If you ever dined at our latest outlet, Greendot Jurong Point, you might have noticed a wall filled with verses of Chinese teachings. Have you ever take a step closer and wonder what does these verses mean?
This is actually a verse from the book 弟子规 (dizigui).
Di Zi Gui was written in the Qing Dynasty during the reign of the Kangxi Emperor by Li Yuxiu. The book is based on the ancient teaching of the Chinese philosopher Confucius that emphasis the basic requisites for being a good person and guidelines for living in harmony with others.
Many people have asked me, “How do I be a good leader/good boss/good colleague?” My reply is always the same, “Learn to be a good person, then you will be a good leader”. In this current society, our education system emphasizes a lot on training on technical skills. We are educated to become a good engineer, doctor, lawyer, musician, scientist etc. But why are we not educated to become a person of good values? Our education system in the olden days focuses on values education, inculcating the right values in us from young. With the right and clear values, it helps us makes better decisions, and a series of good decisions will make our lives better. We are also able to live in harmony with others and find joy in the things we do.
There are many verses of teachings in the book and we chose the verse 泛爱众 (fan ai zhong) which also translates to “Loving All Equally”. We have many employees of different background, nationalities and ages. Thus, it is not easy for everyone to work together because everyone is different. We want our people to love all being equally, regardless of nationality, race, or religion, for we share the same living space and the same resources that is available on Earth. All of us need to love one another. There is no you and me but WE. We are here to work together, live together harmoniously.
As such, we have collaborated with Zhong Hua Cultural Society (Singapore) since the start of the year to conduct a series of lesson using the wisdom of Di Zi Gui teaching to help our people excel in their work and improve our organization. We are thankful to have to this opportunity and sincerely believe that this will help our people become a person of value and contribute to society positively.
“Try not become a person of success, but rather try to become a person of value”
– Albert Einstein