What's the connection between Taiping (a small industrial town in Northern Malaysia) and Taipei?
Actually, none that I know of.
Only that this morning, I attended a networking meeting where we received a guest who came from Taiping (he drove down this morning itself, and must have started his journey at 3 in the morning).
Shortly after, we received another 3 guests from Taipei, Taiwan and I believe they have been here for a few days.
The person who invited the guests from Taipei was a certain Mr. Tai from Hello Holidays, a member in this networking group.
During when the bit when guests were introduced, our Taiping guest explained that he was from Taiping.
This is when Mr. Tai got up to proclaim that his guests are from Taipei.
What's the connection?
Actually nothing.
Just that this is where the element of fun was injected into the meeting, and all present had a light moment to 'chill out' so to speak from the routines of a meeting.
It's important to have fun in the fundamentals, however, it's essential that the fun is 'powerful' fun rather than just fun for the sake of having fun.
Well done to the team. This created energies!
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Thursday, October 22, 2009
You can do it, mate!
I was speaking to my nephew on-line via a Facebook chat line the other day.
Now, this is a 21 year-old young man, albeit a bit confused due to various levels of family issues.
As a typical teenager with peers who smoke cigarettes, he developed a fond liking for fags earlier on. At the divine age of nineteen, he upgraded himself to 2 full packs a day.
And this has been on going till now.
So, the other day, over a casual conversation, we spoke about various things where the smoking issue came up.
He said that he is cutting down and is down to 1.5 full packs a day.
Now bear in mind that I am in the midst of reading Scott Peck's The Road Less Travelled, which discusses at the fundamental level the behaviourism patterns of people and the role of parenting in upbringing children.
We will not go to that as it will be too deep, but suffice to say at this moment that this kid needs clear guidance on certain aspects of life disciplines, among them delayed gratification.
When he started to understand in his heart the benefits of being a non-smoker (I asserted that smoking is dead-old fashioned, and is no longer cool, in fact, many frown and are in disdain with smokers) he confessed that he really wanted to stop.
It was comforting to know that he was considering nicotine patches as part of the cessation plan.
As our conversation progressed, it appeared that he was dead serious in this, and I figured that other than professional help such as a good physician, a reliable pharmacist and parental guidance (I am thinking of enrolling his grandparents) in the team, he needed to hear the word: 'You can do it, mate!'
He needed someone to believe in him.
I will keep you posted on our progress.
Now, this is a 21 year-old young man, albeit a bit confused due to various levels of family issues.
As a typical teenager with peers who smoke cigarettes, he developed a fond liking for fags earlier on. At the divine age of nineteen, he upgraded himself to 2 full packs a day.
And this has been on going till now.
So, the other day, over a casual conversation, we spoke about various things where the smoking issue came up.
He said that he is cutting down and is down to 1.5 full packs a day.
Now bear in mind that I am in the midst of reading Scott Peck's The Road Less Travelled, which discusses at the fundamental level the behaviourism patterns of people and the role of parenting in upbringing children.
We will not go to that as it will be too deep, but suffice to say at this moment that this kid needs clear guidance on certain aspects of life disciplines, among them delayed gratification.
When he started to understand in his heart the benefits of being a non-smoker (I asserted that smoking is dead-old fashioned, and is no longer cool, in fact, many frown and are in disdain with smokers) he confessed that he really wanted to stop.
It was comforting to know that he was considering nicotine patches as part of the cessation plan.
As our conversation progressed, it appeared that he was dead serious in this, and I figured that other than professional help such as a good physician, a reliable pharmacist and parental guidance (I am thinking of enrolling his grandparents) in the team, he needed to hear the word: 'You can do it, mate!'
He needed someone to believe in him.
I will keep you posted on our progress.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Trip down memory lane: The cough, phlegm, cold and the snake oil salesman
My spouse is recovering from a bad bout of a cough, phlegm and cold. No it's swine flu. Just something triggered by an allergy and went out of control.
Which made me recall: in 2003, I too had a bad-ass cough (the type that you cough your lungs out), massive phlegm and blocked-nose from cold.
It was bad!
What made it worse was the numerous snake-oil salesmen or saleswoman.
Everyone of them had a remedy for me.
Some would come and suggest that I get myself an aromateraphy set with combination of essential oils that would miracously heal me. 'You gotta trust me on this, Riyaz' they would plead.
Still some would suggest this elixir and that supplement. 'This really works, Riyaz, and it's good for you'.
Yet, another would suggest that I invest in a brand-new water and air filtration system that would cost me 3-months of wages in total to get! 'We have easy payment plans via credit cards, y'know, Riyaz and we think it's good for you'. Of course, I thought it was a very good idea to tell them to go to hell.
The problem was that this would set me back a good couple of hundred ringgit. Almost eight-hundred for the aromatheraphy set and at least three hundred for the elixirs. Never mind about the air and water filtration systems.
I would cough harder and harder so that they would go off. And take long bathroom breaks to wear them off.
Finally, I made a trip to the local chinese medicine shop and shared my predicament with the ah-chai there.
He listened intently, and then suggested the following:
1. Menthol inhalation - by dissolving a few small menthol crystals in a bowl of boiling water, and inhaling the fumes, while covering my head using a towel.
2. A drink brewed using Loh-Hon-Ko (a dried chinese fruit), and this would get rid of the phlegm, and hence, the cough will disappear within time.
Total cost: RM5.50 for the small bottle of menthol crystals, and RM2.50 for 3 pieces of Loh-Hon-Ko. Total RM8.
And I was cured in 2-days.
Snake-oil sales wo(men), shame on you, trying to profit from a sick man!
Which made me recall: in 2003, I too had a bad-ass cough (the type that you cough your lungs out), massive phlegm and blocked-nose from cold.
It was bad!
What made it worse was the numerous snake-oil salesmen or saleswoman.
Everyone of them had a remedy for me.
Some would come and suggest that I get myself an aromateraphy set with combination of essential oils that would miracously heal me. 'You gotta trust me on this, Riyaz' they would plead.
Still some would suggest this elixir and that supplement. 'This really works, Riyaz, and it's good for you'.
Yet, another would suggest that I invest in a brand-new water and air filtration system that would cost me 3-months of wages in total to get! 'We have easy payment plans via credit cards, y'know, Riyaz and we think it's good for you'. Of course, I thought it was a very good idea to tell them to go to hell.
The problem was that this would set me back a good couple of hundred ringgit. Almost eight-hundred for the aromatheraphy set and at least three hundred for the elixirs. Never mind about the air and water filtration systems.
I would cough harder and harder so that they would go off. And take long bathroom breaks to wear them off.
Finally, I made a trip to the local chinese medicine shop and shared my predicament with the ah-chai there.
He listened intently, and then suggested the following:
1. Menthol inhalation - by dissolving a few small menthol crystals in a bowl of boiling water, and inhaling the fumes, while covering my head using a towel.
2. A drink brewed using Loh-Hon-Ko (a dried chinese fruit), and this would get rid of the phlegm, and hence, the cough will disappear within time.
Total cost: RM5.50 for the small bottle of menthol crystals, and RM2.50 for 3 pieces of Loh-Hon-Ko. Total RM8.
And I was cured in 2-days.
Snake-oil sales wo(men), shame on you, trying to profit from a sick man!
Friday, October 16, 2009
The 2 Envelopes
Within my teams, I have a position of a group Treasurer who has official and unofficial duties.
Among the unofficial duties include the management of the group monies and petty cash for the purpose of payment to meeting venues for meals and meeting facilities.
Every member will settle his meeting dues, on a monthly basis to the Treasurer. The Treasurer will keep a master record as a paper trail.
Now when it comes to payment, the venue will prepare one bill at the end of the function/event and the Treasurer will settle this on the day itself.
Now there could be balance from this as some members may be absent, and therefore, beyond the minimum pax required to be paid for, there is no need to pay for any members not present.
Therefore this extra monies will go into another account known as the Petty Cash.
So, all in all, the SilverOcean Accounting System is the simplest in the world. You only need 2 envelopes!
Envelope 1: to keep all dues collected from the current month from members and settle the weekly bills for the current month. No one is allowed to be in arrears. If any member doesn't settle by the 2nd week of the current month, must be denied entry into the meeting. Period. No need to debate, discuss, chat, anymore. No money, no honey and in that regard, no money, no entry, literally.
Therefore, any balance from this Envelope 1 is then transferred to Envelope 2: where we hold the Petty Cash.
Simple? Very!! None of this debit, credit mumbo-jumbo!
All you need is 2 envelopes. I will provide them for you!
On the last day of the month, I will request to all Treasurers to report what is the new balance inside the Petty Cash, which is the Envelope 2. I don't want to know anything else. Hey, life is complicated enough as it is, so why complicate it further with yet another statement of account with them debit and credit shit!
And yet, I receive spreadsheets with accounting jargon of debit and credit and I cringe!
Why do I cringe? Because the bloody statement would fail to tell me the only thing I am interested in. Which is: what the hell is the balance in the Petty Cash as of the last day of the month after all weekly bills are paid.
So, I am now in the process of buying some good quality envelopes which will last at least 6-months, to co-incide with the term the Treasurers serve the team.
Among the unofficial duties include the management of the group monies and petty cash for the purpose of payment to meeting venues for meals and meeting facilities.
Every member will settle his meeting dues, on a monthly basis to the Treasurer. The Treasurer will keep a master record as a paper trail.
Now when it comes to payment, the venue will prepare one bill at the end of the function/event and the Treasurer will settle this on the day itself.
Now there could be balance from this as some members may be absent, and therefore, beyond the minimum pax required to be paid for, there is no need to pay for any members not present.
Therefore this extra monies will go into another account known as the Petty Cash.
So, all in all, the SilverOcean Accounting System is the simplest in the world. You only need 2 envelopes!
Envelope 1: to keep all dues collected from the current month from members and settle the weekly bills for the current month. No one is allowed to be in arrears. If any member doesn't settle by the 2nd week of the current month, must be denied entry into the meeting. Period. No need to debate, discuss, chat, anymore. No money, no honey and in that regard, no money, no entry, literally.
Therefore, any balance from this Envelope 1 is then transferred to Envelope 2: where we hold the Petty Cash.
Simple? Very!! None of this debit, credit mumbo-jumbo!
All you need is 2 envelopes. I will provide them for you!
On the last day of the month, I will request to all Treasurers to report what is the new balance inside the Petty Cash, which is the Envelope 2. I don't want to know anything else. Hey, life is complicated enough as it is, so why complicate it further with yet another statement of account with them debit and credit shit!
And yet, I receive spreadsheets with accounting jargon of debit and credit and I cringe!
Why do I cringe? Because the bloody statement would fail to tell me the only thing I am interested in. Which is: what the hell is the balance in the Petty Cash as of the last day of the month after all weekly bills are paid.
So, I am now in the process of buying some good quality envelopes which will last at least 6-months, to co-incide with the term the Treasurers serve the team.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Feeling pregnant?
Well, the subject is just a metaphor, so don't jump: i am not pregnant neither have I made anyone pregnant, literally speaking, or ridiculing anyone who is expecting.
But this article is for the members of the Referral Generation team I am leading as to how to further grow their business by adding quality memberships in their respective groups.
Somehow the word pregnant has some relevance and let me explain how:
One of the ways to grow a group of people in a team is to conduct Visitor Days. And visitor days are all about harvesting from momentum that has been building up.
Say a group has added 10 new members in the past 2-calendar months via regular recruitment, then the group has momentum, and the group is ready for a Visitor Day.
It's a number game as follows:
Say the 10 new members each send out 40 invitation letters to their contacts as recommended.
Then, as many as 400 invitations will be out in the market place.
From this 400 invitations, a 15 percent return rate will yield to 60 visitors possibly attending a Visitors Day event.
From this 60 visitors, we can expect to receive 50 applications for membership where we can shortlist 30 applications for serious consideration. And then, up to 10 new applicants will be admitted into the group.
This will take as long as 10-weeks of work to materialise.
Numbers game.
What has pregnancy got to do with it?
Well, if your group has, say, 2 - 4 new members, then admit some more new members before attempting a Visitor Day. In this category, it is considered 1st trimester of pregnancy, and there is risk of miscarriage.
If your group has say, 4 to 7 new members, then still, admit some more to make it at least 10 -12 new members as there is momentum when issuing invitations for a Visitor Day. This is considered 2nd trimester, and we need to be careful not to deliver the baby premature.
If your group has 10 - 12 or even 13 new members, then you have carried the pregnancy to full term and now can deliver a healthy baby! Now the numbers explained above will carry.
So, remember, get fully pregnant and you'll achieve success!
Note: this article in no way takes undermines a pregnancy or intends to offend anyone. It is used purely as a metaphor.
But this article is for the members of the Referral Generation team I am leading as to how to further grow their business by adding quality memberships in their respective groups.
Somehow the word pregnant has some relevance and let me explain how:
One of the ways to grow a group of people in a team is to conduct Visitor Days. And visitor days are all about harvesting from momentum that has been building up.
Say a group has added 10 new members in the past 2-calendar months via regular recruitment, then the group has momentum, and the group is ready for a Visitor Day.
It's a number game as follows:
Say the 10 new members each send out 40 invitation letters to their contacts as recommended.
Then, as many as 400 invitations will be out in the market place.
From this 400 invitations, a 15 percent return rate will yield to 60 visitors possibly attending a Visitors Day event.
From this 60 visitors, we can expect to receive 50 applications for membership where we can shortlist 30 applications for serious consideration. And then, up to 10 new applicants will be admitted into the group.
This will take as long as 10-weeks of work to materialise.
Numbers game.
What has pregnancy got to do with it?
Well, if your group has, say, 2 - 4 new members, then admit some more new members before attempting a Visitor Day. In this category, it is considered 1st trimester of pregnancy, and there is risk of miscarriage.
If your group has say, 4 to 7 new members, then still, admit some more to make it at least 10 -12 new members as there is momentum when issuing invitations for a Visitor Day. This is considered 2nd trimester, and we need to be careful not to deliver the baby premature.
If your group has 10 - 12 or even 13 new members, then you have carried the pregnancy to full term and now can deliver a healthy baby! Now the numbers explained above will carry.
So, remember, get fully pregnant and you'll achieve success!
Note: this article in no way takes undermines a pregnancy or intends to offend anyone. It is used purely as a metaphor.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
How you do something is how you do everything.
Wow!
What a powerful statement: what you do something is how you do everything.
I was attending a team meeting on Thursday where one of the members was explaining a particular scenario he experienced and how it brought this statement to life.
It is a deep subject, and something worth considerable study in the weeks to come.
So, watch out this space and we will learn more about this.
Lovely weekend, everyone!
What a powerful statement: what you do something is how you do everything.
I was attending a team meeting on Thursday where one of the members was explaining a particular scenario he experienced and how it brought this statement to life.
It is a deep subject, and something worth considerable study in the weeks to come.
So, watch out this space and we will learn more about this.
Lovely weekend, everyone!
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