Possibilities Newsletter | Summer 2024

Rats in the ceiling, holes in the wall and change in the air…

For the first three broken, jet-lagged nights, I comforted myself that humans used to have two sleeps a night not one. But on the fourth night, woken not by my inner clock but sounds of a break in, I ventured to investigate. After 30 heart-pounding minutes of finding no human activity, I called the 24-hour hotline of our pest control service. They confirmed the next morning that my intruder was a disoriented rat in the ceiling. Do I smell a metaphor?

My sleep deprived body needing solace, I headed to my favourite tiny hair salon, the like of which only survives in Singapore due to the existence of “strata-titled malls” where shop units are privately owned and divvied up: think apartment blocks for businesses.

Whilst origami-ing my head into an aluminium book (if you know, you know) my stylist told me that all the ‘hole in the wall’ shop units like hers were being bought by wealthy immigrants from other parts of Asia and becoming luxury watch and handbag resellers. “Now wash money, not hair” she opined sagely. Her salon had just been sold by her landlord and from next month she’d be renting a single chair in her friend’s salon. Her manicurist neighbour was making way for a Traditional Chinese Medicine business.

As we lamented the fate of independent businesses, grist to the mill of economic development, I felt for the poor rat intruder, losing his one wild and precious life to a labyrinthine tangle of air-con ducting. And then my thoughts went to recent videos from our new Prime Minister, Lawrence Wong, Writing the Next Chapter of the Singapore Story and Redefining Success in which he invites us to eschew the 'rat race' and aim for a society in which:

📸 MCI Photo by Lim Sin Thai

Wong has been re-defining success in Singapore as "less about means and more about meaning". Whilst as a nation we need material wealth as a safety net, he believes our ‘outer’ development goals are there to serve our ‘inner’ development goals and not the other way round. He recognises that making this vision a reality for the next generation is a collective project and not an easy one, starting with 'refreshing our Singapore Dream'.

For those not familiar with the Singapore Story, this new chapter is so radical a departure that it feels like a whole new type of story from the one told in the four generations that my family have been in Singapore. What's more, from a humble background and taking an unconventional (for Singapore at least) route to power, Wong's style feels different from the patrician and patriarchal leadership we've come to expect. By encouraging Singaporeans to dream deeper, more meaningful dreams, and choose pathways in which they become and contribute the best versions of themselves, it feels as though Wong is leading with a coaching approach at a national level bringing not just a breath, but a gust of fresh air.

With both Wong and Britain’s new PM, Keir Starmer, emphasising the need for leaders who serve collectivism, bring out the best in others and co-create with others, whatever their background and beliefs: we’re delighted to be introducing our new-to-Singapore programme “Leader as Coach” next month. It feels timely.