SINGAPORE: A recent social media post has stirred a conversation about whether Singaporeans are happy. It began when a Singaporean recounted a tourist’s observation that people in Singapore seemed so unhappy.
In his post, he shared, “I was doing a survey on tourists a few days ago and one of them said, ‘Your country is beautiful and nice, but the people seem so unhappy.’”
“When I asked him why he said that, he said when he was on the MRT everyone was on the phone, looking so upset, on the streets nobody was smiling and 95% of the people just looked very unhappy and were quite unfriendly to tourists overall,” he added.
To this, he answered, “I guess everyone’s just working and stressed out.”
The tourist went on to compare Singapore with Dubai, noting that despite the high-pressure work environments in both cities, Dubai’s residents seemed not as unhappy as Singpaoreans.
“You’re smiling at me right now, you must be the 5% that’s happy with life in Singapore!” the tourist said to him.
“I do agree with him though, the majority of the people here seem very unhappy. I do love my country but just thinking about adult life here in the future is so tiring to me,” he added.
This comparison struck a chord with the locals online, with many saying that Singaporeans’ unhappiness is due to the country’s demanding work culture.
One commenter said, “It’s because of Singapore’s culture of forcing everyone to be in the rat race chasing cold hard cash.
People are always trying to step on others to succeed, everything is expensive, houses are small, there’s nothing much to do here, the entertainment scene is boring and unexciting, wealth disparity is huge, and there’s too many rules and regulations.”
Another pointed out that it’s because of Singaporeans’ obsession with money and the very judgemental older generation.
A US citizen who moved to Singapore shared his own experience with the same culture shock as the tourist, saying:
“As an American who moved to SG, I experienced a bit of culture shock when I first arrived because people don’t smile at each other much on the street, not much in the way of small talk with cashier’s, and randomly striking up conversations with those nearby are minimal.”
He shared that these things are more valued in the US, and aren’t done much in the city-state. “People seemed quite unfriendly to me when I would smile at them and they would just stare back at me.
So on first appearance everyone seems angry and miserable all the time, especially when you aren’t used to reading more neutral Asian facial expressions as much,” he wrote.
Locals online also pointed out that “it’s a Singaporean thing to mind your own business on public transport” and that Singaporeans may not just be the kind to be smiling at strangers.
However, others noted that “it’s not an SG issue,” rather, people are unhappy dragging themselves to work.
One commenter reflected, “Everyone seems to be looking at happiness as an end point. What happens if happiness lies in the pursuit of it? We are still in the process of chasing it. It is tiring to chase an ideal.”
“Are we happy? I know I am not because I am pursuing it. I am tired and I am in survival mode all the time. Can we get there? I hope so,” he added. /TISG
Read also: “What am I working for?” – Young Singaporean depressed over “work work work” daily grind
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