Celestine Chua's (BBA 2006) life was the stuff of fairytales. While still in her second year at university, she was offered a job at Procter & Gamble, a Fortune 100 company. Graduating on the Dean's list, she joined the company to do brand management. Within two years, Celestine was tasked with running projects as business units. But this fairytale did not end with a "forever after". Celestine eventually left to start her own business in personal development coaching. She explains why.

Why did you leave every business school graduate's
"dream job"?
I was pursuing society's goals - to make money and be successful. I had achieved the socially-accepted results of a good education. I had fulfilled everyone's expectations. But I was not happy. By the third year of my work life, I realized that I was pursuing money for money's sake, whereas money should be a means to an end, not an end in itself.

It sounds as though you had reached a "career ceiling".
Is that what you experienced?
Yes, I had effectively reached a ceiling in my professional career where more money, more responsibility, or a promotion would not have mattered anymore. I was looking for something else.

I thought long and hard about what my true passion was. I realized that I wanted to grow as a person, spiritually; and wanted to help others grow as well. I am not equating "spiritual growth" with religion. But there is something in us beyond the physical consciousness, and this aspect of ourselves will exist even after death. I want to develop this spirit and energy in myself and others.

Would it have been possible to pursue your passion while still working in the corporate world?
I did not have any concrete action steps, but I had a broad vision and my goal - to help others grow. But as I was steeped in work, I had no time to plan any specific action to reach my goal. So in October 2008, I resigned from my job to set up my company, "Embrace Living".

How did you get the business started?
As I needed to reach out to my audience, I decided to tap into the popular communication medium of web logging. So I started a blog to spread my message and promote what I was doing.

My next step was to become a personal development coach, helping people who needed the right impetus, guidance and support to surmount hurdles in their lives. The first person I coached was a friend completing his Honors year at a local university. I helped him to improve his time management, people skills and academic results. I did this first job for free, and the same for my subsequent jobs.

Pro-bono work does not sound like much of a career.
What were you trying to achieve?
I was building a good foundation that will lead to a fulfilling career in personal development coaching. Money is a function of delivering good value, and I concentrated on giving good value first. I knew that if I keep doing good work, the money will eventually come.

How did you get your big break?
I leveraged on some of the skills I had picked up from my previous job; I used to prepare Press Kits and Media Releases as part of public relations in brand management. So I sent out a Press Release about my shift from the corporate world to personal development coaching, and the newspapers picked up my story. The media exposure led to a stream of coaching requests and speaking engagements, and people want to pay me now. I was even prompted to write an e-book on "How to discover your passion and live your dreams". The hardcopy will be out later this year.

What are the values you bring to your personal
development coaching sessions?
My personal experiences have provided the impetus for my own development, and I tap into these "life-lessons" to help others. Some of the challenges I have overcome in the past include excelling in JC despite being immersed in a negative environment among schoolmates, over-performing in my intensive 2-month internship at P&G to eventually be awarded the job, and consistently delivering breakthrough business results in my previous highly-challenging brand management career. I've learned that at the end of the day, more than anything else, it's what you make of situations that determine outcomes.

On 18 June, NUS Business School invited you to speak at the National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre. You spoke about "Money or Passion". Tell us about it.
The audience ranged from undergraduates to senior-level alumni in their fifties. Though some were older than myself, I am coaching them on universal themes that are not derived from age and experience alone.

I encouraged the audience to think about their dreams and goals; to open their minds to the possibilities of following their passion. To those who might be feeling like they have reached a "ceiling" in their careers or lives, I reminded them that there is never an endpoint; so never be restricted by the boundaries of situations you are in.

Several asked how they could go about fulfilling their passion just as I have. My role as a coach is not to give advice, but to bring about self-discovery; to open people up to perspectives they have not seen before.


Learn more about Celestine's personal development
coaching at http://celestinechua.com/.