The power of the generalist with Ee Ting Choo

Michele Ong

Systems thinking allows you to see both the pain

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Good afternoon, Ee Ting. Thank you so much for joining

me today on STEAM Powered. I'm really looking forward to speaking

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Ee Ting Choo

Thank you, Michele. Thank you for your invitation.

I hope I can share more about my journey and help more women

in their career choices.

Michele Ong

Absolutely. Like, everybody's perspective

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Ee Ting's medical aspirations before chemical engineering

So getting started with your journey, when you first entered

STEM and STEAM, you started in chemical engineering. But,

Ee Ting Choo

What motivated me? Okay. This is really funny.

So initially, I had health issues so I wanted to get into

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entered chemical engineering in university.

Michele Ong

Not related to health, though.

Ee Ting Choo

Yeah. Exactly. Because I wanted medicine, but I

just was very afraid, so I gave up on it. Yeah.

Michele Ong

Yeah, that's fair. I mean, lot of people find that,

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you are into or not into until you start trying to explore it.

The perceived prestige of chemical engineering

Yeah. What about chemical engineering, has that level of

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Ee Ting Choo

Okay, so in Singapore it's a lot about scoring so

after junior college will be university. So only the top

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but I didn't want to do medicine so I just went into chemical

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that prestige related to it. So I just did it. Yeah. But

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The health benefits of semiconductors when you have respiratory issues

Michele Ong

Yeah. So after that, you, you know, you

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lend to that?

Ee Ting Choo

So I was studying chemical engineering and there

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Michele Ong

Oh, that's fascinating. Because, for a lot of

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The art of technology transfer

So in your role there, it's called process development.

Ee Ting Choo

So we need to print the wafers, you know, the

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need to first, actually it's been fifteen years, I forgot the

name but you need to put that film on, then after that we need to

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in Singapore and started the whole production.

Michele Ong

That's fascinating. So what sort of skill set is

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Ee Ting Choo

Oh, okay. So when I was a young engineer,

all I did was just do what the senior engineers told me to

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like for example the material in, for example, my next job

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started the DNA plant in Singapore. So that's why I think

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from being an operator. Yeah, where I did every single

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Yeah, that's what we actually need. So I think these are really the

mindset and the kind of like skill sets. Not really skill

to start and then look at every single details and then

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Michele Ong

It is. And it's basically whole system thinking.

Because when it's transfer, it's not just knowledge transfer.

It's also about geographic, environmental, the entire

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and the way that our work interacts with the work of the

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It's whenever you're working with anyone doing anything.

The importance of EQ in management

Ee Ting Choo

Yep. Yep. I think later in my career, right, when

I started to lead transfer projects in Illumina, I think

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need to talk to every department, know like sideways every

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I think yeah, EQ becomes one important part. How we talk

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Michele Ong

Yeah and it's the communication at all different

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Be good to your people, be good to your vendors

Ee Ting Choo

When I was young, I mean, young engineer, I thought

that we need to be fierce to vendors, for example, because

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how say respectful way. Yeah.

Michele Ong

Yeah. It's funny that you mentioned about

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Ee Ting Choo

Yeah. The the best part is that because the

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them. But if you leave the corporate, you leave your title,

sorry, that's it, you are just yourself, know? You're just a nobody.

So maybe you will need their help in the end. So, yeah,

Michele Ong

And absolutely. And even, like, even with Asian

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Ee Ting Choo

Yes. Yeah. Industry is small.

Michele Ong

It is. It's not worth the risk to be a jerk.

Ee Ting Choo

Exactly. Yeah. Yep.

The marathon interview for Illumina

Michele Ong

So from semiconductors, you got into

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I'd love to hear about how that transition occurred.

Ee Ting Choo

How that transition occurred? So what happened was

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my friends say that you gotta job hop, know, for your

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and there were like so many people different people talking

and I was like okay I think I might fail the interview but

Okay round two was really difficult this time it was a video camera

interview and it was three hours and there was a whiteboard

there So I didn't really know what I signed myself up to

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three hours right the headhunter called me and asked me how

do you think it went? I said I know it's terrible I've

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Michele Ong

Yeah. That's fascinating because the rigour

of that interview process I mean, for that time, that was

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it felt like a marathon for a lot of people having to go

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Ee Ting Choo

It is.

Michele Ong

Yeah. And even not knowing what the job

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Ee Ting Choo

And you know, there's no manufacturing plant, no

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Michele Ong

That's a good motivator. I mean, we have to be

Thriving as a generalist

Yeah. So what did your role end up being once you figured

out the lay of the land?

Ee Ting Choo

Technology transfer. Yeah. So basically yeah.

I look everything in the US manufacturing plant, and then

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didn't know what I signed up for but when I brought the technology

back to Singapore I thought that was really the most fun thing that

I did. I did like programming also but because this job

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Google was just like just starting at a time. Yeah, so I

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Michele Ong

And it's it's quite interesting because

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your skill set to these other areas?

Ee Ting Choo

I think it was really my the love of

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Michele Ong

Yeah. And I guess it's such a rare opportunity

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and that freedom to be able to explore and try things out

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stuff out, it it's really a place where you can thrive

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way that you think and the way that you do things.

Ee Ting Choo

Yeah. So in hindsight, right, I mean, maybe

because my fun loving and my willingness to try all the different

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rather than their technical skills. I mean that's

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Michele Ong

Yes. And, yeah, it's it is actually a

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they they look at something, they go, I need a one to one match

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And it's calculated risk. It's not just anyhow. You're not

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and, yeah, keeping an open mind about the potential that

Ee Ting Choo

Exactly. I think a lot of people think that if they

don't take a certain path, they are shortchanging themselves.

For example, in my semiconductor, right, a lot of my

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that is undesired job like defect monitoring and all that

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and openness like that means not rejecting certain path is

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That's why coming in with an open mind and willingness to

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Fulfilment looks different for everyone

Michele Ong

Yeah. And that's also a fine line because,

you know, again, like from someone looking from a different

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able to do, you know, whole system access and explore all

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Ee Ting Choo

Yes. Yes. Yeah. So I guess that helped

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Michele Ong

tech. Everything.

Ee Ting Choo

I mean not in-depth but I'm able to understand but

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Michele Ong

Yeah.

Ee Ting Choo

Find solutions. Yeah, I think that's the that's

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Michele Ong

Absolutely. Like, it's you're able to be

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Ee Ting Choo

Yes. Yeah.

Leaving a secure career for entrepreneurship

Michele Ong

So moving on from that. So from Illumina,

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a secure role. So can you tell me more of or tell us more

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Ee Ting Choo

So I've been with Illumina for fifteen

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want to do business. Initially I didn't know why but now

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kids and all that so one day I just made a decision to

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Michele Ong

Yeah. And that's it's such an incredibly

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Overcoming the fear of the unknown

So how did you prepare yourself for that leap?

Ee Ting Choo

I think the first thing is really the mindset.

So when I first got this inkling feeling, I actually spoke

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And then one day when I spoke to him about like my inkling feeling

and all that, he told me why don't you just take the leap

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then just go for it. And I asked him why, I always remember

I asked him why. He said that because if this is what you

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a networking and you do not know who you're speaking to but I did try

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urge, be it a push factor or pull factor that you want to

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Michele Ong

Yeah. Absolutely. Like, if it's such an

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times they talk to people who are, you know, close to end

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one of the things that's the most common because it's human. It's

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Ee Ting Choo

Yes.

Michele Ong

So, yeah, looking at that motivation to

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environment, they're not gonna give you the perspectives that you

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rewards are going to be. You're doing a little SWOT analysis.

Ee Ting Choo

Exactly. I think that it is important to

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about us sorting out what aligns with our purpose in life.

Michele Ong

And it it is about purpose and belief and your

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Ee Ting Choo

Yeah. I believe that every person that we speak to,

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opinion to you. They will not harm you, they will give you their best

opinion but just that maybe they themselves are, for

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Michele Ong

their experience. You're drawing from their

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Ee Ting Choo

I thought of doing nutrition. In fact, I studied

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tried like giving talks which actually gave to many

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Building ConnectingDNA for holistic health solutions

Michele Ong

That's incredible. So how did you get

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Ee Ting Choo

So genetics came from my time with Illumina because

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bad, both of it. Then after that because of my own health

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lifestyle. That means our sleep, our exercise, our

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I knew that I wanted a holistic solution. So I went round

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help more people age gracefully, have more effective

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like clients to him and then we worked together so that I can

offer people holistic solutions. But I think the more I

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meet my current business partner and then that's where we grew

ConnectingDNA together.

Michele Ong

At this point, when you look back at your path, it's

you can see how one thing led to the other and the way

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in the way that, you know, few people would be able to say

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Ee Ting Choo

Yeah, so I mean, when I look at the hindsight,

it looks like a straightforward path of one led to another.

But during the time that I was stressed

Michele Ong

It was not.

Ee Ting Choo

It's so scary, you know, I literally tried

everything. And at that time if I had known like the right

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you see some light but you're not sure whether you drop into some

puddles or some pitfalls and all that. So that period of

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Michele Ong

Absolutely. Like, I can't imagine having walked

the path that you did in terms of your career and not being terrified

at every single transition. Like, that would have been I

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Ee Ting Choo

Mhmm.

Michele Ong

That leads to this incredible growth.

Ee Ting Choo

Mhmm.

Michele Ong

But it only feels better when you look back on it as

opposed to when you're living it.

Ee Ting Choo

Exactly. So that's why I always like to share my

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Michele Ong

Yeah. Absolutely. And, you know, you brought up an

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find mentors and, you know, broaden your experience with

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where all of the other things fit. And that probably would have

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Ee Ting Choo

Exactly. I think the most scary part is

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Michele Ong

Yeah. But again, of course, as you said, like all

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Ee Ting Choo

Yes. Yes. That's why solution driven and positive

mindset, I think. Yeah.

Michele Ong

Yep. As long as you're always looking for a way to

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completely unprepared.

Ee Ting Choo

Yeah. I guess it's this period of time that I

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of what I should do next. Yeah.

Michele Ong

And it's just piecing all the peep all the little

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know, create that strategy as loose as it might be. Yep.

Ee Ting's personal health transformation through lifestyle changes

So on that journey, have you actually solved or at least

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Ee Ting Choo

Oh, did. I did.

Michele Ong

I did. That's amazing. So can you share that? That

Ee Ting Choo

So when I was young, had a lot of problems. I had

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with me. It's it's not life threatening but it's really very

irritating. Like you always have to like make sure, for

along, it feels as if you didn't bring along your cell phone, you

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Michele Ong

It's a lot of baggage literally to carry with you.

Yeah.

Ee Ting Choo

Exactly. So how I eventually solved my

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what I needed to eat more, what I needed to eat less, and

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And yeah, it was really beneficial because at the end when

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very how say no more lethargic no more feeling cold you

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Michele Ong

Circulatory and yeah everything's just not quite

Ee Ting Choo

Correct so when I finally like came out of

that right it really felt like I was a new person yeah I

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Yeah, I live a new life, you know, so I was like really

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Michele Ong

It's being able to keep yourself more informed about

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connected between, you know, your mind, body, and spirit.

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everything's still out of balance. So giving yourself as

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as we've been talking about with your journey, but in terms of being

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Ee Ting Choo

Exactly. Yeah. And going in-depth to learn

actually helped me to understand, like in the past right I

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Michele Ong

Your physiology and your type, yeah.

Ee Ting Choo

Right yeah Maybe if keto will be suitable for

one person but not suitable for the other. So we just need

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Michele Ong

And this is this is really what personalisation of

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your own body chemistry, and, you know, what your

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none of these solutions out there will be a one size fits

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Ee Ting Choo

Yep. So because of this experience, now

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buddy. We we want people to be able to find solutions that

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they want, the whole family will be happy. I think that

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Michele Ong

Absolutely. And, you know, you can only have that by

knowing what options you have and what choices you have

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Ee Ting Choo

Yeah. Design the life that you want. Yeah.

Michele Ong

Amazing. So but, yeah, I think that's an

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you know, you're able to not only feed your personal

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Ee Ting Choo

Yeah. I guess for a lot of us, we all

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Solutions are out there, we just need to be open enough to

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Michele Ong

Yeah, the onus is on the individual to be able to

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Ee Ting Choo

Mhmm.

Michele Ong

Yeah. Yep. Yeah. Amazing. Okay. Well,

I've loved learning about more about your path. And, you

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Finding out more about Ee Ting and ConnectingDNA

So if people would like to know more about what you do and

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Ee Ting Choo

They can go to my LinkedIn. Yeah. Where the link,

yeah, will be there. You can click on my LinkedIn to,

Michele Ong

Amazing. Well, thank you so much, Ee Ting, for

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Ee Ting Choo

Thank you, Michele.

Michele Ong

Thank you so much, and I hope you have an amazing

Ee Ting Choo

Same to you.

Michele Ong

If you enjoyed this conversation, please let me

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