Looking at her achievements, I began to understand why she initially felt like a fish out of water when she had to adapt to a more sedentary office life.
In her role focusing on aviation clients as part of Deloitte Singapore’s transportation, hospitality and services team, Low is mostly deskbound.
She was assigned to prepare proposals and research trends in the aviation sector for an upcoming publication.
“I didn’t used to stare at a computer from 8.30am to 5.30pm, so that took some getting used to.”
While I can imagine how sore I would be if I was plunged into a sporting career, Low said that she has had body aches “out of nowhere” since she began deskbound work.
To counter this, she takes short walks around the office as a way to do some stretching and stay active during the day.
AN UNWAVERING “CAN DO” ATTITUDE
One advantage was that being accustomed to the goals and schedules of a sporting life, she was not all that fazed by the fast paced, project-based nature of her consulting work.
It is a field that she is keen to eventually return to after the paid internship should the opportunity arise.
Mr Thomas Pellegrin, who is leader of the transportation, hospitality and services sector at Deloitte Southeast Asia, said that Low fared “exceedingly well” during her internship.
She was highly independent and resilient and she flexed her mental muscles with “out of the box” thinking. These were traits that he saw as being honed by her athletic career.
“From day one, she displayed an eager team spirit and unwavering ‘can do’ attitude,” Mr Pellegrin added.
Since 2015, Deloitte Singapore has employed more than 160 athletes under the Deloitte Ignite programme tailored for elite athletes, both current and retired.
Mr James Walton, sports business group leader at Deloitte Asia Pacific, said that the programme seeks to demonstrate support to national athletes who make sacrifices and commitments while representing Singapore, offering them a pathway to a second career in professional services.
“The athletes themselves generally bring diverse thoughts and experiences to the organisation. They are high achievers who practise excellent self-discipline, prioritisation and time management.
“They also demonstrate creativity, problem-solving, teamwork and independence,” he added.
GETTING BACK IN THE WATER
As she was serving her internship, Low was also dipping her toes into an entirely different field: Kitefoiling.
Singaporeans became familiar with this watersport in the past year due to teenage kitefoiler Maximilian Maeder, who clinched a bronze medal for the country at last year’s Paris Olympics.
