Alan Yip - Asia's Anthony Robbins

8, 37, 19, 46, 78, 11, 23, 59, 32, 51, 2, 80

Now close your eyes and repeat the numbers in the same order of the sequence. Chances are you’ll only get the first few numbers right!

However, what if theAsianparent lets you in on a little secret - you don’t need extra special powers to remember such things... and your little one will be able to master it as well!

Meet Alan Yip, founder of Mind Edge, an institution that prides itself in teaching right study habits and memory skills. Mind Edge encourages and boosts a child’s potential and allows that very child to go further than he can imagine. Graduating from Franklin College of Indiana, USA, with an impressive score sheet for his bachelor's degree, Alan went on to become entrepreneur.

A year after he founded Mind Edge, Alan was the chief trainer of the Singapore Memory Team that won accolades in its first year (2004) of participating at the World Memory Championship, which is an official mental Olympics that is usually held in the United Kingdom. Never having time to enter another round so far, Alan Yip has his hands full with Mind Edge.

How does Mind Edge aid a child who’s not performing well?

Curious (and a little clueless), theAsianparent Team trooped down for a chat with Alan at Mind Edge’s headquarters located at the Singapore Post Centre.

Mind Edge opened its doors in August of 2003. Since then, the colourful and spacious classrooms have seen rising numbers of participants in the programmes that are not just for children but parents as well. FUNtastic Parenting, a workshop for parents, is Mind Edge’s top parenting programme which has even branched out into a book. Alan believes that Mind Edge goes beyond improving academia as it develops values such as perseverance, love for learning, empathy and more, in a person. Each class takes in a maximum of 10 kids, hence no child feels left out and is able to learn at a better pace as trainers have more time to focus on the needs of the students.

However, what happens if a certain child is still unable to grasp the mastery of learning?

“The looming question of, ‘is there something holding the child back?’ is always present. We speak to the parents and allow the child to sit in on other classes with modules he is finding difficulty in and this is free of charge. More coaching is provided and if need be, we allow the child to re-sit the entire programme again,” answers Alan. This is no shock coming from someone who believes that every child can succeed. Alan and his team of trainers set a goal which is to achieve each child’s success, regardless of the time it may take.

A nagging problem that causes students to perform poorly in school, according to Alan, is poor study habits. This combined with little or no motivation bundles a child and pushes him right into the vortex of low self esteem. As one problem escalates into another, you’ll soon have a poor performer in your hands. “Positivity dictates mindset. You can’t have a child surrounded with negative comments and expect him to do well. That’s why we always encourage the kids in class, even if it’s a small accomplishment, we still point it out and applaud it,” quips Alan.

Besides Mind Edge, Alan has also contributed to Mediacorp Radio’s 938LIVE and written a best-seller. Once upon reading an article about Singapore’s Down Syndrome Association not having enough funds, Alan decided to raise funds for the Association and has been doing so for the last 2 years. Termed as Singapore’s very own Anthony Robbins (Robbins is an American self-help writer and speaker), how has Alan Yip gone from a boy who occupied his time as a child in Hong Kong painting little figurines for side cash to one of Singapore’s success stories?

Pillars of strength

Alan credits three women for his success – his mother, his wife and his 5 year old daughter. He thanks his mother for believing in him and inspiring him to be the best. His wife whom he sees as his “tremendous guiding light” is the motivational force that egged him on to pen the best-seller, ‘FUNtastic Parenting’. “She told me ‘either write a best-seller or don’t!’ and whatever doubts I had towards starting my book vanished and I worked towards producing the best material I could” remembers Alan. Minimum sleep and missed deadlines did not deter Alan from his goal and today, ‘FUNtastic Parenting’, entering its 5 month since its debut in February, has indeed become a best-seller.

Fatherhood

Besides training minds, contributing to 938LIVE, penning bestsellers, Alan has another important role which he cherishes – fatherhood. The proud father of 5 year old Tiffany is yet to start Tiffany on the programme. With the age criteria for the programme being 7 years old, Alan is not going to jumpstart Tiffany. Instead, he wants her to play, explore, experiment and experience things like any other 5 year old. “There is no point in pushing a child to do anything. The harder you push, the harder you’re actually pushing away,” says a thoughtful Alan.

“I can do it! I believe in myself! I like myself!” With such a powerful mantra, little Tiffany is already starting to come out on her own by adding her personal touch to the designing of 6 audio CDs which are compilations of her father’s contributions to 938LIVE, that are due for release soon.

Alan treasures the time he spends with Tiffany and enjoys strengthening that bond with her. Coming from a household that showers her with encouragement, positivity and love, Tiffany might have the slight upper hand but as Alan puts it, “it’s only because of the encouragement that we give in abundance for her to feel good and sure about anything and everything she wishes to try and do.”

So what’s Alan’s advice to parents?

“Refrain from using negative labelling. If you have a child who doesn’t really bask in the light, don’t call him shy. Instead, acknowledge that he is reserved. Or if your little one is hyperactive, call him energetic instead. Find the little things that he does right and praise him well which will motivate him to try harder. ”

To find out more about Alan Yip, Mind Edge or FUNtastic Parenting, visit http://www.mindedge.com.sg/