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Jul 13, 2010
Mantra for S'poreans: Adapt or become extinct
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MR ERIC J. Brooks' response last Thursday ("Foreigners are not why we don't do well") to Ms Rachel Chang's commentary ("Life is tough at 24 with Us and Them"; July 5) compelled me to give another Singaporean perspective.
Instead of viewing foreigners as a threat, we should see them as assets that grow with Singapore, challenging us to be more competitive and stronger.
Our environment is changing and we must adapt or risk extinction. The world is becoming one massive global village where competition transcends borders.
Blaming foreign competition is just an easy excuse. I agree with Mr Brooks that the key to success or failure lies within the individual.
Singaporeans have no excuse not to succeed. We were born to a blessed life and most of us have never been hit by corruption, civil unrest, poor infrastructure, high tax rates and so on.
There are opportunities to learn and thrive even in the most challenging environment.
I started my career in advertising - a white, male-dominated agency where a young, local female was seen as decorative, someone who would never even make a dent in the glass ceiling.
I learnt from my colleagues, foreign and local, emulating their strengths and learning from their weaknesses.
I eventually landed a job in an international advertising agency where my race, gender and age did not matter. My ability and hunger to succeed did. I was made managing director of the Singapore office at age 29, in an industry that was then dominated by grey-haired men.
Anything is possible if you believe that you, not a foreigner or your environment, decide your fate. We can accomplish this only by facing challenges head-on, looking for opportunities - not by complaining about problems.
To Ms Chang's friends who are irked by foreigners willing to work for less money, life has proven that the better, fitter and hungrier animal will win and if he comes at a lower salary scale, they had better rethink their worth or better themselves before they, too, become extinct.
Carolyn Kan (Ms)
Mantra for S'poreans: Adapt or become extinct
<!-- by line --><!-- end by line -->
<!-- end left side bar --><!-- story content : start -->
MR ERIC J. Brooks' response last Thursday ("Foreigners are not why we don't do well") to Ms Rachel Chang's commentary ("Life is tough at 24 with Us and Them"; July 5) compelled me to give another Singaporean perspective.
Instead of viewing foreigners as a threat, we should see them as assets that grow with Singapore, challenging us to be more competitive and stronger.
Our environment is changing and we must adapt or risk extinction. The world is becoming one massive global village where competition transcends borders.
Blaming foreign competition is just an easy excuse. I agree with Mr Brooks that the key to success or failure lies within the individual.
Singaporeans have no excuse not to succeed. We were born to a blessed life and most of us have never been hit by corruption, civil unrest, poor infrastructure, high tax rates and so on.
There are opportunities to learn and thrive even in the most challenging environment.
I started my career in advertising - a white, male-dominated agency where a young, local female was seen as decorative, someone who would never even make a dent in the glass ceiling.
I learnt from my colleagues, foreign and local, emulating their strengths and learning from their weaknesses.
I eventually landed a job in an international advertising agency where my race, gender and age did not matter. My ability and hunger to succeed did. I was made managing director of the Singapore office at age 29, in an industry that was then dominated by grey-haired men.
Anything is possible if you believe that you, not a foreigner or your environment, decide your fate. We can accomplish this only by facing challenges head-on, looking for opportunities - not by complaining about problems.
To Ms Chang's friends who are irked by foreigners willing to work for less money, life has proven that the better, fitter and hungrier animal will win and if he comes at a lower salary scale, they had better rethink their worth or better themselves before they, too, become extinct.
Carolyn Kan (Ms)
