(ST)²: Storytelling for Systems Thinkers (Run 2)

Sat, 22 May 2021
1 min read
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Poster of (ST)²: Storytelling for Systems Thinkers, a workshop for students from National University of Singapore Residential College 4.

Despite the recently-announced Covid-19 restrictions, the second run of (ST)²: Storytelling for Systems Thinkers was successfully completed.

A workshop on the art and science of crafting persuasive and convincing narratives, (ST)² was conducted once more for students from National University of Singapore Residential College 4.

Thanks to invaluable feedback from participants in the first run, this run was held over two days and covered three areas: Asking Good Questions, Listening for Good Answers and Telling Good Stories.

My thanks also go to the participants of Run 2 for their insights and adaptability as we discussed how best to shift the workshop online, while still meeting their learning needs effectively.

I’m looking forward to good stories – as well as stories for good – from them in due course!

What transformation really looks like

Wed, 5 May 2021
2 min read
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What we think transformation looks like
What transformation really looks like

This week, there were a few instances in which similar narratives* about transformation were recounted to me:

“It seems like I’m giving up… Maybe it’s due to the horrible week I’ve had. Some weeks I’m doing so well and some weeks I’m just, like, I don’t want to do anything.”

“I’m not very good at practising and being consistent… I get so frustrated at why I’m doing so well in some weeks and absolutely crap in others.”

In my responses, I thought I’d try something a bit different and shared the graphics above instead.

Within minutes, I received replies* that ranged from “😊🙏🏼” to “This is so on point… It makes a lot of sense”.

We’re so used to seeing the highlight reels of others that, much like the snapshots of transformation they share, we’ve come to expect change to be easy, and to take place at a snap of the fingers.

On the contrary, the transformation journey takes place over time and is fraught with challenges.

It’s messy, disappointments abound and it often feels like we’re taking two steps forward, only to move one step back.

But chaos is part of change.

It’s the stumbles that tell us we’re moving forward, and allow us to pause and look back to see the distance between then and now, to know how far we’ve come.

So keep walking, folks.

Today, we may feel like we’re in a negative region on the mood and change graph and that’s completely OK.

We have tomorrow to try again, and the next day, and the day after, and so on, until we become the change we want to see.

*Edited for confidentiality.

Lacunae and the law

Wed, 21 Apr 2021
2 min read
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(IMAGE: TD.ORG)

It was eye-opening to read Justice Choo Han Teck’s grounds of decision regarding the issue of the lawyer who was unqualified to supervise legal trainees on their journey to be called to the Singapore Bar.

The incident has exposed a literal lacuna in the law, when it comes to learning and development in Singapore’s legal fraternity.

As Justice Choo Han Teck said in his introduction, this case really raises more questions than answers.

Personally, I’m curious to know:

  1. How the supervisor was allowed to supervise the trainee, despite the former not being qualified to do so;
  2. If there were similar cases prior to this one – i.e. a trainee being called to the bar despite having an unqualified supervisor – that have gone under the radar; and
  3. What safeguards will be put in place to prevent this from happening again.

On the same topic about lacunae and that law, I was pleasantly surprised to hear about Lacuna Training Solutions!

Founded in 2017 by Sim Khadijah Binte Mohammed, Lacuna is Singapore’s first dedicated legal skills training firm with a special focus on developing young lawyers.

For laymen like me with a soft-spot for puns and aptly-named businesses or products, a “lacuna in the law” is a form of jargon specific to the legal industry.

The phrase refers to gaps or imperfections in the law, where loopholes may exist or exploitations may occur.

It’s a delightful company name in the context of legal training, given the core business of people development: identifying learning needs and addressing them for individual and organisational growth.