Can A Chicken Identify an Eagle?

It takes a good person to identify another good person.
It takes a great person to identify another great person.
But it takes a humble person to identify an incredible person.

Quite often that we meet some empty vessels which tend to makes the most noise wanting spotlights, recognitions & credits while practically doing not much & riding on the sub-ordinate's success. And sometimes it is a mystery to me that such categories of people are placed nearly on top of an organization, ruining it than running it!

When people go for job interviews, most of the time, interviewer over-emphasizes the knowledge & experience of someone in a particular field or the specialized knowledge which they generally perceived as the only important focus in someone's career.
Wait a minute...what about their initiative, commitment, attention to details, ability to strategize, good connections, communicate with respect, resourcefulness, team spirit, responsibilities, integrity....etc?
Aren't those attributes build a stronger foundation for someone to be able to grow the company in the long run?

The question is "Can A Chicken Identify an Eagle? Or an Eaglet?"
It takes someone from a great height to be able to see the potential of another person reaching a greater heights! That is a People-Builder, a Developer & an Enabler!

It is sad to see a company functioning as a Juice Extractor of talented people where fresh employees are full with brain-nutrients & attitude-minerals are being squeezed until the passion & commitment are dehydrated in the name of growth & bad management!

Eventually, it is okay for a local "Watermelon" like us to leave as imported talents such as "Apple" or "Orange" can replace us. Then the process of extraction begins again....
That's why we are seeing local "Watermelons" or "Durians" being exported out as they find more values in other countries.

In a nutshell, it is important to find an Eaglet, invest & build the Eaglet into an Eagle. Then train the Eagle to look for other Eagles to grow together. Sometimes an Eaglet may come in a form of pigeon or turkey for us to discover that they are true Eagles in the making, with hidden wings & sharp claws!

The talent is out there....

Business Owner or Business Runner?

After working for many years, most people would like to start their own business. I've written previously on the "Purpose of Building A Business". Be it Passion, Innovation, Problem-Solving, Jobs Creation or Creating More Income for oneself, there are 2 ways of having our own business.

Either you:

1. Run it ...or...
2. Own it

If you run it, you will never own it.
If you own it, try not to run it.

I've recalled a trading company having high revenues and a big operating scale, firefights daily! Their daily routines are Blaming, Pinpointing, Shooting & Firing! Imagine going to the warzone every day to work. Guess how motivating it is .... There is no teamwork, no incentive and obviously no passion, only a group of people dying mentally and waiting to be buried alive someday.

Another company run by a husband & wife team. All the employees are expected to equipped with multiple Intel processors in their whole body; MULTI-MULTI-MULTI-TASKING!!!
And all the MD knows and care of is the sales volume, margin, profit and nothing else. There is no life, no soul, no respect and no meaning at all. Eventually, everyone left!

I've observed and known a number of business people. In summary:

• Some are having big businesses with a big team but infested with the disease of employee's turnover and low morality.
• Some small businesses remain small in their whole life, due to fear and a conventional mindset.
• Some businesses firefight in their daily routine.
• Some systematically having proper flow and procedures in place.
• While a chosen few started from small and grew into a business empire coupled with solid values, mission, systems, purpose and teamwork.

I think the difference between Business Owners and Business Runners are whether the Management team brings out the Best in people or creates the Worst in people. I call it the Enablers or the Disablers.
Are you creating Drivers, Planners, Communicators and Analyst in your business?
Or you are just creating a bunch of people doing ....whatever....as long as someone doing something.
Do you have people doing the right things or just people doing the things right?
What about having people doing the right things right?

If you wish to be a Business Owner, practise the 3 Es; Educate, Encourage and Empower people.
If you wish to be a Business Runner, practise the 3 Cs: Control, Criticize and Complain people.
But you can replace it with Care, Compliment and Cash!

It is all about having the Heart and Mind for the people. Letting them grow, make mistakes and uplifting them. The alignment of Thoughts and Action from the Management will reflect the real company foundation. Another important element of it is the balance between Systems and Flexibility. Systems control the company flow and procedures while Flexibility promotes harmony, respect and care.

For instance, a company may practise the policy of non-accumulative annual leave. But due to the commitment and dedication of your team players which undertake and overlook projects completion until the point that is impossible for them to clear the annual leave, what do you do when the annual leave is expiring soon?
System wise, burn all the leave days accordingly.
Flexibility wise, pay them accordingly and show that you really care and commit to your employee's dedication.

In conclusion, it is easy to start a business. It is hard to maintain and even harder to build leaders to grow your empire. Do you want your business managing your people or do you want your people managing your business?

You choose....

4 Shapes of Life

Previously, I've written "You From Jupiter, I From Neptune" categorizing people's thinking pattern and of course the whole idea is for us to embrace and 'click' with each other instead of magnifying our differences. This message is to further elaborate another angle of viewing people's style and personalities.

Referring to the diagram;

1. Fluidic Externally, Solid Internally - It represent a person's friendliness externally and live by the principles internally. This is of course the best model we ought to have. In terms of communication, it is being handled tactfully and decisions are made based on self-belief and values.
2. Fluidic Externally, Fluidic Internally - This person is a bit of a 'Yes' man on the outside and inside. Extremely friendly and extremely fickle-minded as well.
3. Solid Externally, Solid Internally - Obviously, this person lives an edgy-life! He or She lives by the principles internally but having a hard time communicating and creating long-lasting relationship as they have a hard time blending with others with a different belief systems.
4. Solid Externally, Fluidic Internally - The is the worst of the worst where this person has no solid principles to live by and yet drawing a line between himself or herself with the external world. Eventually, they will be 'quarantined' by others as weirdos!

The 1st shape reminds me of the ancient gold coins used by the Chinese back in the old days. Perhaps at that time, Chinese are mostly live by principles and communicate tactfully. I am not sure, just a plain guess. I hope that blood still flows in the modern Chinese today.

I hope you are not falling into the 4th category!

The whole idea is to be aware of who we are and sharpen our so called 'rounded' principles and soften our 'edgy' way of communicating.

Followership

The whole world talks about Leadership while less emphasis is put on the importance of Followership. Some people are not meant to lead while some are born to lead. I do agree that leadership can be nurtured to reach a certain level but the charisma is an inborn thing coupled with characteristics.
Some will perform at its best if they play the role of a follower where backstage is their true platform.

I have been given chances to lead and chances to follow. Without consciously knowing it, I've found out that I've practise the 4S in my past Followership.

1. Support - Leader can't perform and obtain great achievements without the support of the followers. Most importantly, once the goal and vision is cast out, we fully support it and live it till its realization.
2. Systematize - Leaders are more of a visionary and a strategist and that is the reason their life is normally a "mess" and we help them in multi-tasking, realign and plan. Their thoughts are moving faster than their actions. Therefore, we organize resources for them to make quick decisions.
3. Seek - For certain major decisions, it is good to seek the advice or opinions from the Leader. They might have walk-thru the landmines before and sometimes experiential advice is invaluable. Try to avoid giving unwanted Surprise for our leaders.
4. Solve - The last thing a leader wants is problems upon problems left unsolved. We should take the initiative to be resourceful and assist in the micro areas especially during the implementation stage.

Of course I'm sharing all these in the context of someone worth following; not on the Title but more on the Person. Maybe it is the reason that we respect them or we passionately wanting to accomplish the vision set by the leader. It is not so much on submitting ourselves and licking their feet but it is a sense of Respect and Accountability that we put forth for them.

In whatever reason, Followership is as important as Leadership.

Happiness: Synthetic or Organic?

I just watched a local tv programme entitled "Sejuta Impian" organized by a telecommunication company to grant funds for people who have dreams, passion and action plans to realized it.
I'm impressed and touched by those who presented their dreams to help, uplift and enrich other's life.
With the pace of urban living, sometimes we care less of whatever that doesn't contribute to the P&L statement.

The P&L doesn't just stand for Profit & Loss.
It stands for People & Love as well!

Whatever we do today, are we really happy about it?
Are we, in any way helps or uplifts anyone along the journey of success?
Are we gaining Synthetic Happiness or the real stuff?

People succumb to alcohol, cigarettes, "escape-type" vacations, divorce, job promotions, fast cars, diamond rings, luxury bags....etc to gain synthetic and short term happiness. Those are By-The-Way of success. Nothing wrong with it as long as we are not too obsessed until we miss the main stuff.
What really matters is getting the organic and long-lasting chapter of happiness. We can achieve it through:

1. A sense of gratitude
2. The process of accomplishing a worthwhile goal
3. Enriching and uplifting others

One of my way of getting happiness is through blogging. It serves as a channel of my thought expressions and I hope it enriches someone in some ways.
After writing blogs, I felt lighter, more satisfied and fulfilled.

And I hope you will find your way too....

Choose to be the Right Plant

Human definitely have similarities with plants!

Except the fact that both are living organism of course.

There are 3 kinds of plants that possibly match the human categories;

Parasitic Plant / Person - Definition: An animal or plant that lives in or on another (the host) from which it obtains nourishment. The host does not benefit from the association and is often harmed by it.
You and I know there are people who just love to take advantage all the time. They loved to win no matter what. The best is a Win-Lose situation for them. Try to prevent association of such people. I know of a particular person who just loved to take advantage of other people's honesty and was creating lies after lies after lies to protect himself while jeopardizing other's values & beliefs.

Epiphytic Plant / Person - Definition: A plant that grows on another plant and depends on it for support but not food.
Some people are really good at leveraging opportunities and circumstances. They may not fully take advantage of us in a one-way street but wise enough to use situations to springboard themself. I have a friend who is younger than me that is of this kind. He is a street-wise, sociable and adaptable person. From a messy life full of debts, he managed to turned it around and now living quite comfortably. We should learn the opportunistic part of that person!

Symbiotic Plant / Person - Definition: A close and usually obligatory association of two organisms of different species that live together, often to their mutual benefit.
The most beneficial person to be around is those who strive for a Win-Win relationship. It consists of Giving & Sacrificing and they never make any promises that they couldn't fulfill in the first place. Recently, I've met a young man in his late 30s, helping me genuinely without any upfront favours. In return, I initiatively return his goodwill. Guess what, I'll remember him for life!
I think our altitude of life very much depends on how many Symbiotic Friends that we have.

Therefore, DO UNTO OTHERS OF WHAT WE WANT OTHERS TO DO UNTO US.
It is a Grandmother's Principle, but it still works!!

Coffee-Business serving People or People-Business serving Coffee?

What an amazing book from the former President of Starbucks which contains nothing about coffee!
It is about how Starbucks focuses on People over Profits!
"There can be no coffee without people!"
That is the true essence of Starbucks.

Some companies believe that building a system, the system will build the business.
But Starbucks believe that building people, the people will grow the business!

I personally like one of the sayings in this book:
"Think Like A Person of Action and Act Like A Person of Thought".
Wow, simple & yet powerful stuff!

It is sort of the Yin & Yang between the Thoughts & Actions.
At times, we need to Think first before the Action. But sometimes, we need to Act first, then Think later.
This is very true especially a new opportunity arises.
When we analyze from A --> Z before taking actions, we could have miss the boat. And sometimes the boat doesn't return!!
But we can't be recklessly doing and running like a bull as well and be stubbornly positive about a hopeless projects. Persistency has to be coupled with Flexibility.
Imagine someone still persistently having faith & thinking positive about the growth of cassette industry in the year of 2011!!

Another empowering principle that I like from the book as well:
"The person who sweeps the floor should choose the broom!"
Some company truly believe human beings are capable of independent thinking if certain rules are removed.

Should we follow rules or should we fulfill the needs of people? The rule tells people "how-to-do" instead of explaining "why" & "what we are trying to achieve".

At Starbucks, they believed that they're in the Human Service Business, not the Customer Service Business.
As long as People are not being treated as Assets or Labour Costs alone, they can flourish in the environment of Encouragement, Appreciation, Reward & Respect.

Eventhough nowadays, consumers tend to go to Oldtown, Newtown, Georgetown or whatever Town kopitiam, I do prefer Starbucks off & on as I like the feeling of being greeted as a "friend" than filling up order number in kopitiam and passed it to a foreign worker who sometimes doesn't understand my extra request. I am saying this with all my respect to the foreign workers who contributed to the lack of workforce in the F&B industry. But sometimes it is good if we can understand them and vice-versa.

Let's learn to be a Logical-Person, Emotional-Person & a People-Person.

Sales ---> Marketing ---> Branding

Most of the business started off with the focus of Sales.
That is where we gather "bullets" to support in the long run. The basic resources to sustain a long term business are Cashflows & Profits.

Most of the time, Sales & Marketing goes hand-in-hand. Of course Marketing involves Product, Promotion, Place (the right location), & Price structure. But I think another 2 more P's are more important.....PEOPLE & PASSION!

From Marketing, it moves to Branding where it involves Promises, Meanings, Commitments & Emotional Attachments.

Well, I can see some businesses making a transition from Product Differentiation to Emotional Association. I guess both are as important.

But sometimes I like product differentiation and got confused on emotional association, trying to figure out what kinds of emotion that an ad trying to portray.
Example:

• Nissan's tagline of SHIFT.....hmm.....Shift on what? Thinking? Trend? Technology?...etc
• Seiko: EXTEND OUR LIMITS....hmm...Putting Daniel Wu doesn't really portray that...
• McD: I'M LOVIN IT.....after their concept change on the exterior....I've got it!
• Milo: From MINUM MILO ANDA JADI SIHAT & KUAT....to PLAY HARD, LEARN HARD.....telling us to enjoy life to the max?
• Nike: JUST DO IT.....of course the Swoosh does make us feel confident & instill sort of a sportmanship spirit into us! But I guess the most important factor for Nike is most of the well-known sport players wear it! That is a great exposure...
• Nokia: CONNECTING PEOPLE.....hmmm...of course that's the purpose of a handphone.....perhaps CREATING COMMUNITIES instead? But I think iPhone already successfully doing it!

Of course there are some who have personally branded themselves: Lillian Too, Joey Yap, Donald Trump, AirAsia --> Tony Fernandes, Virgin --> Richard Branson, Apple --> Steve Jobs ....etc.
But I got a little confused when I see the same brand ambassador carrying multiple brands such as Amber Chia or Eric Leong. I do respect their entrepreneurship & passion in helping certain brands to be more outstanding but eventually I'm a confused-kid looking at those ads!

Anyway, consumer's purchase is always boiling down into a simple formula of:
Emotion + Reason = Purchase!

Most of the time, we buy things EMOTIONALLY & then justified it LOGICALLY!!

I've had ex-colleagues who bought a LV bag, working as an executive in a company.....so, tell me bout it!! Don't tell me they need a new handbag because the old one has broken & accidentally bought a LV!

Well, branding is a very interesting field afterall. It enlivens a name created from nothing to something.
I have to admit that I do love certain brands......
As the saying goes....

Factories manufacture PRODUCTS, Consumers buy BRANDS.

Carrot or Stick?

Use a Carrot or a Stick for motivation?

You'll get immediate result through Stick, but long-lasting result through Carrot!
Stick will only create a cyclical-reaction of "When-the-cat-is-AWAY, the-mouse-will-comes-out-and-PLAY".
Stick is using authority as Motivation Factor.
Carrot is a form of drive which derive from rewards & recognitions.

Most people are looking for Wealth, Health, Happiness, Security...etc.
Eventually, it is the Certainty, Acknowledgement & Appreciation which will move somebody from HAVING to do it --> WILLING to do it.

But the 3 factors have to come from the Heart, not the Mind.
It is not a strategy, but an Emotional Tank that needs to be filled up from time to time. Either through external or internal input.

To sum it up, why don't we lift each other up instead of stepping each other down?
Let's bring the Best in people, not magnifying the Worst in people.

Then we can create Similarity within Differences!

You Bhd: A great company or a PN17 company?

Wow, time really flies....

Remember the time that we talked about Y2K? Some are afraid of the "bugs" will shut down certain computer systems!
Here we are... 2010, almost ending!

10 years already past.
Some thought 2020 is still a long way to go.
Yeah, try wasting another 10 years and calculate how many extra wrinkles on our forehead by that time! We won't be able to smile by then as we have extra 2382 fine lines when we do! Well, definitely it is not the fine lines that matter, it is our journey that counts.

Time is only moving in one direction, which is Forward.
But thoughts can be travelling Forward or Backward.
To move Forward, sometimes we need to scan a little Backward.

Perhaps reviewing some aspects of our life will help. Especially in terms of:
1) The income that we earn? Surviving? Satisfying? Enriching? Or "Fatt Tatt" already, haha....?
2) The job that we do? Is it based on passion or merely a surviving tool?
3) Family: Are we settling down? Do we have the correct budget for family planning? Any education fund for our kids?
4) Who is our hero in life? Perhaps any mentor around?
5) Are we happy with where we are? Job, Biz, Charity, Education...etc
6) Do we want to excel in our job, or starting a small biz or try investing?
7) What else do we want to learn more? Leadership? Entrepreneurship? Self-Enrichment? Socialising? Parenting? Playing musical instruments? A different job scope? Property? ...etc
8) The circle of friends that we associate with? Is it the same? Do we want a change?
9) Satisfy with our body weight & posture? Overweight? Fit? Big tummy? Stamina?
10) Our personalities, habits & attributes? Do we want to be more extrovert, risk-taking, positive, open-minded, prudent, generous, caring, result-oriented or people-oriented? ...etc

Well, the list could be endless.
Perhaps we can provoke ourself this question:
"If I have a 100k to acquire a stake in someone's life and expecting a consistent or higher return, who would I invest in?"
Is it "John Wong Sdn Bhd", "Adeline Tan Sdn Bhd", "Shukri Enterprise", "Krishnan Bhd" or etc....
Just think about everyone as a company for a while.....

Then we'll begin mapping People in Business aspects. We'll start searching for the relevant attributes don't we?
Are you going to invest in Intelligence or Emotional Intelligence? Knowledge or Attitude? Certificates or Leadership?

The interesting part is "Are you going to buy a stake of your ownself?"
If "YOU" are listed in Bursa Malaysia as YOU BHD, are you going to buy? Do you think others will buy? Or all of them who have bought it, sold it coz you are a PN17 company!! haha.....
Joke a bit lah...you are not that bad! All of us are unique and I truly believe we have our own spark plug to ignite our real desire and potential in life.

When you think about companies like SPSetia, Maxis, YTL, IOI, Amway, Petronas, HongLeong (of course it is not an endorsement or recommendation to buy!), what are the attributes that we like about them? Perhaps mapping it in-person like Ananda Krishnan, Liew Kee Sin, Francis Yeoh, Tony Fernandes, Idris Jala...etc...
Attributes like Integrity, Growth, Performance, Trust, Confidence, Management, Leadership, Branding, Ethics, CSR....etc, comes to mind.

Well, I hope it can provoke us a little.
Afterall, we are after a balance circle of success and on top of all, HAPPINESS & SELF-SATISFACTION!
Hmmm.....let's think about it....

You from Jupiter, I from Neptune!

Every human being is different.
Different in thinking, behavior, personalities, taste & style. Depending on 2 factors;

Part of it is Natured and the other part is Nurtured.

If we blend it together, we'll have a Group.
Fuel it with Vision & Culture, the Group will become a Team.

A healthy and perfect team would consists of a DRIVER, a COMMUNICATOR, a PLANNER & an ANALYST.

A DRIVER sees the macro view as a whole. Risk is the Driver's breakfast! The word "No" and "Can't" will stir up a "tsunami..cal" reaction from the Driver coz they are butt-kicker!

We need Drivers to say GO, GO, GO....LET'S DO IT, LET'S GET IT DONE, LET'S MOVE!
Basically they are result & tasks-oriented, outspoken and sometimes doesn't really look into the consequences.
But becareful if it is practised to the extreme resulting in ignorance on people's needs & feelings. No doubt we need Driver to steer the ship forward. Try to calm down with Lavender's tea from time to time!

A COMMUNICATOR inspires and sometimes able to erupt a volcanic excitement among team members and influencing the Red light to turn Green!

They are happy-go-lucky and like a sense of spotlight shining on them at times.
They are relationship-builder, influencer and innovator. They are best fitted in Marketing, Advertising & PR department. They can be great leader because inspiring people is always better than just merely managing people.
Forgive & Forget are their mottos! Passion is in their DNA. Enthusiasm stick in their hemoglobin!
They are the Links, Lubricants and Bridges of an organisation. Without them, it is BOOOOOORRRRRRIIIIIIINNNNGGGGG!

While the communicator is always on the frontstage, the PLANNER is always working on the backstage ensuring the process, procedures and alignment are in place. If "Ah Lian" wants to sing and open a concert, she definitely needs "Ah Beng" as organiser! "Ah Lian" can't be singing and organising at the same time and same goes with "Ah Beng", period!

Planners are able to see the pros & cons of each projects and normally they have more "white hair" than anybody else because they think a lot!
It might slow down the whole process but it helps to minimize blockages or potholes that other department needs to fill through along the way.
Planner is not an outspoken person and at times, you'll misunderstand that they have no opinion!
They are peacemaker and dislike arguments or confrontations. They rather sacrifice themself than to provoke someone.
If you have problems and like someone to listen, a shoulder to cry on and a tissue for free, call them!
Loyalty & Friendship are what they cherish in life.

We have the DRIVER that kicks-butt, the COMMUNICATOR to innovates, the PLANNER to oversees from A --> Z, finally we have the ANALYST which has a biiiiiggggg left brain working on details and information.

While the Communicator has a problem figuring out what's the real deal with Bank A's offer, the Analyst can summarise Bank A, B, C & D's offer and pick the best deal!
They are meticulous, logical and analytical.
"Disney..istic" imagination doesn't appeal to them. "Matrix" figures attract them like bees & honey.
But extreme analysis leads to paralysis sometimes. Therefore, most entrepreneurs are not analyst. They survey a little and the rest is about guts and instincts!
No doubt analysts are good in accounting, operation and engineering where precision is needed as much as making a Swiss watch working for a hundred years! Therefore, they are great in a way.

Well, in summary....

If 4 person have lunch together in a fine-dining restaurant; be it the DRIVER, the PLANNER, the COMMUNICATOR and the ANALYST, this is what you'll find out:

DRIVER will say, "Hey, this lunch is on me. Don't worry, just order. We are going to hit 1 million sales!"

COMMUNICATOR will say, "Why not call upon Jane, Michael, Wong, Suzy ....etc, eventually inviting a "lorry" of people joining. As communicator likes gathering and they are people oriented. They like Party!

PLANNER will say, "Hold it Communicator, how much budget do we have? Why not have this big lunch after we hit the 1 million sales? What if we've had this lunch but failed to meet this target?"

ANALYST will say "1 million sales....hmmm, divide it by 4 salesperson, RM250,000 / person. Divide it further by 4 weeks, RM62,500 / week. RM12,500 / day. On average we have around RM10,000 - RM11,000 / day, therefore, why not we eat chicken rice first!

There's no right or wrong in this personality quadrants but more of understanding our own strengths & weaknesses and how to blend with each other to a pre-determined direction.

Now you can understand your teammates better, your spouse better, your friends better, even your family members better (we tend to think moms like to nag, nag and nag...now u know why!).

Don't pre-label yourself as a fix DRIVER or COMMUNICATOR or PLANNER or ANALYST as we can intersect each behavior according to different situations.

As long as we keep improving and learning how to adapt with each other, we'll spell PROGRESS the right way.
Or else STAGNATION & FRUSTRATION fills the gap!

Facebook vs. Facetime

It's amazing for a 26 year old becoming a billionaire!
Yes, I'm referring to Mark Zuckerberg, creator of Facebook.

Becoming a billionaire is one thing but changing the world is a big thing!

No doubt he is changing how the world interacts, communicates and operates in terms of bringing the whole world to a few steps closer.

As I can recalled, it all started with IRC (Do the Gen-Y knows that?). It was really hot back then.
Then we have the MSN messenger, ICQ, Skype, Friendster....etc.

All of these were created for the concept of bringing the whole world closer.

At times, I were thinking that all of these applications were so successful in bringing the whole world closer but failed to bring the neighbourhood closer....even for an inch more! Sometimes in the context of family as well.
It is like, "The world is so far and yet so close. The world is so close and yet so far!"
It means a person might be closer to a new friend developed through facebook in another country and yet not that close with their neigbors or family members.

Facebook is pretty powerful in a way and also pretty crippling in another. Of course everything created must have its pros & cons. It depends on how we leverage it.
To me, Internet communication is a bit "cold" where phone or video communication is "warmer". Of course nothing beats face-to-face communication, which is Facetime!
But becareful not to dwell & got obsessed with internet communication until we imprison ourself in the Virtual-Reality than to engage the Reality itself.

The Virtual-Reality is a great place to "hide". We can hide our weaknesses, our bad behaviors, our bad attitudes or even bad looks! While the Reality (or the Facetime) portrays the real "who" in us as we communicate our Body Language, Tonality and Facial Expression in which that is the main communication touch-points!

Thumbs up for those "mamak", "kopitiam" and cafe for providing a Reality place for Facetime!

I can't imagine what if in 10 years time, Oldtown set up a ...
"Virtual-Kopitiam" where members order through a ...
"Virtual-Myanmar-Worker", then drink ...
"Virtual-White-Coffee", with ...
"Virtual-Kaya-Toast", engaging in ...
"Virtual-Get-Together" & "Virtual-Gossips"!!

Even that is still very far from the TRON's era, but I think at that time, human-touch would be pointless and if you check the body temperature of a human being, it is far below 37°C because we are all Cold-Blooded!!

In summary, do engage in Facebook, Twitter or whatsoever to keep up with the latest technology but don't forget the conventional Facetime with Friends & Family!

Remember to celebrate the HAPPY upcoming NEW YEAR in the Reality zone!

Types of Teacher

When I was in primary school, I can recalled a daily routine of greeting our teacher,
"Se....laaa....mat Paaa....gi Cikgu!"
Upon 30 minutes of teaching, we'll happily said,
"Terrrr....rima Kaaaa...sih Cikgu!"

Teacher plays an important role in moulding the student's mind. Not just equipping them with skills but programming their mindset to believe who they are. At times, who they believe who they are, are not who they are suppose to be.
Therefore, the journey of our potential is an on-going question.
It depends on how we look at ourself and how other people influenced us.

I came across a few types of Teacher; it can be our Boss, our Manager, our Parents, our Siblings, our Colleagues....etc

An Average Teacher tells,
A Good Teacher shows,
A Great Teacher demonstrates,
A Superb Teacher inspired......Which one are you?

An Average Teacher likes to use the word "YOU". "You do this", "You do that", "You are not suppose to do this & that", it is "You, You & always You".

A Good Teacher says "I" or "Let me...". "I can show you that", "Let me guide you on that", etc...
A Great Teacher leads through "Let's do it!"

A Superb Teacher says, "YOU CAN DO IT, I BELIEVE IN YOU!"

Nothing beats the belief that others have for us. It is the fuel that burn us to move forward innovatively & with commitment. Words are powerful; it can MAKE us or BREAK us.

Becareful on using our Tongues. We can curse someone or bless someone with it.
Perhaps we can read the book entitled "How to Use Our Tongue for DUMMIES!"
Does this book exist? I don't think so.
Perhaps YOU ARE THE WRITER!

Employee ah, employee....what do you want?

Last month & this month, my current company encounters a total of 6 people resigning. Another 3 thinking of resigning....That's really bad.

I've worked in multiple sizes of company before; small, medium and big.
Some with proper system and some without.
Some are doing competitively great and some are on the sun-set industry.
Some are managed by caring bosses & managers and some are just taking advantage of employees.

Well, finding talents is a difficult task today. Retaining them is even more difficult.

Out of my own journey talking to people as an employee, I've summarised what normally employees are looking for when they work in a company; it doesn't matter whether it has system or not, big or small.

1) Career path - Nobody wants to work forever as an executive or trainee level. The issue is whether the company has a plan to move up the employee on a career ladder or they just want to maintain the "tradition". Another issue is whether the employee is equipped with the skills for the new tasks. Budget allocation from a company in training might be a good idea!

2) Leadership - Manage by using our Head, Lead by using our Heart. Management is more on a Left-Brain area while Leadership is more on a Right-Brain stuff. We have to balance between;
- Looking at the big picture vs. Looking at the details.
- Task-oriented vs. People-oriented.
- Intelligence vs. Imagination.
- Instincts vs. Analysis
- Influence vs. Authority

Can we learn something from the managers / directors or we are just merely working like a robot?

3) Reward - Can you imagine cost of living keep going up and the range of salary remain the same today as compared to 5 - 10 years ago? Nowadays even a chicken rice / economy rice costs around RM4.50 - RM5.50, depending on the location. A typical malaysian car costs around RM40k - RM60k and people normally can afford to buy if the repayment period is drag up to 7 or 9 years. A mid-class apartment / condo costs around RM200k - RM300k....developer's price! Upon completion, perhaps rising up to RM300k - RM400k.....for an empty units excluding furnishing, renovation & decoration.

To me, salary comprises of 3 parts;
- Costs of Living
- Employee's ability
- Employee's performance

We can't just pay a standard rate for fresh graduate RM1,500 - RM1,800 / mth as if it is the same as 10 years back!

4) Appreciation - this is the most significant factor. Being acknowledged and felt we are part of the organisation is most important. Confront privately, compliment publicly. I've seen a boss that wanted to cut short a meeting duration by telling the employee, "Just tell me the bad news or problems faced, skip the good news!". Or "I don't care what are you going to do, just get it done!"

Well, that boss definitely save lots of time but not realising in long term, he is wasting more time by not listening & appreciating staff as he needed to train, re-train, train & retrain due to the frequent movement of people leaving & people coming in. The worst thing happen is when the employees felt they are a commodity instead of human being!

Whether a company wants to keep hiring new people or maintaining the talented employee for future growth will depend largely on the company's direction, mission & culture.

When Starbucks re-define their company mission from:

"WE ARE NOT A COFFEE BUSINESS SERVING PEOPLE....BUT A PEOPLE BUSINESS SERVING COFFEE!", whatever they do or decide will be more people-oriented and not coffee-oriented.

Eventually, it boils down to the Directors or Founders mindset of setting up the business.

What's the purpose of a particular business is being set up?
I've wrote another note on The Purpose of Building A Business.