The ‘5-Course Meal’ that Evolves Youth Education Worldwide, for the Future

The Challenge

Our world is growing uncertain. Headlines frown about recession, workplace woes and other depressing news. Sometimes it feels pointless to leave the bed, even.

Now look at our youth. In a few years, they will be facing the same problems we are facing. Those few with their minds tuned to the future are already worried about their prospects. Some are resigned to the world of ‘whatever goes’. Many are even unaware they are going to be hit hard.

So what are we doing for our future generations to thrive? If your answer is the power of education, then read on!

The Quest

Within a short span of 2 years, I’ve constantly accelerated my learning and evolved my best thinking to excel as an educator for youth.

Numerous experiments with multiple pedagogy styles have been conducted across existing education models, innovative education start-ups and the EdTech space. I’ve also dug into history, imagined the future, pulled overnighters and even stepped on toes… all to compile playbooks of insights that enable the learning process to be at its most effective.

Now after much mixing, matching and mastering, I bring to you my findings, summarised for your picking and growth.

Not only that, I also bumped into many children and youth along the way, who are lost discerning their lives ahead. I’m dedicating this article to them, so they don’t waste their precious time and brain cells struggling as I did.

The Solution

Enter the education of consciousness.

When one is educated and empowered, they are most able to define a life that is purposeful to them. They can independently transform their quality of life, achieve more growth and fulfilment, saving their caretakers massive headaches.

Let’s get specific. The quality of the education matters. A high-quality education, with proper application, further enables one to achieve independence in decision-making and time freedom, currencies more precious than coin and ultimately desired by millions. This is because unlike money, time can never be earned back. The quality of your education now will shape the quality of your lifestyle in the future.

So, what is the most powerful way to get educated and empowered?

Folks, I proudly present the 5-Course Meal that evolves youth education worldwide, for the future. It complements existing education models that focus on technical skills.

I hope you’ll love it! ??

1. Personalised assessment by natural strengths and life skills.

Why It Matters for Our Youth: Every young mind grasps the world’s wonders from different angles, at different paces. Some learn well not just from bullet points but also audio and kinaesthetic means; even vibrant visuals that speak a thousand words and stick longer in the mind.

Adding a layer of humour or referencing their cultural preferences raises the interest of learning up a notch. Understanding their sensory nuances is even better, so conditions can be curated for them to learn at their best comfort.

However, for the sake of time convenience and economy-of-scale, we force-feed them knowledge using singular delivery formats, and assess their competencies using standardised tests.

At a glance, while such parameters set the scene for parental bragging rights that their children are excelling, it is the behind-the-scenes which concerns me.

Young ones admit they are emotionally stressed out from their packed checklists of enrichment classes. I even hear of schoolchildren committing suicide due to such pressures!

Furthermore, late-bloomers and learners with unorthodox processing methods are marginalised by standardised assessment methods. We continue to do our children a disservice if we fail to plug this gap. ?

Evolving for Better: “How do you learn best?” “What are your interests?” is becoming part of my etiquette when I teach, before I even drop the content.

This ensures that foremost, the student is offered an environment where they are most capable of absorbing, retaining and applying wisdom in a context they find meaningful. Getting their natural learning style sorted out foremost also motivates them to face the technicalities of any topic.

Following up with “Is this learning style working for you?” immediately addresses what doesn’t work. People value being heard, so working together with students to refine a favourable learning experience develops an appreciated ownership of their learning, according to their values. Eventually, this develops into a purpose-focused roadmap they create for their lives!

2. Flow-based, gamified schedule that creates intrinsic motivation and self-expression.

Why It Matters for Our Youth: The energetic, indomitable fire of youth. This can be easily squandered mindlessly, leaving behind a lament of regrets that I’ve heard too much of. In contrast, embarking on responsible, proactive growth on a daily basis… without needing carrots or sticks by nagging elders, creates a win-win situation of relief and pride for all.

And yet our youth are unable to realise their best potential, forced out of their flow by adhering to the routine regimentation of school schedules - sleeping late from homework and waking up real early to avoid detention. And don’t forget all the anxiety in between, repeated year after year.

Now, routine regimentation is good for building useful habits, though it comes at a price: erecting a culture of rigid compliance, and fear of other methods that could work better.

Evolving for Better: Take a look at the successful people of the world, be it at work or recreation. They succeed because they master how they spent their time, energy and resources, within their contexts.

Looking deeper, it boils down to the mindsets and tools they use to see the world. For example, instead of seeing challenges all around you, what if you saw opportunities instead? What if you could gamify your schoolwork to be as motivating as a video-game adventure? How would such incentivised changes influence your next steps in this one precious life you have?

Remember, the human brain is goal-oriented, and easily focuses attention on powerful ideas and compelling stories that shape one’s life.

Personal empowerment such as growth and fulfilment is also a key motivator. And when one’s personal needs are met, pursuits expand into social impact.

So by accessing a holistic collection of all these timeless ‘life hacks’ of mindsets and tools that meet such brain needs, furthermore tried and tested through centuries of human progress… imagine how much more productive students’ schedules and outputs would be going forward.

That’s truly discovering and maximising one’s potential without regrets.

3. Focus on perspectives, insights, directions.

Why It Matters for Our Youth: Often, we make our decisions based on that of others who have ‘been there, done that’. They provide a diversity of perspectives, insights and directions that sharpens our decision-making prowess. This determines whether we live a life of relief… or regrets.

So it is only natural that our youth seek out role models to make their decisions in life. They learn quickly by emulating such role models – be it a parent, sibling or mentor.

However, a huge pain point about having role models is that one tends to develop a favourable bias for said role model, or even develop aggressive tendencies toward ‘rival’ ones.

And sad to say, there are role models out there who impose their views onto others based on what worked or didn’t work FOR THEM. To offer alternative viewpoints yields egoistic responses of “My way, or the highway!”. Sound familiar?

So if a young mentee is unable to discern the intentions behind the advice they are receiving, their best interests will be subdued in favour of the role model’s.

In the end, they may emerge none the wiser, more confused, and bitter from being made used of. This is especially undesirable in a time where trust is at an all-time low.

Evolving for Better:

In order to overcome such biases and egos, we serve up a buffet of inspiring thought leaders across history and cultures, who have overcomed impossible odds during their lifetimes. By involving case studies from the world of fiction as well, that’s double the worlds of intriguing insights to soak up, accelerating one’s decision-making prowess on the shoulders of giants!

Through examining the decision-making processes of these figures, and how they shaped the course of humanity for better or worse, we can decode why whatever came naturally to their bright minds may appear incomprehensible to us (Think of that humorous Owl drawing lesson of Step 1: Draw some circles, Step 2: Draw the rest of the owl!).

This is also an opportunity to raise international appreciation of the human spirit, by celebrating the commonalities and unique geniuses of these individuals, regarded as exceptionally gifted by their societies.

We also won’t shy away from the errors these figures have made, as there is much to learn from this angle too. While there are a certain category of mistakes that are to be discovered on their own to promote self-sufficiency (E.g. Riding a bike), too many of us make original mistakes - unnecessary ones that need not be committed in the first place (E.g. Gambling with one’s entire fortune for quick wealth).

This way, youth can choose who they feel most connected to (and don’t be surprised if it’s a fictional character!), and emulate these case studies to complement their best interests, unique talents and skills… and perhaps leave a brighter legacy behind!

So by learning from the mistakes, regrets and successes of those who came before, this amounts to more aware and integrated thought leaders of the future, who are not doomed to repeat history’s mistakes!

4. Entrepreneurial education that helps one create a job.

Why It Matters for Our Youth: With the VUCA world evolving so rapidly, uncertainty is at an all time high. This leads to anxiety about securing and retaining a job to pay the daily bills. A solution to reclaim certainty and reduce anxiety… is rocking an entrepreneurial? mindset.

While the world of education has been promoting technical skills as one’s passport to thriving in the future (E.g. Programming), what happens when everyone has that skill? Recruiters are going to look for that extra shine within the mass of applications.

Evolving for Better: So it’s not just about having that skill. It’s about demonstrating how badass you can be having that skill!

This means going deeper once again, to cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset of a master plan that keeps you at the forefront of recruiters’ minds. Show them you are:

1. Evolving your skills creatively with the latest trends,
2. Demonstrating proof of competency with a strong personal brand,
3. Displaying sensory leadership for self and others,
4. Improving efficiency and effectiveness with systems.

This will skyrocket the trust and interest they have for you, even enough to contact you for the non-advertised job vacancies they have.

An entrepreneurial mindset also builds one up to be so skills-awesome, that one can attract opportunities and shape up into a superstar employee. Adventurous individuals can even become their own CEOs of sustainable businesses. Either way, both are in a position to generate wealth.

And if that isn’t already a bonus, sticking to the following daily habit, CLEAR, ensures you stay on track and consistently moving towards your goals:?

Connect: Who can I connect with, who is a thought leader in my field of interest? (Notice how we are applying what we learnt previously in this article? It’s all interconnected!)

Learn: What wisdom can I gain from these thought leaders that helps me achieve my goals?

Earn: From such wisdom, what opportunities can I apply for that can pay me for my level of expertise?

Act: What actions am I taking so that I’m not just thinking of success… but creating it in reality?

Review: Based on my past actions of successes, failures and mistakes… what can I improve to better reach my goals?

Fun fact: These practices stem from EdTech platform GeniusU, the world’s #1 in Entrepreneur Education. So these tips are tried and tested, and definitely an impactful starter pack for those seeking to start a business, or simply thrive in everyday living!

5. Design thinking, collaborative creative-problem-solving.

Why It Matters for Our Youth: Creativity and design literacy, especially in a VUCA world of wicked problems, can serve significantly as problem-solving tools; even as social levellers that can catalyse an intangible idea into a tangible legacy, elevating the quality of life of its creator.

Reality-check: All humans are not born equal. Some have stronger qualities than others that mathematical assessments can never do justice to, be it brain or brawn. Joining a community that doesn’t value introversion, for example, can be especially torturous for introverts as misunderstanding and ostracism mount against them.?

Additionally, with their focus on efficient regimentation, schools can snuff out creative and design capabilities, dulling imagination into soulless compliance, or unintentionally seed arrogant entitlement within students, who await textbook answers on a silver platter!

Evolving for Better: However, everyone is equal by having the capacity to be creative, and a choice to hone this skill further to shape environments where they can feel safe and appreciated.

Enter design thinking. Through this process applicable in any personal or business context, human voices are valued and the innate ability to innovate is stretched. This yields breakthroughs that redefine what was deemed laughably impossible.

This is how we also got experiences that we never knew we needed. Disney movies and theme parks that swell our hearts with joy. Technological marvels that boost our productivity so we can spend more time with our loved ones.

Design thinking enables us to achieve human-centred design, and from there, build worlds of impact that our ancestors wouldn’t have dared dream of. This unlocks a realm of holistic design called worldbuilding, which constructs ecosystems that are both sustainable and beloved.

If you’re wondering, ideas don’t even need to be insanely novel or out of this world. Even connecting dots of data in a different manner can lead to new insights and innovations that redefine human lifestyles.

The 21st Century is building its reputation of disruptive shifts into the digital decade, courtesy of technology… from an information age to an imagination age, from a consumer economy to a content-creator economy, from Society 4.0 to Society 5.0.

Creative self-expression through media such as the Metaverse is already underway, transforming lives through essential industries of health, wealth, relationships and entertainment.

As the spread of information has been democratised over the decades, design literacy is making its way from the realm of artists and designers to the common public. Singapore is even advocating for a design-literate nation! It thus pays to be proficient, if not at least, aware of its power.

The Future

Each of the 5 tiers enables a lifetime habit to be created and owned, right down to personal nuances, enabling youth to unleash their greatest potential with confidence, and shift from unmotivated underachiever to motivated master of whatever career they put their mind to.

Overall, such a multi-dimensional education pathway accelerates their learning and consciousness, empowering them to create a lifestyle of opportunities moving forward. It’s not exactly different from the Renaissance model, where education was personalised and stretched with passion through apprenticeship, producing the likes of Leonardo da Vinci and many others influential greats of the time.

I hope this ‘5-Course Meal’ has filled you up with hunger to examine how education for our youth can be so much more enriching, towards holistic development of their personalities. Even adults have inquired if they are eligible for such a school of thought. Well, most definitely! It’s like learning how to breathe properly in a world of mind-boggling change.

And with the advancement of artificial intelligence, the human ability of discernment is ever more so important, helping us see past singular narratives and errors that AI might unquestioningly drop in front of us. Discernment is what gives us an edge over these technological wonders (or horrors, if you will).

So whichever stage of life you are in, do take some time to see how you can improve the quality of your education. It could compound exponential dividends for your future - financially and psychologically - towards your thriving life in the 21st Century.

I hope that this framework of evolving education will translate to the best peace of mind parents and educators ever had, including generations that look to the past with gratitude, and the future with hope.

Thank you for reading thus far, and I hope you’ve been able to take something refreshing away from this legacy I hope to grow for humanity.

Evolving the GENIUS Generation,

Ryan Nicholas Leong Wei Ren

GENIUS Generation Youth Coach

About the Author

Ryan Nicholas Leong Wei Ren is Singapore’s first GENIUS Generation Youth Coach. He evolves youth to stretch their career dreams, making them irresistibly attractive for their dream jobs of the 21st Century.

Strategic during his youthful years after a brush with childhood cancer, Ryan honed a wealth of skillsets at the National University of Singapore’s (NUS) Career Centre, award-winning start-ups and from transformational thought leadership. This seeded his future-ready and action-oriented mindset, enabling him to transition from superstar employee to inspiring entrepreneur.

Now an accredited, award-winning mentor, Ryan is on a global mission to accelerate the development of life skills for youth globally… by giving them peace of mind and excitement to create legacies of impact in a VUCA, post-pandemic world.

Ryan’s creation and personal adoption of the GENIUS Generation Youth Coaching (GGYC) coaching framework has unlocked significant career milestones in his 20s:

+ Featured by 'Voices of Brilliance 2023' (by Brilliance Magazine).

+ 10 Must-Watch Innovative Coaching Service Providers - 2023 (by Digital First? Magazine - Global Edition).

+ Bestselling #1 Amazon Author (Xtraordinary: Strategies to Live an Exceptional Life), co-authored with international influentials.

+ Men Leaders to look up to in 2022 (by Passion Vista: Luxury, Lifestyle & Business Magazine).

+ GeniusU Wealth Dynamics Masters 2022 Bali – Oct 2022 – Grand Prize Winner (for entrepreneurial business-pitching of GGYC’s unique selling point).

+ Shortlisted Top 10 Nominees for Coach Awards 2022 (by GoMasterCoach).

+ International Speaker invited to speak in Genius Central SG, the home of the entrepreneur movement.

+ Life Skills Workshop Speaker & Trainer (invited by the National University of Singapore, Institute of Technical Education, Children’s Cancer Foundation, Social Enterprises).

He would greatly value your thought leadership on this article. As we shine together, so does the future of the next GENIUS generation!

Connect with him at www.dhirubhai.net/in/ryanleongweiren/ or [email protected]?for collaborations, services or to uncover bonus deals!