Change Gear

Was reading Billi Lim's Dare to Fail book & came across changing of gears which instantly remind me of bicycle gears since i'm an avid rider myself.

"Many of us are so stereotyped in the kinds of careers or skills that we are brought up with. A doctor gives rise to a Dr's son. A lot of people started as accountant & die as an accountant. Others started as secretary & die as a secretary. They don't seem to be able to 'change gear' even though they are unhappy & can't get what they want from that profession." -Billi Lim

There's an article by the State Times about how S'pore workers are the world's unhappiest. With so many of our countrymen loathing what they do as a profession in their waking hours i'm puzzle when people meetup for 1st time & the usual question is 'what do you do?' A fake smile accompanying their answer? A job title that identifies who they are even though they dislike it?

We know is almost impossible to ride up a lengthly moderate to steep slope on the biggest chainring. Neither can we ride fast on the smallest chainring. However this is precisely what many are doing as in suffering through the job mismatch.

School's primary function is to churn out cogs for the economy. It doesn't teach us about happiness, relationships or how to make $$ on our own. Is up to individuals to find out which unfortunately many don't once they are caught up in the hectic ratrace.

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Singapore workers ‘world’s unhappiest’
Survey of 14 countries finds local employees are also the least loyal
By Melissa Ho, May 30 2011

HATE your work? Dread going in on Monday? Considering quitting your job?

Well, you are not alone. Most of the Singapore workforce is with you, according to one survey.

A poll of employee attitudes in 14 countries has ranked Singapore last in workplace happiness. Unsurprisingly, this correlates to loyalty to employers, where Singapore is again ranked at the rear.

Talent management company Lumesse polled about 4,000 employees from a wide variety of industries.

People were asked about how happy they were at work, whether they felt their skills were properly utilised, the career paths open to them, and the training and career development opportunities they had.

The results put Singapore last in three major areas – we least enjoy going to work, are the least loyal & have the least supportive workplaces.

Only 17% of Singapore’s workforce see themselves staying with their current employer forever. The global average is 35%.

‘Clearly, very few employees feel bonded to their companies. This is going to be a problem as companies are not getting the full potential of workers,’ said Mr Rolf Bezemer, Lumesse’s managing director for Singapore, Malaysia & Australia.

At the same time, only 19% of those polled in Singapore look forward to their work each day, compared to the global average of 30%.

When it comes to positive and supportive workplaces, only a paltry 12% vouch that they exist in Singapore. Globally, 20% believe so.

Mr Bezemer attributes Singapore’s poor showing to the lack of transparency & consistency in workplaces here & an absence of stimulating jobs.