Be bold, dare to take risks
AUG 23, 2004Be bold, dare to take risks
By Laurel Teo
TAKE a fresh, bold approach. Mine new fields for opportunities instead of worrying about challenges.
Issuing this call to Singaporeans last night, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong told them this mindset change was necessary to take Singapore 'another step forward, another level higher'.
He assured them that the Government was also doing its part - by preparing to rethink all problems big and small. It will also support entrepreneurs who dare to do the unconventional and spontaneous.
In his speech, he acknowledged Singapore had been 'wildly successful' thus far. But it cannot stand still, and must break out of its comfort zone to keep pace with the changing world.
'We can never afford to be satisfied with the status quo, even if we are still OK; even if our policies are still working,' he said.
He added: 'People say, 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it'. I say, 'If it ain't broke, better maintain it... inspect it, replace it, upgrade it, try something better and make it work better than before'.'
But pointing to a recent survey the Education Ministry conducted on what company chiefs and bosses thought of students from schools here, he said their observations boiled down to one key point:
'We are so capable, we are so efficient, we are so comfortable that we stick with what we have tried and tested and found working and we are reluctant to take risks and try new things.'
It is a weakness, he said. And the key to overcoming it was to have a mindset change at the individual, government and societal levels.
'We have to see opportunities rather than challenges in new situations; we have to be less conventional; we must be prepared to venture.'
By way of example, he mentioned a recent personal experience at Changi Airport.
Returning home, he decided to queue at the arrival hall's immigration counters to 'see what it's like'.
All the 'All Passports' counters - of which there were many - were empty, while the remaining two 'Singapore Passports' counters had long queues.
He wondered why no one crossed over to the empty counters, but thought: 'Maybe they know something I don't.'
He decided to join them, he said, sending the audience into uproarious laughter.
'I stood there for 30 seconds. I said it doesn't make sense, went across, sailed through,' he said.
His conclusion: 'The pressure to conform, to go with what we're comfortable with, is doing it - 'let's do the same'. It happens to all of us.'
And Singaporeans must combat this pressure, he said.
At the government level, 'we have to rethink all our problems, big and small. Nothing should ever be set in stone'.
Some changes it has made recently included the Goods and Services Tax, cuts in the Central Provident Fund, and now, wage reform.
It also has to support 'Singaporeans being spontaneous, being unconventional', he said, giving two examples where unconventional ideas got snarled in red tape.
When two reconstructed American military vehicles were first introduced as a new tour business, the coaches - called Ducks because they can travel on both land and in sea - confused the Maritime Port Authority (MPA) and Land Transport Authority (LTA).
'The duck took two years to get a licence - nearly died,' he exclaimed.
'Very difficult because they went to the LTA. LTA says, 'Your duck has a propeller, how can it be a car?' They went to the MPA. MPA says, 'Your duck has wheels!'
'So ding-dong they took two years. Eventually, we sorted the problem where ducks became a success,' he said.
Next came the hippo buses - double-deckers without tops - adorned with pictures of hippopotamuses, from which tourists can hop on and off as the buses go to various places of interest.
'Question: Is the hippo a bus? A very important question because if it is not a bus, it is not allowed to stop at a bus-stop,' he said, sending the crowd into stitches again.
He revealed: 'That one we did better. Six months, we solved the problem.'
Copyright @ 2004 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.
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