Ep 102: Confessions of an Ex-Convict, Secret Society Member & Social Escort Business Owner | Notle Chew

Notle Chew grew up a Crazy Rich Asian. Who later ended up joining the Secret Society & running one of Singapore’s first social escort businesses (and a successful one at that!) for almost 7 years before he ended up in prison. Which, as you can tell, is not a story you’d normally find on STIMY. But also a story I’ve really wanted to have told. Because I believe that we can learn so much from people from all different parts of society. And Notle’s life story is a cautionary tale, while also giving us a glimpse into a part of society that isn’t often heard of. There is a price to be paid for our actions and in Notle’s case, a hefty one. Some things we talked about: What it means be a member of the secret society; The concept of trust and brotherhood, the initiation process is like and how he ended up leaving the secret society; The 8 o’clock rule; Why he started a social escort business, and grew it to be one of the top businesses around; How he ended up being caught; What it was like being in prison; How he shook off his depression and suicidal thoughts; and Why he believes 80% of ex-convicts can't be helped. As we cover a lot of heavy topics, please consider this a trigger warning. Highlights: 3:19 The name “Notle” 4:01 Life of a Crazy Rich Asian 6:49 Recruited to join the secret society in school 11:56 The 8 o’clock sharp rule 19:15 Paying the price to leave the secret society 22:08 Initiation process for secret society members 24:56 The secret society mindset 26:10 How trust operates in a secret society 27:01 What does “justice” mean? 27:30 Brotherhood 30:50 Starting a social escort business 33:44 Advertising for female workers 39:25 Staying competitive 41:08 The business model 44:40 Business expansion 46:48 Being caught by the police 47:47 Life in prison 49:18 Finding God 49:18 Not regretting prison 54:36 Healing broken relationships 59:57 Triad Trails & the girl 1:04:54 Best way for society to support ex-convicts 1:05:47 80% of ex-convicts will never change 1:07:40 Identifying the 20% that can be helped 📍Show notes: www.sothisismywhy.com/102 💌 Weekly Newsletter on upcoming STIMY guests/interesting reads to make you the most interesting person in the room: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/ebf231f605 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442