What does it take to lead with both warmth and competence in one of the most demanding roles in public service?

In this deeply personal conversation, Senior Minister of State Sun Xueling opens up about her journey from investment banker at Deutsche Bank to Temasek to becoming one of Singapore's most beloved politicians.

We explore her unique leadership style that combines rigorous data analysis with genuine empathy, her experience thriving in male-dominated environments from Deutsche Bank to Parliament, and the honest realities of being a working mother who juggles elder care, two young daughters, and the demands of public service.

This conversation goes beyond politics into the psychology of identity, the concept of "ghost ships" (the lives we didn't choose), and why she spends her Sundays reading children's books to help both kids and adults discover their worthiness.

If you've ever struggled with FOMO, mother's guilt, or finding your authentic leadership voice in spaces that weren't designed for you, this episode is a masterclass.

Resources mentioned:

• Prof Martin Seligman’s PERMA Model of Wellbeing - Positive Emotions, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, Accomplishment - ⁠https://positivepsychology.com/perma-model/⁠
• Writer Cheryl Strayed’s essay on Ghost ships

⁠https://cherylstrayed.substack.com/p/the-beauty-of-what-is⁠

Follow SMS Sun Xueling on IG at: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/sun.xueling/

The festive season can be Overachiever hell! In this episode, Crystal shares her therapist-office breakdown and the 7 changes she made this year to stop being the "complaints department for the whole world." This isn't a prescriptive playbook—it's permission to choose what actually works for you.

KEY TIMESTAMPS:

[00:00] Cold open: "I feel like the complaints department for the entire world" [02:00] Why the festive season is a mental health hazard for overachievers [05:30] The therapist conversation that changed everything [08:45] "You're treating everyone like you're their line manager" [12:00] Change #1: Outsourcing the cooking (hello, private chef!) [16:30] Change #2: The Christmas Day shopping trip tradition [19:00] Change #3: Renting the Christmas tree [21:30] Change #4: The "no gifts" conversation with extended family [24:00] Change #5: Pre-briefing family like a CEO [28:00] Change #6: Disconnecting the wiring behind your buttons [32:00] Change #7: Resourcing yourself (sleep, self-care, massages!) [36:00] The invitation: You get to choose

QUOTABLE MOMENTS:

"The more you do, the more you get. You've trained everyone that you're the go-to person."

"You're treating everyone like you're their line manager. You're taking responsibility for outcomes that aren't yours to own."

"You can participate without orchestrating. You can show up without sacrificing yourself."

"Family will always push all your buttons. They know which combination activates the nuclear sequence. But you are the one who can disconnect the wiring behind the buttons."

"The festive season doesn't get to steal your sanity. Not this year."

RESOURCES MENTIONED:

Chef Danny Tan – Private chef for festive gatherings (Christmas, CNY, and more) Instagram: ⁠@craftandfood⁠

"Failing is an option but fear is not!" Christel Quek Buchanan is the founder of one of SG's hottest startups - ChatandBuild, a AI super-app that has signed an MOU with OpenAI, and empowers anyone to build apps and games just by chatting.

Christel is one of the most innovative, humble and intelligent friends I have, and I'm so happy to have her share her super interesting career with us.

She shares stories from the Twitter early days, meeting Elon Musk, choosing curiosity over fear, and the essential ingredients for anyone who is interested in the path of entrepreneurship.

Check out ChatandBuild and build your own app instantly for free!

⁠https://chatandbuild.com/

Caitanya Tan, better known as Cait of All Traits, is a magnetic storyteller, self-professed Professional Explainer of sometimes very random things, & your unofficial ‘JieJie’ (big sister!) with over 500K followers on Tiktok and IG. I love her videos where she breaks down the idiosyncrasies of Singlish, English and why we speak the way we do.

This week's ep is super fun and chaotic because you have 2 neurodivergent people having a free ranging conversation about unconventional careers, ADHD, being authentic, and always choosing to speak your truth!

Get your Pointy Rice Cai Fan stickers here:
https://pointyrice.com/

Follow Cait here:
https://www.instagram.com/caitofalltraits/
https://www.tiktok.com/@caitofalltraits

Happy Season 3 everyone!!! I'm so happy to be back and I have so much to catch up with all of you about! Sharing some very personal life updates, existential questions, productivity tools and hacks as well as a sneak preview of what you can look forward to in Season 3 of Comfort and Growth!

Resources mentioned:

https://notebooklm.google.com/

I am thrilled to share one of my favourite people and also an amazing, super well respected relationship expert with you on the pod today! My dear friend (and ex-Sydney neighbour) Craig Tunnell is someone who I can always count on for funny, frank and practical relationship and love advice.

Craig has worked helping people create transformation, healing and positive change in their lives for over 25 years in Australia and internationally.

He also runs his own renowned Love Code relationship workshops around the world.

As the Senior Supervising Facilitator and Director of Teacher Training of the Hoffman Process, Craig has been teaching and training internationally for 25 years.

In the corporate arena he works with organisations helping leaders become more skilful, empowered and self aware and works extensively with creating stronger and aligned teams.

Craig studied counselling with the Australian College of Applied Psychology and has studied many other modalities along with this. These include the Hoffman Process Facilitator Training, Essence Psychology, Relationship Training, Trauma and Attachment Training, Family Constellations, and Bioenergetics to name a few.

You can find Craig here:

IG: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/craigtunnell⁠

Craig's website:

And please join our special Deep Human collab LoveCode workshop with Craig

⁠https://www.deep-human.com/events⁠

Singapore’s General Election 2025 took the nation by surprise—unexpected swings, shifting loyalties, and a brand new Cabinet lineup. In this candid fireside chat, Crystal Lim-Lange sits down with political scientist, podcaster and bestselling author Prof Walid Jumblatt Abdullah to unpack the shocks, surprises, and silent messages behind the vote.

We talk about :

• What were the most unexpected outcomes of GE2025?
• Is the new Cabinet a sign of real change—or business as usual?
• How do we elevate civil discourse in a polarizing climate?
• What does this election say about the maturity of Singapore’s electorate?
• And why is Walid’s new book, Why Palestine, flying off the shelves?

Walid is an associate professor at NTU, political commentator, and author of the bestselling book Why Palestine. Known for his sharp analysis and refreshing candor, he is a rare voice of reason in Singapore’s political discourse.

🔗 Follow Walid here:

- Buy Walid's bestseller Why Palestine

⁠https://www.ethosbooks.com.sg/products/why-palestine⁠

- Youtube : ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@tehtarikwithwalid⁠

- Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/walidj.abdullah⁠

- Google Scholar page: ⁠https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=oLLVN-QAAAAJ&hl=en⁠

Zachary Young is an empire builder whom I nicknamed the "Scaling King", and if you're a founder or in sales or marketing, you will not want to miss out his invaluable business advice!

As the Founder of Foundry & Co., Zach helps scale startups and SMEs into industry leaders.

He is also the author of the Amazon bestseller The Slingshot Maneuver, a strategic playbook for business acceleration, and an active angel investor in the AI and Web3 space, backing next-gen technologies and founders.

Currently, Zachary serves as Chief Growth Officer at Cryptoknight Academy, where he's leading the charge to make crypto education simple, practical, and profitable for everyone.

Get Zach's book here:

⁠https://www.amazon.com/Slingshot-Maneuver-small-businesses-competitors-ebook/dp/B09Y5D8SYX⁠

Follow Zach:

IG: @thisiszachyoung

Linkedin: ⁠linkedin.com/in/thisiszachyoung⁠

Threads: ⁠ https://www.threads.net/@thisiszachyoung⁠