About
Software is a powerful enabler in any professional context. I've always loved learning new software programs and optimising systems to maximise my effectiveness in my different roles. Now I want to help others do the same. CombiningMinds is all about providing a valuable set of resources to unlock the potential of different software packages for you.
My experience with software in my career
Civil engineering
I started my career as a civil engineer, working for two specialist engineering firms between 2012 and 2015. I became skilled in a number of software packages, including various programs in the Autodesk and Bentley software suites for 3D modelling and civil design, and Solidworks for finite element analysis. This was also where my love for Microsoft Excel started. I learnt Visual Basic to build powerful macros and automate common design processes.
Management consulting
I soon realised engineering wasn't for me and took aim at what many confused, ambitious people do in life: management consulting. I worked for Bain & Company for two and a half years between 2016 and 2018. In that time, I mastered Microsoft PowerPoint and took my Excel skills even further. I also used Tableau (a business intelligence tool) and Alteryx (a data engineering tool) extensively.
Non-profit leadership and all-round systems person
I was a square peg in a round hole in the consulting world, however, loving depth rather than speed. I burnt out and took a year off to recalibrate. I consider myself fortunate to come across a vibrant non-profit doing personally meaningful work accelerating the careers of unemployed youth. I joined as a consultant at the beginning of 2020, running Design Thinking workshops to supplement the core business. Then COVID happened, and the company was thrown into survival mode. I was pulled into the leadership team to help navigate the crisis, specifically looking at cashflow management and new business development.
As 'new normal' remote ways of working became a long term reality towards the end of 2020, there was constant chaos in the organisation as we tried to re-scale operations. As luck would have it, I discovered two life-changing applications: Airtable and Logseq.
I overhauled the company's complex youth recruitment systems using Airtable and a variety of low-code tools, including MiniExtensions and Zapier. 2021 saw me rolling out Airtable-built systems to all corners of the organisation.
Logseq was the tool that changed the way I manage information. I created a YouTube channel to share my use of the tool with friends, and it has gained traction since, growing steadily to over 6 500 subscribers.
Online training and consulting
Unfortunately, non-profits come with their own unique set of politics and egos, and 2022 saw me no longer able to contribute effectively without compromising my well-being. I took the leap to set out on my own and do freelance consulting and create a course on how to use Logseq more effectively.
I plan to expand my course offering to help knowledge workers maximise their use of various software packages, as well as to to provide consulting services to small- to medium-sized businesses or teams to improve the way they operate.