In two months or so, I will be in some part of California, settling down and wait for my PhD to start in late Sept. Why do I want to leave Singapore now? That my career is kicking off, bought a house, and everything seem to be settling down? Its tough to fly to another country and settle there for a while. There are new people, new environment, and way of life to adapt to. USA is great, or so say many people who went over for holiday. Miss home its, for those who went for work. Great working environment it is, as far as I can tell from my one year stint in Minneapolis. Living environment is marked by serious wealth and poverty gap.
I like to see things from a long term perspectives. Decisions made by such is more sustainable. Giving the work environment within the research industry, its almost crippling for a serious researcher not to have a PhD. Say you just bought a house and is looking for a renovation contractor. You have not done it before and is not even sure what to look out for. Would you approach Uncle Lim who worked in this line for past 10 years, but doesn't speak English, have no shop front, couldn't produce a breakdown and quotation, and doesn't even know how much its going to cost. Or Sanders Design, who's boss is a well dressed yuppie, speaks excellent English, breaks down the cost nicely, although a bit pricey, and seem to have done a lot of work, and has a nice office with show room?
Customers who look to answer a research question, especially those not in the same field, look for PhDs and professors for advice. Consultants doesn't seem very popular in Singapore. I guess the number of freshouts working in prominent consulting companies have some impact. While I always say that when hiring a consultant, look at their resume, not the company they work for, it takes a trained eye to spot the difference.
What to do? As a Chinese saying goes, 'Ten years of window chill.' Now the hardwork to get some name, fame, and a little deeper in thoughts.
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