Start Here!

Hi, I’m Visakan Veerasamy (call me Visa!). I am:

Singaporean. I was born and raised here. I studied and served NS here. I care deeply about making Singapore a more beautiful, thoughtful and loving community that we can all be proud to be a part of.

Humanist. I’m not religious, but I believe strongly in love, compassion and faith in ourselves and one another. As a humanist, I also identify as feminist, anti-racist, anti-xenophobic and anything else that believes in a more equitable world for everyone. If and when we make contact with extraterrestrial life, I’m all for peaceful coexistence.

Retainee. I repeated a year in Junior College because of my abysmal grades. I was disillusioned with our public education system, with school, and with life in general. One of my life goals is to seek out individuals who are going through similar experiences, and help them through it.
Musician. I’m still a beginner, but I’ve written a few songs, played in a few bands and have gotten paid for it. I have organized multiple gigs in the past. I’m passionate about Singapore’s music scene, and I believe that if we ask the right questions and pursue the right goals as a collective, we can nurture it into something that we can all be proud of.
Gamer. Video games were a huge part of my life when I was growing up. I don’t play them nearly as much as I used to, but the ‘damage’ has been done. I believe that video games are powerful narrative devices, and that there’s a lot of wisdom and insight to be gleaned from paying attention to the industry. My favourite games are Mass Effect, Final Fantasy VII and Terranigma.
Thinker. Feels like a redundant thing to say, but I like thinking, and I believe it should be significantly encouraged as a human activity.
Self-Quantifier. AKA LifeHacker, or whatever buzzword you prefer to use. I’m a fan of enlightened living. I’m not very good at it, but I like to read and write about it.
I’m passionate about making whatever positive difference I can make to the world beyond myself, while learning, growing and having fun in the process.
My interests include systems thinking, communication, narratives, philosophy, social dynamics and decision-making. I love identifying patterns, refining and synthesizing disparate ideas. I live for moments of epiphany and insight.
I spent the first 20 years of my life as a chronic underachiever. My mantra was “Do as little as you can possibly get away with.” Minimize discomfort. When I turned 20, I gradually realised that I had wasted most of life’s opportunities being distracted by superficial things. I did not want my grave to read, “Here lies Visa, an arrogant, lazy and unlikable slob who accomplished nothing worth mentioning.”

I decided that I was going to stop drifting aimlessly and transform into a heat-seeking missile, locked onto my vision of myself growing into a highly accomplished individual who is happy, fulfilled and an asset to humanity. This is still a work in progress.

You may be interested in my series on how to be awesome titled “Hacking The 7 Deadly Sins“, including Vanity, Lust, Greed.

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook!

Above all else: Email me. My email is visakanv at gmail dot com. Ask me a question, tell me something interesting, whatever. I live for human connection. I want to hear from you, whatever it is that you might have to say- or even if you don’t know what to say. I’m here. This is me reaching out to you. Reach out to me.

http://www.visakanv.com/blog/2429/xiaxue-ge2011/

25 Responses to Start Here!

  1. Jacq says:
    April 22, 2011 at 12:03 am

    where’s the part where you say ‘I’m from TPJC?’ :P I thought you said it had a great impact on you too?

    Reply
    • visa says:
      April 22, 2011 at 2:47 am

      I said that? Perhaps I meant that retaining had a big impact on me, but it wouldn’t have mattered where I did the retaining at… most of what was interesting in my life during my JC years were directly related to what I did when I wasn’t in school

      Reply
  2. Peter Chong says:
    April 27, 2011 at 9:50 am

    Hello Visakan,

    From your profile photo, I gather you are a young man. I wish you opportunities and safety in traveling to see the world.

    I am a senior citizen at 70 coming July. Like you, I am Singapore born and bred. And I agree with your essay “Incentive Fallacy”. It is money and more money. That is what the government can think of. But the problem is it does not trickle down.

    Best wishes

    Reply
  3. Rachel Chng says:
    April 28, 2011 at 3:11 pm

    Hi Visakan,

    I am Rachel from The Thought Collective. A student from our learning centre recommended your blog, and I think what we do may interest you. Would you be able to spare some time and visit our company websites? If there is something that stands out for you, we could set something up.

    Our websites are:
    School of Thought Learning Centre: http://www.schoolofthought.com.sg
    Food For Thought: http://www.foodforthought.com.sg
    Thinkscape: http://www.thinkscape.com.sg

    Thanks, I look forward to your reply!

    Best Regards,
    rachel chng I copy editor
    __________________________________________

    school of thought
    112 middle road #02-01 midland house
    singapore 188970
    __________________________________________

    demand a broader perspective

    Reply
  4. The well-wisher says:
    June 2, 2011 at 11:39 pm

    “I am proud of my country despite its shortcomings” should read “I am proud of my country” coz it don’t make no sense otherwise.

    Reply
  5. Tina Mercury says:
    January 16, 2012 at 5:22 pm

    Hi Visa..

    Middle aged, Singaporean born and bred Eurasian lady here.. love your wit and humour!! Your views are shared by many across the age and racial demographics of Singapore.. Keep up the good stuff!! :-)

    Reply
  6. Santhi says:
    April 11, 2012 at 10:13 pm

    Awesome to read a local blog with real perpectives while entertaining. Keep your passion alive and work smart to make your dreams become reality!

    Reply
  7. Nikki says:
    June 7, 2012 at 10:58 am

    Hiii Visa! I like your controversial articles and wit. Keep up the good work! You should keep an “archives” bar by date. :)

    Reply
  8. bcow says:
    June 12, 2012 at 5:54 pm

    Very interesting.thoughts. just saying but Gather u are a whisky man?

    Reply
  9. Lydia Gan says:
    November 1, 2012 at 6:44 pm

    Enjoy your rich use of wit with simplicity in your blog.

    Reply
  10. ching says:
    November 1, 2012 at 9:15 pm

    Hi Visa, I came across your blog from a friend who shared your recent CISCO wayang post.
    Even though I have 2 final major assignments to complete for my undergrad degree and both due within 24 hours your humor kept me reading. All I would like to say is that your post are really informative, refreshing and funny. I like it. Thanks for making my day.

    Cheers
    Ching

    Reply
  11. femellalibera says:
    December 6, 2012 at 11:47 am

    I REALLY like the way you think. I hope that I end up with someone informed like you. Thank you for making me feel that there are men out there that are interested in the same things as I am. I always meet people who’re anti-feminists and misogynistic in general. It’s amazing to see people like you.

    Reply
    • visa says:
      December 6, 2012 at 3:41 pm

      You are very kind. I am still very uninformed, and am schooled on my ignorance every day. Misogyny and sexism hurts everybody. Thank you again for your kind words. Don’t settle for anything or anybody that doesn’t make your heart sing! :)

      Reply
  12. Wil Ong says:
    January 22, 2013 at 7:54 pm

    Visakan! Your material is amazing. I can’t believe you have a website man haha

    Reply
  13. Singapore Memory Project says:
    April 12, 2013 at 11:42 am

    Dear Visa,

    On behalf of the National Library Board (NLB), we would like to invite you to pledge your blog to the Singapore Memory Project as part of efforts to collect memories that are already manifested in existing online channels.

    The Singapore Memory Project (SMP) is a national initiative to collect, preserve and provide access to Singapore’s knowledge materials. Spearheaded by NLB, the SMP aims to build a national collection of content in diverse formats (including print, audio and video), to preserve them in digital form, and make them available for discovery and research.

    By pledging your blog to SMP, you are affirming that every memory matters. Whether your posts are an account of your daily life, or an expression of your thoughts, the SMP hopes to find a home for your memories so that it can help build towards an understanding of Singapore. You will also receive a badge that you can display on your blog in recognition of your contributions.

    Contributors to this blog pledging initiative will be listed on Singapore Memory portal’s blog pledging webpage. All blogs pledged to SMP will archived using NLB’s web harvesting software, in addition to images of each blog’s landing page.

    If you are keen to pledge your blog to SMP, simply fill up our response form at this following URL: http://singaporememory.simulation.com.sg/Public/Pledge.

    You may find out more about this initiative at http://www.iremember.sg/?page_id=2822.

    We are looking forward to your contribution.

    Simulation Software & Technology (S2T) Pte Ltd
    583 Orchard Road #14-02 Forum The Shopping Mall S(238884), Singapore
    |w: http://www.simulation.com.sg

    Reply
  14. Victorian says:
    April 24, 2013 at 5:43 pm

    Hello Visa,

    I’m a fellow victorian and it pains me to take the PIE everytime and pass by our old campus at Geylang Bahru. Our once-majestic grandstand has been reduced to some old yellow and grey dual-tone color bullshit with a school crest barely recognisable. The sight is disgusting like seeing a smelly girl downstairs. How dare they paint over our grandstand.

    I urge you to gather fellow victorians who wish to restore honor to our grandstand. It will be awesome to see the words THY SONS ARE WE greeting the commuters of the PIE. Let our flag unfurl, again.

    Reply