31/08/2026
🇲🇾 This Merdeka, I See Hope
People often say Gen Z is laid-back.
As a mother of three Gen Z children, I would say… yes, they can be. 😂
But I have come to see it differently.
𝙎𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙨, 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙖𝙞𝙙-𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙞𝙨 𝙨𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙮 𝙖 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙮𝙚𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙚𝙣𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙩𝙤 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙜𝙮 𝙩𝙤.
Recently, I facilitated a corporate grooming programme for a Japanese company in Malaysia. Most were young Malaysians, mostly Gen Z and younger Millennials.
What impressed me most?
Their attention.
I didn't notice a single moment of phone-checking. Their attention was on me, the person in front of them.
I could see that sparkle: Tell me more. I want to learn.
They asked questions, listened attentively and laughed whole-heartedly. Right after, their young HR colleague came to enquire about the next level of development: communication.
Who says Gen Z doesn't like learning?
And that spirit didn't end when the workshop ended.
While others were leaving, HR and two interns stayed back for an hour to help pack the image props. Then they brought everything down and waited at the loading area for another 30 minutes while I got my car.
Nobody asked them to stay.
They volunteered.
It also reminded me how much the environment shapes our young people, for better or worse.
When my daughter started her first job as a Chat Agent at 19, she went to work looking intentional. Hair neatly tied, dressed semi-formal and professional.
A while later, things changed. Baggy clothes. Black nails. Unkempt hair. Almost a "pyjamas look".
The image consultant mother in me naturally asked, "What happened?" 😂
She said, "Everyone in the office looks like this. Even my team leader."
Okay, we listen but we don't judge.😊
But it made me realise - our young people are watching the environment around them, especially when they first enter the working world. What they see quickly becomes their idea of what is normal.
And that was what I saw in this company too.
Their Japanese MD didn't sit back and watch. He participated, joined the activities and led by example.
When leaders learn, people learn. When leaders show up, people see what showing up looks like.
So this Merdeka, when I look at this photo, I see hope.
Yes, our young generation may be laid-back in their own way. 𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙛𝙪𝙡 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣, 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙤𝙙𝙚𝙡 𝙖𝙛𝙩𝙚𝙧, 𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙥𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙣 𝙚𝙣𝙫𝙞𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙥𝙪𝙧𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙢𝙖𝙮 𝙨𝙚𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙚𝙮𝙚𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙜𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙡𝙚.
Perhaps our job is not to keep asking, "What's wrong with this generation?"
It is to ask:
"𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗲 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝘂𝗽 𝘁𝗼❓️"
Selamat Hari Merdeka. 🇲🇾
