The Ultimate Upgrade Essentials – Volume 3: Finding Your Path
FREE to IEEE Members
Non-Members: $2.99
When setting out on a journey, as an individual, team or corporation, author Terence Yeoh PH.D., PMP, believes you should have:
- A strong Vision — simply described as “a glimpse of a future that hasn’t been realized”;
- A Mission — practical goals that will take you toward your vision; and,
- A Means — the resources and actions required to succeed at the mission.
He encourages readers to, “Think of yourselves as an engine with many parts, all working together to deliver VALUE. Having a personal Vision, Mission and Means will enable you to tune your engine for the unique experiences that lie ahead.”
Throughout his new IEEE-USA E-Book, The Ultimate Upgrade Essentials: Book 3: Finding Your Path, Yeoh uses stories to illustrate his concepts. Yeoh starts with a post-Covid trek into the California hills overlooking Los Angeles. He has a vision — rediscovering his love of hiking and exploration of the mountains. He sets a mission — reaching the farthest trail entrance. Then, Yeoh sets about on the means — gathering the gear, studying the maps, and setting up telemetry, so his wife could find him if he lost his way.
Then, Yeoh faced a choice: Which of the many paths should he take from where he was, to where he wanted to go? Should he take the well-worn path, usually the most efficient one, bearing the test of time? As he notes, “Trails themselves are markers left by prior agents, whether human, or animal, or nature (in the case of dried-up riverbeds) that convey information on how to most efficiently navigate from one location to another.”
Or, should he take less-traveled paths, those more often revealing hidden secrets — such as an unexpected fish-filled cauldron, or breath-taking vistas?
Yeoh also talks about traveling a path to a dead-end, an opening in the forest where earlier travelers went for a picnic, but then traveled back the way they came. Should he, too, back track (taking added time and risking failure) — or should he forge his own trail, one filled with brambles, poison oak and the unknown?
The author’s choice was to forge his own trail and — with a few scratches — reach his desired destination. When traveling your life’s journey, he suggests being open to leaving the path, and moving toward “a future that is not confined by prior paradigms.”
Yeoh is not arguing to take one type of path consistently over the other; instead, he urges his readers to be ever conscious of the risks and rewards of the different approaches along the journey, choosing whichever path makes sense at the time. Throughout the book, Yeoh draws from his YouTube series: Yeoh on the Go, Seasons 1 & 2, to give the reader suggestions to assist them on whatever path they take.
The author also encourages readers to understand and embrace the power of music, noting “music has the ability to invigorate, to calm, to bring back memories, to lock in experiences.” Just as a soundtrack can increase excitement, understanding and joy in a movie, he emboldens the reader to become the music director “of the movie in which you are the main character.” He also suggests music can be a great way to tie together multigenerational groups — by playing current artists’ renditions of older hits.
In Volume 3 of this series, Yeoh stresses the value of professional societies as a resource for your career journey; allowing you to interact with others with shared interests and experiences, and to grow skills in a safe environment. Of course, it up to you to take advantage by seeking opportunities for learning and engagement with a wide range of members.
Yeoh’s third e-book in the Ultimate Upgrade Essential series, builds on the first two e-books, which dealt with the human condition and self-assessments. All three books are available for free for IEEE members at IEEE-USA’s online shop. Non-members can download the books for $2.99 each.
An IEEE Senior Member, Dr. Terence Yeoh has been a technical and career development contributor to IEEE since 1999. He has held a variety of career roles in systems engineering, R&D portfolio management, program management and corporate strategy. Yeoh holds eleven patents in such areas as infrared microscopy, compressive sensing, and artificial intelligence. In his free time, he enjoys playing guitar; writing code; and driving his Mustang, Roci.
