The word “hustlers” is often synonymous with passionate entrepreneurs racking in big cash or college undergraduates taking on a side-job to make ends meet. When used in everyday conversations today, the word seems to encapsulate an illustration of driven, hard-working millennials going against the grain to chase their dreams.
The millennial demographic seems to take pride in being associated with the expression. On Instagram, the axis of millennial and Gen Z lives, images featuring the hashtag, #hustle, rack up more than 25 million posts. Amongst them, motivational quotes emphasing limitless possibilities and optimism are most commonly featured. Occasionally, we would come across the success stories of a 20-something or 30-something individual, who overcame the odds and made a mark in the industry. And since many of us are purveyors of motivational content, the success stories of these individuals, who don’t wear their harried lifestyles as badges, are exceptionally appealing in the inspirational sense; in many instances, these individuals have become role models, whose habits and successes are things we want to emulate.
Back home, hoolah Singapore has had the opportunity to collaborate and interact with four such Singaporean hustlers. In the last piece of the four-part series, we feature content creator Charlotte Wang. Independent, unabashed and relentless, the young female trailblazer is setting herself to become the role models for both women (and men) to follow.
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Content Creator Charlotte Wang, 27
Social media content creator, Charlotte Wang, is a cancer survivor.
At the age of six, she was diagnosed with stage three renal cell carcinoma, or renal cancer. She was the first child to be diagnosed with the rare cancer in National University Hospital in 1999, TODAY reports. The doctors had told her parents that she had only 10% chance of survival.
Within five days of her diagnosis, Wang went under the knife to remove one of her kidneys. In the months after, the then-Primary One student would skip lessons to attend chemotherapy. In a 2017 feature writeup by Vulcan Post, it was said that Wang deliberately kept mum on her struggles. It wasn’t until she learned of her friend who was openly battling cancer that she decided to open up.
In penning a candid post on her microblog, Dayre, Wang hoped to shed light and raise awareness of child cancer in Singapore. “The way (my friend) is openly fighting the illness inspired me to do the same,” she said in an interview with TODAY.
Her Dayre has since been removed, but, according to TODAY, the post sharing her childhood experience had garnered more than 1,300 likes and 70 comments. It has been 15 years since Wang is cleared of the disease.
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Wang has also dipped her toes in the food and beverage industry. In 2014, she founded the now-defunct health food joint, Guac and Co, which proffered dishes centered around avocado. She was only 21 years old then. “The idea behind Guac & Go is healthy and nourishing meals made delicious. Salads get such a bad name for being tasteless or boring, and we want to change the misconception,” she said in an interview with Vulcan Post.
Today, Wang is also one of the co-founders of Singapore-based jewellery label, The Renaissance. Synonymous with the meanings of rebirth or revival, pieces from the label are timeless classics that run the gamut from gold, metallic chokers to minimalist, chunky earrings. Her foray into the realm of jewellery is testament to her tenacity, an impressionable trait that will leave many guessing and anticipating Wang’s future plans.
Wang labels herself as a freelance social media content creator, who curates quality content across a gamut of genres, including lifestyle, beauty and fashion. Wang is also an advocate for mental health and open about her depressive episodes, which first surfaced in 2017 when she broke up with her long-term partner and a recent occurrence happened earlier this year during the circuit breaker.
She is also candid about mental health struggles on Instagram, where she would at times, proffered advice (which she found useful on herself) to others. In an interview with The Straits Times, she says “Once I was able to spot my depression taking over, I knew what steps to take. It was not easy even the second time around. But just slowly getting out of bed, brushing your teeth, making yourself a nice meal – all these small things helped me get through the day.”
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