Of commitment (Part 1)

My uncle told me,

If you want to commit; be it relationship, personal pleasure, business, career - anything to do with committing yourself to somebody or something, you MUST consider these two things:

1. Whether or not you can IMPROVE yourself, and of course the other party

2. Whether or not, you can FINISH what you started

Often you THINK you want to commit towards something especially relationship, you THINK you can commit, and you THINK you know how-to. The temptation of having an intimate relationship; being close to somebody, use somebody, sharing thoughts and feelings is of course a very hard thing to resist.

After a while, things get plain, bland, dull, or even worse, sour. What you thought would IMPROVE gradually, proved otherwise. What you thought you can FINISH with rainbows and fireworks, took a complete turn.

What should you do? What would you do? What could you do? What do you do?


To be continued...


Dem yuh!

Where it matters..

I have few counselors a.k.a mentors a.k.a lifesavers or whatever-you-wanna-call-it. We all need that. As genius or independent as we think we are, we still need support in many terms; life, monetary, emotion, business, you name it.

For example, my counselors are my own father, my uncle Kem and my cousins, Khaide and Khaidi. Simple. They are my core mentors. Core means, whenever I'm like on the edge of my life, I'll go and meet them and seek advice.

I've written couple of entries about my uncle Kem and his advises and thoughts, especially in economic and business. Today I wanna write what my cousin Khaidi says about how to handle your job well in terms of operations, delivering promises and managing expectations.

Here's what he has to say.

*******

I don't want to get involved in operations but fundamentally we need to know what our job scope really entails before we unconsciously make our life more difficult.


What percent of the decision is made based upon the product/solution?


The correct answer is: 30 percent!

Actually, it’s more like 29 percent, according to a study of buying habits conducted by a systems integration company that does CRM and Sales 2.0. (BLUEWOLF). According to that study, B2B decision-makers, on average make buying decision based upon the following criteria:

• 16 percent politics
• 23 percent chemistry*
• 32 percent trust/understanding*
• 29 percent solution

What’s exciting about this fact is that two of these elements — chemistry and trust/understanding — are very much within your control.

You can’t always influence the customer’s internal politics (shouldn't even if you can) and, much of the time, you’re selling solutions already fixed by your agency.

Even so, you can always use your sales skills to build better rapport and deeper levels of trust and understanding. And that’s over 50 percent of the decision-making criteria.

By the way, the above figure explain why sales efforts that focus on “features and functions” don’t work — those elements are responsible for less than a third of the decision-making process. So no way should they dominate your process.

This is not about mere lip service. This is not blowing smoke up the clients ass or buddy-buddy or being chummy with suppliers. This is not a Malaysian culture/problem. This is human nature. It applies everywhere. Emotional intelligence is our business.

So ask yourself, is your job (YOU) really more about coming out with solutions or:

1. Priming the relationship (client/agency) through chemistry
2. Build trust through managing expectations and delivering promises
3. Discussing situation, beliefs, approach and interpretation to arrive to an understanding

Of course you have to manage projects and solve problems but all that means nothing without first ensuring chemistry, trust and understanding. Nobody will be interested in your solution/best-idea if you're a hard-headed-jackass. On the other hand, if you're tight with the clients, you can get anything through. Even during the most doubtful times. Most of the time clients already know what they want to do but they just want agency to understand them first. This is when we shouldn't simply shove solutions down their throat or get involved in backroom politics. Just listen and understand, then organise and interpret their thoughts for them. Read up Aikido; redirect/use existing force/energy to achieve objective. Minimum input to achieve maximum output.

Really! they don't need smart ass solutions. They just need validation and someone to do the execution. If you can't deliver (most of the time things get complicated), communicate and manage the expectation. If you fail to communicate (miscommunication), you have failed at the core of your function (job).

80% of our issues comes from lack of communication; i.e. chemistry, trust and understanding. When you think they know, and you think they understand but the situation proves otherwise, you should learn how far you are from reality.

Who makes the decisions? Who are the stakeholders? Have you done 1, 2, and 3? Where's your leverage?

Are you spending too much time coming up with solutions? Stop thinking too long. Pick up the phone and call somebody now. Have you spent time with the clients, contractors and suppliers today? Do they really understand you? Do they trust you?


Go figure.

*******

Well, learn something or surrender yourselves to to self-chosen ignorance.

Dem yuh!

SOFT or HARD?

I have no title for this post, yet. I only feel like writing now. I keep telling myself that I write craps, but some people told me that I should keep writing. I have no freaking idea. I mean, it's not easy when I know I'm not good writing stuff, in fact I'm so close to a bad writer or could be the worst writer ever, and what makes it worse than worst is that I have to keep up writing. Or must I think I write good craps though?

Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.

So the start-up motivation came from I-don't-know-where. Owh, I remember now. It came from an overflowing ideas and deep misunderstandings and critical observations about one too many things. I've written something about how my empty brain works before. You can refresh it HERE!

So yeah, I feel like writing about this one important thing. No, not important thing, but rather one interesting topic. Haa now it's more accurate. Well at least it's interesting to me. I don't know about you guys.

So this one hazy evening I had a conversation with my Uncle Kem, as usual in the car (Counselor In-Mobile) while sending him to Suria KLCC.

We talk about HARDWARE and SOFTWARE.

Computer?

Not really.

Then?

Human. Life. Nation. Politic. Everything.

Everything in life, has two most important thing, to function as a system.

Hardware, and software.

For example:

Question: What builds a nation?

Answer: Human development (software, or brain) and national resources (hardware, or wealth). Simple. What happens to Malaysia now? Other countries look at us as a wealthy country, developing the infrastructures and looks good on the outside. It's called HARDWARE. But when you talk about human development (software), we Malaysians are way behind many countries that we see as "poor" or "under-developed" or whatever shit. We Malaysians are so proud of NOTHING. The tallest twin tower in the world? Wow. Well, not anymore in few years time. What else?

Tell me, what can we be proud of ourselves as Malaysians?

As a matter of fact, we can't even be proud of ourselves as a Malaysian since not every Malaysians CAN SPEAK BAHASA MELAYU PROPERLY. I'm not being racist here, no. I'm saying this because I see one too many Malays who can't even converse Bahasa Melayu properly, grammatically correct and what not. I'm not gonna start on Chinese or Indians or other race.

But you are writing in English now. What makes you an exception?

I am writing in English occasionally, and just to practice my SECOND LANGUAGE. Again, as a SECOND LANGUAGE.

If we talk about proud to be Malaysian, Malaysia Boleh(blah)!, nationalism or even that 1Malaysia, we can't even compare ourselves to Indonesia. Correct me if I'm wrong. Fuck it, there's no right or wrong, only consequences.

If you ever been to Indonesia, you can hear and see every fucking people there can speak Bahasa Indonesia, properly. Every single citizen, of course. Bahasa Indonesia. They are proud to be Indonesian. Here, we are still confused, whether we are speaking Bahasa Melayu or Bahasa Malaysia? The next election, they will change it to Bahasa Melayu, come the next election, change it to Bahasa Malaysia pulak. Morons.

And to top it all, we call Indonesians "extremist" or some sorts for being "extreme" about their country. That's the fucking point! How can we say we are proud to be Malaysians, when we don't give a flying fuck about our own country? All we can talk cock about all the time is the KLCC, KLIA, KL Tower, SMART fucking Tunnel, Putrajaya, Sepang Circuit, first astronaut, Iskandar Malaysia, PLUS Highway, what else? Tell me.

All of the above, HARDWARE.

And yet we say the Arabs are stupid and arrogant. Because they have money (and oil), they spend blindly and outrageously and build every fucking things on earth, in Arab lands. Why? Because they have resources. Oil. Money.

Arab = Money = Arrogant = Stupid.
Malaysia = Money = ?? = ??

See they equation?

Give any backward African country with all of Malaysia's resources and wealth and they can build a country and become a country exactly like Malaysia.

Give a spoiled brat a sports car and chicks will line up for his shallow mind and lame-ass sex performance.

Give a girl a 2-piece bikini on a beach and guys will become her good dogs for one whole day, and night if you're lucky.

There's nothing to be proud of.

A guy like me, I assure you, no girl would ever take a glance at me, if 'hardware' is what they look for. Well, certain parts, yes they would DROOL for it but that only after they proved they deserve it. *yawn*
It's obvious; I'm not rich in fact I'm a broke migga (Malay wannabe nigga), I'm bad-looking ugly-duckling, I don't even own a car, and I'm so kampung, girls would rather date a dog than me. Whatever with the big "W".

HARDWARE. HARDWEAR. Whichever you want to spell it.

Now now, the SOFTWARE.

This is rather interesting. Software is something you can UPGRADE, and IMPROVE. Take a look at one obvious example: Computers.

Hardware, you need to change the components when you want to upgrade. Which is utterly impossible to humans at some point. Unless, yes you have all the money and you wanna end up like the King of Plop.

Software, once it's in your brain, you can always upgrade it by improving your understanding on that particular subject.

Same goes to any thing and every thing. Let's try the 'proud to be Malaysian' or 'Malaysia Boleh(kot!)' topic. You can do something not only on the surface level, but to gain more knowledge and make it happen. Make something happen.

Geniuses throughout time, never compromises SOFTWARE. It builds human development. It's crazy, things you can possibly do with your BRAIN.

BRAIN. You can never go wrong with it.

What makes a genius? 10% intelligence, 90% hardwork. 10% aspiration, 90% perspiration. However you want to justify it.

If you could go and have a partner, which category would you go for? The Hardware, or the Software?

Funny, because now, deep down, everyone is lying to themselves. Most will instantly say,"I'd go for the brain, any time!" but actually the truth they might say,"At this point I just want a cute face."

It's pathetic, whenever you meet someone, you hear people talk,"He's Eurasian." Or,"He drives a Beemer." Or,"He's a son of a Datuk. You should go out with him." Datuk kepala hotak kau.

Ha ha ha I sounded angry, didn't I? No I'm not.

I find it amusing, entertaining and tickling whenever these kind of situations encountered me.

Another thing is, sometimes these people, they think they're smart already, they think if they read every fucking newspapers in the world, they are smart or intelligent. The fact is, they are trying too hard to look smart they end up looking more stupid. Why the fuck do you have to read the same thing? And do not forget Harian Metro: Akhbar Tidak Bertamadun.

What the fuck wei? If you want to improve yourself just do it and shut the fuck up. It's better for you to share with other people what you've read, rather than tell people you read every fucking thing on earth and yet you're still weak and lame whenever you deliver stories. Well read this: FUCK OFF, POSERS!

Shit this is getting way out of my topic. Which is fine by me ha ha ha. I'm always out of topic, always everywhere and ended up nowhere. I'm twisted. Shit, is that a good thing?

Some people can be ignorant and just go for Hardware. Too bad.

Very few people, will look deeper than that, Software. Potential. Possibility.

Choose, whether to be someone and make a difference or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance.

Dem yuh!

Prologue: Counselor In-Mobile (Kem)

I just started another project last week. This time with a consultant company. Well, I am actually involved directly with this consultant team, though I am, undeniably the smallest or the tiniest in terms of my experience and influence (not my dick). This is because the other team members consist of my highly respectable uncle who I will after this be calling him as Kem (as in 'camp' but without the 'p') as the principle, Uncle Khairuddin who is high-profile marketing extraordinaire, Mr Jamil is a corporate finance savvy and my cousin (Kem's youngest son) Jojo as the business analyst. And my humble self.

It is really awkward you see, all of them are on a different level than me. Even Jojo, who is 32-year-old now, who I really look up to whenever we did any projects together, is considered the most inexperienced and freshie to them. So you know where I stand now.

Worry not, I am well aware of this situation, I know my position as the youngest of the youngest, the ultimate inexperienced and zero influence. But that doesn't mean I can't learn anything and be as good as they are now, no?

Right now I'm just started on the simplest things; familiarising the business nature, data digestion, getting used to numbers and statistics, numbers again, business proposals, official letters, meetings, numbers, numbers and never stops.

So, what project is this?

I can't really tell here. I don't know if it's P&C. But what I can tell you is that we're providing consultation to this client of ours (I will call the client MV) for this one project. It's a PFI (Private Finance Initiative) project, worth about RM170,000,000/year.

Too many zeros? Okay, 170 million per year.

No, we're not getting that money, you crazy. It's the client. MV is proposing to the Ministry (I will call it MOH), to buy everything manage their assets in the southern region (Johor, Malacca, Negri Sembilan).

Why?

You see, the thing with the Government is, whenever something is wrong somewhere be it machine broke-down or anything related to their assets, you have to file a report, then send to some departments. Then from department to another to another until the matter gets to the minister and you still have to wait for the approval bla bla bla. Then wait for two months.

This is what we call BUREAUCRACY.

So this PFI made things faster, and easier for the Government. See, what we're doing for MV is that we structure a proposal to buy-out all of these assets and equipments from MOH. Then after that, the Government doesn't need to go through all these silly things. They just have to pay the service to MV every month, instead of maintaining their assets and equipments, which they suck at. So after this when something needs to be done, MV will straight away fix it and then bill it to the Government later, so they don't have to wait to repair anything important if you know what I mean. Other than that the Government will have to pay a fixed monthly service charge to MV. Easy.

What I am trying to say here is that, besides being a business development officer, I am also the runner for this company, to send letters, to send Kem to appointments etc (mentang-mentang lah gua paling junior). But it's all right, I believe that if I wanna be really good, I have to start from scratch. I've always believed that. Plus, Kem is a maestro at what he does. And he's my father's elder brother. What's there not to listen to?

So this time whenever I send Kem anywhere, I will ask him something. Anything. About business, economy, life, money, passion, anything. In fact, I've sent him two times already and yes I managed to learn something.

What have I learned?

Next time.

This is why it's called, Prologue: Counselor In-Mobile.


Dem yuh!