My NewsFlash

Shoe shine Boys

2009-10-30T00:05:00.000-07:00

Sometimes ago, I was in Shanghai, China. On the street, quite a number of shoe shine boys, with them their shoe shinning tools, begging people to shine their shoes for 1 Renminpee.

Among them, there was this elderly China man who is around 65 years old, pulling the sleeve of a prospecting customer. I felt pity to this elderly man and I paid him 1 Renminpee for shining my shoes.

This man works because he wants to or he has to?

No amount of what I say can change

2009-10-26T23:43:00.000-07:00

I wrote an article on "SUCCESS IS NOWHERE" on March 3, 2009. You may click on the following link and read it - http://stevenlee-mynewsflash.blogspot.com/2009/03/whats-in-your-mind.html

I can repeatedly tell a person that it should be read as "Success Is Now Here" and yet he wants to see it as "Success Is Nowhere", then there is no amount of what I say can change him.

Three Types of People

2009-10-22T20:49:00.000-07:00

There are three types of people:

The first type - Wage earners, their income phase stop at age 55 or maybe 60. After retirement, they have to count their nest eggs.

The second type - Business owners, they enjoy a stream of income as long as they are in business. In their old age, they may not work as hard, they may earn less, however, they have recurring income.

The third type - This is the best type, they still earn an income after death. Their continuous income derive from copyright. A good example is Michael Jackson, he continues to earn an income for his estate after his death.

Abbott and a young monk

2009-10-05T03:44:00.000-07:00

It was winter in North China, the weather was cold. There live in a old temple on the hill top an Abbot and a young monk. The Abbott said to the young monk, "Since the weather is so cold, let us go to bed early."

Both the Abbott and the young monk went to bed. They put on their blankets respectively and after a little while, the Abbott asked again, "Are you feeling better and more comfortable?" The young monk replied, "Of course, the blanket gives me the warmth."

Abbott said, "No, think again, was it you who give the blanket warmth or the blanket gives you the warmth?"

Yes....if you want people to trust you, you have to trust people. If you want people to love you, you have to love them....the more you give, the more you get.

Who is lucky and who is not

2009-09-14T06:35:00.000-07:00

Both Bill and George are schoolmates. Both their aged mothers are around 68 years old, and warded to a same hospital for heart conditions. They both spent around RM30,000 respectively for their aged mothers. However, Bill's mother passed away a couple of months after discharged from the hospital. George's mother survived, but she needs regular medical treatments and nursing care.

George told me that he has to spend averagely RM2,000 a month on his mother's medical bills and nursing care.

Who is lucky and who is not? Bill or George?

How Much Success Do You Want

2009-08-28T20:44:00.000-07:00

I was invited to speak at Jack's sales meeting last Friday. Jack has a sales team capable of writing an average of RM50,000 new business every week. Before my presentation, he reprimanded a few of those sales persons in his sales team who did not write any new business, or wrote merely one new sale during that week.

For some sales teams, anyone who can get a new contract in a week, is considered a successful sales person. In Jack's team, if one is not writing two cases or more a week, he is considered as a failure.

So, how much success do you want?

Earn - Save - Spend

2009-08-03T21:00:00.000-07:00

There are three things I want to say about money.

Earn - One has to earn enough, his income must not exceed his expenses, if not he is a broke.

Save or Invest - One has to save and make his money work harder for him, if not he is a slave.

Spend - One has to spend wisely or make sure he has enough money for retirement, if not he is an idiot.

Still Waiting For Economy To Recover?

2009-08-01T19:54:00.000-07:00

If you have read my blog post on April 2, 2009 (link below) "Did You Invest Your Money Wisely", I probably would have convinced you that economy is on the path to recovery. You probably would have taken my advice.

Just to show you some changes since April 2009:-
Dow is now 9154 points, surged from 7,957 points in April.
KLCI is now 1175 points, surged from 992 points in April.
Gold price remains unchanged at around RM106/gramme.
Mutual funds gained an average 28% since Jan 2009
GBP currently trading at 5.89 (Dec 2008 - traded at 5.08)
AUD currently trading at 2.92 (Dec 2008 - traded at 2.22)

It's Ok if you have not invested your money in any of those financial products mentioned, but you no longer can use bad economy as an excuse for not doing well in your business.

Link for blog post dated April 2, 2009
http://stevenlee-mynewsflash.blogspot.com/2009/04/did-you-miss-boat.html

Reach For The Sky

2009-07-31T18:58:00.000-07:00

The A380 Airbus is a double-deck, wide body, 4-engine airliner. The first class area of this superjumbo has 12 private suites complete with double beds. This amazing machine can fly at the cruising speed of 900 km/hr and it's truly a luxurious passenger plane.

Today, a doctor friend and his wife, took trouble and flow to Singapore to board this A380 Airbus to Hong Kong just to experience this amazing flying machine.

Someone asked me: "How come they are not flying there by the budget airline and just pay a fraction of the fare?" If you were the one who asked that question, you are yet a success. Successful people live their lives in exclamations, failures live theirs in explanations.

Successful people believe they deserve the best, they never short change themselves.

Read more about A 380 by clicking the following sites:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/travel/news/article2669878.ece

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airbus_A380

Thermostat

2009-07-24T02:38:00.000-07:00

Thermostat is a device for regulating the temperature of a system (eg. an air conditioner) so that the system is maintained at a desired temperature. The thermostat does this by switching the electricity supply on or off the system.

Unfortunately, most salespeople behave in the same manner as a thermostat. A mediocre salesperson 'suddenly' chalked a huge volume of business may go back to sell his usual monthly volume the next month. He usually says, "Hey, that's not me!" If he chalked too small of volume, he does not earn enough and he also believes, "Hey, that's not me too!" He merely keeps himself in a certain range - not too good, not to bad.

Achievers do not carry the thermostat with them. They always challenge themselves because they yawn for the sweet taste of success!

Ctr-Alt-Del

2009-07-02T02:34:00.000-07:00

What do you do when the computer hang on you?

Ctr-Alt-Del are the keys you hit to start your computer again. Yes, half of the year 2009 is gone, and we are into the month of July 2009. If you have done well in the first of the year, I like to congratulate you and hope you can spring board into greater success in the 2nd half of the year.

If you are not happy with your result so far, then just kick on the Ctr-Alt-Del keys and start again....

Take CONTROL of the clock for you cannot afford to lose time ad you have 6 more months left this year. Make ALTERNATE plan, if the current method is not giving you result, change to another method. You cannot expect a different result by doing the same things you have been doing in the last 6 months. DELETE all your negative preconceived ideas and replace them by trust, confidence and believe in yourself.

Ctr-Alt-Del....start again!

Hare speed or tortoise pace

2009-06-26T19:32:00.000-07:00

In a few days time, half of the year 2009 will be gone. It's time again to conduct a diagnosis of your progress.

If you are still crying over the global economic crisis, I am sorry for you. Most of the Asian Markets are up by 20-50%. KLCI surged from 872 pts (March 2009) to the current 1075 pts (current) and still climbing.

If you are making some progress, than you have to ask yourself a question: 'Am I moving at hare speed or tortoise pace?'

If you are doing the right things and running on the right track to success, I am glad for you. However, you must increase the momentum or increase the 'frequency' in doing the right things. Just to illustrate, you must increase your prospecting activities and making more calls.

At tortoise pace....reach success at age 99?

Hermit Crabs

2009-06-02T17:44:00.000-07:00

Hermit crabs have long soft abdomens, and therefore they have to carry around with them a salvaged empty seashell into which the whole crab's body can retract to protect from predators.

As the hermit crab grows in size, it has to find a larger shell and abandon the previous one. A hermit crab with a shell that is too small cannot grow naturally than those with well fitting shells, and is more likely to be eaten as it cannot withdraw completely into the shell.

There the some similarities between a hermit crab and sales person. Both of them have to leave their comfort zone in order to grow. A hermit crab has to risk it's life when leaving it's shell for another. A sales person has to risk rejections when penetrating into a new market or an affluent market.

If the hermit crab refuses to take the risk of moving to new and larger shell, it may be choked to death. If you refuse to take risk in moving to more challenging market all the time, you will die of slow death being a sales person.

A horse tale

2009-05-13T05:23:00.000-07:00

A race horse named Champion won countless trophies and awards for his master during it young days. Champion was staying in a air-conditioned stallion. To ensure its race performance, it was fed with oats, vitamins and a full spectrum of minerals and protein.

Now that Champion is old and no longer able to win trophies for it's master. Champion is now sold to an amusement park owner and used for riding by children visiting the park. Champion no longer get good food and no longer staying in an air-conditioned stallion. What a sad tale!

Friends....what are you thinking? One day you will grow old and you will no longer performing.....

Belief

2009-05-05T00:02:00.000-07:00

Denver was hit with devastating drought. The extreme hot temperatures led to death of many people's livestock and animals. One Sunday morning, the villagers gathered in a local church decided to pray for rain.

No matter how hard they prayed, the dry condition did not changed, it was so severe that lakes were actually drying out. At the end of the prayer, the priest noticed a little girl at the far end of the church, with her an umbrella. Immediately he realized the reason for their failure in praying for rain.....the belief in not strong enough....they did not bring along umbrellas.

He summoned all to go home and bring along their umbrella the next morning and pray for rain again. True enough, their jumped with joy the next day with a heavy rain that ended the drought.

Belief.....

Earth Hour

2009-04-30T22:33:00.000-07:00

Earth Hour began in Sydney in 2007, when 2.2 million homes and businesses switched off their lights for one hour. In 2008 the message had grown into a global sustainability movement, with 50 million people switching off their lights.....for an hour. On March 28, 2009, Earth Hour was taken to the next level, with more than 1 billion people turned off their lights....for an hour.

For a moment, I like you to think about switching off your lights for merely 5 minutes earlier everday. Your actions may translate into saving lights for more than 30 hours a year in fighting global warming.

You have to bring the light

2009-04-29T22:15:00.000-07:00

How to brighten up a dark room? The answer is simple....you have to bring in the light.

Life is never a bed of roses. At times, we may meet with disappointments and heart breaking moments. What can we do about them? Changing the situations to better starts with your mindset, your attitude. In another word, the darkness is there, you can change the dark room into a bright room by bringing in the light.

One must be insane just by sitting down doing nothing and expect a change.

Did you invest your money wisely

2009-04-21T19:45:00.000-07:00

I am not sure whether the financial meltdown is over. However, if you have invested your money wisely 6 months ago, you would have made some money during the last challenging 6 months.

Dow has moved from the 7,100 points to the current 7,957 points
KLCI closed above 992 points and recorded a 7 month high
Gold price inched from RM98 per gramme to RM105 per gramme
Mutual funds averagely gained 18 - 20% during the last 6 months
GBP was trading at 5.08 six months ago and today trading at 5.36
AUD was trading at 2.27 six months ago and today trading at 2.63
Car loan interest rate rose form 2.45% to 3.20% for purchase for new car

Did you invest some during the last 6 months? I did.

Magnifying glass

2009-03-29T05:50:00.000-07:00

A magnifying glass is a double convex lens with a short focal length. When an object is placed under the magnifying glass, an image is produced and also appears larger than the original object.

If you direct the rays of light through the magnifying glass, the rays are bent towards a point on some combustible materials, like papers or dry cloth. Not for long, the dry materials may burst into flames. Yes, if you focus on your business, not for long, you will succeed! However, if you simply focus for to a short while or keep moving your focus point, then success is an illusion.

Similarly, if you boil a kettle of water for a minute or two and turn off the flames and repeating this process many times over, the water in the kettle will remain not boiled forever.

A priest and a butcher

2009-03-19T03:01:00.000-07:00

A Buddhist priest and a butcher are good friends since childhood and they are neighbors.

Each morning, the priest wakes up and goes to the temple to pray, the butcher wakes up and slaughters pigs in the market. Whoever gets up earlier will wake up the other, as promised.

One day, they both died. The priest went to hell and the butcher went to heaven. Oops....that must be a mistake!

They met up with the God and were told "No mistake". The butcher wakes up the priest to pray in the temple and the priest wakes up the butcher to slaughter pigs. The butcher has been doing good deed and therefore sent to heaven.

Bottom line that counts.

A Good Weekend

2009-03-10T19:17:00.000-07:00

What are the things that can make a person happy? Driving the fast car? Jet-setting? Eating in posh restaurants or the pride of owning a Rolex watch?
Having a lot of money not necessary make a person happy. I had a wonderful weekend. My daughter took her parents out for a movie! That made me very happy!

That simple? Yes, that simple.

It's OK

2009-03-05T02:40:00.000-08:00

You don't get to meeting in time.
It's OK, because you are not a Manager, and you don't plan to be one.
You are just another employee.

You don't vow to shoulder the team's commitment.
It's OK, because there are other team players, and you don't have to be responsible.
You expect others to cover your shortfall.

You don't bring enough money home.
It's OK, because you are not keeping an expensive life style and you don't plan to get one.
You believe things are going to change for the better.

Is it really OK ?

What's in your mind?

2009-03-03T15:04:00.000-08:00

Did you read it as "Opportunity is no-where" or did you read it as "Opportunity In now-here"? It tells what you have in your mind. The heat of financial meltdown is approaching our shore and you need positive thoughts to steer out of financial trouble.

My Newspaper Vendor

2009-02-22T02:15:00.000-08:00

My newspaper vendor, Jack, sends newspapers to my house every morning around 7am, rain or shine. A week ago, I noticed a young Indian boy riding on a motorcycle accompanying Jack on his rounds throwing the daily newspapers into my car porch. I though Jack is going to retire from his newspaper business.

Jack told me that he has just hired this Indian boy to deliver newspapers to his existing clients and he is going to invest his time to develop new clients in a nearby new housing estate.

To become more successful, we too have to move on into a bigger playing field from time to time, engage others to help expand your business.

Love What You Do

2009-02-08T20:48:00.000-08:00

Ah Teik is the owner of a florist, a successful one. He hires Patrick to help him man his shop. Everyday Ah Teik takes orders from his customers and delivers flowers personally to them.

I though he should man his shop and requests Patrick to run around delivering flowers to the customers. Lately, I learned from Ah Teik that he likes to delivery flowers to his customers because he loves to see smiling faces of his customers when they receive flowers from him.

Love what you do and you don't have to 'work' another day.

Golden Age

2009-02-02T05:29:00.000-08:00

Todd recently retired from his employment at age 57. I have the opinion that he should have a lot of time to do those things he could not do when he was in his employment, like traveling and enjoying life.

Todd said, "On the contrary, now I am not able to do a lot of the things you think one should do at retirement."

"I have to live with the RM230,000 EPF I saved, I am a heart patient and a diabetic patient. I cannot eat some of the 'good food'. I cannot travel much as I
get tired easily. I have to make choices. I have to choose my lifestyle base on the money I have saved with EPF."

One can only enjoy his golden age if only he has time, money and health. Don't live your life in regrets.

Save A Fraction Of Your Income

2009-01-14T17:36:00.000-08:00

Very unlikely you may use a same cell phone for 5 years, use your computer notebook for 6 years, use your same car for 10 years....

Always save a fraction of your income. In life there are many stages that you need money. Buying a new car, buying your first house, getting married and having children, just to name a few, not to mention about retirement.

I have heard enough about people telling me that they are not getting married, not buying a house because they don't have money. It's not true. They just don't have savings.

Always save a fraction of your income. You may need it some days, just because you don't know when your car needs a major repair or when some one you love needs an expensive medical treatment.

Always save a fraction of your income.

New Year Resolution

2009-01-12T01:32:00.000-08:00

Do you have a new year resolution 2009? Fred walked into my office and shared with me his resolution, "I want to make RM100,000 income this year."

I quipped, "If I am not wrong, that's your resolution two years ago."

Making a resolution is all about making a decision. A decision to achieve a goal, learn a new skill or maybe quit a bad habit. If a decision is made and not being carried throughout the year, than your resolution loses it's purpose, it's merely a wishful thinking.

George made his resolution: "I drink no more." I know, I know, neither is he going to drink less.

Mere Justification

2009-01-07T21:04:00.000-08:00

"Rich people are greedy, they are mean and they are those not doing honest things to become financially successful." Sounds familiar?

This is not true. This is the excuse used by the poor to justify themselves for not being successful....and therefore they remain poor.

Uproot this thought in your mind is your down payment to your financial success.

In Hot Water

2008-12-18T03:02:00.000-08:00

Think about this. When you put a tea sachet in a tea cup and pour water into it, do you pour hot water or cold water?

Of course, hot water! The hotter the better, usually we pour boiling water into the tea cup, because tea expresses its' strength in hot water!

Therefore, don't blame it on the financial meltdown if you are not doing well. It's the meltdown (hot water) that gives you the opportunity to show your leadership, your skills and your business acumen.

When the time is good, nobody knows you are good. People who are still able to do well in challenging times will do even better when financial meltdown is over.

My Father Taught Me About Life

2008-12-13T19:33:00.000-08:00

"My father taught me about life not with words, but by how he lived his." What a great a quotation !

My daughter and I found this quotation in a shopping mall recently. Do I need to say more?

We Have Been Waiting For This Time

2008-12-09T18:54:00.000-08:00

"Retrenchments, pay cuts, layoff, bail outs..." These are the words we can read everyday in our local newspaper during the current financial turmoil.

A prominent and successful businessman, Dato' Yeoh, said this in a press interview: "We have been waiting for this time, the right time to accumulate our assets and the right time for us to invest and expend our business."

He is so right! Both the British currency and the Australian currency are very much cheaper than before. It's time to invest in these two countries, it's time to accumulate properties there.

Are you game to join him in his spending spree?

The Last Throw Of Dice

2008-11-30T20:01:00.000-08:00

I want you to think about a man who has won quite a bit and he is about to end his game in a casino. When he makes his last throw of dice, winning the last game doesn't make any difference to him. For the one who has lost a bit, that last throw will determine whether he will lose more or make back his losses, or maybe win some money if luck is on his side.

It's December. This is the last month of the year for your last throw of dice. Are you a winner when you have already reached your predetermined goal for the year and you can afford to take a break or are you the one who still need to seize the remaining 30 days to make a difference?

The winner's last throw of dice may make him win even more. The loser's last throw of dice may make him even lose more.....or recover his losses.

Bull Story

2008-11-21T18:56:00.000-08:00

In jungle, a herd of bulls being chased by a few lions. Guess what, the young bulls; the old & weak bulls are likely those eaten up by the lions.

This is Law of Nature. No one can change this law!

In this rat race world, the weakest and the old ones are the first being filtered out. In a sales team, the weakest will be the one terminated by the hirer. In any other employment, the worst performer will be the one asked to leave. No one can change this law!

If you are not the weakest, I congratulate you....but you may grow old, or grow weak. Therefore, when you are doing good, while you are in pink, work harder to get miles ahead others. Save a portion of your harvest, invest for a passive income. When you are no longer capable to compete physically, you would have you money working for you.

I Refuse To Participate In The Financial Crisis

2008-11-13T03:07:00.000-08:00

Today, I sealed up two big orders. These two orders are bigger than some salespeople can chalk in an entire year!

There are two things I want to write here. First, I actually secured the leads from a client of mine and I gave the leads to a salesperson in my sales team. He did not work on the names. I subsequently called up these prospects, secured appointments and conducted sales presentations. I failed to sell some of them, but I successfully sealed two orders out of the leads, two big orders! The moral of the story is simple - People fail not because of the people they fail to sell, but the people they fail to see.

Secondly, I refuse to set my eyes on the fog in the financial storm, I set my eyes on the lighthouse . Due to prior commitments, goals and plans set forth by me, I am not participating in the financial crisis!

Lighthouses In Stormy Sea

2008-11-05T22:32:00.000-08:00

The current crisis began with the bursting of the United States housing bubble and high default rates on 'subprime', fueled by the up surge of gas price. Stock values collapse, lifelong household savings are eroded, not to mention pension funds.

Times are bad, so say, and people are losing their jobs, traders or businessman are having difficulties in collections. It's like everyone is in the stormy sea!

The sea is foggy and seamen are guided by the lighthouses. Do you focus on the fog or do you focus on the lighthouses? If you focus on the fog, in this case, the problem, you may lose your direction. If you focus and not losing sight on the lighthouses, you will sail out of the financial crisis sooner than others.

Problems, Plans and Progress

2008-11-03T19:12:00.000-08:00

Most companies, establishments, corporations, clubs and any other organizations hold their meetings occasionally, periodically or maybe even monthly or weekly. In some cases, meetings can also be held on ad-hoc basis.

Unless properly planned and executed, meetings can be a waste of time and resources. In meetings, the 3-Ps are being discussed, namely problems, plans and progress.

In a lot of cases, people always focus on problems in their meetings and they neglect investing time on discussions on plans and progress. These people will not grow.

The next time when you hold a meeting, focus on plans and progress, soon will be see the realization of your goals.

A Truly Happy Day

2008-10-28T02:28:00.000-07:00

My wife and I celebrated our birthday a couple of days ago at Summer Restaurant together with our two lovely daughters. We started with a bottle of fine wine, and we ended the dinner with the cutting of a birthday cake.

We have been celebrating and buying ourselves birthday dinners for many years and for the first time, to our surprise, our daughters paid for our dinner! That was an expensive dinner and enjoyable one too.

What made us truly happy was not just because they have paid for our dinner, what made us truly happy was because they are now grown up and they are able to express their appreciation and love.

A truly happy day, indeed.

Chili Plant

2008-10-06T21:05:00.000-07:00

This picture is taken in front of my house. You can see the healthy chili plant growing in very challenging environment, the drain. This chili plant can proudly laugh at those grown on fertile soil.

I have the similar chili plant in my garden, however, the plant is not as healthy despite I shower it with water and also periodically some organic fertilizer.

In another word, we can make it to success in any environment and investment climate, if only we want to succeed bad enough...if only we have a valid reason.

Vacuum Law

2008-10-04T20:55:00.000-07:00

Did you read my article "Bird Cage" on Oct 1, 2008? I said, 'If you wish to own a big car, build a big garage first, your big car will appear sooner than you think.'

If you want to earn more money, you must have a valid reason, just like if you want to own a big car, you must have a big garage. You may have a goal to earn RM200,000 in a year, but if you don't need the RM200,000, you actually don't have a valid reason, and therefore you will not making it to your goal.

In another word, you must desperately want to enjoy good things in life. Jarad prefers any other cars than a Mercedes for he does not believe to pay a high price for a Mercedes. Jarad also prefers coffee in any other restaurants instead of Starbucks Coffee for half the price cheaper. Jarad has no valid reason, and he will not earn RM200,000 income in a year, until he finds a vacuum in his mind for all these good things in life.

Do you have a valid reason?

Bird Cage

2008-10-01T04:53:00.000-07:00

My cousin George presented me a magnificent bird cage he brought back from Sarawak. I hung it in my living room as a decorative item in my house.

My friends and relatives admire this bird cage and they unanimously questioned me why it's being left empty. I get so sick of explaining the empty bird cage and I bought a yellow bird to fill it up.

Yes, we have to live our lives in exclamation instead of explanations. Failures have to explain (all the times) why they have to live a below average lifestyle and keep a broken down car. I am sure they are sick or being questioned by their friends, relatives and their loved ones. They need to fill they lives with excitements, enthusiasm and a burning desire to succeed. Then they will no longer need to explain or justify with reasons for not succeeding.

If you have a goal to buy a big car....build a big garage first, your big car will appear sooner than you think....this is called the Vacuum Law.

Happiness

2008-09-26T03:59:00.000-07:00

"If we want to be happy, we must make tons of money." I have heard enough people saying this. However, I have also seen enough people who are very wealthy, but they are not happy. Happiness is directly related to whether we are able to have a choice about the way we live our life.

Think about this, we have a choice to live in the house we want, not necessary the biggest house, go for the kind of holiday we want, not necessary the most expensive holiday, send the children to the college or university of our choice, again not necessary the most expensive college or university. People around us are behaving he way we want them to behave, we are pleased and we can be happy.

The rich and the not so rich, they both have limitations. Poor people have more and greater limitations. The best way to ensure our happiness is to accept and live within our limitations. There are more than a million reasons we can be happy, having enough money is only one of the reasons. Discover new opportunity and new possibility when we lose one. If your girl friend leaves you, then you have new opportunity for more girl friends and choices for a better one.

Happiness is when we are able to have a choice about the way we live our life.

Working Long Hours May Not Be Effective

2008-09-21T03:24:00.000-07:00

Eric works very hard. He gets to work before 9am and usually he only finishes work at around 8pm, and sometimes even 9pm. He believes by working longer hours he accomplishes more in the days. He earns very well.

In the contrary, I have a different opinion. Unless need arises or meeting deadlines, if one works for 10 to 12 hours every day, he is not a good time manager. He will end up with ulcer, stress, constipation and less time for his loved ones. He is a workaholic.

A good time manager finishes his tasks within stipulated time frame. When he brackets his work day, he forces himself to work effectively. It's like having a deadline everyday at 5pm, one has to prioritize and negotiate his tasks.

Idea Worth Sharing

2008-09-13T07:59:00.000-07:00

This is a good idea worth sharing. Simply place a bottle of water inside the cistern in your water closet and you may save quite a bit of water every day.

Let's say you have 4 members in a family, and each of them flashes the cistern 8 times or more a day. If you place a bottle that holds 500 cc of water inside it, then you may save at least 16 liters of water every day. This can translate to saving 5,840 liters of water every year.

Life Is Not Always Made To Order

2008-09-09T01:46:00.000-07:00

Tedd, 46 years old, is a successful carpet salesperson earning an annual income of around RM100,000. He has a wife and two lovely children. He owns a double storey house under mortgage, and a magnificent Honda Accord.

Life is not always made to order. Early this year, Tedd was diagnosed with kidney malfunction and he took on a desk job since then due to his weekly dialysis treatments. His income obviously reduced and he began to find difficulty in keeping his house and his car. His lifestyle changed, his diet changed and his attitude towards life also changed.

Life is not always made to order. Not only you must have a good insurance cover including health scheme, you must also have a saving plan. A turn of event may change your life entirely.

Your Future Is In The Daily Routines

2008-09-02T05:55:00.000-07:00

Tiger Wood did not win all the golf tournaments by merely showing up in the golf courses. Beijing Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps did not win his 8 golds by merely showing up in the pools. Donald Trump did not make his Trump Empire overnight. They all became successful because they have been doing their daily routines.

If you have as yet attain success, then you have to change the way you conduct your daily routines. Maybe you are doing the wrong things all the time or you must be doing the right things but not doing it frequent enough.

If you want to be a successful dancer, for example, you don't practice dancing once a week, you have to practice dancing everyday. If you want to be a successful salesperson, you don't sell your products one in awhile, you have to sell your prospects very frequently, maybe many of them everyday.

It's not difficult to predict your future because your future is in the daily routine.

The Demons In You

2008-08-29T01:01:00.000-07:00

He who has no demons inside him may cast the first stone! Admit it, we have demons in us. Demons are energy suckers. Not only they possess us but also the lives of our loved ones, our neighbors and our officemates.

Demons are thieves, robbers, killers and some even are known as weapons of mass destructions. Bad attitude is the most dangerous demon. Many capable and skilled people failed in life because they have bad attitude. Families ruined because of bad attitude.

Exorcise them and you will live a happier, healthier life, for sure!

Live Your Life To The Fullest

2008-08-13T02:58:00.000-07:00

I know of a man who passed away recently at 54 due to cardiac arrest, about a year after his only son's graduation in USA as an engineer. He was a very rich man. He owned a fleet of Mercedes, condominiums, properties, assets and stocks. He worked hard all his life, but he forgot to live.

He had no time to attend his son's convocation last year, he had no time to take his aged mother to visit a doctor, he had not time for just anything except making money. He forgot to live.

Living well dosn't mean making a lot of money alone. Living well means having time with your family and pursuing your passions, be it fishing, golfing or dancing.

Live your life to the fullest.

Parking In Office

2008-08-11T18:09:00.000-07:00

Recently prices of goods and food increased marginally. Parking fee for parking ours cars at office basement has also increased. Jack was very unhappy and grumble about it.

Let's look at the flip side of the coin, if you think parking at the basement is expensive, try parking yourself in the office doing nothing. Salespeople should change their mindset and spend less time in the office.

We should invest more time seeing our prospective clients in their offices or homes. Limiting our time in office will result in more time in the selling field, which can be translated into better sales performance.

So, if you have nothing to do, don't do it in the office.

Camel is a Dissatified "horse"

2008-08-09T04:07:00.000-07:00

The dissatisfied horse asked God for longer, thinner legs, a neck like a swan, and a saddle that would grow upon him as part its body.

Surprisingly God obliged and to its horror, God granted him the wish to embody all those features the horse asked for and changed him into an ugly looking camel!

"Now you have been granted your wish, and this shall continue with you all your life as a reminder to you that a horse should be thankful for what he is." said God.

Friends....God has given you enough, use what you have with courage and improve what you have with wisdom.

Are You Frugal or Are You A Failure?

2008-08-08T05:42:00.000-07:00

If you kid is ready to go for university education, do you decide to send him to a university that charges the cheapest tuition fee, just being frugal?

Jack, a mediocre in sales business, has a two year old son. When he buys his son milk powder, his deciding factor is price. He simply compare different brands of milk powder and buys the cheapest one among them. I am sure he understands that different types of milk powder has different food value and may cost differently, and therefore the better ones are more expensive.

He told his wife that all milk powder are the same as long as the milk can fill up the boy's stomach. Do you consider him as a frugal man? No. I don't! I don't because he is not providing the best things in life for his loved ones. He does not earn enough.

Passive & Multiple Sources of Income

2008-07-21T11:26:00.000-07:00

No one may get rich working for others. One can get rich only when you have other people working for you or your money working for you. You have to consider two major sources to increase your income; create a passive income and get multiple sources of income.

First, you have to save up some money and take calculated risk to invest it wisely to earn a passive income. Passive income can be bank interest earn, unit trusts investments, stocks and shares and even rental derived from renting your residential or commercial properties.

Then, you have to manufacture or sell multi-line of products (for manufacturers and re-sellers). You have to manage more 'taps' to get multi flow of income, especially during the current turmoil, fuel hike and rise of food prices.

I want you to think about a female cow. It has 6 nipples. If you are a farmer and you only tap milk from one of the nipples, you are not getting enough, and you may remain poor. You should tap from all the six nipples!

Newspaper Vendor

2008-07-14T18:26:00.000-07:00

At around 12 midnight, I was driving home after attending a dinner party and I saw a tired and sleepy old man selling newspapers along the roadside. I stopped by and bought newspapers from him. I said, "Uncle, it's raining heavily and there won't be many people passing by and buy newspaper from you. You should go home and sleep early."

This newspaper vendor uncle quipped, "I will stay till1.30am. I cannot fail my customers. My customers will be very disappointed if they don't see me here."

Yes, are you committed to your customers? Customers are the people who offer you a comfortable lifestyle. They will take away your lifestyle if you don't take good care of them.

Are you in discomfort or in boiling water

2008-07-09T18:41:00.000-07:00

The recent global fuel hike and food shortage are making it difficult for retirees to cope. They are old, frail and weak. They cannot turn back the clock and they regret for not having more money saved for retirement.

For the rich or those who are above average, they still can cope with the rise prices of groceries and transport, because they have a 'gap' for adjustments. They can travel on budget airlines instead of economy class, or even travel on buses. They can ride a bike to work instead of driving there. They can queue in general hospitals for treatments instead of going to private hospital. They are going through discomfort or inconveniences now.

For the poor, they are already riding to work, they are already queuing in general hospitals, they are already find it difficult to cope with life even without the fuel hike. They are now in trouble! They are now in boiling water!

Are you going through the stage of discomfort or are you in boiling water?

Another small idea for Great result

2008-07-07T05:28:00.000-07:00

The alcohol content in a Guinness Stout has been 8% since I first started drinking Guinness Stout beer many years go; maybe more than 10 years.

Recently Guinness Stout has reduced the alcohol content from 8% to 6.8%. I think this is another small idea that can bring great result by increasing sales.

When the Guinness is of less alcohol, drinkers can drink more bottles. On the other hand, for drinkers who shy away from Guinness because they cannot hold much alcohol or bitterness (due to alcohol) may switch to Guinness for its golden smooth greatness. Guinness sales should increase by 15% to 20%.

Isn't that a small idea that can bring great result?

2008-07-01T04:06:00.000-07:00

A young man leaving home to seek his fortune. His father told him to remember the three types of bones, namely the wishbone, the jawbone and the backbone.

The wishbone will make you want good things in life. Without the wishbone, you may be a very contented person.

The jawbone will help you ask questions, and the answers will bring you closer to the things you want in life. Do not feel shy in asking.

The backbone will keep you focus on your road to success until you get it. A man without backbone can be easily influenced by bad elements.

Transformation

2008-06-20T18:58:00.000-07:00

The Indian Government is building a reservoir in a far reach rain forest. Lorries are plying on the muddy road for months. Due to heavy rain fall for more than a week, the mud is so whipped up and made it difficult for the lorries to drive up the hill.

Workers are summoned to scope the mud away. A young native collected home the unwanted mud (now transformed into clay) and molded some pots and vases. He put them into an furnace for a couple of days and again the pots and vases transformed into pieces of art !! Yes....pieces of arts that can fetch very good price!!

'Transform' means the change of state, it won't and cannot change back to the original form, in this case, mud.

Successful people are those who went through transformation. Change is not good enough for one may change back to his usual self. Those people who have transformed will not look back, they only look forward. Like caterpillars transforming into butterflies. (Read Article on April 27, 2008 - What have you got to give up)

Are You Running Out Of Time?

2008-06-15T11:13:00.000-07:00

Jackson was (once) a very successful businessman and he was a millionaire in the 90's. Jackson is now 70 years old. Due to bad economy, he lost his fortune and now retired and wheelchair bounded. He wasn't bitter in his final days, he was just disappointed that he had run out of time.

Are you running out of time? Certainly not! Wait a minute...if you are 42 years old and your child is merely a one year old infant, you are running out of time. If you are 49 years old and you have as yet own a shelter, you are running out of time. If you are 51 year old and yet saved some RM200,000 or more, you are running out of time. Any turn of events, like global petrol hike and food shortage, ill health and disability will lift you off the ground! Reduce spending and increase revenues are the only two answers.

Do you (still) believe in the saying: "It's never too late"?

Plan Your Journey

2008-06-12T11:47:00.000-07:00

In the far reaches of Africa, a traveler trudging along a narrow dirt road came upon this sign posted on a tree: "Choose your route with care, you'll be in it for the next 30 miles."

Yes, life in a journey, you also should choose your route wisely as there is no trial run, it's not a full dress rehearsal. There is no turning back in life. If you don't map out what you want in life, you likely will end up being a failure.

So, choose your life journey wisely, be focus and be a success.

There Is Always A Better Way

2008-06-08T17:39:00.000-07:00

I have seen offices with a sign shown as "Salesmen are not allowed" pasted on their glass doors. I think there is a better way to say this. Maybe the sign should be changed to "For security reason, we only receive visitors with appointments".

Sales persons are the people who bring you all the good things in life. They introduce you a car, a stove, a water purifier, a fridge, a computer and the list goes on.

Without them, we probably are still living on tree tops. I am proud being a sales person.

Fox And The Grapes

2008-06-04T02:36:00.000-07:00

There is this little fox living in a forest next to a fenced vine yard in Australia. The fox was dazzled by the ripe juicy grapes. However, it could not get through the fence because it's fat.

After three days of starvation, it successfully reduced its body size and eventually get through the fence. The fox was so happy because it could eat as much grapes as it wanted.

Alas, after eating grapes for a few days, the fox grew fat again and it couldn't get out of the fence. The fox has to go through another two or three days of starvation in order to get out of the vine yard.

Some people are like this fox, they are prepared to take trouble to enjoy good things in life. Some people behave differently, they merely wait outside the wine yard starring at the juicy grapes.

Those Are Silver, These Are Gold

2008-05-30T07:52:00.000-07:00

Make new friends, but keep the old;
Those are silver, these are gold.

New-made friendships like new wine, age will mellow and refine.
Friendships that have stood the test of time are surely best;
Brow may winkle, hair grow gray, Friendship never knows decay.
Alas! But old friends may die; new friends you may find.

New is good, but old ones are better
Cherish friendship, money cannot buy.

Make new friends, but keep the old;
Those are silver, these are gold.

My Dad Will Certainly Bring Me Home

2008-05-25T01:27:00.000-07:00

Zuan Ren is a seven year old student in Chengdo, Sichuan Province. Every morning, his father brings him to school and brings him back from school at 6pm in the evening. Rain or shine, never fail.

A 7.6 magnitute devastating earthquake hit Chengdo on May 21, 2008, killed more than 60,000 people and some 5 million people made homeless. Thousands of students includng Zuan Ren was trapped in the rubble. 120 hours after the quake Zuan Ren, was pulled to safety from a pile of debris. Under normal circumstances, a human being may not survive without food and water so many days (hours).

People are amazed of how he survived in darkness for so many hours. Zuan Ren replied, "I know, my dad will certainly come and bring me home." It's because Zuan Ren can count on his dad, therefore he survived. Friend, are you the one your family can count on? Are you the one your teammates can count on?

Another Small Idea

2008-05-16T21:15:00.000-07:00

Potential car buyers normally requested a "test drive" before they make a purchase of their new cars.

Kenny is a very successful car salesperson. Everyweek he never fail to sell at least 2 cars. One day, I took him to lunch and asked him about his secret of success. This is what he told me. "I spot those potential car buyers from my competitors who offer them a test drive of new cars, and I followed them back to their homes or office."

People who test drive news cars are those who have need, good reasons to own new cars and money to buy them. Kenny only takes great effort to convience them to buy his brand.

Small Idea, Big Business

2008-05-06T02:00:00.000-07:00

A company selling tooth pastes hired a team of business development consultants to see into how to increase market share of its products . They invested countless hours in the boardroom brainstorming on advertisements, marketing plans, distributions that involved millions of Ringgit....yet sales did not increase.

Jack has an idea. He suggested the manufacturer to make the tooth pastes with 1.0mm increase in diameter on the nozzles. With the new design, sales increased with a whopping 15%.

People are creature of habits. By applying the same pressure habitually on the body of the tooth paste, more tooth paste is being dispensed, resulting the increase in sales.

A small idea. big business.

What Have You Got To Give Up?

2008-04-27T22:45:00.000-07:00

"The caterpiller cannot crawl fast enough to fly. It has to give up those legs during its metamorphosis in order to fly."

I have seen a lot of people who have reached the plateau merely because they are not prepared to give up something for greater success. In fact you don't have to give up an arm or a leg for greater success. What you have to do is merely read a little bit more, work a little bit harder and be a little bit helpful to others.

You don't have to give up your happy hours where you can wind down your stressful day. You also don't have to give up your family as your loved ones are your source of inspiration.

Simply give up your bad habits for the good ones, the bad attitude for the positive ones and also the laziness for many structured daily activities. You bet, it's worth giving them up!

Happiness

2008-04-22T19:01:00.000-07:00

This morning, while driving to work, I saw an elderly man walking his dog. Walking his dog is happiness.

What's happiness to you? Does making a lot of money make you happy? Ask those who are suffering from sickness, they will definitely want to trade their wealth with your health. Happiness is not a destination, it's a journey. It's a day to day journey. When you are happy every single day, all these days add together, you will have a very happy life.

Happiness to me is seeing my children growing up. Seeing them passing the exams, getting into their adulthood with confidence and making me proud of them.

This evening, I met another elderly man walking on the street......a very happy man....he told me happiness is walking on the street, a few of his friends are sitting on wheelchairs.

What's happiness to you?

Do You Have An Expectation?

2008-04-12T22:00:00.000-07:00

People with expectations are visionary, they often see the end result of their labor. They are achievers, winners and they have a purpose in life.

Do you have an expectation? An expectation of the level of your achievement by the end of the year, by the end of 5 years or even by the end of 10 years. If you don't, then you are a drifter, simply drifting aimlessly in life. Drifters are failures. They have low aims or no aim in life. Think about it, if you don't have an expectation, by the end of the year, your standard of living will not change for any better, it can only get worse.

Have an expectation and strive to reach it, will you?

Don't Let Ripples Turn Into Storm

2008-04-09T03:30:00.000-07:00

Life is never a smooth sail, there are ups and there are downs. There are times when one falls sick, there are times when one has relationship problems, there are times when one suffers financial temporary inconveniences or suffers a financial loss. There are even times one makes dead wrong decisions. These are ripples in your life.

Don't let ripples turn into storm. Go see a doctor before one is seriously ill, go mend your relationship even there is merely a hair line crack, go straighten your financial challenges. Do not delay till these ripples turn into storm when one is no longer able to handle.

Ripples are beautiful, they spice up your life, but don't let ripples turn into storm.

Success Depends On Your Backbone, Not Your Wishbone

2008-03-26T18:56:00.000-07:00

We cannot afford to drift from day to day and hope tomorrow be better. If we don't have a concrete work plan and work on it, we are merely making a wish, hoping it may come true.

Success depends on our backbone and not our wishbone. We promised a good lifestyle for our loved ones, we have to deliver. We promised good education to our children, we have to honour what we said. Excuses are next to lies.

Our financial status will not change no matter how many times we give ourselves lame excuses. It can only be changed for the better when we have our two feet on ground, hitting the roads, working on our goals.

Backbone, not wishbone.... people have spinal cord, not necessary they have backbone.

Stop Nursing Mediocrity

2008-03-17T02:58:00.000-07:00

Most people prefer to own a junk car or live in a small house rather than sticking their heads out of their comfort zone for greater success in life. They never dream of good things in life and they usually live a mediocre lifestyle.

Stop nursing mediocrity. Set a goal. Tell the whole world about your goal. People who keep their goals to themselves quite likely not able to reach their goals.

Stop nursing mediocrity. Start living. You are responsible of your own success in life, not your Manager, not the Company you represent, not the business environment.

Stop nursing mediocrity. You live life only once, don't waste it. Live it to your fullest. Be your best.

Apple Tree

2008-02-29T03:59:00.000-08:00

Have you seen an apple tree? A full grown apple tree can bear about 400 apples. There are around 8 to 10 seeds found in an apple. In another words, there are around 3,000 seeds found on a single tree when it bears fruits.

How many seeds needed to grow into an apple tree? Yes...the answer is one seed only. Successful people tried many times before they became successful. If we are determined to become successful, we have to adopt the never give up attitude. Most people who failed are those who gave up too early.

Even a tree understands the "Law of Large Numbers".

Paint With Colours Or A Shade Of Grey ?

2008-02-20T01:45:00.000-08:00

Lydia Sum Tin Ha, fondly known as Fei Fei, the "happy fruit" Hongkong actress passed away yesterday after 2 years battle with liver cancer. She was 61. Her rotund figure, jolly smile and iconic horn-rimmed glasses made her special in the entertainment arena. She has casted more than 70 movies since she started her film debut at age 13. She will be missed by countless of her fans in Hongkng, Taiwan, China and Asian Countries. She lived a colourful life.

What about us? Are we painting our lives with colours or just simply a shade of grey? Are you living your lives in exclamations or are you living your lives in explanations?

Successful people find reasons for their success and continue to be more successful. Failures find excuses and explain their cause of failures and even blame others for their failure.

Our birth right is to become successful. Grab our paint brush and let's paint rainbows in our lives together!

It's Spring

2008-02-11T23:23:00.000-08:00

It's the Lunar Chinese New Year. It's time to renew our faith and set challenging goals for ourselves.

It's Spring. It's like the sunrise in the morning. People who wake up late miss this greatest feat of the nature.

It's time to sow. It's time to jump out of bed and plan our year. We don't need Lillian Too or Joey Yeap to predict our future. Our future is actually the sum total of the way we may work in the next 12 months.

We cannot direct the wind, but we can set our course. Let's together exercise our God given courage to brave the challenges in the Year of Rat.

I belive it's another year of abundance, do you?

Goals And Scores

2008-02-07T17:55:00.000-08:00

The soccer season is here! There are two things very important in a soccer game...the goal posts and the scores. Can you imagine twenty two players chasing over a ball without any goal post in the court, they will be running aimlessly and there won't be a game. On the other hand, if there are no scores to indicate their achievements or lacking of it, there won't be a game either.

In life, we must have goals. Goals big enough to challenge our strength and capability. We must have scores. Scores to measure our progress and pacing others who are better than we currently are.

Do we have a goal for 2008 and a score board to measure our progress?

Rotiboy opens its 1st outlet in Penang

2008-02-07T02:34:00.000-08:00

Today, Rotiboy opens for business in Queensbay Mall, Penang. My family and I paid a visit to this new outlet and we are tremendously happy for our friend, Mr Hiro Tan, the owner of Rotiboy.
The signature bun in Rotiboy is Maxican bun. The next time you pay a visit to the Rotiboy outlet in Queensbay Mall, please do not miss buying one or two of Rotiboy's Maxican buns.
(Pic shows my daughters, Hiro Tan and *Rotiboy - The Rotiboy Logo derived form his face)

Timing Is Everything

2008-01-31T18:35:00.000-08:00

Today, Bill, a friend of mine (43 years old) becomes a father. His wife just delivered a very healthy baby boy of 3.2 kg in weight. I am very happy for him because the couple's wish eventually cames true after 4 years of marriage.

When the son reaches age 20 for university education, Bill will be age 63. By then, he probably would have retired from his employment. He and his wife probably will live on with his retirement fund or EPF.

Malaysian survey shown that most EPF contributers use up their savings in merely three years after reaching age 55. I hope Bill's savings can keep him financially healthy and physically healthy when his son is 20.

Timing is simply EVERYTHING !!

If I Could Turn Back The Clock

2008-01-31T18:17:00.000-08:00

If I could turn back the clock, I would have bought a Merz E-200, I could have earned a million, I could have taken up a Electrical Engineer Degree and the list goes on...

There is no way one can turn back the clock, but we can make a new beginning. The close of 2007 brings a new beginning of a new year. Whether we had a successful 2007 or not is no longer important. The important task is how we are going to make 2008 a year that we can progress towards our worthwhile goals.

2008 will be another year of abundance, if only we sow your seeds now. Start now and start fast !!

You Think You Are Rich?

2008-01-31T04:44:00.000-08:00

Hi Friends.... You think you are rich?
I read this somewhere and I want to share it with you -
"The richest man is not the one who has the most, but the one who needs the least."
There is truth in this statement. If you think you are rich, there are people out there richer. If you think you do not need more, you are rich.
So you think you are rich?