Kevin Low

Should we be more concerned about losing competitiveness or creativity? Singapore just lost its top spot in global ranking for competitiveness and the explanation was ‘unfavourable geography’. It really wasn’t clear how geography was factored in but Asia certainly got a beating (maybe with the exception of China) probably because of the pandemic. Europe nations topped the ranking – they’ve been jostling with Singapore all the while anyways.

For most of our nation-building days, the objective was never topping rankings or rising up league tables. Those were by-products. It was always about bettering the lives of people. And our metrics were simple: home-owners as percentage of population, median income levels, access to clean water and electricity, etc. All of the progress on these simple metrics helped us get on rankings and league tables, which is really testament to the zeal and passion of our founding fathers and civil service.

But somewhere along the lines, we got lost in trying to get ahead in the race, to be better along the old metrics. And we forgot perhaps what we were bettering our lives for to begin with. We wanted to free our people from the constraints of a wretched existence without clean water or electricity, without a safe place to live in, without income security. We knew that improving their lives itself, making people more productive would help the society progress and move towards prosperity.

But maybe at that point, we didn’t expect ourselves to be addicted to prosperity, that we crave for access to luxuries for all, to desire better housing beyond top of the world public housing. Building a society where everyone is on an escalating escalator sounds good – until we pose the question, “where is the escalator heading to?”

To me, we should be more concerned about the lost of creativity. We should not feel pressured to prepare ready-made solution for everyone to get on the escalator, to have a sure formula or pathway to success. We should be expending our resources to enable people to find different escalators, to identify the various heights they want to reach and be able to reach them. Open up pathways, encourage the creativity and innovation; not just getting them to jostle on the same path.

I wrote about bioplastics and other biodegradable plastics and the environmental impact. And I also mentioned that you probably need to re-use paper bags way more times in order for it to be environmentally friendlier than plastic bags. That does mean that if you’re using a paper bag for a brownie as opposed to a small plastic bag, the environmental footprint of the paper bag might be more. Of course, that is mitigated perhaps by the fact it is made from recycled paper, and it can be used additionally to wipe your mouth, albeit with slight discomfort – something you cannot achieve with plastic (which probably would only make it oilier).

But here’s the news, or maybe not-so-new: Plastics can be recycled and they sometimes are but globally, less than 10% of plastics ever produced are recycled. For most countries, in most parts of the world, it is still cheaper to make fresh and new plastics than to recycle old ones. The economics didn’t work, even when we were told there will be recycling. NPR together with some other journalist outlets studied this in the US. They realised that the industry pushed for the impression that plastics will mostly be recycled because that helped to sell plastics. There are old(ish) articles discussing the cost of recycling plastics.

So let me just repeat my prescription again; let’s just cut single use plastic – cut it all out. Let us be forced to find alternatives; because as long as it is convenient to use plastics, we will pay for it – whether with money or sacrifice to the environment.

I think the ability to build a sustainable business around a cause is remarkable; and to have this cause to preserve the earth and ensure we all have a shared future is truly worthwhile. Truth is often more complicated than a simple rallying call or a catchphrase however.

Recently a friend asked if it is more carbon intensive to produce biodegradable plastic bags compared to ordinary plastic bags. And whether it is worthwhile especially in Singapore where most waste are incinerated. The truth is, paper bags need to be reused at least 3 times compared to a plastic bag in order to be more environmentally friendly. And since in Singapore, we typically reuse plastic bags at least once (except maybe those used to hold food), paper bags are not more environmentally friendly. As for those compostable bags, or plastics that dissolves in water, and so on, it depends on the manufacturing processes and the energy intensity.

For those that have more complex processes and takes up more energy, then it might be more carbon intensive, particularly if they are actually produced in developing countries where the generation mix of the grid-drawn electricity leans heavily on coal. So truth is complicated, but then I think any businesses looking to drive forward the movement of getting people to care more about the environment is worth applauding.

So just a note here that this conversation by the friend was sparked off by telobag.

At work we were musing about the sheer number of ex-corporate people who went on to do something different: selling coffee, fixing bikes, cycling in Latin America, settling down in some secluded island. And there’s this dream of starting a bed-and-breakfast somewhere remote, perhaps by a beach, perhaps in the mountains, we’ll grow our own food and embrace sustainability. And all that. It can be pretty romantic, the idea of being back to nature, being subsistence even, spending last, consuming less.

I thought about the persistence of such dreams over the past 2-3 generations. Modernity wrecks havoc on our soul in many different ways. 2 generations ago, it was the world wars; and in the last generation, there was much violence in the form of hidden repression: within corporations, amongst societies. Then the current generation had almost an entire decade lost from the financial ravage of the Global Financial Crisis and then now a Global pandemic.

The dream persisted because we all desire to create a safe space; not necessarily one we have so much control in but where we find ourselves better able to let things go. It is the psychological kind of freedom we crave, away from wars, repression or the violence of competition.

For far too long, in the modern industrial age, with the sense of control over our environment, inputs and outputs, we mistake worry for work.

The time we spend worrying is actually time we’re spending trying to control something that is out of our control. Time invested in something that is within our control is called work. That’s where our most productive focus lies.

Seth Godin, The Practice

Even if we do not dwell on the issue of productivity, worrying strangely feels like work maybe because there is psychological labour involved. But this labour accomplishes nothing even as it afflicts the costs.

Recognising worry as something unnecessary isn’t really helpful because it hasn’t improved things much. Realising worrying changes nothing also seem to have very little impact on psychology. Better to focus on what is within our control, and to handle the work we have been given, to ponder over how to do the work, rather than think you’re working by worrying about those things you cannot control.

It’s amazing how inconveniences shapes us, our concerns and thinking more than we expect or imagine. For a while, we were all super concerned about the TraceTogether tracking app on our mobile phones and also having the token with us. And then because the pandemic continued and even worsened, when the government implemented mandatory use of it for ‘Safe-entry’ registrations into malls, people started using it. It was too difficult to challenge the regulations; and alternatives provided were too inconvenient.

Then comes vaccination. People had their concerns; and there were people thinking about which vaccine to take, and whether it was risky, etc. Well, I’d imagine there are many things we do such as crossing the road, driving a car, going to earthquake prone places which probably carries higher risks than getting vaccinated. But once regulations are such that vaccinated people have it easier when they enter places, participate in events because they either don’t have to be swabbed or if they allow the capacity of the events to be higher, than the practical thing to do is to get vaccinated.

Targeting the practical aspects of people works well. Especially when it is once-off and you just have to get it done and over with. Make the preferred alternative just slightly less inconvenient than the one you’re getting people to avoid, and you might just be able to get people to ‘do the right thing’.

I got 69 for Chinese and my classmate got 93, though I speak more fluent Mandarin than him. My school’s basketball team made the 3-point shot after the time-out whistle and “lost” the game 52-54. Winning and losing are meanings we attribute to different circumstances and situations we find ourselves in, whether set up initially as a game, competition or just merely events in life.

When we allow winning and losing to count for more than the process of learning, more than sportsmanship, more than character and values, we are missing the point. We are prizing outcomes above process. A question that demonstrates the absurdity of this attitude is that: “if life ends with death anyways then why does it matter how we live?” Of course it matters what happens between the starting point and the outcome. It matters how we win, and it matters also how we lose.

When we allow the winning or losing to mean more than the work we put in to attain the result. When we value the work we do based on the outcome we get, then we miss the point. And we miss the true value of what the process is for. A life lived like this will never get to truly enjoy the wins, nor truly learn and gain from the losses.

The reason why regret is so powerful is because it is a narrative we allow to take root in our minds. We construct this story of what could have been. And we label that turning point ‘if only’. It is a perfectly written story about an alternate reality which is completely within your control. It moves the way you want it; the central character (imaginary you) does not get into accidents nor do other misunderstandings or unlucky events befall on him/her. You can visualise it so clearly it is almost real.

Except it isn’t. None of that is even remotely close to what would have happened if you had made that different decision: whether it is having learnt piano when you were six, picked up tennis when you were 13 or having dated or married someone else, or gone on a different career and more. Your regret story would not feature the car accident that happened on the expressway, or the “fact” you have a different teenage child who got himself into drugs and gangs as opposed to being neurotic but intelligent.

Now compare it with the narrative you have about your life right now. What do you have? Is there any stories about you rising up to challenges, or going against the odds? Any reflections about the deep and meaningful friendships you had? Any considerations to how you come to appreciate the depth of your humanity or the fragility of life as your loved ones brushed against death? If we take more time to reflect and build the richer stories of our lives that we truly live. If we just consider more deeply what are the narratives we can construct based on the reality of our own lives, we can be more present, less FOMO, and less regretful of things.

So what is stopping you? Why are you still living with regrets?

When I was 16, one of my teachers called me to her office and told me that I wasn’t selected for a particular prestigious book prize. While my academic records were stellar, it would seem that my attendance records from 3 years ago for Chinese Calligraphy practice sessions was absymal – at least I didn’t hit the require threshold of turning up 75% of the time (or something like that, I don’t remember). That little blemish was the reason the book prize went to someone else instead.

Oh bother, I thought to myself. I actually had a 100% attendance record for Chinese Calligraphy practice that year but the system had made a mistake and claimed I did not attend some sessions. I didn’t think much of it nor did I consider it important so to avoid kicking up a fuss over the small matter, I let it slide. Too bad for me.

I told the teacher the truth of what happened and I could see she felt sorry for me. And she said there was nothing she could do – so she probably broke the news to me just to get some closure for herself. But I would say that this was perhaps an important juncture in my life where I realised that sometimes I just have to hustle and fight for myself a bit more. Letting others’ mis-impression or mistakes slide just won’t cut it.

What is fortunate, is that I did not allow my mind to dwell on the notions of ‘what if’ I got the book prize. I did not allow myself to build this perfect-life narrative of ‘if only’. That is really important because that is where regrets take root, and where they become such entrenched stories that we tell ourselves over and over again. And we might even convinced ourselves nothing we do going forward matters anymore because of that one misstep in the past.

Saw a video lately showing a guy pretending like he was stopping the metro trains when they arrive at the platform and acting like he was pushing them off when they were departing. The caption by the one who shared the video was that this is like what consultants do when they claim they are helping their clients. Being a consultant myself, I’m amused by the kind of reputation that consulting seem to have.

A fellow consultant friend expressed that the video made her question not just her work but how much contribution we actually have as we live our lives. And I pointed her to Leaf by Niggle, a short story by J R R Tolkien – which I first learnt from ‘Every Good Endeavour’, a book about work and faith by Timothy Keller. The short story by Tolkien reminds us that despite our best intentions, things in life may not always turn out the way we want it to but that what counts is the heart and spirit behind our work and the way we live our lives.

I’m always touched by how the story hints at the fact that our slogging in this world is often a function of the glimpse we have of God’s intention for the world that has fallen short because of sin. And yet, it is eventually not our slogging but God’s salvation and renewal of the world that brings into reality what He has given us a glimpse of.

We desperately want all that we do to count for something in this world but maybe there is sweeter liberation from the fact the world doesn’t have to count on an imperfect human such as me.