Six lessons from after six

The Water Tiger summons our strength and bravery to step out of our comfort zone and take on our passions this year. To help you get a headstart in 2022, we gathered some of our top take-aways from BPI’s After Six miniseries. BPI Chairman Jaime A. Zobel de Ayala uncovers the inspiration and personal philosophies that drive some of the country’s key changemakers. Discover how these trailblazers’ formula for success can inspire you.

Lesson 1: Patience Rewards

Things that are worthwhile always take a long time. They don’t really come that easy.

In the face of today’s fast-paced lifestyle, experienced CEO Lance Gokongwei reminds us that “Things that are worthwhile always take a long time. They don’t really come that easy." Gokongwei assures us that disappointment is inevitable and “the only thing we can do if we want to be successful is to be patient, resilient, and bounce back.”

Lesson 2: Fail Forward

Failing is not a badge of failure

Stephanie Sy, Founder and CEO of Thinking Machines Data Science, insists that failure is a must. “Failing is not a badge of failure,” she declares. “If you are trying to build something new, you are going to fail. So you really have to think about the ways in which you can fail forward. Fail and learn.”

The key, according to Sy is to “Structure the experiment in a way where you run towards failure as fast as you can. Because it’s either going to fail or succeed, and prolonging it doesn’t help anybody.”

Lesson 3: Focus

You have to focus on what you can do, otherwise, if you think of too many things you wanna do, you’ll end up doing very little.

For anyone facing the rigidity of established institutions or systems, Presidential Adviser on Flagship Programs and Projects Secretary Vince Dizon imparts the following advice: “You have to focus on what you can do, otherwise, if you think of too many things you wanna do, you’ll end up doing very little.”

Whether you’re a doctor, a housewife, or an executive, you might start to feel it’s impossible to affect change because there are too many things to address. Sec. Dizon assures us that all you have to do is focus on doing one thing at a time.

Lesson 4: Success is a Process, Not an End

When asked about her metric for success, the data-driven Sy did not peg it on numbers. Instead, she says: “Success is being able to keep learning and growing, to solve problems for people. It’s all about people.”

Take a step back. Think bigger. Make innovative solutions a constant and you take charge of your success.

Lesson 5: Expand Your View

[Watching news] gives us that worldview while we can’t travel.

Sec. Dizon also emphasizes the importance of a diversified worldview in order to imagine a different and better future for businesses and the country.

“Being exposed to the world is so important,” shares Sec. Dizon. “You get a feel for and an experience of what we can have, what our people can have.” For the rising Czar, a variety of perspectives came from encountering different cultures during his studies and travels abroad.

"For Grab Philippines Co-Founder, Brian Cu exposure to the world came through various means" — by traveling, or by simply catching up on world news. Right now, Cu is big on podcasts. “It gives us that worldview while we can’t travel,” he explains.

Lesson 6: Add a Human Touch to Your Tech

“You can’t ‘copy-paste’ technology,” Cu shares. “You need to understand the local setting, the local infrastructure that exists. And then adjust whatever technology or solution you have.” Those who want to innovate and develop their business around technology must recognize the importance of including people in the equation.

“You can’t design a pure technology solution because the problem is not pure technology,” Sy points out. “You actually have to take an approach that also comes from social sciences, from psychology, from the study of community.”

We hope these lessons inspire you to take charge of your own fortune this 2022, and bring you into a “roaring” year of personal and financial success.