Soul BGC: 2016 October

Y O U R G U I D E T O T H E H O M E O F P A S S I O N AT E M I N D S

ISSUE

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OCTOBERN OV E M B E R

2016

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TEAM WORK The key components of a thriving urban hub: committed communities and an evolving work culture 01

DOUBLEDOWN

The future of fitness: more activities in one location and a stronger sense of inclusion 03

HARD LESSONS

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FRESH OFF THE GOAT A Peranakan hotspot offers goat stew with a poisonous fruit 04

DRY SPELL

Crowdsourced tricks to push past A traveler maps a procrastination commute to cultivate a rewarding life in the city 04

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Illustrator Sainte James Tan

URBAN WILD

08 Adventurer Javi Cang finds new thrills in a setting his audience doesn’t normally see him in—the city.

32nd Street

NO MORE TOMORROW

16 How to fight off procrastination?

2nd Avenue

Just get started

RARE TALENT

30th Street

11th Avenue

06 Handsome is as handsome does at

whatever their fitness level may be

28th Street

9th Avenue

DUALITY

14 Getting citizens in tip-top condition

7th Avenue

5th Avenue

Rizal Drive

this new restaurant serving visually appealing Southeast Asian cuisine

OUTPUT ORIENTED

12 When a shorter work day equates to productivity

02 RULE REVIVAL

The role of rules in city development

26th Street

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EDITOR'S NOTE NATURE WORKS When adventurer Javi Cang said that he plans his route to the office to purposely pass by parks, it reminded me of Marc Berman’s study in the journal Scientific Reports. Berman and his colleagues found that an extra 10 trees on a city block improved nearby residents’ health perception. He compared this sense of well-being to the high from a $10,000 annual income raise. Maybe if these kinds of research were made more available to the public, we can help change public policy or at least, prompt city workers to go on more afterwork nature romps rather than ride in cars with boys.

With the future of work illustrating a more gunmetal reality day by day, the likes of Cang and Bonifacio Global City’s pedestrianprioritizing rules outfit a well intentioned hope for a work culture that isn’t just about raking in cash or improving bottom lines.

Work is as much a part of the human experience as is the quality of life people lead. And sometimes, it only involves walking among trees. As Cang trails off into the 5th Avenue crossing after the shoot, his city-mapping patterns merit a resounding double take in my head.

ERIC NICOLE SALTA MANAGING EDITOR

EDITORIAL STAFF GROUP PUBLISHER BEA LEDESMA CREATIVE DIRECTOR NIÑA MUALLAM MANAGING EDITOR ERIC NICOLE SALTA GRAPHIC ARTIST DANICA CONDEZ EDITORIAL ASSISTANT DENISE FERNANDEZ STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER PATRICK SEGOVIA CONTRIBUTING WRITERS FERDZ PENA, JACQUE DE BORJA, JAMES SARMIENTO CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS CRU CAMARA, RG MEDESTOMAS, ARTU NEPOMUCENO, PAT MATEO CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATORS WINCY AQUINO ONG, MARK MAGNAYE EXECUTIVE BOARD CHAIRPERSON ALEXANDRA PRIETO-ROMUALDEZ IGC CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER J. FERDINAND DE LUZURIAGA IGC DEPUTY CHIEF FINANCE OFFICER ATTY. RUDYARD ARBOLADO VP/GROUP HR HEAD RAYMUND SOBERANO VP/CHIEF STRATEGY OFFICER IMELDA ALCANTARA SVP AND GROUP SALES HEAD, INQUIRER GROUP OF COMPANIES, FELIPE OLARTE

SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES ALETHEIA ORDIALES, ABEGAIL GINAGA, ERNEST EMMANUEL SY ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES ANDIE ZUÑIGA, CHARM BANZUELO, LIZA JISON SALES SUPPORT ASSISTANTS RECHELLE ENDOZO, MANILYA ILUMIN MARKETING MARKETING AND EVENTS MANAGER JELLIC TAPIA EVENTS SUPERVISOR BIANCA DALUMPINES EVENTS ASSISTANT KIM MARIANO, MERJORIE MAY YOUNG MARKETING GRAPHIC ARTISTS JANINE DELA CUESTA, ROI DE CASTRO DIGITAL MARKETING MANAGER MARC CHUA DIGITAL COMMUNITY SPECIALIST ALLISSA MENDOZA SOCIAL MEDIA ASSOCIATE MIGUEL LUIS VASALLO DISTRIBUTION BUSINESS AND DISTRIBUTION MANAGER RINA LAREZA LOGISTICS SUPERVISOR NANCY BAYBAY DISTRIBUTION ASSISTANT ANGELA CARLOS-QUIAMBAO SUBSCRIPTION ASSISTANT BLUE INFANTE MERCHANDISERS RONIL ANO-OS, ROSITO SUBANG, JR., RAMON BRIONES CUSTOM PUBLISHING MANAGING EDITOR ANGELA VELASCO ASSOCIATE MANAGING EDITOR PHOEBE CASIN SENIOR EDITORIAL ASSISTANT PAULINE MIRANDA EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS CHRISTELLE TOLISORA, KHEENA ALELOJO, KRYSTIN PAPAGAYO SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE SHANNA MALING, MICHELLE MAPA, SARAH CABALATUNGAN ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES INA MATEO GRAPHIC ARTISTS KATRICE MONTES, YAYIE MOTOS, JAYCE SORIANO, CHEE FLORES, NICCOLO ORTIGOZA PRODUCTION PRODUCTION MANAGER JAN WILFRED CARIQUITAN FINAL ARTWORK SUPERVISOR DENNIS CRUZ PRODUCTION ASSISTANT MARICEL GAVINO FINAL ARTWORK ASSISTANT KRISTINE MAY PAZ

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FEATURE

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FOOTSTEPS FOR THE FUTURE

Betting on pedestrian priorities to reshape the quality of life in the city WRITER FERDZ PEÑA ILLUSTRATOR WINCY AQUINO ONG

When you think of Manila—or any other city in the Philippines for that matter— walkable isn’t a descriptor that would come to mind instantly.

Ever wonder why Filipinos hate walking?

Let’s do the math.

For starters, blame it on the tropical clime.

We live under the command of a punishing sun—or if not, at the behest of fickle-minded rainclouds. (The argument is moot, given that Singapore is closer to the equator yet it’s a city that champions walking.)

Then, if we’re talking about Manila specifically, history proves that after the carpet-bombing that left the city in smoldering ruins during World War II, our European mode of living, which were more suited towards the pedestrian, had been forgotten and replaced. Gone were the sights of denizens walking hand-inhand towards the plaza or the wet market; the death-knell had rung on the humble tranvia system as well. The mass exodus from Intramuros signaled a new way of thinking: driving your own private vehicle as opposed to walking. American engineers and urban planners repurposed Metro Manila to benefit the gas-guzzling automobile, thereby instilling the culture of cars into our very psyches.

Ultimately, there’s that longstanding stigma—one that underscores the gaping divide between rich and poor: that walking is for people of lesser means, the country mice, the bakya set, the masa.

But the world, as they say, is fast changing as more babies are being born by the minute and more areas of the planet are being turned into cosmopolitan spaces. From grass to glass; from green to gray.

Singapore, Vancouver, and Portland have remodeled themselves as smart cities, embracing green technologies and sustainable practices. Car-dependent Los Angeles has been experimenting with revolutionary transit systems such as Uber’s autonomous self-driving cars.

Not to be left behind, Bonifacio

Global City (BGC) is fast catching up with the ever-changing climes as well, as it prepares itself to be Manila’s top-ofmind walkable city.

How so? It seems that the dream had started with three simple rules—footsteps for the future—that the Bonifacio Estate Services Corporation has decreed: 1) Pedestrian priority; 2) No street parking; and 3) No littering.

All three are moving parts of a bigger campaign to encourage people to exercise their citizenship and be part of improving and uplifting the city. According to the 2015 Global Driver Satisfaction Index, Manila is the ninth worst place to drive in the world. The traffic has been the proverbial elephant in the room.

On the subject of prioritizing pedestrian and prohibiting street parking, Monica Llamas-Garcia, city marketing manager says, “These rules are for the greater good. The number of parking spaces will not be equal to the number of people who own cars. We are not building a city of parking lots; we are building a city for people—for people to be able to move freely and safely.”

As they say, rules are only as good as their enforcement. For certain, it would take wellsprings of discipline—a virtue that Filipinos unfortunately lacks—and good governance.

Take the problem of trash on the streets, for example, one that makes walking an otherwise dismal experience. Says LlamasGarcia, “These rules exist everywhere.

It’s the citizen culture that spells the difference. Japan is a good example. They take responsibility for their trash. There are no trash bins on sidewalks and public spaces, but you do not see trash lying around. It’s because the Japanese take it upon themselves to take their trash with them and throw it when appropriate.”

The vision of BGC is to be one of the best walkable destinations in the metro. Perhaps, all it takes is a little obedience.

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FOOD

Filipino fusion is about more than stuffing balut and sisig into a tortilla wrap WRITER DENISE FERNANDEZ PHOTOGRAPHER CRU CAMARA

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On the outside, Kartilya looks just like your average Filipino restaurant—warm wooden accents, capiz windows, and a single large entryway, reminiscent of an ancestral home. Though Kartilya is undoubtedly Filipino, its main inspiration comes from traditional cuisine and the culture of the country’s forefathers, spinning local dining customs into a new—and some might even say, millennial—way.

“The Kartilya ng Katipunan was basically a guidebook to becoming a Katipunero— their customs, rules, principles, etc.,” elaborates restaurant spokesperson Patrick Giron. “So we want Kartilya to be the same. A primer to Filipino dining.”

Kartilya’s unique dishes were created by MasterChef Asia finalist Lica Ibarra, who boldly took traditional Filipino favorites and tweaked them into fresh ideas. The restaurant’s current signature offering is its Liempo Queso Fundido, which is essentially classic pork liempo bathed in

three-cheese mornay sauce. While it was meant to be served as an appetizer, the dish has grown so popular among patrons that they began to order it as their main meal instead. Ibarra’s famous sweet and salty dessert seen on MasterChef, Queso de Bola Bibingka, is also a Kartilya classic. The list of Ibarra’s innovative creations goes on: tostadas made with sisig and beef kaldereta, corned beef kansi, and sizzling balut.

Giron goes on to say that the meaning behind Kartilya’s hashtag #DiningRevolution, apart from its obvious allusion to the Philippines’ historical roots and heroic figures, is of Ibarra taking the helm of a fusion cuisine revolution, as it was actually her idea to give classic Filipino offerings a more modern touch. As quirky and different as some of their plates may sound, Kartilya is worth more than just a shot. Through Ibarra’s reintroduction of Filipino cuisine and traditional dishes, a visit to this restaurant provides a unique dining experience to guests who luckily stumble upon its halls.

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01 BONELESS BANGUS AND LIEMPO QUESO FUNDIDO 02 LICA IBARRA'S SIGNATURE DESSERT, QUESO DE BOLA BIBINGKA 03 KARTILYA'S FILIPINO-STYLE INTERIORS WITH A MODERN TOUCH

NATIONAL ANTHEM South American cooking meets Philippine ingredients

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PICANHA OVER A GRILL PATACONES, A DISH FROM PUERTO RICO ELOTE

The “X” in Naxional pertains to the 10 South American countries where this new restaurant derived its menu from. This alone tells a lot about the stories behind each dish.

Naxional is inspired by the home-cooked allure of South American cuisine, while having their dishes made with locally sourced ingredients straight from local farms. Each plate comes from a specific country, such as Puerto Rico’s patacones, a meat dish seasoned in sofrito sauce and served with fried plantains and guacamole, and Ecuador’s encebollado, a hangover stew served with cassava and pickled red onions.

Kartilya is located at Two Parkade, 30th Street corner 7th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City | Naxional is located at 2/F Uptown Parade, 38th Street corner 9th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City

FORWARD, MARCH

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Mitsuharu Tsumura Manila

Join internationally acclaimed Chef Mitsuharu Tsumura at Samba, Shangri-La at the Fort, Manila for what promises to be the must-taste culinary event of the year.

Mitsuhara Tsumura is chef and owner of Maido, the restaurant in Lima, Peru which took the number 13 spot on this year’s World’s 50 Best Restaurants.

His lunch and dinner menus are priced from Php 2,250 nett and Php 4,500 nett respectively.

Beverage menu pairing is an additional Php 2,200 nett for lunch and Php 2,500 nett for dinner. *Prices are in pesos, inclusive of 10% service charge and prevailing government taxes

The soon to open Peruvian restaurant at Level 8, Shangri-La at the Fort, Manila Reserve your experience at www.shangrilalovesfood.com Tel (632) 820 0888 samba@shangri-la.com @dineshangrilafort

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FOOD

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ASIAN REINVASION A culinary spree at new Southeast Asian outlet Hey Handsome includes wolfing down a naturally poisonous fruit WRITER JACQUE DE BORJA PHOTOGRAPHER RG MEDESTOMAS

Filipinos always find comfort in food no matter the cuisine. This time around, BGCitizens will find comfort in rich Southeast Asian flavors from Hey Handsome, a newly opened restaurant right in the middle of Bonifacio Global City (BGC).

Nicco Santos, the same guy behind Your Local, decided to open up a new space not only to help his team grow but also to give ode to his favorite meals in a completely different setting. Prior to opening the restaurant, he traveled for over a month just to find himself falling in love with Peranakan cuisine again. The result is an array of flavorful and filling dishes that go from spicy and tangy to sweet and aromatic.

Hey Handsome’s menu consists of dishes like Nam Tok, a grilled short ribs dish with green papaya salad and coconut rice; Beetroot Paneer, a great option for vegetarians that even carnivores will gobble up; and Nasi Lemak with Seabass Otah,

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considered Malaysia’s national dish. But the crowd-favorite and admittedly the one dish made with the most effort is Kambing Buah Keluak, a goat stew served with a sauce made out of buah keluak, a naturally poisonous fruit, found in the swamps of Malaysia and Indonesia. It requires a thorough cleaning process that takes three to five days. The inside of the fruit is then mixed with a really pungent shrimp block called Belacan that gives the stew a distinct flavor. It comes with a heaping serving of fragrant steamed rice with herbs, a red onion salad, and topped with Belacan keropek. Even their drinks can excite the taste buds, like the Magic Milk, an Indian lassi drink with Thai chili and the Donkey Punch made with lemongrass and galangal, an ingredient similar to ginger, which makes the beverage similar to salabat.

Santos’ creative fare is surely a welcome addition to transform BGC into a multicultural food frontier.

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NASI LEMAK WITH SEABASS OTAH TRENDY INTERIORS TO MATCH DIVERSE FLAVORS DONKEY PUNCH, ICED TEA, AND CHERRY POP NICCO SANTOS

Hey Handsome is located at G/F Net Park Building, 5th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City | 946-3815

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PEOPLE

CONCRETE BONDS

As cities fill up with more concrete, parks and recreation are becoming more critical elements of sustainable living. Just ask adventurer Javi Cang WRITER DENISE FERNANDEZ PHOTOGRAPHER ARTU NEPOMUCENO

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PEOPLE Javi Cang may as well lead a double life. In the city, he works as an employee in a prominent financial services company—a far cry from what he is so conspicuously recognized for online. On weekends, Cang is an avid adventurer who can barely sit still, as evidenced by his travel portraits documented on his Instagram account. Whether stargazing on the mountain peaks of China or hiking ranges and whale-watching in rural areas of the Philippines, Cang has done it all, even claiming to have regularly faced death itself out in the wild. As thrilling as his life outside Metro Manila may sound, one cannot help but wonder what this traveler does outside his adventures and how he spends his time in the urban jungle of Bonifacio Global City (BGC).

Cang himself remarks that there is a certain wilderness to the city that in itself can be compared to nature—a thriving sort of beauty that solely exists in its noise and concrete surroundings. “When you’re in the mountains, it gets pretty crazy— the weather, the feeling of not knowing what’s going to happen next. In the city, you get the same amount of the unknown and craziness but in a totally different way.

There’s traffic, the fast-paced lifestyle—and I think being able to just manage all of that sort of involves the same adventures that I get from being outdoors.”

BGC, according to him, is a place where one rarely runs out of things to do thanks to the numerous accessible establishments nearby as well as its warm and welcoming community culture. When in the city, Cang usually enjoys a quiet dinner on Bonifacio High Street or Central Square and having drinks with friends on Burgos Circle. “It helps that [the community] is small and a lot of the people I work with know where the good places are so it’s nice to always see a familiar set of faces,” Cang says. “There won’t be a day when you get bored. When you stay in BGC long enough, you meet a lot of people, a lot of friends, and almost every night you’ve got plans to meet for lunch or dinner; there’s loads of things to do.”

But of course, having such strong wanderlust coursing through his veins, Cang also misses the wilderness he repeatedly returns to. Thankfully, environmentallyfriendly surroundings keep a steady reconciliation between his time in the city and his longing for travel. “Whenever I walk, I make it a point to pass by a park. I purposely plan my route going to the office just so I can see some trees,” he says, then quickly adding, “If I don’t see trees for a

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couple of days, I might just go crazy.”

On the topic of his highly popular Instagram account, Cang is candid and bashful regarding his recently found online fame. Unlike most people on Instagram, he keeps his account as organic as possible, having declined some brands who have approached him. “I don’t even consider it [Instagram] fame. I just want to inspire people to go outside. And I think if I’m able to inspire one or two people to spend time outdoors then I think whatever ‘fame’ Instagram has brought is justified by that.”

All Cang wants is for people to know him as someone who genuinely enjoys the outdoors and understands its importance.

Sometime in the future, Cang aspires to explore places less traveled, such as the South Pole and the peak of Mt. Everest.

As he waits for the right time for such grandiose experiences, he treks and hikes neighboring countries that are much

easier to access. But still, even for someone as well-traveled as Cang, he thinks there is so much more of the Philippines to explore, with numerous adventures that await him—whether it’s climbing his homeland’s many mountain ranges or simply finding the next best watering hole in the landscapes of the city.

01 JAVI CANG 02 CANG CHANGES HIS ROUTE TO THE OFFICE EVERY NOW AND THEN JUST TO SEE TREES AND PARKS

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Before every outof-town trip, Cang doesn’t leave without his phone and some handy trail snacks he makes himself.

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COLUMN

NINE TO FOUR

Will a shorter workweek result in bigger gains?

Software engineer James Sarmiento mulls over its viability in Manila ILLUSTRATOR MARK MAGNAYE

Work-life balance is not a new concept. There is more than enough literature about its benefits to employers and employees. It’s just that we never really settled “how” to achieve it. Corporates constantly promote it—from providing ping pong tables in the break room and company-sponsored marathons to bringyour-child-to-work day to work-fromhome setups.

But in February last year, in the Swedish municipality of Gothenburg, local government officials started an experiment that reduced working hours to 30 per week. The study wanted to know if the precious balance is achievable by working daily for just six hours. Yes, just six hours per day instead of eight.

Six months later, The Guardian wrote about the experiment. “I used to be exhausted all the time, I would come home from work and pass out on the sofa,” said Lise-Lotte Pettersson, an assistant nurse at Svartedalens nursing home that participated in the study. “But not now. I am much more alert: I have much more energy for my work, and also for family life.” It’s not the first and lone effort to reduce the time spent at work. A Toyota

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service center in the same municipality also switched to shorter shifts 13 years earlier.

In France, its 35-hour work week law was enacted in 2000. Recently, US internet giant Amazon made headlines as it plans to trial a 30-hour workweek.

I haven’t heard explicit efforts in the Philippines but some local companies do allow a certain amount of flexibility. Such is the case at IT startup CloudSwyft. In a phone conversation, its chief technology officer, Ellard Capiral, told me that millennials don’t want to be dictated.

“There are times when they are in the zone, depending on their motivation on a particular day,” he says. “Sometimes, there are days when they want to relax.”

He welcomes this behavior. For him, output is more important. He says that companies should drive motivation rather than counting hours spent on a task.

His company implemented what he called “core” hours that run from 10am to 4pm. Everyone is expected to be present within these hours. But they are free to decide on what to do outside these hours.

Such practice allows employees to explore other interests.

Benefits for the company are intangible but the returns are real. Once, one of the

company’s front-end developers used his free time to read on other technologies.

The new knowledge became handy when the developer provided valuable inputs and hands-on contribution outside his core expertise.

Having heard his story, I think a 30-hour workweek has a chance in the Philippines. The need to dedicate substantial hours to your job while having enough rest to recharge for a more productive energy the next day are all too relatable, whether you are from Manila or Gothenburg.

However if it does happen, it will not be anytime soon. It will take a great deal of political and scientific effort to challenge the 40 or more working hours in a week—the norm since World War II. Even the pioneering France will have to relax its 35-hour workweek as companies claim a need to be more competitive.

Whatever the Amazon experiment or other future studies would show, it’s more important for employers and employees to strive for a respectful relationship between them and make their partnership work for mutual happiness and growth.

The number of hours spent with each other, then, will not matter.

PEOPLE

IN FITNESS AND IN HEALTH

Where crossfit and yoga go hand in hand to keep city dwellers in tip-top shape WRITER JOYCE REYES-AGUILA PHOTOGRAPHER PAT MATEO

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When it comes to working out, nothing beats the idea of sharing your pain with someone else. Fitness goals can be easily surpassed with an exercise buddy in tow.

There is added inspiration and motivation in simply knowing that you are not alone when you sweat it out.

Like people, fitness activities are also being paired up to offer unique lifestyle experiences in one location. At the newly opened Central Ground Athletics (CGA) in Bonifacio Global City (BGC), the intensity of CrossFit and the relaxation of yoga is accessed via one door. Participants can have their druthers between the Central Ground CrossFit box and the Evolve Yoga and Fitness studio.

The group of friends behind CGA are offering a unique place where the two disciplines are integrated, according to yoga studio director and owner Ginger Diaz Serrano. While many venues specialize in

Central Ground Athletics is located at Units 13-15, G/F, One Parkade, 7th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City

a single fitness offering, CGA is buttressing its myriad workout activities for the health conscious BGCitizens.

“It was our only choice of location,” partner and coach Inna Pesigan says. “BGC is becoming a place for everyone to exercise and become healthy. There are a lot of running and jogging paths here. People who work here want to work out after.”

The city’s renown for being conducive and accepting of the arts, along with an undoubted burgeoning of businesses only makes the fitness establishment stronger and more relevant, says CrossFit head coach and partner Job Wi. “BGC is the only city in the Philippines that puts so much focus on active parks.”

Since opening its doors last July, CGA has become the go-to place for students, parents, entrepreneurs, and professionals.

“There are some who just do yoga or just

CrossFit but we do have a good mix of those who practice both because of the convenience of the facility,” Pesigan adds.

Yoga practitioners are encouraged to go to the CrossFit box once in a while. “I really believe in the synergy of the two. There’s this notion that yoga is just for flexibility; it’s not. There are just so many postures and practices that require strength.”

Fostering a sense of community is key for the coaches, who chorus that it is what sets their place apart. “We really care about everyone who comes in,” partner and CrossFit athlete Anna Ledesma says. “We would like to see ourselves as people who are here to help whoever comes in to achieve their goal.” In being inclusive, according to Wi, they are building relationships with like-minded individuals who understand that activities like CrossFit can be for everyone—no matter the fitness level.

They also gladly indulge anyone who enjoys a dose of caffeine during workouts. The partners’ love for coffee is translated into an in-house corner where baristas whip up Bean & Barley drinks a few steps away from the box. “It’s the common area where we bind the two communities, which are polar opposites,” says Wi. “CrossFit is super yang and yoga is super yin, then there’s something that many enjoy: coffee.” Seats are available for anyone who needs to check e-mails or finish a presentation before, during, or after working out. How’s that for work-life balance, advocated by CGA coaches who wear many hats for their other life roles, but have found a common ground to pursue what they love the most?

“This place binds us all together,” he adds. “It’s our means of imparting fitness and lifestyle.”

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ENCOUNTERS 02

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OFF-GRID Visualizing, organizing, and prioritizing say these BGCitizens keep them from going off the boil PHOTOGRAPHER PATRICK SEGOVIA

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01 “First, I try to make a list of things to do for the day and prioritize the items to work on first. Second, I free myself from all distractions, so I try not to use social media. Finally, I find that listening to music helps keep me motivated; it's a good way to drown out the noise and focus on one task at a time.

The word ‘deadline’ usually has a negative connotation to it, but sometimes it can actually motivate you to get the job done—to get it done well, and on time,” Niccolo Garcia, art director, Movent 02 “I am a believer in the power of visualization as well as the negatives of delaying. In creating, I always take a moment to visualize positive outcomes. For the more complex tasks that I hate, I don’t just think about the positives, but also the significant problems if I do not take action. At the end of the day, just know what distracts you. Then take time to visualize ways to keep those things out of your way when you need to get started on a task,” Alvin Adriano, art director, McCann Worldgroup Philippines

03 “I start with a nice, deep breath.

I settle my mind down because everything else will eventually follow. Then I begin by setting my priorities straight—make a list of the tasks I need to accomplish and lay them out based on importance.

Also, I don't give myself more than I can handle. I make sure I finish a specific task before moving on to the next one. Some people like to take a short break between tasks, but some prefer to power through so they don't lose focus.”

Noelle Pormento, seller relationship executive, Zalora 04 “It starts with remembering what I should be doing at that very moment. Sometimes, I check my calendar for appointments or upcoming deadlines. I also have an Evernote account where I keep lists of things I need to do.

From there, I build momentum by doing the “quick wins” first. I break down big tasks into smaller ones to give myself confidence to tick more boxes. In contrast to a regular game I could procrastinate on, the fulfillment I get from the one I make on my own definitely lasts longer,” James Alcantara, brand manager for consumer mobile business, Globe Telecom, Inc.

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