I just completed Malcom Gladwell’s book, Outliers.
It is an insightful look into how success occurs and it started me thinking about Singapore.
With the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, we can identify the elements contributing to success.
As mentioned before, Singapore has had the benefit of many advantages. Which still hold true today.
I would put forward that 3 necessary elements of success in the coming new-media economy are , Connectivity, Convergence and Engagement.
In Singapore,
- We are Connected – We have the advantage of being small, and therefore, it is easy to get connected. As our fiber infrastructure is rolled out, we will soon have almost instant connectivity islandwide.
- We are a Confluence(converged) – We are a geographical, cultural, economic of many different ideologies. This convergence means that young Singaporeans grow up as global citizens, adaptable and able to embrace changes. The melting pot of cultures in Singapore is much like the massive cauldron that is the internet. This allows most Singaporeans to put in their 10,000 hours in international internet relations , becoming experts at a young age.
- We enable Engagement – We are geographically small and culturally connected this enables a large amount of engagement to occur. It is fine to connect through the internet but the ability to just meet and generate buzz around a physical group of individuals is still where magic happens and it is easy in Singapore.
This world is increasingly becoming Newer, Shinier, Flatter and Smaller and in Singapore, is newer-e, Shinier-er, Flatter-er and smaller-er than most.
The best thing is, it hasnt happened yet but it will soon.
Im just happy to ride the wave.