Shawn Thia's mum allowed him to quit school in Secondary Three so he could find his own alternative path to success.In a society that places so much emphasis on school education, not every Singapore parent would accept their teenage children dropping out of school.
"Back then, 'cos my mum's a single working mum, she had to come pick me up every day [because of disciplinary incidents]. My mother was busy at that time and she couldn't take it," the 26-year-old said. "I went out but before the door closed, I heard her just destroy my discipline master, with all sorts of vulgarities that I've never heard at home. Hokkien, Cantonese, English, Mandarin too. When she came out of the room, she was like, 'Son, let's not be here anymore'. And that's when I thought that yeah, I think I've had enough."
"I just felt like maybe my path doesn't have to be the same as everyone else," he said. "I wanted to prove a lot of people wrong also. That you don't have to really have a super solid education to make it. You just have to know how to be a good person."Shawn went on to work in different jobs including as a waiter and in the construction industry and in factories. He did his O levels as a private candidate and enlisted at age 16.