It is better to serve than to be served.

I heard of someone who had completed his MBA after returning from overseas studies. He got this great job in one of our top companies in Singapore. I understood that he had also been earmarked to be the head of the organisation that he had been tasked to set up. The plans did not materialised unfortunatle due to a series of unfortunate events in the region. He was retrenched. This is very common story it seems.

In the end, the security guards and only 1 clerk got to keep their jobs. I suppose, no matter how bad the times have become, the directors would still be sipping their teas and going around in their shining Lexus. The friend lost not only his dream job, but also all the preparatory work he had put in for his projects. I have heard of supposedly bankrupt directors who continued to party their nights away or going around in their BMWs.

This is a picture of how thin the ice can get for anyone who just wishes to venture into foreign terrain and hopes to reap all those "everything-provided-for" kind of perks from the prospective organisation. One safe bet is to look at the track records and whether the company has any plans for retention at all, just in case they are only paying lip-service.

In the meantime while you wait for that golden opportunity to get that dream job of yours, the Morale of the story:- Learn to do one thing VERY VERY WELL. But I can assure you, it is NOT paperwork.