2 kinds of attitude Singaporeans must know

Recently, the Acting Manpower Minister of Singapore made a speech about work ethic.  He said, "The best form of welfare is work, because the dignity that comes with work is very important.  To be able to provide for your own family, to stand on your own two feet, I think there's a value that comes from that that public assistance cannot replace."

Being an entrepreneur, those words resonated with what my values are, and what I personally believe will be values that will lead to success, regardless if you run your own business, or work as an employee.

Unfortunately, responses on social media take it that the Minister meant one has to work till he/ she drops dead, and that one has to end up working as toilet cleaners after retirement in order to support oneself.  Some responses even suggests that desirable work is to have a comfortable pay-check without having to learn new skills.

While there are statistics pointing that Singapore has the highest income inequality compared to the OECD countries, having a defeatist or passive-aggressive attitude is not going to help anyone get better outcomes at work, as well as in life.

There're ONLY 2 Kinds of Attitude

Generally speaking, we can catergorise attitudes in 2 broad catergories:

• Problem-bringers; and
• Problem-solvers

Problem-bringers are those who saw a problem, then complains incessantly about those problems, lay blame on others who (might) have cause those problems, and do absolutely nothing about it.

In a certain way, some political analysts believe that part of the reason why Mitt Romney lost the American Presidential Election of 2012 was that he complained too much, and suggested too little possible solutions.

Problem-Solvers, on the other hand, are NOT the Super-men or women who have solutions to every problem.  Instead, they are the ones who will try to suggest solutions, consult with others to help get a solution, or at least get people explore ways to tackle the causes of the problems that we could not solve today.

Problem-Solvers are what we would normally call a "positive attitude" or a "winning attitude", and this is usually what we advocate as the attitude to look out for when we hire people.

However, personally I believe that this is also the attitude if one wants to get a better outcome at work, and in life.  It's the attitude that helps us to pick ourselves up when we have stumbled, and learn from our mistakes or acquire new skills so that we can achieve more.

As it is, way too many people complain too much about their jobs, bosses, and yes their governments.  While it's true that some governments are corrupted, some companies are dysfunctional, and some bosses are simply a*****es, you can choose to change them, or leave them if it gets real bad.  However, if the attitude remains as the "Problem-Bringer" negative attitude, then you will ALWAYS face difficulties and obstacles wherever you go.  You will also gain less support and buy-in from your colleagues, friends and family members in whatever you do.  In other words, life will be miserable because of a negative attitude.

Hence, if you want to be happier or give yourself a leg-up in face of difficult challenges, sometimes it's a matter of adjusting your attitude.  Even if you fail today, you can still stand-up and move forward another day.  In the words of Sun Tzu, "If you can march 1,000 miles and NOT feel tired, you are undefeatable."  Because your adversaries, be they people or circumstances, will have given up, but not you.