Try Again.

Embracing failure
with good intentions

is an unspoken culture in Iceland,
the consistent highest scorer in the World's Happiness Index.

It's a norm for
Icelandic teenagers start a garage band
with their parents full support.

According to Weiner
[read previous post if you're clueless who's he],
these kids don't expect success 'cos
'...it's the trying that counts.'

If they fail,
they can always bounce back
and try again.

They are a nation of
'born-agains'

I'm convinced it's never about the weather
when it comes to mood swings.

Where it is usually dark and chilly,
the Icelandic people
are hardly told they're not good enough,

so they are free to
sing, paint and write.

See,
failure doesn't carry a stigma here,
whether the weather be good or not.

No wonder,
Iceland produces more artists and writers
per capita than any other nation.

*

This creative milieux also proves
that artists can be happy people too
[we see how so many poets, artists, writers and musicians
either going loony or leaving behind suicide notes].

Weiner gained insight on the reason behind this:

Icelandic people
has a lack of
Envy.

'Icelanders suppress envy by sharing them.'

Envy divides people.
Who's better than who?
Sounds like Competition.

But you know what,
in Latin, competition is
competure,
which means
to
'seek with'.

What pops to mind?
Co-operation.
Sharing.
Like an open-source software.

It's indeed a Golden Age
Peter Hall says we live in.

Now that we know
the world's most creative nation
actually embrace the value of
sharing,
the root meaning of 'competition',
and failure [with good intentions],

we can be less Asian
[remember how China guarded its inventions such as its paper making technology
and ended up backdated more than many nations],

I can't help but hear this in Singapore slang,
'Don't copy me.'

we don't need to
be afraid about that.
People can 'copy'
but they can never be you.
Just be confident in your originality.
The public can tell the difference
between the fake and original.

How about this,
assume high praise,
when people 'copy' you.
You're their model, man.

we don't need to
'save face',
be afraid to lose [Singaporeans call it 'kiasu'],
and definitely not
afraid to die [and they call this 'kiasi'].

Instead,

let's be free to
Try,
Share,
unafraid of failing,

because we can always
Try again.

*

Okay,
Asia didn't score poorly in the World's Happiness Index.
At least,
the unhappiest nations don't come from there.

Eric Weiner featured one particular nation from Asia
that's known for its happy people.
It happens to be one of my favourite countries.

Will be writing about it next.

*