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2/9/2013

The future of transportation?

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I was watching a documentary on hybrid cars and how they are important to our future as it will extend the usage of petroleum for us. But then I thought, what about planes? There are no great advancements in plane technology that greatly reduces the need for petroleum and thus, we will not have any method to fly once we run out of petrol. 

This will impact how we do business and the manufacturing of products. Will it change our industries back 50 years? I am not sure, but it is something interesting to think about... what will happen to the aviation industry once we run low on petrol. And also the rise of the ship industry as we move towards high tech boats to travel and trade in. 



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28/8/2013

Interviewing - Relax, It's not end of the world!

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Many times when I interview people, I find that they are so nervous that they can't answer me. I think it is because that they are hoping so much for the job that they work themselves up until they forget everything else.

Just relax and take it as it is. :) Just breath and answer the questions and not get too worried about if you get the job or

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27/8/2013

What is money for?

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For as long as I can remember, life has taught me that you must have money. Lots of money. Enough money so that you can do nothing and enjoy your life on a lovely island somewhere in the world, that you probably own.

In reality, is this what it is for? I don't see the richest people in the world enjoying their life on a beach somewhere for the rest of their life. So what does money actually do for us?

When we were young(er), all of us have been taught that money buys happiness. And if you don't have enough, there is always Mastercard. But that gets you in a trap of owing more and more money! And so, you can't get money to do what it is supposed to!

But what is money for? For me, when I was young it was to buy cool stuff and fast cars and enjoying life. As I grew older and became a father, money was to take care of my kids. And after years of thinking and figuring it out, I feel that money is meant to allow you to do what you want, to give you the time and opportunity to explore and be able to do the things that you want to. 

Looking at the rich people in the world, we hear they take expensive holidays, live in expensive homes and drive expensive cars. But they all do what they are passionate about and bring change to whoever they are able to. That is what money is meant to do. Not to buy things and do nothing but to do what you want that you feel will make a difference. 

I am far from being a millionaire and being able to afford to do all this, but if I was able, I would love to take time to share with others on life and why we should think for ourselves instead of listening to the advertising and marketing of large corporations, to make common sense common again. Maybe some of you wont agree with me now, but I am sure one day you will realize that all the money you have is not everything. 

Hopefully this will help someone out there look differently at their bank account. :)

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21/8/2013

interviewing research

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Earlier on I talked about doing job research and asking questions to know more. But I forgot to add a part on actually looking at those jobs that you want and trying out for them. 

How many have actually tried this? I am not sure. But I do it. I apply for jobs every couple years to see what do i qualify for now and what am I worth. 

Give it a try, I am not asking you to accept it but do always try out to apply for positions that you would want and remember the questions that they ask. Because if you don't have the work experience to back it up, you will not be able to get the job. And by knowing what they are looking for, it makes it easier for you to know what you need to build up!



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21/8/2013

A Book?

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My wife has always told me that I should write a book, about my thoughts, my management style and recently, on relationships. This is partly the reason why I have this blog, which is to help me write about things and get more thoughts written down instead of being spoken.

But maybe I should look at writing some things down on relationships. either personal or work relationships. :) I do talk about networking and relationships next to networking is important and it is something that we need to look at during our working and personal lives. 

Personal relationships are also important as they do affect our working efficiency. When we are happy, we work better. When we are sad, we won't work well. So it is important to ensure that our personal relationships are also on track if we want to ensure we are able to do well at work. 

I will probably continue on this later on. :) Hope to write more posts on this later on. 

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19/8/2013

An Interesting Post

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Was looking at my FB feed and I found this interesting. I don't think that this is 100% accurate but it gives us a general way to look at how things are going and what we do 

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19/8/2013

Have you done job research?

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I always wonder if i am the only one who does job research and focuses on what I need to improve on to become better at what I do. It's not just a simple what do I want to be in 3 or 5 years time but actually looking for those who do it and ask them about the job itself.

Just felt like writing about this today as for many years, I have usually been the youngest in whatever post I do and I do feel I am pretty well compensated for what I do. Or maybe it's just because money is not a major motivator for me. 

But anyway, what do I do? Well, it's simple... I just observe and ask questions. Lots and lots of questions. I ask so many questions until some people get sick of me. Well, I am trying to achieve my objective!

I just look to ask on a few basic things
  1. What do you do
  2. What do you need to qualify
  3. What do you look for when hiring a replacement
  4. What do you think about me
  5. What are the skills that are must have for the job


It's easy right? But it's more than just that. You need to know how to ask questions and also to get the information that you want. You need to think on your feet and have an objective. 

So as you think about moving up the ladder and look for better jobs, you need to do some research on your target jobs and talk to the people who do it. A skip level 1x1 is a really great tool to ask how to become your boss but most people take it as a time to complain about their bosses. 

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18/8/2013

It's Just a car!

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As I sit here listening to some music and reading on Facebook, I came across this which I feel very strongly about. 

In my life, I have had friends make fun of me for driving a small car and not 'enjoying' what I earn. But to me its about prioritization and I just want to owe less in my life and focus on important things like buying good food and toys for my kids. 
Have a read and hope you share with others. And if you don't understand Malay, http://translate.google.com is your friend!

Kekayaan ‘Bocor’ Kerana Kereta. 

Biasa dengar org gaji 5k, tp pandu kereta yg instalment 1.3k-1.5k ?? biasa dengar kan....? gaji 4k pandu kereta 1k per month. pun biasa dengar kan?? biasalah darah muda. darah muda akan cari kereta yg downpayment paling rendah, loan yg paling pjg. janji kereta best, harga diri seakan meningkat sama. dlm fikiran graduan yg baru dpt kerja ni cepat jer ternampak kereta2 spt honda civic, elantra, forte, cerato, golf, accord, sonata, jetta dll kereta yg nampak ada 'standard' supaya imej bertambah di mata org sekeliling. tapi apa yg ramai tak nampak bhw 1.5k instalment tu tak abis di situ saja. angka yg sebenar dia akan spent tiap bulan ialah 2k ++ per month. iaitu separuh dari gaji dia jadi habuan utk kereta, eksesori keta & pakej2 lain yg dtg dgn kereta tu.

instalment mmg la 1.3k. tapi petrol? katalah petrol 400 sebulan (melainkan dia pakai keta hebat tapi most of the time keta tersadai kat parking keta, jarang2 drive tak cukup duit utk petrol.. he he he). keta mahal dah tentu minyak injin pakai fully sentetik, brand elok ...takkan nak pakai minyak injin hak murah ye tak? sayang la injin keta tu. 

keta hebat takkan nak pakai brand tayar murah right? keta injin laju ni bahaya pakai tayar brand murah. gamak ke nak pakai brand tayar yg teksi pakai. jatuh la stendet. or takkan drive Camry tp pakai tayar seken hand? malu la kat budak2 kedai tayar. hehehe.... kereta2 hebat ni biasanya tayar rim 17 or 18. satu tayar jer dah rm350-400 ikut brand. So byklah 'kebocoran' sana sini angkara kereta nak hebat & nak maintain pakej yg datang bersamanya.

kebocoran tanpa sedar. kerana bila motokar hebat, takkan gamak bagi duit raya 3 ringgit letak dlm sampul ye tak. malu la kaum. malu la kat kwn2 yg pakai kereta perodua bg duit raya sama mcm yg memandu Civic/Accord. so bila dah berkereta 'hebat' ni, secara otomatik mcm2 lagi tekanan sekeliling yg meminta supaya keluar duit lebih utk sustain gaya mutu keunggulan. keta mahal kena hantar car wash selalu, keta dah ler mahal takkan nak biar comot. kena hantar polish kasi kilat. service keta mesti kat designated service centre keta tu, mana blh service kedai sebarangan. so caj pun mesti la mahal sikit dari kedai biasa. bila keluar dgn kwn2 or ipar duai takkan yg pakai proton nak kena belanja makan ye tak. malu la sikit. hehe... maka byk la benda yg menyebabkan kekayaan 'bocor' angkara kereta... sbb nak jaga gaya mutu & keunggulan. 

ramai org suka kereta. sbb utamanya ialah keperluan utk bw dari point A ke point B. sbb2 yg lain ialah kereta represent tahap ekonomi seseorg, imej, hobi. namun utk keadaan hari ini, jenis kereta blh mengelakkan dari dipandang rendah oleh org sekeliling, terutama masa balik raya & masa nak attend reunion dgn kwn2 sekolah & kwn2 uni. walau mcmn sekali pun kita nafi, kereta tetap 1st impression bila org tgk kita sampai. bila attend reunion kwn sekolah cthnya, amat berbeza penampilan bila seseorg tu sampai dgn brand new Accord berbanding Pesona. cash byk, saham byk, emas byk, rumah byk org tak nampak. cerita pun org tak caya. dan sikap segelintir masyarakat... ada rasa hormat bila sembang dgn org2 berkereta besar bbanding dgn mamat berkereta saga BLM.

cuba tanya mana2 org muda, majoritinya target nak pakai keta hebat bila grad, bila dpt kerja krjn or swasta. buat hutang 9 thn sudah pasti, so terperangkaplah for the next 9 yrs. kereta tu selepas 9 thn akan jd besi buruk, susut nilai 90%. hilanglah potensi investment sepanjang 9 tahun tu krn cashflow habis ke instalment kereta & pakejnya. byklah opportunity lost for the nx 9 yrs. lepas 7/9thn mesti nak tukar kereta lg. sbb keta lama dah hilang gempaknya. berhutang lagi 9 tahun. klu dulu mula2 beli kereta umur 28, lepas pakai dua kereta umur pun dah cecah 46 tahun. masa tu baru terpikir berapa lama lg nak kena kerja, umur patut pencen tapi saving ciput, simpanan tak cukup utk tanggung family, utk sustain life style yg ada. org lain dah boleh pikir utk relax di umur 50-an, kita masih pikir tpaksa kerja utk tanggung hutang.

dan yg paling malang..................................... byk kes berkereta hebat tapi hujung bulan pinjam kwn2 opis. yg tu tak pulak rasa malu. pakai Pesona seken hand malu, pinjam duit merata tak malu. sanggup skip duit yg sepatutnya bagi org tua tiap2 bulan. malah pinjam pulak duit org tua. pinjaman yg liat byr balik. selalunya buat lupa nak byr balik. 

ramai sanggup spend beribu sebulan utk kereta, tapi tak sanggup bagi org tua hatta rm500 sebulan. rupanya kereta hebat lg penting. kerana nak kereta hebat tinggal tak byk dah baki duit nak share dgn org2 tersayang.



-EAR-

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13/8/2013

Itsy Bitsy Spider

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This is one of my favorite nursery rhymes as it helps me think when things go down.

The itsy-bitsy spider
Climbed up the water spout
Down came the rain
And washed the spider out
Out came the sun
And dried up all the rain
And the itsy-bitsy spider
Climbed up the spout again


So what does it have to do with a blog that is talking mainly about working life?

Well, the answer is very simple… just read it again!

Life and work life has its ups and downs. We are always looking to climb the corporate ladder and to get to a higher position with more money, responsibility and in some cases, fame.

However, we do get washed down by “rain” every now and then but don’t fuss, don’t fret, just pick yourself up and climb on up again. The sun will come out and the rain will stop but we must always look to continue climbing up again.

Inspiration does come from places where you find them. 


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12/8/2013

Choosing Your path - Know what you want!

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I have been thinking a lot recently on where should my path take me. And all more importantly I have figured out is what I enjoy doing. Earlier I discussed that we need to know what we don't want to do and that makes it easier for us to know what we like. So now lets explore on the stuff that makes us happy.

Why did I start off with what we don't want? It's simple. We must know what we don't want before we can concentrate on what we want. I not, we will focus on the things we want and forget about what we dislike. And by continuing to accept things that we dislike will make us unhappy in the end.

The path is very simple, like earlier when we listed out things that we don't want to do, start to list out things that you want to do. Be realistic. Just because you want to be a CEO of a company doesn't mean you are qualified for it now. (I'll talk about skills planning in another post, on another day)

Once you know what you would enjoy doing, it's then simple to add the lists together and start looking at jobs that will be able to grant you both. Choose what is a must have and what is a nice to have else there will be no job in the world that would satisfy you. Like I said earlier, its about living with the maybe's and staying away from the will not's. 


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    Techie tuned entrepreneur... wonder how the journey will be like and will I be able to succeed?

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  • Big Bert's Big Blog
  • My Thoughs
  • The Quote List
    • Favorite Quotes
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  • Contact me