studying again?

Just recently, I was tempted to go back to studying.... can I do it again after all these years of leaving the maddening process behind?! I seriously don't know. I am not sure if I can bear the stress of exams, paper work, thesis, attending classes, etc... That aside, I have the financials to think about, too... where can I cough up that kind of money to pay for a MBA programme?  Any Masters programme is not cheap. Easily RM20k - RM30k with a local University.  The money I've saved can be used for many other unspoken needs - larger house, children, etc. It is certainly not easy for a thirty something year old married woman to think about studying again..... BUT THEN AGAIN, everyone knows that the best investment is in oneself! Investing in your own future! Well, well, well, I guess I better not rush into things and pray for God's direction!

insulting infomercial

On 1st May 2011, I caught an “interesting” infomercial on the television. It showed a Malay lady and her daughter having conversations at home and at the hypermarket while doing some grocery shopping. At the end of their shopping trip the mother, while pushing her shopping cart, asked around to get the parking ticket paid. Lo and behold, the strangers (note, the strangers are adults) she approached looked puzzled as if they did not understand what she was asking! It was then that the daughter stepped in to ask the strangers in Bahasa Malaysia (BM) that only the stranger understood and promptly responded in BM where to get the parking ticker paid! And, the infomercial ended with the song “Gunakanlah Bahasa Kebangsaan kita, marilah amalkan ramai ramai…”

I was shocked! What an incredulous way of encouraging the use of BM! The mother asked a simple question “Where can I pay the parking ticket?” I do not think this question is too difficult to understand by an adult! It is after all basic conversational English. And, to think that this infomercial was produced by our ministry to encourage the use of BM! Why encourage the use of BM by bringing down and demeaning the use of English? Or, mock the people who are practicing English in their everyday life? Just when our whole nation is gearing up to improve the use of English at all levels, here comes this “brilliant” infomercial to “help” achieve this goal. Well, good job at shooting yourself in the foot!

The powers that be should remove this infomercial. It is an insult to our intelligence and an embarrassing representation to the world on how serious we are at improving our command of English. I am sure there are better ways to promote the use of BM, but until they find the right strategy, please do NOT educate the public this way. It will only be detrimental to our future.

flowers in bloom

I am delirious. My hard work finally paid off! The time and effort put in nurturing, tending and watering finally yielded beautiful flowers.  Oh, I’ve had so many trials and errors about it before but finally this time, they came out gorgeous.  No doubt the fertilizers helped, but I credit this to the learning experience. Learning from past failures about fertilizing, pruning and weeding, when best to do it, how often I shall tend to them?  Most importantly, I learnt a great deal about patience. The waiting period can be a torturous time, with anxiety growing every day. But alas, imagine the joy when a bud appears. And slowly, it blooms into a beautiful flower.  I am delirious. Still J

what do you call a nerd 15 years from now?

I read an interesting joke today. It goes something like this, “What do you call a nerd 15 years from now?” . Guess. I bet you won’t believe the answer. It reads, “A boss”!


Now, I am not sure about you, but I had a good laugh. Is there a friction of truth in this joke? You bet! Nerds or geeks as they’re used to be called in schools are no longer Losers (read with a capital L). In fact, they’re really the ones who are making it good in the world. They just happened to be a bunch of people whom when in school, devoted a lot of time and attention on their school work and read a whole lot more than the average school going person. Well, of course, all that, at the expense of social status and popularity in school. They’re the “outcast” deemed weird by the popular boys and gals. They’re the least popular and non-memorable people in school. No flamboyant styles to remember by. No exciting date nights to go. No cool cliques to hang out with. What they had was plenty of ridicules and insults as they lived with the “Nerd” label in school.

So, these nerds chose to pursue what matters in life even back in the school days. Theirs was a quest for academic qualification, a good exposure and a passion to make a difference in the world. Look at how many of them are great men and women of today. Bill Gates, for one. I personally know a few who end up being the best entrepreneurs today. Nobody would have thought that they be the ones who dare to take risks in a business venture. Nor to lead and manage multimillion dollar businesses. Who would have thought they'll be the ones today who faces matters head on with much courage and wisdom?  Who overcomes any challenges?  Or be significant in other peoples’ lives?

Scary as it may seem, but the nerds of today may really become your bosses of tomorrow. I am sure if we are generally nice to people, we wouldn’t have any problem being friends with all – nerds or not. And hence, it really doesn’t matter who becomes our boss at the end of the day :)

a new beginning

....phew!! yes! escaped!!....

I will be officially out of the rat race from 23rd Oct 2010.... yey!!
This is super fun! Amazing to say the least, as this was no ordinary feat for me to have the courage to leave a well paying job and just sit at home.  And, no, I am not quitting because I am pregnant or because of any health complications.  I just decided that I need a well deserved break after 13 years of slaving for the world. It does not mean that I am quitting work forever, it's just the right thing for me to do at this point of time.

I amazed myself.  I was so ready to let go of my commissions including one recent 3 year project at a turnover of 18mio. My colleagues called me an idiot. They thought that I was insane to not reap the rewards first before I leave. But, another 3 years?  That's too long!

Perhaps the 40 days prayer and fasting did give me the courage and peace to just let go of things. I really believe if it wasn't for this season of prayer for breakthroughs, I will be agonizing every minute of the day on the fact that I am loosing those substantial commissions, my year end bonus, career progression, blah blah... Well the longer I hold on, the tougher for me to let go and move on.

Ah, staying at home and finally doing the things that I like.... such bliss! But, can I really survive the "boredom" that many has cautioned me?  I don't know. Seriously. I am just taking one step at a time to enjoy this new phase of my life. Come what may, I will embrace them with a new found gusto.