More Than 100%: The Book That Guides You on How to Build Your Own Value. Easy to Follow. Easy to Implement.

By Clarence Cheong

The competition is evolving. The arena you compete in is evolving. The world is evolving. It is becoming more difficult for you to survive, with a static skillset. Things are zooming along at an alarming rate, and the possibility of being left behind is very real. Portable skills are the currency for today’s world, and being able to gain and use skills effectively can be the difference between gaining a lead, and falling behind.

How will More Than 100% solve your problems?

Written in a conversationally humorous style, More Than 100% is a book that gives you insights. On how to build your own value, in an easy to follow and implement strategy. You will see methods to do things differently for maximum impact, and be able to experience becoming More Than 100%.

Ongoing support is available from the author, at Stackedskills.com, giving even more value than just the book itself.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Partridge Publishing Singapore
• Release date: Feb 26, 2023
• ISBN: 9781543772852

Clarence Cheong

Clarence is a Senior Financial Services Director based in Singapore. With more than 10 years of experience in direct sales, Clarence has coached more than 100 advisers. An award-winning Toastmaster, wielding public speaking and communication skills, Clarence is an avid learner with the heart to share his experience.

Book preview

CONTENTS

About The Author

Foreword

Why This Book?

Part 1:     The Concepts

Boggling Your Mind

Perception shift #1

Perception shift #2

Basics Of Skills

Basics of skills: uncommon, rare elite and unique skills

Uncommon skills

Rare skills

Elite skills

Unique skills

Side note on skill classifications

Amplifier skills

Should I master 100 elite skills?

Story of my friend

Learning Skills

The ancient method

Ushering in the new age

Getting started

Use it or lose it

Decay: fast or slow?

Together, we are unique

Fret not about decay

Nature of skills

Innate skill acquirability

Skill affinity

Increasing affinity?

Isolated skills

About affinity and decay

Hone your horses

Creating New Skills

Perception shift #3

Skill Blending

Examples of Skill Blending

Applying creativity

Bearing in mind

Measuring Skills

Skill Slider

Practicing Skills

Accountability partner

Recruiting that partner

Encouraging

Supportive

Goal oriented

Gives constructive feedback

Starting the accountability program

Decide on your goals

Find an accountability partner

Set up (meeting 0)

Work it (meetings 1, 2, 3, 4)

Close it (meeting 5)

Part 2:     Application Of Concepts

Personal Sheets

Worksheet

Define your goal

Write it down

Color it in

FAQ

Mastersheet

Define your end goals

List down all your current skills

Add in skills you need to learn

Note on compound skills

Skill List

Skills that everyone can or should master (Uncommon)

Skillful Google usage (amplifier skill)

Writing (amplifier skill)

Creating processes (amplifier skill)

Speaking

Listening

Reading

Drawing

Positivity

Observation/Perception

Accepting constructive feedback

Empathy

Copying

Skills that some can or should master (Rare)

Presenting

Lunching the boss

Leadership

No failures

Bullsh*t detector

Persuasion

Money management

Innate skill acquirability (amplifier skill)

Finding a mentor

Copywriting (amplifier skill)

Book writing (amplifier skill)

Referral asking

Cooking

Humor

Acting

Public speaking (amplifier skill)

Curiosity (amplifier skill)

Procreate drawing & design basics

Social media (amplifier skill)

Building processes for others (amplifier skill)

Sprinkle of crazy

SEO optimization

Skills that very few can or should master (Elite)

Conclusion

Bibliography

Bonus Chapter: Puzzle Solving

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Clarence is a Senior Financial Services Director based in Singapore. With more than 10 years of experience in direct sales, Clarence has coached more than 100 advisers. An award-winning Toastmaster, wielding public speaking and communication skills, Clarence is an avid learner with the heart to share his experience.

FOREWORD

As of this writing, I am a Senior Financial Services Director, representing a Financial Advisory firm based in Singapore. This is my first job in my first career, since graduating in 2010.

Funny thing about me; I never grew up looking or feeling like a genius. My parents did a fantastic job in raising me, in a generation where education and money was harder to come by.

Mum would tell me how smart I was (generally referring to my smart mouth), but that was it. I did okay in school. Though according to my Mum, I could not even read properly at the age of 9. In comparison, my son Nathanael first published his written book at the age of 7. Big difference.

Still, I made it through grade school. Then made it to tertiary education. All the while wrestling with okay grades (thanks for the support, Mum and Dad!). Nothing fancy. I ended up in an Engineering course, and I had so much trouble with the syllabus. The thought of switching to business school did cross my mind. That was when I had my first perception shift.

I remember the exact thought that made me decide to stay the course:

Why be a business graduate in a business world, when I can be an engineering graduate in a business world? I would have a unique skill-set, and be able to see or do things that non engineering trained personnel could not.

I managed to survive the syllabus. Then came my penultimate and final years. There, I met lecturers and attended courses that blew my mind. In cross faculty modules, I learnt about careers and career psychology, and matching of personality to job types. In my core engineering modules, I met lecturers that questioned. Questioned the way we think and approach problems. Lecturers that solved problems using simple, analytical approaches, that could be replicated to solve any real-world issue.

After acquiring a unique and marketable skill-set, I had my second perception shift. I was going to do sales. Not just any sales, the hardest possible sales known to mankind at that time. Insurance. Everyone thought I was nuts. That I was crazy.

Here’s the thing, it was a calculated crazy. Using my available skill-set, I figured out what I was good at. What I would love doing. And what I could get paid doing. I did this self-analysis in 2009, the book Ikigai was published in 2017.

I figured that by using my engineering skill-set, I could conquer any problems in my career.

My pre-graduation engineering course mates were sending out 300-1000 resumes each (true story). I posted a mere 10 resumes. I got 8 interviews and 6 job offers. The wonders of knowing your own strengths. And doing specific, niche targeting.

And that is history. Today, I could not be happier. Having joined my industry in 2010, I never once thought of quitting (also true story). All my success stems from having the right skill-set analysis done in 2009, and making the right career decisions.

What drives my continued success? A laser focus on systematically acquiring and utilizing the most appropriate skills I can. For situations I face today, and any day.

Systems that I will reveal to you in this book. For ongoing updates, you can also visit my website at: Stackedskills.com.

One final note: I do not profess myself as a guru, or expert, of any sort. Neither do I declare my work as perfect. Rather, my aim is to share tips and pointers that could help you grow and improve. If there is one valuable lesson you take away after reading this book, my work is done.

WHY THIS BOOK?

The competition is evolving.

The arena we compete in is evolving.

The world is evolving.

No longer are jobs, careers, or businesses safe. Global competitors have entered the scene. The internet linked world is a totally different playing field. Challengers from across the world are fighting. Fighting to do it cheaper, faster, better, in all possible fields. Accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, a global and mobile workforce with a global connectivity is pushing the very definition, scope, and power of a remote workforce.

Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, work from home (WFH) had just become commonplace. Suddenly a new term, work from anywhere (WFA), was coined. WFA has already been implemented in some companies, and you can see what it means. It means that we are no longer competing with country-men/women for the job. We are now competing with our friends from across the globe for the same work. Friends that can be willing to work for longer and cheaper hours.

To compound the issue, the workforce is changing. Tides of Millennials joining the workforce are equipped or are equipping themselves with a diverse skill set. Being pioneers of the gig economy, they are rewriting social and workplace norms at an alarming speed. The world is evolving right under our noses.

What does that mean for you? A standard set of skills today, will now get you nowhere. A standard set of skills (the baseline skills), is a minimum something that everyone would have by now. Merely having read the 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People, Rich Dad Poor Dad, How To Win Friends And Influence People, will not give you the same mileage that it used to.

Because your competitor, from across the world, would have read the same books and learnt the same concepts. Now the question is, how do you differentiate yourself amongst the global people, amongst the global noise?

The answer:

By becoming More Than 100%

More Than 100% is a self-improvement book written for this new world you are in. This is a book that will get you started on building diverse skill sets, to make your talent pool unique and differentiated. To make yourself stand above the global noise, and to make a loud impact where you choose to.

Because like everybody else, you are unique

Being able to think differently. To do differently. When done in excess, these are hallmarks of pioneers. But what about just being able to think just a little differently? To do just a little differently? To stay just a little ahead of the curve? To just slightly outperform your peers? To have a unique set of valuable skills that help you stay on top. Then you would be able to truly feel what it means to be More than 100%. To be able to succeed, through steps you take. Through skills you build.

Wouldn’t that be awesome?

As with all new practices, to fully immerse yourself in the book? And to learn the secrets within? There is just one requirement. You must be able to gain perception shifts. A perception shift lets you view the same world through a different lens. The way Elon Musk looks at Mars. The way Steve Jobs looked at consumer engineering. The same way Einstein looked at science. Same world. Through a different lens.

To best help you achieve this, this book will be split into two sections. Part 1 talks about the concepts you need to learn and be aware of. Part 2 focuses on the application and practice, to internalize what you learn.

Are. You. Ready?

PART 1

THE CONCEPTS

BOGGLING YOUR MIND

Prefacing this chapter will be the first perception shift you need. It is a concept that stares at you every day. Every. Day. And yet, it largely goes unnoticed. Unseen, unheard. Unfelt. Until now. Today is the day that you notice something that will alter your perception. How you see and experience the world will change, ever so slightly.

It is but a simple leap of logic. But you can receive a bountiful impact. Are you ready?

First, find a public place with lots of people. Then, stop what you are doing. Take a deep breath. Look around you. Observe the people, watch the interactions. Exhale.

What did you notice? Did you notice a lot of skills being used? Probably not. Yet.

Skills are the nuts and bolts of how everything works. They are often discussed without you knowing that you are talking about them. Some people feel that they have many skills, yet others feel they have nothing noteworthy to mention.

If you were asked what skills you possess, what would your answer be? Most respondents would wrestle with themselves to find something worthy to quote, something worthy to say. Or, they would be able to list maybe 5 to 10 in total. But is this all it to it, all there is?

Mariam-Webster defines skill as:

The ability to use one’s knowledge effectively

and readily in execution or performance

While this definition is concise and clear, the full comprehension of its meaning will take a perspective shift of major proportion.

Perception shift #1

The first necessary perception shift you need: EVERYTHING you know is a skill.

Speaking is a skill. Breathing is a skill. Listening is a skill. Feeling is a skill. Thinking is a skill. Cooking is a skill. Discussions are a skill. Everything that you know, can know, or will know, is a skill. Commonplace things like, breathing, speaking, and listening, are skills? I must be joking! Right?

Before you call me a quack, consider this:

•Meditation teaches breathing techniques

•Sports teaches breathing techniques

•Public speaking teaches breathing techniques

•Psychology teaches breathing techniques

The above are all different ways of using the same skill. Now, if you receive the perception shift: you start to see the abilities you possess to be skills. The world will suddenly start to make sense. To fall into place. Most people are too humble to recognize their skills, and skill-sets. This forms the biggest problem you need to wrestle with within yourself.

Skills are the currency of personal growth. The only visibly noticeable thing that differentiates Bill Gates and yourself? Networth. Two eyes (or four), two ears, a nose and a mouth, that’s a common denominator. Also invisible to you are the skills Bill possesses. Unless you knew what to look for.

Not recognizing that you are sitting on a goldmine of your own personal skills? Well, that would be a problem. Consider the second perception shift you need, before you start trying to solve problems.

Perception shift #2

The next perception shift you need to see: you can have or acquire a variety of skills. Just like the tools in a well-stocked tool box. Or cosmetics in a makeup drawer. Some skills are more valuable than others. Others could be hidden gems that shine only in special situations. Every skill you acquire will have a value to it.

All these skills you own, when their value is added up, can make you More Than 100%.

It may seem counterintuitive to assign a value to each of the skills you own. After all, being able to use your skills, day to day, should be enough. Why bother valuing it? Why bother making it a technical exercise? Why not keep it simple and ignore the fact you can quantify skills?

As with all issues, without first identifying a problem, you can never have a solution. Without first identifying an area for improvement, you cannot intentionally improve. Without first identifying your skills, you will be unable to improve or level-up your skills with intent. Case in point: you can speak, the late Steve Jobs could speak. But why was he such a powerful, charismatic speaker, that could charm audiences and critics worldwide, on a consistent basis? The answer, he had an astronomical level on the skill of speaking. Amidst other skills, which make him so difficult to imitate successfully.

The word intentionally has an implied meaning here. There are several skills that you already have raised proficiency in, ones that you never intended to improve on purpose. Skills like speaking or listening, for example. These proficiencies are increased naturally, through repeated use. However, you will find that you are not able to raise your skill levels higher, without the intentional push to get better. Back to speaking: everyone can talk. How do some people get better and better and better at it, while others you know are trapped in speaking the same way for the last 10 years that you knew them? Intentional practice.

By spending hours on mindfully practicing on each skill, you can raise the proficiency levels higher and higher, thereby gaining an edge over your competition. To what ends are the appropriate skill proficiency levels enough? This will be discussed later, in a concept called the expo-curve.

One thing is for sure, you can never have too many skills. And you know what? Everyone can do this. Skills are all learnt, and not born with. This will be demonstrated in the later chapter on skills that you can learn. Well, granted some people start with a higher baseline than others, seemingly naturally. But don’t let that get you down. Mindful practice can get you there, too. Because these people with high skills levels have