The Lion King 2 - We Are One (English)

We are one - 1 Malaysia concept the brainchild of the Prime Minister. It was announced in his maiden speech when he was sworn in as Prime Minister.

There are two key elements in One Malaysia concept namely mutual respect and thrust among the different ethnic races in Malaysia. One Malaysia , People First and Performance Now is a continuous effort to unite Malaysia as one nation with no differences in religion, race and creed. The concept is based on positive values centred on social justice and acceptance of a multiracial society.

Malaysia has to strive as one nation and a nation disunited is doomed to fail in this fast forwarding economy. We must lift the spirit of tolerance and we must teach our children as they are the future leaders in One Malaysia. The needs of the citizens and the nation must take precedence. Malaysia must earn its rightful place on the world place and ready to take on all the challenges that might come its way.

There must be an effort made to work through differences for the betterment of the people. One Malaysia means that this nation is a family and to sink our differences and every Malaysia’s strengths are recognized and tapped. All ethnic groups irrespective of race have the same share of the economy’s pie in One Malaysia. Malaysia is ready to scale new heights once we are One Malaysia for all Malaysians.

No Malaysian should consider himself as a second-class citizen nor feel sidelined in terms of opportunities. Everyone has a role to play no matter how great or small in making One Malaysia a success. Only through focusing on people’s strength and making an effort to identify can this concept of One Malaysia be a success.

Active Learning

Active Listening is not social work. How often do we listen carefully to others? By not listening carefully, we will be making assumptions that others think exactly like we do. Sometimes we tend to interpret things differently. It works like this, to me a `yes' may mean `maybe' but `no' means `never'. But to my friends it may mean differently as my friends view things from a different perspective.

Active listeners give you a sense of being heard. Being properly heard allows you to come to terms with whatever is bothering you and move on, builidng confidence and self esteeem. Hearing and listening is different as hearing may not be taking the issue to heart. Being a good listener encompasses more in that it put you in a powerful position. Active listeners do not judge or form opinions about someone. They just listen to the other person's point of view and make them feel that what they have to say is worth listening. Active listeners are the ones who lend their ears to others. In the nutshell, active listening is a structured way of listening and focusing attention on the speaker.

Something for sharing.

Durian mooncakes

The traditional mooncakes of yesteryears were that of lotus paste. Since then, there are many different types of mooncakes beside lotus paste. We are spoilt for choice selecting mooncakes. However, the snowskin durian mooncakes are something to shout about. The snowskin durian mooncakes have the strong aroma and it melts in the mouth. I have had the priviledge to taste the snowskin durian mooncakes and guess what, it has live to the expectation of being different.

Given an opportunity, you may try out the snowskin durian mooncakes and experience for yourself the strong aroma of durian. As the saying goes, `the taste of the pudding is in its eating' and you have to taste it and be your own judge.

Let us keep the legend alive year after year as we continue to share this joyous occasion of togetherness and abundance as familes reunite under the full moon and enjoyed mooncakes not forgetting the tales of yesteryears.

Something for sharing.

Limit on Credit Cards

In line with BNM's objective to control spending and also to reduce the number of bankruptcy resulting from credit card usage, it will be unveiled in the forthcoming Budget on restricting the number of credit cards issued to individuals. At the same time, the qualifying income will be raised from the existing RM18000.00 per annum to RM24000.00 per annum. It is also learnt that an individual can only own credit cards from two banks of their choice. It is open to debate as to whether there are restrictions on the numbers of credit cards issued to an individual. Is the bank allowed to issue 2 cards to an individual, a Visa and Mastercard? How does owing credit cards from two banks of their choice helps to reduce the number of bankruptcy and control spending?

The move will prevent individuals from holding a string of credit cards. Unlike the yesteryears when a string of credit cards speaks for itself in terms of the financial standing of an individual. However in current situation, holding a string of credit cards means the individual is in heavy debt.

It is increasingly easy for a fresh graduate and the newly employed to own credit cards. However, this group of people does not control their spending resulting in failure to settle credit card debts.

Basically at the end of the day, it all depends on how an individual manages the finances. Do not live beyond your means.

Something for sharing.

Malaysia Day

September 16 has been declared as a holiday in commemorate the establishment of Malaysian Federation. In retrospection, the establishment of Malaysian Federation which comprises of Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak on 16 September 1963 has gone down to the history of Malaysia. Initially there were teething problems resulting in the delay of the formation of Malaysia. Commencing 2010, September 16 is a federal public holiday.

It is not so much the holiday but the historial event behind it that counts. Celebrate Malaysia Day in a Malaysian context.

Well, happy Malaysia Day.

Decision Making

Whether it is in the corporate world or personal life, there are times when we have had to make decision. Decision making is an art and not a science. Right decision making is very crucial as it will make or break it.

On a personal note, there are times when we have to make decisions such as:

Changing employment
We do not know what to anticipate in the new environment. Questions are unanswered such as the adaptability to the new environment, working colleagues and also the chemistry with your immediate supervisor. When we change jobs, we are taking the risk. It can be a change for the better or worse.

Changing employment can be a stepping stone to new challenges and better prospects. By staying on to your current employment, we tend to be complacent and sometimes can be regarded as a deadwood.

Setting up a business venture
If we are venturing into setting up a business venture, we have to consider a lot of factors as we are venturing into unchartered waters. Besides the capital layout, there are other factors to take into account such as location, staffing and many teething problems.

Besides the above two scenerios, there are other situations whereby decision making is called for. Whatever decision we make, we have to respect them.

Something for sharing.

Management

What do you understand by the word `Management'? There are different forms of management such as management by exception, management by walking around and management by leadership etc.

Those in the management team should have set an example for the downlines to follow (ie Management by Leadership). Management personnel should take cue from the management techniques to further improve on human relationships to form a better working team. Sad to say, not all in the Management level know how to effectively and efficiently handle human relationship. There are some who have failed to even effectively coach an employee so that he or she can become competent again but instead have killed their motivation at work. Instead of giving positive feedback, their remarks tend to have a negative impact on the performance and productivity. By giving negative remarks it would demoralize the staff further by having an impression of being ineffective, inefficient and non performing and as a result the productivity is badly affected. Management skills are not easily acquired and those who do not possess it will fail eventually in leading a team.

Something for sharing.