My life at DRW: Building a community in Singapore

We’ve shared the stories of how competitive sailing and triathlons parallel our business. One of our employees also sees a connection between DRW and pumping iron. We talked to her about how she strives not only to strengthen herself, but also to strengthen others (including her colleagues) by building a community.

Rachael:

A few years back, I was a regular at a local spin studio. I enjoyed the community and regular exercise, but it started to feel stagnant after a few months. I wasn’t being challenged, and decided I needed to try something totally new. I had tried every fad in the book – yoga, running, spin – and I had grown tired of them all. I needed a new reason to stay engaged and challenged in my fitness regimen.

A friend of mine mentioned she had started weightlifting and I was initially deterred since there wasn’t a strong community for it in Singapore, especially for women. I cherished the support I had received and friends I had made at spin and yoga, and I just didn’t see that with weightlifting. But after trying it a few times, I was hooked. I felt energized both during and after my workouts. So, I decided to build the community myself.

I started running monthly events introducing women to weightlifting, and the group grew quickly. We expanded beyond just workouts, sharing stories of life outside the gym and inspiring each other in every aspect of our lives.

It took time, but one year later, I’m proud of the community for women I’ve helped create in Singapore. We meet regularly for weightlifting and to try new classes around the city. Just last week, we tried Barre and were once again all challenged by a whole new workout.

This project has helped me gain mental stamina and concentration at work. I’ve also found how important it is to have passions outside of work, and to have an employer that empowers and supports that passion.

Working at DRW and weightlifting both require hard work - there’s no shortcut to solving problems. As the office manager in Singapore, I’m able to intertwine my passion for working out (and encouraging others to work out with me) with my job every day. I’ve realized the impact I can make by giving those around me the resources to eat healthy, work out and get a good night’s sleep. It’s helped build the energy in the whole office – not just my own.