How can an eccentric person find a life in Singapore?

EDIT:

Thanks everyone for the responses! I need to clarify a few things:

I should be using the term "Asperger syndrome" (AS) as that's what the doctor diagnosed me with (and I conveniently forgot, thanks to some replies below who actually managed to identify it), rather than eccentric. The main points are the same though:

• AS is a mild form of autism, where the main shortcoming is a deficit in my set of social skills. (But "mild" means I'm still mostly normal.) I thank the replies below for making me confident that this is something I can overcome personally and I only have myself to blame if it remains an issue later on in life.

• AS also means that my way of thinking differs fundamentally from that of "normal" people. In particular, it does not mean I am straight-up more disabled than "normal" people, it just means I have my own strengths and weaknesses like everyone else.

What I'm worried about is how both bosses/employers and people I meet in everyday life will perceive and treat me here in Singapore, given that I think in a fundamentally different way than them. What kind of responses can I expect from these people, and how should I deal with them?

I'm not going to pretend to be normal (all the time) except as a last resort, because:

• I'll be giving up my own identity: my potential strengths, my real interests, my happiness.

• If I'm going to pretend to be something I'm not, I will most definitely be of lower quality than the real deal, i.e. everyone else.

I was also wondering if moving to a Western country is a good idea, since their society is more open-minded... I speculate anyway. :I

Side point: The MO actually gave me an option to PES F because of AS, and also because I'm having a severe period of depression and anxiety here in NS. (I'm currently PES E1L9.) My counsellors say PES F isn't that world-ending (the IT industry which I'm planning to enter has nearly nothing to do with a military lifestyle, and MNCs don't even care about NS, employers will love my lack of reservist etc.), but my parents say PES F will absolutely ruin my life (the indication of my character, the potential danger to the company etc.). I believe my counsellors since they're more experienced, but my parents are really adamant about staying on. I really need something concrete, so can someone give some good arguments about whether or not to PES F? Or even better, provide the names of some employers in the IT industry so that I can actually contact them to check their stand on the matter? (It's the most surefire way to confirm the extent to which PES F will affect my life at this point. I tried sourcing for typical employers but Google isn't helping, it only offered IDA.) Many thanks to anyone who can help me on this!

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old post:

(My first post on reddit.)

The short question: Being an eccentric person, what kind of advice would you give to me in order to lead a better life in a conservatist society like Singapore's?

The long: I'm a soon-to-be 20 year old Singaporean Chinese boy, currently serving NS. I've known myself as an eccentric person since sec school and I'm pretty happy about myself... if my life isn't being affected by other people so much.

(I seem to fit the bill for eccentricity snugly according to Wikipedia.) About my eccentricity: I get my own weird ideas very often, and my mind wanders a lot, making me happy when I think of crazy, epic things. (Apparently I smile and talk to myself a lot.) "Normal"/"age-suited" topics and interests (such as sports, politics, popular video games, trending stuff like iPhones, and pop music) are pretty boring to me / I just can't get into with them. Socially, I can't make sense of the expectations and judgments people have sometimes, in a society that expects that to be second nature. I also have little social awareness for my age (e.g. I'm unable to read other people's moods and intentions, and have little sense of what is polite or respectful).

I'm starting to worry about the social ramifications of my eccentricity and social blindness in a society like Singapore's, where you are greatly expected to know and conform to the social norms. There are two main repercussions:

• I feel lonely from having no one else to share ideas and interests with me. It also means that my ideas aren't supported by anyone else. I can talk generally and about things I know, but I have no real BFF to be crazy with.
• More practically, it may be difficult for me to get a job here since soft skills are so emphasised these days. Even if I were to get one, it will be hard for me to advance to a higher, more managerial position (where the better pay, power and freedom is) since I can't even connect well with other people, much less manage them.

I don't really hate people (unless they have really wronged me, then the hate is real), and I can maintain talking terms but I just don't connect well with people on the personal side. I just prefer to be left alone to pursue my own projects. (I did fairly well in school and hoping to continue doing so in uni and in my future job, so no worries for now.)

I don't think changing myself is a good option, just like school where there are simply some subjects that you cannot do well in no matter how hard you try. Even if I somehow manage to adapt to be able to comprehend the complexities of social relationships, the time for establishing a base of real friends is quite over already. So I wonder what kind of options I can take to make life easier: some kind of social help community, a job that's more friendly to my personality, or even just gtfo of this country and find a better life with some other society.

I'll welcome any help you can give. I can provide more details about myself if need be.