From fear to informed choice: Reframing youth, risk and innovation in Sri Lanka

Tuesday, 16 December 2025 01:21 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Sri Lanka today stands at a quiet but critical crossroads

Sri Lanka today stands at a quiet but critical crossroads. While public debate often focuses on policy reform, investment flows, and economic recovery measures, a deeper constraint continues to limit progress, which is the mindset. In particular, it is how we as a society think about youth, careers, risk, regulation, and innovation.

In Sri Lanka, fear, not lack of talent, is the greatest barrier to progress. Parents fear instability. Students fear irreversible failure. Educators fear reputational risk. Regulators fear loss of control. Employers fear “unreliable” graduates. As a result, capable young people either wait too long, take risks blindly, or suppress innovation altogether.

This is not a failure of ambition. It is a failure of confidence in our systems.

Moving beyond a false choice

One of the most damaging narratives we have normalised is the idea that young people must choose either a stable job or entrepreneurship. This is a false choice.

Employment, experimentation, and entrepreneurship are connected stages of value creation, not opposing paths. A good job does not end entrepreneurial ambition. In many cases, it prepares young people for it by building discipline, exposure, and problem awareness.

Sri Lanka does not need every graduate to become a founder. It needs every graduate to become a responsible problem-solver, whether inside an organisation, a startup, or a public institution.

Early dialogue builds trust, improves compliance quality, and strengthens formalisation, something Sri Lanka urgently requires. When institutions act together, innovation becomes sustainable

Designing risk, not avoiding it

Risk itself is not the problem. Blind risk is.

Informed risk, taken with preparation, validation, and institutional support, is how economies evolve. What our youth need is not encouragement to “quit jobs and chase ideas”, but the assurance that risk can be designed, staged, and managed.

Universities, regulators, industry, and chambers all have a role to play. Universities must become safe spaces for structured experimentation. Regulators must be seen not only as enforcers, but as early-stage educators and advisors. Industry must open pathways for real problem exposure, not simply offer advice after failure.

In Sri Lanka, fear, not lack of talent, is the greatest barrier to progress. Perhaps the most urgent mindset shift Sri Lanka needs is how we view failure. A failed experiment, done responsibly, produces learning, maturity, and resilience

Rethinking failure

Perhaps the most urgent mindset shift Sri Lanka needs is how we view failure.

In our family-centric culture, a failed attempt is often treated as a failed future. This is neither fair nor economically sensible. A failed experiment, done responsibly, produces learning, maturity, and resilience. It should not close doors permanently to employment or credibility.

Trying, pivoting, and even returning to employment is not weakness. It is judgement.

Regulation as a safety system

Another misconception worth addressing is the belief that regulation kills innovation. In reality, confusion kills innovation, not regulation itself.

Regulation works best when it is understood early and discussed openly, not when it arrives suddenly at the enforcement stage. Early dialogue builds trust, improves compliance quality, and strengthens formalisation, something Sri Lanka urgently requires.

Regulators who engage early do not weaken the system but strengthen it.

One of the most damaging narratives we have normalised is the idea that young people must choose either a stable job or entrepreneurship

A message of reassurance

What Sri Lanka needs now is not simplistic startup glorification narratives or headline-driven hype, but national reassurance to students, parents, educators, employers, and regulators alike.

The message must be clear:

You do not have to decide everything at once
You do not lose your future by trying responsibly
Institutions exist to guide, not punish, informed effort
Careers evolve and are not destroyed by learning

What our youth need is not encouragement to “quit jobs and chase ideas”, but the assurance that risk can be designed, staged, and managed

The way forward

Mindset transformation is not a soft issue. It is an economic imperative. At a time when youth anxiety is high, families are financially stretched, and trust in systems remain fragile, confidence-building is as important as policy reform. When fear recedes, talent moves. When dialogue replaces silence, compliance improves. When institutions act together, innovation becomes sustainable. Sri Lanka’s future will not be built by reckless risk-taking or rigid safety. It will be built by informed choice, shared responsibility, and the confidence to try with support.

(The author is a senior leader in Sri Lanka’s chamber and industry ecosystem. He is engaged in national and international dialogue on entrepreneurship development, regulatory reform, and youth innovation. He could be reached via email at [email protected].)

A good job does not end entrepreneurial ambition but in many cases, it prepares young people for it by building discipline, exposure, and problem awareness

From fear to informed choice: Reframing youth, risk and innovation in Sri Lanka

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