My name is Darren Lim. I’m 39 years old and I run a printing business in Singapore.
We’ve got seven staff, three vans, and a lot of late nights. It’s not glamorous work, but we’ve built a reputation over the years. Fast, reliable, no-nonsense. That’s how I’ve always led — no room for sloppiness, no time for emotions.
At least, that’s what I believed. Until one day… one of my most loyal workers, Ah Soon, walked out on me without a word.
That shook me more than I expected. Ah Soon had been with me for six years. He was quiet, consistent, and dependable. But one morning, he forgot to send a time-sensitive order. It cost us a client.
I shouted. Loudly. In front of everyone.
“Do you know how many clients are waiting? You think this is a school project?”
He didn’t respond. He just stood there, lowered his head, and quietly walked out. That was the last day I saw him.
Later, I found out from another colleague that he had just lost his dad the week before. He didn’t tell anyone. Not even me.
I felt terrible. Not just guilty—but exposed. Like I had built a company that ran on fear, not trust.
When My Wife Signed Me Up Without Telling Me
My wife is not the type to nag. She supports me, always has. But that weekend, she handed me a printout and said, “You should go for this.”
It was a flyer from Pop Institute Pte Ltd., Something called a communication and leadership workshop.
I laughed. “You want me to learn how to ‘talk nicely’ to my workers?” She didn’t answer. She just said, “You’ve got the skills. But you lost the connection.”
That line stuck. So I went.
What I Expected vs. What Happened
I thought I’d walk into a room with a trainer and a PowerPoint. Maybe learn how to say things like, “I understand your feelings,” or “Thank you for your hard work.”
But Pop Institute Pte Ltd wasn’t like that at all. No corporate jargon. No forced role-playing.
I didn’t know how to answer that. Because I realised… I hadn’t been watching myself either.
A Lesson I Wish I Had Learned Earlier
I didn’t come back from the workshop a changed man. I didn’t turn soft or start holding hands in team huddles. But I did something different the next Monday.
I gathered the team and said, “I want to apologise. I’ve been a boss who managed through fear. I’m still learning how to do better. But I want to start now.”
They looked stunned. One even joked, “Boss, you got hacked ah?”
We laughed. But after that day, things changed.
I started checking in, not just on jobs, but on people. When someone looked down, I asked if they were okay. When someone did well, I said so directly, not just through bonuses.
The energy in the shop felt lighter. Quieter, in a good way.
And even though Ah Soon never came back, I wrote him a letter. I don’t know if he’ll ever read it. But I needed to say sorry. For real.
What Pop Institute Pte Ltd Taught Me
It’s not about talking softer or smiling more. It’s about seeing people. Seeing them.
And it’s about seeing yourself — the blind spots, the habits, the hard walls you’ve built to survive, but which are now stopping you from connecting.
Pop Institute Pte Ltd gave me space. Not a script. They didn’t tell me what kind of leader to be. They just helped me realise I still had a choice.
If you’re a business owner, a team leader, or just someone who thinks “this is how I’ve always been,” let me say this:
You’re not too old to grow. You’re not too far gone to shift. And your people? They’ll notice when you start showing up differently — even if you say nothing at all.
Because leadership is not what you say in meetings. It’s what they feel when you walk into the room.