We all know how hard it is to change someone’s mind. Many psychological studies have found that once you’ve made a decision about something important, changing your mind can be as difficult as changing the course of a cruise ship – yes, even when there’s an iceberg straight ahead.

Changing minds was the monumental challenge posed to us by our client, Mr HH Tan.

The Char Kway Teow Legacy

At 63, Mr Tan became the executor of the estate of his aunt, Madam Irene Tan Liang Kheng. Madam Tan had left instructions for her estate to support several charitable causes, scholarships and bursaries as well as medical research that improves lives. Through carrying out her wishes, Mr Tan came to fully embrace the joy of giving. Having seen how lives had been uplifted, he did not want to stop there. He was inspired to do more, and he wanted to change people’s minds about giving. He wanted to encourage young people who have received to pay it forward. 

As a first step, Mr Tan wanted to publish a book and organise an exhibition to get young people thinking about giving. One of Mr Tan’s quotes left a deep impression on me:.

“You can indeed give at any age, but why not start when you are young? There’s no need to wait until you consider yourself to be successful or wealthy enough. Because, if you think about it, enough is never enough for us human beings. We will always desire more. So now is as good a time as any.”

On 16 October 2019, The Char Kway Teow Legacy: How an Enduring Legacy Turned into a Forever Gift book and exhibition were officially launched. By that time, it was a good 12 months from when Mr Tan and I first met to discuss the project.

Overcoming the Biggest Challenge

What can we do to get young adults to embrace giving? The decision to give is fundamentally a very personal decision. 

We decided to go back to basics. 

From speaking with young adults, we found that one reason for not giving is the lack of empathy. In prosperous Singapore where most of us live comfortable lives, many of us do not know what it is like to be in need. Conversely, people who have experienced what it is like to have less are some of the most generous, as they know firsthand what hardship is like.

We decided to centre the narrative for both the book and the exhibition around the beneficiaries and the impact giving had made on their lives. We are thankful to the beneficiaries for being so generous and open in their sharing. They could have just said no, as many of them would have preferred to remain anonymous. From this sharing, readers and visitors can see for themselves the significance of extending help and, hopefully, start thinking about what they can do for others.

Have we achieved the mandate given to us by Mr Tan?

We’ll never know how many hearts we have touched. Mr Tan always reminded us during our conversations over kopi that giving must always be from the heart. We just hope we have done enough to warm people’s hearts.  

The exhibition will be travelling to tertiary institutions and secondary schools from now till June 2020. Do try to catch it and bring some friends along too. Mr Tan is giving away 100 complimentary copies of the accompanying book at each venue on a first-come-first-served basis.

For more photographs and information about the exhibition, please click here.

P.S.: Why is the project entitled The Char Kway Teow Legacy? You’ll have to visit the exhibition or read the book to find out :)

At HOL, we have the experience and expertise to help you tell your story in an authentic and heartfelt manner. When you’re planning yours, be sure to keep us in mind! 

Angeline Tong is an architect of narratives and Chief Curator at HOL, an experience strategy and curation consultancy. Angeline has a Master of Education (Human Development & Psychology) from Harvard Graduate School of Education and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Museum Studies from Harvard University. She currently resides in Singapore.

To contact Angeline, email atong@hol.sg

Photos courtesy of Mr HH Tan.