not my cuppa?

One thing about working in company that consists of 95% local Singaporeans is that my name stands out. I don't have the "binte" (daughter of) in the middle of my name to signify that I am of Malay heritage, and neither do I put my surname first like most Chinese. My surname is not even of Filipino heritage. It is actually a name of a place in Spain, which is probably known for having the oldest university in that country.


So anyway, I think that having a name that stands out amidst all other locals' names makes me a target of random picking for various company-initiated things--like random audits, the interview for ISO, or the pre-test for the organisational climate survey.


An organisational climate survey is usually done by companies to learn how employees feel about the company. Now, whether the company actually uses the findings to improve employee relations and job satisfaction is another story. Since I was randomly picked to be one of the first to answer the survey (and give feedback whether the questions are confusing or not), the questions made me think whether I really want to stay in this company or not.


With the help of the survey questions, I was able to come up with some definitive factors why we choose to stay or choose to leave a company.


Why stay?

1. Better benefits
2. Working relationships with peers
3. Working relationships with supervisor
4. Nature of work
5. Opportunities for training
6. Better pay
7. Better career prospects
8. Good work-life balance
9. Job security
10. Organisational culture

My top reason for wanting to stay in this organisation is probably no. 6. And because times are tough these days, no. 6 fits into my picture also.

Why leave?

1. Personal or health reasons
2. Change of career
3. Want to try working in the private sector
4. Better career prospects outside
5. Better salary outside
6. Better benefits outside
7. Excessive workload
8. Working relationship with supervisor and peers
9. Job security
10. Working hours

My top reason for wanting to leave is probably no. 7 (and a bit of no. 2). Maybe this thing is just not my cuppa. When you're giving it your best, but you still feel that you're not good at it, maybe it's just not your cup of tea (or coffee).

Isip, isip...

I texted my friend L recently: "What do I love to do ba?"

I told my husband the other day: "I don't know anymore what it is that I really want to do. I think I'm having a mid-life crisis." His response: "Wala ka pa ngang thirty, mid-life crisis ka na."

Well then, e di I'm having a mid-mid life crisis OR maybe I'm just gonna live until I'm sixty so that's why it's just high time that I have my mid-life crisis now.