Supervisor Tang, School Managers, Principal Ho, Distinguished Guests, Parents, Teachers and fellow Students,
It gives me great pleasure to be with you here this afternoon at the Annual Speech Day of WSCSS.
I am most indebted to Principal Ho and the school management committee for giving me the opportunity of such a meaningful home-coming visit, and the great honour to address at this special occasion.
I would like to extend my warmest congratulations to all the graduates and prize winners this year. My hearty congratulations also go to parents and teachers who will no doubt be very proud of their children’s achievements.
I graduated from WSCSS in 1978. As an alumnus standing here today, my feeling is mixed. Looking at the young faces in front of me, I cannot help thinking of my own graduation ceremony at WSCSS some 35 years ago.
The Annual Speech Day is a day of celebration. To our graduates, it is a joyous moment for celebrating their past achievements after years of hard work, and marking the beginning of a new course one is to embark on. The memories of which will remain with them forever.
I am pleased to learn from Principal Ho the remarkable academic performance of our graduates and their latest movements. Many of you may already know the field or path you wish to pursue in the next few years, others may be less certain. However, regardless of the field of studies or path you undertake, I have every confidence in you because of the all-round education you received in WSCSS.
WSCSS was founded in 1960. It carries the mission to provide a holistic Christian Education. Students are instilled with a passion to pursue intellectual truth, a determination to explore individual capacity and a commitment to serve the community.
Throughout the past 53 years, the school has nurtured generations and generations of public-spirited citizens and leaders, and made significant contribution to the progress and well-being of our society.
My life in WSCSS, though short, was indeed a vital turning point to me. Without which, I would probably be a different person leading a totally different way of life.
In the lapse of 35 years, my student record with the school may have been destroyed. I do hope so! But, I am here to share with you a little story! When I was admitted to this fine school in 1976, I was once lost at a cross road. After the first week of school, I felt depressed as I had no direction and no idea what was ahead of me. I was uncertain about my future and started pondering the purpose of continuing the A-level study. Most importantly, to a student like me who came from a low-income family, the expenses needed in buying textbooks, reference materials and practical class equipment were substantial and a real burden. After all, the chance of admittance to university was very slim, if not a dream!
I made a decision, a hasty decision! I decided not to show up in the second week of school and I stayed home to enjoy what I see as a free life. But only for a few days, this luxurious laziness turned from fun to meaninglessness. I felt lost again. During the period of my absence, the school, including my form master and the Principal, kept calling my parents with the aim to bringing me back. In one afternoon, I had a long and frank conversation with my form master over the phone covering all my fear, uncertainties and perceived difficulties. Under his great encouragement, I eventually went back to school in the third week and was interviewed by the Principal before joining the class.
Surprisingly, for a student who was new to the school and problematic in nature, I was not given up by WSCSS. In fact, I received no warning or punishment whatsoever but love and patience from the Principal and teachers. Their passion, love and dedication to the education profession, and the utmost care and attention for me, had deeply touched me. I promised I would do my very best!
In 1978, I sat for the A-level Examination. I was fortunate enough to be admitted into the University of Hong Kong and later received a Bachelor Degree in Science in 1981. In the same year, I joined the Customs and Excise Department as a Probationary Inspector. Throughout the years, I was promoted to Assistant Commissioner in 2009. Up till now, I still enjoy my job and treasure my Customs’ career very much.
Looking back, WSCSS had provided me with a warm and caring environment to acquire knowledge and skills, to learn how to love and care for others, to develop my potential and strengthen my confidence to go for higher achievements. These virtues and experiences are invaluable and indeed a cornerstone to my journey in life.
Dear fellow graduates, following my footsteps some 35 years ago, you are about to move on to the next stage in your life. The new environment outside this campus may not be as familiar to you as you expect. In the journeys ahead, you will encounter different challenges and sometimes make mistakes, like me! You will experience the ups and downs of life. You may be wounded many times and feel depressed. Nevertheless, stay calm and have no fear! As Sir Winston Churchill said –“Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm”. On the journey of life, failure is only an experience which will make you stronger and better as you move further on. Stay positive and aspire to your goals, you will turn challenges into opportunities, turn mistakes into wisdom. The future is in your hands! Your destiny depends on how you choose to make it!
In my office, I am now overseeing some 3,400 customs staff performing frontline enforcement duties at the airport, harbour and all boundary control points. Over the past decades, the roles of Customs have undergone significant changes. Apart from the traditional roles in collection and protection of revenue, interception of contrabands and drugs, Customs nowadays is shouldered with major responsibilities to support economic growth and to protect the well-being of the community. The recent control on the export of infant milk powder to safeguard the interest of our HK mothers and HK babies is a good example. Who can imagine our customs officers who are professionals and specially trained for arresting drug dealers and smugglers are now deployed at all exit points over Hong Kong to look for those who carry with them "infant milk powder" in excess of the 1.8 kg limit. The fact is we need to be flexible and responsive to the public’s expectations and demands. The normal supply of infant milk powder in the market has been resumed shortly after the implementation of the new measure. It is therefore an important job as we have made contribution to solving a community crisis! We are serving the community, from a different angle though!
Therefore, the world is ever-changing; you cannot live in the old days. Here, I would like to share with you some of my thoughts in meeting with challenges and managing changes.
In my F.6 year-end report, my form master gave his assessment on me as a SMART student. Does it really mean that I have a smart-looking face? Probably not! It should be the way in doing things. SMART!
S M A R T.
What is it?
S is Strategy. I am not going to give a tutorial on management theory here! Simply put, strategy is a plan for action. In formulating our plan, we need to set clearly our mission and goal to be achieved. We need to sit back and analyze the issues in front of us, including the need for change, our own strengths and weaknesses, as well as the risks or opportunities that may arise. This is followed by a decision on the actions to be taken. Strategy involves analysis, decision and action. I got into trouble during my first week in WSCSS because I did not have a clear mission and direction. I did not have a plan and I made a wrong decision. Even worse, I did not know my own strengths and potential! It was a bitter experience and a lesson to learn then!
M is Manage Change. As I said, there are always unexpected changes in the journey of life. Sometimes we make mistakes and come up with wrong decisions. Generally speaking, people tend to avoid changes, as changes usually come with uncertainties and fear. However, inaction can be disastrous! When there is a change, you need to face it, get prepared for it and manage it. Changes, when properly managed, can bring you opportunities and move you forward. As Charles Darwin said –“It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.”
A is Adaptability. While managing change successfully, you are indeed interacting with the environment, making a mark on it. You are adapting to the environment in order to rise up to your challenge, to achieve your goal and to move on. Be prepared and be versatile, and you will be surprised by the immense potential inside you that enables you to go beyond perceived boundaries which you have never thought of. As US President Obama once said in a graduation ceremony –“Making your mark on the world is hard…..It takes patience, it takes commitment, and it comes with plenty of failure along the way……The real test…….is whether you let it harden or shame you into inaction, or whether you learn from it; whether you choose to persevere.”
R is Relationship Building. Managing change and adapting to the environment are not the only things because we are not alone in the world. Relationship building is about the way in dealing and interacting with people around you, gaining the trust and support from them to achieve your goals in life. It is a two-way process. The Principal, teachers and my classmates in WSCSS had made me feel privileged of my secondary school life. With their love and guidance, I realized my dream to study in university. At work, over the past 30 years, I have successfully overcome so many challenges and hard times with my colleagues working as a team.
T is Technology Knowhow. Technology nowadays is developing rapidly. We are living in the new era of information technology (IT). I looked up WSCSS website and instantly got the information I needed for drafting my speech today. IT becomes our life. But, IT is more than just a smartphone; it is essential knowledge and a survival skill which you must master in order to enhance your efficiency and effectiveness in all aspects of life nowadays.
Dear fellow graduates, maybe I am talking too much of my own experience! No matter where you are; I know you will be SMART enough to make the best of it! On this celebration day, I wish you well and every success in your journeys through life. Be Smart and you will Succeed!
Ladies and gentlemen, before closing, may I wish you all good health and the school’s continued success in the years to come.
Thank you!