Why Many Want To Pursue Financial Independence And Get Out Of Rat Race?

Read? A whopping 92% of working Singaporeans are stressed – and women are prioritising families over themselves, study finds

If you’re feeling stressed at work, you’re not alone. A vast majority of working Singaporeans are under stress, and women in particular feel that it’s less manageable, a survey has found.

In the 2019 Cigna 360 Well-Being Survey, a whopping 92 per cent of working Singaporeans report feeling stressed, higher than the global average of 84 per cent.

Of this, 13 per cent say their stress is unmanageable, which is on par with the global average, according to the study which surveyed a total of 13,200 online interviews in 23 markets, including 502 residents in Singapore.

And stress doesn’t go undetected in the workplace. The survey found that 55 per cent of Singaporean respondents notice their colleagues’ stress. Cigna’s report said this could be a sign that they are hiding their stress or aren’t comfortable talking about it.

Noticing colleagues’ stress in turn makes respondents more self-aware, it seems. 30 per cent of respondents feel more conscious about managing their own stress upon seeing others stressed at work.

And a vast majority (90 per cent) agree that stress has a serious impact on the workplace. Some of the more worrying effects are lowered morale and even resignation.

Finland is again the happiest country in the world – and it’s now offering to fly visitors there to ‘rent’ a local who’ll show you how it’s done

Read? Finland is again the happiest country in the world – and it’s now offering to fly visitors there to ‘rent’ a local who’ll show you how it’s done



Experiences may range from visiting a national park to spending a weekend fishing at a real summer cottage.


Hmm ...


Singapore is an island and yet most parts of the island ban fishing!

Dumb!

Umbrella Sharing At Sembawang Station

Hougang’s waterways to be revamped

A 1.3 km section of the canal along Hougang Avenue 10, and from Hougang Avenue 4 to Buangkok Drive, will have more greenery.


CW8888: Ho Seh liao! Will be direct view from his flat for this greenery canal under ABC Waters projects.

First Flat, First Home, Lasting Memories

Read? First Flat, First Home, Lasting Memories

Read? Seniors at successful ageing discussion say they prefer to age in place

Seniors at successful ageing discussion say they prefer to age in place

Read? Home for Living and not for profit taking (6)



SINGAPORE: To age in place, living independently within a supportive community was the desire of many seniors who were at a focus group discussion on senior-friendly homes on Saturday (Aug 30).
It is the second in a series of public discussions on the national Action Plan for Successful Ageing.

The plan aims to engage Singaporeans to come up with strategies to help seniors age successfully. It will look into eight areas, including lifelong learning, health and wellness and retirement adequacy, with discussions centred on building 'A Nation for All Ages'. Participants will identify the areas they feel are most important in determining successful ageing.

Over half of the 44 participants at the discussion on Saturday were above 60 years old. Most of them said they would rather live in the same flat as they age than to move in with their children. And even if they require more assistance, many preferred right-sizing their apartment or turning to other options like living in a retirement village.


 "Most of them said they would rather live in the same flat .."


CW8888: Home has Utility Value. The older we are and the longer we are living in the same home. It will become the saddest moment in our last phase of our life to let it go. Giving up our home should not be part of our retirement planning.



Some participants said they did not want to force family members to take care of them, citing changing social dynamics and generational differences. Others preferred to stay within familiar surroundings than move out.

The participants asked for more to be done to create a better environment for community integration and mutual support among the elderly such as providing better spaces for communal daily activities between seniors such as cooking or eating.

They also suggested outreach initiatives such as training 'senior ambassadors' - who may be younger seniors physically fit enough to do regular house visits but are old enough to empathise with the concerns of their charges - to interact with lonely seniors.

"They probably want to feel that 'I can be as independent as I can for as long as I want to, for as long as I'm able to', be it financially or even physically. Living with their children may give them the sense that they are dependent on their children physically. So they do not mind or would want to live near their children so that emotional support can be made available, but at the same time they want to be as independent as they can," said Dr Mohamad Maliki Osma, Minister of State for National Development.

"What came across today was also the sense of community. Many of the seniors spoke about the need for the community to come together - neighbours coming together to support one another, to recognise and identify vulnerable elderly neighbours, for example. I think that's also quite positive, because I think many are beginning to realise that we need to build a community that's mutually supportive of one another," he added.

- CNA/ir

Personal savings put the frowns on S'poreans

SINGAPORE: Singaporeans rate their personal savings as the area they are most unhappy with - according to a study called "The Happiness Report".


Conducted by global communications firm, Grey Group, the study found that nearly half of the respondents reported a lack of sufficient savings in the last six months.

The second area that respondents said they were least happy with, was personal expenditure over the last half year, garnering 40.5 per cent of responses. The next three areas that made Singaporeans unhappy were their confidence in the economy (27 per cent), job satisfaction (23 per cent), and work-life balance (21 per cent).

The study was conducted in June this year with 200 respondents, from the ages of 18 to over 60 years old.

The study also revealed the top five things that Singaporeans were most happy about. Area of residence topped the happiness index, with about 78 per cent ranking Singapore as the best place to stay in the world.

Close family ties ranked second (74 per cent), spirituality came in third , with social support networks taking fourth and personal time rounding off the top five on the happiness index.

The study also discovered that baby boomers (45-49 years old) were the happiest people with an overall net happiness score of 11.4 per cent, 4.6 percentage points higher than the young adult segment (18-29 years old).

It also found that men were happier than women at the workplace, with 46.08 per cent of men found to be happy at their jobs as compared to 37.75 per cent for women.-

-CNA/ac