The Kaizen Academy Podcast

Timestamps00:00:13 - Cao's America Trip00:15:58 - Thoughts on working in a different city00:23:38 - Tipping culture in america and overpoliteness00:37:21 - Cities that justin would like to visit00:43:17 - Exploring different cities vs settling down00:59:38 - Reflecting on the good things about sydney01:13:05 - Challenges of moving to a new city01:26:43 - Song recommendationsSong recommendationsAlive - Natalie BassingthwaightePerfect Places - Lorde

Timestamps https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8_VfrnLFto&t=13s (00:00:13) - How to navigate through a new chapter in life https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8_VfrnLFto&t=692s (00:11:32) - Transitioning into new fields https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8_VfrnLFto&t=1574s (00:26:14) - Developing skills in new fields https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8_VfrnLFto&t=1899s (00:31:39) - Transitioning into Solutions Engineer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8_VfrnLFto&t=2599s (00:43:19) - Transitioning into Software Engineer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8_VfrnLFto&t=3380s (00:56:20) - The important skills in doing a thesis https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8_VfrnLFto&t=3751s (01:02:31) - Grinding through the initial hump https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8_VfrnLFto&t=4576s (01:16:16) - Song recommendatinos Song recommendations BTBT (Feat. DeVita) - B.I 비아이 High School in Jakarta - NIKI

Timestamps https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOpYHGEdemI&t=14s (00:00:14) - Justin's retreat on Hamilton Islands https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOpYHGEdemI&t=552s (00:09:12) - Social life, friend groups and relationships https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOpYHGEdemI&t=1341s (00:22:21) - Work related updates https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOpYHGEdemI&t=1791s (00:29:51) - Communities and a sense of belonging https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOpYHGEdemI&t=2753s (00:45:53) - Soft and hard skills at work https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOpYHGEdemI&t=4068s (01:07:48) - Being genuine at work https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOpYHGEdemI&t=4395s (01:13:15) - Work culture and values in a company https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOpYHGEdemI&t=4824s (01:20:24) - Soft skill at work https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOpYHGEdemI&t=5578s (01:32:58) - Song Recommendations Song recommendations The Other Side of Paradise - Glass Animals Daydreamer - KIDSNOT$AINTS. Fallin4u - KIDSNOT$AINTS.

Timestamps 00:00:00 - Introduction 00:02:08 - Fashionable and building a wardrobe 00:26:35 - Being youself and work environments 00:40:08 - What it means to be yourself 01:20:43 - Dealing with insecurities 01:36:01 - Song recommendations Song recommendations Glass Animals - Tangerine ft. Arlo Parks The heart part 5 - Kendrick Lamar

Timestamps 00:02:58 - Experiences with living in the CBD 00:16:37 - Cao flying to Melbourne and Formula 1 00:31:46 - Changes after covid lockdowns 00:36:00 - Going back into the office 00:45:36 - Professional communications and code switch 00:58:49 - Pusher vs Puller in Conversations 01:07:21 - Love languages 01:33:37 - Justin's recent date and reading social cues 01:44:40 - Song recommendations Song recommendations Freaky Deaky First Class Bones IDGAF Anjuna Deep #13

Timestamps 00:09 - Private Neighbourhoods 07:21 - Turbulent Times 15:44 - Skills Over Qualifications 34:52 - Transferrable Knowledge 52:06 - Hasn't happened != Can't happen 58:38 - Life Runway 01:13:13 - Social skills 01:22:23 - Learn to Fight 01:32:44 - Song recommendations Song Recommendations Vaundy - Hadaka no Yuusha TIA - Ai Đưa Em Về

This year has been an eventful one. Sit with us as we reflect on our big moments of 2021. Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 0:30 - Cao Moved Out 6:20 - Switching Career Paths 13:24 - Appreciating the Journey 20:00 - Lockdown Filler Arc 23:42 - Studying during Lockdown 28:48 - Moving Out 29:30 - Self Esteem 32:20 - Imposter Syndrome 35:50 - Our New Jobs 42:55 - Being Late & Flaking 45:10 - Weak vs Strong Boundaries 52:44 - ADHD 58:49 - Plans for next year 1:04:02 - Song Recommendations Song Recommendation Loco - Itzy ONLY - LeeHi

How do you find time to upskill while working full time? This episode we talk about how we keep our skills sharp while balancing work and life. Timestamps 00:01:02 - Cao's House inspection 00:03:38 - Why should you study after leaving uni? 00:10:20 - Learning through your Job 00:18:33 - Career Capital 00:28:22 - Professional Certifications 00:37:33 - Immediate benefits from a professional cerifications 00:44:44 - Building a learning plan 00:51:34 - Cao's Current Career Direction 01:00:36 - Justin's Plan 01:05:33 - Study Groups are Fun 01:09:04 - Recap 01:12:09 - Song recommendations Song Recommendations Imagine Dragons - Enemy Boy Pablo - Dance Baby

You don't become an adult in a day, it's a collection of experiences that eventually transform you. This episode we talk about the milestones that have helped us mature: learning to appreciate beer, getting your heart broken and realising Thanos was (not) right. Timestamps 00:00 - New Room New Me 01:25 - Becoming An Adult 05:34 - Adulthood and Confidence 06:29 - Graduating from Highschool 10:20 - Going to the Gym 14:26 - Part Time Jobs 20:26 - Going to University 27:29 - Partying 32:58 - Uni Societies and New Personalities 37:36 - Coffee and Beer 45:41 - Romantic Relationships 57:50 - Travel 01:00:55 - Finding your moral compass: Thanos was right 01:07:54 - First Job out of University 01:11:50 - Milestone: Moving Out 01:13:39 - Song recommendations Song Recommendations Taylor Dayne - Tell It To My Heart Swae Lee - In the Dark (with Jhene Aiko)

Whether you love it or hate it, "Hustle Culture" has become a mainstay of discussion. Here we discuss which ideas are toxic and which ones are actually helpful. Stay Grustling! Timestamps 00:00 - Introduction 2:30 - The Hustle Grindset 7:35 - Waking Up at 4am 10:04 - Justin's 4am Experience 15:34 - A Realistic Approach to Waking Up Early 22:32 - Cold Showers 28:03 - Finding a MENTOR 31:44 - Mentors vs Managers 41:27 - Getting off Facebook 54:53 - Advantages of Social Media 1:00:12 - KNOWLEDGE (Tai Lopez) 1:04:01 - Tai Lopez is Right 1:10:51 - Growing Up with the Scientific Method 1:15:22 - Never Work a Day in your Life 1:23:53 - Don't Follow your Passion Song Recommendations Stayc - Stereotype Olivia Rodrigo - Driver's License

Making friends at work, should you do it or is it cringe? This episode we talk about our experiences when first entering the workforce, coffee culture and having fun at work. Timestamps 0:00 - Justin tries Twitter 5:03 - Linkedin Procrastination 11:00 - Professional Friendships 13:26 - Justin's time as a lifeguard 19:00 - PEAK 20:52 - Cao's Startup Experience 23:00 - Graduate programs are awesome 25:53 - Corporate Coffee Culture 26:48 - Salesforce 31:23 - Making friends at work 32:44 - Cisco 37:40 - Cao Overcompensating 40:33 - Justin's work experiences 43:40 - Company Culture filters for people you'll get along with 46:25 - The difference between work and regular friends 52:19 - Utility of Professional Friendships 56:52 - Song Recommendations Song Recommendations Kanye West - Come to Life Bruno Mars - Grenade

Major spoilers for "Evangelion: 3.0 + 1.0", "Bladerunner 2049" & "Hamilton". This episode we take a Study Break and talk about the movies that have made the biggest impacts on us. Timestamps 0:00 - Study Break! 4:44 - Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time [Spoilers] 27:00 - Daddy Issues 32:16 - Accepting Death 34:33 - Your Life isn't a Fairy Tale 38:10 - Main Character Syndrome 42:10 - Bladerunner 2049 [Spoilers] 47:43 - Hotel Rwanda [Spoilers] 5355: - Hamilton [Spoilers] 1:04:16 - Your Last Cup of Coffee Song Recommendations LilyPichu - Your Last Cup of Coffee Hikaru Utada - One Last Kiss

This episode we dive into an often taboo topic among friends, Money! We talk about our financial goals, how to make money and whether it can buy you happiness. Timestamps 0:00 - Hair troubles 3:26 - Getting that Coin 5:18 - Unhealthy mindsets with money 9:10 - The Hedonic Treadmill 14:46 - Virtue Signalling 17:10 - Things Money Can't Buy 19:57 - Cao's Money Goals 21:53 - Being an Ethical Consumer 25:39 - Philanthropy 26:45 - Not Working Full Time 32:08 - Justin's Money Goals 37:29 - Being a Stay At Home Dad 39:02 - Working on Things You Love 41:38 - Net Worth Goal 44:50 - Cao's Plan of Attack 53:16 - Owning a Tutoring Centre 57:19 - Justin's Plan of Attack 59:09 - Finding Your Strengths 1:01:48 - Diminishing Returns on Salary 1:03:36 - Youtube Channel 1:05:39 - Startups 1:09:29 - Cao's Strengths 1:11:46 - How Anyone Can Become World Class Song Recommendations Olivia Rodrigo - Favourite Crime Elaine - Wake Up

Chill episode this time where we talk about what we're currently focused on in our lives. We also check up on our productivity systems, workout routines and habits. Timestamps 0:00 - Singing and dancing 3:08 - Cao returning to a regular schedule 9:50 - Current focuses 29:43 - Task management systems 39:40 - Note taking systems 48:54 - Skincare routines 55:15 - Fitness routines 1:01:40 - Finance systems 1:07:43 - Learning systems Song Recommendations Lisa - Gurenge Tyler the Creator - Run it up

A life without problems, chasing happiness and facing your mortality. This episode we chit chat about the big ideas from a phenomenal book, "The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck". Timestamps 0:00 - Overthinking 1:59 - The Subtle Art of Not Giving A Fuck 8:28 - Choosing Your Values 19:40 - Changing Your Values 22:53 - Embracing failure 26:50 - Facing negative emotions 29:50 - Playing the victim 33:49 - Fault Vs Responsibility 39:36 - Cheesy quotes 44:35 - You are not your thoughts 47:00 - Parallels between Buddhism and Stoicism 49:29 - A life without problems 54:20 - After ___ I'll be happy 59:30 - Justin rants about reddit 1:04:26 - Chasing happiness is unhappiness 1:09:40 - Recognising your mortality Song Recommendation Alcohol-Free - Twice Satisfied - Hamilton

Being able to teach is an amazing skill no matter what you do. This episode we talk about how teaching relates to leadership, biggest mistakes people make when teaching and lessons we've learnt from teaching others. Timestamps 0:00 - New Jobs! 3:28 - Everyone has to teach 4:53 - Our teaching experiences 15:00 - How teaching relates to other skills 21:00 - Biggest mistake people make 29:28 - Compassionate vs Strict Teaching 40:34 - Advice for our past selves 41:00 - Connecting with your students 1:02:04 - What's the story? 1:10:31 - Chronic Explainers Song Recommendations Usher - Hey Daddy Usher Remix - IceBox

Taking notes for STEM subjects can be a bit tricky. How do you deal with diagrams and equations? Paper vs Digital? This episode we take you through the best ways we've found to take notes for your Maths, Science and Engineering subjects. Timestamps 0:00 - Cutting Weight 3:18 - Taking notes for Maths, Science and Engineering 8:11 - Why is it hard to take notes for these subjects? 14:27 - Handwritten vs Digital Notes 22:16 - The two goals of Notetaking 32:00 - Progressive Notetaking 36:48 - Notion 38:16 - Organising your folders 46:30 - How to type equations 51:33 - The best way to print out notes 57:00 - Flashcard Apps Song Recommendations Lorde - Everybody Wants To Rule The World IU - Dear Name

Feeling overwhelmed? Having a quarter life crisis? Same. This episode we talk about some ways to find direction in life that have worked for us. Timestamps 0:00 - IKEA is great 1:35 - Finding direction when you feel lost 6:54 - Justin's stories 10:04 - Cao's stories 14:06 - The small things matter 28:05 - A heaven worth striving for 45:00 - Cao's ideal career 59:25 - Focus on one thing at a time 1:09:18 - Existential dread 1:13:07 - Self Improvement Recommendations 1:27:09 - Journaling 1:31:43 - Meditation 1:32:28 - Doing something immediately Song Recommendations Offonoff - Cigarette Lorde - Royals

Learning to code can be intimidating, so here's a down to Earth guide to help you pick up an extremely useful skill. We talk about the best language to learn first, great online resources and our own journeys with programming. Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 8:26 - First programming language you should learn 16:00 - Cao's coding journey 21:18 - Justin's coding journey 28:00 - Self learning resources 30:10 - CS50 32:20 - Udemy 35:16 - Progamming elitists 45:45 - Educational games that are actually good 48:41 - Learning through projects 55:37 - Gushing over Rosé Udemy courses we talked about Jose Portilla - Python for Data Science and Machine Learning Bootcamp Stephen Grider - Modern React with Redux Song Recommendations Rosé - Gone Rosé - On The Ground

Love it or hate it, that time of year is coming... internship applications are OPENING! Come along with us as we talk about the best extracurricular activities, improving your resume and smashing interviews to land an internship this year. Timestamps 0:00 - Anime Chit Chat 2:28 - Our Internship Experiences 8:28 - 2 Steps To Land An Internship 11:46 - Tier List of Experiences 12:28 - General Extracurricular Activities 17:51 - Extracurricular Activities In Field 24:05 - Unpaid Internships 31:39 - Paid Internships 33:38 - Technical Skills 40:34 - Uni Marks 42:42 - Improving Your Resume 56:48 - Good Mindsets 1:05:30 - Online Assessments 1:06:50 - Behavioural Interviews 1:15:58 - Assessment Centre Power Move Song Recommendations Anna Kendrick - Cups (Senzawa Cover) Shinee - Attention

You've just started your journey as a uni student, how exciting! Having just finished, here are 7 tips we'd give to first year students. We talk about finding new friends, growing as a person and staying on top of your studies. Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 6:01 - Get involved in societies 23:55 - Keep your options open 33:16 - Always be improving 42:16 - Find friends in your degree! 47:05 - Avoid 9AM Classes 52:10 - Don't be afraid to underload 1:00:10 - Make the most of your holidays Song Recommendations Taylor Swift - Love Story (Taylor's Version) Pokemon Emerald OST

This episode we look back on our late night adventures cramming for exams. Don't do what we did! Timestamps 0:00 - Kaizen Academy Pivot 4:06 - Late Night Study Stories 6:00 - Stopping cramming 8:02 - Late night studying can be fun 19:02 - Late night cramming tips 22:38 - Commandeering university rooms 32:04 - High school stories 36:00 - Justin's first computing subject 38:48 - Quitting photovoltaic engineering 44:24 - Delving into the history of Chinese martial arts 50:10 - Angry Cao 53:10 - Justin napping Song Recommendations ​IU - BBIBBI IU - Celebrity

Sorry about my (Justin) audio this episode, I used the wrong mic :( We've all been there! After 6 weeks of relaxing it's hard to get back into studying. Before you know it, you're already behind on your work. This episode we talk about how you should deal with the deadly "Holiday Mode". Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 3:37 - Holiday Mode 6:58 - Minimum Study Schedule 17:00 - After School Study Schedule 24:50 - Replacing School with Studying 28:56 - Uni Study Schedule 40:45 - 2 Week Holiday (High School) 44:05 - 6 Week Holidays (High School) Song Recommendations ​Gnash – ​i​ hate u, i love u Kanye West - Devil in a new Dress

Using apps is a great way to make your life easier as a student. This episode we talk about the apps that have genuinely made a difference to us throughout school and uni. Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 6:00 - Note taking apps 18:35 - Latex editor 25:46 - Flashcards app 28:48 - PDF Annotator 32:08 - Distraction blockers 48:12 - Password manager 55:25 - Calendar app 59:00 - To-do list app Song Recommendations Gryffin, Illenium - Feel Good ft. Daya Maroon 5 - Won't Go Home Without You

This episode we take a step back and look back on the wild ride we've had in 2020. Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 1:53 - Big moments of 2020 37:22 - Growing as a person 50:07 - This year's goals 1:07:20 - Next year's goals Song Recommendations Twice - What You Waiting For Zion.T - Snow

Continuing on from last episode, we talk about more ideas you could pick up as a hobby. Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 2:20 - Gaming 26:24 - Cars 33:45 - Music 39:10 - Plant Collecting 41:00 - Languages 49:50 - Travel 56:22 - Reading 1:06:30 - Photography/Videography 1:10:28 - Self Improvement 1:17:25 - Don't lose the plot 1:19:37 - Song Recommendations

With exams finally wrapping up, many of you will have a lot of free time over the summer. Here we talk about a bunch of different sports you could pick up as a hobby! Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 4:37 - Diversifying Your Identity 08:50 - It's easy to pick up hobbies at uni 14:05 - Recommendations for hobbies 15:40 - Brazilian Jiu Jitsu 27:18 - Cooking 32:08 - Gym 43:10 - Bouldering 46:48 - Oz Tag 51:25 - Running 57:04 - Pole Dancing 59:44 - Dancing 1:06:02 - Song Recommendations

If you've ever wondered what the most effective ways of studying are, we've got you covered. This episode we jump on the tier list trend and rate different study techniques. Timestamps 00:00 - Podcast #9 4:15 - Introduction to the Tier List 5:13 - Making Notes 15:26 - Textbook Questions 21:16 - Past Papers 27:26 - Reading the Textbook 31:30 - Reading other people's notes 34:45 - Flashcards 44:54 - Mnemonics & Acronyms 49:29 - Pomodoro Technique 55:25 - The Feynman Technique 59:25 - Teaching Others 1:04:34 - Quiz Style Notes 1:10:48 - Quiz and Recall 1:13:21 - Pseudo Studying

School is useless, when am I going to use Pythagora's theorem? Why don't they teach us life skills that we'll actually need instead? This episode we discuss if these spicy criticisms of school have merit or not! Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 10:20 - Discussion Point - I want to be X so when am I going to use Y in real life 24:40 - Discussion Point - Schools should spend more time teaching life skills 34:05 - Discussion Point - Exams don't measure how well you know a subject 39:27 - Discussion Point - The schooling system is outdated and aims to churn out cogs in the machine 46:13 - What have we learnt in high school that has helped us with life afterwards 56:20 - What we wish we learnt in high school

With Sydney having come out of lockdown, we talk about the lessons we've learnt on staying productive when stuck at home. Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 3:26 - Cao's Lockdown Experience 7:14 - Justin's Lockdown Experience 17:10 - Biggest Lessons from the Lockdown 32:10 - How to stay productive at home

This episode we talk about: how to prepare the weeks leading up to your exam, what to do the day before and tips for when you're in your exam! Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 1:15 - How to study 1 month before your exam 4:50 - New maths syllabus 12:05 - Auditing your study material and schedule 22:45 - What to do the day before your exam? 25:58 - Sleeping vs Studying the night before an exam 37:50 - Day of the exam 43:55 - Tips for doing your exam 48:50 - Our test taking styles

From our experience, there are 3 core ways to combat procrastination: make your distractions harder to get to, remove obstacles to productive tasks and train your willpower like a muscle. Listen in with us as we grapple with this universal problem! Timestamps 5:40 Friction & Willpower 10:50 How friction works with willpower 14:20 3 Strategies to combat procrastination 14:50 Training your willpower 20:12 Decreasing friction 30:00 Planning your tasks 32:15 Planning your day 35:00 Increasing friction 41:00 Levels of introducing friction 44:30 Starting to meditate 54:45 Procrastinating on Studying 1:03:00 Procrastinating on Fitness

Timestamps 9:00 Automatic Tasks vs Learning 13:40 Types of music for studying 20:00 Meditation Apps 26:50 Music as a Habit Cue 37:11 Music designed for focus

Habits are the key to getting the results that you want. Mastering the skills of building and breaking habits are a must for any student. This episode we talk about our personal experiences and give some practical tips.

Episode 3 of the Kaizen Academy Podcast! We reflected on how 2019 went for us and talked about our plans for 2020.   Song Recommendations Tyler, The Creator – See You Again Zhao Lei 趙雷 - Cheng Du 成都

This episode, we talk about Task Management Systems, a central pillar of any productive workflow. How can adopting one benefit your life? How can you implement one? What principles should you keep in mind when creating your own?

First episode of the Kaizen Academy Podcast! In this episode we talk about six things we wish we knew when we were entering year 12. 2:30 - Have an outlet for relaxing 12:00 - Form a group dedicated to studying 20:40 - Help others 28:85 - Don't study where you relax 36:35 - Prioritise sleep 48:46 - Do what makes you most uncomfortable