QUALITY OVER QUANTITY

Gladys Goh, Group General Manager, Nippon Paint Malaysia Group expands on work, family balance & keeping her kids safe and healthy.

Malaysia is full of amazing mums – working mums, stay-at-home mums, single mums, work-from-home mums and all kinds of mums! This time on our Mummy Spotlight, we’re highlighting a mum who seems to have it all. From a successful career to a beautiful family with 2 boys – Justin and Joel – taking the Mummy Spotlight this time is Ms. Gladys Goh, Group General Manager, Nippon Paint Malaysia Group.

 

Having graduated with Bachelor of Science (Physics) from University of Malaya, Gladys began her career with Unilever Malaysia, handling personal care brands such as Pond’s, Vaseline, Sunsilk and Fair & Lovely. She then moved on to join Coca-Cola Malaysia as Group Brand Manager for the Coca-Cola Brand and went on to join Nippon Paint Malaysia as Assistant General Manager of Marketing where she was tasked to grow Nippon Paint into the largest brand in the Malaysian decorative paint market.

 

In just 2 years, at a time where her firstborn was about a year old, Nippon Paint emerged as the No. 1 Total Coatings Solution provider in Malaysia. Over the years, Gladys rose through the rank and was eventually promoted as the Group General Manager of Nippon Paint Malaysia Group in 2013.

 

Forward 7 years later, and here she is, gracing Parenthood’s March 2020 cover! With the amount of achievements she’s garnered over the years, you must be wondering- How does she do it all?

 

So let’s get a better insight into her life and pick up a tip or two to apply into our lives!

 

 

Parenthood (PH): Hi Gladys, with the amount of success you’ve had, we’re just so curious – What’s your daily routine like as a working mother?

Gladys: Normally in the morning on a weekday and when I’m not travelling, I like to take the kids to school myself. That is when we catch up with each other and find out what’s happening in school. Once I reach the office, it’s a busy time for me with meetings happening throughout the day. I usually try to head back in time for dinner with the boys and my husband. If not, they’ll have dinner earlier and I’ll spend some quality time with the kids after just to check on their homework and what happened in school. Occasionally, I do go to the gym or attend yoga classes as well, and I normally come back to tuck them into bed.

 

As for the weekends, I really treasure my time with my family a lot, because this is the time I try to switch off from work – no emails and hopefully no work messages. I look forward to spending quality time with the boys by having meals together, going bowling occasionally, or maybe a movie. If we’re having a day in, we also spend some time playing monopoly.

 

PH: As a working mum, how do you balance work and family?

Gladys: Tough question. I think as a working mum, what I really stress upon is quality time rather than quantity. I don’t have much time with the kids, but when I do, I value the quality of being together, communicating and making sure we enjoy every single moment we have together.

 

And I think work-life balance is about taking care of one’s health as well. So I want to make sure the family is healthy and ensure I take care of myself too, by spending enough time exercising, ensuring my own beauty routine, having enough rest and catching up with friends, beyond family as well.

 

I believe health and wellness is very important in the family. I brought this philosophy to Nippon Paint and that is why we have the Nippon Paint Child Wellness Range. We believe in encouraging parents to practise holistic wellness for their kids by giving them clean indoor air, making sure there is protection against harmful bacteria and most importantly, allowing them the space to express their creativity.
– Gladys Goh

 

 

PH: 3 words that describe yourself as a mother.

Gladys: I think I would say (and hope that I am) an INSPIRATION to my kids. I want my kids to know that I’m a very KIND mum and I want them to see me as a very SUPPORTIVE mum as well.

 

PH: What are the challenges that you face as a working mother?

Gladys: As a working mum, the biggest challenge I face is having time for the kids and also generally- am I there to make sure that their health and wellness are taken care of? To me, having healthy kids is an important parameter to see if you’re a good mum or not.

 

It’s important to me that my kids grow up healthy. Hence, I take the steps to ensure that we have good indoor wellness and that the air my children breathe in are clean.
-Gladys Goh

 

PH: As a mum, what do you think is the most important thing in a family?

Gladys: I think the most important thing in the family is a lot of love and kindness. To me, instilling the feeling of being loved and being able to give love to each other as well is very important. Showing kindness is important for the kids growing up as well – the ability to be kind to family members and to the members of society – I think that’s one virtue that I want my kids to have deep down.

 

PH: What’s your biggest worry or concern as a working mum?

Gladys: I think as a working mum, my biggest concern is whether I’m spending enough time with my kids. But I know that it is something that I really need to treasure and put quality instead of quantity. Besides that, it’s making sure that they are healthy as well. Growing up healthy is an important thing to me. So, making sure that the environment that they are in – the air is fresh – so things like opening up the window and making sure they have outdoor time, playing in the sun.

 

I also want to make sure they eat healthily to ensure they don’t fall sick and to not limit their creativity. I think kids should be allowed to express what they are passionate in and what they really enjoy.

 

I actually spend a lot of time with the kids to do DIY art, like collecting old things and turning it into something nice to instil that taking care of the environment is very important as well. This also shows them that we don’t necessarily have to buy new toys all the time, and instead can create things from waste.

 

PH: If you could turn back time, is there anything that you would do differently as a mother?

Gladys: I would probably do things exactly the same. I don’t believe in looking back. It’s the same principle that I instill in my kids. Never look back, instead, progress and reflect what you’ve done in the past. Never regret your action- move forward and learn from the past.