This morning, I attending a funeral and prayer session for my uncle who passed on last night. He was my wife's uncle to be specific. It's the second funeral this month within my extended family. Funerals kind of reminds me of the things I need to do, the legacy I need to leave for my family. The unpredictability of life reminds me of the balance I need to achieve in life.
Early this month, my own uncle died after 6 months of battle with pancreas cancer. Both men has lived good lives. They left behind a loving wife, grown up children and even grandchildren. No, they were no celebrities, but they have achieved great things and both has taught me some of life's lessons;
My own uncle passed on a week before the birth of my second daughter. He was a good man, strong beliefs and quite a disciplinarian. I have never seen him without a smile. He was a retired police officer. I remember seeing him in his uniform and the holstered pistol has always been my focus. I always pictured him in action like those in TJ Hooker series.
He retired from the police force in the early 90s. He was about 45 at that time, I think. Everyone was wondering what he would do next. He did something that no one in the family expected; he started building computers!
We came to his house one day, my cousin invited us to his room to play computer games. In the 90s, computers were still in the early stages. Not everyone can afford one. My dad asked my uncle how much he bought it for. He said he made it himself. He learnt by reading books he borrowed from the library! Since his price was more than reasonable, my dad ordered 2 sets from him. I remembered feeling rich having two computers at home. As word of mouth spread, my uncle had more orders.
As computer progresses, so did he. He made friends with retailers and suppliers, getting them to share their knowledge with him in building computers. I can tell that he was passionate about it. When he visited us, he will run through the computers to make sure things are working fine. I learned the function of 'Disk Defragmenting' from him.
He decided to stop dealing with computers after about 10 years because computers were getting more affordable and it almost didn't make sense to build your own. He joined the security industry. When I heard the news of his pancreas cancer, it was a shock to me. I thought he would be the last person in the family to ever get sick, considering his health consciousness and selective of the foods he eat. My aunt told me stories of how she and my cousins smuggled delicacies when he was out working. Alas, everyone has their time.
As I reflect on how he lived, I learnt the importance of learning. Knowledge is out there, we need to seek it. Be passionate and try different things. No one has to fit into my shoes. It is designed by me for me.
My wife's uncle was another sad story. He was supposed to get an operation done on his leg but doctors said that they could not do it due to his weak heart. Picture this, you need an operation that can save your live but you can't have the operation because of your weak heart. I asked myself if life can get any more stranger. Alas, things happen for a reason. Only HE knows what we know not.
As I reflect on those incident, he taught me the importance of health. One should take care of his body when he can so that his body can take care of him when he can't.
May His Blessings be upon them both...
Wednesday, 30 April 2014
Sunday, 6 April 2014
Hey, you! Yeah, you! If you have READ my blog, you need to READ this.
Good day to everyone. First of all, please do not mind the title of this blog. I just wanted to capture your attention. If you are reading this, then I guess it works. hehe.
I love writing this blog. Why this blog lasted longer than my other previous blogs is simply because training is something close to my heart. And to discover that I have readers from countries like United States, United Kingdom, Pakistan and Australia is mind blowing. Don't get me wrong, I am not one of those top rated bloggers so these are exciting moments for me.
In the past 2-3 months, I was approached by new acquaintances, new friends, fellow trainers and program developers. They told with me that they came across my blog, read my blog etc. I just want to thank you, the readers, for spending a little time to read my entries. From the bottom of my heart, I really, really appreciate it. My only hope is that all the things I wrote here was able to serve you one way or another.
It would be awesome if you, the readers, are able to share some of your ideas related to the entries via the comment section. I think that it will add value, not only to my blog, but to everyone reading it. As you know, my entries are from my own limited experience and I am not very experienced in every aspect of my life.
I don't have much to write about this time around. My wife is expecting, my daughter is having a bad cough and I have a deadline tomorrow.
Once again, to all of you who have read my blog..
Thursday, 3 April 2014
"My new boss used that technique in our meeting yesterday!"
Yesterday, I met up a gentleman from my DIEB (Develop Initiative & Enterprise Behavior) class which ended last week. He works in a logistic company and is already in the early 50s.
One the last few sessions, he asked me about the practicality of those techniques learned during the Employability Skills Module. He said that while techniques are useful, he felt that it is of little use at work. He also brought to my attention that as ground staffs, the opportunities to use those new-found skills can be limited.
I explained to him by using the following phrase "It Is Better To Be Prepared and Not Have An Opportunity, than Having an Opportunity and Not Being Prepared". The thing is we can never know what lies ahead of us. We can never know when an opportunity will come knocking on our door. And if it does knock, what do you want to do?
That phrase is close to my heart because I was at the receiving end. In the early 2000s, the first business that I started was a freelance draftsman, drawing single line diagrams and getting endorsement from an electrical Professional Engineer (PE). I learned how to use AutoCad in Singapore Polytechnic in the late 90s. I got hands-on practice during my first job. When I discovered that demand, I took it up. I was paid $50 for every drawing. With the energy and time I have in my hands, I could easily complete 100 single line drawings in a month. However, I was under the illusion that that opportunity will last. I refused to upgrade my skills simply because I was already too busy. Weeks passed and the demand for my services dropped. One day, I was given an opportunity to do a more complex drawing. I had to give it away because their requirements were beyond me.. That drawing itself could have fetch me a cool $5,000 in a week. That is also the cost of my lesson.
Learning is part of life. The value of knowledge is not in the certificates. It is in how we apply it. When that happens, that knowledge will have greater value to self and organization.
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So back to my meeting with this gentlemen; he shared that he has a new boss to report to. In his 15 years of service in the company, he has never had a conversation on career path. This new manager spoke to all his colleagues for 30minutes each to find out their goals and aspirations.
So I asked him,"So what was your response?". He said, "If only there is a manager like you in the earlier years of my career, I would be somewhere better now. Since I'm in the 50s, I've lost some drive." He told his manager to give those opportunities to the younger ones.
I told him that with his wealth of experience, he can consider mentoring the new entrees into the industry. He pondered for a while.
In the later part of the conversation, he shared that his new boss used a few techniques which he learnt in the ES modules; such as goal setting, divergent and convergent thinking, etc. He was surprised to see someone in management level applying those techniques. Now that he has a better idea of what is going on, he became more appreciative of the changes implemented by the management.
That feedback were music to my ears. It has been a week since we completed the module and he was able to change his perception of things.
My advise to everyone; keep learning, keep growing, find ways to apply your new found skills. If door to opportunity does not open, make our own door. Things always happen for a reason.
One the last few sessions, he asked me about the practicality of those techniques learned during the Employability Skills Module. He said that while techniques are useful, he felt that it is of little use at work. He also brought to my attention that as ground staffs, the opportunities to use those new-found skills can be limited.
I explained to him by using the following phrase "It Is Better To Be Prepared and Not Have An Opportunity, than Having an Opportunity and Not Being Prepared". The thing is we can never know what lies ahead of us. We can never know when an opportunity will come knocking on our door. And if it does knock, what do you want to do?
That phrase is close to my heart because I was at the receiving end. In the early 2000s, the first business that I started was a freelance draftsman, drawing single line diagrams and getting endorsement from an electrical Professional Engineer (PE). I learned how to use AutoCad in Singapore Polytechnic in the late 90s. I got hands-on practice during my first job. When I discovered that demand, I took it up. I was paid $50 for every drawing. With the energy and time I have in my hands, I could easily complete 100 single line drawings in a month. However, I was under the illusion that that opportunity will last. I refused to upgrade my skills simply because I was already too busy. Weeks passed and the demand for my services dropped. One day, I was given an opportunity to do a more complex drawing. I had to give it away because their requirements were beyond me.. That drawing itself could have fetch me a cool $5,000 in a week. That is also the cost of my lesson.
Learning is part of life. The value of knowledge is not in the certificates. It is in how we apply it. When that happens, that knowledge will have greater value to self and organization.
So back to my meeting with this gentlemen; he shared that he has a new boss to report to. In his 15 years of service in the company, he has never had a conversation on career path. This new manager spoke to all his colleagues for 30minutes each to find out their goals and aspirations.
So I asked him,"So what was your response?". He said, "If only there is a manager like you in the earlier years of my career, I would be somewhere better now. Since I'm in the 50s, I've lost some drive." He told his manager to give those opportunities to the younger ones.
I told him that with his wealth of experience, he can consider mentoring the new entrees into the industry. He pondered for a while.
In the later part of the conversation, he shared that his new boss used a few techniques which he learnt in the ES modules; such as goal setting, divergent and convergent thinking, etc. He was surprised to see someone in management level applying those techniques. Now that he has a better idea of what is going on, he became more appreciative of the changes implemented by the management.
That feedback were music to my ears. It has been a week since we completed the module and he was able to change his perception of things.
My advise to everyone; keep learning, keep growing, find ways to apply your new found skills. If door to opportunity does not open, make our own door. Things always happen for a reason.
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