Monday, October 10, 2011

Laughter without a reason.

I was told that we should laughter as and when we want with or without any reasons.  It moves the muscles of the whole body and sents the juices in our body flowing,  The whole body and mind is tickled and moved in a motion and activate all the organs and give it a very good massage, Laughing without a reason or a cause ? People would be thinking that I have gone mad,  I got to know from a workshop that I am attending that there a laughter clubs all over the world  and laughting can cure alot of pains , sickness and depression.

People could thnk that we are ticklish and I was told that there is a best selling book which describe that laughter help to cure the author of his terminal illness.  Why is a nature cure ?  I think it just release the natural chemicals in the body and boost the immune system which have been clogged up due to the lack of laughter. One professor who examine my late father in law told him that he should chew slower and laugh more and this will relax the body and let the internal juices do their job. But, how can you expect a terminal ill person to laugh ?  There is so much pain but all is in our mind. If we want to laugh, we only need to let it go and let the laughter out. This is our choice and within our control.

Laughter goes with happiness.  If we are happy, we laugh alot and it could be that we laugh to make ourself happy. We change our mood by laughing and it is possible. There are so many sadnes  in this world and why we need to watch sad movies or horror shows.  We can move mountains if we want to do it.

Stay happy, be happy and laugh whenever you want. It is all in our mind,

Namaste.

Ten things that Steve jobs taught us -ext

1. The most enduring innovations marry art and science – Steve has always pointed out that the biggest difference between Apple and all the other computer (and post-PC) companies through history is that Apple always tried to marry art and science.  Jobs pointed out the original team working on the Mac had backgrounds in anthropology, art, history, and poetry.  That’s always been important in making Apple’s products stand out.  It’s the difference between the iPad and every other tablet computer that came before it or since.  It is the look and feel of a product.  It is its soul.  But it is such a difficult thing for computer scientists or engineers to see that importance, so any company must have a leader that sees that importance.

2. To create the future, you can’t do it through focus groups – There is a school of thought in management theory that — if you’re in the consumer-facing space building products and services — you’ve got to listen to your customer.  Steve Jobs was one of the first businessmen to say that was a waste of time.  The customers today don’t always know what they want, especially if it’s something they’ve never seen, heard, or touched before.  When it became clear that Apple would come out with a tablet, many were skeptical.  When people heard the name (iPad), it was a joke in the Twitter-sphere for a day.  But when people held one, and used it, it became a ‘must have.’  They didn’t know how they’d previously lived without one. 

3. Never fear failure – Jobs was fired by the successor he picked.  It was one of the most public embarrassments of the last 30 years in business.  Yet, he didn’t become a venture capitalist never to be heard from again.  He didn’t start a production company and do a lot of lunches.  He picked himself up and got back to work following his passion.  Eight years ago, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and told he only had a few weeks to live.  As Samuel Johnson said, there’s nothing like your impending death to focus the mind.  From Jobs’ 2005 Stanford commencement speech:

No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

4. You can’t connect the dots forward – only backward – This is another gem from the 2005 Stanford speech.  The idea behind the concept is that, as much as we try to plan our lives ahead in advance, there’s always something that’s completely unpredictable about life.  What seems like bitter anguish and defeat in the moment — getting dumped by a girlfriend, not getting that job at McKinsey, “wasting” 4 years of your life on a start-up that didn’t pan out as you wanted — can turn out to sow the seeds of your unimaginable success years from now.  You can’t be too attached to how you think your life is supposed to work out and instead trust that all the dots will be connected in the future.  This is all part of the plan.

Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

5. Listen to that voice in the back of your head that tells you if you’re on the right track or not – Most of us don’t hear a voice inside our heads.  We’ve simply decided that we’re going to work in finance or be a doctor because that’s what our parents told us we should do or because we wanted to make a lot of money.  When we consciously or unconsciously make that decision, we snuff out that little voice in our head.  From then on, most of us put it on automatic pilot.  We mail it in.  You have met these people.  They’re nice people.  But they’re not changing the world.  Jobs has always been a restless soul.  A man in a hurry.  A man with a plan.  His plan isn’t for everyone.  It was his plan. He wanted to build computers.  Some people have a voice that tells them to fight for democracy.  Some have one that tells them to become an expert in miniature spoons.  When Jobs first saw an example of a Graphical User Interface — a GUI — he knew this was the future of computing and that he had to create it.  That became the Macintosh.  Whatever your voice is telling you, you would be smart to listen to it.  Even if it tells you to quit your job, or move to China, or leave your partner.

6. Expect a lot from yourself and others – We have heard stories of Steve Jobs yelling or dressing down staff.  He’s a control freak, we’ve heard – a perfectionist.  The bottom line is that he is in touch with his passion and that little voice in the back of his head.  He gives a damn.  He wants the best from himself and everyone who works for him.  If they don’t give a damn, he doesn’t want them around.  And yet — he keeps attracting amazing talent around him.  Why?  Because talent gives a damn too.  There’s a saying: if you’re a “B” player, you’ll hire “C” players below you because you don’t want them to look smarter than you.  If you’re an “A” player, you’ll hire “A+” players below you, because you want the best result.

7. Don’t care about being right.  Care about succeeding – Jobs used this line in an interview after he was fired by Apple.  If you have to steal others’ great ideas to make yours better, do it.  You can’t be married to your vision of how a product is going to work out, such that you forget about current reality.  When the Apple III came out, it was hot and warped its motherboard even though Jobs had insisted it would be quiet and sleek.  If Jobs had stuck with Lisa, Apple would have never developed the Mac.

8. Find the most talented people to surround yourself with – There is a misconception that Apple is Steve Jobs.  Everyone else in the company is a faceless minion working to please the all-seeing and all-knowing Jobs.  In reality, Jobs has surrounded himself with talent: Phil Schiller, Jony Ive, Peter Oppenheimer, Tim Cook, the former head of stores Ron Johnson.  These are all super-talented people who don’t get the credit they deserve.  The fact that Apple’s stock price has been so strong since Jobs left as CEO is a credit to the strength of the team.  Jobs has hired bad managerial talent before.  John Sculley ended up firing Jobs and — according to Jobs — almost killing the company.  Give credit to Jobs for learning from this mistake and realizing that he can’t do anything without great talent around him.

9. Stay hungry, stay foolish - Again from the end of Jobs’ memorable Stanford speech.

When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole Earth Catalog, which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was created by a fellow named Stewart Brand not far from here in Menlo Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in the late 1960′s, before personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with typewriters, scissors, and polaroid cameras. It was sort of like Google in paperback form, 35 years before Google came along: it was idealistic, and overflowing with neat tools and great notions.

Stewart and his team put out several issues of The Whole Earth Catalog, and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-1970s, and I was your age. On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might find yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath it were the words: “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.” It was their farewell message as they signed off. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you


10. Anything is possible through hard work, determination, and a sense of vision – Although he’s the greatest CEO ever and the father of the modern computer, at the end of the day, Steve Jobs is just a guy.  He’s a husband, a father, a friend — like you and me.  We can be just as special as he is — if we learn his lessons and start applying them in our lives.  When Jobs returned to Apple in the 1990s, it was was weeks away from bankruptcy.  It’s now the biggest company in the world.  Anything’s possible in life if you continue to follow the simple lessons laid out above.

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Delivering happiness - review of the best seller book

Transparency. Alignment. Relationship building. Culture.
Many companies struggle to incorporate today’s new business memes. But some companies have embodied these ideas for years. Zappos, the online shoe store known for its tribal culture and customer service, is one of those companies.
Zappos’ CEO, Tony Hsieh, tells his story in Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose. The book covers both Tony’s personal entrepreneurial story and that of his company, Zappos. Delivering Happiness offers a feel-good look at the passion, culture, and, yes, happiness that could drive the next generation of companies.
Inside the Book
Delivering Happiness starts with a look at Tony’s childhood. Like many of today’s successful businesspeople, Tony was an entrepreneur, innovator, and achiever from a young age. You follow Tony into high school, through his Harvard undergrad education, and then through the inception and buyout of his first major company, LinkXChange, which made him millions.
After selling LinkXChange, Tony dabbled in new projects, from poker to investing, before realizing that building companies was his passion. At this point, he jumped into a young, struggling Zappos, betting most of his fortune on the company’s success. After several trials, Tony and his team get Zappos off the ground and growing.
The second part of the book leaves Tony’s personal biography aside to focus more on Zappos’ inner workings. Zappos has three priorities: customer service, culture, and employee training and development. Tony describes how Zappos uses each, and how each is a competitive advantage. Then, the same chapter goes through each of Zappos’ ten core values in detail, with employee anecdotes along the way.
The third part of the book describes the public relations and speaking lessons Tony learned, as well as what alignment means to Zappos. It then covers the Amazon buyout. Tony finishes the book with a chapter on happiness, what it means for both humans and business, and the questions you should ask yourself in order to find it in your own life and career.
Thoughts
If you’re a regular business book reader, some of the concepts inside of Delivering Happiness—building on your core values, learning what to outsource, impressing customers through service—won’t sound new. The character-building trials Tony describes are also a theme of any biographical business book.
Yet Delivering Happiness is timely. Buzzwords like alignment and culture are smoking hot in today’s business language. Zappos is emblematic of many such “conscious” qualities. If you haven’t yet immersed yourself in new corporate culture, Tony and Zappos’ story is a fun place to start.
Tony’s verve, passion, and openness also differentiate Delivering Happiness from your average business biography. He describes a wide array of experiences, including having an epiphany at a warehouse rave. Tony’s engaging writing style makes the book feel conversational, even in some of the more technical, business-y sections.

Should You Read It?
If you’re already familiar with today’s new corporate qualities, and are scratching your head about whether to pick up this particular book, I’d say skip it. I found it good, but not mind-blowing. Nothing really stuck with me after I closed it, because I’d learned about the importance of spectacular customer service and company culture elsewhere.
Still, I do think that some people would benefit. Delivering Happiness would make a great starter business book for Gen Y-ers. Tony sounds like a Red Bull-chugging, whip-smart kid at heart. Today’s 20-somethings can probably relate much more closely to him than to old-school titans like Jack Welch. I also recommend Delivering Happiness if you’re curious about Zappos (or a fan), or you want a primer on today’s new-school business qualities.

Relaxing Piano Rain Music - Nature Scenes 1

The sound of rain w/o music

Friday, October 7, 2011

Death spots - exercise care

Last night , I encountered a narrow miss with a speeding driver.  He was dressed in black T-shirts and short black pants and was speeding to the beat the traffic light while I was negotiating across the road after the traffic light. I admitted that I did not see him totally and even my wife and my maid was shocked when a speeding motor bike zoomed passed us. I think it is only seconds he missed my car and he was turning back to look at us as he speed away. I could see his upset and frighten face. We went our way, both shaken and scare. My memory of the morning miss with death still haunt me the whole night. I told myself I have to let go of the incident so that I can get a peaceful night sleep.

Yes, in life, all of us have narrow misses with death or accidents and some of it turns into nasty accidents or even death of our loved ones or people around us.  Steve Jobs have a very good philosophy and he said that since we are always living in the shadow of death, there is nothing to loose and we have better to live our life the way we want it and pursue our dreams instead of living another person's life. It is very true and if we take risk, we create new ways and new things for us and others.

Coming back to my experience with death, I have read an article some time ago which talks about death spots along highways and roads. My last night's incident happen on a stretch of road that have many accidents and a few people have die on a spot. The spot is dark and the car drivers or bike riders often want to beat the red light and make illegal U-turns and many of this is a clash of judgements.  I also remembered a news article that in Bangkok, one of the hospital stationed an ambulance near an under path where everyday an accident will occur. They even engage the monks to say prayer at the site to pacify the spirits.

In life, there are many chance and doors for us to exit from this world and go into another realm or dimension. If we missed the chance or the exit doors, we will live on until another encounter. For all of you, just be aware at these spots or avoid these spots and for those who needs to go through these spots, exercise care and alertness to protect yourself and for the love ones, who is waiting for you at home.

Namaste.

I almost die today....


It was really frightening  and I could have killed myself after  I have make an illegal U-turn along a highway.  I almost head-on with  a big trailer as I turn into a one way road in the reverse direction.  I do not know why I did it but  it was like an instinct and yet foolish.  On my mind, I was focusing on returning to my office for an urgent interview and I totally was controlled by that thought.

It was a sunny day and after that encounter, I could felt that my shadow was out from my body , looking from outside in.  It was a very scary feeling.  If the driver is not alert or the timing is one or two seconds late, I could be having lunch with Steve Jobs.  It is really not joke.  The feeling of despair and so useless.  Nothing matters more if I am gone.  I will missed my family and my sister and they will be crying for me. Why am I so stupid and foolish. A lapse of concentration and an unnecessary rush of urgency.

Life seem so precious after that and It is so lucky to be alive. Yes, what more do I ask ? Giving a chance to live and to be still in the world. I remembered I have encountered death a few times before. Once, it was after a dragon boat practice in
Gurney Drive
.  After the practice, it was very hot and I jumped into the sea but I could reach the shore. I was struggling and kicking to swim ashore.  Luckily, I managed  to touch the floor bed and I kick myself up and pull myself ashore.  The recent encounter was yesterday evening.  I was sweating profusely during the evening yoga session. There were twenty over members doing the exercise. The evening air was hot after a long sunny day and I was suffocating during the exercise.  My sweating continued to flow as if  I am suffering from a heart attack and I was feeling dizzy.  Immediately, I stop the exercise and go out of the exercise area for a fresh bout of air. It took me sometime to cool myself down. It was really scary and I was thinking of my body condition.  Fortunately, my body condition stabilized after 15 minutes and I was alive !!!  Much alive.

These two recent encounters really woke me up and make me feel that life is so fragile. If the creator wants me to go and my time is up, it is not a matter of my body conditions.  Even if I am healthy, I still will need to go and there is no choice.  

As a message to all  my readers,  live life as if there is no tomorrow but love life forever.

Namaste.