Paper and Pain

2024 was a year of change It marked significant changes, both professionally and personally. Two themes stand out that shaped my journey: ✨ The Entrepreneurship Journey I took a bold step this year, leaving my recruitment role to partner with Kristian and dive full-time into Paper and Pain, our boutique UX Design consultancy.  My recruitment days exposed me to the impact of good design on products and businesses - now we get to help create that impact ourselves.. ✨  Building Bridges & Communities: While growing my business, I had the privilege of working on two initiatives close to my heart: Launched Singapore Product Design's Career Coaching Programme, helping designers navigate and grow their careers in an evolving industry. Co-launched Women In Carbon Southeast Asia as Marketing Lead, creating a space for women to connect and contribute to the sustainability sector. Juggling these different roles hasn't been easy - there have been plenty of late nights and learning curves. But seeing the community grow and the real impact of our work makes it all worth it. As I look ahead to 2025, I feel grateful for the journey so far and excited for the possibilities that lie ahead. To everyone who has been part of this journey—thank you for your support, encouragement and inspiration. Happy Holidays! 🎄

As the year comes to a close, we’re reflecting on the amazing people we’ve met and the wonderful partnerships we’ve built. Thank you for being part of our journey and allowing us to share in yours. This holiday season, we wish you not just joy, but the kind of peace that comes from taking a step back and soaking in the simple moments - whether that’s time with loved ones, a quiet pause, or even a bit of well-earned rest. From all of us at Paper and Pain, we wish you a happy holiday season and a bright start to the new year! 💚✨

Let me share something vulnerable: I used to dread anything related to 'sales.' For years, I thought this was a weakness in business. Until I realized something: My 'weakness' was actually my strength. You see, my background shaped how I view business relationships: - As a career coach, I learned that real connections start with understanding someone's story - their hopes, fears, and dreams. It was never about fixing; it was about walking alongside them. - In recruitment, success meant looking beyond immediate placements. It meant truly understanding both the person and the opportunity, then creating matches that would flourish over time. These experiences taught me that business isn't about perfect pitches or polished presentations. It's about something more fundamental: 𝐋𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐮𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲 Because when you strip away all the sales tactics and strategies, what remains is simply this: People want to work with those who truly understand and care about their success. Now, as part of Paper and Pain, I approach business the same way. I don’t think about “selling” our design services. Instead, I think about how we can help, how we can solve problems and how we can create real value for the people we work with. And perhaps the most humbling validation of this approach? Our day-one clients are still with us today. They've stuck around not because we're perfect, but because we've grown together, learned together and celebrated victories together – both big and small. Because at the end of the day, we're not just building a design consultancy. We're building relationships that last beyond project timelines. 

Making a quick trip to KL! 🇲🇾 Mon-Thu next week and would love to connect with fellow entrepreneurs, product folks & design professionals for coffee chats before 2024 wraps up. Plus, always on the hunt for those hidden gem cafés that make meetings memorable ✨ In town or know someone I should meet? Drop a comment or DM!

𝐀 𝐖𝐞𝐞𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 🌱 Through three incredible events last week, I learned so much about fostering genuine connections and exchanging ideas within the entrepreneurial community. 𝘞𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱𝘴 at Braze taught me that kindness isn't weakness - it's a leadership superpower. Watching Mamaa Duker, Trishe Goh, and Atheena Som share their stories of building partnerships through emotional intelligence reminded me why authentic relationships matter more than quick wins. Their message was clear: in a world of quick wins, authentic relationships win the long game. Thank you Ranya Arora and Carol Chua for this insight-rich session! Remarkable Women Asia 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘺 𝘛𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴 - My first time attending their event was eye-opening. The event tackled topics that are often considered taboo—perimenopause and women's sexual health—with an openness and honesty that was truly refreshing. It was a powerful reminder of the importance of creating spaces where women can speak freely, feel heard, and support one another. To every woman who shared their story: your courage creates space for others to be heard. Special thanks to Elise Tan Yee Ling, Julie Lee , 李以琼, IHRP SP, MHCL and Valery Tan for creating this safe space. Asia Startup Network 𝘍𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳'𝘴 𝘋𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 with fellow entrepreneurs, sharing both victories, vulnerabilities and business insights, was intriguing and and deeply enriching. It offered a rare opportunity to connect on a human level with individuals who understand the highs and lows of building something from the ground up. When I brought up founders' burnout at the table where I was seated, the honest conversations that followed reminded me why we need these spaces. We're all figuring it out together. Grateful to Elise Tan Yee Ling, Rahul Thayyalamkandy, Dipesh Sukhani, Hitesh Joshi and SMU Institute of Innovation & Entrepreneurship for bringing us together. To everyone who organized these events - thank you once again for creating spaces where real conversations happen 🌟

We need to talk more about our failures. We all love a good success story, a happily-ever-after tale, where the hero enjoys a well-deserved reward, but as we encounter yet another breakthrough, another win, another triumph, our mind, unbeknownst to us, falls victim to the survivorship bias, convinced that all it takes to succeed is to follow the recipe. A billionaire's routine, a celebrity diet, 10 tips from a successful entrepreneur, 5 things you need to do to find love: they all make us conveniently forget that for every single story of success, there are a hundred accounts of failure, thousands of misfortunes, millions of lessons unlearned. We are conditioned to frown upon a failure, be ashamed of it, avoid it at all cost, but every failure conceals a lesson, an opportunity to reflect and improve. Learning to appreciate the value of failures is part of maturing as a professional and a human, and for a designer, obsessed with perfection, failure can become a precious source of inspiration and insights. In today's episode of Paper and Pain, Steve W. and I discuss how to define and reframe a failure, how to learn from it, and what happens to those who refuse to embrace their failures. Listen on Spotify: https://lnkd.in/gpAKhSgs Tune in on Apple Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/g-f-wFDu

Over the past 3 weeks, our Painless videos have focused on one simple but crucial skill: how to have better conversations with your users. As a strategic UX partner to startups, we've learned that the magic doesn't just lie in the questions you ask – it's in how you unlock the stories your users are eager to share. What we’ve discovered: 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐭, 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐝. We’ve put together a 3-part video series to share these insights with you! 👇 Whether you’re new to user interviews or looking to refine your approach, these videos offer simple, practical tips to get the most out of each conversation. Watch the video and let us know which tip resonates with you most!

🎬 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰'𝐬 𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫. 𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭? Wrapping up our 3-part research series, Kristian reveals the most overlooked part in user research: What happens after "thank you." Check it out below!

💡 𝐀𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐕𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐦𝐬, 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐮𝐛𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬! 💡 We believe that design isn’t just about aesthetics—it’s a key driver of business growth. That’s why we’re offering a 𝐅𝐑𝐄𝐄 design workshop for startups in your portfolio to help them unlock the revenue potential of strategic design. We’ve just hosted our first successful workshop in collaboration with Tenity, the leading fintech and insurtech innovation ecosystem, and based on the feedback we received, we’re excited to extend this opportunity to more startups. 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐞 𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩𝐬? • Discover how design can directly impact their bottom line. • Gain hands-on experience through interactive strategies that can be applied immediately. • Learn how to align product design with business growth goals to scale effectively. We know how much effort you put into helping your portfolio companies succeed and we’d love to support that journey. If you’re looking for ways to add even more value through design-led growth, let’s collaborate! This is a chance for your startups to learn how they can leverage design to its fullest potential. 👉 Get in touch with Sangeetha or Kristian or feel free to share this opportunity with your network to ensure your startups don’t miss out on this unique, practical learning experience.