The 5 S of Our Lives

I attended a talk by Dr. Andrew Goh (an NTU prof) on a topic very dear to me - "What do you want out of your life?".

I love it when he simplified how people would answer the following question:-
"How's Life?"

There are basically 5 possible answers (or in any other form but within the same context of the 5). They're the 5 S. Starting at the lowest level...

5. Struggling
We live our life struggling through our daily activities, earning.. well... not enough to feed ourselves and family. Plenty of hardships. People from all levels can be in this stage including managers who earn well over $10k/month. E.g. Earn $10k, spend $11k or maybe working in an environment that blocks one's growth... This answer is quite common.

4. Surviving
This is the MOST common answer I hear among friends. I had a wide grin hearing this answer as it was something I could relate to. In financial terms, this could mean you just earn enough to cover your financial burden (guess that's why this answer is very common among fresh grads - earning their starting pay but have to pay off loans, etc... leaving them with 0 balance every month.)

3. Stabilising
Well, I haven't heard anyone use this term specifically... Too formal. I guess it's relative would be "Ok lor", "Good", "Fine". This one also quite common to hear. This is a stage of our lives where things are abit more stable. No need to worry too much about finances as you have extra coming in but at the same time, there are unknown events that can still tear you down to S4 or S5 (e.g. retrenchment).

2. Succeeding
Again, don't hear anyone use this before... Something similar? Probably... I have not really interviewed a succeeding person. Hmmm... was around some succeeding people but... hmmm... I'm at a loss for words. This is quite interesting. There's definitely a meaning behind this for myself. Anyway, succeeding is a good stage, alot of those that I met in this stage look quite happy. However, not all are. In terms of financial independence, most of them have it. Tony Robbins mentioned that we humans have 6 basic needs, the first 4 needs can be easily be satisfied by superficial things including drinking, smoking, etc (that's why we have heard stories of some rich people cheating on their wife? It's just that something is empty inside...). One may be financially free but can still be empty... which is why the final S...

1. SIGNIFICANCE
Leaving a positive legacy/mark in other people's life....... be it your family, friends, strangers, etc. Doing work where your full potential is utilised. I am unable to fully describe this but personally, it is something that I feel deep inside my heart. I used to think I should chase money, interestingly, after seeking the masters who have "been there, done that", I realised it isn't right. The more I chase it, the more elusive it is. Instead, focus on the fundamentals - leading a significant life will naturally bring money... the more significant, the more income. At the moment, this is just a theory/plan that I strongly agree.


"You can get anything you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want." ~ Zig Ziglar

"There is no shortcut to any place worth going" ~ Anonymous