During a recent forum, Singapore's founding father & ex-PM Lee Kuan Yew shared that Singapore required 60,000 immigrants to replace our aging population. Our little red dot Singapore can probably absorb only 20,000 to 25,000. What was not said is that many thousands more PR applicants were unsuccessful.
Why are there such overwhelming number of people interested to migrate to Singapore? As a cosmopolitan city state with world class infrastructures, strong economy, healthy employment rate, low crime rate, top education system...etc, many will probably consider this is the land of milk & honey.
Yet, each year, thousands of Singaporeans choose to walk away from the land milk & honey. By year end, I will be added to this seldom reported statistic.
So, is this a case of grass is always greener at the other side of the fence?
I am fully aware of the challenges that I will have to grapple with in the new land. I will need to start all over again in re-establishing a new social network, rebuilding my career, adjusting to varied & extreme weather...etc.
Perhaps this is the price I am willing to pay to achieve the freedom to experience life in a different way, to achieve self actualization, to grow & bond with my family in more wholesome environment ...etc.
Singapore has given me a solid foundation and provided me the opportunity to achieve all the physical and material well being. In many ways, I have almost reached the peak of my corporate ladder. I have experienced the high life, eaten the best foods in top restaurants, flown in the 1st class airline, traveled across the Asian regions & been to places where normal tourist will have no access, stayed in the 6 stars hotels, rubbed shoulder with high-profile executives, CFOs & CEOs...etc
But Singapore cannot give me the space to have quiet enjoyment, the freedom to express and make mistakes, the time to grow spiritually, mentally, socially...etc.. The feeling is almost stifling as each day is slotted away chasing after the never ending deadlines. The strive for excellence is always never enough. There is constantly a need to put up different masks because the system and environment are unforgiving. We are perpetually on our toes and somehow we seem to lose our humanity......
Will my new home give me what I cannot find in Singapore? I am mindful of the horror stories of immigrants that did not make it in their new country. Even for the many immigrants that made it to the land of milk & honey, many are still struggling to be accepted, to make a decent living, to keep pace with excellence....
The important point is not whether the grass is greener at the other side of the fence, but whether we are prepared to water our grass at whichever side of the fence we are standing.
Why are there such overwhelming number of people interested to migrate to Singapore? As a cosmopolitan city state with world class infrastructures, strong economy, healthy employment rate, low crime rate, top education system...etc, many will probably consider this is the land of milk & honey.
Yet, each year, thousands of Singaporeans choose to walk away from the land milk & honey. By year end, I will be added to this seldom reported statistic.
So, is this a case of grass is always greener at the other side of the fence?
I am fully aware of the challenges that I will have to grapple with in the new land. I will need to start all over again in re-establishing a new social network, rebuilding my career, adjusting to varied & extreme weather...etc.
Perhaps this is the price I am willing to pay to achieve the freedom to experience life in a different way, to achieve self actualization, to grow & bond with my family in more wholesome environment ...etc.
Singapore has given me a solid foundation and provided me the opportunity to achieve all the physical and material well being. In many ways, I have almost reached the peak of my corporate ladder. I have experienced the high life, eaten the best foods in top restaurants, flown in the 1st class airline, traveled across the Asian regions & been to places where normal tourist will have no access, stayed in the 6 stars hotels, rubbed shoulder with high-profile executives, CFOs & CEOs...etc
But Singapore cannot give me the space to have quiet enjoyment, the freedom to express and make mistakes, the time to grow spiritually, mentally, socially...etc.. The feeling is almost stifling as each day is slotted away chasing after the never ending deadlines. The strive for excellence is always never enough. There is constantly a need to put up different masks because the system and environment are unforgiving. We are perpetually on our toes and somehow we seem to lose our humanity......
Will my new home give me what I cannot find in Singapore? I am mindful of the horror stories of immigrants that did not make it in their new country. Even for the many immigrants that made it to the land of milk & honey, many are still struggling to be accepted, to make a decent living, to keep pace with excellence....
The important point is not whether the grass is greener at the other side of the fence, but whether we are prepared to water our grass at whichever side of the fence we are standing.
