The Usual Place Podcast

Bye-bye 5Cs, hello purpose: How will we redefine the Singapore Dream?

Is re-defining what it means to be successful in Singapore, easier said than done?

Natasha Ann Zachariah

Correspondent

Updated

Published

Sep 12, 2024, 05:00 PM

SINGAPORE – A couple of days ago, while cleaning out my closet, I found something that I had long forgotten about: My secondary school report book.

As I flipped through it, looking at my uneven grades over four years, one thing stood out to me. Every year, we were ranked according to how well we did academically, not just how we did against our classmates, but among the whole cohort.

These days, that kind of ranking system would seem wild, but the competition to excel was real back then.

Success, as I was conditioned to believe, followed a linear path. Do well academically, never mind your interests, get a good job, and a comfortable life will follow.

Over this past year though, the conversation has shifted about broadening the definition of success in Singapore, beyond just academic and material achievements.

In June, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong outlined how he and his team of ministers hope to refresh the Singapore Dream, move away from past definitions of success such as the 5Cs (cash, car, credit card, condominium and country club), and build a country where every Singaporean matters.

If good grades, status, and scaling the corporate ladder aren’t the keys to success any more, what is?

On this episode of The Usual Place podcast, I sat down with Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth and Trade and Industry Alvin Tan, Access Singapore founder and executive director Clarence Ching and River Valley Irregulars co-founder Sheila Manokaran to unpack why this conversation about redefining success is happening now.

Singapore has already achieved a certain standard of living, which now affords its people to “(aspire) towards purpose, meaning, health and happiness”, said Mr Tan.

Mr Tan talked about his setbacks in life such as a failed start-up and how he sees it as a set-up for something else. ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

Sheila, 29, said the playing field has opened up to give young people the opportunity to discover what they are passionate about and the space to learn the skills they are interested in.

Tying in her work with River Valley Irregulars, a youth platform for collaborative opportunities, professional learning, and innovative programmes, Sheila added: “It’s about giving youth (a) voice and telling them that ‘hey, you know, there are these other opportunities. You don’t have to feel like you just have to fit into one mould.’”

These days, younger folk want to do more than just survive, the trio concurred throughout the podcast.

That’s why many want to pursue their interests like art and sport or start their own business, instead of taking on a job just to put food on the table. Sheila shared how her parents worked nights and she only got to see them for short periods in the day. She understood that was their sacrifice for the family, but it was not a life she wanted for herself.

Sheila shared how youth want to find purpose in the work that they do, rather than feel like they have to fit into a box. ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

“We want to have that life that we feel there’s meaning to it,” said Sheila, who is also head of partnership and projects at Potato Productions, a group of companies spanning industries in design, technology, education, entertainment, publishing, among others.

Clarence, 29, laid out three ways one could pursue a passion: Join a sector that you want to grow, start a side hustle or volunteer, or be an entrepreneur.

As someone who started his own outfit, Clarence said that becoming an entrepreneur requires a lot of “grit”.

Access Singapore is a social mobility charity that provides career exposure opportunities for disadvantaged students here.

Aspiring entrepreneurs need to have grit to power through the hard times that will come, said Clarence. ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

“When there’s no cash, for example, and reality hits (that) you can’t put food on the table, you really have to be creative in making money and think of new ideas.”

Even as young people venture out to define their own pathways to success, some – as Mr Tan found out – still want a safety net, in case of failure.

He said a youth asked him a couple of weeks ago: “What is the Government doing to ensure I have a job?”

For MOS Tan, the question posed a dangerous trap. “The worst thing we can do as a government – or as anyone who cares about our country or youth – is to provide a fail-safe environment, mollycoddle them, and protect them.”

In the real world, there’s no such thing, he said.

When talking about redefining success, I wanted to know what happens on the flip side: What does it now mean to fail?

Clarence, who talked about the early days of starting Access Singapore, said it would be about reframing your mindset. “Sure, right now, it may seem to be a failure, but what can I do to get out of the rut?”

Mr Tan pointed out that life never follows a linear path, and shared an adage that encourages him.

“A setback can be a set-up. Why? Because a setback can allow you to refocus and reprioritise. It allows you to sometimes be a bit more humble, reevaluate, and can also refocus your mind to set up something different and you may want to pivot to something else,” said Mr Tan, who talked about his start-up that tanked.

“I don’t see failure as failure. I see that setback as setting me up for something else.”

What’s your definition of success, and what mindset shift will you make? Write to me at natashaz@sph.com.sg or DM me on Instagram to tell me why.

I’ll see you next time at The Usual Place,

Nat

------

DM Natasha your thoughts on this topic at her IG: https://str.sg/8Wav

Host: Natasha Ann Zachariah (natashaz@sph.com.sg)

Produced and edited by: Teo Tong Kai

Executive producers: Ernest Luis and Lynda Hong

Filmed by: ST Video

Follow The Usual Place Podcast here and get notified for new episode drops:

Channel: https://str.sg/5nfm