Before deciding on the course to apply to for my masters course, I had read many books about drive, motivation, deriving happiness and purpose in life, and understanding one’s personality and strengths. I even went online and paid for a more in-depth analysis of my personality through taking an online MYER-BRIGGS test. The latter gave me a better idea of the occupations that were more suited to my personality and sources of motivation. One was ‘farmer’,  which is something I think I’d like but only if it’s for self-sustenance and I have other sources of income!

I wanted my masters course to take me in a direction where I could do work in which I could see myself doing for a long time. Although many people I know or meet often sigh and say that to them ‘work is just work’, I don’t want to feel like that. I want to be able to say I love doing what I do for a living. I want what I do to hold some meaning for me and not see it purely as a means to an end, i.e. put food on the table and a roof over my head.

Some questions in the books which I made myself think about were:

1. What do I envy?
2. What do I want?
3. Where am I happiest?
4. Where do you want to live?

I envy people who can say they love what they do. That doesn’t mean work is always smooth sailing or easy. I’m aware that work is almost always fraught with some difficulty or another. Despite that, these people continue doing it because of the satisfaction they gain from resolving these tricky situations. I want that for myself. I envy people who are happily married with a family of their own. However, this is a situation I can’t control so will just leave it. I am happiest when I’m out in nature, whether it’s at the beach, sea, in the hills, soaking in rock pools and waterfalls etc. I like being outdoors and not cooped up in an air conditioned office. While I know it’s difficult not to have to be in an office in our modern day jobs, I want some part of my work to be able to take me outdoors. I want to live in a place that has lots of green spaces, nature, is close to the sea, and has a lower population density than Singapore and Hong Kong. Although I’ve always lived in cities, I’m more of a suburbanite. I like places with open spaces and fewer people, yet don’t want to be too far from modern conveniences.  

 After a lot of reading, deep thinking and introspection, I now have a better idea of where I want to be but haven’t quite worked out the specifics of how to get there. The journey will be another adventure I guess!