<photo: Barrels Huts Base Camp 3,800m @ Mount Elbrus, preparing to climb to the summit at 2am>
in a study of work behavior, researchers found that employees who used Firefox or Chrome to browse the Internet stayed 15% longer in their jobs than those who used Internet Explorer or Safari. the same study also indicated that Firefox and Chrome users were 19% less likely to miss work than those who used Internet Explorer and Safari. on these and other metrics, Firefox and Chrome users were more committed in their work and better performers.
why the difference in performance? the answer lies in how the users obtained the browers that they were using. the Internet Explorer and Safari browsers are default browsers in Windows and Apple computers respectively. in order to use a non-default browser like Firefox or Chrome, users would have to take the initiative and make some efforts to download these browsers.
users who didn't accept the default browsers approached their jobs differently. they changed the things that made them unhappy. they questioned the status quo.
in a recent feedback session, a group of young people commented that Singapore's education system was too competitive and stifled their sense of purpose. as a result, they had no idea who they were and what's their purpose in life. can our sense of purpose be found by not clicking on the default?
climbers accept defaults because they are safe, but will quickly adapt as weather conditions changes.
“I am losing precious days. I am degenerating into a machine for making money. I am learning nothing in this trivial world of men. I must break away and get out into the mountains to learn the news” - John Muir