Unpacking 'The Overachieving Asian'
‘Overachievement’ - achieving superior results through excessive effort.
Asians are historically known for their great work ethic and commitment to results - but it has come at a cost: Asians across the world have reported higher levels of stress and burnout, with these numbers increasing rapidly during the pandemic. To the average Asian executive, ‘slowing down’ often seems like an esoteric luxury that they can’t afford - a narrative that needs to change.
During our talk, ‘Unpacking The Overachieving Asian’, our panellists, Jeraldine Phneah (Account Executive at Spot by NetApp), Asnawi Jufrie (General Manager, SeekFlow) and Audrey Tan (Career Advisor, National University of Singapore) unpacked the concept of ‘overachievement’ from an Asian perspective.
Here’s a roundup of the important lessons based on the discussion:
1. Achievement is subjective.
From the start, each panellist emphasised the importance of defining success on your own terms. In particular, Jeraldine highlighted how the ‘conventional definition’ of success has changed, citing the disconnect between the emphasis on ‘STEM’ fields in our education systems and the variety of opportunities and skills available in today’s economy.
In the beginning, each panellist outlined their conception of ‘overachievement’, and it was interesting to hear how different each person’s perspective was. Asnawi emphasised the importance he places on filial piety when it comes to his sense of achievement. He also highlighted how his parent’s sacrifices have served as a constant source of inspiration for his success and his dedication to making ‘the little things’ count.
Meanwhile, Jeraldine talked about the importance she places on ‘winning’ in her life. Jeraldine described how her sense of achievement was innate and on her own terms. One example she gave was how the freedom her parents gave her in academic and career pursuits has enabled her to flourish in a variety of realms ranging from a content creator to a sales executive.
Audrey shared the presence of ‘scarcity mindset’, and how it has encouraged her to constantly strive for improvements in all aspects of her professional and personal pursuits.
2. Achievement is influenced by your environment
When asked about where their inspiration for achievement comes from, each panellist highlighted the unique influence of their personal and professional experiences.
Jeraldine provided an interesting definition of how her conception of achievement has changed over the course of her life. She highlighted how an individual’s environment determines the ‘currency’ of achievement. For example, grades serve as a determinant for achievement in school, internships are often a marker in university, and salary can serve as a status reminder at work.
Asnawi cited the influence of living as a ‘minority’ in Singapore, and how it had a ‘chip on your shoulder’ effect in his pursuit of success. Most notably, Asnawi cited how this experience inspired him to be a perfectionist - constantly striving for greater heights regardless of his background and experiences.
Meanwhile, Audrey provided a different perspective, citing how the vast majority of knowledge workers and students feel stressed by their environment. In particular, she noted how more students have an unhealthy obsession with grades - a common issue she’s seen in her work as a career coach at NUS.
3. Leveraging your strengths is important to attaining achievement
Each speaker highlighted the evolving definition of achievement and how unique its definition can be in the world we live in today. Asnawi shared how the Gallup StrengthsFinder exercise he took in university helped him realise the importance of playing to your strengths to stand out rather than pursuing society’s notion of ‘valuable skills’. He talked about how this experience changed his perspective on his career paths and the success he has since achieved from taking the path less travelled in his career.
These views were echoed by Jeraldine, who shared the insecurities she faced as a result of being better at humanities subjects as opposed to STEM subjects. At the same time, the success she attained in her first role as a Business Development Representative in Euromonitor was actually a result of tapping on the skills she learned from her humanities background. This changed her definition of how success is achieved.
Audrey provided a similar perspective, albeit from a birds-eye view, citing the importance of finding your own narrative of success and ‘hypotheses testing’ to attain your desired outcome.
The world we live in today is more diverse than ever before - opportunities and skills are limitless. In this talk, we’ve learnt the importance of defining success on your own terms. We’ve also learned how pursuing success mindfully can help all of us regulate our relationships with achievement.
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