I had a good first week of work last week after not working full time for the past 6 years since my last one in Oct 2017. It turned out better than I thought as I was trying to figure out strategically what needed to be done. I was mentally exhausted every day and slept pretty well every night. I also had to turn my exercise regime around by going to the gym or an evening run instead of the usual morning time by leaving the office after 5 p.m. to work out before a late dinner.
I started the 2nd-week of work after more readings and planning over the weekend. On Monday morning, I prepared a list of recommended readings on VCC (Variable Capital Company) for the whole team to prepare for our Wednesday meeting with the lawyers to understand more about this subject. I also managed to squeeze in a lunch meetup with my regular gang in town. I could not stay with them for their long lunch as I had an afternoon call with an audit firm on the same subject.
On Tuesday morning, based on what I had researched so far, I prepared another recommended reading list on a particular CO2 carbon capture credit (CORC) for our main team to read and understand the process. I wanted to highlight that the certification criteria were not easy and complex. My boss and I then met up with an ex-colleague to catch up. We wanted to size him up for a possible role as marketing head for a headcount we had planned for 2024.
On Wednesday morning, we had the VCC meeting with the lawyers which included everyone in the company (10 of us). They explained the structure in detail and what is required to set it up. It would take about a month and we will need to hire an external tax advisor to help us apply for tax exemption – this process might take a year to complete.
We had planned a fact-finding trip to Johore on Thursday for a project the CIO had been working on. The 3 of us met at 7 a.m. in the office for a 2-hour drive across the causeway to Johore to meet a contact at his palm plantation. We had a very good 3-hour meeting with him as he gave us a tour of his warehouse and what he was doing, followed by lunch till about 1430 before we drove back home. It was a long and exhausting day by the time I reached home at 6. An evening run was welcomed to end my day.
Before I knew it, the week was coming to an end. Friday was spent mainly catching up on paperwork and reading. It was followed up by a 2-hour lunch meeting to debrief the team on our Johore trip yesterday and also to help my boss prepare for his business trip presentation next week. I caught up with an ex-colleague in the afternoon as he shared his experience of running his own fund and what I can learn from him. I booked a nice Izakaya venue for the family to wind down for the week in the evening.
It has been a busy 2nd week and I am looking forward to next week where a few things have been planned. We need to eyeball what we need to do and execute the plan accordingly, or else the agreed timeline will slip. There are so many variables that have to be monitored and managed concurrently in order to reach our goals next year.
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