My Valedictory Speech at NTU Convocation 2019: 3 Learning Points from My NTU Journey

Posted on 20 August 2019

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After 3 years of hard work, I finally graduated from @Nanyang Technological University with a Bachelor of Business (Specialisation in Banking & Finance). I also had the honour to represent the graduating cohort as the Valedictorian to deliver the valedictory speech. A few of my friends have requested for me to share the transcript so I thought I share it across here for the benefit of my LinkedIn community as well. I hope my journey in NTU can inspire you today.

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The recording of the actual speech is available here from 1:27:29 mark.

 

Transcript

Professor Tan, Member of the University Board of Trustees, Distinguished Guests, Fellow Graduates, Ladies and Gentlemen, a very warm welcome to the convocation ceremony of graduating batch of 2019.

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I am Zhong Liang, and I am deeply honoured and humbled to be representing the cohort as the valedictorian to deliver the valedictory speech, which marks the end of not just today’s ceremony but also the end of our long journey in NTU. Firstly, to all my fellow graduates, congratulations. We finally did it. Please give a round of applause for yourself.

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Going 3 months back, when I was entrusted with this task, I had a hard time trying to craft the content of the speech, After a long deliberation, seeing that all of us here are going to step into the society after graduation, I thought it would be beneficial to share a few learning points away from my personal journey.

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Entering Nanyang Business School had always been the goal for me in my Junior College days. However, things don’t always go your way. I didn’t do very well in the A-Levels and missed the cutoff point for NBS. Even so, I still went ahead to apply to NBS. After several attempts in three years, I was still without a placing. I decided to give it one last shot and wrote an email to the associate dean with my personal statement and testimonials. The rest is history. I am glad I didn’t give up then. Otherwise, I would not have been able to receive such an excellent education from NTU. And that is the first learning point I hope to share. We should never stop trying so we don’t have any regrets in our lives.

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My spot in NBS had not come easily, so I was determined to make good use of my 3 years here. I believe all of you still have vivid memories of your orientation camp. Those 2 weeks of fun passed by in a flash. I stepped up into leadership roles in various committees and took on added responsibilities on top of my study workload. Time flew. Before I knew it, I was mugging day and night at the Free Access Lab in the hope of surviving the tyranny of the bell curve god. Year 2 was even crazier. I ran for the post of President of Hall of Residence 9 and was an active council member of the Students’ Union. On top of that, there was the added pressure of finding an internship to fulfil the professional attachment requirement. Despite having lesser “Me” time, I never once regretted my decision to be involved in all these various co-curricular activities. In fact, I am thankful for these opportunities which shaped me to become who I am today. This is the second learning point I would like to share. We should not be afraid of stepping out of our comfort zones and should cherish every opportunity that presents itself as such opportunities may not come knocking twice.

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Year 3 was a year of discovery for me. I discovered my future career. I also discovered the incredible wonders of the world during my exchange programme. Most importantly, I discovered how much I was going to miss the time in NTU. That brings me to the last learning point. There are many things to take away from your 3-4 years in NTU. However, to me, the most important takeaways are the friendships that we forged and the memories that we created. Cherish those friendships and treasure those memories even as all of us part ways and venture into our respective domains.

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I know I am by no means qualified to offer advice, but I do hope you find one or two useful pointers from my sharing. As we step out into the working world as a fresh graduate, some of you might be apprehensive, some of you might be excited, and some of you might be worried. Regardless, I am sure we will all be just fine if we keep the aforementioned three points in mind.

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Next, please allow me to be selfish and take a few seconds to thank the important people in my life. 父恩比山高母恩比海深。爸爸妈妈， 谢谢你们对我这几十年的栽培，以及你们所给予的关怀。(Firstly, Dad and Mum, Thank you for your care and concern for the past 24 years of my life.) Thank you to the rest of my family members as well for your continuous care and support over the years.

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To all my bros (Legend 7, Champion Team, Spoilt Market Group), orientation campmates (Sports Camp, Colour Splash, Hall 9 FOP), hall 9 neighbors (especially 23rd JCRC & 24th JCRC), friends and acquaintances, thank you for entering into my life and making it so much more vibrant and exciting. The memories we shared will always remain close to my heart.

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Since we are on the topic of expressing gratitude, I would like to invite all of you to give a round of applause to our dedicated professors for their passionate teachings and guidance in our 3-4 years of university education.

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Let’s not forget our loved ones for their unwavering support for us. Can I invite all of you to please rise, turn around and give a big round of applause to your loved ones at the back of the auditorium. Thank you, fellow graduands. Please be seated.

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I am coming to the end of my speech, which not only means that we are one step closer to the buffet line, but also signifies that we are concluding a chapter in our lives. I sincerely believe the school has prepared us well for the outside world. It is now time for us to go forth and write our own stories in the next chapter.

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Graduating batch of 2019, I wish you all the best in your future endeavours and see you out there in the working world.

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*This post is also shared on my Linkedin page.

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China (Shenzhen): A Country to be Reckon With

Posted on 6 July 2019

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What was your first impression of Shenzhen?

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This is the question posed to me by one of the Didi ChuXing drivers when I visited Shenzhen with my friend last week. My reply was that Shenzhen is more developed than I thought. In fact, it’s more mature than Singapore in some areas (Cashless payment, AR Code, Wireless Charging, Electric Car).

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Indeed Shenzhen has grown tremendously in the past decade. China has risen to one of the superpowers in the world - even Donald Trump is afraid of that. As such, it is vital for us to be aware of the bountiful opportunities in China and to also grab hold of them if possible. Secondly, it’s also a reminder to us to continue improving if not we will soon be eliminated by our ever-hungry competitors. Lastly, mastery of business chinese, not just conversational chinese, is going to the crux to unlocking the gateway to China.

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This trip has been an eye-opener for me and I will definitely be back for more exploring in the near future.

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hashtag#china hashtag#growth hashtag#globalcitizen hashtag#traveller

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*This post is also shared on my Linkedin page.

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It's Better to Have an Impossible Dream than No Dream at All

Posted on 20 December 2018

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I am sure you have some friends around you who are crazily passionate about something. Yet how many actually do something about it? Even if they do, how many actually follow through with it? I am sure there is not many. Six farmers in China managed to do both of them.

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It first started off with a dream to fly an aeroplane. When Zhu Yue realised that is not possible, he decided to go with the next best alternative: Building an Airbus A320. After one year of hard work, they are almost completed with their project and just one step away from their dream. This is definitely not easy for a farmer with only primary school education. However, his perseverance led him to continually pursue his dream and that is the main factor of his success.

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The moral of the story here is to never stop dreaming and keep chasing them. Having a dream gives you a direction in life. With a clear purpose, one can devise a plan and strut towards it. Reality might be able to stop you from fulfilling your goal but it can never stop you from having other goals. If the first goal is not viable, have a second one. If the second one doesn't work out, think of a third one. Continue dreaming and one day you might just find yourself one step away from your dream just like Zhu Yue.

Lastly, I would like to quote a sentence from Zhu Yue, it's better to have an impossible dream than no dream at all.

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Reference article: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-aviation-model/chinese-aviation-buff-builds-full-scale-airbus-replica-idUSKBN1HH1L

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*This post is also shared on my Linkedin page.