Mother four children, train for triathlons, study French, take up pottery, complete an EMBA from the Helsinki School of Economics plus be the senior VP of applications for Oracle Asia Pac? How does she do it? Like seriously??? To that, Tan Yen Yen puts it down to three things: discipline, good strategic planning and a very supportive network. Most importantly, she constantly pushes herself and is always “looking for new challenges, and racing against myself.”
On work
If you prove yourself, you will have opportunities for bigger roles.
To survive in the corporate jungle, know your stuff and be genuine and sincere. You have to be sincere and take a real interest in people before you gain trust and respect.
You have to constantly learn, upgrade and reinvent yourself to stay motivated and passionate.
On family
Both my husband and I come from tight-knit families and we love children. When you have a big brood, your children learn to develop their EQ, learn how to share, how to fight and of course how to make up.
The trick to juggling family life and her passionate pursuits is to involve them. All my four kids do triathlons… We train together, and it’s really good for bonding.
My family is very important. Whatever I do, whether it’s work or play, it has to centre on the family.
When asked whether she feels guilty about not always being there with her children due to her work, she said, “I believe that when I’m at work, I should focus on work. And when I’m at home, I’m there and present with my family. If you feel guilty, you will not enjoy either part.”
Want to find out more about her and her philosophy towards life? Check out the following links!
Her profile on Oracle’s website
HSE interview with her
ZDNet interview with her after winning the IT Leader of the Year Award 2011 from SCS (btw, she’s the first female being conferred this award in 15 years!)
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