nanyate » idol

Life of a Social Media Rockstar

Ivy — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 10:38:54 +0000

Pat Law is my new idol. No, she’s not another Japanese singer. She’s a digital strategist for Ogilvy and a social media rockstar in Singapore. She recently wrote about how she stays on top of her ballgame with a demanding career and her online presence.

Her 3 tips for balancing her life:

#1: Work comes first
#2: Set a daily schedule
#3: Draw a line

Like her, I too work in public relations with some focus on online media, albeit in-house. I think I do #1 and #3 fairly well. Work will always be first, and I draw a line between my roles as a blogger, a PR person and a friend.

But #2 is something I constantly struggle with. (See my sparse blog archive for proof). Since most of my work is project-based, there are times where I will work on 3-5 projects simultaneously. Most of the time, this means I will end up burning weekends. And then there are times where I will have nothing substantial to do. (Although, I have yet to see this in 2009).

This is how my work day looks like during a moderately busy period.

9:00am Arrive at the office. Open Outlook. Reply to the gazillion emails before my meeting.

9.30am Rush to meeting.

12:30pm Come out of meeting. Check Twitter and Outlook. Update my to-do list. If there are very urgent emails or stuff, skip lunch with colleagues and work. If not, have quick lunch with colleagues.

1.30pm Resume work or respond to more emails.

2:00pm Rush to another meeting.

4:00pm Break. Either go downstairs to pick up a drink, or play something mindless like Restaurant City for 5 minutes.

4:30pm While clearing work, get interrupted by a stakeholder. Do urgent job for them.

5:30pm Resume normal work and respond to emails.

7:00pm Finish up the most urgent stuff. Review to-do list for the next day. If there are still more urgent things to do, stay past 7.

7:30pm Order take out or eat with colleague who stayed late too.

8:45pm Arrive home. Log on to Adium (Mac’s IM client) and Mixero (Twitter app). Chat with friends, reply any DMs or @replies. Check personal email, nanyate.com and Facebook. If it requires urgent response, reply.

9:00pm If there is some juice left in the brain, open Google Reader, TED.com or read a book. Get inspired to update my Delicious and/or Tumblr. Otherwise, play the guitar or vegetate with anime.

9:30pm Hang out with mom for a bit because moms need TLC. Make her watch Maru or CuteOverload with me.

11:30pm Wait for the boyfriend to wake up (since he’s on the other side of the world) Chat on MSN, Skype or on the phone.

12:00am Sleep.

Looking at her, I know I have lots more to learn – not just about the world of social media, but also about time management and life in general. Expertise and the realm of rockstarhood seem to come with some level of sacrifice. She sleeps less for one, and almost dedicates her whole day to social media and work, while mine is still peppered with other interests and quite a bit of downtime.

I’ve also only been working for one year, so there’s no way I can be on par yet. But I guess it’s time to step up my A-game. Ashita mo ganbaro! Thanks Pat, for the inspiration!

Dear readers, what is your work schedule like? How do you juggle your different roles and responsibilities? Any tips to share?

New Job, New Life

Maru the Japanese Cat

Ivy — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 13:18:49 +0000

My boyfriend, my parents and my ex-housemates can all vouch for this: I am obsessed with cats.

Before I go off to bed every night, I must get my fix of I Can Has Cheezburger and Cute Overload. And whoever is unlucky enough to be around me then would be coerced into sharing joys of cuteness with me. But lately, no fix has been as cute quenching as Maru 丸 the Scottish Fold from Japan.

He’s such a joy to watch since he’s so curious. And from the way he moves, he seems to have some incredible analytical skills for a cat. Ah~ Maru-chan kawaii desu!

So for those who don’t already know about Maru, enjoy!

There’s more Maru goodness on his YouTube channel and his blog!

Dear readers, do you have any daily online must-reads? Do share them!

YUI Yoshioka – My New Idol

Ivy — Tue, 05 May 2009 04:55:42 +0000

Sep 1 ’09 Update – Replaced with a working video!

People who know me in person, have read my blog long enough or have browsed through my Last.FM will probably notice this about me: I absolutely hate rock music. Aside from Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody, I have no other rock song on my iTunes playlist of 3,000 songs…

…that is, until yesterday.

While I was watching Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood last night, the opening song captured my ears – or rather my heart. It’s called Again by YUI (ユイ). There’s so much soul in her music that I could forgive the perpetual annoyance of the electric guitar. Her childish yet calming voice pierces through the normally unforgivable guitars, as if striving to overcome all obstacles just to reach whatever she’s trying to reach. (My soul, in my case.)

So like any Gen-Y’er, I wikied YUIand was just so, so, so impressed. YUI also known as Yoshioka Yui (吉岡唯) writes her own songs, plays the acoustic guitar, the electric guitar, the bass, the piano and even the drums! She could just be her own band – if only she could clone herself 4 times over. Coupled with her childhood struggles and her dramatic climb to fame, it’s really hard not to respect someone as talented and dedicated as her. (Of course, her childhood drama could all be a marketing ploy. But who cares, this girl’s got talent).

I shall stop gushing like a fan girl and just let you experience it yourselves.