Uncertainties of financial gloom, if you are still not sure what’s going on in the current economy situation, perhaps Calvin can give you a better view 
Calvin And Hobbes Financial Crisis
Monthly Archive for December, 2008
Just few more days to go for us to say good bye to 2008 and hello 2009. Do you have a plan for the new year? Are you going to a big party or staying home? After so many years of new year eve countdown, I just feel like I was partying for the sake of partying.
I’ve been scratching my head on where to go, probally I will get to some quiet place and make a peaceful countdown. The next morning I will catch the first sunrise view in 2009 and make prayer upon it :D. Darn… since when I became so spiritual and holy? hahaha
How about yours?
Let's Have A Preview Of 2009 Sunrise
I’ve been brought to this world 27 years ago. 27 years sounds a very long period, It is as long as an average adult total career life, an average housing loan payment tenure or insurance policy maturity date.
When I was kid, I was always joyful on my birthday, because I was one step closer to adulthood with the ability to conrol my own destiny, and to choose who I want to be.
Young chaps always have a "30 years old goal" in their mind, they will always tell you where they wish to see themselve when they are 30 years old. I do have a yet to realised "30 years old goal" and I still have another 3 years to rush for the goal. Since my brithday is in year end, thus is like an appraisal date to review what’ve I done so far in my life to become who I wanted to be. Therefore, my birthday is getter more pressure than pleasure these years. Quarter-life crisis?? Darn!
Alright, this year I do not have a birthday cake, cause everytime the stomach is too full to have fit in the brithday cake after birthday dinner. I make myself a combo this year - A Birthday Pie hahaha. The actual name is called minced beef pie, it’s something similar to shepard pie. The ingredients are minced beef, assorted beans, bake beans, mashed potato and cheese. I am lazy to share with you the step by step guide, but if you are interested, you might drop me a comment I had taken few pictures on my masterpiece Tada!
DIY Birthday Pie Steps
Blow some candles, make some wishes and eat the pie. My simple 2008 year birthday.
28 Dec 2008 00 hrs 00 min 01 sec
Thanks to my parents who raised me up and proud of me,
Thanks to my friends who always supported me when I am down,
Thanks to my enemies who make me grow stronger when I am complacent,
Thanks to my superiors who constantly reminds me that I can be better,
Thanks to my surbodinates who always fight for me without complains,
I just wanna say, I can’t be who am I today without you, Thanks a million!!
I didn’t plan to have a great Christmas Eve’s dinner cause I thought any place which serve western food will do, but I was totally wrong!
All the restraurants in town were like having "Buka Puasa", it’s either full house or gotta make reservation prior to the dinner. At first, I went alexis-Ampang to try my luck, see whether I could taste the famous tiramisu cake or have some pasta and red wine…
However, when I reached alexis, there was packed as your highschool canteen during recess. darn lots of people!! Guess what? they all coming to watch live performance show…. The show was called "A Christmas Evening with Rachel Guerzo & the Michael Veerapen Quartet".
That Old Feeling - Rachel Guerzo Trio
Now, cheesy jazzy jazz…. sounds classy huh? but I dun care, I told the waitress I wasn’t coming for the show, I just wanna eat. The waitress told me that she doesn’t care if I am coming for the show or coming for the feast, the places is fully book and I got no place to sit!! Ok… my fault, I left immediately and seek for some other places to fit me and feed me.
I left the building and drove further, I saw Roadhouse Grill Resturarant but I didn’t stop, cause I noticed the parking was full. After a short while, I saw Victoria Station Restaurant, I still remember the last time I had meal in Victoria Station was 6 years ago in Subang Jaya with my dad. Ok…it’s been awhile I have not visit the restaurant.. why not I have a try today?
The waitress directed me into a train. Yes it’s literally a train that blended with the building. Ohh… I would like to highlight that, the moment I enter the train, I smell a scent… a familiar scent that reminds me of Club-Med Cherating… don’t ask me why, I think that scent is similair to room in Club-Med…the scent comes from the seasoned air-con and furnitures. I only been to Club-Med once when I was 9 years-old, it’s amazing that sometimes a scent can recall back my long lost memory.
They were having Christmas promotion for turkey, the turkey I saw in the ad was Really Good Stuff!!
Victory Station's Christmas Roast Turkey Ads
I didn’t order Turkey, cause it’s too costy. I order US T-Bone Steak instead, it’s taste like Hainanese style western food.
Dunno what is Hainanese Style western food? It happened to lots of Hainanese settlers in Malaysia during British Colony time were hired as chefs to serve those English expat, they learned to cook western food to serve the Englishmen. After Malaysia Independent and the Englishmen "Balik Kampung", some of those hainanese chefs started their own restraurant to make a living like any oversea chinese do. Some of the examples in Malaysia are like Coliseum Restraurant, The Ship Restraurant or Eden Restraurant. Hainanese style western food tends to marinate the meat to give it more flavor compare with the original meat taste you have in Chilli’s.
- US T-Bone Steak
Enough of of history telling, my Christmas wish are… criminal down, economy up and world peace!! 
Today is Christmas Eve and I still have not plan where to hangout yet, probably this is a sign of getting old 
Today literally will be my last working day for 2008, I am going to on leave until next year… Yuppie~~! haha, I am very touched that my team is giving me this birthday card even though today is not my birthday. (Due to the fact that my birthday is somewhere after Xmas and I wouldn’t be around).
Thanks guys for your greetings and wish you all Merry X’mas and Happy New Year!!! HoHoHo
Birthday Card 2008
Team Birthday Wish
JAPAN HONDA ASIMO
Honda Asimo
| Creator | Honda’s R&D Wako Fundamental Technical Research Center |
| Materials | Lightweight Materials, Magnesium Alloy Structure |
| Abilities | Run, Walk Smoothly, Climb Stairs, Communicate, Voices and Faces Recognition |
| Power | Rechargeable 51.8V Lithium Ion Battery |
| Operating Time | 1 Hour |
| Cost | USD 1 Million |
CHINA FAMABOT - WU NO.25
China FamaBot - Wu No.25
| Creator | Wu Yulu, A Chinese Farmer Lives In Mawu Village, Near Beijing |
| Materials | Scrap Metal and Other Materials |
| Abilities | Climbing Walls, Serving Water, Lighting Cigarettes, Playing Musical Instruments and Writing Calligraphy; Carry Rickshaw |
| Power | Rechargeable Car Battery |
| Operating Time | 6 hours |
| Cost | USD 1 Thousand |
China is always good at coming out products with dirt-cheap price but surprisingly superb features. Robot that climbs walls, writes calligraphy, carries rickshaw with 6 hours operating time only cost USD 1,000… can you imagine that?!! 
Got warranty? =.=”
Once in a quarter, my company will have a fire drill practice. The purpose is to time how long it takes to evacuate all the staffs in the building to the assembly point safely. The company doesn’t do it just for fun, but it’s an obligation for any high rise buildings to have such practice.
Fortunately, I’ve been assigned as my floor fire warden to safe lives for the passed 3 years… Okay, I’ve gone through all the fire training and know how to handle fire hose and fire extinguisher. I am also a first aider in the floor, if there are anyone in my floor having health and safety issue, I am the one they looking for. (Wow, I sound like a hero 
)
Alright, enough of bragging session 
, let’s talk about what had happened . While I was working my ass off for the year end closing just now, the fire alarm suddenly activated! everyone was panic!! No, no, dun get me wrong, they were not panic about whether the fire really happen and will burn them alive; they were just frustrated on the alarm was going to make them walk from up to down - 15 floors from the building… especially office ladies with high-hills. LOL
I lead them to the fire exit and started to walk down from the stairs. Damn.. they were slow as hell and were having their own sweet time to chit chat and complaint. It takes them 20 min to walk down; like they spend average 80 second to walk down from each floor?? I wonder if there’s real fire incident happened, how many of those fellas who don’t take things seriously will become roasted chicken.
Ok, we’ve reached the assembly point at Pavilion; another headache for me to take attendance because there are almost hundred staffs working in my floor alone!!
The Team Gathered At The Assembly PointHanging Around While Waiting Their Name To Be Called
Ready A Big Team In My Floor
Security Guard Was Taking Care For The Traffic Situation
Pavilion Janitor Wondered How To Clean-Up The Aftermath
At least no one is hurt/missing during the fire drill. I considered this session is PASSED .
We’ve been hearing various ways to quit bad smoking habit all these while. Lately, I heard there is an acupuncture way to help people quit smoke and it costs around RM 180. If this really works, compare with what it costs, it will help smokers save hell lots of money from buying ciggeretes in a long run.
I have no idea how and where they poke and make you wanna throw out whenever and smell or smoke a ciggerete. I was quite surprise and would like to find out wheter it works. I immedialy googled to find out more about quit smoking, and guess what? I found even a shocking way to quit smoking, to Beat em’ up!!
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - Relatives beat a Malaysian couple to death in a ritual apparently meant to help the man to stop smoking, police said Friday.
The couple died of head injuries after being beaten with broomsticks and motorbike helmets during a family gathering at a Kuala Lumpur home Wednesday, said Ku Chin Wah, head of the city’s crime investigations department.
One of the couple’s sons and three other relatives remain in custody. Four other detained family members have been released, Ku said.
According to those detained, a nephew suggested the beating ritual after the man said he could not stop smoking and the woman complained of a liver ailment, Ku said.
Reports: Nephew convinced relatives to beat each other
It is not clear who was responsible for the deaths, but local media reported that the nephew convinced all the members of the Muslim family to beat each other.The couple’s 15-year-old niece, also injured in the beating ritual, has been hospitalized, Ku said. Several others, including the couple’s children, who are 14, 19 and 21 years old, also suffered injuries.
Police are still investigating the case. Local media reported the families are believed to have joined a cult recently, but that could not be immediately confirmed.
Source from msnbc
I got this shocking news from msnbc and it happened in Malaysia!! However, I don’t remember seeing this news in local newspaper. I still dunno how true is it… but it’s insane!!
However, the couple eventually quited smoking… in a real bad way =.=”
Follow up from my previous post on Divide & Conquer. Let me shares with you the characteristic of different ESAU performer and how I deal with them: -
E Performers
E performers are the backbones of my sales team which contribute highest revenue to the business. Their characteristic are independent, experienced, skilful, highly motivate and aggressive.
I need to cultivate as much E performer as possible in order to build a strong sales team to keep my business growing.
I need to maintain their performance by constantly listen to their suggestions and provide supports. On top of that, since they had already mastered their selling skills; they might look for career growth and promotion in order to learn new things. I will provide them leadership and management training and start identify them for a promotion.
S/A Performers
These are the sales staffs that are meeting their target and I consider them as decent, but still have room to stretch. The reasons they are still yet to be high achiever could be either due to complacency or need additional support from management in order for them to achieve greater.
To manage the S/A Performer, I require to stretch their ability by challenge them higher sales target with additional tactical rewards. Sharing session with E performers to learn the best practice from them and inherit skills from them.
Rookies
They are new joiners who join the company from vintage < 3 months; proper training and focus are require on them. They might turn into E, S/A or U performer depend on the how much knowledge and skills they learned during the training. Pairing them with the right mentor is extremely important. Follow up session to review on the learning progress should do frequently.
U Performers
This pool of staffs is the staffs who needs help from the management. They are underperforms and might cause losses in the organization. How am I going to help / get rid of them?
An individual who unable to perform their task basically due to 2 reasons: - Lack of Knowledge or Lack of Focus.
Lack of Knowledge
Before I jump into any conclusion, is the management responsibility to make sure each of the staffs is well-trained in order to handle their task i.e. achieving target.
As a manager, I need to understand the staffs concern and identify their weakness.
Refresher training should be conducted frequently to assess on their skills and knowledge to make sure they are fit for job.
Lack of Focus
After proper training had been conducted but still yet to see any improvement from the staffs, I will presume the staffs is lack of focus on their job. I will provide counselling session to the staffs to set my expectation, understand to concern and difficulties and demand the staff for improvement. If the staff still does not see any expected improvement, I will move the staff to somewhere they think could have focus more.
ESAU flow chart shows how it moves up or Moves Out a sales folk
I Just reviewed my 2008 resulotion and to check how much had I achieved. It seems like things just did not go smoothly this year. I only achieved 40% my goals which is real bad. Let’s have a look on my report card for year 2008 :-
Goals that I set and achieved
- Achieved yearly sales target
- Get tenant for my House (Now I gotta think of a way how to get rid of them :( )
- To improve my golf driver (almost there and still need more improvement)
Goals that I could not achieve
- Change my car
- Achieve my total asset (the share market causing me headache)
- Career advancement (while I think I am kinda confortable for what I am having right now )
- Achieve my cashflow
Damn… It seems like I did not manage my portfolio prudently and making a loss. I blame myself for the mistake, because I was a little bit slack off and loss focus on my goals. Next year resolution will be focusing back to manage cash flow and build assets. No more fun
