About The Book

The Dao Whispers is a daily companion for reflection, drawing from the deep wells of classical Chinese wisdom, including the teachings of Confucius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Sun Tzu, Mencius, and poetic and philosophical writings from emperors, empresses, and dynasties past.

Each entry is rooted in ancient Eastern sayings yet speaks directly to the challenges of modern life. Whether you are navigating uncertainty, seeking inner clarity, or yearning for stillness in a noisy world, these reflections offer a daily breather of wisdom and perspective.

Drawing on the author’s lived experiences across Asia, Europe, and the U.S., The Dao Whispers bridges Eastern philosophy with Western thought, weaving in the words of Marcus Aurelius, Nietzsche, and other timeless voices. It is both a compass for the soul and a way to find clarity amid complexity.

Unfolding the Layers

Discover the insights from The Dao Whispers to spark fresh questions about the world we live in, and its many layers

What the Book Explores

The book explores themes of leadership, strategy, self-mastery, power, and human nature, seeking to capture the layered complexity of the world we live in today.

Thoughts from Ancient Sages

Confucius taught that learning without critical reflection leads to confusion, while thinking without a solid knowledge base can distort reality.

Sometimes we must live with the unknowable, trusting that meaning and clarity will reveal themselves in time. As Søren Kierkegaard observed: “Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forward.”

Convergence of Perspectives

There are moments in leadership when certainty slips away and the questions matter more than the answers. This scene captures that tension — the weight of power and responsibility, the burden of choices, and the courage required to decide.

The Dao Whispers does not offer prescriptions. Instead, it invites you into a conversation — to pause, reflect, and wrestle with the difficult questions that come with leading and living. Not with judgement, but with inquiry.

To say, "Do I really have enemies?" is not to deny conflict, but to see beyond it: to recognise our shared humanity, to question the lone-wolf myth, and to consider the alliances and bridges that leadership demands.

An Invitation to Inquiry - What Makes a Good King?

What makes a good leader - power, being just, strength, morality, wisdom? This scene reminds us that the question of leadership has never had a simple answer.

The book doesn’t define the “right” way to lead. Instead, it invites reflection on the trade-offs, responsibilities, and human qualities that shape those who carry the weight of others.

An Invitation to Inquiry - You Have No Enemies?

Dr. Amy Bradley, Affiliate Faculty,
Organisational Behaviour
London Business School

"A poignant and practical resource for everyday meditation, introspection and personal growth."

Mladen Tcherveniakov
General Manager, Strategy
FTSE 100 company, London

Wong Poh Kam, Emeritus Professor,
National University of Singapore
Business School, and
Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy

"Sue’s writing invites us to pause and reflect: a much-needed practice in today’s age of speed and distraction. Her beautifully crafted book offers advice and wisdom to carry into our daily lives.”

"The Dao Whispers curates from a rich tapestry of Chinese classical thought, from philosophers like Confucius, Sun Tzu and Zhuangzi, emperors and empresses and their grand chancellors (zaixiang) to everyday folk sayings, and reinterprets them for today’s world. Sue Huey bridges East and West with rare dexterity, offering thought-provoking insights on the applicability of these sage sayings to both daily life and organizational leadership."

Praise for
The Dao Whispers

About the Author

S.H. Chuah is a strategist, and former consultant at a leading global strategy firm. She has held regional leadership roles in a Fortune 500 company, served as a board observer for venture capital portfolio companies, and in her early career co-authored a case study for the Stanford Technology Ventures Programme as well as a white paper for a global management consulting firm.

Graduated from Columbia Business School, London Business School, the National University of Singapore, SMU and HKU Business School, with further immersions at Stanford and Zhejiang University. Chuah brings together Eastern philosophy and Western business acumen. Her career has spanned Asia, Europe, and the U.S., giving her a first-hand perspective on how different cultures approach leadership, resilience, and strategy.

Notes from the Author

You didn’t come this far to stop

I once read that reading is like having a conversation with the author, even if it can sometimes feel like a monologue. I hope these pages feel more like a dialogue, not only with the ancient Chinese sages, but with Western thinkers, scientists, leaders, you, and I. My hope is that in some of our conversations, we can bring together the voices of East and West, yours and mine, around the same coffee table where we can question and debate how we each see the world, interpret the proverbs, and add our own points of view. After all, there is always space for the “unknowable,” and as Laozi reminds us, any philosophy that can be neatly defined is rarely one that can withstand the test of time.

There is an old Chinese proverb: Three cobblers with their wits combined can outmatch Zhuge Liang, the brilliant strategist of the Three Kingdoms. Well, this book certainly doesn’t pretend to be Zhuge Liang. At best, it is the work of cobblers, with fine scraps of leather stitched together from Confucius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, emperors, poets, generals, and a few Western voices thrown in for good measure. The result is not a polished suit of armour, but a patchwork cloak. Perhaps uneven, perhaps imperfect, but if it keeps you warm, helps you stay anchored, or makes you smile, then it has done its job.

This book is not here only to offer easy affirmations. At times it will affirm, at others it will provoke. It invites us back into the arena of intellectual debate, where opposing views are not to be feared but tested, like flint striking steel, where the brightest sparks often appear at the collision of strong ideas.

More than anything, I hope something in these pages resonates with you, even if it is just a line or a passing thought. Something timely, comforting… or perhaps, something transformative.

Thank you for letting me share this journey with you.