Vaga-Bond Weekly Career Guide

It was a college shopping spree this week. Sparked by an email that i've received from the Ministry of Defence [MINDEF] regarding an invitation to apply for the Singapore Armed Forces's Merit Scholarship [SMS], i embarked on something that i've never dreamt of - surfing the net for admission and course requirements of the big Ivies.

Indeed, i was wondering if one such invitation is going to make its way into my email account. There were also many questions regarding me signing on as a regular personnel in the Army that i've entertained before, to which I will answer in a matter-of-factly fashion:

'Nope, i'll never sign on just for the money. But i might do so if i receive a good scholarship from the SAF.'

The Second Law of Vagabond states: It's either the tops or nothing, in-betweens yield little, which behooves me to be pragmatic. I've maintained this vision since the first day i put those greens and boots on. It is this pragmatism that motivated many, not just me alone, to strive hard to be somebody during these 28 months of National Service [NS].

Now i stand at the edge of a watershed, with a possible career in the Army on one hand, and a challenging yet unknown future on the other. The former has always been one chance opportunity, a 'let's try it out, we've got nothing to lose' shot in life. Perhaps it could lead on to something exciting as well?

I attended this National Education Course at the Central Manpower Base [CMPB] on friday with thick lethargy, a hangover from my consecutive late nights. The morning lecture was by Mr Gabriel Chan - a retired Lieutenant Colonel [LTC] from NeuLeaf Consultancy. He was this dashing fellow in a goodlooking crimson formal attire. You can hardly see the effects of age on this man. With rosy cheeks and a ready smile, he greets you with congeniality. Rarely had i seen a speaker as well-paced, as frank and as interactive in the execution of a speech as Mr Chan. His lecture on the Governance of the Lion City was engaging from the onset. For a fellow who was looking for a good Relax-one-Corner [ROC] opportunity to catch up on some sleep that day, Mr Chan's refreshing class was one potent anti-poison potion.

The audience warmed up to him almost immedately as he candidly shared his personal opinions on current affairs, elucidating them with cheeky analogies, to laughs all round. And just when the class dulls off during periods of dry lecturing, and to my gradual dozing off, Mr Chan will present videos on LKY to illuminate the founding principles of our nation. That always works for the whole class will perk up without fail after the videos. He ended the wonderful session by teaming the class up in political parties, each proposing a political stand on issues like 'Should gays be allowed in the public sector?' and 'Should a casino open in Sentosa?'. The mock political debates that ensued was fiery and engaging, with unrestrained laughters filling the lecture room as nonsensical points were presented with moronic gusto. At the end of the debates, there were no losers nor winners, only the takeaway that as the future leaders of our nation, we must hold opinions for political issues. No longer should we rely on the status-quo to make things work, as in a generation ago, we must actively question and contribute to shift paradigms, and to better things. Only so will the nation progress.

I revisited friday's lecture after the course and thought: 'There is indeed excitement in life after a long Army career. If i can learn, relearn and apply new knowledge in the void of a routine working environment like Mr Chan.' That, in essence, can be represented by the running shoes that we should always hang around our necks, like the mice in "Who Moved My Cheese?" - shoes that we wear and go around finding new cheese in the Cheese Station Maze even before the stocks at the current station run out. An Army career might create mental atrophy and occupational conceit, but i think it is a matter of personal motivation and personality that will govern the extent of that occurrence. Mr Chan, i'm sure, has totally reversed that process.

Although the Army is really not the most efficient or well-oiled organisation, but that would also represent the tonnes of room for improvement, and chances that may arise from these spaces.

Where one sees consequences, i see coincidences; where one sees cost, i see chance.