The image is a snippet of an article chanced upon in the Sunday Times. It made me think about the budget constrained Singaporeans who face bread and butter issues.

The employed person has a job. The self employed person owns a job. The business owner invests in jobs. The investor creates jobs.

ESBI Quadrant

I have also been following the plight of Singapore hawkers dealing with overheads and speaking to entrepreneurs about their challenges. Why is a job so important?

The need for income is constant. Expenses that require commitments do not disappear alongside income cessation. Therefore, overheads cost management have significant impacts on the sustainability of the business and its ultimate survival.

“HDB’s Home-based Small Scale Business Scheme allows flat lessees to carry out small businesses such as baking, hairdressing, beauty, tuition and other services as long as these activities do not inconvenience neighbours or require industrial equipment.”

In Singapore the cost of failure is high due to high business overheads. Reducing this cost of failure can enable more to earn a living rather than relying on and subsequently burdening social welfare mechanisms.