Lies???

Before I start, hello, anonymous! Yah I notice Amazon sell book cheap but alas, my buying habit of books does not allow me to buy in bulk. Do not have that much money to buy anyway. When I go to a bookstore, I would look through the contents and decide on the spot to buy. And I usually limit myself to a certain budget usually less than S$50. Going at the prices that I complain about, how many books can I buy? Not much. Consolidate? Eh…. Cannot imagine a few months without books! Argh…….!!!!

Haha. Thanks Anonymous for the suggestion.

Now back to my inner world….

I am not going to write a particular someone who lied to me. Sorry, no drama or fodder to feed your imagination. HeHe.

Just a question I want to pose to all the people who are reading this. Are you in your ideal job? Or at least applying what you are learning from the schools and university in your job?

I sure hope most of the people would answer ‘Yes’ at least for the first question. I did, well almost ideal, eh…. let’s say, 90% similar to my ideal job, thank goodness.

I recall in my schooling years, my teachers would keep on telling my classmates and I, especially those that are not the studious type, “You must study hard, so that you can obtain your ideal job” or “You must get good grades, so that you can go to a university, get a good degree and can live comfortably from then on” or anything to that similar effect. Well, that is many years ago, are they still doing it? Any teachers who are reading this care to share?

For those who are working, have you been told these ‘lies’ while you are studying as well?
(I must put a note here that I have tremendous respect for all teachers who has taught me, I thank them for imparting their knowledge to me, making me who I am today.) If you had your ideal job, your teachers may not be lying to you to a certain extent, but are you set for life? Are you sure you are going to live comfortably for the rest of your life?

Now during my time, the teachers are not really lying based on two things, firstly, that is what is happening then, graduates from university, most of them are set for life, the company would take care of their needs, and they have a huge pension waiting for them when they retire. Secondly, most of these teachers are in fact doing their ideal jobs. They enjoy what they are doing and they genuinely want their students to be good. But times have change, job security is a joke, having enough funds to retire and foot medical bills is some of the critical issues, the working adults will need to put in their list of problems. (I better stop painting such a bleak picture. Hahaha!)

But I must admit I felt a little ‘betrayed’ although they did not genuinely lie to me. I was just a fresh graduate, looking for my ‘ideal’ job during the year 2003. I was looking around and around but was not able to get the job I was looking forward to. Well, the government then told us not to be picky and should take whatever job that was offered because of the economic situation then. I was like, “Hei, you mean after I studied for so long in University, striving to get good grades (which I did), with a vision that was painted and reinforced so many times by my teachers that I would be able to get my ideal job if I obtain my degree, and now you say the vision is just a dream, wake up!” During that time, the pay was also pathetic. Having a salary of above S$2000 was considered to be lucky. Fresh graduates pay was only a few hundred dollars more than diploma graduates. That few hundred dollars is to pay us for the effort that we put in during my FOUR years of University??? And when I come out, I must start repaying my tuition loan as interest would start counting the moment I obtain that the degree.

Situation check: So I have to accept anything that comes, a broken promise, a degree whose actual value is worse than the perceived value and a tuition fee loan whose interest will start counting the moment I obtain a degree.

Wow, what a situation to be caught in. I am sure most of the graduates during that recession time would be in similar situation as well. Worse, since we have to take whatever that was offered and should not be picky, we were not able to apply most of the knowledge (Note: I did not use the word ‘skill’) that we tried our best and paid well over $15,000 to obtain, during our school and university time.

So teachers, are you still using the same sentence to persuade students to study? Can change? Lessen the pain that these students will face when they step out to work in less than 15 years time.

I would like to take the opportunity to say a big ‘thank you’ to all my teachers who have taught me during my schooling years. I still respect you all. *Smile*

Reading culture

In my previous entry, I was complaining about the price of books in Singapore. After some thoughts, I was thinking, is there a chicken and egg problem here? Could it be because the reading culture in Singapore would not be able to sustain the several book stores?

When I was young, I was glad that my parents encourage me to read a lot. I remember I was reading a lot of Enid Blyton’s books (Not those famous series that she wrote). I love her books because it talks about farms, circuses, fantasy stories. I enjoy her books a lot. And it costs around S$5 for each book then. But with my voracious appetites for books, I have to turn to the library for my supply. During my primary school days, we even have periods set aside each week in school to read books in schools. There was also a reading program, where when we read a certain number of books, we would be rewarded. I cannot remember the reward anymore. Haha.

Coming back to the reading culture in Singapore, I see a lot of parents are encouraging their kids to read, buying books for them and bringing them to the National Library to borrow books. And some kids do sit down quietly, enjoying the book in their hand while others make a big nuisance of themselves. But is reading to these kids fun anymore or is it just another ‘plot’ by parents to help their kids to gain an edge in this competitive world?
With the constant emphasis on grades and exam smart, are these kids having fun with their books? With the constant emphasis on exam grades, are these kids able to pursue their interest, reading books on their interests, as they move up? For my case, if you chart the amount of time I spent on leisure reading since primary schools to Junior College (A Levels), it is a graph, stock investors would hate to see it happen to the stocks they buy.

Being a working adult now, I try to read when I have time. Thank goodness because of my job nature and few commitments in my life, I was able to read a lot more in a week, compare to an average working adult. (Does that mean I am below average? Haha!) From my previous blog, most of you would know that I would prefer to buy the books that I want to read rather than borrow, because I would like to read my books slowly so that I can absorb and digest the contents in the books I am reading. Deadlines for reading sucks! And being someone who cannot sit down and do the same thing for a long time, I juggle between two to three books at one time, just to provide a bit of variety.

Currently, I see a lot of working adults are also reading books but the books they are reading are mostly those that would help them in their paper chase (chasing more degrees and certifications) or careers. Reading has become a chore for most working adults and not leisure anymore.

Judging from these observations, it seems that reading has become a chore for kids and adults. Since it is a chore, most would prefer not to do it, if given a chance. In economics, it would mean, demand reduce and price should fall. How come prices are up?? It seems like most of these books in store are mostly publish overseas, since the market is small, store over here are not able to negotiate for a better bulk price. This could be a main reason why books are expensive.

I hope it would not come to a point where books going to cost an arm and a leg. Haha! I do not think I have so much arms and legs to exchange for books.

Price of Knowledge

Just came back from a trip from Taipei, Taiwan. Bought a lot of books when I was there. I find the books there cheap compared to the prices in Singapore. Most of them are Chinese books of course, since my interests are into Ancient Chinese History and Military Classics. I was surprised at the variety of books they have (you can find almost anything under the sun there), that the population’s reading habit was able to sustain several large bookstore to open 24 hrs. Most English books that I have seen in Singapore has been translated to Chinese and sold at a cheaper price. The translation is not atrocious as most people thought it would be. The translation was excellent. It seems that they were able to sustain a reading culture quite well.

Coming from Singapore, I was glad I was able to read both Chinese and English. With the upcoming of China, connecting to the global economy, the master of these two languages has become a much sought after skill by many corporations. But in my opinion, why I was happy to learn these two languages is because I was able to appreciate the originals works from two parts of the world, the East and the West. As we all know, some meanings are lost through translations, so it would be better to read the original works of the author.

But during these few years, the number of English Books that I bought has reduced tremendously. Reason being these books are getting very expensive. (Most of the English books that I bought cost at the very most $20) An English book, on business, can cost from $30 - $60 easily. That is very expensive, considering the fact you are taking a risk whether the book will provide contents that you value at that price. I would rather pick up a similar book that has been translated to Chinese, knowing well that some value may be loss through translation. For example, the latest book written by Jack Welch, Winning, cost slightly more than S$30 in Singapore but a similar Chinese version of it cost at the most S$20. Another example, Stephen Covey’s 8th Habit cost more than S$40 but a Chinese version of it costs S$12. See the big difference. So in some sense I was glad that I was able to read Chinese to enjoy these ‘discounts’.

Chinese books here in Singapore are still relative cheap compare English books, reason being that few people here read Chinese books, I guess. But it is still quite expensive, compare to Taiwan for a similar book, which should be taking account of the shipping charges. (Surprisingly the English Books in Taiwan are more expensive than Singapore)

Singapore, wanting to become a knowledge-based economy, should try to make knowledge cheaper. If the price of books, both Chinese and English, are anything to go by, knowledge would slowly become an exclusive commodity of the well to do. As we all believe and the recent discussion of the widening income gap in Singapore and developed countries, education serve as a social ladder for most not well-to-do to move up their socio-economic status. Part of education is seeking knowledge, if knowledge is more expensive, then only people who can afford them would be able to use them. Would it not further widen the gap?

Human resource being the most important resource in Singapore, it is very important that we are able to develop them as much as possible. One good thing about this resource is that it can be limitless, compare to natural resources which has limited abundance. One way of developing these resources is to equip the Singapore workforce with as much necessary knowledge and skills as possible. If the overall knowledge level of the population would increase, ideas and thinking would flourish with large amount of sparks being generated from the rubbing of two or more minds.

I am glad I learned two of the most powerful languages in the world, Chinese and English. Thus I am able to reduce the price of the knowledge I was seeking.