Tay Choon Hong
- Deputy Chief Executive, National Youth Council, 2017–present
- Senior Director (Youth), Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, 2017–present
- Director, Public Sector Transformation Office, Public Service Division, 2012–2017
Dear Young Officer,
I often wonder who actually reads these letters. Many Public Service leaders have provided excellent advice in the past, and I pondered over what would make it worth your time to read this page. Incidentally, I started my Public Service career in May 2003, during the SARS outbreak, and we are now battling COVID-19. Being in a reflective mood, I decided to write a letter to my younger self, penning down my learnings over the years, and I hope that you will find some of these helpful for your own learning.
To My Younger Self:
When you first join the Public Service, you can’t help but marvel at the sheer breadth and depth of work the service is responsible for. You’ll witness the dedication of officers who worked so hard to battle SARS (and in time to come, H1N1 and COVID-19 pandemics). Very quickly, you’ll connect with a larger meaning and sense of purpose. Your commitment to serve will deepen, not through ideology, but with every project you deliver to bring practical benefits to the country and our citizens.
You’ll often reflect on the values that define who you are as a public officer. The Public Service values of Integrity, Service and Excellence will be an unwavering guide to your attitudes and beliefs amidst an ever-changing operating environment. Of course, as an individual citizen, you also have your own identity, values and beliefs.
Sometimes these values are at odds, and often these manifest when you personally disagree with certain policies. You’ll have to learn to hold the tension between maintaining a strong sense of who you are, and becoming a professional in the business of governance. It means executing your role to the best of your abilities, notwithstanding your own views, to serve the interests of Singapore and Singaporeans.