#11. Jian Cong Soh and his Values, Passion, and Purpose

Values are your non-negotiable foundation, passion is about what excites and motivates you, and purpose is your deeper reason for existence. - Harvard Business Review

Wantedly's SG60 stories series is about people who have been shaped by Singapore, and are making a difference in Singapore. This series aims to be a platform for individual reflection on what our own values are, and how we discover our passion and strive towards our purpose.

SG60’s theme is a refreshed spirit, and by celebrating Singapore’s journey to date, Wantedly is proud to spotlight some of those who have contributed to the past, and will be shaping the next chapter of the Singapore story.

Wantedly’s mission is to create a world where work drives passion, and whether you are a founder or creator, a leader or a gig worker, a consultant or a teacher, discovering and aligning your values, passion, and purpose will give you the best chance at having a fulfilling career, and more importantly, a meaningful life. With that in place, organisations can achieve their mission, and society and beyond will benefit in the long run. And as a nation, when we reflect on our shared values of multiculturalism, boldness, resilience and openness, we can build upon what drove our prosperity…

Introducing JC

By day, Jian Cong, who goes by JC, is a business development professional in the tax industry, helping his tax partners identify and build strategic pipelines of business and tax opportunities. Beyond his full-time role, he actively volunteers with two non-profit startup organisations, NextUp (Europe) and Asia Startup Network (Singapore), aimed at empowering startup founders, fostering innovation, and giving back to the community.

JC harbours a dream of bringing together like-minded artists, creatives, founders, and corporates to collaborate and create cool and meaningful works.

1. What are your top 3 values?

Discontentment: To some, this might be seen as a negative trait, but I view being discontented with oneself is a driver for personal growth and character development. It forces me to learn, adapt, and grow. It has taught me to embrace failures too.

Showing up: Our actions are ultimately a reflection of our thoughts and hearts. I believe in showing up for people around me.

Empathy: I want to live a life with empathy – understanding the different perspectives, recognising struggles, being genuine, and finding ways to help others.

2. What keeps you up at night?

It always fascinates me that we are one in 5.9m in Singapore, one in 8 billion in the world and one in trillions of stars in the universe. So much of our values and beliefs were formed through our upbringing and culture in this one earth.

Will we ever get to experience intergalactic exploration and debunk some of the mysteries and assumptions of life during our short lifetime?

3. What gets you out of bed in the morning?

It’s a sense of gratitude (and sometimes, obligation) that I need to make my life count. The drive to keep learning and growing for my own personal development motivates me every day.

4. What fills your cup?

Volunteering in the startup space in Europe and Singapore over the past two years has brought me immense fulfillment. I’ve learned so much about the different ecosystems, the players involved and built genuine friends with many Singaporeans around the world.

NextUp: Munich team held our first deep tech startup pitch competition at Infineon Campus, Germany, Munich, 2023

Through NextUp and Asia Startup Network (ASN), I have also had the opportunity to meet and work with founders who are passionate in making difference in the lives of people with disabilities (PwD). Last November, together with Andrew, co-founder of ASN and country manager of Wantedly, we organised and led a generative AI 101 workshop for graduating PSLE students from Cerebral Palsy Alliance Singapore (CPAS). Through that workshop, we engaged with disability champions like Vivian Bao Kah Liao, Jonathan Tiong and Dr. Navin Nair to inspire the students as they moved to the next chapter of their lives.

I produced the following videos as part of ASN's efforts to champion inclusion in honour of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities.

This video was screened at the CPAS workshop, and by spotlighting Vivian's entrepreneurship, we hope to provide encouragement and motivation to CPAS students.

This video was screened at the CPAS workshop, and by spotlighting Jonathan's career, we hope to provide encouragement and motivation to CPAS students.

In February, NextUp also held our week-long Singapore immersion trip hosting a group of startup founders, including Dr. Dimitris Petrotos, an architect and inventor of Laddroller, introducing them to the startup ecosystem here. Laddroller is an affordable mobility device - a wheelchair that could stand.

Their dedication to help PwDs inspires me to continue contributing whenever I can.

5. In all that you do, how do you define impact and success?

If I can form genuine lifelong friendships while creating opportunities that positively help others, then I consider that a success.

Celebrating a birthday with ASN volunteers, 2025

6. Please leave us your well wishes for SG60.

In this SG60, my hope is for all to be kinder with each other. Singapore has come a long way from a third-world to first-world nation - measured by GDP, standard of living, etc. But I hope the standard we hold ourselves to is how we treat each other and how we use our privileges to elevate those in need. That, to me, would be far more meaningful than any other global recognition we receive.

If you are interested to connect, drop me a DM on LinkedIn!

Once again, in celebration of SG60, let us strive to be bolder, and to echo JC, kinder to one another, for Singapore and ourselves.

This series was brought to you by Wantedly Hire - an application tracking system optimised for modern hiring practices. Experience seamless hiring with tailored workflows designed to align with your recruitment structure, automated interview scheduling, and actionable insights to optimise hiring performance!