playing roles When our child is suffering with autism or sensory issues Welcome to the Parents in Tech Book Club! In each episode, we summarize lessons and takeaways from two best-selling parenting books, so you can save time, get your dose of parenting advice and get back to our families and careers.
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Life After an Organ Transplant, Becoming an Ironman Triathlete, and being a Homeschooling Stay-at-home Dad with Cliff Tam
Feb 12, 202300:46:20Tap to summarizeGrowing up with a liver transplant, training for the Ironman triathlon, and sharing what life is like as a stay-at-home dad in tech. I talked to Cliff Tam on how he decided to become a nurturing hands-on dad to spend more meaningful time with his family. At a very young age, Cliff was diagnosed with cancer and went through a successful liver transplant. Despite growing up immuno-compromised, he went on to become an Ironman triathlete and gave up his career in tech and in Christian ministry to be present with his children. Cliff, who was born and raised in Canada, is now based in Singapore. He enjoys each moment with his family. He is a father of two daughters, aged 3 and 5, and married to his beautiful wife, Rachel. He is clear with his priorities - making his kids feel loved and secured. Putting his daughters through homeschool allows him to have a closer bond with them. We also speak about how it is easier to complete the Ironman triathlon than it is to be a parent. To get in touch with Cliff Tam, find him at clifftam.com. Don’t forget to head over to www.parents.fm to stay up to date with new and previous episodes, join our community of parents in tech or drop me a line.
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