What Rules? – Rebecca Yeung

In this episode, Naji talks with Rebecca Yeung, an accomplished leader who shares her journey and the wisdom encapsulated in her book, "What Rules?". The conversation starts with Rebecca recounting a pivotal choice during a challenging period in her life: accept misery or fight for change. This philosophy underpins her book, which challenges conventional expectations and societal "rules" that often guide people's lives and careers.

Rebecca explains the inspiration behind the book's title, crediting her executive coach Gayle Grader, who helped her recognize that by not adhering to typical "rules," she was able to break through barriers like the "bamboo ceiling." This led to the exploration of six key rules in her book: the goals rule, strengths rule, opportunity rule, limits rule, either-or rule, and happiness rule. These rules prompt deeper reflection on what drives us, encourage embracing one's strengths, and challenge traditional success metrics.

Throughout the episode, Rebecca discusses the importance of finding fulfillment and celebrating small wins along life's journey. She emphasizes that success is not solely defined by titles or wealth but by meaningful progress and continuous improvement. She also shares practical tips for leaders to help their teams grow by applying these principles in the workplace, fostering environments where individuals can thrive, develop, and find true joy in their work.

Rebecca's insights offer a fresh perspective on redefining success, encouraging listeners to live authentically and find happiness in the present, rather than constantly pursuing elusive future goals.

"Life is too short to live by someone else’s rules."

MEET OUR GUEST Rebecca Yeung Corporate Vice President at FedEx Corporation.

Rebecca Yeung is a Corporate Vice President at FedEx Corporation and leads Operations Science and Advanced Technology. In her role, she is responsible for driving critical aspects of FedEx’s innovation and transformation strategy including scaling up robotics and automation technology, autonomous vehicles, decision science, and electromobility. She sits on the FedEx Strategic Management Committee, a C-suite leadership group that sets the strategic direction for the enterprise.

As an expert in both advanced technology and logistics operations, she frequently speaks at high profile industry forums including Fortune, World 50, Reuters Momentum, CES, The AI Summit-Silicon Valley, TechCrunch Mobility, HBS Tech Conference and MIT The Engine Tough Tech Summit. In March 2024, Rebecca was recognized by Reuters Events as one of the top 20 Trailblazing Women in Enterprise AI who are demonstrating real influence, impact, and leadership in large-scale enterprise AI deployment.

Rebecca joined two public boards in 2023 – Royal Caribbean Group (NYSE: RCL) and Columbus McKinnon (NASDAQ: CMCO), bringing to both her technology and innovation expertise and strategic perspective. She has also previously served as a Board of Director for the Mid-South Food Bank between 2013 and 2022.