Quirkbag

Author: zacyeohs@gmail.com

  • The Life Template: “Is This The Rest Of My Life?”

    The Life Template: “Is This The Rest Of My Life?”

    Quirkbag Collection #23 – 19.12.25

    If you look at your life hard enough, it fits into a typical template. Sometimes, it’s a depressing one, and you can’t help but wonder: is this the rest of my life? Depending on the environment in which you grew up, it differs for every person. Mine is: Primary School, Secondary School, Junior College, National Service, University, Work, Retire, Die.

    Sound familiar? Oversimplified, sure. Accurate, almost eerily so.

    I think too much like a grumpy old man for a 20 year old. I frequently ruminate about the purpose and trajectory of my life – and if I’m feeling really introspective – those of others’ lives too. As a habit, I picture their lives, jobs, personalities 10 years down the road and assign them to a particular ‘template’ of a person that I’d see on the street today – a corporate worker, a sales assistant, an insurance agent… 

    Though, if you’re struggling with finding that mythical ‘purpose’ or ‘meaning’ in life, check out this interview. 

    Introducing The Life Template

    For some of us, our lives are ‘laid out’ paths. It’s like a life template for new humans (us, obviously) that gets passed down from parents and schools. They segment our lives so that the only goal is to progress from one stage to the next in a very telic-driven process, for the rest of our lives until we “finish” life. It becomes scarily easy to drift through life’s stages.

    Be it law school, med school, Harvard, Oxford or any other conventionally perceived ‘success’ routes are examples of the life templates. Having only these goalposts as a teenager without understanding life’s possibilities can do more harm than good. (Although, conventional wisdom also states that parents and schools work toward the betterment of children, in theory if not in effect.) 

    Indeed, a sharp, clear goal with unwavering faith that ‘you must make it’ or ‘you have worked your life for it’ can push you over almost any obstacle. But a narrow tunnel vision for a 17 year-old whose whole self-worth and self-esteem ride on whether that goal turns into reality proves greatly risky. Failure to hit those goals can end terribly. Afterall, the life template does not usually include contingencies.  

    So what of the advice that we should only focus on ONE thing? If that ONE thing happens to be studying or following a certain life template without understanding why, it’s probably a case of misapplication. The advice serves to eliminate noise and not isolate your ability to explore life. And hence, upon setting your sights on something deemed worthy of pursuit despite the opportunity costs, in which you believe with deep conviction, the time is ripe for purely focusing on that ONE thing. 

    That said, the education system and social circumstances can make that realisation and understanding hard to obtain. 

    The Fastest 80 000 Hours

    ‘Work’ takes up the bulk of our lives, with an average calculated figure of 80 000 hours. Ironically, it’s the part that gets skipped over the fastest and most of it ends in a blur for most adults. As I fast forward through this ‘template’ of life, I see the well-trodden future which revolves around an office-bound job that sucks the life out of me. (I have not yet heard an office-bound worker passionately share his joy for the job.)

    At the end of it all, the blur of ‘work’ would be the fastest 80 000 hours of your life. 

    For those who secretly crave more than a working life spent behind a desk and in meeting rooms, surely the question you ask after seeing your potential future would be: is this the rest of my life? 

    Is there an invisible force that simply pushes people further down into their life templates? 

    Did we relinquish control over our lives? Without even knowing?

    Call me young and stupid, but I stubbornly refuse to believe that this is all there is for us – a subpar life template. And so, it begs the question: Is this the rest of my life? 

    Having to spend 80 000 hours doing ONE thing that you hate and calling it a ‘career’ is a tough choice, but one you are totally free to make. But perhaps you are fooled by the life template. You can, in fact, do other things in 80 000 hours beyond the miserable job, if you so decide. 

    Going Beyond The Education System

    Perhaps this is where my education system has failed me. I was not taught imagination. I discovered it after graduation. Conventional advice to ‘explore your interests’ and ‘pursue your interests’ are as useful as the bird chirping downstairs. The real intention, however, holds some value. 

    It is less about ‘interests’ than it is about your ability to go beyond the education system to learn about yourself and this world. And in supposedly ‘exploring your interests’, well-intentioned relatives and educators hope you experience some Eureka moment for your life’s trajectory. 

    Consider a fictional dude: Tom, 19, is on track to being a corporate mid-level manager, 35, overseeing ‘internal operations developmental projects’ in his stable, but boring and dry job. That might be his entire work life. 

    Is this a bad outcome? Maybe that’s a poor question. 

    A better question might be: Is that a life he deems worthy of pursuing? 

    Of course, everyone is entitled to ‘live their own lives’. But, that line does little to explain the average worker’s misery about the job. And while no rule mandates enjoyment at work, I would prefer 80 000 hours of average positive emotions over negative ones.

    Whether a job to you is for money or for fulfillment, you are the only one that decides if it is worthy of your pursuit. Plenty of individual reasons exist to justify holding the jobs we do. Tom might choose his lifelong office job for the money and stability because he prefers the comfort. But the rest of us (not-Tom real humans) must not fall into the trap of believing that Tom’s life is meant for us.

    We must think beyond the education system. 

    Find Your Own Life

    As a student, I have been encouraged by the system to think more deeply. And perhaps I have manually brought that to overdrive. Thinking deeply can easily lead to overthinking and a sense of overwhelm without a tether to keep you grounded. 

    Deep thinking has its perks. You begin to piece together the puzzle that is your life and this world; to find your own life beyond ‘school’ or ‘friends’ or ‘sports’ and see who you really are.

    Oh, and you’ll never find it easier to have a conversation with yourself confronting your life choices. 

    Conventional advice is not wrong. Neither is pineapple on pizza, or having cake for breakfast. It all depends on what you have decided to believe, and sometimes, that belief was ingrained in you from young. In that case, it might not even be your belief; it is your environment’s. 

    We question all our beliefs, except for the ones that we really believe in, and those we never think to question.

    – Orson Scott Card, Speaker For The Dead

    Your future life doesn’t have to be exactly like what you were told in the past.  

    The ‘good job’ and the life you will have can be entirely separate from the picture school paints. But school does not teach you that. And that’s my realisation as I turned 19 after graduation from Junior College. It has since sparked my curiosity to think about my life template. 

    The education system taught me to think about my work, but rarely emphasized the bigger picture. To you, who may be like my younger self: DON’T settle for the life template because you have not explored life, or because that’s what you’ve been told. Go and find your own life.

    There is more, at least I hope there continues to be, to the future life than a measly life template. 

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  • Revealing My Secret To Overcoming Great Challenges

    Revealing My Secret To Overcoming Great Challenges

    Quirkbag Collection #22 – 12.12.25

    At any stage in life, you will be in crisis. That’s a psychological fact, by the way. There is no one day in the future when “everything will be peachy”, as any aged individual would have you know. But always facing ordeals and challenges over your lifetime is a good reason to start figuring out the ways of overcoming great challenges.

    And no, I doubt anyone can give you a snappy answer on “how to live your life”. That said, I’ll take a stab at one part of it; here is my open secret to overcoming great challenges. 

    Making The Big Thing The ONLY Thing

    There’s no uphill battle like doing something new and big for the first time – learning to drive a manual car (like me), getting a new job, or singing in a concert, and – if you’re like me – taking the final school exam every single year. In these seasons of your life, at 15 or 25, nothing else in your world matters more than just completing that thing.

    “Just let me bloody finish this!” is my common thought.

    As a student, I only thought about exams (for about 10 years). Now, all I think about is passing my driver’s test and gaining different real-world experiences. 

    My point is: overcoming great challenges that exist now, whether it’s a goal or a circumstance, should be the only thing you focus on. We love to “multi-task”, but we suck at that. That’s also a psychological fact. So stop trying to be Superman and start being Clark Kent (the underwear goes inside the pants). Embrace that you only have so much time to do a few important things. Then start to do them.  

    Narrowing your focus directs your precious energy, time and efforts towards achieving or overcoming that challenge you are facing. It becomes…a priority. The list of priority is basically your to-do list arranged by importance, but you can still only do 1 thing actively at a time. That NEVER changes. 

    Good old “practice” applies to (and improves) almost everything; but doing everything at once negates its effectiveness. Practice won’t make perfect, but rigour brings you close. And that’s the secret to overcoming great challenges. Rigour: an underrated word that substitutes “grinding” or “hard work”, but with a minor difference. This difference, I find, packs a hell of a lot more than a punch.

    The Difference Between Rigour and Practice

    At 16, my physics teacher used to say “When you have time, practice some physics questions. If not how are you going improve?” He also said something like “If 10 questions are not enough, then do 20.” The class loved him. 

    Needless to say, as the impressionable and (rather) naive student wanting to do well, I did the 20 questions…and then some. But it was the “and then some” that made all the difference. The difference between rigour and practice is intensity. If practice is an evening jog, rigour is an all-out sprint…daily. Practice is playing for sport, rigour is competing at the Olympics. Practice is a willingness to accept, perhaps reluctantly, mediocrity but rigour is the outright refusal of it. 

    I only discovered this open secret to overcoming great challenges long after my exams and graduation from JC when I connected the dots inspired by a video from Alex Hormozi (yes, he is a running theme around here in this season of my life). 

    Rigour automatically sets you apart. There are not many people who hone their craft or skill intentionally with rigour. If you want to be a great podcaster, making 21 episodes would put you in the top 1% of all podcasters. When practice is done constantly, repeatedly and consciously, it evolves into rigour.

    Pretty time-consuming, no?

    If you catch my drift, you’d probably understand why the big thing in your life should be the only thing you focus on – it’s the only way you can apply rigour. In overcoming great challenges, you have to spend a great deal of time, effort and energy on it.

     I hate to admit it to myself, but there are no shortcuts sometimes. 

    Do I Have Rigour? 

    My favourite litmus test for having rigour is simply measuring the input of time and energy. Now, the result-oriented among us would jump at me and say “you should see how much output you create and how much work you do.” They completely miss the point. 

    Rigour is about the time and energy you spend engaging and dealing with the pesky problem. It’s about making it the centre of your focus. Treating it like a burger to be assembled at a fast-food chain is not the way to go. Think along the lines of…finding the best way to assemble the best burger. 

    Here is what I do to apply rigour to accelerate my progress in some endeavour or overcome great challenges. I start by first dedicating an hour a day to doing the thing. If possible, make it an hour of deep work. Once it proves to be manageable, I add another hour a day. Should you find yourself dreaming of the particular problem or challenge, you know you are on the right track (I do not advise aiming for this). 

    In learning to drive a manual car in a driving school with a ridiculously crowded enrolment, I am forced into competition for available lessons. Passing the test becomes overcoming a great challenge, as if it was not tough enough. Conventional “practice” goes out the window here without practical lessons.

    But the rigour is limitless. No one stops me from taking notes, reviewing lesson takeaways, watching videos, doing mental visualisations and talking to others about it (and let’s not forget the undue worrying that comes by default).  

    The Absolute Lack Of Lessons Available On An Average Day

    Sometimes, I find my rigour seems unwarranted for something as trivial as learning to drive. It could be a relaxing process (how I wish it were so). But to save on cost and maximise learning, rigour is the answer. Indeed, sometimes circumstances limit our choices.

    Like The Year, Life Has Seasons

    Your great challenge in this season of life would differ from the one in 10 years. Undoubtedly, the next season of my life – university – comes with a new set of paralysing and debilitating challenges (but they say uni is a great time in life). You’ll never know what the next season or challenge is, but that hardly stops you from learning how to deal with it. 

    Knowing it will rain does not prevent it from raining, but you might consider bringing an umbrella. That said, the free-spirits advocate for “dancing in the rain” – a cinematically glorified act I have yet to try. 

    The seasons and problems will change (just think Taylor Swift’s “Eras”) as time marches on. Knowing that rigour is a tool you can use in overcoming great challenges provides some peace of mind, like a semi-safety net. But perhaps what it truly symbolises is your belief in your ability to figure things out, with the aid of rigour, no matter what. 

    Note to future self: everything will be okay in hindsight. 

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  • Lost In Life: “What Should I Do?”

    Lost In Life: “What Should I Do?”

    Quirkbag Collection #21 – 05.12.25

    I am now in a strange period of time before starting university. I have 9 free months in totality – almost a gap year – before school starts. From now, there’s 8 months left. 8 months is a lifetime back in JC or high school. Days felt so long back then. Yet as of late, I find myself thinking: ‘What should I do?’

    Nowadays, I am confronted by some of the bigger questions in life, the ones that school only mentions in passing before hustling you to the classroom for more lessons to pass your exams. 

    Do these sound familiar?

    ‘I don’t know what I really want to do.’

    ‘How will I make money in future?’ 

    ‘What should I do in this period of free time? I need to spend my time well now.’

    ‘What if I end up like those people hating their jobs?’ 

    ENOUGH! You’re asking the right questions, like I am, but asking them all at once is a successful way to be overwhelmed. The next thing you know, you’ll be crippled in bed by anxiety. 

    The To-Not List

    If you have things on your mind that you’d like to do, but have not come around to doing them (for all sorts of valid reasons you think you have), try NOT making a To-Do list. Yes, that’s right. Instead, make something like a To-Not list. 

    There is a suggestion attributed to Warren Buffett that you make a list of 25 things you would like to do, and circle the top 5. Place those 5 in another list, and instead of just focusing on those 5, you want to IGNORE entirely anything related to the 20 remaining things. 

    You might have come across this idea if you read some productivity/self-help book or watched some YouTube video. I learnt about this through “The 5 Types of Wealth” by Sahil Bloom, a book I recommend reading if you have the time to ponder about the bigger life questions. This book cuts through much of the modern BS we are accustomed to living in to unravel what truly matters to us. To you.  

    I struggled very much when deciding what to do for this period of time. I desperately wanted to ‘maximise’ this time. If you’re someone who constantly tries to optimise for productivity and performance, you’ll spend much time trying to squeeze in so many things you ‘want to do’ in this time. So much that it only satisfies your mind.

    In reality, at the end of the day, you inevitably think ‘I didn’t do as much as I thought I would’. And the cycle goes on. 

    An Idea To Try Random Things

    So, how do you overcome the “What should I do” obstacle? Well, I first discovered what this period of time is. Well, you can’t solve a problem you can’t define, right?

    Ali Abdaal introduced it to me as ‘liminal space’. And so began my marvelous idea of trying random things in exploration. 

    Since I did not really anything in mind to do, I decided that regardless of what I did, so long as they are new and different things, I’d always gain something from the experience. Even if it was just the experience itself. Sometimes, the experience and stories are worth the effort.

    You might think, “yeah, but I need to make money.” But unless the concern is so desperately urgent for today, consider how you actually have a lifetime to “earn money”; but you don’t have a lifetime of liminal space.

    You, and I, will never get this era of life back. Most of the “later” and “someday” never come. And that scares me. Sometimes this is how the ideas become regrets, and the only chance to prevent that is now. 

    What do you have for “Later” and “Someday”?

    Going for that summer beach trip with friends?

    Diving to see marine reefs?

    Reading that one book you keep thinking about?

    Failure Is The Bill For Learning

    There is no ‘life’ subject in school. You don’t learn how to live a life, because you can do it in so many ways. But growing up Asian, ‘successful life’, ‘good life’, and ‘the-only-acceptable-proper life’ always meant graduating university, getting a job, working at that job for decades and hopefully retiring to ‘enjoy the golden years’.

    Experiences and abstract notions like joy and happiness were conveniently omitted (for sound reasons, I am certain). After all, how can anyone define your happiness, right?

    You learn as you go, as I am now, through random experiences and actions. Sometimes I just want to stop doing everything and do absolutely nothing. And that’s perfectly fine. You just have to tolerate your brain pestering you endlessly with ‘be productive’ and ‘need to work’ like me.

    It’s a cruel mind game. You can’t win.

    In fact, you always lose. 

    An Excuse To Hide From Life

    It’s incredibly comfortable to do only familiar things for a long time. (Maybe that’s how some people work decades at the same job.) But if you are like me, 20, able to do and try anything, this is as much time freedom and empowerment you’ll ever get before the “life overhead” gets to you. 

    This is where your story truly begins, where your adventure takes off. Like every hero in the movie, you face a choice: do the hard, crazy and heroic thing or pretend like nothing happened, shy away and wind up living life like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day (another classic by the way). 

    Short of throwing caution out the window, just consider doing that one thing you’ve been curious about, or afraid to try. Because if failure is going to hurt you, the time it hurts least will be now, when you have nothing to lose. AT ALL. 

    Now, doing anything and failing the first time will suck, believe me because I tried. But you get to choose between giving up and trying again like that hero in the movie.

    But this is your movie. 

    So if you need a push, as Ali Abdaal says, ‘Do it for the plot.’ 

    Just Trying For Fun

    Liminal space is liberating. For me, I have never had this much time and freedom to try and learn and explore. Yes, it is fortunate. If this has not been enough to convince you to try something adventurous (and this could be going to the cinema alone, or riding a bicycle all day across town…), if it has not convinced you to do something incredible for yourself, to stack experiences, then maybe nothing will. 

    My first Jet-Ski ride, because there’s never a “good time” for this. And I am never regretting just trying this for fun.

    It was badass.

    A razor that I heard from Alex Hormozi: “Shame? Shame is your downside? …. You’re gonna die. And so are they.”

    So that scary thing at the back of your mind? Try it. Keep that experience. And live to fight another day.

    Some day you’ll either forget it ever happened or you’ll share the memories as you tell your stories. Either way, you lose nothing and gain everything. 

    “What should I do?”

    Why not start with that thing you’ve always wanted to try? You might never stop.

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  • Quest for Coffee (13) | How To Pour Latte Art: My Breakthrough

    Quest for Coffee (13) | How To Pour Latte Art: My Breakthrough

    Quest for Coffee (13) | How To Pour Latte Art: My Breakthrough

    It’s been a while since I got my hands on the espresso machine and coffee beans. But fear not, my coffee adventure continues no matter how bumpy the road. Pouring latte art has not gotten easier before my hiatus.

    But, I might have gotten better somehow. My breakthrough in latte art this week breathes progress in my mastery of latte art. 

    I know you want to see the picture right now, but it’s always good to have a little patience…most times. Particularly, this time. 

    Singaporean Cafes Set Misplaced Expectations

    You ever catch those “coffee photographers” in the cafe with their IPhones, snapping pictures of their latte which they have bought at least 10 times before? (Admittedly I have taken many such photos, but…with good reason! How else would I set a benchmark for myself?) 

    Something about that white foamy flower or heart continues to charm the coffee lovers. Or should I say latte art lovers. 

    If you have visited local cafes before, they do not serve terrible coffee with ugly white patches. Quite the contrary, I have not been served a cup of coffee in a cafe that is not topped off with a delicate heart or flower. It’s practically the norm to have some fancy milk painting on your coffee. 

    And that’s where the expectations have been set.

    We SHOULD see some attractive design on top of our coffee. Latte art SHOULD be a part of the coffee. It’s the “bare minimum” that we SHOULD get a heart. We expect some artistic flair from our baristas. But maybe these cafes have cued our misplaced expectations of coffee. 

    A Latte From A Cafe In Sweden; Fancy.
    Do you always expect this?

    What if there is no latte art? Would this make your coffee that much worse? 

    Afterall, we are not paying for some milk painting in a tiny cup. We’re getting coffee. And coffee, is exactly what you get. 

    The Cups of Art-less Coffee

    If I asked you right now what fancy latte art means to you, you might say “it looks nice”. More “sophisticated” coffee lovers would say “it adds to the coffee experience”. To be clear, this coffee experience would have nothing to do with taste. 

    If you drank coffee blindfolded, would you be able to differentiate the one with a design and one without? Surely not. The coffees are the same. 

    I can proclaim: I have now been served cups of coffee without latte art in cafes. 

    They do exist. And yes, that was the sound of the expectations being crushed. 

    My Latte Served Art-less, In Denmark
    Artistic ones might say random swirls are just as much art

    This was a Norweigian cafe experience. It was surprising and mildly disappointing, as any coffee lover pampered with the latte art expectations would feel. It does feel strange to not see something drawn on the surface, like it’s incomplete in itself as a “mere” cup of coffee. Yet it’s not. It is complete. 

    The cups of art-less coffees are as much coffees as any other. So that means, latte art is really a “cherry-on-top”. You might not get any design, but you might also get a giant, layered swan or a highly realistic rose. It’s a bonus that became the basic requirement.  

    Is This Encouragement Or Discouragement For Me?

    This is encouragement, without a doubt. It is evidence that a cup of coffee without some milk painting by a talented barista is just as valid a cup of coffee. Coffees can exist without fancy patterns of milk foam!  

    It also means, I am that much closer to mastering latte art in the “real world”. 

    Now, the breakthrough, as promised, is easy on the eyes and proof that even with the hiatus, skills can still be improved by the brain and executed through muscle memory. 

    My Own Latte Art Heart, Born 26 Nov 2025
    Just look at that “tail”

    The “tail” of the heart really amazed me. It has been one of the portions I could not pull off well. This was my first smooth “tail”. 

    For the past months, I learned by muddling through all my mistakes and trying to replicate whatever made the best milk patterns. It’s practically re-inventing the wheel. The finesse and control needed to form the thin white layers or lines, particularly with the bottom “tail” of any design, can only be learned by my “muddling”. There is simply no shortcut. 

    But now, knowing you can do it once, with more practice, you can do it again. That’s my hope and motivation, because I know it is very possible. 

    It CAN be done. 

    Here are some cool milk paintings (not done by me, yet…), for the eyes:

    Another Latte Served In Norway
    This reminds me of magnetic field lines, or an apple
    Rare Swan Sighting In A Restaurant At The Airport

    Next time you see a barista pulling off some fancy milk painting, remember not to take it for granted. You didn’t order a Van Gogh-in-milk.

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  • Customer Service Can Be Better

    Customer Service Can Be Better

    Quirkbag Collection #20 – 21.11.25

    It’s 3 degrees celsius in Denmark, and I walked into a gelato shop. Insane, yes. 

    There was the nicest middle-aged store owner who not only served wonderful gelato, he practically became our tour guide! 

    He was proud that tourists around the world visit Denmark, but humble to know that authenticity matters. Thoughtfully listing places we should visit and avoid for the best tourist experience, he charmed us with his genuine passion to create a better experience. 

    A cup of gelato set beside a small vase of flowers with a flamingo graffiti in the background wall
    Gelato from Denmark, with an amazing store owner.

    I mean, talk about serendipity, who could have planned this? Talking to a friendly local ice-cream store owner by chance just sounds like a Hallmark Christmas movie scene. 

    And this is the kind of feeling that we all need more frequently. We crave that warmth and hospitality, especially with customer service. We want that “they are so nice to us” experience even if it’s just an afternoon coffee. 

    The kindness and patience seem almost bizarre now in this “instant-economy” where we want everything right now in this moment (…or else!). We barely stop for conversation. Do you even care about the quality of the interaction when you buy that daily coffee?

    Or do you just “hustle-along” as quick as possible? 

    Singaporeans are not known for patience. But don’t you think we could all use additional kindness and patience? 

    Retail Customer Service

    “The customer is king”, they say. 

    Well, I don’t feel like a “king”, and I’ll venture a bet to say you don’t either. Retail customer service has hit a sort of slump. We no longer get the same next-door neighbour friendliness. We also don’t feel the same warmth anymore.

    It’s eerily transactional. 

    Especially after COVID, the need for retail customer service has declined sharply with the ingenious methods of scanning QR codes or ordering at digital kiosks. It’s meant to be efficient right? You get to order faster, they get to cook faster, you get the food faster, we’re all out the door before we know it. 

    An ordering kiosk placed in the middle of a room
    Look familiar? Just another machine to order food.

    But that wasn’t McDonalds’. Not even fast-food. And we’re sacrificing customer service and good old-fashioned service for “speed”, all while paying for an increasing service charge. 

    Surely it doesn’t take some luxurious fine-dining establishment for warmth and friendliness. (It takes a gelato shop, dude.) It does sound like the usual Singaporean’s complaints, but it’s also brutal reality. 

    There’s nothing against speed and automation today, but there’s everything for a better customer experience. And that’s inevitably going to need kindness and patience. Both as customers and service providers, we could all use some kindness and patience to boost our experience. 

    Oh and, whatever happened to that wide smile? You know the one you sometimes see on waiters’ faces when they serve you? I rarely see that now. 

    In fact, I see more frumpy and frowned faces. 

    “Hi hi” She Said, In Swedish

    Needless to say, I was caught off guard every time a waiter, cashier or employee greeted “Hi hi” when I walked in. Yes, “Hi hi”, she said, in Swedish. 

    With a smile. 

    It’s almost like they actually welcomed me? That’s customer service in Sweden (and Denmark and Norway). Practically every cafe, restaurant, shop or store (that was NOT fast food) did this. They then also made sure to check in on the dining experience mid-meal. 

    It felt unusual, and I didn’t understand why they were so nice. But no one ever complained about too much kindness. 

    So what’s the big deal then? The only difference (to me), but it’s a big one, between Scandinavian customer service and the Singaporean one is attention. 

    From a customer perspective, the key to improving customer service is, quite simply, attention to the customer. Slightly narcissistic, I realised, if you read that again.

    But it’s pretty hard to mess up as a waiter if you actually paid attention to the customer (barring exceptions, there are always a few) and genuinely helped to create a meaningful experience for them.

    As a customer, it’s easy to tell when customer service providers truly took the effort to make sure you feel heard and satisfied. Vice versa, it’s even easier to tell that they merely go through the motions. 

    But where then do we go wrong?

    Customer Service In General

    Customer service in general goes both ways, like a conversation. If the kindness or hospitality falls upon some customer having a bad day, it becomes exhausting for service providers. Anyone picking up customer support phone-calls would likely know. 

    It’s really tiring to stay upbeat when it seems no one appreciates the effort, and it wears you out slowly. Then the effort easily fades. 

    Cue the mediocre and lacklustre customer service!

    Don’t worry, Scandinavian service is not on a pedestal (although it’s quite high up). It’s also not a disparagement to Singapore. In fact, Singapore’s known to be a friendly place, especially for tourists. But we come with our own local quirks. 

    But in the nooks and crannies of my lovely city, whether it’s upcoming stores or old shops, we could all look to higher standards of customer service and remember that there’s only benefits to being kind as an individual, customer service or not, for everyone. 

    There’s always room for tradition and uniqueness when it comes to service locally. But surely that must not be an excuse for declining standards or a lack of warmth. 

    Take it from my favourite “essayist”: 

    “Kindness is costless but also priceless.”

    – Warren Buffett, 2025 Annual Thanksgiving Letter

    You can provide great customer service today, regardless if you are a waiter, cashier or otherwise. 

    Indeed, your customer service could be better, with just a dash of kindness and added attention.

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  • More Than A Holiday In Phuket

    More Than A Holiday In Phuket

    Quirkbag Collection #19 – 31.10.25

    More Than A Holiday In Phuket 

    I went to Phuket with two friends. In fact, I only returned yesterday. It’s been about two weeks since the grand finale of my military service (see here). This trip to Phuket was a celebration. It was an adventure I had with them. It was cartharsis and relief.

    But it also meant freedom and responsibility over our own time and activities. It felt like more than a holiday in Phuket. 

    Cue the plane ride. 

    A Surprise For Us

    The number of Thai nationals and Singaporeans visiting and returning from Phuket barely made up half of the plane’s capacity. The majority of the remainder were Europeans (with some Russians and Australians). That’s some 100+ Westerners on a plane with about 250 people.

    Fancy that. 

    It was so diverse, yet so homogeneous at the same time. 

    Even in Phuket, practically every other person we saw on the street was a foreigner. Most commonly, it’s someone speaking a foreign European language. (And being that Singaporean overseas, I had to play the guessing game of what language.) We were constantly reminded that this was a tourist vacation spot every few minutes. 

    I had expected for far less tourists considering the time of the year. Tourism comes in waves but I guess there is always water by the shore. If you were to visit Phuket, I’d suggest avoiding the monsoon season (it rained ⅔ of the trip), especially if you are a beach potato like me. 

    Still, better bring your sunblock along. Don’t let the Phuket cloudy day fool you.  

    The Most Touristy Thing

    Of course, any tourist would visit the usual sites, eat the well-rated food (with good reasons) and try the most common activities. Indeed, there are must-dos. And I did them. But there are also pretty mediocre tourist activities to avoid. 

    Let’s start with the obvious touristy things. You can fill in the blanks yourself here. 

    • Wat Chalong
    • Patong Beach Walking Street
    • Old Phuket Town (Flooded with European and few Asian tourists)

    A giant temple, in all its glory.

    A very crowded street, with a very busy road.

    One of the best decisions I made during this trip was choosing to ride a jet ski at ridiculous speeds. Gliding across the water at 70km/h with no brakes, the voice of fear and urge to stop only grows in tandem with the thrill in your blood.

    But it was an exhilarating 25 minutes. 

    My hands were shaking at the end after gripping the handles tightly against the waves. But I wouldn’t trade that experience back.  

    The most Tom Cruise moment I had

    An Unforgettable Experience 

    The best experiences, an unforgettable experience, come with a mix of fear, anxiety, satisfaction and thrill. But only if you overcome that mental hurdle and hesitation to make the unconventional or uncomfortable choice. It’s not easy. It’s your current self pulling you back into your comfort zone. But I am glad I took a step out. 

    There was a Muay Thai boxing match in a local stadium. It’s an obvious tourist attraction. Now, being me, an overcrowded boxing match is not my thing. I passed on this initially because I was quick to stay in my comfort zone. But I did go eventually. 


    On hindsight, I doubt it was ever a regrettable choice. In fact, I had every reason to see it (for your sake, I shall not be listing every reason). I had never seen a live boxing match before. It’s not a global stage, nor is it a national or regional one. It’s a local tourist stadium.

    Being in Phuket, with friends, with freedom of choice and a conveniently scheduled match displaying the local martial art was a sign. It was a subtle one. But there wasn’t a more authentic and unique experience to consider. 

    This was the “test”. That small crossroads that forces you to choose who you want to be more of.

    Would I choose to explore something new for the experience and story, or return to the usual type of activities I am all too familiar with when overseas?   

    I kept thinking about it. And it felt like a sign. So I decided to go. I have no regrets. 

    These moments are the ones where you pick to either continue living like your old self, or pick to create someone you want to be. Your ideal-self does not self-actualise. You create the person by becoming the person. It doesn’t happen overnight, and definitely not with a single choice. But it does happen over time, compounded by each and every choice. 

    The Closing of A Chapter

    The trip ended with a walk in the rain to the airport. But the end of this trip meant the end of a chapter in my life. This was more than a holiday in Phuket.

    It’s farewell to an old life, and to the people that I saw every day in that life. It’s an ode to the freedom I always looked forward to, but also a taste of the responsibility and empowerment that comes with it.

    We easily blame circumstances and a lack of freedom for not being who we want to be when it is really our own subconscious choices to stick with our old selves. There is an unspoken fear of change when the change involves our identity or personal lifestyle choices. 

    I love this frame from Alex Hormozi (his content truly consumes me more than I consume it):

    “The last chapter of our lives is already written. We die. And so you might as well fill the rest with epic stories of daring greatly and doing what you’ve always wanted to do until that day comes. Because we only really regret the things we never try.”

    It’s our choice to make when we have the free time to do the things we want to try but are too afraid to. It’s our choice to let another opportunity pass by. There aren’t any do-overs or re-rolls when it comes to time.

    Sunset over the horizon across the pool
    Vintage letters displayed in a vintage photo shop house

    Make the bold choice, try even if you fail, because if you live to tell the tale years later, even if it’s only to yourself, it would have been worth the moment of fear, anxiety or shame. 

    If not now, when? 

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  • Driving A Manual Car For The First Time

    Driving A Manual Car For The First Time

    Quirkbag Collection #18 – 24.10.25

    It’s drizzling. The carpark is gradually filled with random Singaporeans of varying ages all with the same purpose. They are here for a driving practical lesson. I was anxious. I was thinking about how this anxiety felt.

    “How hard can this be?”

    Driving a manual transmission car for the first time is hard. Duhhh. But here’s how you can make it easier for yourself. 

    Why Can’t You Just Drive Off?

    Driving a manual car means fiddling with a clutch and the gearbox. For my first lesson, this animated instructor said that ‘the clutch and the gearbox are brothers’ and they must work together.

    Yes, I got the point.

    But the big problem I faced, like many learners, is called ‘stalling’. This is when your car engine just gives up on you because of your absolute lack of skill. It’s telling you that you failed to control the clutch properly. 

    I stalled many times. In fact, I stalled more in my second lesson than my first. What a learning curve.

    Now I know you’d think ‘I’m different’. 

    You think ‘I won’t have that problem’. Let’s find out when you sit and step on the pedals. ‘Stalling’ is practically a rite of passage when learning. 

    So why can’t you just drive off easily when you drive a manual car for the first time? Well, now you know. It takes more than a strong leg and a fast gearshift when driving a manual car for the first time. 

    ‘Stalling’ Teaches You Something? 

    To fix this problem, the instructor told me to ‘love the clutch’. It meant to slowly and smoothly let the clutch pedal up instead of releasing my feet quickly, as is the usual instinct for beginners. 

    If you’re struggling with it, check out this British driving guy’s video below. Credit to my friend who shared this channel with me. 

    Credits: youtube.com/@ConquerDriving

    See more of his tutorials and guides here. His instructions and explanations can help make your learning curve gentler and far less confusing. And who doesn’t appreciate a British accent? 

    Finding the biting point first is universally correct. That’s the way the car works. So releasing the clutch slowly, while counter-intuitive, is the way to drive off. So I told myself to release it SLOWLY. 

    And your guess is correct….I did not. 

    Somehow that is not an immediate correction. Your body and mind will not cooperate as one in the first or second lesson. I proudly told myself to release the clutch slowly, and proceeded to stall many more times despite it. 

    You will keep ‘stalling’ over and over as a pattern until your leg masters the control and sensitivity of the pedal.

    But that’s normal. It’s called learning. 

    ‘Stalling’ taught me that practice is probably more useful than knowledge when driving a manual car for the first time. 

    Driving Is Fun…Right?

    Yes. Driving is fun when it is new, safe and interesting. (God forbid you drive like you’re playing Mario Kart. There aren’t any prizes here.) 

    Driving is one of those rites of passage that Singaporeans go through for some reason. It’s only getting more costly, but it is nonetheless popular.  

    As a passenger of a car practically flying at 100km/h on the highway, to drive at a ‘measly’ 10km/h in the training circuit feels awfully mundane. 

    Or that’s what I would have thought. 

    When you are driving a manual car for the first time, flustered with hands and legs all over the place and your mind unable to multi-task, 10km/h feels pretty damn fast. Driving is fun not because you get to drive like Lewis Hamilton, but because you get to think you can drive like him in a real car. 

    Learning to drive manual transmission cars forces you to learn the pace and pattern of the car. To ‘listen to the car’ as my instructor told me.

    True enough, let the car’s performance guide your steering and speed can help you grasp how to control it. It’s a practice of judgement. 

    Driving is fun when you learn to control the clutch.

    It’s fun when you learn to steer well and stop smoothly, like that chauffeur you had who was actually your sibling or parent. But it’s also fun when you pass the final Traffic Police test to get your license.

    I’ll leave that to a later date when I cross that bridge. 

    Have a Break

    Like a KitKat, have a break once in a while. It’s good advice when it comes to driving. But it also applies to life and work. I would also love a break from having such tough luck getting more driving practical lessons. Seriously, anyone taking practical lessons for driving would concur.

    Driving is such a rite of passage that I won’t be surprised if the proverbial passage is now clogged with people. 

    Nonetheless, I shall continue to learn driving, and like what Ed Sheeran sings, I’ll simply ‘pedal down and drive’. 

    Anyway, I recently took a trip down south to Australia. Let me tempt you with Kangaroos and Koalas here. You know you want to see them.

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  • My Milestone Trip To Australia

    My Milestone Trip To Australia

    Quirkbag Collection #17 – 17.10.25

    I’ve been to Australia 3 times in my life. Once as a baby, of which I have no recollection.

    Oops.

    The next was when I was a kid, which I remember sand-surfing and dolphin feeding. But this, my milestone trip to Australia, is the freshest impression I have of the land down south. 

    Now for context, this wasn’t a vacation. It was a predominantly work-related trip, during which one day was reserved for some classic Australian-type experience. The trip marks the end of my service to the military and this chapter of life. It has been a lifetime jammed into 22 months. A milestone in both my life and this chapter, it earned a mention in my adventurous blog. 

    But if you’re wondering…yes, there are kangaroos. And koalas. 

    The Plane Ride… to Australia

    Most people actively dislike plane rides. I absolutely enjoy the ride in the air. I had an empty 6h block of time when I could enjoy being present in the sky, travelling at 500km/h. And in-flight entertainment is always welcomed, even if the choices are ever so familiar. 

    Now I did catch ‘You’ve Got Mail’ for the first time on my departure. It wasn’t what I expected, but really, it’s a fun watch. (I slightly prefer ‘Sleepless In Seattle’…)  

    Most people also actively dislike airplane food. I think it’s a surprise to hear the menu when that once-elegant but currently scratched and janky mini-cart comes down the aisle. (It still pushes so smoothly though.) Usually, I’d go for something familiar-sounding, like ‘stewed beef‘ or a ‘western breakfast’. Anyone who has seen airplane food knows that there are fruits, bread, the main meal, and then the mystery item. That’s my favourite part. 

    The departure meal: 

    Airplane Breakfast
    Inside the Meal

    The Boring Work

    For the sake of my sanity and readership, I shall not be describing the boring work. I shall task you to imagine 17 days of complete work. Your imagination of the work is as accurate as I’ll ever describe it. Yes, work and work. 

    Was there any significant moment in the blur of 17 days?

    No…but yes. There was an occasional sunset (probably 2) that caught my eye as the sky faded into an enchanting blend of orange, pink and blue. 

    An honourable mention: breakfast in a canteen came with a choice of black coffee, milo and milk tea daily. Spoilt for choices here. 

    The Australian Adventure

    Now, the one day of ‘vacation’ would seem incredibly wasted without seeing some of those well-loved native animals. So here we go with the furry mammals: 

    Kangaroo I Met
    Koala I Met

    The Australian Adventure continues with the many wildlife creatures in the zoo. I also touched a snake, held a skink, and saw many peacocks, goats and ducks. Plenty of wildlife for a day. 

    Blue Tongue Skink
    Peacock at Rest
    A Curious Goat
    A Sneaky Snake

    I still cannot believe how many peacocks there are. They seem like rare pokemons to me. And yes, those peacocks really live up to expectations with their feathers. 

    It would be criminal not to try a steak in Australia, and I am certainly not wasting this opportunity to have a steak.  

    Some Australian Beef

    Thick steaks are just otherworldly compared to the local normal skinny steaks. And that mushroom sauce tasted of quality mushroom soup; it was pinnacle mushroom sauce. 

    No Confusion About Toilet Directions Here

    I do appreciate some good Australian farm humour there. 

    The smoothest gelato I have tried is undoubtedly this: 

    Smoothest Gelato At Gelatissimo

    It’s dangerously smooth because you’ll want another…after the fourth one. 

    Home Sweet Home

    October 15, 2025. 

    Now, I must reveal the mystery element in my airplane meal on the return trip from Australia. 

    Braised Beef with Coffee
    Having a Break

    Yes. It’s a kitkat. Not just the usual small one, but the generous bigger one! Fancy that. 

    It’s also fitting as it seems to tell me ‘have a break’ as if it knows I am returning from a milestone trip. 

    For those that actively dislike plane rides, where else can you find a view like this? 

    The Sunset From Above

    At some 60000 ft in the air, everything else really seems to fade away. And it’s you, your thoughts and the beautiful endless horizon you can only glimpse at from below. 

    It’s serene. 

    Being away from home for weeks can feel lonely once in a while. But some moments I’ve had on this trip with others showed me how absence can make the heart grow fonder. It adds a layer of depth to the gratitude and appreciation I have. The experience lasts a lifetime, and with it, this chapter comes to an end.

    They say a window opens when a door closes. 

    Another chapter would begin in due time (and I’ll probably add it into this blog as part of the adventure). 

    Until then, it’s home sweet home. 

    Home Sweet Home

    And go take more plane rides whenever possible.

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  • ‘The Librarians’ Opened My Imagination

    ‘The Librarians’ Opened My Imagination

    Quirkbag Collection #16 – 26.09.25

    It started as a movie starring Noah Wyle as the inconspicuously intelligent and charismatic Librarian. No, not the dull guardians of books from high school libraries. His role is to protect the world from the misuse of magic by finding and storing ancient magical relics inside a mythical library that exists separately from Earth’s dimension. Pretty cool stuff, I know. 

    “The Librarians” captivated me because of the adventure and lore it explored. They brought to life the stories of Old Kings and Gods, mixing myth and history. I couldn’t have been older than 13 when the show left its deep impression on me. They had a Minotaur and a flying Excalibur! (I am fully aware that may sound dorky.) But most importantly, the show led me to think and imagine greatly, to deeply visualise the stories and feel as the characters do. 

    For those who feel deterred by their dearth of knowledge about ancient relics and myths, fear not! The storyline is only partially driven by these details, and there is much more to the show. And maybe, it’s even more interesting to learn about them this way. The key to the show is its ability to incite thoughts of possibility and imagination around the everyday things we see and probe at your ‘reality’. The reason and emotions are real, even if the magic isn’t. 

    What if there’s a super squad of chosen individuals who secretly tread a line between our world and one of magic to ensure balance? Just imagine. 

    The Next Chapter. Literally. 

    “The Librarians: The Next Chapter”, a sequel to the original movie and TV series, was released a few months ago. And yes, nostalgia hit me in the face.

    That was very hard to ignore. It brought back all the good times I had, or as people like to say, ‘when times were simpler’.

    Indeed it was. 

    A 13 year old me, or younger, was bestowed with the idea of adventure after watching the show. An idea that has since grown subconsciously into a subtle urge. I had that feeling in my gut, that creeping urge to live and work for adventure to ‘save the world’. Of course, there is no Librarian job that keeps the peace in the world (or is there?). But we can all dream.

    No one grew up wanting to be just a keeper of old books in a school or public library (even enigmatic architecture has limits right?) and that’s what made the idea of such a job so enticing to me. More than that, it’s that idea of adventure, seeking what the world has to offer for good, and giving back to it. Seeing the new sequel reminded me of the same ideals that the original series introduced. That familiar friendship between strangers, the loyalty that grows, the becoming of an ordinary person into a Librarian.

    When the new faces were introduced, it felt like the first episode of the original series again. But, as many fans do, I miss the old team, nonetheless, so the Jacob Stone cameo with dear Excalibur was a delight. The writers probably knew they had to include them or else it just wouldn’t feel right. But having Jacob act now as the mentor that Flynn once was made an endearing full-circle moment.

    What “The Librarians” Really Means To Me

    I really enjoy and love the magical aspects of the show. From visiting Shakespeare to seeing the Loom of Fate and finding the Sword in the Stone, the epic adventures are poignantly thrilling. Emphasis on poignant. Yes, you might be familiar with this literary term. 

    The poignant theme treads consistently across the seasons as the team faces troubles and hardship. The tough times are exactly what I think elevates the show from a simple tale of heroism to one about strongly bonded guardians of magic. 

    The connection (ahem love interest) between Flynn and Eve has always been hinted at from the start, developed rather awkwardly and hilariously over the episodes. There’s something cathartic about seeing their love stand the test of life (and magic) and blossom as the outcome, rather than simply that it exists from the start. They were two similarly lonesome individuals, great at their jobs, being brought together by the Library. 

    Having been on their many adventures as an audience, and relating to their situations, I see “The Librarians” as a story to imbue the virtues of courage and faith: courage to right the wrongs in the present for a greater good and faith that what we cannot control is not always to our detriment. Any audience can benefit from the virtues and stories told throughout the seasons, the same way I have. Taking in these lessons, apart from the fun of the show, would help guide young minds toward serving the right cause. At least I can imagine it does.

    The Final Chapter

    It’s a tough and possibly lonely job as a Librarian (both the mythical and practical one) as we learn from Flynn in the early movies. Even Vikram Chamberlain, the Rogue Librarian, says it is ‘ a lifetime of mystery and misery, of loneliness and adventure, but most of all, a chance to make a difference’ in the season 1 finale of the sequel. This is all but what one needs to understand of the primary job as a Librarian. And for some, it is a lifetime well spent. 

    Imagine, as I had, if you could pepper your life with the same adventure, perhaps not while saving the world from magic, but with a job in which you see purpose. What would that be?

    Imagine the possibilities of your life, if well dedicated.

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  • Lost In Life: My Lessons From Books

    Lost In Life: My Lessons From Books

    Quirkbag Collection #15 – 19.09.25

    I am officially lost in my life. It was my suspicion, now it’s confirmed. I don’t know what I want to do or where I want to go. But it’s not entirely a bad thing. At least that’s what Jerry Seinfeld assures me. 

    Our search for purpose and goals in life is just about as common as cars with wheels (even Doc’s flying DeLorean had wheels). This simply means that we desire something more than what we have, to become greater than we are now. Being lost in life sparked a curiosity that drove me down a rabbit hole. I got into business and self-development books over many months seeking wisdom, knowledge and philosophies of life. So this is like my culmination of it all. 

    This is not going to be like those ‘advice’ videos on YouTube, because I am just like you, stumbling my way through time. And also because there’s so many of those. 

    Here’s a quick chart of what I have read about: 

    My Life Today (for interested people) 

    After Junior College, I enlisted in the military. Today, my time in service is coming to an end, a slow and bitter end. But, nonetheless, an end I have anticipated for as long as I remember. Ironically, it’s not the end that I think about now, but the start of literally everything else after that. 

    It’s so easy to hide yourself in the excuse of ‘I am getting through (phase of life). I’ll start doing (project) after this.’ as though life is currently on pause. 

    Surprise: it’s not! As much as we delude ourselves into thinking something is just in the way of our real lives, it is our lives. But it’s the way we are taught, moving from primary school, to secondary school, to pre-university and then university itself. Everything is a means to an end. To the future ‘life’. 

    Introducing…the Arrival Fallacy. It’s something I learnt from Ali Abdaal (he’s such a mentor figure, check him out!)

    Credits: Ali Abdaal (https://www.youtube.com/@aliabdaal)

    So this search for purpose and clarity in life is like a can of worms because now I can’t un-know certain truths. And the more I read and learn, the more there is to know and learn.

    But at some point, I just have to start living. Everyone does. And that’s the trick, starting and doing it before you think you are truly ready because you never will be.

    Behind The Illusion of Wealth

    One of the best books I have read on creating wealth is ‘The Millionaire Fastlane’ by MJ DeMarco. And I don’t mean just hiding behind the illusion of wealth. There’s many types of wealth, yes, but for the most part, to create financial freedom, I have learnt the most from his book. 

    He described the reality of education systems and modern work culture so sharply that I cannot help but feel chills in my bones. It’s a bleak future. But he offers the perspective that many people search for, an escape. But there’s a price. 

    Knowing the price of the escape made me understand why it’s easy to follow the crowd and find the illusion of wealth instead. It takes willingness to fail indefinitely, to be mocked, to be afraid, to risk what we presently have and these go against everything we have been taught. 

    Success and greatness in financial wealth comes not from doing what everyone else does. And that’s the scary part. We rather extinguish the sparks of a dream than face the demons and monsters along that path. That’s the fundamental lesson from the books. And once I know it, I can’t unknow it.

    If you have a goal, a dream, then knowing what it takes to get there means that every choice is either one step toward slaying the monsters or running the other way. 

    I don’t doubt you can achieve that lofty financial goal, so long as you really want it and commit to find out just how far you can go. Otherwise, ‘wealth’ is just an ideal. 

    Alex Hormozi says it here with much more punch. 

    Productivity vs Busy 

    Productivity is yet another myth debunked by books like ‘Four Thousand Weeks’ by Oliver Burkeman and ‘Slow Productivity’ by Cal Newport. Honestly, you don’t need many other productivity books because these share all that is worth knowing. We often shy away from the ‘Productivity vs Busy’ comparison. Because it is uncomfortable and not very ‘mainstream’. 

    Being lost in life is easily attributed to busy schedules at work. Your boss pays you to work (physical action, physical output) and feels uneasy when you internalise or think for extended periods (mental action, no output). Everything needs to be fast. Who cares about being intentional and deliberate in creating quality work? 

    It takes boredom and quiet pockets of time to really let our minds work, to maximise our brainpower. Thanks to modern technology, extensive digital interruption disrupts that process. Get back to it, listening to the quiet inner voice. Don’t worry so much about replying emails after emails without really moving the needle where it matters. 

    My discovery of this concept affirms that great work is done with great effort, energy and time, and often after many repetitions and failures. It is impossible to fail if you have one goal and a relentless pursuit toward it, no matter what it costs in time, energy and effort. That’s true productivity: moving the needle where it matters. 

    Happiness Is Real?

    Happiness, like gratitude and success, is not a ‘to-do’. It also can’t really be one. What even is happiness? It’s not joy, not pleasure and certainly not an end. You don’t become ‘happy’ after doing something, at least that’s what the books find, but it sort of sneaks in when you least expect it. Just like you can’t force an emotion, you just feel it. You can be happy, you can’t do happy. 

    Those who constantly chase after success or happiness, being the elusive phenomena they are, don’t really get it.

    Well, life is quite funny sometimes. 

    I cannot say I am ‘happy’, because I am discovering my definition of it. If you can, that’s great. Because now, when it comes along, you would know it. Happiness is, and always has been, such a human desire. One day, through some experience or realisation, I hope to discover true happiness, not the many fake ideals that falsely promise ‘happiness’. 

    Being lost in life places a new lens on the way I judge emotions. In school, I felt little else but the need to study. The hectic days compress time from months to weeks and weeks to days, with most days being rather identical anyway.

    I am in a phase now, called ‘Liminal Space’, between periods of life where I get a ‘reset’ in perspective. It forces me to take stock of life, see life for what it is and not what the school or system taught it to be. Happiness was not found in this awkward gap in time, but it’s where I began to learn about it.

    Happiness is worth thinking about, take a break from emails. You keep looking into the future for what’s next and soon the answer is the grave. 

    The Messy Thing Called ‘Life’ 

    Life is messy. There’s too many things you cannot control. But there’s everything you can choose to do. Napoleon Hill’s ‘Think and Grow Rich’ is a book like blue cheese, it either divides or unites. Some say it’s the best book on success, some say it’s just scant philosophy. 

    Personally, it’s as ‘science-y’ as you can expect for a formula to be successful in life. Life is not perfect math, so why would the formula be perfect? The more digestible version of the book’s concepts is found in ‘Napoleon Hill’s Best Speeches’. Whether you find it practical, it is food for thought. Thank me later. 😬

    Being lost in life, searching for my ‘calling’ (as cringe-y as that is), means trying and testing new and random things. And that has been fruitful across the months as I have read the best advice and lessons from books. Life is an adventure that no one tells you to try and enjoy. They tell you to ‘get in the hole’ and carry on with life. 

    Oh don’t worry, life will carry on, no matter what you do. So if you are like me, meeting life at the first of many major crossroads, learn from others and look ahead at where you are going, then choose your next step, one at a time. It’s scary to face infinite possibilities. Especially when it can change your life. But there is no hero and story without an origin and monsters. 

    Despite being lost in life, I thank William Henley: 

    “I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul”

    – Invictus, William Ernest Henley

    But To Be Clear…

    But to be clear, this is not a recipe for a wonderful, smooth and incredible life. If anything, it’s a hint at a tough, bumpy road toward a good life. I always remember this quote, again, from a bulldozer of an entrepreneur: 

    ‘Just like we measure the quality of a blacksmith by the strength of his steel, I measure you by what you are at the end, not the fire and hammer it took to make you.’ 

    Credits: Alex Hormozi (https://www.youtube.com/@AlexHormozi)

    I have written what I have thought. You will find that there is no step-by-step guide. These are books I have read that I find valuable and inspiring to break free from the system which brings people to ‘live the same 6 months’ for 40 years of their career with unfulfilled souls. In fulfilling a soul, I know it is worth trying and failing every once in a while. 

    I have included a list of books I find worth reading. They are at the end, because knowing the titles first can be distracting. I know very few people would bother reading them because they are ‘boring’ or not for an exam. But after all, it’s just your future at hand here. 

    For good measure, why not have one more quote? This one, I find incredibly timeless. 

    “If we are related, we shall meet.”

    – Ralph Waldo Emerson

    And if I may say so, through these paragraphs, we have met. Being lost in life is not all bad. In fact, it’s pretty good. Because for once, you get to pick your direction ahead. 

    If you have made it this far, thanks for reading. 

    Random list of well-arranged words that made invaluable books, which I recommend: 

    • Four Thousand Weeks (Oliver Burkeman)
    • Deep Work (Cal Newport)
    • Slow Productivity (Cal Newport)
    • The Millionaire Fastlane (MJ DeMarco)
    • Napoleon Hill’s Greatest Speeches (Napoleon Hill) 
    • Think and Grow Rich (Napoleon Hill)
    • 100M Offers (Alex Hormozi)

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