Today’s schedule was hectic. Attended my classmates’ wedding and then gone out for dinner with family as we celebrate Dad’s birthday.
We went to Sambo Kojin, a Japanese All-You-Can-Eat yakiniku restaurant…
While we are dining, we put Dad on a hot seat by asking him some questions. Not just because he’s my Dad, but I find him as a man of wisdom. That’s why his views and opinions influences me a lot.
Out of my curiosity, and perhaps also a bit concerned, I asked him: What would he do if ever we (his children) grew up the wrong way. One of us became a drug addict, drop out, thief, smuggler, alcoholic, etc….
He simply answered: I’ll pack my stuffs and migrate to another country.
*
Perhaps it is easier to separate yourself from your children than to see them grow on the wrong path.
How about you? What are your options if your child/children grew up that way?
**Happy Birthday Dad! I know you do not want me to put your age, so I won’t tell them that you’re 55.
In college, I was on the brink of failing a subject because my professor did not allow me to take the mid-term exam. It was a disciplinary action for accumulating too many lates on his class. On the examination day, I tried my luck and spoke with my professor. Saying I should take the exam because I might fail if I didn’t; and that my parents are going to kill me if I fail; and I do not want to fail because I never failed on any subjects before…
He looked me in the eye and said, “There is always a first time Jed.” and walked away.
Well, at that moment, I thought failing a subject was something new. The fear was new. The amount of pressure to work harder was new. If I ever fail…that would be my first time. That would be all “New” to me.
Whether we like it or not, my prof has made a point. There will always be a first time to all of us. “NEW” is a part of our life. Change is inevitable.
We are now in another new year. We will experience new challenges, new failures, new success, new lessons, new goals, new cars, new house, new work, new pains, new joy, new career, new business ..whatever new it is, good or bad, don’t be afraid to embrace it. Because these are the things that makes a New YOU.
Happy New Year!
P.S.
Credits to Mr. Acuña – My favorite professor of all time!
And thanks to God, I managed to pass the subject even though I failed to take the exam. It was a “new” level of hard work.
I never thought that typhoon Sendong, or internationally known as Washi, was this serious until I saw it on YouTube and Twitter. Literally thousands died and still many more are missing. Truly this is another tragedy the Philippines faced after Ondoy and Pedring.
We Filipinos are known to be strong and unyielding. This is so because we know how to help each other hand in hand. We have the courage to step out of our comfort zone for the welfare of our fellow countrymen.
Now we are called to take our fair share of help for our brothers and sisters in Mindanao, as our unity is again being tested.
I donated all of my earnings from this blog to The Philippine Red Cross for the relief of the typhoon Sendong victims. What I have given may not be great, but I am happy that I was able to help in a way. I am hoping that somehow someway this action may also light up giving hearts that could extend more help in Mindanao.
It is so easy to help. Here’s how:
DONATE TO PHILIPPINE RED CROSS
Donate Through Paypal
Cash and Check Donations
Please send cash or check donations to the PRC National Headquarters in Manila. Checks should be made payable to The Philippine Red Cross. We can also arrange for donation pick-up.
We now accept cash donations for the Philippine Red Cross at any 7-11 store or Cebuana Lhuillier Pawnshop nationwide.
Bank Deposit
Banco De Oro Peso: 00-453-0018647
Dollar: 10-453-0039482
Philippine National Bank Peso: 3752 8350 0034
Dollar: 3752 8350 0042
Unionbank of the Philippines Peso: 1015 4000 0201
Dollar: 1315 4000 0090
All Check/Cash for the account of Philippine Red Cross (Swift Codes)
Banco De Oro BNORPHMM
Bank of the Philippine Islands BOPIPHMM
Metrobank MBTCPHMM
Philippine National Bank
-PNBMPHMM
Unionbank of the Philippines -UNPHPHMM
For your donations to be properly acknowledged, please fax the bank transaction slip at nos. +63.2.527.0575 or +63.2.404.0979 with your name, address and contact number.
SMS and G-Cash
SMS
Text RED<space>AMOUNT to 2899 (Globe) or 4143 (Smart)
G-Cash
Text DONATEAMOUNT4-digit M-PINREDCROSS to 2882
You can donate the following denominations: Globe: 5, 25, 100, 300, 500 or 1000 Smart: 10, 25, 50, 100, 300, 500 or 1000
Month end report must be prepared in order for you to see how well your company performed this month; to prepare for the coming month.
Take advantage of the Holidays
Do your assignments. Be sure to take advantage of the coming holidays the month will bring.
Ex. Christmas Bazaars, Back to School Sale, Valentines Sales, Etc.
Break Records
Using your month end report as basis, start the month right by setting a goal to break your previous month’s record. Keep your team psyched up by motivating them and giving a clear picture of what you want to achieve. You can give rewards if goal is reached.
Learn and Move on
Though failure is not an option, lesson is inevitable. Be sure to stay positive if life tries to teach you a lesson. Just learn and move on.
Every Month have Different Approach
There are no “one size fits all approach.” Every month should be attacked with different strategies. There’s a certain thing called as lean and peak season. In our tourist bus company, the peak season is from September to December, and March to May. We are more or less fully booked on those months. Our lean season is from June to August, so maintenance is more often done on those times.
For Chinese, August is considered as Ghost Month. It is said that it’s bad luck to buy things on August that’s why most business goes lean during that month.
If you are not using a calendar, then start using one. I recommend using Gcal or iCal on your devices. Easy access to your calendar is important.
2. Determine what day your week starts and take note of important dates.
If your week starts on Friday, then take a moment every Thursdays to put important dates on your calendar. (What day is your presentation, when are is your family reunion, etc.)
3. Separate the recurring event from special events.
Recurring events are events that happen every week. Like going to church or working out in the gym. Special events, otherwise, are events that happen occasionally. (E.g. Family reunion, birthday parties etc.)
**Pay extra attention to special events.**
4. Stick with your plan.
If you are happy with your schedule for the week, then you must stick with it. If anything should be added along the week, add it to your free time. (if possible)
Optional: Have a spare time.
As a car always have a spare tire, blocking one of your day as spare time can be beneficial to you in many ways.
I hope you find these tips helpful. Please feel free to add your tips on the comments section.
The future belongs to those who prepare for it today.
We all only have 24 hours a day, and sometimes the difference between success and failure lies thinly on how effective you spend your day. In my current position as a general manager and part-time entrepreneur, 8 to 12 hours of work seems like not enough to carry out all my day’s tasks. I have tried to restructure my daily routine ever since.
I read tips from various articles online and practiced which one works for me. I have formulated a simple routine, that I am using for the past 3 weeks, which gave me better productivity.
1. Before going to bed, Ponder on important tasks that will be accomplished the next day.
By doing so, it will align your mind with your tasks and will greatly help you be more organized the next day. Being organized saves you a lot of time.
2. Divide your day in 2 halves. First half, with routine. Second half, free-for-all.
I usually have my routinary work when I got to the office until lunch time. After lunch I spend the rest of the day: spreading the word about my products, getting involve in trainings, developing our website, meetings, planning and conceptualizing, etc. Basically it depends on my mood, whichever I enjoy doing.
3. Accomplish everything in Bursts. Avoid multi-tasking.
Give pure 10 to 15 minutes in every task. If you’re checking your emails, then just check your mails. Do not invite another task that may intervene with the current one. This way, you are clear about your task’s progress.
The first thing I do when I arrive my office is to check and reply emails. Then open our company’s Chatter to get updated with what happened yesterday and if there are any pending tasks. Then go to our company’s Facebook or Twitter to see if there are any queries. After accomplishing all those online stuffs, I then go ahead to offline matters. It starts by checking out my incoming documents that is needed for review and signature.
After accomplishing those, the number 4 item is what I do next:
4. Delegate.
There are corresponding responsibilities for every department in the company. Be sure to delegate those tasks that are applicable to the department. This not only workout the company’s system, but it also helps you proceed to the next task.
5. Pray.
No matter how good and organized a routine is, your day may be ruined by a single unexpected problem. Be sure to always backup your plans with a prayer.
How about you? How do you make your day effective? Share!
Studies shows that being workaholic causes stress; and stress causes various physical illness that can sometimes be serious. Thus Japanese call this “Karoshi” which translates to “Death from Overwork.” Reflecting to an incident on 2006 when 355 Japanese workers fell ill, or simply dropped dead, because of heart attacks and stroke due to the stress of working for Japanese corporations.
Some people might think that being workaholic is as good as being a responsible person who can earn the ticket be part of the 10 Riches Dropouts on Earth. But the truth is workaholics is not far from an obese person with the passion to eat, but irresponsible enough to not take care of their bodies.
In any case, let’s continue on this topic on a separate post as this is about my Top 10 Xbox Games played so far. If you’re a workaholic and wish to get rid of it, you may want to visit How to Get Rid of Workaholism.
*
Since I bought my Xbox 360 last February, I only had finished Ten games as to date. The reason was I too became very attached to my work and slowly becoming part of the gang of workaholics. Thankfully my Xbox 360 helped me a lot to manage that and started regular playing last June.
I arranged these titles according to how I enjoyed them. Enjoy!
**
