I often have good conversations with Grab drivers around KL, and one recent encounter truly resonated with me. As I got chatting with a particularly friendly and articulate driver, he revealed that driving for Grab was just a supplementary income for him. In fact, his day job was as a developer for a well-known gaming company. With two kids and the demands of modern life, he found that driving three nights a week and one day on the weekend had multiple benefits. It helped him stay focused and maintain a comfortable lifestyle.

One thing I’ve noticed about attitudes toward work during my time in Southeast Asia is the increasingly practical approach. There was a time when traditional views prevailed, where a salaried job meant deep loyalty to an employer. This traditional mindset often placed the employer on a pedestal, fostering feelings of gratitude and loyalty in return for job security. It was a special relationship, central to family life, and the decision to change jobs was a significant family matter.

How things have changed!

The conversation with this Grab driver encapsulated this shift. Views are now moving towards a more pragmatic approach, where the status of being employed is seen as more transitional. Several factors have contributed to this change:

• The impact of the new normal has disrupted traditional thinking.
• Waves of redundancies have eroded trust in job security.
• The rise of new work modalities has led to a more immediate, adaptable mindset.

Company culture itself has significantly diminished people’s ability to trust and rely on their employment status. After wave upon wave of redundancies, the emotional upheaval has been profound, not just for current generations but also for the younger generation witnessing the effects on their parents. When the Grab driver asked me:

“What advice would you give to anyone entering the job market now?”

My response aligns with this changing tide. As an employer, I am fully committed to creating a work environment based on trust—one that I would recommend to my own family. Otherwise, I would be inauthentic. At the same time, I encourage people, especially those entering the second half of their careers, perhaps in their 40s, to be ready for major change. The biggest tragedy I foresee, exacerbated by rapidly evolving skill trends and increasingly apparent ageism, is the risk of being abandoned by the permanent job market. Unless people stay vigilant about the relevance of their skills and prepare for redundancy, which means having a plan B—whether it’s consulting, freelancing, or starting a business—they may find themselves left behind. In other words, you can’t rely on the constancy of permanent employment. You need to approach your career like a solopreneur; stay nimble, ready for change, keep your skills fresh, and be open to shorter stints of work.

This is a change we must all prepare for, though I must say, my Grab driver friend already seems to have the right idea.