1 January 2010

First and foremost, thank you to all that have been following closely to this blog.

I will reveal the overall poll results for the year 2009 at the end of the post.

Welcome to the year of 2010 !

There will be a myriad of changes coming your way this 2010 on my blog.

Let's begin to take a dive into the changes that I'm going to make to this blog then shall we ?

You will be able to read about stuff that's beneath the surface now.

For instance, about the cookouts and gatherings.

Evolutions of relationships will be updated on this blog, that includes friendships.

Inextricable, nonplus gossips and drama will be blogged about too.

The one with the red specs gossip alot!

When I'm having trouble and facing difficulties, I will rant a little about it here.

I forsee that it will be an arduous journey ahead coupled with many acrimonious debates at Nanyang Technological University, Faculty of Business next year, so stay tuned!

I will continue to scrutinize the various happenings and news all around me, on a local scale, national scale and of course on the international scale.

When I soar into the sky, I will congratulate myself and update about my incandescent results here!

My flying experiences will be pinned down here.

The various fighting between friends will be gossiped here as well!

Here it goes.

80% thinks the length of the posts are alright.

17% thinks it's too long.

72% thinks the content and image are refreshing and informative.

27% thinks the content and image are NOT refreshing and information. (I'm pretty sad to hear this because I really try to source for prominent pictures that are colourful and I try my best to make the posts interesting)

31% prefer me to blog about business news and entertainment news.

68% prefer me to blog about my personal life

All I have to say is that 2010 will be an enticing year that I looked forward to fervently. After I become Operationally Ready on 8 February 2010, all hell will break loose.

So, sit tight and hold onto to your seat as I will bring you on a ride of your lifetime, to the land of HORROR, HUMOUR, FUN and EMOTIONS !!!!!

Credits -NationalGeographic

Gold Rebounce

Gold for December delivery rose $5.30, or 0.5%, to end at $1,125.70 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.


The dollar and commodities prices have had a strong inverse relation in recent trading, with a stronger dollar pushing down gold and oil prices in the past few days.

Now that the gold has fallen by about $100, it is time to buy again guys. Invest when others are afraid, that is the most palpable rule of Warren Buffett.

When people sell because gold prices plummeted, it is a hint for you to buy like no one's business.

Gold being a commodity will be a precious long-lasting investment to hold on to, it is touted as one of the best investment in the commodity market.

Credit -marketwatch, -goldpricetrend

A.G. Lafley

A.G. Lafley will be leaving the executive board altogether in January 2010 because he can see that Robert Mcdonald is dealing with all the key strategies and core plans well, in fact better than expected.

A.G. Lafley is one of the best CEO is the entire world. He has revolutionize P&G, translating it into a company full of innovations when it was once thought as merely a cheap commodity store. It has made a plethora of audacious business deals along with an absolute focus on the consumers.

A 79 billion dollars company, P&G offers consumer goods, ranging from beauty care, healthcare to health and well-being. Definitely a lucrative market but at the same time, there are a myriad of competitors all over the place. Having to stay at the top of the game is definitely more arduous than anyone can possibly imagine.

But, A.G. Lafley has made that happen and he has successfully make known the brand P&G internationally. That seriously requires a hell-load of marketing efforts and sustainability to keep the brand alive. The fact that it is not only known but recognised and acknowledged as a key brand that satisfies consumers consistently is definitely commendable.

All these marketing, innovations, sustainability, recognition and revenues are all credited to A.G. Lafley, the legendary CEO that the world is lucky to have.

All the best to you A.G. Lafley, may your legacy live on forever!




Credits -cnn, -hamilton

Avatar Evaluation Part 3/3

The last interesting point I noted was when Jake had to tame this king of all flying beasts, known as the Toruk. Jake remembers that Neytiri told him that only five na'vi had ever tamed the Toruk, an immense and powerful flying beast.

His strategy was rather intriguing. He mentioned that he should tame it by attacking it from the top because he believes that nothing will attack it so why will it look up?



This palpably reminds me of the top management executives in the corporate company. At times, the top management becomes so complacent and sordid because they think that they are among the highest ranking executives in the entire company. They continue to lower their defense and extend their vulnerability as compared to their past positions. This is because they know that everyone will acquiesce to authority at the end of the day and they can simply fire those recalcitrant. That is so typical when someone climbs up to the highest positions.

However, what they do not realize is that each and everyone of the employee is actually blessed with an insurmountable amount of authority that is not clear to them. When the employees discover their Achilles’ Heel, they can simply attack it and the top management executives will easily go down because of their indolent demeanor. When they start to slack off, it will be flagrant to their subordinates and it won’t be long before they step down from their positions.

Point being, never be blinded by power and fame. No matter how high you are up the corporate ladder, always remember to look back at the hard work you put in before you got to where you are now. Never forget the people who lifted you. As the old adage goes, “they can make you and similarly, they can break you as well.”

Credits -nocookie, -kogtraveler, -meetschmitt

Avatar Evaluation Part 2/3

There was this part in the movie whereby Jake has to find his own flying beast at their nest. There is only one flying beast out there that will resonate with Jake and the salient distinguishing factor is that the chosen flying beast will actually try to kill Jake while the others will simply fly away from Jake.

I thought this an intriguing point. Your compatible mate is actually the one that will try to kill you. But, if you can successfully connect with it, it will obey you and be extremely loyal to you too.



This somehow reminds me of our very own breakthrough opportunities in business. At the end of the day, if we want to receive many encomiums over our spectacular performance, we have to step out of our comfort zone and start taking precarious moves; moves that allow us to stand out as winning individuals, to blow everyone away.

Although the stepping out of our comfort zone is not necessarily life and death, it actually makes a life-changing difference. If you succeed, you will gain eternal glory but if you falter, you will suffer deep setbacks and criticisms from people around.



The question is, how willing are we to take such risks? Not very willing isn’t it? On hindsight, how often have you executed the change that you promise yourself? Does it ultimately lead to procrastination and eventually to obscurity? That’s probably because we all know that the gargantuan opportunity might seem enticing but it will also break us if we fail. The fear of failure is something that we must overcome in life in order to shine our own path through.


Credits -photobucket, -theage

Avatar Evaluation Part 1/3

Recently, I have just caught the movie *Avatar 3D in the theatre. I must say that it is an ineffable masterpiece. So many thoughts are constantly running through my mind as I walk through the movie with James Cameron.

As I’m pretty infatuated with the topic of Business, I will discuss this movie from my point of view; based on my own interpretation of it in the context of the corporate world.


As you guys would have already read the synopsis, Avatar is actually a hybrid created by humans to allow humans of matching genes to enter the body of the Avatar via neurons and sensory nervous systems control.

Jake, the ex-marine was tasked to take on the tough job of infiltration after his brother died after years of training for the world, Pandora. Now, it is all up to Jake to take over what his brother has left behind in order to assist the Colonel by providing him with Intelligent information about the Na’vi people.

While Jake is escorting Augustine and biologist Norm Spellman (Joel David Moore) in their avatar forms, the group is attacked by a large predator. Jake becomes separated from the others and tries to survive Pandora's dangerous wildlife, before he is rescued by Neytiri (Zoë Saldaña), a female na'vi. Jake is taken back to Hometree, which Neytiri's clan, the Omaticaya, inhabit and they decide to teach Jake their ways.


Bearing in mind that this is a huge move made by the Na’vis considering that they are misanthropic in the first place.

Jake had to learn their language, sign languages and movement style. He had to understand the demeanor of the creatures living in Pandora, for instance, never to look into the eyes of the flying beast. He had to learn to ride the huge dinosaurs by communicating with them using his heart, soul and feelings.


Their thoughts and heart must resonate with one another before he can gain full control of the beasts.

In this context, I believe that it is similar to the corporate world. Whenever you enter a new company, they each have their own Sui Generis way of life. The way they handle productions, creativity, marketing, and sales are different from one another. To understand how they actually operates the tools that are provided to them, you have to first observe and learn. Afterwhich, it is time for the nonplus practical lessons when you actually try to sell the products or even design the products yourself. But, in order to make sure that what you design is coherent with the system of the company, you must have understood exactly the corporate culture first.


As the characters in the movie say, “See the forest from her eyes. It isn’t about what you see or hear. Learn fast or die.”

You will have to look at the company from the perspectives of those who have been working with the company for a long period of time. It is definitely more than what you see or hear. You must experience it for yourself. On the ostensible front, it might seem all too generic and simplified but that’s simply because the professionals are already so adroit in the manipulation of the systems.

They can wrench the system around swiftly without having any trouble at all. Conversely, when you try, you will encounter many perplexing problems that will put you at an impasse at times. Ultimately, you will have to pick up the ropes by yourself. Assimilate what they taught you and then emulate it as far as possible, concomitant with your own strengths and aptitude.


Only then will you bring the company, a new source of inspiration that is aligned with their corporate culture. Otherwise, you will actually be going against what the company is trying to achieve and by doing so, you are not understanding the culture per se at all.

Credits -wikipedia, -dvice, -moviecarpet, -christophersmark, -reelmovienews, -usversusthem, -nasa