What I do, briefly
I am a field-proven C-suite publicist, business strategist, professional keynote speaker, meeting and workshop facilitator, adjunct professor, with more than 37 years of communication, industry, training and development experience since the 1980s.
I have consulted and presented throughout the Asia-Pacific region and worldwide to audiences ranging from a few to thousands. My sessions are known for being thought-provoking, with deep industry and technology experience and case studies, as well as good humor and engaging analogies, anecdotes, stories and historical perspectives. I am a storyteller.
I am also a technologist and strategist who has consulted with organizations seeking guidance and recommendations on how to best leverage information technology (IT) for business, performance, and efficiency. I consult in areas such as Web 2.0, social media, mobile and web applications (full stack development), internet advertising, content management systems (CMS – public), knowledge management systems (KMS – intranet/internal), etc. My foray into computer programming was in the 1970’s with my Sinclair ZX and Radio Shack TRS-80 writing BASIC programs. Then I moved on to learning FORTRAN, COBOL, the alphabet soup of HTML/Java/Javascript, and then Perl and PHP.
I am a prolific writer and journalist, having published books on business leadership, the Internet, service quality, Total Quality Management (TQM), spirituality, etc. I have spent many years as a contributing editor, foreign correspondent, independent journalist, commentator, and analyst for business and technology publications, daily newspapers, magazines, radio and television, and online media.
Connect with me on LinkedIn. I do keep a simple Linktree profile as well.
Earlier years
I was born very prematurely in a hospital in Taipei when the attending surgeon told my grandparents and parents that I might not make it. I didn’t die, but I faced many physical challenges in my early life. I found that through a disciplined life of diet, nutrition, contemplation, and exercise, I could keep my physical challenges under control. I competed in the 100-meter sprint, learned Goju-Ryu Karate 剛柔流空手道 (one of the main styles of Okinawan Karate), weight training, and Muay Thai. I have remained active throughout my life.
When I was in junior college, I spent way too much time doing biochemistry research (on food lipids and autoxidation). I served in the Army and came out in the worst economic crisis of the 1980s.
However, I don’t believe that life is meant to be wasted, even if challenges come your way and you can fight your way through them. There is a reason behind every event in life. That’s what I bring to the table, the professional who keeps going. Through all these life challenges and experiences, I have found great joy in sharing my optimism and journey as a motivational speaker, especially to the younger generation.
My work today
Today, I spend my time as a thinker and practitioner in the areas of business leadership, communication, the Internet, marketing, branding, and Asian philosophy. For like-minded clients, I enjoy sharing my experiences in life’s many twists and turns to inspire and educate people in my own unique and simple way.
Currently I am at McGallen & Bolden Group leading information technology implementations, as well as providing consulting and creative direction for the group’s clients in using technology and interactive media for publicity, branding and marketing. I am also developing leadership and crisis communication programs at Flight Leaders (division of McGallen & Bolden), based on aviation principles in the flight deck, on how pilots handle crises and communicate in such scenarios, together with a good friend and mentor who is a retired veteran airline captain with over 40 years of aviation experience, at https://flightleaders.com. I also try to pursue my art and calligraphy, pro-bono work, book writing, photography, filmmaking (short videos), and aviation.
Memberships & Accolades
I was privileged to be inducted into the 500 Profiles in Excellence, humbly alongside the likes of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate President Kim Dae-Jung (Korea), artist Peter Gabriel, “Seven Years in Tibet” film director Jean-Jacques Annaud, Cardinal Jan Peer Schotte (Secretary General of the World Synod of Bishops), and futurist Sir Arthur C. Clarke. I was also inducted into the Barons 500 Leaders of the New Century, humbly alongside the likes of leading futurist and visionary Sir Arthur C Clarke and Microsoft’s Bill Gates. Previously, I have been inducted into Marquis (USA)’s Who’s Who in the World, Who’s Who in Science & Engineering, and IBC UK’s Men and Women of Distinction.
I have been a member of the National Speakers Association (NSA-USA, since 2003), the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA, since 1997), the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI), the American Association for Talent Development (ATD, formerly American Society of Training & Development ASTD), the Biochemical Society (part of the Federation of European Biochemical Societies), the American College of Heraldry (life member), Spiritual Directors International (SDI), the United Nations Association of USA (life member), and the Society for the Physically Disabled (SPD, where I served briefly as a board member). Previously, I was a member of the Chartered Institute of Journalists UK (MCIJ), the American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE), and Trade, Association & Business Publication International (TABPI, editorial judge of the Tabbies Awards).
Lifelong student
When I was in junior college, I spent way too much time on biochemistry research (on food lipids and autoxidation) and managed to drop out of junior college without going to university. I did my national service in the army and came out of the army facing the worst economic crisis of the 1980s.
But I went on to night school and then distance learning while struggling to make ends meet. Many of my mentors and bosses in leading organizations advised me that learning is really about expanding one’s mind and nothing more. I found great personal satisfaction in learning about many things in life and being a student of life.
I learned through distance learning at non-traditional institutions simply to satisfy my intellectual interest while trying to stay afloat by working to support my family. My Ph.D. dissertation described an automated, Internet-based business analysis software for small businesses that ran on a Perl script. I also studied and earned a Ph.D. in theology with a dissertation on the search for faith in the East through a study of examples such as the Jesuit priest Matteo Ricci and the Catholic monk Thomas Merton. I also did some post-seminary research on pre-Nicene liturgy, early Christian thought, and the sacraments. Later, I revisited my original research in Total Quality Management and defended my revised dissertation, earning a Ph.D. in Business Administration from the San Juan de la Cruz sister program. In my earlier years and more recently, I spent a lot of time testing and researching food lipids and autoxidation, and an antioxidant against autoxidation in lipids that was tested for short-term toxicity. I have studied and continue to research possible applications in food, cosmetics and anti-aging, and have always maintained an interest in biochemistry, food science, health and fitness.
You can view my ResearchGate profile, Google Scholar page, and publications as I add them (if time permits).
And, I am picking up my Chinese painting and calligraphy again, and you can purchase my paintings at https://artistaviator.com.
Trivia
I was born and raised in Taipei, Taiwan R.O.C.. My maternal grandfather is a retired lieutenant general, renowned economics professor and author, and my maternal grandmother is a prominent member of Taiwan’s parliament. My parents later moved to Singapore. I did my national service here. I read everything from science, medicine, technology, theology, religion, marketing, photography, etc., and am a regular weight training enthusiast. I have been a photographer since my youth, carrying around a Mamiyaflex C220 in my twenties, before the age of digital photography. Today I dabble in HD videography and still photography when I have the time. I have also picked up my Chinese brush painting and calligraphy again after more than 3 decades of neglect. You can see some paintings at https://artistaviator.com. If I find more time or if my work life slows down, I may revisit the violin or wind instrument (electronic saxophone) which I played before, or try my hand at the chinese string instrument Guqin (古琴).
Faith journey
Faith is important to me. You can understand why if you have walked in my shoes as a child who had many physical and other challenges. I am a contemplative and meditation helped me a lot in dealing with my pains and challenges. I was raised a Buddhist and studied most of the canon of Buddhist scriptures, including the Theraveda, Mahayana, and then the Vajrayana (Ngyima) volumes. Some of my most-read works include the Diamond Sutra, the Lotus Sutra, and the Surangama Sutra (and I chanted the Surangama every morning at 4 a.m. in those days). Before I joined the army, the Nyingma lineage holder told my parents that I should join the monastery and become a monk, where I would enlighten many people. I thought so too, although my parents thought otherwise. That was it. I also read Confucian Analects and works by his disciples, Taoism, Rigvedas (Sanskrit), and the Koran. I am a curious student of life.
In 2004, when I was facing a great personal challenge, by divine will I discovered the kindness of some Christian clergymen, and for a while I served as a volunteer diplomat for some humanitarian missions. Finally, I began to study the Holy Scriptures, and through them I traveled first from the evangelical fields of Luther to Rome, and finally found my spiritual home in Eastern Orthodoxy. There, in the vast apostolic history of the ancient Church, I found healing not only through Scripture, but also through the saints of memory and the saints closer to our timeline. Some of my “favorite” saints are our Theotokos, St. Anthony of Egypt, St. Seraphim of Sarov, St. John of Kronstadt, etc. and my “favorite” works are the writings of the Desert Fathers, the Philokalia, The Way of a Pilgrim, etc. I am particularly interested in the practical, experiential aspects of Eastern Orthodoxy through the lens of great Russian and Greek Orthodox saints.