YEAR End - In the Eyes of A Child

There is so much fervor of New Year's Eve Celebration. So much that in the eyes of a 10- year old boy, it borders from amazement to sheer repudiation to skepticism. Yes, people's attitude to new year celebration have changed a big lot, over the years!

He (my son) further inquired, "Papa, why do people make countdown parties on New Year's eve but not on Christmas Day". Frankly, I answered in a haphazard manner. I said, because people favor the ushering of a new year to the celebration of Jesus Birth.

Reflecting back, I would have answered - "celebrity rather than spirituality is the name of the game" or "Practical and cultural rather than scriptural, I suppose. "

I had a better chance of reflecting on this event once more. What better way to end the year than reflecting further from air supply songlyrics-'in the eyes of a child'.


When you look to the past for life's long hidden meaning
For the dreams and the plans made in your youth
Does the thrill to achieve match the warm hidden feeling
That lies so still and lives in you

In the eyes of a child there is joy, there is laughter
There is hope, there is trust, a chance to shape the future
For the lessons of life there is no better teacher
Than the look in the eyes of a child

You've found the place to walk the path you've chosen
You'll never miss the world you've left behind
When life gives life, it's happiness unbroken
When you give love, it's love you'll find

Wrapping Babies Upside Down

I found this parable in one of my favorite blogs. Read on. My take is - like most of us, we often neglect to "upgrade our life skills" as we journey. Some reasons out lack of time. Others argue its because of lack of interest. Still, most find they are comfortable and would find change to be altering what was once a comforting tool to use.

However, examining a few sports personalities here and there showed even the most prolific of them needed a re-tool. Tiger Woods for one. Imagine! A Worldclass athlete still not satisfied with his swing!

Even Michael Jordan's life, long considered the greatest basketball player of all time, is littered with anecdotes of consistently improving his free throws practice after practice after practice.

What more with ordinary people like us wading thru the rudiments of daily life!

The Parable Goes:
Miao Zhen was a scholar of the Song Dynasty ( 960 - 1279 AD) who had previously ranked fourth in the civil service exams. When there was a new court examination for new vacancies, he applied. The Prime Minister informed him, “ you have been an official for so many years. Before you take the exam, might as well spend some moments to review your literary skills, and some of the classics.”

Miao Zhen quite confidently replied, “ Could an old midwife who’s been doing it for 30 years ever wrap a baby upside down?”

After the exam, he found out that he had indeed failed. When the prime minister met him, he smiled to Miao, and ask, “Miao, how could you have wrapped the baby upside down?

Swim Against the Current

I remember a passage or two of the first book I have ever read, cover to cover. The author, Gabriel Quemado says " It is very easy to swim with the current. Everybody can do it. But to go against the current requires bullheaded persistency and deadly determination."

Below article I found from Businesspundit.com, which I quote, also elaborates on the principle of swimming against the current.

"The good thing is that there is hope. You have your castles in the sky, and that is where you have to start to be an entrepreneur. But don't be afraid of the work. Who needs accounting? Entrepreneurs do. That tells you how money flows through your business. It's an important thing to know. Who needs sales training? Entrepreneurs. You are always selling. Selling your product, selling your business to job candidates, selling your future to investors or creditors. It's something you should know. Who needs business law? Entrepreneurs do. You should understand the basic principles, so you don't make a critical mistake. Who needs self-reflection? Entrepreneurs do. You are going to have to make decisions without much information sometimes, and you need to look back and see if you have done a good job. Who needs ethics? Entrepreneurs do. It's easy to be ethical when business is booming, but it's hard to refund customer money when you need it more than they do.

The lazy way is usually a path to failure. It doesn't build the foundations that enable your dreams. It doesn't give you an advantage because, anybody can be lazy. Foundations take a long time to build. I'm not saying you have to wait until they are finished, because they will never be quite done. But don't believe the hype and rush into something that doesn't suit your skills or your dreams. Running downhill is easy, but if you want to see the top of the mountain, you have to run the hard way. Don't be afraid of running up."

This is what I like about principles. They tend to weather time. Principle of hardwork always resonate thru the ages.

On Dreaming

We all have dreams. Everyone do. The difference is - successful people make their dreams into reality. Not-so-successful ones continue on dreaming all their life.

Also, one famous philosopher quips "Do not worry if you have built your castles in the air. They are where they should be. Now put the foundations under them."

Bravo Henry David Thoreau. I end with my buzzword - 2FMaDaRe- Fundamental Foundations Make Dreams a Reality!

Being Hungry

"When you're hungry, you tend to absorb and retain information quickly and for the long term'.
Thus said the article I read posted at Businesspundit.com.

I totally agree. On the contrary, the reverse is also true. Biologically when you're full, the tendency is for you to absorb less info. The logic behind is that the body's energy is utilized to digesting food when one is full. And since blood is an essential component in the processing of food, most blood is channelled to the stomach.

You get it! The the brain is thus deprived of blood. And when this phenomenon happens, brain power and memory suffers.

Spiritually too, no wonder when people fast, and feed, on the WORD, tendency is for the WORD to manifest in their lives with more meaning and more essence. Solomon is again right "There is nothing new under the sun".

Keep Your Eyes on the Road

Yes! That is exactly the words of my 10-year old son!

This happened while we were cruising along an expressway. He blurted out those words while watching me steer the wheel. He has somehow caught my wandering eyes enjoying the view. ]

While reflecting, this event strikes a chord !

Come to think of it. Often, we cruise into life and along the way, starts to wander off course. For variety of reasons, we stumble into a new hobby or habit. Venture into unknown places. Indulge in new passion.

However, the reality is that everytime we engage ourselves chasing those pursuits, we ended up veering away off course from life's most important elements-family. At the end of the day, Stephen covey's take on this sounded truer than ever - "Begin with the end in mind".

Of Stocks and Risks

Finally! After years and years of searching for the magic pill (read: simplified explanation in stock market investing), I read this entry of a well-known money blog post I just can help but quote it down...Alternatively, you can read this same entry at the link below. Read on with GUSTO!

http://www.mymoneyblog.com/archives/2006/12/a-better-way-to-view-stock-market-risk.html#more-1106

"The prospect of losing your hard-earned money is scary. You know that if you invest with $1000 in stocks, in a year you could be left with either a huge gain or a huge loss. People (including me in the past) tend to look at the stock market like a slot machine:

This is good in that, yes, for the short-term the stock market is risky. Don’t put money you may need right away into stocks. However, when young people tell me that they are putting their Roth IRAs in a bank CD because they are afraid of the stock market, that is bad. Roth IRAs are long-term investments. We’re talking 30, 40, 60 years for some people! The way you should be looking at the stock market is this:

As you can see, as your time-horizon lengthens, your risk of losing money decreases significantly. When looking back and taking any 25-year period between 1950 and 1994, the worse case still gave you a 7.9% annualized return. Note that the average for all of these time periods is still the same, 10% per year. So what you’re really looking at is something more like:

Although we may not get that same 10% average in the future, I think it’s clear that you need to make your horizon as long as possible by starting now. Remember, most of you are not going to touch your Roth IRA for decades, so it doesn’t matter what happens next year. What matters is that you were “in the game” for that year, extending your time period in the market, rocky or not. Also, this is just stocks - We are not even taking into the account the additional tempering effect of incorporating bonds to your portfolio.

Finally, consider this. Right now, bank CDs paying 6% in some cases may seem nice. But after inflation, the long-term return of cash-equivalents like bank accounts or Treasury Bills is… zero. By not investing in stocks (again, for long periods), you are giving yourself a 100% chance of making nothing. IRAs, 401ks, 403bs, TSPs, they are all for the long-run.

Get in the game!

* The graph is adapted from one in A Random Walk Down Wall Street by Malkiel, one of my recommended investing books. Common stocks are defined as a diversified stock portfolio, such as the S&P 500 Index.

Hierarchy of Needs

Oxford defines 'plateua' as a "state or period of little or no change following a period of activity or progress".

Let's examine this word in the context of a hypotethical person, in early 30's, married with 2 young kids, mid-level position and a promising career plan in a multinational company. Given he/she has 3 lifestyles to choose from in order to 'get by' the platuea stage experienced by most mid-level managers. Options include;

Choice A. The Avid Learner: back to school to pursue Masteral, Doctorate studies. For most people, this is the upgrade ticket to senior management position. Without such extension on a person's name, career path and plan is going to be a hard sell. All done in the spirit of rekindling passion for learning 'new things'.

Choice B. The Busybody: continue busily toiling day in and day out in the corporate world, spending weekends ever expanding his corporate network. All in the hope that one day, senior mgmt would notice of his/her efforts and recognize, possibly promote, him/her.

Choice C: The Contented Cap: this is liberating. Imagine. Happily basking out there in sustaining commitments to the family. Perhaps a break to start a hobby, planning a retreat for the family. Or even starting a small business to 'fallback' on. Finally renewing commitment to his/her GOD to ensure his/her spiritual nourishment is in check sounds a fitting finale.

Well, for me, appears the choice C is imminent. Obviously I'm bent on "waiting on the Lord". Profound but true.

7 Laws of the Learner

I visited a Christian Bookstore today and stumbled upon a book with above title. I was immediately hooked into browsing it!

Straightforward, practical with a catchy theme and most of all, timely. These are words I would use to describe the book. You might say, oh no, another book on teaching ?! True. However, as tons and tons of books have been written about teaching, I think none has been crafted just for the layman's need.

Structuring the topics/subjects into 7 'laws' puts ease of recollection, simplicity and coherence. I have not read the whole book. Given the chance, I will definitely post my comments. I was just hoping too I could find one in a nearby library. I would not mind putting time and effort to read and apply what it says.

After all, lifelong learning seems to be the buzzword these days.

Business Principles

People still don't get it!

The 'Get Rick Quick' scheme has been heavily used by U.S advertisers to entice people to invest their hard earned dollar. In my recent visit to the states, I saw this in action for myself. I was literally bombarded by continuous barrage of money making scheme.

The fundamental principle of making money hasn't change over the last hundred, even thousands, of years. Frugality and prudence in expense and setting sights for long term investment, has been proven effective time and time again.

In the end, these are simply ordinary principles applied by extraordinary people. Like what my grandmother used to say - money doesn't grow on trees! Its never been truer!

Becoming An Adult

My eldest son and I had our regular one-on-one today. As always, I am on the lookout for one liners! True enough, he posted this question to me "When is a child considered an adult?"

Profound eh! Caught me off guard too! Since he's already 10, I asked him for his own thoughts. Well, what do you know, he answered his own question with such depth I am convinced he stands to trek a bright future ahead for him.

Consider the following answers he made; A child is considered an adult when;

1. Old enough to know right from wrong;
2. Old enough to make their own decision;
3. When a person is 20 years old.
4. Old enough to leave their parents
5. Smart enough for adult questions;
6. Able to understand adult words!

Now, how's that for a 10 year old mind!

Powerhouse Team

What makes a high performing team tick? Is it the individual talent? Personal Drive? Team motivation? Or simply the challenge to get things DONE!

I found all these elements come into play lately.

Yap. I was asked to be part of the organizing committee for a chuch major event. Seven months and countless manhours later, seems like all efforts have paid off. What with comments such as " A event very difficult to match" or "Excellent teammanship" or "Truly a memorable one' or "One for the history books'. These comments simply fattens the heart!

At long last. The goal I personally look forward to achieving as a member, has been met. Praise GOD! What could be better than that! Indelible experience cemented by 100% top notch audience satisfaction!

More to come?

The Good Life

Let's go to Starbucks!” quipped by 8-year old boy excitedly.

He said this during our scheduled one-on-one today. I asked him why? And at Starbucks at that? Now I know. He is simply keen to record our conversation on his journal! And the starbucks is the place which is perfect for him.

The moment we sat, he immediately uttered yet another one liner. “Hmmm, good music, great seats, a Christmas tree and my favorite mocha frappucinno on the table – what could be better than this”. I simply chuckled!

At last, the fruits are bearing, albeit sporadically. I am encouraged. It’s not too often I see my sons finally metamorphosing into the person GOD wants them to be.

Word of Mouth

People don’t believe what you tell them.
They rarely believe what you show them.
They often believe what their friends tell them.
They always believe what they tell themselves.

Thus said the marketing dictum from a Blog Site I frequently visit.

I really liked the last portion. Which is summed up in the phrase " Word of Mouth".
Ah, the mouth. Powered by the tongue. A very small yet, like the rudder of the ship, very influential element of the body.

No wonder, people who have had the most powerful impact in this world are those with excellent communication skills. Communicators who rely on sweet tongue and the persuasive effect it brings.

The terrifying scriptural warning is that eventually, 'we will all be accountable for every thought, deed and words we utter on the day of judgment." Moral of the story? The news you hear from yourfriends can sum up the kind of person you are.

Power of the Pitch

I was reading this advertising book titled "Power of the Pitch". T'was one of a kind read! Folksy, unpretentious and full of useful tips.!

In fact, am just skimming past the first 3 chapters and already, my thoughts run wild how to apply powerful principles.

From clothing to nailcutting, its a must read for Sales Professionals! The one idea which stuck on my head is that " we are being watched (and judged) all the time". And these creates powerful impressions and perceptions. Perceptions, which left unattended, could lead to people getting us misunderstood.

But before anything else, check your innermost desires, thoughts and motivations. These drives your actions. And eventually the image that your character projects is what people perceive.

Measure of a Man

Live truth instead of professing it.

This is best measure of a man. Its in the doing, not in the talking. After all, when all things are said and done, its how you have lived your life, leaving a legacy behind and a name to bear that legacy.

What about you? What do you want people to remember you about?

"So Others May Live"

Thus said the motto of the U.S Coast Guard from the movie 'The Guardian".

Today, my eldest son (aged 10) and I watched the movie with gusto. Yep, you guessed it right! We had our one-on-one session.

Part of my routine every week (or as much as my time can afford it) is to indulge in an uninterrupted 2-3 hrs engaging my two boys mano-a-mano.

Eleanor Roosevelt Quotes

I like the following quotes I can't help but capture them here. Pretty soon, I will attempt to share my thoughts on these cliche too..

1. "Many people will walk in and out of your life,But only true friends will leave footprints in your heart. "

2. "Anger is only one letter short of danger. If someone betrays you once, it is his fault;If he betrays you twice, it is your fault. "

3. "He who loses money, loses much;He, who loses a friend, loses much more;He, who loses faith, loses all. "

4. "Beautiful young people are accidents of nature,But beautiful old people are works of art.

5. "Learn from the mistakes of others."

My favorite of all is the last item. To tough to apply? Perhaps. But another cliche said, when the going gets tough, the tough gets going!!

Reports Reports Reports

Yes, we all are too familiar with this word. Some shirk. Others liven up. Still most dread at the thought of having to create one weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly.

But I like what I read today. It is about the need for creating one. The story goes that in a popular hotel chain, their GM's are required to fill out a monthly report explaining variances from forecast.

A California GM was certain that no one was reading the report, so he put in a comment in a mid-summer report explaining a profit shortfall due to excess snow plowing costs. Nobody ever called him on it!

Winter tool expense at mid-summer! Well well well, I thought $100 for a coke in a govt expense contract claim is worse!

Handling People

"To handle yourself, use your head; To handle others, use your heart". I loved this leadership passage! But how relevant is this cliche in this day and age? Lets examine...

Historically, we are plagued by leaders, business or otherwise, who have stormed the world by their dogged determination, perilous pursuits, vivacious visions and extraordinary charm and charisma. They however fall as fast as they rise.

Paradox? Maybe. Maybe not.

Today, as we move towards a more informed workforce, we are soon becoming creatures of high-tech slavery! Slavery that we lost person to person conversation. We lost touch. We lost our ability to thank people for small favors we ask. We become aliens to our human counterparts. Its becoming too impersonal.

Ask anybody what they think is the best leader they have came across. Without batting an eyelash, most will tell you it is those individuals whom they have built connections with. Connections which can only be discerned by the heart.

I don't know about you but, as for me, I better get this post done in order for me to apply this principle-and fast-before I lose my people to someone else. Cheers!

Comments please..

Great Minds

"Great minds discuss ideas; Average minds discuss events;Small minds discuss people. Thus said Eleanor Roosevelt. She couldn't have been more right.

My twist is - A Christian mind thinks of ideas to change events in order to influence people - to turn to GOD!

In this day and age, all we need is another magic pill or silver bullet to dodge problems, Christian problems at that. Let's face it, in reality problems are opportunites in disguise. It's either you face it, get over it or duck it. Whatever your response to it, it is your character.



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A lot of "Starts" but Not "Complete"

The president of a top notch electronics company in the Philippines made this hard-hitting comment. And I read it with gusto! He said, and I quote " We see (in the Philippines) a lot of 'starts' but we need more 'completion'. Very sharp observation! And I share his sentiment.

Indeed the country today is plauged by the same mindset through ages. People blame the Spaniards colonizing the country. Hence the introduction of this so called 'manana habit' (procastinating). Fast forward 500 years after Spanish rule, the Americans came and so with the Japanese. Despite surviving 2 world wards, Filipinos still continue to harbor such attitude.

Is leadership the cause? Is it policies? Or is the statement a very generalized statement which only happens in a small segment of the country?

If I know all the answers to these, I would run for a government leadership position one day!

Communication Paradox

Its sad. Yes it is. It's sad that man, being at the top of the animal kingdom hierarchy, is slowly losing his ability to physically socialize. With the advent of computers and the digital revolution, the vast majority of people in the first world are no longer talking. Mst people in fact are doing the exact opposite!

While the digital revolution has certainly made our lives more convenient, it brings forth a new realm of communication paradox. Speech is becoming a thing of the past. Plan conversation is being replaced by instant messaging. More and more people are resorting to emailing rather than calling their friends.

We have engulfed ourselves to the very abyssmal frontier of 21st communication called cyberspace. Sad but true. The worse it yet to come.

Houston Thoughts - December 2, 2005

These words were penned during one of my recent trips to Houston, Texas. I am posting it here for posterity-sake.

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December 2, 2005

Part-fantasy and part-reality. These are the exact words I would describe the moment I stepped into the fabled roadways of Houston, Texas.

Visiting one of my old friends in Houston proved to be a big treat for us hikers. A night of darts, driving and dancing can even make the season road-veteran crinch. Nonetheless, we were billeted well and had one of the most meomorable experience ever!

Houston is not a place for the faint-hearted. Or so I thought. JJ (my friend) was telling stories of street gangs, crime rate hike and the like. But I was not discouraged. What else is new in America these days. In fact, I am even more intrigued. I mean, such phenomenon almost always exist in any one city in America anyway.

And like most American cities, Houston is often known as a haven for gangs. If a person does not fall into the trap early, fine. But for people with strong emotional attachments to his/her race or culture, gangs are a way to establish belongingness, oneness and sense of importance in an otherwise individualistic dog eats dog society. Asians, blacks and most other minority migrants seem to share a common angst againts the dominant class.

Hence the resentment contained, suppressed until eventually exploding into a vast array of crimes, petty and all. Having to witnessed one myself at close range myself makes you wonder why such human tendencies still plague humanity for ages!

It is an irony. Or opportunity masked as one?

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On Philantrophy

The economist magazine ran an article on philantrophy on their March 2006 issue. It featured top 10 donors the world has never seen. People like Bill Gates and George Soros, among others, are listed.

However, if you examine closely, their perspective borders on the absurd to the hilarious. The article espouses the generosity of these people and heralds their charitable intentions sans the strings attached.

What the magazine failed to discuss is that somehow, these supermegaultrarich magnates are in fact avoiding being taxed by the government. Instead of giving away their monies to the government, they'ed rather set-up foundations one after the other. In the end, circumvention of the law under the auspices of generosity.

Cheap ploy and very misleading to the uninitiated!

Teen Idealism

I read a riveting Christian book written by a Chinese Malaysian Pastor and his wife. One topic discussed in his book which caught by attention is about Teen Idealism!

I was literally fixated on his ideas! Specifically on the issue of teen violence, identity crisis and the like. It dawned on me the potential pitfall and hurdles I'm about to face with my 2 upcoming teenage boys.

A few more years and these pieces of advise would be the perfect dose for me. Well, taking it just one day at a time.

Exaltation of Worldly Images

Splendid! This word best describes Ravi Zacharias speaking engagement. He skillfully uses powerful words to describe heretowith unknown and even abstract philosophical ideas. He then expertly weave the concepts with bibilical passages forming a solid bedrock of convincing arguments debaters pale in comparison!

A thought-provoking sermon he recently made, which I agree half heartedly, is on the topic of 21st century "visual stimulation".

Apparently in our generation today, we are plagued by ever increasing shift to image-induced stimulation. This, he said, inhibits abstract reasoning! Reasoning which is highly essential for mathematical and logical development. He added that studies showed younger generation lacking the rigors of logical reasoning simply because their minds are more receptive to earlier stimulants such as media advertisment, computer graphics, magazines, prints etc.

On the other hand, most public speaking books that I have came across talks about the 'visualize it' approach in media communication. "Picture it" is the battlecry! And this runs directly into a collision path with what Ravi is arguing.

I tend to agree with Ravi a fair bit. Specifically these days. I find it very difficult to communicate to kids without resorting to drawing objects! In the end, perhaps a healthy balance of words and visual images would render the message being communicated more powerful!! Digital cameras anyone?

Exhorbitant ex-CEO Pay Package

I read in the business week magazine an ex-Morgan Stanley Bank CEO obtained a mind-boggling US$100M+ pay package for being fired! The lucky guy's name is Philip Purcell. Over at the web, a similar article reads "Philip Purcell's golden parachute has a platinum lining".

Overpaid? Perhaps. Well-deserved? Maybe. Googling his biography however, the guy's a whiz kid! Or so it appears. After earning his MBA and MS in Finance at London School of Economics, he became the youngest principal of a consulting firm. This apparently propelled and prepared his way to Wall Street.

Somehow, this kind of overachievers getting the best end of the bargain is ludicrous!

Of Theatrical Sermons

There is something magical to a Holy spirit-led and delivered sermon. One can immediately discern whether the message is meant to its intended audience. Often, when one is relying on his/her own capabilities, chances of the congregation being 'blessed' by the speaker is slim.

However, there is great news!

Relying on GOD and letting the spirit guide and lead the speaker is the trick. Easier said than done! It is but an age-old practice only a battle-worn preacher would know. Today, I just witnessed one - comparing a gifted from a mediocre to the theatrical rendition of GOD's Word. It's a pity! But hey, folks need bread to be laid on their mealtables too, you know.

Global Dimming

Yep. This is the latest "breakthrough idea" our good-natured climatolist have come up with. Funny, after global warming, a phenomenon where emitted CO2 gases engulfing our atmosphere is trapping the heat on earth - hence warming it, here comes now global dimming!

Scientist further studied and proven that the sun's rays have not been 100% efficient. Additionally, it is being partially blocked for over 30 years now! The reason they say is dust and pollutants circling the earth. Having identified these as the culprit behind global dimming, the rate of evaporation they added, has slowed for the last 3 decades.

Oh well, what else is new? Global cooling?

Financial Intelligence

Over the last 3 days, I have painstakingly taught my 10- year old son some finance principles and concepts. My immediate problem was how to go down to his level and introduce concepts which has has no idea how to apply i.e stock market principles and the like.

Several sittings in front of his computer later, we managed to pick 3 blue chip stock. I introduced the game fondly called 'monitor your stock' to him. I got a lukewarm response at the beginning.

At the end of a 3-day barrage of stock price upswings, I finally saw glitter in his eyes when all 3 choices we made earned x points!! To top of it all, I had him summarize 3 key points he learned from the excercise. I figured he hit the nail on the spot!

If only my dad used the same approach as I did. Well, only time will tell whether the concepts my son learned from me this week bears fruit. Patience is indeed a virtue!

Of Neurons and Old Age

Just as I was finishing off my new posts-I miserably forgot to log down my hard-earned password!! Ah, seems like my memory is failing me. Or, perhaps it has something to do with the active neurons still kicking in my brain. Just how many neurons dying at this very moment-only my wired-up brain would know.

Which reminds me of my former university professor-a self-confessed beer-lover. Approximately 1 million brain neurons die as a resulf of drinking a single bottle of beer. He shunned the idea, obviously!

Only to remind us he'd rather lost his train of thought than to give up the 'memorable and savory' taste of beer! What a photographic memory!

First Things First

Applying Stephen Covey's Seven Habits of An Effective Person!