I also enjoy history because the dreamer in me loves the pages when they can read like a fairy tale come true. Indeed, I would say that a history book is one of the few things worth reading today, especially in these times, when the Anglo-Saxon press continues to devote too much ink to the troubles of a few European countries, ignoring the history-changing moments here in Asia where half of the world lives.

Malaysians will soon be called to the polls. A history lesson may help us all vote better.

We've all heard of glorious periods when people lived happily and prosperously. The democratic process ensures that here in Malaysia, we get the chance (at least once in every five years) to ask the question: Are we there yet? And if not, who can help us get there peacefully?

Consider the Roman Empire. It had good emperors and bad ones, including some really awful ones. In the over 630-year epoch of this empire, there were altogether 82 emperors (and 10 dynasties) but only a handful stood out as having made a real difference, and the impact they brought about lasted well beyond their time.

Consider the emperor Augustus who could easily have been a megalomaniac like his predecessors, especially since he was a great military leader. But instead of ruling by might and fear, he created a true Roman forum, making it a symbol of the people above himself. He established the rule of law.

In China, the great emperor Tang Tai Zong is regarded as the wisest of all Chinese emperors for his inclusive consideration of all the nation's people, especially the peasants. He dramatically boosted economic development through simplification of bureaucracy, tightened the state budget to lower taxes, directed scarce state funds towards important infrastructure projects like irrigation schemes to improve agricultural productivity, and waged war against corruption. Yes, I know what you're thinking - society's problems sound pretty familiar. Emperor Tang lived and reigned 1,400 years ago. In fact, the solutions are often the same as well. It's whether we have a leader and his/her team who can get it done.

On the home front (my hometown to be precise), in 15th-century Melaka, Sultan Mansur Shah turned the state into the centre of Asia, just as Venice was the capital of the West then. He did this through a liberal policy that welcomed foreigners and their investments. He reduced taxes on trade and established a preferential tariff system to make Melaka the trading hub of choice, not just for the locals but also merchants from Arabia, Java, China and India.

In modern times, the Americans paid homage to the greatest presidents in stone, on the side of Mt Rushmore. We all know what Washington, Lincoln, Jefferson and Roosevelt did for their country. In fact, all American presidents since Washington have tried to live up to an ideal enshrined in their constitution, and made visceral through the expressed ethos of the American Dream.

Simply put, the American Dream is about having the opportunity for prosperity and success, and an upward social mobility that may be achieved through hard work, regardless of race, religion and creed. And if there is a yardstick by which to measure whether an American president is good, bad or great, one only needs to measure him (no her yet) on how well US citizens have been able to fulfil the American Dream during his term.

The new Chinese leader Xi Jin Ping caught on to this, and he fashioned the Chinese dream, explaining that "realising the great renewal of the Chinese nation is the greatest dream for the Chinese nation in modern history". He went on to explain that "while everybody has one's own ideal and pursuit ... history tells us that one's future and destiny are closely connected to those of the country and nation".

What is our Malaysian dream then: Peace? Prosperity? Happiness? National unity?

No one has really tried to define it. Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad successfully introduced one critical element: to give individual Malaysians the courage and confidence that we can (Malaysia Boleh), and he made heroes out of people from all walks of life on all sorts of achievements (hence our continued penchant to get into the Guinness Book of World Records). Datuk Seri Najib Razak introduced another societal element: That we can be No 1, we can get richer and we can do so together, inclusively and sustainably.

A recent BCG study, From Wealth To Well-Being, assessed the world's nations and identified those which have made the most progress in not just raising income per capita of its citizens but also using the income to fund enablers of future economic and social progress. It is not a simple matter of giving the wealth away to the poor; the leaders must invest it well. Critically, as countries get richer, governments need to ensure that the wealth is channelled into building critical areas.

For Malaysia, I would highlight these:

* Education and skills development is the highest and broadest impact lever for long-term economic development. Good leaders ensure they keep upskilling their people and the enterprises they work in. On this note, we need the right policies that push them to perform rather than subsidise those who fail.

* Values-based, outcomes-focused public finances to help fund infrastructure and health and education services that the markets cannot efficiently or effectively provide. These investments need to go into measures that help people succeed, not handouts that kill their hunger and further cripple them into dependence.

* A dynamic enabling environment fosters ease of doing business domestically and free trade internationally, coupled with the institutional context that favours entrepreneurship and innovation.

Yes, this sounds very much like what Emperor Tang or Sultan Mansur Shah deployed. For good reason: these levers work.

Our leaders have a chance to help us achieve our Malaysian dream and maybe write themselves into the history books like Augustus, Tang, Mansur Shah. Read their manifesto and measure them against how they intend to translate the nation's wealth into our well-being.

P/S: We probably won't figure (not prominently at any rate) in the history books but if we choose wisely, we can tell our descendants that we made the difference. We put the right team in office... and we all lived happily ever after.

Vincent Chin is senior partner at the Boston Consulting Group and leads its Southeast Asian businesses. This story first appeared in The Edge weekly edition of Dec 24-31, 2012.