"Kiasu" is it good or bad

What is "kiasu"? I first learned the word "kiasu" when I came to Singapore 2 months ago. It is a popular Hokkien word which means that people are afraid of losing to others.

Now, "kiasu" has its good points and bad points. I believe that being "kiasu" is bad in excessive amount for anyone. For example, if a parent is overly "kiasu", the parent will tend to exert pressure on the child to work extremely hard and set high expectations. So the poor child will be under tremendous stress. If the child if unable to meet the expectations of his or her parents, he or she will become very depressed and, in extreme cases, may even commit suicide as he or she may think that it is the only way to get out of her misery, as is the case in the story of "Adeline Ng Ai Choo".

On the other hand, a heathy dose of "kiasu-ism" does have its own merits. Imagine a student who is "kiasu", he or she will strive to acheive his or her goals and study very hard. one may ask? What if everyone is "kiasu", won't everybody be striving to become better and there will be no lazy people in the country? Hence, the whole nation will become more competetive as a whole. May be that is why Singapore developed at such an incredible speed that She will soon surpass almost every country in the entire world.

So, if I were to decide whether "kiasu" is good or bad, I would say that it is neutral and it depends on the dosage and application.

What do you think? If you have an opinion on this subject, please share with us.
For the time being, interestingly I am learning more new Singaporean "kia"-phrases like : "kiasi"(afraid to die, afraid to make mistake; cowardice), "kiam-siap"(stingy) and "kiabo"(afraid of wife)