Fabian Lua | Making sense of my days

Sou Fujimoto is a young architect born in Hokkaido, based in Tokyo, famous for his 2013 Serpentine Pavilion and permeable private houses and currently working on competition projects his firm won in Paris, Budapest, Taichung, among other locations.

Fabian has spoken to hundreds on topics spanning entrepreneurship, community-building, product management, design, pricing and travel. With insights into the psychology behind engaging users and the evolution of live experiences, he provokes discussions around the role you and your organisation play in the future of online-offline interaction.

Gallery:

Developing tech products and building a community around it:

• Jan 2015 Trending SG, Speaker - 9 tips for event marketing, event spaces and event tools
• Dec 2014 Across the Border, Speaker - Communities across borders
• Nov 2014 Google GDays Georgetown Penang, Speaker - Community: at the heart of technology
• Apr 2014 MIT Technology that Matters, Speaker - Growing Startups Across Geographies
• Mar 2014 Hackers and Painters, Speaker - Dogfooding: a Product Manager’s best friend

The stories behind starting architecture walks in Singapore:

• Mar 2015 PechaKucha Night Singapore x Singapore Design Week Speaker
  
• Jan 2015 Idea Nation 聚意堂, Speaker - Magical spaces in Singapore 新加坡的奇幻建筑之旅
• Nov 2014 TEDxYouth@Singapore, Speaker - Travel without leaving home
• Oct 2014 Archifest: Crowded powered by PechaKucha, Speaker - The art of noticing

More:

• Feb 2011 Blink Blank, Speaker - The Price is Right: Ticket Pricing and Human Behavior from the Airlines’ Perspective
• Oct 2010 Barcamp 6 Singapore, 7 things I learned from having a beer (and my 90 beer caps collection)

I'm passionately curious about life events that change trajectories. And I've had a few of those moments: studying at Penn and MIT in the United States and K.U. Leuven in Belgium, switching from a stable 'scholar' career track at an established firm (Singapore Airlines) to a (then) upstart company (Viki) that didn't even seem like it was based in the right location (Singapore, not San Francisco).

So even though I'm not a startup poster boy, I've been lucky to have the benefit of experience that would be useful to others starting down certain paths. That's why I give talks - it is my way of giving back. You can never start too early in giving back.

This post is essentially an invitation to organisers - if you're looking for a speaker, maybe I can help by being one. I'm particularly interested in speaking to these three groups 1) youth / students 2) people at a transition point of their lives 3) curious polymaths.

In the past, I've spoken about:

• Growing Startups across Geographies at MIT Tech That Matters Series 
  
• Singapore is a hub for startups and technology, but startups founded or based here cannot afford to restrict hiring or innovation to Singapore. Fabian shares personal and practical lessons learned from helping startups like Viki and Peatix grow across geographies.
  
• 7 things I learned from having a beer (and my 90 beer caps collection) at BarCamp Singapore 6
• Have you ever wondered why is it that twist off beer caps have not taken over the world?
• The Price is Right: Ticket Pricing and Human Behaviour from the Airlines’ Perspective at BlinkBlank #11
  
• Ever wonder how air ticket prices could vary so dramatically? How do airlines decide on pricing? In this talk, Fabian Lua won’t quite go so far as to “Break the Airlines Code”, but he will give some insight into airlines’ approaches to figuring out how much consumers are willing to pay to travel. He will also share some anecdotes that reveal the lengths people go to score cheap tickets and find loopholes in the system.
  
• As you can imagein, I got into some trouble giving this talk. 
• Dogfooding: A Product Manager's Best Friend at Hackers & Painters 
• Fabian Lua (@fabianlua) talks about when Product Managers need to "eat their own dog food".  The talk will cover lessons learned from building a set of new subtitling tools at Viki ("global TV site powered by a volunteer community of avid fans").  Fabian is currently the Community Growth Manager at Peatix and was Product Manager, Community at Viki.
  

Related experience I have:

• Guided architecture walks (my own project) and art walks in Tiong Bahru and Marina Bay (with OH! Open House)
• Co-organised talks at TEDxSingapore, TEDxMITClubSingapore, MIT Enterprise Forum Singapore, Backstage Pass at Peatix etc. Attended conferences like TED Global.
• Attended lots of talks series like Creative Mornings and Pecha Kucha Night.
• Essentially I'm familiar and comfortable with different formats, and have seen a bunch of great talks.

Other topics I can talk about:

• Hacking the wine list. About how to choose the best value wine from a restaurant menu. Because I prepared this talk halfway but never gave it.
• Being Singaporean in a tech startup. Because there just aren't enough Singaporeans venturing out to startups.
• Taking a scholarship or not, and career choices / transitions. Because I was a Singapore Airlines scholar, and jumped to a tech startup.
• Startup culture, and culture in startups, including working remote. This is a topic I'm passionate about.
• Becoming a product manager (or moving from being a product manager). Because that's what I've experienced.
• Stroke happening to someone close to you. Because my dad suffered from a sudden stroke.
• Architecture in Singapore. I'm not an architect, but I'm a fan.
  

The easiest way to start a conversation is to leave a comment below. I don't know where this will go, but I'm just putting it out there!

---

Related post: Help others wholeheartedly (How I network)

A simple list of events I'm going for or would have gone for.

Talk by Victo Ngai, New York-based editorial illustrator (Thu 6th March, sold out)
Tiger Beer is best served really really cold, since it doesn't really taste of anything. To get us to buy, big beer brands flood us with advertising and grab the supermarket prime spots. 

It was near the entrance of the King Albert Park Cold Storage, right before Chinese New Year when I saw Victo Ngai's gorgeous work on the Tiger Beer cartons. She's in town to speak this Thursday. The event is sold out, but catch the rest of the series by the Organisation of Illustrators Council (OIC).  

[Did you know? The KAP Cold Storage is closing down. Even supermarkets pay the price of Singapore's progress.]

Jazz by the Beach (Fri 7th March, 8pm - late, Coastes on Sentosa, pay for food & drinks)
I enjoy Sentosa because most of the island (other than Resorts World) remains laid back. And listening to jazz, by Siloso beach is probably as close to a 'staycation' as a Friday night on Singapore can feel.

Sustainable Architecture Adventure (Fri 7th March 7pm + Sat 8th March 830am, Somerset + National Library. $15)
While rehearsing for my WOHA Architecture Walk late one night, I saw the National Library building from the Bugis+ rooftop, and finally fell in love with that building. I was originally annoyed that this cold steel and glass version replaced the old, warm red-bricked building. 

The Hub Singapore is screening a film on sustainable architecture, then guiding a walk - both include the National Library building. 

Late Harvest Shiraz tasting (Fri 7th March, until 10pm, PasarBella - off Bukit Timah Road)
The same way remixes and acoustic versions amplify the beauty of their original songs, adventurous use of grape varietals teach me new ways to appreciate the usual methods. I'm really excited about sparkling Shiraz, and Merchants Wine Cellar is pouring Late Harvest Shiraz this week at their PasarBella store.

I once overheard a Singaporean 'uncle' say of PasarBella, "Wah, no need to go overseas anymore!" This indoor market does have the vibe of Sydney or San Francisco on weekends. But what I like about it on weekday nights is how quiet and personal it feels.

Jungle Beer brewery tour (Sat 8th March, 630pm - 11pm, Admiralty - almost Johor Bahru, $40)
I don't think anyone really cares how beer is made. The real reason people go for brewery tours is to taste the freshest beers. Jungle Beer offers five hours of free flow of craft beer for $40. And they've recently updated their labels - looking beautiful!

Young Dreams (Norway) (Sun 9th March, 10pm, Esplanade)
Since I'm addicted to every single song of Kings of Convenience, I assumed every Nordic band must be good. And I dreamt of catching gigs at the Esplanade studios ever since I caught Au Revoir Simone there. So there, I bought tickets to Young Dreams.

(Speaking of Au Revoir Simone, they're going to be at Zouk).

---

Read more »

On Thursday 27th February (630pm), the wonderful people of Green Drinks Singapore are hosting "The future of food farming in Singapore" there. 

See and Be Seen takes place on 8th March, but registrations close this Friday. And if you're picking up your event pack on this Sunday before lunch, see you there!

7. Where books get reborn
I was a book hoarder before I got my Kindle / iPad mini. Still, I have too many books I've never read again. Hmm, which reminds me, where's my book on the Robert Mondavi wine family? But anyway, there's this great book swap that takes place over beer. I was really amazed I managed to pick up books I wanted, and people really wanted my old books. Economagics!  Their St. Patrick's Day version takes place on Saturday 8th March.

I'm not giving away my "Ten Sticks and One Rice" though, even if I've already read it four times.

(Image credits: Edible Gardens, KOT Selections, Culture Kitchen, See and Be Seen, Epigram Books, Artichoke)

---

This is a personal post, and in case you don't know, I'm part of Peatix (event registration and online ticketing) and here's our list of Singapore events.

---

Personal plug: I'll be speaking on Product Management at 12noon on 7th March Friday (Paypal Singapore, Millenia Tower).

"Fears unfaced become your limits." Robin Sharma

We start fearless as children, but as we mature, we shy away from what we are weak at. Over time, our weaknesses become our limits - out of habit.

Introverts are naturally more averse to networking than extroverts.  But I learned early on as an introvert that avoiding or even looking down on networking is a defence mechanism. We are just denying that networking can be meaningful and powerful - but secretly jealous.

Not that introversion can really be shed. I am still uncomfortable with small talk, and I still feel overextended when I dive into networking events where everyone else seems to already know each other. I still prefer one-on-one conversations and the company of close friends.

Instead, organisations and networking events should help everyone, including introverts, network. Even when an organisation tends to be born from a commonality, like the university you went to or the company you used to work for - its true power is in its diversity.

One big but simple lesson I learned from attending TED Global is - no one came here to be alone. The TED team remarked that there should be no reason you are standing there alone when someone else is pretending to look at a display. No one came here to look at a display either. That simple comment gave me courage to keep initiating conversations.

So I am a firm believer that the event format and organisation structure matter, more so than whether the people within are seasoned networkers or taking their tentative first steps. 

Improving the way networking is done at and between events is the exact topic at Peatix Singapore's next Backstage Pass event on Thursday. It might seem like I am being incredibly biased or sneaky to be writing this, but truth is that the three speakers we have are amazing and truly believe in what they are teaching. And it would be awkward for them to promote themselves, so here goes.

I knew Grace Clapham from TEDx circles four years ago, and everyone who meets her goes away impressed by her passion, sincerity and abilities. In addition to her own projects (like Change Ventur.es), she is always involved in organisations that give back to the community - Creative Mornings, TEDx and more. Like many of the wonderful speakers we have had before, she readily agreed to our invitation for Backstage Pass in spite of her crazy schedule. And she brought in Solonia Teodros, another amazing lady who co-founded community-driven initiatives including The Hawker Sessions and The Feast Worldwide Singapore.

I am very excited that Grace and Solonia will be conducting a hands-on session that teaches you what interactions to "force" to kick things off, and what activities to do to build trust and transfer knowledge.

We found Jonathan Kwan via Audacity 2014, and meeting him just once convinced me that he has lots to share on getting the strategic structure right for organisations so it can grow. One specific example is how it is easy to attract people who are not yet influential but are enthusiastic about your organisation to show up. But they actually want to network with the influential people who might not be as enthusiastic about showing up. Strategic issues like that make a difference to the networking experience, and he has lessons from building his university local alumni community to share.

Everything else is gravy, but look at this gravy: there are already many other interesting, friendly and accomplished people who have already confirmed their attendance. For $15 entry you also a tasting platter of Carribean food and rum punch from Lime House and $30 worth of Spotify credits.

What we learned at Peatix Singapore is that Singaporeans are really last-minute ticket buyers. People scramble right before the event asking us to save some space for them. But don't worry - we provide refunds if something really crops up, and you can always transfer your ticket.  (Get your Backstage Pass tickets here).

"Dogfooding" (i.e. using our own product, or in this case, also organising events) really teaches me what organisers experience. Any organiser would tell you it isn't easy, and is often a humbling experience. But they'll also tell you that the people who come and benefit keeps them going.

On that note, please also come to my talk about Product Management / Community on Friday, March 7th at the Paypal office (Millenia Tower, at lunchtime). Thank you Calvin Cheng (organiser of Hackers and Painters for inviting me).  I don't really like giving talks, but I realised it is an important way of sharing knowledge for the community to grow.

---

Read more »

I rented a simultaneous translation headset for this 8 hour play in Chinese, out of worry that I wouldn't be able to keep up with the language. And I thought I might become bored.  "A Dream Like A Dream (如梦之梦)" turned out to be the best performance my wife and I have ever seen - and we didn't ever need the headset.

The play is classified as "Chinese" but that's like calling Oxford-born, Japan-residing writer Pico Iyer "Indian".  Key scenes take place in a tiny apartment in Paris, a Chateau in Normandy, a train on its way to the UK and a hospital ward in Taipei.  In between, characters fly through time and space.

At these moments I'm particularly grateful to my secondary school education in Chinese and specifically in Chinese music. During our insecure high school days, being part of the Chinese Orchestra was terribly uncool - not only was the music outdated, China was, after all,the place our families left, for a better life in Singapore. My education gave me the courage to appreciate things without caring for whether they are considered cool.

But sometimes I wish I went deeper. I'm catching Singapore Chinese Orchestra's performance "Dream of the Red Mansion Suite" in two weeks, and realise that although I know the songs by heart, I barely know the novel well.  Almost like not knowing the details of Romeo and Juliet.

I'm also incredibly curious where China is headed. Other than reading external voices of the Economist, New Yorker and Guardian, I try to catch a glimpse based on what's popular in China.  Reading the trashy bestseller "Tiny Times" and watching "I am a Singer."  But maybe it is time for a trip to China, after 16 years.  When I was last in Beijing, it was still filled with bicycles.

I've never really had problems finding exciting things to do in Singapore.  After I joined Peatix, the challenge became having to choose from events happening in the same evening or over the same weekend.

So the events are there in quantity and quality.  But the group of people seeking adventurous things to do seems pretty small - events with strong content still fail to attract a crowd when they deserve to.

And often, organisers do not have the time, patience or commitment to communicate their event's value clearly.  If you go to the root of it, often the organisers are so immersed in their own event, it is hard to step back and are think like the attendee.

Here are my suggestions of "How to think like your Singapore attendee":

1. You're up against all the free events that are *free* AND have free food & booze
   Yes, you're up against better-than-free.  Deep-pocketed brands and government funded agencies are running loss-making / loss-leading events that heavily distorts expectations.  
   
   So if your event is free, please don't be shy - shout it out.  If your event is paid, it is your responsibility to explain what the attendee gets for paying.  Better yet, invest time in building a relationship with sponsors - it will be worth it in the long-run.
   
   And don't judge behaviour - everyone loves free, it's just whether they embrace it or scorn those who embrace it (out of jealously).
   
   
2. Think from the attendee's perspective, not your own.
   You the organiser deserve to be paid for your efforts, and content is still king - but don't think of yourself.  Think of why the attendee would bother travelling to your event, spend time and money.  That makes the whole difference of how you describe your event.  And it isn't complex - for live experiences people generally want 1) knowledge - for work or themselves 2) new friends or new business contacts 3) to have fun!
   
   
3. Tell people what they're getting.  List it out.  Tell a story.
   People want unique experiences.  They want a good deal.  If you don't bother describing the speaker, the venue, the other attendees, the food catered, the view, your personal story of why you're doing this - how would they know?
   
   
4. Create a sense of a good deal
   It is common knowledge that in the United States, stores mark-up the price of goods leading up to Thanksgiving, so they can make a deeper cut for Black Friday.  I'm not asking you to lie or mislead.  All I'm saying is that people want to feel like they got a good deal.

Now it's time to get everyone who complains Singapore is boring of the bloody malls and cookie-cutter chain restaurants.  We've got lots of great events happening all the time.  Do we need another Uniqlo, JEM Mall or cinema showing the same Hollywood movie?  You've put together the wonderful content - time to hook the Singapore attendee in!