From Orphan at 4 to Google Executive: Battle Scars as Blueprint

At 4 years old, Sherie Ng lost everything in a single day—her mother poisoned her father's coffee and then jumped to her death, leaving Sherie an orphan in a cramped one-room government flat with 12 family members, none of whom had formal education.

Today, Sherie Ng stands as a senior executive who has worked at global giants like Microsoft and Google, transforming from a child washing dishes at her aunt's prawn noodle stall at age 5 into a leader who champions possibility against all odds.

In this deeply personal interview, Sherie reveals how extreme poverty and trauma became the foundation for her success, why she believes battle scars are more valuable than cushy beginnings, and her blueprint for turning any circumstance into a stepping stone rather than a tombstone.

Sherie: Well, I would say my childhood maybe is not very typical. I didn't grow up with a cushy family environment. I grew up with my grandmother in a very small one-room government flat here in Singapore. 12 of us squeezed into a small environment. All my family members were not educated and we were really, really poor.

One vivid incident, a very unfortunate day for me—when I was 4 years old, my mother had really deep depression and she actually poisoned my father's coffee and he collapsed and then she jumps off. That day I lost my family. I became nobody's child.

Sherie: Looking back at my life, what's the biggest lesson? I would say that life is an accumulation of different seasons. There is something to be learned in every season whether it's low or high. I've gone through seasons where it's just sheer hopelessness, thinking that it's frustrating, so disappointing, and these seasons are not permanent. They will pass, they will change.

If there are hard times, don't let it be a tombstone that sends you a death sentence, but more importantly, let it be a stepping stone that you can build, you can learn from it. And in high times, learn to cherish that moment. Always remember to be grateful and look for that opportunity for that next growth path.

I think there are many times in our life, we're always looking at the hindsight—I would have done better. Regretting will not get you anywhere, but reflecting and rethinking and bringing those perspectives into your future so that you can do better and be a better version of ourselves is something that I would encourage everyone to do and it's something that I do.

Sherie: I started working when I was 5 years old. My auntie had a prawn noodle store that provides for the entire family. I was her little assistant, washing the dishes, cooking and serving. I guess I learned many, many different skill sets that took me through to my career today and to my life. So I can cook, I can interact with customers because I think it's something that is innate.

So for young people, I would say that every experience and interaction counts. Every experience can be used to accumulate into a bigger portfolio. So I would say do not underestimate any task or the skills—different experiences add up.

Sherie: People often ask me, it's amazing to be able to work for global companies and be in leadership positions at companies like Microsoft and Google. I would say the poverty, the lack, the challenges growing up really shaped and defined me differently. I graduated from NTU, one of the universities here in Singapore, and applied for my first job and very fortunately for me, I landed at Lucent Technology.

What drives me every part of my career journey, I would definitely say it's the people. For myself, I was so fortunate where a stranger and a passerby offered shelter, offered free tuition so that I can get to school. And as I started work in large enterprises, sometimes I feel that I'm just not good enough, but I'm very grateful and thankful for male and female sponsors and support of my colleagues, my bosses, who are always willing to help.

If you're willing to learn, if you're willing to ask why, willing to challenge the status quo and ask why not, you will find yourself a lot of allies who are willing to come alongside to create something big, something different. But more importantly, it must be centered because you want to do good, you want to help, and you want to make a difference.

Sherie: In the earlier part of my career, I would say I haven't been very intentional about which role, which job, which company. I started in Lucent Technologies and that exposure gave me an opportunity to follow my boss into the next job in banking and finance, and went on to energy and utilities, having the privilege to see many operate in many markets and many cultures and many different industries.

I think underlying the fact is that we are all dealing and working with humans and there are a lot more commonalities than differences. But what I would say is that few attributes will carry you through: ability to be open-minded, to listen intently, to observe, see problems and want to do something about it. That would be my advice from that perspective.

Sherie: I think growing up in an environment where I have a lot of lack, there is a hunger to want to work hard, to want to accomplish something for myself. I have this concept of always having a big vision—keep your eyes on the destination that you are looking to get to and then having checkpoints where you're always having conversations, you're always looking at: are we moving? Is this action moving you closer to your mission or to your objective? And how can we recalibrate, fine tune and move alongside.

Definitely have a growth mindset, especially in our era today. Whatever we learn from school will be quickly outdated. It's very important that you read widely, network widely, talk, observe and learn from people. And be very willing to go the extra mile and do more. I always believed that people who are very faithful on small tasks—more things will be given to you. Give your very best and people are observing and watching.

The second thing is more intentional—know exactly where and what you want to do and create a roadmap in that sense. I see in large organizations or small organizations, there are a lot of people who are willing to help and willing to provide support and mentorship. Be grateful to the leaders, so gratitude always creates even more access and opportunity.

The third thing is of course professional education is always good to have. In today's world, it's not just professional certification, but also competence and skill sets. So if you think that you want to go into a career in AI, would I have an opportunity? I think it's never been a time like this where yes, you do have an opportunity. There are many open courses, platforms where you can get micro certifications and get skill sets acquired along your career journey. Continuous learning is super critical.

Sherie: Maybe I'll share a recent experience. I went on a little hike on Mission Peak. Right at the top, I had an amazing, amazing view and then realized that Silicon Valley that we all know about is actually situated in the low-lying valley.

In the low-lying valley, you see the ingenuity of humans. A lot of people spend and are tenacious and have a lot of resolve—sweat, their blood, countless hours that people don't see to get to the point of innovation and to be an entrepreneur.

Sometimes people think that entrepreneurship is equated to a startup or when you want to drive your own business. For us at large enterprises, we value people with that entrepreneurial spirit, that willingness to take risks, the ability to communicate your vision and mobilize and bring it to life to execute on ideas. So I would say entrepreneurship is something that is precious, it's a spirit that sees a problem, reacts to challenges and mobilizes resources to take that risk, to innovate, to make a difference and drive impact.

Sherie: A lot of people come and ask me, wow, you have an opportunity to work with global companies in leadership positions. But I would say that it's really not where I am today. It's where I came from—my history, my background, the challenges really shaped and defined me differently.

For me, I think there's a lot more to be learned from the battle scars and I want to be that inspiration of possibility. I would say my message is to every child, every person out there who feels that you don't have what it takes: know that you can have what it takes today. You can alter your own life and reach out for help and look out for platforms that can give you a different opportunity and you can be who you want to be.

Don't let your current situation and your circumstances define who you are, but really continue to dream, dream big. Anybody can make it happen.