Very Clear Cut

07/09/2022

Impromptu updates on our Youtube channel which we will be reviving over the course of the next few months! https://youtu.be/Zb0EypXEkXg

You might have noticed that we haven't posted much, and unfortunately this was for good reason: there have been operational hiccups. Don explains why, and what Leo did to help cover for the August episode. :-)

Stay tuned for more updates!

For the Spotify link in the video (which you should follow!): https://open.spotify.com/show/1GfuKMMjeL1j5CMVWgvCmM

11/08/2022

We apologise we haven't been communicating as much on Facebook and Instagram as before! But here's a sneak peek on what we are going to offer in the near future...

[Screenshot courtesy of Episode 8, on mental health, where Dylan talks about his ADHD experience.]

23/07/2022

Our first non-live video! In this episode, Pauline and Donavan indulge in questions of the metaverse. First, we ask what the metaverse is, dwell into our own gaming and VR experiences, before attempting to debate whether VR, AR and XR could enjoy greater prominence beyond the gaming and education domains.

Being our first non-live video, we are likely to optimise the format further. Do give us your suggestions on how we should improve this!

20/07/2022

Apologies for the delay; we were enjoying ourselves in the gaming metaverse too long! (Were we?)

We will be featuring the first video later this Saturday, at the usual time, where Pauline and Donavan will face off in their experiences in gaming, and attempt to poke at questions in the metaverse. Sci-fi fans might rejoice as their conception of the metaverse, being an amalgamation of AR and VR with the physical world, becomes our central talking point.

08/07/2022

[FORMAT CHANGE] We have seen how our friends have supported us at VCC for the past 18 months. On behalf of the admin team, we thank you for your support!

Throughout these 18 months, we have tried some new ideas. Some have worked out well, such as our attempt to bring on guests wherever possible to share their perspectives, whereas others have not worked out so well, such as the attempt to replicate a coffeeshop chat experience with Clubhouse.

We have also noted some feedback that live streams are not always that easy to follow, and are more subject to technical failings than the podcast format.

Going forward, we will make a few changes. Some of the most important changes are how we will produce our main content. We realised that our format of show is centred around perspectives and content. To that end, we have noted good success on our podcasts, and we would like to make it simpler on our end to produce them. We will streamline the offering, so that our podcast listeners won't end up listening to "Hi guest!" out of the blue on Spotify. But we will keep a certain "live" element by scheduling the releases of these podcast episodes.

Over the next few months, we will also talk about our Youtube channel, and put our video editing skills to work. Expect better content coming that way! ;-)

Here is a summary of the changes that VCC will undertake, moving forward. Let us know what you think of the changes, and once again, this is "the admin" from Very Clear Cut. ;-)

04/07/2022

VCC has been running a "metaverse" office for some time, but does the metaverse gain traction elsewhere?

Elsewhere, people have talked about other ingredients in what is supposedly revolutionary, i.e. "Web 3.0". Perhaps you might have heard of the term "NFT" or "cryptocurrency" as they hog headlines.

Fret not, for we will attempt to dissect (pun intended) some of the complicated tech buzzwords in Q3 this year! Broadly, we will try to answer some of the following questions:

a) New buzzwords, or old folklore?
b) Why so popular?
c) Hype or potential for "hyperscaling" into every facet of our lives?
d) Utopia, or dystopia?

(Or in all of these presumed dichotomies, perhaps the answer lies in between?)

P.S. Very Clear Cut cannot attempt, and will not attempt to recommend any financial instrument. But before you decide on whether you want to buy a certain "NFT", "cryptocurrency" or supposed "Web 3.0" technology, we might be of help!

29/06/2022

[A Different Very Clear Cut]

Recently Donavan has made a bald statement by shaving his head in solidarity with children suffering from cancer.

If you would like to show some support, please consider sharing or donating to said cause!

https://www.hairforhope.org.sg/shavee/donavan-cheah-10854

Make a BALD statement. In its 19th year running, Hair for Hope is Children’s Cancer Foundation’s flagship fundraiser – the only head-shaving campaign in Singapore that serves to raise funds and awareness of childhood cancer.

26/06/2022

puts together June’s podcast about the future of work in an article. Written by Donavan Cheah

https://veryclearcut.substack.com/p/can-we-predict-the-future-of-work?s=r&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&utm_source=direct

The livestream broke halfway, so we decided to write the episode instead.

14/06/2022

It was not that long ago in Singapore that we transitioned from a 5.5 day work week to a 5 day work week, compressing the 42 hour work week into a Monday-Friday time window.

In Britain, they are attempting to push for a four-day work week. What does that mean to employers and employees alike? What does the "future work week" entail? Stay tuned this Saturday to find out more.

https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/in-britain-a-new-test-of-an-old-dream-the-four-day-workweek

Researchers will assess its effect on productivity and the quality of life. Read more at straitstimes.com.

13/06/2022

Rounding up Very Clear Cut's discussions this quarter on the future of work, we have invited Anne Lehman, NCS Director of Product Incubation, to provide her take on the wishes and realities of work post-pandemic. Anne is in charge of the incubation programme for products and platforms, bringing said projects from ideation to market.

We brought our audience through trends such as remote working, and uncovered some entrepreneural insight on a group of self-driven, self-employed people. This month, we would like to cast our sights to a post-pandemic world. What would remain status quo, or change permanently post-pandemic? Could we see the rise of the metaverse and virtual offices? How would someone who graduates in the future, perhaps in 2050, be "work-ready"?

Join us as we attempt to predict what the future of work may be like, especially in a VUCA world, on Saturday, 18 June 2022, 10 am SGT.

08/06/2022

Special Announcement: Leoson will be stepping away from hosting the show for a while as he takes on a new role at his day job and other life responsibilities! 💼

He hopes you’ve enjoyed all our content so far, and will continue to support VCC from behind the scenes.

06/06/2022

[The Future of Work, Don's Special Contribution to Mainstream Media]

Continuing Donavan's feature on the Straits Times, Donavan was featured on a podcast as a continuation to ST's exploration on the "Great Employer-Employee Renegotiation", alongside the President for the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (ASME), Kurt Wee.

This dovetails nicely with what VCC plans in the month of June, a macro view at the future of work!

Listen to the podcast episode on ST at: https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/jobs/work-talk-podcast-the-great-renegotiation-what-do-workers-want

Shoutout to ST's "Podtail" podcast for the young, corporate folk: https://podtail.com/it/podcast/the-straits-times-audio-features/s1e6-the-great-renegotiation-what-do-workers-want-/

Original feature (requires ST subscription): https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/jobs/whats-changing-and-whats-not-five-views-from-the-ground

Every first and third Monday of the month, get our tips on working smarter, getting ahead in your career and investing like a pro with ST's business correspondents and editors. Read more at straitstimes.com.

21/05/2022

What does it take to be an Entrepreneur?

13/05/2022

When mulling over the "Future of Work", we thought about those who left the formal employment system for a variety of reasons.

Do people leave formal employment and work for themselves because they want to, or because they need to? For every Elon Musk, there are scores of people who start their own businesses or side hustles to "work for themselves". But what does it take to succeed as someone working for oneself? What does success even look like?

Feel free to join us and our guest for May, Patrick Chang. He is an entrepreneur, financial advisor (FA), author and creator of a financial literacy game called Affluent. But life was not so smooth sailing for him, as he hopped from a sunset printing industry to the financial sector, as a FA. As a FA, he questioned whether financial advice could be dispensed in an easier manner. To that end, he authored a book, "The A to Z Guide To Retirement Planning", targetted at Singaporeans to facilitate their retirement planning and created a game to simplify financial concepts for laymen.

He generously shares his expertise through appearing on local radio stations such as CNA938, MoneyFM 89.3 & the Chinese news station Capital 958. He has also appeared on Channel Newsasia as a commentator and a podcast guest. We are honoured to have Patrick onboard to further share his expertise and life experiences.

03/05/2022

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri to our Muslim friends and listeners!