The Paper Lantern

Derek Wong
  • 5.0 (5)
  • Careers

The Paper Lantern is a career advice podcast for students and young professionals. Each episode spotlights a different role model who shares their stories, advice, and perspectives.

  1. 11/07/2021

    [Episode 13] Emily Fang - Community Ops in FinTech, Being a Digital Nomad, and Creating Communities

    Emily Fang is a Community Operations Strategist at Stripe, where she focuses on developing and fostering communities for one of the most impactful FinTech startups in the world. Emily is a Taiwanese-American who spent most of her life in California before moving to Singapore as a digital nomad. Beyond her day job, she is a passionate content creator and is the co-founder of AsianFemaleNomads, a global network of career-oriented women on IG and Facebook. She also creates videos for her personal YouTube channel “The Fang Girl" where she talks about her career in tech, living abroad in Singapore, and interviews diverse friends and guests.  You can follow her content here: Instgram: https://www.instagram.com/asianfemalenomads/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFangGirl

  2. 10/09/2021

    [Episode 12] Alton Wong - Account Exec at Google on Career-Life Goals, People Intelligence, and 'Life Abroad Culture'

    Alton Wong is a veteran of the marketing & sales world who has worked at leading Tech Companies including Microsoft, Salesforce, LinkedIn, and TikTok. Originally from Markham, a suburb of Toronto, Canada, Alton spent the last 2 years living abroad in Singapore. A trusted friend and fellow Cantonese expat, Alton shares his journey from studying accounting, breaking into the marketing world, and realizing his 'superpowers' as a high EQ sales leader. We cover a lot of ground and go deep into his experiences living in Asia, and relays his lessons learned about life goals, career experiences, and always being curious about learning new skills.

  3. 09/12/2021

    [Episode 11] Melania Lotti - Finance Analyst at The World Bank on Global Experiences, Economic Development, and Non-Linear Career Paths

    Melania Lotti is an Infrastructure Finance Analyst at The World Bank, an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries. In this wide-ranging conversation, Melania shares her journey from growing up in a small town near Florence, Tuscany to moving her studies and career abroad to the USA, South Korea, and eventually to Singapore. She is one of the most global-minded people I've ever met and her work contributes directly to making the world a better place.  In this episode we talk about her early youth and the formative experiences that led her to pursue a career in public policy and economic development. We dive into the differences between humanitarian work, philanthropy, and economic development, before sharing some life/career advice centered on the non-linear nature of career paths.  Melania is living proof of the advice and wisdom that she shares with us:  We can constantly shape and re-shape our destiny; our futures are malleable. You can be a good person, do good for the world, follow our own values, and be successful.

  4. 08/22/2021

    [Episode 10] Philip Man - 'Port' CEO/Founder and Innovation Coach on Startup Real Talk and First Time Founder Struggles

    Philip Man is the CEO and Co-Founder of Port, an early stage travel-tech company. Man is a Dutch-Chinese startup founder who spent his early career as a Product Manager and an Innovation Coach traveling to clients all around the world. In this episode, we go deeper into his international and multi-cultural upbringing in the Netherlands, his experiences as a corporate innovation coach, and the highs and lows of being a startup founder,  Some of the best advice he shares is to "get started before you're ready" - that sometimes you have to take the plunge and execute before you're 100% ready.

  5. 12/28/2019

    [Episode 9] Michael Wang - Startup Marketer and Semi-Pro Beatboxer on Balancing Priorities and Finding Joy

    Michael Wang is a Sr Manager at Databricks, a B2B data analytics company based in SF, as who focuses on demand generation and marketing operations. Beyond his day job, Michael is a passionate musician who is a classically-trained pianist and a semi-professional beat boxer. He is a member of of Business Casual, an award-winning a capella group, that performs and competes internationally.  I've known Michael since our high school days and have always loved spending time talking with him about startups, current affairs, and leading a well-balanced life. He and his younger brother Gary are both dynamic and gifted athletes on the badminton and basketball court. Michael is one of the most humble, well-mannered, and well-rounded people I know, and I've been eager to  to pick his brain on a multitude of topics. From 'figuring out' what he wanted to do with his career, to balancing his hobbies and family within his busy schedule, Michael offers a lot of introspection and advice on how he does it. Time Stamps: 23:30 Hard and Soft Skills 30:00 Musical Journey: Piano, Beatboxing, to joining ‘Business Casual’ semi-pro music group 43:00 Time Management and How to Prioritize: Finding TIme vs Making Time, Athletics; 5/25 48:00 Fixing Bad Habits 52:00 Life Lessons from Learning to Sing/Beat Box: Breath Control; Confidence and Conquering Shyness; Mindful Practice & Knowing your Target 58:00 Finding a Good Mentor: Personality match; type of person + how they express; self-awareness and presentation Links: Sign of the Beaver Link Business Casual - A Capella Group Link Warren Buffett’s 5/25 Strategy for Prioritizing Link

  6. 11/24/2019

    [Episode 8] Mai Koythong on Creative Careers as a Writer, Breaking into the Game Industry, Indie Game Development

    Mai Koythong is a Sr. Copywriter at Riot Games, the creators and publishers of League of Legends. Mai is a gifted storyteller, writer, and role model for creators. In addition to being a talented writer, Mai is an independent game developer and shares her story of how she created her own indie game without any game dev or coding experience.  We delve into her journey that takes her from Texas to sunny California to pursue her career as a copywriter, to the frozen woods of northern Sweden to take part of Valrkyie Jam, an annual game jam for female and non-binary game developers. From learning how to craft a game from concept to creation, she continues to strengthen her voice and build her confidence as a creator in the game industry.  Time Stamps:  1:39: Intros & Rapid Fire Round 8:15: Career Journey in Copywriting & Game Industry 28:54 Overcoming Personal Doubts, Roadblocks or Major Obstacles 37:00 Valkryie Jam Experience in Northern Sweden 44:00 Being more of a Mentor for Women and Aspiring Creatives 57:00 How do you Find your Voice and Feed your Muse? 1:03:00 Upcoming Opportunities and Challenges 1:09:00 Closing Advice & Wisdom References:  On Writing – by Stephen King Mindset – Carol Dweck; growth oriented lens and getting real Skyward – Brandon Sanderson Ultralearning: Master Hard Skills, Outsmart the Competition, and Accelerate Your Career The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron Valkyrie Jam

  7. 11/17/2019

    [Episode 7] Aleesha Patel - Deep Dive on Product Marketing, Big Company vs Startups, and Finding Role Fit

    This episode features Aleesha Patel, who is the product marketing lead for Digit, an SF-based startup focused on teaching financial well-being. She recounts her life journey that has taken her from Mumbai, New York, and the West Coast, and how she brings her international perspective to the workplace. We go deep into marketing field and talk about the many different types of roles, skills, and opportunities within the industry. From marketing consulting, working in big tech, to now heading up product marketing at a startup, Aleesha brings a ton of informed perspectives and stories that are fascinating to listen to.  Digit: https://digit.co/ Banza, Chickpea based rice and pasta: https://www.eatbanza.com/

  8. 11/07/2019

    [Ep 6] Jerry Lee - Career Advice for Students, Breaking the Bamboo Ceiling, and Asking for Forgiveness vs Permission

    Jerry Lee is a Sr. Strategy and Operations Manager at Google, a dedicated career mentor for students, and a part-time food entrepreneur. He is a community manager for Subtle Asian Networking, an off-shoot of the now-famous Subtle Asian Traits Facebook group, where he and other like-minded professionals discuss career development topics for Asian professionals around the world. I first got acquainted with Jerry when I saw one of his LinkedIn posts about helping out some undergrad students at San Jose State University. As somebody who is deeply passionate about mentoring and inspiring students, I immediately reached out to learn more about his story and ongoing work in the community. I hope you enjoy this episode that traces Jerry's career journey into strategy, his empowering advice on how to 'break the bamboo ceiling', and some tips on how to structure your schedule wisely.

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5
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About

The Paper Lantern is a career advice podcast for students and young professionals. Each episode spotlights a different role model who shares their stories, advice, and perspectives.

Information

  • Creator
    Derek Wong
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2021
  • Episodes
    13
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Derek Wong
  • Show Website
    The Paper Lantern