Rajen Devadason
Securities Commission-Licensed Financial Planner
Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Member of MENSA UK , the US-based Financial Planning Association, the Financial Planning Association of Malaysia, the Malaysian Association of Professional Speakers (MAPS) and the International Federation for Professional Speakers (IFFPS)
Rajen's passionate interest in writing, speaking and consulting grew out of a period of serious depression leading to contemplation when he was in the midst of a chartered accountancy training contract with KPMG Peat Warwick McLintock in Basingstoke , England . He realised then that waking up each morning with a profound sense of dread about his work was not a promising sign for a bright professional future!
Rajen had earlier graduated, in 1988, with a B.Sc. (Honours) degree in Physics and Computing from King's College, University of London . In late 1989, he took the difficult step of resigning from his job with what was then the world's largest accounting practice to return to Malaysia with a view of pursuing a writing career.
It paid off.
Between 1990 and 1994, Rajen was a journalist with Malaysian Business magazine, where he won both local and international awards for incisive business journalism. As the Malaysian winner of the Citibank Pan-Asia Business Journalism Award, he joined an elite team of other national winners from countries across Asia and Latin America for an extended 1994 seminar series in New York 's Columbia University , with working trips to the World Bank, the New York Federal Reserve Bank and the White House.
Today, Rajen reaches a global readership through his free electronic magazine GET BETTER , which is the only ezine in the world that specifically helps subscribers manage their time, money and talent better while providing them with access and information to worthy charitable causes in Malaysia and internationally. (For instance, in December 2004 and January 2005, Rajen ran two fund-raising initiatives for victims of the December 26 th 2004 Asian tsunami.)
In addition to being a respected author and consultant, Rajen has gained recognition as a content-rich expert who speaks effectively. He's been a professional speaker and trainer for eight years. In April 2005, he was the youngest of just five Malaysians (out of more than 100 international speakers) to take the stage during the world's first Global Summit on Professional Speaking in Singapore organised by the International Federation for Professional Speakers (IFFPS).
Rajen's appeal as a keynote speaker, trainer and moderator stems from the breadth of his work and research experience. Furthermore, his previous journalistic work for local, regional and international publications ( Malaysian Business , Smart Investor , Asiaweek and TIME ) has enabled him to develop a rare capacity for connecting effectively with audiences ranging in size from 1 to 1,000!
More than a decade ago, after leaving Malaysian Business magazine in mid 1994 – for 200% more money, but sadly 90% less satisfaction! – Rajen joined Standard Chartered Securities as an equities analyst. He left there in late 1995 for Smart Investor magazine, initially as its features editor in Singapore and then as the first editor of its fledgling Malaysian edition in 1996.
Rajen wrote his first book, Your A-Z Guide to the Stock Market , in 1997. He then co-authored Financial Freedom – Your Guide to Lifetime Financial Planning with Edmond Cheah, Wong Boon Choy and Alex Sito, all of whom were then with KL MUTUAL Bhd, in 1998. That book and its 2000 sequel Financial Freedom 2 – Through Malaysian Equities and Unit Trusts have raised more than RM800,000 for numerous Malaysian charities.
His fifth book Liberty ! From Debt-Slave to Money Master was published by media and technology solutions group I-2 Media in 2002; its second, expanded edition was released in 2004. Rajen's sixth to ninth books, written between 2003 and 2005, are ebooks available at www.FreeCoolArticles.com . H is ninth title, a time management ebook called UNSHACKLED! 7 Ways to Make Time for MY Dreams contains core time management lessons for white- and gold-collar executives.
Rajen's goal-setting ebook UNLEASHED! The Small Guide to Achieving Whacking Great Big GOALS has been used by readers from many countries to improve the quality of their career and personal lives.
The scope of Rajen's training skills is widely recognised by many companies. For instance, since 1998, Rajen has taught a course (that has since been made mandatory) for new journalists at Malaysia 's leading English daily, The Star . His workshop, Business News Writing (now renamed Basic Business Reporting and expanded to five days) consistently includes lively discussions on the mechanics of a stock ramp and a tie-in with The Greater Fool Theory, a concept explored in great depth in Financial Freedom 2 .
During the two years (2002-2004) that he wrote a financial planning column for the BizWeek pullout section of The Star , a theme that he often revisited was the awesome power of compounding – to heed or hinder – the accomplishment of key financial goals.
As a professional speaker, a few of Rajen's other corporate clients for seminars and workshops have included British American Tobacco, Citibank, Esso, Great Eastern, Guthrie, MAAKL MUTUAL, Motorola, Public Mutual, and OAC.
