Singapore is often seen as a regional hub. Personally, I felt that to perform that role, one should not only view the region through the lens of Singapore. One should also pursue opportunities to view Singapore from the outside, sitting in one of these regions. What are the contextual differences in these economies? How does Singapore value-add as a regional hub?

Furthermore, Singapore was beginning to feel stifling. With many clamouring to climb the career ladder while feeling largely disgruntled, I knew that my personal development was becoming too linear. I knew I would earn stereotypical success given enough time, but I was no longer okay with that. I was no longer satisfied with just meeting the standard expectations of what success means in life.

I think the moment you realise that the worst that could happen would not devastate your life, and that the status quo might be worse, the courage to take a leap of faith comes naturally.

One strength I first noticed in the people I met in Myanmar, was the eagerness and hunger to learn and strive. Now, you see that in a lot of people in Singapore, but the important difference is in the attitude. In Singapore, I am privileged with having the infrastructure, resources and social network that allows me to navigate my efforts purposefully and directly towards success. In Myanmar, this privilege is not as common. So, to succeed in such an environment, the urge to learn is THE hustle of life in itself.

Myanmar people are refreshingly trusting and sincere in their community spirit. I remember that when I first took the bus, I was carrying a lunch box in one hand while standing. And a seated passenger immediately took my lunch box. My first reaction was utter bewilderment and I briefly considered whether I was getting robbed of my lunch. But as it turns out, the culture is that the people seated help the people standing. You will notice that the seated passengers tend to carry or hang on themselves all sorts of paraphernalia—umbrellas, lunch boxes, shopping bags, etc.—for those standing around them. It’s absolutely wonderful!

Now extrapolate that to a work environment and the broader societal context, here is a culture strongly reliant on its people and their immediate community to thrive. Comparatively in Singapore, the environment is driven by competitiveness and outcomes. I’ve come to admire our differences. And as people, just people, we have more in common than we tend to acknowledge.

I think that adaptability is a skill that can be honed. It’s about constantly pushing the boundaries of your comfort zone and expanding that circle of comfort to cover more territories. In SMU, the opportunities to do that are infinite. You can explore different co-curricular activities and gain exposure to a breadth of subjects. By immersing yourself in these opportunities, you are confronted with a better understanding of self—your strengths, your weaknesses, and consistently challenged with room for growth. But it is specifically in SMU SOA that I found my university family to grow with—a small and cohesive environment. We were the only School to have peer tutoring sessions, organised by students to help students. It was a safe space to fail and learn with each other. I cannot attach a value to this, except that it was priceless.

Do it. Just take the jump. How many times in life will you find all the stars aligned? The dream job, the ideal country, that “sexy” expat package, etc.—the list goes on. The answer is… more likely ‘Never than Ever’. Know that every adventure has a lesson and value to life. Have courage and have faith, because things are usually only clear on hindsight. I don’t know about you, but for me, it’s always worse to be stagnant and dreaming of “what ifs”.