Local multi-hyphenate Michelle Chong took to Facebook on Jul 22 to rant about Singaporeans who do not take enough pride in their work.
Frustrated with people she has come across in the course of her work who just “don’t care about what they do”, Michelle expressed that Singapore has the potential to be a better place if people just made an effort to do a good job.
She wrote:
“They don’t check their work, don’t care about how it turns out, don’t take that extra step to value-add or think about how to make it better, don’t want to improve etc. It’s a “why should I bother? It’s not like I’m getting paid very much for this job” or “please lah it’s just a job right?” or “do extra for what? I’m still getting the same salary right?” attitude. I’m not saying we don’t or can’t make mistakes, but maybe just have a little more pride in what we do?”
The post sparked a debate among netizens online garnering over 7,000 reactions, 2,160 shares and 390 comments.
Some netizens agreed with Michelle and one Facebook user, Shaun Lee gave an example from a photographer’s point of view.
Providing an analogy about using film cameras instead of digital ones, he wrote about how taking pride in one’s work will save you money and time.
Ban Yong Ang echoed: “Money can pay your bills but won’t give you the same kind of satisfaction.”
Beng Kit Lee wrote: “A positive mind brings about a positive life. A positive life leads to a happy mind!”
However, there were those who countered Michelle’s views saying that not everyone has the luxury or luck to do what they love and that for practical reasons, they settle for a job they may not enjoy in order to have financial security.
Lare Nherd wrote, “Were we meant to enjoy our jobs, it would not be called jobs” and added that as a celebrity, Michelle cannot fully relate to the “common people” in Singapore.
Others talked about how some industries just end up leaving them jaded like John Fortissimo Blanc who said that he started off with pride and passion for nursing but the harsh reality and demands of the job soon stripped that away.
There are also those resigned to the belief that no matter how much effort or pride they put in their work, they can never overcome the hurdles that exist such as elitism and meritocracy, where those who come from privileged backgrounds and know the “right people” can get further in their careers without working as hard.
The post definitely succeeded in sparking a debate and providing a platform for people to express their opinions on the work culture in Singapore.
Source: http://stomp.straitstimes.com
