10/06/2026
Laksamana Madya Dato’ Aris Tan spent 44 years in the Navy, but his approach to leadership usually comes down to a very simple rule: “Those who eat together, stay together.”
His time at sea took him from massive land reclamation projects to coordinating 19 different government agencies to protect Malaysia’s borders during the pandemic. Looking back at decades of service, his advice for the next generation is not about rank or strategy, it is about paying attention to the past. As he puts it, “Don’t allow history to repeat... learn about histories so that you can contribute to whatever arena you’re getting into.”
Head over to our YouTube channel to watch the full interview. Link in bio.