Vincent is a believer in new experiences and includes them wherever he can in his life. The 60-year-old left his comfortable job in civil service in search of this, and has worked in both the public and private sectors including the hotel industry. He currently is in charge of the operations for a mini-mart in Tampines after shutting down his fashion business due to financial and operational problems. However, he is always on the lookout for other businesses that he can do.
Through his years working, he feels more should be done to integrate seniors and youths in the workplace. “In Singapore, we are focusing too much on workfare, and not welfare. The younger generation has good and creative ideas, but they are moving too fast. On the other hand, the older generation has great experiences, yet they might be less open to new ideas. We need to bridge this gap as both play a part in nation-building.” The father of two sees hope in the younger generation and he believes they can work with the older generation to change mindsets and have better understanding of each other. He advised seniors to “stay relevant”. For him, he once took up a four-day Web design course to satisfy his curiosity. “I just wanted to learn about Web design. But I found out that I could only absorb 60 to 70 percent of the content.” Hence, Vincent took the learning back home to explore the topic at his own pace. He encourages all seniors to do the same. |