Hi there. My name is Laura Wong. In case you're wondering, yes I am a Chinese. I may or may not have a slight obsession with green tea and daisies. A follower of Christ and a shopaholic.

For those who did not know, I recently took part in an international business challenge organized by Maybank. Known as the Maybank GO. Ahead Challenge, this competition tests not only your ability to solve business cases, but also your creativity, aggressiveness and capability to work under pressure. Unlike many other business competitions which you can prepare yourself for, this one in particular is the opposite. The tasks given are unpredictable, and they can ask you to do bascially anything under the Sun. It is more than a challenge.

There are four rounds to this competition: Online Test, Campus Level, National Level & Global Finals. Sadly, I did not make it to the Global Finals as I got eliminated during the final round at the National Level (there were 3 rounds of elimination in National Level). I've got to admit that I was rather disappointed because I was just one step away from entering the Global Finals, but when I got my emotions straight, I realized that I wasn't entirely at the losing party. I've discovered my potential and gained so much experience which even money cannot buy. This challenge gave me a clearer picture of what will it be like in the corporate world. Hence, I would like to share the four main takeaways from this challenge. 

1. When life gives you a lemon, grab it, squeeze it and make the best lemonade ever.

One of the reasons why I've lost in the last round of the National Levels was because I was bounded by fear. I was afraid of this particular judge (who is also the producer of this competition) because he was so fierce. I would describe him as the Asian version of Simon Cowell as he never leaves anyone without a heated argument or a mean comment. Based on my observation, no matter how good a speaker is, he/she will never be able to talk out of that judge as he always finds his way to counter back whatever opinions he/she has.

Due to his personality, I often held back my ideas or arguments whenever he was around.  I was afraid of trying because I kept telling myself that I will be the losing party despite how good my reasoning was.

Little did I know, it was my fear that kept me away from gaining a spot in the Global Finals.  

In the corporate world, you will face people like these. Not everyone is going to be nice to you, and some might even treat you worse than the judge I've just described. However, if you're going to be afraid of them, you wont be able to stand out. You're always going to be one who gets pushed aside. If you are just going to remain quiet and to not try showing what you've got, any opportunity that comes along will be wasted.

As Nike said, "Just do it."

2. Put on layers if you have to 

During the Maybank GO. Ahead Challenge, every task given to you has a time limit. And trust me, time is never on your side during those moments. Each task requires you to do more than your own capability, Not only your time management is tested, but also your ability to extract as much information as possible within a limited time.

I've learned that I got to show the judges what I got despite the limited time and lack of solid data. I needed to prove to them that I am 100% confident with my data even if I'm not. During the National Levels, our last task was given to us at 12 in the morning. Yes you read it correctly- it was 12am not pm. Being a morning person, staying up anytime later than 12am is a torture for me. What more to work on a business case at this hour!! However, I've learned that there are going to many times like this in the future. You may be tired, drained or exhausted, but you don't get to choose when is the deadline. If your boss wants a particular job to be done by a certain time, you have to complete it.

This taught me how to portray confidence in every situation; whether you are prepared and well equipped or the other way round. Despite how physically drained I was, I had to put on layers of confidence and energy to show the judges that I can work under circumstances like these. It's not a pleasant sight when you show your future bosses or board of directors that you're tired or sleepy.

3. Never undermine your own potential

Upon joining this competition, I never thought that I could make it this far. Honestly, I thought I would have lost at the first stage itself because the questions were so tricky, and I did not even complete the questions on time. But look where I am now. I'm not trying to boast, but I was one of the youngest contestants who made it so far as most of them are either graduates or final year students.

I've always thought that I suck at spontaneous presentations. Yes I may look confident in my presentations as some of you may have seen it, but that is only because I have plenty of time to prepare for them. However, through this competition, I've learned that I can handle spontaneous presentations pretty well. It may not be the best but at least it brought me to the last round of the National Levels.

Every time I passed an elimination round, it gave me more reasons to believe in myself (because I always felt that I will lose each round hahaha). Knowing that I passed each round, my spirit was lifted up and I felt that I have potential after all. I was driven by that to improve myself further and to become a stronger competitor in the following challenges.

4. You don't get to work with the people of your choice

In this challenge, we are often required to work in teams. Yes, every contestant was evaluated individually, but we are also tested in our ability to work in teams. For each challenge, we were assigned to different teams. Hence, I got the opportunity to work with different people from various backgrounds: medical, engineering, computing & more.

It's always nice to be able to work in teams because teams allows teammates to combine skills and knowledge which could lead to a better performance as compares to the ability of an individual alone. It's a plus point for you if you get a good team with competent members, but if you don't, you just got to deal with it. In the corporate world, you don't exactly get to choose who you want to work with. One thing I've learned is that you got to make the best out of everyone's weaknesses. If you're just going to dwell on the weaknesses, both your team and you are not going to move anywhere. Sometimes, we just got to accept it and just give our best.

I wished I got the chance to work with people from abroad, but it's alright. Maybe next time.