Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace.
The soul that knows it not, knows no release from little things;
Knows not the livid loneliness of fear;
Nor mountain heights where bitter joy can hear
- Amelia Earhart
(1897-1937),
American aviator, 1st woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Taking charge of your own Destiny
More than often, you will get moaners and whiners around you.
Why, they whine, does this happen?
Or how, they moan, did they get into that mess?
It's not like life is a trip around corners where you don't know what's coming.
I'm pretty sure that most of the consequences were a direct result of your own actions.
So I'm taking charge of my own destiny.
I am answering The Call
Taking Responsibility For Your Destiny
There are those of us who believe that our lives are predestined and that we should resign ourselves to our lots in life.
Yet the truth is that it is up to each one of us to decide what that destiny will be.
While each of us is born with a life purpose, it is up to us whether or not we will say yes to fulfilling it.
And just like when we choose what to eat, who to keep company with, and whether to turn right or left when we leave our home everyday, choosing to say yes to your destiny is a decision that can only be realized when you take action to make that choice a reality.
Whether you believe it is your destiny to be a parent, an adventurer, an artist, a pioneer, or a spiritual guru, saying yes to your destiny is only the first step.
While manifesting your destiny starts with knowing what you want and believing you can attain your goals, there are then the actions that must be taken and the decisions to be made before your destiny can truly happen.
When you take responsibility for fulfillingyour destiny and begin acting with the intention of doing so, you not only take fate into your own hands, but also you become the hands ofyour own fate.
Doorways inevitably open for you to step through, and every choice you make can be a creative act toward realizing your goals and dreams.
You begin to follow your instincts and intuition, recognize opportunities when they are presented to you, and seize those golden moments.
You also begin to recognize the decisions that may not serve this greater picture and can more easily push them aside.
Remember that the decision to fulfill your destiny is always a choice and can be empowering.
Knowing you are fulfilling your destiny because you want to, rather than because you have to, can make a huge difference.
When you are freed from obligation, obstacles in your way become challenges to be overcome, and the journey becomes an adventure rather than the obligatory steps you are being forced to take.
Your destiny may be waiting for you, but whether or not you meet your destiny is up to you.
Your fate is in your hands.
"There are no shortcuts to any place worth going"
Why, they whine, does this happen?
Or how, they moan, did they get into that mess?
It's not like life is a trip around corners where you don't know what's coming.
I'm pretty sure that most of the consequences were a direct result of your own actions.
So I'm taking charge of my own destiny.
I am answering The Call
Taking Responsibility For Your Destiny
There are those of us who believe that our lives are predestined and that we should resign ourselves to our lots in life.
Yet the truth is that it is up to each one of us to decide what that destiny will be.
While each of us is born with a life purpose, it is up to us whether or not we will say yes to fulfilling it.
And just like when we choose what to eat, who to keep company with, and whether to turn right or left when we leave our home everyday, choosing to say yes to your destiny is a decision that can only be realized when you take action to make that choice a reality.
Whether you believe it is your destiny to be a parent, an adventurer, an artist, a pioneer, or a spiritual guru, saying yes to your destiny is only the first step.
While manifesting your destiny starts with knowing what you want and believing you can attain your goals, there are then the actions that must be taken and the decisions to be made before your destiny can truly happen.
When you take responsibility for fulfillingyour destiny and begin acting with the intention of doing so, you not only take fate into your own hands, but also you become the hands ofyour own fate.
Doorways inevitably open for you to step through, and every choice you make can be a creative act toward realizing your goals and dreams.
You begin to follow your instincts and intuition, recognize opportunities when they are presented to you, and seize those golden moments.
You also begin to recognize the decisions that may not serve this greater picture and can more easily push them aside.
Remember that the decision to fulfill your destiny is always a choice and can be empowering.
Knowing you are fulfilling your destiny because you want to, rather than because you have to, can make a huge difference.
When you are freed from obligation, obstacles in your way become challenges to be overcome, and the journey becomes an adventure rather than the obligatory steps you are being forced to take.
Your destiny may be waiting for you, but whether or not you meet your destiny is up to you.
Your fate is in your hands.
"There are no shortcuts to any place worth going"
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Making mistakes
When you make a mistake, there are only three things you should ever do about it:
admit it,
learn from it,
and don't repeat it.
- Paul "Bear"Bryant,
I Ain't Never Been Nothing but aWinner
admit it,
learn from it,
and don't repeat it.
- Paul "Bear"Bryant,
I Ain't Never Been Nothing but aWinner
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Change.........again
I said again and again, change is the only constant.
So I'm serving out these 2 months and will be "free".
Free to do what?
Good question.
To golf?
Maybe.
You know when we always tell people, "Later lah, I will be free".
But you never ARE "free".
Why?
You chose your vocation.
You chose when you wanted to do it.
You chose how you wanted to do it.
So why can't you choose to be free?
I choose to MAKE TIME for my children.
In that way, yes, I'm free.
So, Ethan, Ewan and Estelle, if you ever fail to get into an Ivy-League uni, please blame me because I couldn't even help you when I'm "free", ok?
Now, for a good story with a moral.
In 1923, Who Was:
1. President of the largest steel company?
2. President of the largest gas company?
3. President of the New York stock Exchange?
4. Greatest wheat speculator?
5. President of the Bank of International Settlement?
6. Great Bear of Wall Street?
These men were considered some of the worlds most successful of their days..
Now, 80 years later, the history book asks us, if we know what ultimately became
of them..
The Answers:
1. The president of the largest steel company.
Charles Schwab,
died a pauper.
2. The president of the largest gas company,
Edward Hopson,
went insane.
3. The president of the NYSE,
Richard Whitney,
was released from prison
to die at home.
4. The greatest wheat speculator,
Arthur Cooger,
died abroad, penniless.
5. The president of
the Bank of International Settlement,
shot himself.
6 The Great Bear of Wall Street,
Cosabee Livermore,
also committed suicide
However,
in that same year, 1923, the PGA Champion
and the winner of the most important golf tournament,
the US Open,
was
Gene Sarazen.
What became of him?
He played golf until he was 92,
died in 1999 at the age of 95.
He was financially secure
at the time of his death.
The Moral:
Stuff work.
Play golf.
So I'm serving out these 2 months and will be "free".
Free to do what?
Good question.
To golf?
Maybe.
You know when we always tell people, "Later lah, I will be free".
But you never ARE "free".
Why?
You chose your vocation.
You chose when you wanted to do it.
You chose how you wanted to do it.
So why can't you choose to be free?
I choose to MAKE TIME for my children.
In that way, yes, I'm free.
So, Ethan, Ewan and Estelle, if you ever fail to get into an Ivy-League uni, please blame me because I couldn't even help you when I'm "free", ok?
Now, for a good story with a moral.
In 1923, Who Was:
1. President of the largest steel company?
2. President of the largest gas company?
3. President of the New York stock Exchange?
4. Greatest wheat speculator?
5. President of the Bank of International Settlement?
6. Great Bear of Wall Street?
These men were considered some of the worlds most successful of their days..
Now, 80 years later, the history book asks us, if we know what ultimately became
of them..
The Answers:
1. The president of the largest steel company.
Charles Schwab,
died a pauper.
2. The president of the largest gas company,
Edward Hopson,
went insane.
3. The president of the NYSE,
Richard Whitney,
was released from prison
to die at home.
4. The greatest wheat speculator,
Arthur Cooger,
died abroad, penniless.
5. The president of
the Bank of International Settlement,
shot himself.
6 The Great Bear of Wall Street,
Cosabee Livermore,
also committed suicide
However,
in that same year, 1923, the PGA Champion
and the winner of the most important golf tournament,
the US Open,
was
Gene Sarazen.
What became of him?
He played golf until he was 92,
died in 1999 at the age of 95.
He was financially secure
at the time of his death.
The Moral:
Stuff work.
Play golf.
Thought for the Day
It is a good thing to be rich, it is a good thing to be strong,
but it is a better thing to be beloved of many friends.
Euripedes
but it is a better thing to be beloved of many friends.
Euripedes
Thursday, February 23, 2012
But don't Forget
I foresee a storm coming in my life. It will be a "heavy" one for 2 months. Once I weather it and it's over, I should see clear sailing ahead.
So, my moral is try to see if you can forget the right things and not forget the wrong things.
Forget about the days
when its been cloudy, but
don't forget your hours in the sun.
Forget about mistakes
that you can't change now, but
don't forget the lessons that you've learned.
Forget about the times
you've been defeated, but
don't forget the victories you've won.
Forget about misfortunes
you encounter, but
don't forget the times your luck has turned.
Forget about the days
when you've been lonely, but
don't forget the friendly smiles you've seen.
Forget about the plans
that didn't seem
to work out right, but...
Don't forget to Always Have A Dream.
So, my moral is try to see if you can forget the right things and not forget the wrong things.
Forget about the days
when its been cloudy, but
don't forget your hours in the sun.
Forget about mistakes
that you can't change now, but
don't forget the lessons that you've learned.
Forget about the times
you've been defeated, but
don't forget the victories you've won.
Forget about misfortunes
you encounter, but
don't forget the times your luck has turned.
Forget about the days
when you've been lonely, but
don't forget the friendly smiles you've seen.
Forget about the plans
that didn't seem
to work out right, but...
Don't forget to Always Have A Dream.
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Miskin bandar aka Urban Poverty
Miskin bandar.
Or urban poverty in English.
I believe that's the core issue affecting 99% of Malaysian families living in urban areas.
All of you, how many of you manage to save 10% of your monthly basic salary?
Do you have savings?
Amounting to 2 months of your basic salary?
Or less?
You have credit card debt?
Or personal loans?
Do you realise why?
These few questions will unearth the fact that the cost of living for urban families is no longer affordable.
Especially those with kids.
I salute all you parents out there with 2 kids or more.
It cannot be easy.
It is not.
Just imagine, with an average household income of RM3,000.
Both husband and wife working.
Kid has to be taken care of.
Lucky if the grandparents are doing it.
Even then, it won't be free.
The milk, the diapers, food, clothing.
Let's break it down.
If unfortunate to be renting, let's say RM500 for rental.
RM500 for transport cost (or even up to RM1000 for car instalment, petrol, maintenance etc).
RM750 for food and household goods.
Another RM500 for the kids.
What does that leave the breadwinner with?
That's right, NOTHING.
I can easily pinpoint the 2 causes of low income.
But I cannot resolve those 2 issues.
Not even the Prime Minister can take care of the issue in the short term.
Even if we have a change of government, the fact remains that:
1. Business need to survive. SMEs operate with a typically low margin, over-dependent on volume basis.
Bosses WANT the profit to be as much as possible, so they will keep the payroll costs as low as possible.
2. Our economy stinks. No? Yes, it does.
Over the past 20 years, our country has not been able to improve on anything in terms of industrialisation.
Anyone seen the Auto City in Thailand? Proton eh?
Moving on.
One of my favourite things to say is that when a problem doesn't have an immediate solution, it's a temporary situation that needs to be managed until the solution is applied.
What we have is a situation, a DIRE situation.
I believe savings are at an all time low.
And consumer debt should be accumulating as the man-in-the-street tries to borrow against his future earnings.
And the government tells us that without subsidy, the CPI will be on the up.
Without a doubt.
Therefore, I don't see a happy ending for the 99%.
I see the 1% surviving whatever economic turmoil comes our way, because they NEVER needed to survive in the first place.
Perhaps this election year will see a lot of goodies thrown our way to help the rakyat get through their hardship.
But it's not a permanent solution.
I've always advocated moderation, but in this day and age, it is extremely difficult to resist keeping up with the Joneses.
So, in line with another adage of mine, which is "don't bring up an issue where you don't have the solution", here's what you, the Ordinary Joe, can do:
1. Follow the Bobby Ong economic theorem.
A year of your salary = the car you should drive
5 years of your salary = the house you should buy
2. Live without your means, which is another way of looking at no. 1.
My main analysis of the F&B industry growth shows that people are eating out as a means of convenience, but do they really know how much it's costing them each meal, each month?
3. There's no shame in living modestly.
My wife doesn't understand why I encourage her to buy kids' clothes at Giant and the pasar although we "occassionally" buy Osh Kosh, Kids Guess etc for them.
My wish for all you Malaysians this year is that we work on improving ourselves more this year, and with inner growth, we'll see our country grow too.
Have a great 2012!
Or urban poverty in English.
I believe that's the core issue affecting 99% of Malaysian families living in urban areas.
All of you, how many of you manage to save 10% of your monthly basic salary?
Do you have savings?
Amounting to 2 months of your basic salary?
Or less?
You have credit card debt?
Or personal loans?
Do you realise why?
These few questions will unearth the fact that the cost of living for urban families is no longer affordable.
Especially those with kids.
I salute all you parents out there with 2 kids or more.
It cannot be easy.
It is not.
Just imagine, with an average household income of RM3,000.
Both husband and wife working.
Kid has to be taken care of.
Lucky if the grandparents are doing it.
Even then, it won't be free.
The milk, the diapers, food, clothing.
Let's break it down.
If unfortunate to be renting, let's say RM500 for rental.
RM500 for transport cost (or even up to RM1000 for car instalment, petrol, maintenance etc).
RM750 for food and household goods.
Another RM500 for the kids.
What does that leave the breadwinner with?
That's right, NOTHING.
I can easily pinpoint the 2 causes of low income.
But I cannot resolve those 2 issues.
Not even the Prime Minister can take care of the issue in the short term.
Even if we have a change of government, the fact remains that:
1. Business need to survive. SMEs operate with a typically low margin, over-dependent on volume basis.
Bosses WANT the profit to be as much as possible, so they will keep the payroll costs as low as possible.
2. Our economy stinks. No? Yes, it does.
Over the past 20 years, our country has not been able to improve on anything in terms of industrialisation.
Anyone seen the Auto City in Thailand? Proton eh?
Moving on.
One of my favourite things to say is that when a problem doesn't have an immediate solution, it's a temporary situation that needs to be managed until the solution is applied.
What we have is a situation, a DIRE situation.
I believe savings are at an all time low.
And consumer debt should be accumulating as the man-in-the-street tries to borrow against his future earnings.
And the government tells us that without subsidy, the CPI will be on the up.
Without a doubt.
Therefore, I don't see a happy ending for the 99%.
I see the 1% surviving whatever economic turmoil comes our way, because they NEVER needed to survive in the first place.
Perhaps this election year will see a lot of goodies thrown our way to help the rakyat get through their hardship.
But it's not a permanent solution.
I've always advocated moderation, but in this day and age, it is extremely difficult to resist keeping up with the Joneses.
So, in line with another adage of mine, which is "don't bring up an issue where you don't have the solution", here's what you, the Ordinary Joe, can do:
1. Follow the Bobby Ong economic theorem.
A year of your salary = the car you should drive
5 years of your salary = the house you should buy
2. Live without your means, which is another way of looking at no. 1.
My main analysis of the F&B industry growth shows that people are eating out as a means of convenience, but do they really know how much it's costing them each meal, each month?
3. There's no shame in living modestly.
My wife doesn't understand why I encourage her to buy kids' clothes at Giant and the pasar although we "occassionally" buy Osh Kosh, Kids Guess etc for them.
My wish for all you Malaysians this year is that we work on improving ourselves more this year, and with inner growth, we'll see our country grow too.
Have a great 2012!
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Thought Of The Day
He is a man of sense who does not grieve for what he has not,
but rejoices in what he has.
Epictetus(55-135 AD) Greek Philosopher
but rejoices in what he has.
Epictetus(55-135 AD) Greek Philosopher
Sunday, February 05, 2012
Consequences
What you do, matters.
The words you speak, the things you feel, the thoughts you hold, and the actions you take all have an influence on the quality of your life.
You cannot escape the consequences of the way you choose to live.
So your best strategy is to make those consequences magnificent.
Instead of having to pay a price for your actions, you can be reaping the rewards of your actions. The choices you make in each moment are what make the difference.
If you carry around negative thoughts and feelings, and then express that negativity in your actions, you make your whole world a darker, more dismal place.
Choose instead to adopt a positive perspective, seeing the best in other people and in the situations you encounter, and you'll be adding new, meaningful value to your world.
In every little moment, the way you choose to be truly matters.
Make a little positive difference, again and again, and it all soon adds to a life of real fulfillment and joy.
You have a very powerful influence on the world in which you live, and on the life you experience.
Live as though everything matters, because it does, and bring your own magnificent consequences to life.
The words you speak, the things you feel, the thoughts you hold, and the actions you take all have an influence on the quality of your life.
You cannot escape the consequences of the way you choose to live.
So your best strategy is to make those consequences magnificent.
Instead of having to pay a price for your actions, you can be reaping the rewards of your actions. The choices you make in each moment are what make the difference.
If you carry around negative thoughts and feelings, and then express that negativity in your actions, you make your whole world a darker, more dismal place.
Choose instead to adopt a positive perspective, seeing the best in other people and in the situations you encounter, and you'll be adding new, meaningful value to your world.
In every little moment, the way you choose to be truly matters.
Make a little positive difference, again and again, and it all soon adds to a life of real fulfillment and joy.
You have a very powerful influence on the world in which you live, and on the life you experience.
Live as though everything matters, because it does, and bring your own magnificent consequences to life.
Friday, February 03, 2012
The Three Things in Life
3 Things in life that once gone and never come back
Time, words, opportunity
3 Things in life that can destroy a person
Anger. pride, unforgiveness
3 Things in life that you should never lose
Hope, peace, honesty
3 things in life that are most valuable
Love, Family & Friends, Kindness
3 things that are never certain
Dreams, success, fortune
3 things that make a person
Hardwork, sincerity, commitment
Time, words, opportunity
3 Things in life that can destroy a person
Anger. pride, unforgiveness
3 Things in life that you should never lose
Hope, peace, honesty
3 things in life that are most valuable
Love, Family & Friends, Kindness
3 things that are never certain
Dreams, success, fortune
3 things that make a person
Hardwork, sincerity, commitment
Thursday, February 02, 2012
Who is that?
You may know me.
I’m your constant companion.
I’m you greatest helper.
I’m your heaviest burden.
I will push you onward or drag you down to failure.
I am at your command.
Half the tasks you do can be turned over to me.
I’m able to do them quickly, and
I’m able to do them the same every time.
I’m easily managed, all you have to do is to be firm, with me.
Show me exactly how you want it done.
After a few lessons, I will do it automatically.
I’ am the servant of all great men and women.
And of course the servant of all the failures as well.
I’ve made all the great individuals who have ever been great.
And I’ve made all the losers too.
I work with all the precision of a computer,
and the intelligence of a human being.
You may run me for profit or you may run me to ruin.
It makes no difference to me.
Make me a strong part of your life.
Be easy with me and I will destroy you.
Be firm with me and I’ll put the world at your feet.
Who am I?
I am HABIT
I’m your constant companion.
I’m you greatest helper.
I’m your heaviest burden.
I will push you onward or drag you down to failure.
I am at your command.
Half the tasks you do can be turned over to me.
I’m able to do them quickly, and
I’m able to do them the same every time.
I’m easily managed, all you have to do is to be firm, with me.
Show me exactly how you want it done.
After a few lessons, I will do it automatically.
I’ am the servant of all great men and women.
And of course the servant of all the failures as well.
I’ve made all the great individuals who have ever been great.
And I’ve made all the losers too.
I work with all the precision of a computer,
and the intelligence of a human being.
You may run me for profit or you may run me to ruin.
It makes no difference to me.
Make me a strong part of your life.
Be easy with me and I will destroy you.
Be firm with me and I’ll put the world at your feet.
Who am I?
I am HABIT
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