|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dear Friends and Partners of Honour (Singapore),
I am sorry that this letter is coming to you a few days late. This is because I have decided to change the format of the letter to not only update you on our ongoing activities, but also offer comment on recent developments which show honour working out in the wider world. I hope this will help us all think further about how to translate our convictions about honour into actions in work and life, and in that way encourage others in their walk.
But let me start my thanking you most heartily for your unwavering support and encouragement as we persevere in promoting a culture of honour and acting honourably for the well-being of Singapore and Singaporeans.
|
|
|
|
HONOUR IN WORK AND LIFE |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Singapore has been commemorating the 100th anniversary of the birth of our founding Prime Minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew. While Mr Lee had passed away 8 years ago, his legacy of a successful and forward-looking Singapore lives on.
Honour (Singapore) was founded more than 9 years ago based on his two fundamental principles for the survivability of Singapore. First, we are a people and a government who can be trusted to deliver on our promises, we Honour Our Word, and in that way attract foreign investment and tourists to our shores. And second, we are a society and a nation who accept our diversity in race and religion, and seek to integrate our talents and capabilities to achieve that unity in diversity which yields the peace, progress and security which we all enjoy, we Honour Each Other. |
|
|
|
| President Tharman Shanmugaratnam |
|
|
Singapore elected Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam as its new President on 2 September 2023. He had campaigned on the platform of “Respect for All”, a call for us to think of others, to treat each other well, to accept one another and make space for each other in all our diversity of race and religion, talents and abilities. We are glad that President Tharman had chosen a theme of togetherness to mark his representation of Singapore. We wish him and his family good health and every success in his endeavours to emphasise unity of purpose and respect for all as we look forward to together enjoying peace, progress and prosperity in the years and generations to come. |
|
|
|
|
|
The Asian Games in Hangzhou has just concluded on 8 October 2023 after 16 days of competition from 23 September 2023. It is easy on such occasions to think just in terms of winners and losers, counting medals and ignoring the heartaches of those who fail to get gold. I remember speaking to the dad of one of the Singapore athletes who had just competed in the Rio Olympics in 2016 but did not win a medal. I asked him how his son felt. He told me, “He wonders whether he wants to sacrifice 4 more years of his life.”
I am not saying that medals are not important. But their importance should not be for pride which can lead to arrogance and complacency, but as markers to lead us on to being the best we can be in whatever we are doing. Looked at in this way, the winners are always those who have tried their best, and the losers are those who have not exercised their utmost with their talents and abilities.
The winners are not just those who scored a gold or even a bronze; the winners are all who have made the sacrifice of time and effort, sweat and tears, as each one seeks to discover their maximum. We honour them for reaching out to be the best they can be, when performance meets their potential. Singapore succeeds because we do not just depend on star performers but on integrating the efforts of us all together.
|
|
|
|
|
LIVING OUT HONOUR |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Leaders Forum is a regular forum that we organise to bring together leaders of organisations, big and small, to discuss how Honour may be embedded in their organisations for long-term survival and sustainable success.
We had a Leaders Forum on 6 July 2023 where we were privileged to have Mr Chandran Nair, CEO of AEM Holdings, as our keynote speaker. He spoke on "Trust and Integrity for Sustainable Business Success: Honour for SMEs and beyond”. The audience were mostly leaders in SMEs.
Our latest forum was on 14 September 2023 with Ambassador Alami Musa as our keynote speaker. He spoke on “Everyone together, everyone wins : Honour for long-term success in the People Sector and beyond”. The audience this time were mostly from community groups, NGOs and government agencies.
Each Forum involves about 100 senior leaders. Feedback has been very positive and encouraging.
If you are a CEO or a C-suite Leader and would like to attend one of these Forums in 2024, please get in touch with me at limsiongguan@honour.sg to express your interest.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
I am happy to announce a new scheme of partnership with corporates where we find common ground in mutually advancing our agenda of promoting Honour and Honouring in daily living, whether as individuals or institutions. If you should like to consider becoming a Corporate Partner of Honour (Singapore), please write me at limsiongguan@honour.sg. |
|
|
|
| Honour Champions Community |
|
For Honour to go beyond talk and head-nodding into daily life and practice, it has to be a natural part of the beliefs and behaviours of individuals, families, society, organisations/companies, and the nation. This in turn requires direction and encouragement by the leadership, hence our focus on the influencers and multipliers, the leaders and changemakers.
The Leaders Forums and the Honour Champions Community with its component Honour Champions Groups are important vehicles for our outreach to leaders. We welcome all who are prepared and convicted to lead as Honour Champions in their respective organisations and other spheres of influence to join our Honour Champions Community.
Our belief is that the culture of Honour will not just be critical for Singapore’s continuing survival and success as a nation, but also is critical for the survival and success of our businesses and families, and our effectiveness as leaders and workers for the future. The fundamental question we all have to ask is: Are we doing what we are doing for the long-term survival and sustainable success of our endeavours, or just the short-term. If for the short term, many compromises may be made in our thoughts and actions. But if what we wish is for the long term, we cannot escape from having to be trustworthy as individuals and accepting of one another as team members.
Honour (Singapore) is acutely aware that if the world of family, society, business and government is to benefit from greater trust and care and concern between people, the virtue of honour has to become a habit and a natural part of our lives. This will not happen unless there are significant numbers of people who undertake to be “Honour Champions”, as meaning they believe so much in the value of Honour for life and living that, whether it be social or business circles, they will champion the idea and practice of Honour as best they can.
Honour (Singapore) enables and encourages this through the formation of Honour Champions Groups, these being groups of people who decide to come together to share their personal thoughts and experiences on promoting Honour at home, in the neighbourhood and at the workplace. We welcome all who are prepared and convicted to identify themselves as Honour Champions to join this movement of the Honour Champions Community comprising Honour Champions Groups where each Group has a point of focus that serves the particular interest of its members.
We currently already have a number of Honour Champions Groups comprising HR professionals, young professionals, sustainability advocates, SMEs, Agility practitioners and others. We will be happy to create any number of new groups to meet the needs of more Honour Champions. Please contact us so we can meet to discuss how you can join or lead an Honour Champions Group, and succeed as leaders, influencers and multipliers of Honour. Should you wish to learn more about the Honour Champions Community, please visit our website at https://honour.sg/community/. You can also write me at limsiongguan@honour.sg.
|
|
|
|
|
THINKING THE FUTURE |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
We continue with our "What Next?” programme where we run workshops to elicit participant consensus on what they think would make a sustainably successful Singapore decades into the future. We should want future generations of Singaporeans to continue to find Singapore as the place which offers them the opportunity to be the best they can be according to their talents and abilities. The workshop seeks to help participants think for the long-term without being side-tracked by the challenges and difficulties they face today in their personal lives or in running their enterprises. We need to have the confidence and gumption to deal with the Unknown Unknowns and to Expect the Unexpected.
Some needs for the long-term may well take 20 or 30 years to bring about. So if as a people we do not think with that longer timeframe, we will miss out on creating conditions which will allow our children and grandchildren to thrive in their time. We have conducted “What Next?” workshops with postgraduate business students, university undergraduates, young working adults, educators, and community leaders. We hope to also reach out to parents, religious groups, and other communities who are interested in the longer-term development of Singapore as society and nation, so that they also can position themselves and their organisations better for the future. We are organising our next Workshop for 18 November 2023 and invite all who are interested in participating to get in touch with us at admin@honour.sg.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
I continue to speak about Honour, on an invitation-only basis, at schools, companies and community groups. In the last quarter, I had the privilege of sharing with several organisations the criticality and cruciality of Honour and Honouring for sustainable success. If you believe such a session could be a boost to the vision and morale of the people in your organisations, do let me know your interest at limsiongguan@honour.sg. |
|
|
|
|
THANK YOU |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Thank you for your continued support, help and encouragement for Honour (Singapore). Any support you can give us, particularly by way of donations, will be very much appreciated. |
|
|
|
|
|
We at Honour (Singapore) recognise that all progress to date has been possible only with the support and encouragement of many donors and partners. We have created 'The Honour Donor Roll' on our website to publicly thank all of our generous donors and supporters who have helped us so much over the years. Every donation is important, though we are especially acknowledging a special group of Founder Donors who support us with a donation of a million dollars and more. If you can be a Founder Donor, we will be so very grateful for your extra-generous support.
We welcome donations of any amount from both corporates and individuals, with the donations qualifying for tax deductibility as we enjoy the status of an Institution of Public Character (IPC). We are also happy to share that there is a dollar-matching grant from the Government, effectively doubling your donations and support. Sponsorship donations are also welcome for the Honour Film Initiative and our other initiatives and programmes.
My very best wishes to you and your family.
Lim Siong Guan
Founding Chairman
Honour (Singapore)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
