New flames, new blades

Me, city boy, two trips into the wild and a few things I didn’t expect to learn. I’ve camped twice now, once by the beach and more recently, by a rocky cradle carved by a hillside stream. And no, it wasn’t the Instagram-sunsetting, matcha-latte-sipping, fairy-light-sparkling kind of campsites. Apparently, that’s called “glamping”. Not the same, not my vibe.

That’s fine though, because “not my vibe” is what I needed. Cities are second nature to my designer mind: layouts, grids, margins but nature doesn’t care for that – it’s an honest kind of beauty. No perfect alignment, no Ctrl + Z when the tent collapses, just you and annoying bugs looking to dig into your flesh or your food. When night comes, it’s dark, cold and raw. Something about it scratches my monkey mind and being thrown into the unknown feels terrifyingly liberating.

Particularly within my brain, I would let my thoughts drift like the tides of an ocean and more often than not, it finds its way back into creativity. It builds on existing ideas, observes through analogies or finds new angles to explain life.

Switchblade and ingredients

1. Improvement demands investment

I noticed this from observing my cousin’s camping gear. Over the years, he’s accumulated ropes of different thicknesses, carabiners of different sizes and an assortment in tools – each of them served a unique purpose.

For blades, he explained: the switchblade is for slicing ingredients, machete for self defence, axe for chopping wood and the bayonet? It was the most versatile of all.

”That’s kinda silly,” I thought. “Why not just carry the bayo- Oh.”

And then it clicked.

I saw the same pattern in my creative toolkit too: Google for cloud services, Squarespace for websites, Envato for resources and Photoshop for versatility. Huh.

The better you get, the more specific the tools. Most of them aren’t free, especially when responsibilities come into play. Time, effort and money become a finite trifecta which can be challenging to sustain.

However, sometimes, the next level requires a leap of faith, to invest more in yourself – not just for convenience, but to unlock hidden doors. This might look like a subscription, a workshop or even a paid template. Of course, measure the risks and spend wisely.

I know it’s subjective, but here’s the takeaway: if you’ve mastered free to play, maybe it’s time to pay to win.

Gang and I crossing a broken bridge

2. Prepare for storms

Plainly speaking, shit happens. Coincidentally, it happened on both camping trips. I’ll never forget the first time it did. It was a peaceful evening, I was lying on the ground reading Treasure Island when a sudden gust of wind flipped through my pages uninvitingly. Before I could react, sand blasted my left eye. I could taste saltiness of the air as the wind howled furiously through our tents.

“Quick, hold down the tents!” my cousin shouted.

Acting on instinct, everyone scrambled to their posts around the base immediately. I remember chuckling nervously as I grabbed a metal rod – the backbone of our shelter, and held on tight. I clenched my fists firmly as it rattled violently, as if mimicking my shaky breath. It was my first time witnessing such an event, nature is scary.

The winds were persistent and got stronger over time. It felt like a test for our perseverance to stay. I thought that was the worst of it, until rain started to pour.

From behind me, I heard one of the uncles pessimistic mutter:
“喂，唔掂喇! 返屋企啦。住 hotel 啦。”
Translation: “Oi, this is no good! Let’s go home. Or go to a hotel.”

I didn’t even have to look, his tone said everything. He’d been unimpressed with the idea from the start.

For a second, my heart wavered.
“Ugh, maybe he’s right,” I thought.

Before I could say anything, my cousin and his dad broke the silence. I’ll never forget what they said next, because it changed how I saw the storm:

”Wow 表哥 (cousin brother), you’re so lucky to witness this storm! On your first camping trip!”

Those words lit my spirit immediately, and I knew I would be alright. Storms will pass, they always do.

I couldn’t get that moment off my mind for weeks, because thinking beyond what looked like an impending disaster, there was a beautiful realisation that a simple shift in perspective changes everything. This is why it’s important to surround yourself with supportive people who will continue to root for you in moments of doubt.

That remains one of my favourite camping stories to date and I suspect it will stay that way for many years to come.
”Everybody wants happiness, nobody wants pain. But you can’t have a rainbow, without a little rain.”

3. To lead, learn to follow

If you’ve read up to this point, you may have pictured my cousin as a rugged 20, 30 something with great survival instincts.

Hate to break the illusion here – he’s 17. And yet, he’s navigated both of the camping trips I’ve been on. He’s also on track to becoming a King Scout. Here’s the thing, I’m not implying that he’s flawless, cause he still does silly things and makes shoddy decisions – like that time he wanted to cross a river, in the rain… to chop wood. Bruh.

Despite those moments, I’d still bet on him to keep us safe in the wild. Why? Because I trust he’ll make the right decision ~70% of the time. That is why I follow his lead. I believe my clients exercise this same thought too.

On top of that, realising this made me reflect on how leadership often skews towards seniority. Specifically in Asian cultures, where age is tied to respect. Don’t get me wrong, I value them for staying in the game, and get along with them just fine, but I also believe younger people deserve chances to lead. Personally, I’ve been blessed to have such opportunities through supportive bosses. However, they don’t just fall from the sky. You have to build trust through small, consistent actions and if you never ask, you’ll never know.

Subconsciously, the reasons above are why I support my cousin’s lead when camping. He’s proactive when taking the reins, and I only step in when logic starts to slip. Still, I’m grateful that he respects my input when he’s unsure. The respect is a two way street and it’s incredibly satisfying to watch him lead the way in the wild, I’m very proud of him.

It seems what started as a camping trip turned out to be a mirror. In the woods, I followed a teenager with better survival skills than most adults (myself included). At my desk, the tools I use have grown with me, similar to my cousin’s survival gear. Whether it’s wilderness or workflow, it seems to me that leadership isn’t about age or aesthetics — it’s about efficiency, practice, and trust.

And hey, consider those new blades you’ve been mulling over. Sharp blades, sharper decisions.