My husband and I have been respecting the decision or request made by our firstborn (she is 4 years old) since young. As we noticed those lessons (ballet, pony riding, wushu class) that she requested by herself, she will put in her utmost effort and do it all by herself without us having to remind her at all. To both my husband and myself, we are not so much into academic or survival skill; we feel that by developing her talents (her purpose in life) she might excel or be even more successful in life. However, we were told otherwise that we should only invest her time in "surviving activities" like swimming, music class, "I can read" or special class that start them on the right foot for better grades, etc. I don't feel like forcing her and mould her into a "standard" child but worry my decision might cause her left behind in the future when she starts schooling. Hope the mommies and daddies here can share with me on some good advice.

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Spot on. Help her find her purpose in life. Ken Robinson wrote a really good book about purpose in life called The Element. Or watch his TED talk on YouTube. It's a fantastic talk.