Reality bites or just our Perception?

It is our perception that shape our world. If we were to believe in this statement, then looking at the positive side of things would change anything?

News flash everywhere that the world is facing a huge financial crisis. With the near collapse of the world super economy and trillions of dollars vanish through the loss in the stock market value. Company downsizing and people losing jobs. My friend who work in the offshore bank was given a 24 hours notice however she was given a 6 months salary as a compensation. 10 years ago in my hometown the local shipyard gates were chained up early one morning. Workers were left stranded outside the gate not knowing what had happen. Salaries were not paid and the company was under bankruptcy. Is there any good that can be seen in all this happening ?

Life just isn't fair, but I think that being positive is not to deny what seems to be happening, but rather to focus on our ability to response to what is happening. We should not be the victim but the victor. Playing as a victim will paralyse us from taking action and only becomes bitter and angry. We all have choices although sometimes it does not seem that way. Remember the old saying " When there is a will, there is a way" I believe we are equip with the natural instinct to survive and will do anything to make a comeback.

5 powerful questions in making personal change

While I was in enjoying myself with my family in Sunway theme park Petaling Jaya, I took the opportunity to stroll along the long suspended wooden bridge roughly 700 meter long. It was wobbly but the view was fantastic. The bridge is expose to rain, wind and the hot sun.

The bridge reminds me of the goals I need to set in order to achieve my destination. It is not unusual for people to set goals for the coming year ahead, sadly some would fail and forgotten what they have set up earlier. Along the way their bridge is broken or perhaps they fell off. Only a handful , can be heard trumpeting their accomplishment. It takes lots and lots of will power, commitment and making personal changes. Doesn't this phrase sound familiar. " It is insane to expect a different result if you keep on doing the same things over and over again".

Unless the goal is inspiring and arising from necessity, will the goals become inspiring enough to drive you towards it. In setting your goals , ask yourself the following question?

1. What is my pain?
Do you have current concerns that is really bothering you and you have a strong desire to do something about it.

2. What is the resolution?
Brainstorm the alternative solutions that is available to you. Sometimes it helps to talk to someone whom you trust or who have been there.

3. Why am I stuck with my pain and haven't found the solution?

Identify the blockage that is resisting you to change. Most often the blockage arise from misinformed perception.

4. What is the process?

Identify what needs to be done, what knowledge you lack, the new skills to be learned and the new habits you need to cultivate. Consider getting a mentor or coach in making the change.

5. What is my first step?

The journey to a thousand steps begin with the first step. Focus on taking one action at a time. It is in taking the baby steps that is most often effective rather than taking a big task. You may be overwhelmed by it and be disheartened.

Try it out and let me know if this helps and I love to hear about your personal success and your secret.

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My personality according to Chinese Zodiac

I bought this interesting little statue of a Rooster (not chicken) that signifies my birth year from the Kek Lok Si temple in Penang. Amazingly my friend Martin can recall the animals associated to the respective year. So I did a little reading about my rooster character and this is what I found out.

Roosters are hard workers; shrewd and definite in their decision making, often speaking their minds. Because of this, Roosters seem to boast. They like to put all their cards on the table and respect those who do the same. Roosters love to mix socially -- They are dreamers, flashy dressers and extravagant. They love to attract attention and admiration, and and get angry when someone steals the spotlight. Despite being melodramatic, they are exceptionally practical, logical, and have excellent powers of discri-mination. This leaves them with high standards of excellence which at times frustrates others. Although they attract many suitors, they are loyal, level-headed partners make a commitment.

Passionate, Resilient, Patriotic, Industrious, Courageous, Protective-----------------Conceited, Blunt, Rude, Bossy, Aggressive, Impatient

The following occupations best suit the Rooster personality.
ACTOR ¤ DENTIST ¤ DANCER ¤ INSURANCE AGENT ¤ OPERA SINGER ¤ ARMED FORCES PERSONNEL ¤ FINANCIAL ADVISOR ¤ MUSICIAN ¤ DANCER

If you want more information on your chinese Zodiac character , here is the website. http://www.ofesite.com/spirit/chinese/animal2.htm

High Touch

Have it ever happen to you, trying to pull yourself away from the comfort of your bed to get to work? What would you do to get yourself up and running?

Being human, the ability to manage our emotions and feelings well is key to happiness. Some people pray, meditate, while some take a glance at their vision board as a way to energise and reconnect to their life's purpose. Everyone have their own strategies that work for them.

I personally use various techniques such as reading an inspiring book (love Anthony Robbin books), watch a inspiring clips over the youtubes (Nido Quibein), call up friends whom I have lost touch, listening to meditative music tend to keep me focus.

Like it or not, we are solely responsible for our emotions and our internal states. If we surrender to the external forces, we will find ourselves in false bondage. It seems, we had lost our freedom as we gave up our personal choices, the only thing that separate us from the animals.

I would love to hear some of the stories / things you do to brighten your day. Feel free to comment .

Trip to Pearl of South China Sea - Penang

One way to acquire knowledge and new refreshing ideas is to explore and experience new things. Last week, I was invited to a road trip to Penang with three of my closest friends. It was an opportunity for me to gain new insights and learn new things. Holidays with friends is always be a memorable moment.

In my journey I discovered many interesting things . Firstly do not be afraid to take risk in trying new FOOD. Penang is a place where hawker stalls reigns as the destination for food lovers. If you are overly concious on the hygiene factor , you may not want to venture in this area. Many interesting food to be savoured such as the penang laksa, sweet cendol appetizer, Hokkien mee and etc. You can make a visit to Gurney drive where many open hawker stalls can be found. The government have since beautify the area and build proper struture for the hawkers. The other area where you find concentraated food open stalls is next to Sunway hotel. There are many more areas to be explored.

Secondly, effort is being done to conserve Penang's heritage. As I stroll along the city center, I find many 2 story buildings with european achitetural influence slowly being restored with fresh coat of paint. Currently Komtar is the tallest building in Penang and it is use as the City landmark. Within the building vicinity, it is also the central bus terminal for the whole island. Navigating though the streets of Penang can be tricky as there are a lot of one way streets and also the unpredictable driving behaviour. so be patient as it is a matter of adapting to it.

Thirdly, plan your destination well ahead. Since we have only 1 full day for visit, there are many places we missed considering of the many heritage sites to be visited and depending your interest. In 4 days ,you will be able to see all the place of interest at a leisure pace. Along Batu Ferringi road you can see many beautiful beaches and resort to kick back and relax. .Shopping for cheap clothings also can be found at the open stalls within Georgetown. Overall, it is a good place to take your family on a holiday.

The power of ONE

" How do you change the world ?". I do not have the answers but I do believe that it begins with yourself. Today, I came across a truly inspiring clip about a 11 year boy dying due to luekemia who made a difference. I want to share this clip so that we all can learn how one individual can make a difference in the world.

What would you do ,if you were told that you have 2 weeks to live?

Building a profitable business

The "Leverage Game" is a fun simulation game in learning the business concept.

I just completed a workshop on "business momentum " organised by Action coach international at Wisma WIM. The seminar is about setting ,running and automating business to provide a sustainable income. The founder Brad Sugars define the business as " A commercial, profitable enterprise that works without me" This insight is a truly liberating for me to understand the ultimate purpose of building a business. Sitting through the seminar, I have learned that many areas can be worked on to make this a reality. For more information on how to build a profitable business, you may look it up at www.actioncoach.com

Inspiring John Maxwell Video on "Making Decision"

I am a fan of John Maxwell work as he teaches about personal leadership, teamwork and other areas of personal development. It is quite enlightening to gain valuable insights that can lift you up and thus inspiring others around you. You may gain more insights about his sharing at www.johnmaxwell.com and www.maximumimpact.com

Life of a Trainer

I enjoy attending seminars and workshops. It is a good way to gain new refreshing ideas that can enrich my personal life. I just completed the train the trainer workshop conducted by PSMB (Pembangunan Sumber Manusia Berhad) a body appointed by the government to provide skill training services to small and medium size company in Malaysia. From the five days workshop, I have learned that as trainer, we need to continuously improve ourselves by attending many other seminars. This is one way to keep on renewing our enthusiasm and stimulate creativity input into our training modules. Secondly trainer need to be passionate about developing people and discover their potential. Thirdly, the people I meet at the event , broadens my personal networking and gave me new insights from their shared experiences.

It seems so easy to watch trainers delivering with ease but what is not seen is the sweat and sleepless night putting the program together. Aside from the preparation , there are times when things can go seriously wrong. I remembered while I was giving a sales training to a group of sales font liners in Sandakan, (an eastern city in Sabah) when the power was abruptly cut off due to power failure. I was in the middle of making a point in my power point presentation. After waiting for 7 minutes the power was still down and I had to deliver the remaining session off the cuff. I'd learn a very valuable lesson that day. " Don't be too dependant on multimedia " Stick to good old fashion way of using flip chart, games and story telling to convey the message."
If it ever happens to you... just stay cool and be creative. Just say to your self " This is interesting" and laugh about it.

Choices in Life

I was brought up in the 70's era. So much have change since then. Some of us may notice the obvious changes in people's lifestyle, the way people communicate, the abundance knowledge available at finger tips and etc.

In the 70's , knowledge about the world is restricted to magazines, pen pal letter and actual traveling experience. Now we are instantly connected to any part of the world with a click of the mouse. Through that window, we can learn new cultures, about people livelihood, politics and even do business transaction which was only confined to priveledge few. Now I can sit back in our favourite chair in the comfort of my sitting room and travel the world in an instant with the remote control aid, surfing the 24 hrs Travel & Adventure channel. I have dream of visiting foreign countries and now it is happening in my living room.

In this secular times, our expectation have quantum leap due to the available choices that we face everyday in our lifes. I realise how important it is to clarify what was important to me instead of being suck into unconscious consumerism. It is wise to apply wisdom in making those decisions.

We are surrounded and bombarded with everyday messages, telling us what will make us happy. It is no surprise as marketing and advertising agencies uses messages that focus on exploiting human emotions in enticing us to make that purchase . All they have to do is create a strong anchor on how the product/ services can fulfill our unmet desires. Eventhough the desire was not concsiously thought of in the first place. Upon paying for the products, that desires can only be satisfied momentarily and then we keep on looking for something bigger to fill in the ever growing appetite.

Being raise in the 70's , happiness was simply playing marbles with my best buddies during school recess. I especially remembered my happy moments when my father treat us ice cream at Victoria ice cream house. This is only happens on special occasion. Though my parents did not have much money then , the delay gratification makes it all worth while. Today, we insist that our gratification are met NOW. If not we complain of poor customer service.

I am certain that chasing after materialistic goals will not bring lasting happiness. I believe that it is a complimentary reward for effort done in achieve something bigger.

It is my intention to ride on the waves of change. Like the famous saying " Change is a constant" My blog is an opportunity for me to record my personal growth and also as a platform to share my insights about LIFE. This is where my journey begins.