Dr Finian Tan is a Singaporean venture capitalist and Chairman of Vickers Venture Partners: a VC he founded in 2005 with 4 other partners and which is now ranked the 5th most consistently performing fund manager worldwide. Prior to Vickers, Finian was inter alia: Regional Director & Head at J.Aron - Goldman Sachs’ Asian trading arm; Deputy Secretary of the Ministry of Trade and Industry for the Singapore Government, where he oversaw the creation of the $1 billion dollar TIF fund (he was subs...
Jan 03, 2021•1 hr 51 min•Ep. 30
Chef Darren Teoh Min Guo is the head chef and restaurant owner of Dewakan, where in April 2019, it became the first Malaysian restaurant on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list at 46th place with the title Best Restaurant in Malaysia. “Dewakan” derives its name from a combination of two Malay words: Dewa (meaning “God”) and “makan” (meaning “to eat”). And at Dewakan, Chef Darren is known for taking rare and forgotten ingredients from peninsular Malaysia – including the sea, mountain, jungle and farml...
Dec 27, 2020•41 min•Ep. 29
Lily Xu Lijia (徐莉佳) is a Chinese sailboat racer who won the bronze medal in the women’s Laser Radial class at the 2008 Summer Olympics and the gold medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London where she was also the flag bearer for China at the closing ceremony. She also medalled at the 2006, 2008 and 2012 World Championships. In this STIMY Episode, Lily shared: 3:38: Why Lily had short hair until the age of 15 4:49: Why Lily told her mother to consider a divorce 7:55: Growing up with her disabil...
Dec 20, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 28
Freda Liu is one of Malaysia’s most prominent radio-television hosts, having worked at BFM 89.9 - Malaysia’s only business radio station, for over 12 years. She has conducted over 5000 interviews and some prominent names include Martin Cooper, author Stephen Covey, motivational speaker Nick Vujicic, former GE CEO Jack Welch, the Duke of York HRH Prince Andrew to Wikileaks founder Julian Assange. At BFM, her show Enterprise provides the tools to help businesses succeed covering topics with the st...
Dec 06, 2020•51 min•Ep. 27
Cesar Kuriyama is a video maker, director, producer, animator, and founder of 1 Second Every Day - a mobile application that allows users to record one second of video every day and then chronologically mashes them together into a single film. And an app that is well on track to being the No.1 Downloaded Free App in the App Store! In this STIMY episode, we covered: 2:42: His struggles in picking up the English language 3:16: Growing up as a science & math nerd 4:50: Wanting to be an architec...
Nov 29, 2020•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 26
Chong Chan-Yau is the CEO of CarbonCare InnoLab, the President of the Hong Kong Blind Union, former Chairman and current Director of The Board of the Dialogue in the Dark Hong Kong Foundation, former Chairman of and current Board Director of Carbon Care Asia, former Executive Director of Oxfam Hong Kong. He has received many awards including Ten Outstanding Young Persons Award, MBE, China Poverty Alleviation Award, and Honorary Fellowship from the University of Hong Kong. Chan-Yau grew up in Kow...
Nov 22, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 25
Malek Ali is a former lawyer turned serial entrepreneur most known for founding BFM 89.9, Malaysia’s only business radio channel, and Fi Life, Malaysia’s first online life insurance service. Malek shares a ton of fascinating insights on what it’s like being an entrepreneur & trust me when I say he hasn’t had it easy! It seems as though every time he starts a business, a financial crisis hits! Some highlights of our STIMY episode include: 2:52: His childhood & being asked to decide on whi...
Nov 16, 2020•58 min•Ep. 24
Sarah Chen is many things but she is above all. a powerful advocate & role model for women empowerment. She is the co-founder of Lean In Malaysia, which boasts over 5,000 women within the network, bringing women back into the workforce, accelerating women into leadership positions. And also sits on multiple boards including 131 & counting , which is a bipartisan effort to fete the unprecedented number of women serving in the House and Senate, to encourage more women to run for office in ...
Nov 08, 2020•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 23
Alena Ose’ Murang is a Sarawakian sape player singer, teacher, speaker, social entrepreneur, visual artist & heritage advocate. Born in Kuching, Sarawak, to a Kelabit father, Ose Murang and English-Italian mother Valerie Mashman, Alena and her older brother were immersed in their local heritage from young including dance and the local lute instrument, the sape. While Alena has never formally studied music, she answered her calling to be a keeper of stories for her people and in 2016, release...
Nov 01, 2020•54 min•Ep. 22
Saw Teong Hin is an award-winning, Malaysian director, producer and screenwriter for film, TV and theatre and was Louis Vuitton Malaysia’s Generation Next (2003), was Tatler’s 100 People You Must Know In Asia (2006), received the CHT Essence Art Award (2009), was August Man, Men Of The Year (2017) and was Chinese Film Association Malaysia Leading Film Industry Person (2018). He is best known for his directorial debut of “Puteri Gunung Ledang” (2004) - the first Malaysian submission for the Acade...
Oct 26, 2020•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 13
Tan Kheng Hua is a popular award-winning actress/producer in Singapore and Malaysia. Kheng has appeared on stage, and in TV series and movies that include Phua Chu Kang, The Philanthropist (NBC), The Patriarch (UFA), Serangoon Road (HBO Asia Original Series), Netflix’s Original Series, Marco Polo, and most recently, as “Kerry Chu”, the mother to Constance Wu in in the movie adaptation of Kevin Kwan’s Crazy Rich Asians. She is currently filming CW’s Kung Fu series. In this STIMY episode, we dive ...
Oct 18, 2020•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 20
Patricia Kelikani is a multiple Emmy award-winning filmmaker and videographer. Having spent 12 years working at Loma Linda University where she became Director of Advancement Films, she is also the producer, director and cinematographer of the 12-time Emmy award winning TV documentary series, “Life on the Line”, narrated by Lisa Ling. In 2014, Patricia became a freelancer and founded Kelikani Films & Kelikani Consulting, where she teaches people how to make lucrative videos from home. Some o...
Oct 11, 2020•41 min•Ep. 19
Dr Jason Leong is a former doctor turned Malaysian stand-up comedian star who has been enthralling his audience since 2010 when he did his first open mic gig at Zouk, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Since then, he has gone on to, amongst others, Be the first Malaysian to win the 7th International HK Comedy Competition 2013 & win the title of Crowd Favourite; Perform at Comedy Central’s Stand-Up Asia, Hollywood’s Laugh Factory & New York’s Gotham Comedy Club; and Have his own Netflix Special call...
Oct 04, 2020•51 min•Ep. 18
Louisa Jane Gurski is a two-time British Olympian who competed as a sprint kayaker in the London 2012 Olympic Games (5th place) and Rio 2016 Olympic Games (7th place) and the inaugural European Games in Baku. She has obtained incredible achievements including the gold medal in the K-1 5000m at the World Championships, and the silver and bronze in 2013 Montemor-o-Velho and 2009 Brandenburg respectively for the European Championships Louisa spent nearly 20 years as an elite athlete and she shared:...
Sep 27, 2020•39 min•Ep. 17
Renyi is the co-founder of MyBurgerLab, MyPizzaLab and MyBobaLab alongside his friends and partners, Chang Ming and Wee Kiat. If you live in KL, you will probably have heard of MyBurgerLab: the burger joint that went completely viral several years ago with their charcoal buns & continue to hit the headlines due to their innovative flavours. Quirky options that include the nasi lemak burger, the salted egg yolk burger and the upcoming flavour, The World’s Smelliest Burger! Renyi is a universi...
Sep 20, 2020•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 16
Yi Jun Loh is a Malaysian food blogger at Jun & Tonic (nominated for the Saveur Blog Award 2018), a food writer for TASTE, Saveur & Food52 & podcaster for Malaysian’s national radio channel BFM (Baking Bread) & his own podcast, Take a Bao. If you’ve ever wondered how you can break into the Malaysian food industry, then this is the podcast episode for you! Who is Yi Jun Loh? Now you would’ve expected for one in the creative industry, that Yi Jun always had a deep love of food &...
Sep 13, 2020•57 min•Ep. 15
Joey Law is the mother of 15-year-old Founder & CEO of MinorMynas, Hillary Yip, who was our STIMY Episode 13 guest! Joey & Hillary are STIMY’s very first mother-daughter pairing and I’m so honoured to have them on board. This episode is particularly dear to my heart because even before I’d launched STIMY, I knew that I wanted to feature inspiring mothers like Joey on the podcast. I really want STIMY to be a place that features the amazing, life-changing, self-sacrificing work that mother...
Sep 06, 2020•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 14
Hillary Yip is the CEO of MinorMynas, a startup that creates fun, immersive, online products for children worldwide in a safe environment. And as at the time of this interview being recorded, she is a mere 15 years old! She founded MinorMynas at the age of 10 - which makes her one of the youngest CEOs in the World , and has been featured in places such as the BBC, CCTV, Yitiao, Yeti and the South China Morning Post. She is also a popular keynote speaker and has appeared on TEDx stages, events by...
Aug 30, 2020•40 min•Ep. 13
Danielle Merlyn Kettlewell is an Australian synchronised swimmer who competed in the team synchronised swimming event in the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics. She was vice-captain of the Australian team which placed eighth overall with 75.4333 in the free routine and 74.0667 in the technical. She was also selected as Australia’s first Mixed Duet in the sport of artistic swimming for the 2019 FINA World Aquatic Championships. She is now a coach and motivational speaker. Who is Danielle Merlyn Kettlewell?...
Aug 23, 2020•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 12
Morgan Then is the Sarawakian half of the popular Australian electronic duo, Slumberjack. Since launching their career with a No. 1 track on Triple J’s influential sister station, Unearthed, SLUMBERJACK have released four EPs—including their newest effort, Black & Blue—and over 10 singles. They’ve received 2 ARIA Gold Records (for their 2014 self-titled debut and their 2017 single, “Fracture”), while their second EP, Fracture, debuted at No. 1 on iTunes Australia’s electronic chart. Childhoo...
Aug 16, 2020•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 11
Benjamin Von Wong is Canadian mining engineer turned social artivist/photographer who designs campaigns around social impact and has succeeded in raising over 100 million views for different causes including plastics, fast fashion and electronic waste. He has a Guinness Book Record, a community of over 500,000 followers and tries to change the world through amplifying positive impact. Who is Benjamin Von Wong? Von was born in Canada and his parents are first-generation Chinese Malaysian immigran...
Aug 08, 2020•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 10
Rabi Chandra Malla is the founder of KOLPA - a social enterprise based in Kathmandu, Nepal that aims to promote sustainable & exclusive handmade goods produced by various indigenous communities from across the country (including the nomadic Raute tribe!). Who is Rabi Chandra Malla? Rabi was born in Bhaktapur and grew up in Kathmandu, Nepal. Having spent his formative years in a boarding school for the children of ex-police officers, Rabi became aware of the growing mental health issues in Ne...
Aug 01, 2020•51 min•Ep. 9
Barbara Woolsey is a Canadian freelance journalist currently based in Berlin, Germany and our guest for Episode 8 of the So This Is My Why podcast. Who is Barbara Woolsey? Barbara Woolsey was raised on the Canadian prairies in a culturally-vibrant family. She is of Filipino, Scottish and Irish heritage - a unique background that meant that she was quite unlike anyone else she knew while growing up! We explore the question of identity, particularly as a first generation immigrant in Canada, as we...
Jul 25, 2020•51 min•Ep. 8
Jan Wong is a Forbes 30 Under 30, Malaysian serial entrepreneur, youth advocate & founder of OpenMinds - a data-driven martech company he bootstrapped for 8 years & generates millions in revenue with offices in Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Hong Kong and at one point, Kazakhstan! Jan’s entrepreneurial spirit was present from a very young age. He pursued an IT course at University College of Technology & Innovation. At the age of 17, he spotted a gap in the market & established his fir...
Jul 18, 2020•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 7
Ashley Dean is a South African dancer and a First Artist at the Royal Ballet in London, which is the premier ballet company in the UK. I was just blown away by her love & talent for dancing, her grit, her bravery in dropping out of school at the age of 15 in pursuit of that dream, her love of family and unwavering trust & faith in God no matter what came her way. Ashley, I’m in awe of you & feel so privileged to be able to feature you on this podcast! Who is Ashley Dean? Ashley Dean ...
Jul 09, 2020•59 min•Ep. 6
Being in a quartet is like being in a marriage, says Milena Pajaro-van de Stadt, violist and founding member of the world renowned award-winning Dover Quartet & our guest for Episode 5 of the So This Is My Why Podcast. Holding dual citizenship in the US and the Netherlands, Milena considers herself to have grown up “a little bit of everywhere” including in Oxford (UK), Baltimore and Jacksonville. Her father taught her the piano before, feeling fed up with the instrument, she chose the violin...
Jul 05, 2020•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 5
Today’s guest is Sara Holden and she, well, has been shot, strangled, bludgeoned, suffocated & died in pretty much every imaginable way possible on the big & small screens! Sounds crazy? Not at all. She’s pretty used to it, given her career as a Hollywood stunt actress! A quick look at her IMDb profile will reveal an impressive CV with appearances in I’m Your Woman, Batwoman, General Hospital, Chicago Fire, Chicago PD, Veronica Mars, NCIS, American Horror Story, Venom, The Walking Dead, ...
Jul 02, 2020•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 4
Dr Julian Tan is the Head of Digital Business Initiatives & Esports in Formula 1 (London), and someone I got to meet while studying in the UK. Perhaps a little selfishly, I’ve loved how this podcast gives me the “excuse” to reconnect with old friends and Julian is definitely one of them. You’ll find out soon enough because my goodness, there is just soo much to unpack from our conversation! We recorded this way back in May 2020 & I’m still blown away by everything I’ve learned and I’m su...
Jul 01, 2020•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 3
Today’s guest is Red Hong Yi – a Malaysian architect turned full-time artist known for painting without a paintbrush! One of the sweetest, friendliest and most talented people I know and am privileged to call a friend. 🙂 You might have heard of her or seen her work displayed somewhere, whether in publications like the South China Morning Post , Straits Time , Prestige , artventures with Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia , or more recently on Mashable about her “I Am Not A Virus” 2020 series. Who is Re...
Jun 30, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 2
WARNING: The content gets slightly graphic when discussing the realities of poaching in South Africa. Our guest for today is Chloe Buiting – an Australian vet & wildlife conservationist who grew up in Lord Howe Island, Australia. She knew from a young age that she wanted to dedicate herself to protect wildlife and ended up going to veterinary school. One of her more interesting placements was in South Africa, where she was involved in things like capturing giraffes, dehorning rhinos (to try ...
Jun 29, 2020•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 1
