I started my day munching on the McDonald’s Breakfast Value Meal (NO CHEESE!), while I waited patiently, as I always “DO”, in the morning for Windows Vista to crawl to a start and Office Outlook to drag itself out of slumber.

Today was my colleague, Val, final day at work. She was going to pursue her dreams in film, acting and production. You can support her at the following places:

http://www.xinhuival.blogspot.com/

http://sites.google.com/site/xinhuival/

The day went on as usual, it rained heavily, so heavily that even though I could not see the outside from within the office, I felt the gloom. Went home after work to rest and chill … it is chilly tonight.

I had gotten a loaf of Delifrance Baguette to eat with my soup for dinner, but the bread was disappointingly hard and dry. I believe it was the bread being left in the air-con for too long. I had experienced this once before, but apparently, I had not learnt my lesson and hear I am … chewing on tough bread again.

Rather breaking news today, as China completed its National People’s Congress, Wen Jiabao made a comment:

“To be honest, I am a little bit worried and I would like to… call on the United States to honour its word and remain a credible nation and ensure the safety of Chinese assets.”

This is an alarming issue, as the vast reserves that China has are largely in US Treasury Bonds. Should the US economy collapse, China would be greatly hurt as well. It has become such a delicate situation, because if China starts de-investing the US dollar, it will trigger a worldwide mayhem with all other countries wishing to sell of their US currency.

Economy does not look anywhere near recovery. Many people are worried. What is your view on this? Are you?

2. Divergence

3. A Compelling Tagline

It’s as simple as 1, 2, 3 …
Now, why can’t I quickly whip it all up like a, b, c?

Tags: blueocean strategy, strategy, marketing, business

Stumbled across 2 sites yesterday after I read an article at BusinessWeek. (Article) The 2 sites is for people who have or are trying to begin working away from a fixed stationary office. The 2 sites are affiliated and provide similar advice on how to break free from the shackles that bind you to the office.

Yet, they also stated in plain terms that if your job requires a physical presence in the office such as a surgeon or you ran your own cafe and have to open your shop daily yourself, think again about roaming the world while you work. It ain’t going to work. Similarly, as a fresh graduate with credibility, no customer base and/or no reputation, it would also be extremely difficult to do so.

Certain skills comes in very handy should you really want to circumvent the globe while you work. One of which is web design, the others could be consulting work (those that do not involve too much face time) and maybe even training (you could train all over the world).

For now, it’s still back to the office and “doing your time” as everyone else.

We had the priviledge of having with us Ms Virginia Cha (or does she like Professor Virginia?!) as introduced before as our teacher as well as bosses to some of us to be with us to share her story. Her life story about how it all began and where it went. She was, as usual, dynamic and energetic, captivating the crowd. However, I noticed that there were certain people (mainly from the US) that mentioned that her idea of entrepreneur was different. She already had all that $$$ and so could “afford” to do anything she liked. True entrepreneurs are poor people who cannot afford to do anything they like and are always looking for funds. Now, I beg to differ. Being an entrepreneur merely means that you do what you want to do. You create value for yourself and for people around you for a certain reward (monetary or otherwise). It doesn’t matter if you are richer, had better networks. You are an entrepreneur, just by being one. It’s a mindset probably, rather than a state of one’s life. That’s entrepreneur in my sense of things. In fact, that’s also the main reason why I feel there is too much talk about entrepreneurship. Way too much thoughts, philosophies, opinions when being an entrepreneur is really the most personal question that one can ask oneself. Are you up for the challenge? Give up whatever you have or might have for something that you hope will satisfy you both physically (materially) and spiritually (emotionally)?

Anyhow, one of Virginia’s advice for most people is that go get a job somewhere, establish a network, build some contacts base, get to know the industry more and if you still have that passion within you, go for it then. It’s not the way that fits all, but it’s a way I think will work for most. I, myself, would take that path. As a fresh graduate, I would really want to get a job in a company where I can learn about the industry, about best practises, about standards, about competitions, about everything, and afterwhich with a broader contact base cast myself into the ocean and try it for myself. Probably many lines that I am interested to go into, but the final aim … (I’m not shy to talk about it) … it’s to have a whole group of restaurants. i.e. Tung Luk Group. But that’s for the distant future.

For now, its focus on getting my first step into the “corporate” (fish eat fish) world where I can accumulate “wealth” and experience. Bring it on!!! (Bring me to SH, someone?! … anyone?!) (“,)

So … I was in this Homecoming and what did I take away … Virginia’s talk was the same the night before, so I shan’t repeat all the key points, but another talk was interesting and that was from Yuping. In fact, that was 1 talk which everyone was actually paying attention (besides the talk by Prof Teo and Virginia). She talked about her company World Indigo and how she has managed thus far. Her slides were simple, her message was simple but her sincerity was great. When she talked, she felt so earnest … I think everyone just stop all their chatter and listened. She really is a strong lady who has come through it all doing quite alright, and I do wish her all the best in her venture and her job as well.

Through all the talks and sharings that day, one things stood out from me. I’m just not sure enough of myself. Why I say that? I’m not sure enough of what I am good at to figure out what I really want to do in life. This is kind of like a “catch 22″ cos’ if I can’t figure out what I am good at, how would I decide what job I want. Then, on the other hand, if I can’t get a job yet how would I know I am not good at it. Duh!!! So, I feel so inexperienced, but then that’s cos’ I am fresh from college (or would be fresh) and eagerly seek worldly experience. I also recently talked to my bro and realized that what we do know is all we can really make decisions upon. What we do not know makes it impossible to decide what good for us. (Anyway, just like to point out that my bro knows quite a numbe rof people who gets “insane” amounts of money for being high up in the company and for doing nothing. Really! Well, there also those that do Strategic planning and gets, also, “insane” amounts of money. BUT, they all started out somewhere … the bottom and slowly accumulated enough experience or could have talked their way up there … whatever!) So, I can’t say I have a clear direction of where I am headed yet, but, trust me, I am definitely moving forward … I am moving!

and finally, we had dinner … it was at the roof top terrace and we had BBQ food with professional cooks to BBQ the food for us. TGFT. Food was good. What started out as an “innocent” jar of Tiger beer (bought by Huiling) later turned into 4 more jars courtesy of Virginia. It felt like Shanghai again! With the overwhelming amount of food, the beer and the loud chatter. Strangely, the Shanghai batch took the table right at the corner, furthest from the food, and furthest from everyone else. (maybe it was because I gravitated towards the open space there from the beginning, or was it a deliberate attempt to be away from the “maddening crowd” … oops!!!)

Once again, thanks to Virginia for sharing more “interesting” stories … like the Yao Wu Bar … the paying for “you know what” … and etc … as usual … eye opener!

… and so the dinner ended … everyone was sooo tired … it’s age creeping up on us much faster than we like it … and here I am back home jotting all these down before I begin to snooze as my eye lids begin to droop.

Nites, everyone (pleasant dreams)!

Virginia was our lecturer for NVC (new venture creation) as well as the bosses of some of the NOC Shanghai interns. She’s a great lady. Very dynamic and has lots of passion for what she does.

She shared her story in a 1 hour session this evening at a tutorial room in NUs which was overflowing with people looking to learn about entrepreneurship, Shanghai and just how to earn $$$.

A few pointers she gave to the students as she gave a recount of her life story, including the jobs she had taken on before, her current work and her future plans were:

Entrepreneurs never fail, they just ran out of money.
So, as an entrepreneur, plan your cash flow very well and ensure that you have enough money to keep on going, cos’ there really isn’t a bad idea. If one is really passionate about what one does, nothing can stop it from being a success (except of course a lack of money).

Learn to avoid paying taxes LEAGALLY.
If possible, don’t pay taxes, but how can that be?! Well, jut try to pay as little as legally possible. You don’t really want all your hard earned money going to some one else or some “organization” for that matters. This is a tricky issue, cos’ it’s damn difficult to achieve.

Don’t turn away money.
Now, if money comes knocking on the door and it doesn’t really take too much of your time and you are not sidetracked too much, go for it. Earn that extra cash and it will help in your substenance.

Be bold, be daring and be gutsy!
If something is not working out right, be bold enough to turn it around. Do a blue ocean strategy.

Be assertive.
Learn when to assert yourself as an entrepreneur. You have to be firm with your partners and know exactly what is it you want out of the venture. That’s also the best advice for anyone afraid of being taken advantage. Stand up for what you think you are worth.

… … and I forgot any other pointers.
Whoever was present and wants to supplement, can do so in the comments.

Welcome back to Singapore, Virginia.

It was a great dinner at the “not so great” restaurant. Good to meet up with some people I have not seen for sooooo long!!! (“,)

and once again … Have a great weekend!!!

The main reasons why people do not like networking include:

- Shyness
- Introversion
- Being uncomfortable talking to strangers

BUT … there is hope!

Chances are that we are good listeners. Therefore, we should play to our strengths and let the other person do the talking, while we do what we do best – listen.

Here are 5 questions to get the other party going on and on:

- What kind of work do you do?
- How did you get into that field?
- What do you like most about it?
- What do you find most challenging?
- What would make your job easier?
- What are the big challenges facing your company in the next two years?
Probably, (most hopefully), the more they talk the more they will think how terrific you are and tada … you got the “low-down” on networking.

Happy(?!) Networking, people!

Let’s take General Motors as an example who is ranked 3rd in this years Fortune 500. In the year 2005, it had made a $10 billion loss compared to 2004. This wasn’t the only year that it had made a loss. In fact, the company had been struggling for over a decade financially. Only in the recent past have we been taking note that General Motors have finally decided to clean up its act, by closing manufacturing plants, down sizing her labour size, making her manufacturing more efficient, selling off unprofitable non-core business, and developing new products and marketing strategies. Its a little step too late, but nonetheless a step that could possibly allow it to continue at least for a time being.

Yet another example would be Ford which is ranked 5th on the Fortune 500. Similar to General Motors, it had not capitalized on her global markets effectively and allowed the cheaper alternatives from Asia, such as Toyota, Honda, to overtake them even in their own domestic market.

So, my question:

How do these HUGE companies that made HUGE losses stay among the Top rankings of the Fortune 500?

Someone, please enlighten me.

Some general tips for a networking session.

1. Start the greeting with a “Good Afternoon” or “Good evening”. “Hi” or “Hello” are considered informal and not appropriate at formal settings.

2. Always introduce yourself using your full name. i.e. Good afternoon, my name is Edwin Ting. (not simply Edwin). Always include your given name and your family name. Never put a Mr. or Ms in front of your name as it implies superiority which is a big no no for Asian culture.

3. Only shake hands after the greeting. It usually happens after both parties have introduced their names and not both party are about to say: Nice to meet you. That would be the cue to shake hands.

4. Shake a firm handshake. Never shake with sweaty palms. Hold a handkerchief in your other hand and dab on it occasionally to dry your hands. You never want to be caught in a situation when you have to shake a hand and you start rubbing it all over your pants.

5. Guys should take their name cards out from their shirt pocket. Ladies out of the purse. Never take it out from below the waist level. Its considered rude. Ladies, lift your purse up to above the waist then take out the card holder, which was placed at a location readily accessible.

6. As usual use 2 hands to give the name card with words facing the receiver.

7. Guys stand on 2 feet and not 1. Roughly shoulders width apart and hands by your side or at the back. Do not put your hands fingers crossed right in front of the crotch area. Ladies stand with poise, possibly 1 leg in front of the other aka model, or just stand on 2 feet with knees and legs close to each other.

8. Stand at arms length from the person. We do not want to invade other people’s personal space.

A little on interview tips.

1. Knock on the door (if its close) before you enter the interview room.

2. Enter the room and close the door without turning your back towards the panel of interviewees.

3. Either stand there and make an introduction then walk up to the chair OR walk up to your chair and introduce yourself. Pick one that suits your style and something that will show your confidence.

4. Never sit down till the interviewer invites you to. Sit down without breaking eye contact with the interviewer.

5. Don’t fidget!

6. Rest your hands on your tighs as that will be the position that prevent you from fidgetting too much.

7. Always make eye contact.

8. When leaving, walk to the door, BUT when you walk out of the room, face the interviewers and walk out. Do not walk out with your back towards them.

What is an appropriate formal attire?

Guys:
1. Suits should be matching with pants. i.e. colour, shade, materials should all be matching for it to be considered formal.

2. Tie should be of a lighter colour than pants.

3. Colour of the belt should be the same as the shoe

4. Colour of socks should be the same as the shoe

5. Never half more than 5 accessories (ear rings, watch, cuff links, tie clips, etc.)

6. Clean finger nails (and no long ones)

Ladies:
1. Wear covered shoes. (or at least court shoe type of styles)

2. Wear a decent blouse under a jacket suit. In case there are reasons to take off the jacket.

3. never have more than 8 accessories (ear rings, necklace, etc)

4. Use colour appropriately.

5. Fingernails should not be more than 1 cm. Colouring is ok, as long as its not chipped.

6. stockings are necessary anymore.

Hmm … a lot more pointers, but as I wasn’t paying so close attention to ladies stuff, I think I left out a number of stuff.

Perhaps ladies who were there can add on??!?!

And so, for an unproductive day, I learnt a lot.!

Since that session took up 2 of my tutorials, I went to find my CS3230 professor after 4 pm to discuss the tutorial. He gave me a personal session in his office. (“,) Not bad, I think I got the materials covered. Afterall, I was the only want he was talking to. He even programmed right on the spot to let me see certain examples … hahaha … ok .. he is a good lecturer!

I really picking at every means. Everybody I know, Everybody I do not know, I link and link and link to find some connection to the companies that I might have interest in. Its not all about the money. Its about being able to do what I want to do, being able to go places, being able to develop with the company, being able to grow intellectually, being able to advance in the company. These are all the factors that I consider when I even evaluate if I want to try for a particular company. Ask me about the renumeration package and I say, “Its negotiable, both ways.” See, I’m open!

If nothing, I got something out of this afternoon’s Graduates’ Tea. I got a name and I hope it leads me somewhere.

Unlike that other something. I thought I knew where it was going, then once again I am not too sure. I’m taking a Signals Course (oh my!), why can’t I just see a sign (or signal) that will lead me in the right direction. (That’s for failing the Signals Mid-Term.) Maybe, just maybe, I might stumble or fumble into whatever it is, like everything else that I do, then I wouldn’t need to bother that much.

HYP – I finally started on my Project Plan. I am overwhelmed by how I should go about that plan. Hmm … Apply project management 101 … I’m sure I can make this happen. This ain’t the first Software Development Plan that I am doing.

These are definitely the moments in NUS that I will remember for the rest of my life.