Could you accomplish more with iPhone or BlackBerry

This would be a first for me to discuss how each tool stacks up. It's an iPhone vs BlackBerry post.

I think for this discussion I will focus on three key aspects of personal organizers for both smartphones.

Today, we'll discuss about email.

BlackBerry - in terms of email the BB still comes up tops. Key features include push mail, separate signatures for different accounts, autotext (which allows you to configure short-hand for frequently used phrases), and ability to send attachments within the email application.

iPhone: Until recently push mail was limited to yahoo and MobileMe. Now that Google has joined in the game it has made it possible for me to get push mail for my corporate email. However major limitations exist (and some not entirely Apple's fault). For instance push mail via Microsoft Exchange is not totally reliable. We've experienced downtime a couple of times. Another limitation is email attachments. You can't send a new email with attachments, that is unless you have a MobileMe or DropBox account. That makes it extremely annoying. Also, unless you can put up with using TextExpander, which requires you to type your email within TextExpander and then copy and paste into the email application. That to me is so yesterday. Besides, you can only have one MS Exchange account so which requires you to purchase apps like GPush to push your other gmail account. Of course not everyone needs push mail but for those of us who needs to response to our customers fast the iPhone has major limitations for email.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

What is that? (Τι είναι αυτό;) 2007

Unconditional love...

Tum Chalo to Hindusta Chale - TOI Lead India "Tree"

Through the action of one individual, who "seemingly doesn't seem possible to make an impact", that motivates/inspire others to take action and make a difference.

Add and Maximize Value

We've always heard about "adding value". For instance, in any relationship how do you invest in the relationship?

One might say, well, I value add.

True, I guess you wouldn't be in that relationship for very long if that wasn't the case.

Then you might argue that when it comes to love one should give unconditionally. Why must there be a need to ask "what can you bring to the table?"

That's some what true but we are saying what you (first person perspective) can value add to the relationship? We're not saying that you demand something in return. Whereas when we say you wouldn't be in the relationship for long we are implying that the other person will / might look elsewhere (second person perspective).

So now let us look at "maximize" value and how different is that from "add" value.

To me it is a world of differences. Given a situation, I may be adding value but how do you know if I am giving my best or if I am holding anything back?

You wouldn't really unless you know me very well. What we want to emphasize here is that unless we are giving our 100 percent, you could still be short-changed in this instance.

Hence by maximizing value here in this instance we are saying this, you not only do your best, you give your best too.

One technique I found to be really effective if we do it with the right attitude is this: always set your intentions at the start of any interactions with another person. Because as our intentions are always good (it's only a matter of from which perspective) and hence sometimes our actions maybe misinterpreted.

Therefore it is always a good practice to first set your intentions and you will be able to practice the art of not just doing your best but also giving your best, everytime, all the time.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Keeping Top Talent Engaged in Tight Times

Values - Personal & Engaged

We recently had a discussion about school values. Context was, this school has a set of values that are both at a personal level as well as at a collaborative level (we call this "engaged").

They went through an exercise to ask their staff to rate their list of values; rating a "1" from the list for most visible to the last for least visible. It turns out that the values at the "engaged" level were rated higher than the "personal" ones.

An interesting discussion ensued to determine how to make sense of the information collected.

Was it obvious that since the "personal" values are personal hence it is difficult to see? Or is it a cause for concern?

I think what we wanted to establish was this: even if these values are "personal", if people live by these values it would have been evident, personal or otherwise.

The School Leaders then posed an interesting question that, how if these personal values are lived out by individuals, what kind of impact would this make at the organizational level.

To this end we need to understand why values at personal level are extremely critical to organizational success.

Where in an ideal senerio where everyone in the organization lives by a set of timeless principled values, that would translate into a culture where everyone takes personal responsibilty for what happens and hence a no-blame culture becomes possible.

In other words we are speaking about an organization made up of individuals who have personal mastery. For such an organization three things will happen.

1) People choose how they would respond to any given situation.

2) As these individuals take personal responsibilty for the outcomes of their actions.

3) Knowledge work becomes possible.

Let's discuss these in turn. Choosing your responses to any given situation is like, yeah so what if the weather is gloomy, if life throws you a lemon you make lemonade.

These individuals will not complain about the kind of pupils we get. Nor will they complain about the lack of resources or support.

These individuals will find the best ways to address the cohort issue. Seek ways to work with parents, innovate their teaching practices, experiment with different techniques, and so forth. Of course it is easy to point the fingers at the children. But this will not be the style of such individuals.

Even if they tried all ways possible and yet not meet their targets, they will accept personal responsibility. It is just not their style to blame it on the child.

And because of their attitude, they would be creating work that will also benefit future generations as the kind of work they do will be worthy of retention and shared for the benefit of those that come after them.

You may realize that this is also true for any smaller outfit like a work team or a committee.

Next time, take the opportunity during your next discussion or meeting to identify such individuals on the team. How can you tell? Listen to their conversation. Is it focused on "what others can or should do" or is the emphasis on "what I as a member of the team can do".


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

How do you express yourself?

Different people do it differently. Some of us don't even realize that every single one of us has the need to do it.

What's yours?

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How my life fell apart due to my addiction

I confess. I am an addict. I have been addicted to it since I tried it in January this year and I didn't know the extent of my addiction until this week.

I am addicted to my Blackberry.

About three years back, I attended the neuro-linguistic programming certification course. During the course, my single-minded focus was on searching for a personal success process, whereby every individual, if they were to follow this success process will experience success.

I wanted to derive my own success process as I see myself as a creator and its what I enjoy doing a lot. So instead of going through a series of trial and error, the process of literature review commenced.

Essentially, the review led me to Anthony Robbins, Robin Sharma, Stephen Covey, and eventually David Allen.

The final conclusion was to follow the FranklinCovey's method where one would divide his world into four quadrants, where the emphasis is to focus on the important but not-urgent quadrant. This is where it all matters because it is where these are areas that do not act on us and hence we must act on them.

There is the FranklinCovey planner where it is designed to get you started by crafting your personal mission statement and clarify your values. From there, you set your goals and based on your different roles you decide what you'd do on a weekly basis.

The trick is not to fall into the trap of spending all your time on the important and urgent quadrant; where eventually you may get a lot done but not move towards your goals.

When I got my Blackberry in January this year, there was a Google ad that appears frequently about "Covey on Blackberry". After clicking on the ad, I was more convinced than ever to get it. It was an amazing tool (ToDo Matrix) as it allows me to set up tasks and reminders.

My reliance on it was like clockwork. Until the Blackberry suffered over-heating problems (other than dropped calls, track-ball issues, and slow browsing speed) where it forced me to bring it in for repairs.

That's when my life really start to fall apart. There is no system now that reminds me of what I need and must do and also the lack of proper task management really caused a great disruption to my life.

That's when I decided to review the FranklinCovey planning system. Perhaps its the way I've organized it but when things happen during the week (which they do rather frequently) I find myself sometimes not being able to complete some tasks and over time it caused me to feel lousy.

And feeling lousy because of task not done is further fueled by the fact that each week, I see that task again and again.

Hence, the fact that my Blackberry was being sent for repairs was in a way a blessing in disguise! Yes, I am using a loan set but its never the same unless it is your own phone.

So, that's when I decided that a refinement of the process to allow for things to happen is way due! Hence, in my recent assessment and review of my planning process, I decided to re-read David Allen's Getting Things Done.

This time round, what appeals to me was the concept of "defining the work that you do".

He quoted Peter Drucker, where "in knowledge work... the task is not given; it has to be determined. 'What are the expected results from this work?' is ... the key question in making knowledge workers productive. There is usually no right answer; there are choices instead. And results have to be clearly specified, if productivity is to be achieved."

Upon reading this, it was like an enlightenment for me! As a result it led me to re-think the FranklinCovey's planning system.

And I think I got it down like this:

- Personal mission statement is still important and must be crafted, reviewed, refined over the years. It is also a statement that tells us what our purpose in life is and by that extension, who we are (our identity).

- Our identity speaks about who we are. And who we are is determined by our purpose in life and will also determine the values and beliefs that we embrace.

- Our values will determine our actions. And we all strive to behave consistently with our values. The more consistent we are, the more trust people have in us. And the more trust we've earned, the larger is our circle of influence.

- However with the best of intentions is not enough. We must certainly have the necessary competency to undertake a task. Hence, we will need to "learn and grow".

- And then faced with two category of "things", we need to make our choices. I see that because of what our purpose in life is, we would have a set of goals that we want to achieve so as to make our lives meaningful. That is one set of "things". And in our weekly planning, we need to allow for such events to take place or else we will always be faced by the other category of "things".

- The second category falls into what I'd call goals that were assigned to us. Unless you report to no one, then this category does not exists. But if you are like me, this category not only exists, it sometimes consumes us. It is here where we can, nay, need to ask ourselves, 'what are the expected results from this work?' And unless we are clear on the expected results, we cannot choose the most productive way to handle it.

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

How my life fell apart due to my addiction

I confess. I am an addict. I have been addicted to it since I tried it in January this year and I didn't know the extent of my addiction until this week.

I am addicted to my Blackberry.

About three years back, I attended the neuro-linguistic programming certification course. During the course, my single-minded focus was on searching for a personal success process, whereby every individual, if they were to follow this success process will experience success.

I wanted to derive my own success process as I see myself as a creator and its what I enjoy doing a lot. So instead of going through a series of trial and error, the process of literature review commenced.

Essentially, the review led me to Anthony Robbins, Robin Sharma, Stephen Covey, and eventually David Allen.

The final conclusion was to follow the FranklinCovey's method where one would divide his world into four quadrants, where the emphasis is to focus on the important but not-urgent quadrant. This is where it all matters because it is where these are areas that do not act on us and hence we must act on them.

There is the FranklinCovey planner where it is designed to get you started by crafting your personal mission statement and clarify your values. From there, you set your goals and based on your different roles you decide what you'd do on a weekly basis.

The trick is not to fall into the trap of spending all your time on the important and urgent quadrant; where eventually you may get a lot done but not move towards your goals.

When I got my Blackberry in January this year, there was a Google ad that appears frequently about "Covey on Blackberry". After clicking on the ad, I was more convinced than ever to get it. It was an amazing tool (ToDo Matrix) as it allows me to set up tasks and reminders.

My reliance on it was like clockwork. Until the Blackberry suffered over-heating problems (other than dropped calls, track-ball issues, and slow browsing speed) where it forced me to bring it in for repairs.

That's when my life really start to fall apart. There is no system now that reminds me of what I need and must do and also the lack of proper task management really caused a great disruption to my life.

That's when I decided to review the FranklinCovey planning system. Perhaps its the way I've organized it but when things happen during the week (which they do rather frequently) I find myself sometimes not being able to complete some tasks and over time it caused me to feel lousy.

And feeling lousy because of task not done is further fueled by the fact that each week, I see that task again and again.

Hence, the fact that my Blackberry was being sent for repairs was in a way a blessing in disguise! Yes, I am using a loan set but its never the same unless it is your own phone.

So, that's when I decided that a refinement of the process to allow for things to happen is way due! Hence, in my recent assessment and review of my planning process, I decided to re-read David Allen's Getting Things Done.

This time round, what appeals to me was the concept of "defining the work that you do".

He quoted Peter Drucker, where "in knowledge work... the task is not given; it has to be determined. 'What are the expected results from this work?' is ... the key question in making knowledge workers productive. There is usually no right answer; there are choices instead. And results have to be clearly specified, if productivity is to be achieved."

Upon reading this, it was like an enlightenment for me! As a result it led me to re-think the FranklinCovey's planning system.

And I think I got it down like this:

- Personal mission statement is still important and must be crafted, reviewed, refined over the years. It is also a statement that tells us what our purpose in life is and by that extension, who we are (our identity).

- Our identity speaks about who we are. And who we are is determined by our purpose in life and will also determine the values and beliefs that we embrace.

- Our values will determine our actions. And we all strive to behave consistently with our values. The more consistent we are, the more trust people have in us. And the more trust we've earned, the larger is our circle of influence.

- However with the best of intentions is not enough. We must certainly have the necessary competency to undertake a task. Hence, we will need to "learn and grow".

- And then faced with two category of "things", we need to make our choices. I see that because of what our purpose in life is, we would have a set of goals that we want to achieve so as to make our lives meaningful. That is one set of "things". And in our weekly planning, we need to allow for such events to take place or else we will always be faced by the other category of "things".

- The second category falls into what I'd call goals that were assigned to us. Unless you report to no one, then this category does not exists. But if you are like me, this category not only exists, it sometimes consumes us. It is here where we can, nay, need to ask ourselves, 'what are the expected results from this work?' And unless we are clear on the expected results, we cannot choose the most productive way to handle it.

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

How is it like currently, really?

In the context of setting a big hairy audacious goal, Jim Collins talked about the need to confront the brutal facts. Its whether we know how is it like currently, really.

To be able to continually create the vision that you desire, Peter Senge mentioned that we must know the current reality. Again, its about whether we know hos is it like currently, really.

I believe that if we are looking at organizations as a collective sum of individuals; then perhaps it is important for us to examine issues at the individual-level, then scale it up to the organizational-level.

Going back to Senge's theories about learning organizations; one fundamental underlying factor that must be there is personal mastery. Because if we want to continually create the vision that we desire, he said we'd need to examine the current reality.

Now, imagine if we examine the current reality and all the issues that we surface are, what we call, other people's problem; then there are only two things left to do. One, sulk. Two, blame others or wait for others to fix those problems. How's that for personal mastery?

In Covey's language that would be a reactive habit of highly ineffective people, as opposed to being proactive as a habit of highly effective individuals.

Because someone who has personal mastery would then look at the current reality and ask; what are the issues and how can I influence it? Based on the core theory of circle of influence that's when we work on areas or work with people, which we have influence over. And work hard at it to gain the trust and establish engaging relationships with others to expand that circle of influence.

So, today I'll like to share with you a key tip from Philosopher Abraham Kaplan that we can apply immediately as a leader of self and/or as a leader of others.

First, identify if the issue at hand is a problem or a predicament.

Kaplan distinguished them as follows: a problem is something you can deal with, a predicament is something you have to endure.

A good way to do this is to ask ourselves:

The issue at hand, can we:

(a) change it - is it within my circle of influence? Can I do something about it?

(b) change self - if we cannot change it then we will change ourselves so as to deal with it.

(c) live with it - we might not be able to change it or change self, so can we live with it? If we can't, then that leaves us with the final option, which is to

(d) leave it.

One thing to note is, whatever choice you make, you have to be happy with the decision. :)
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Rules of Engagement - Insights from "The Student-Teacher Relationship" by Schlechty and Atwood (2001)

We came across an interesting and relevant article titled "The Student-Teacher Relationship" by Schlechty and Atwood (2001).

Summary of Article:

• Teacher-Student relationships, like all forms of relationships are reciprocal. It is said that when a teacher "lost control" of the class, it is actually the student or students who "gained control"

• Teachers are influenced by students who control resources that are social in nature and consist of power (the capacity to influence), where these students who have access are because of their relative positions in particular social systems

• Student as Boundary Threat: teachers are more likely to response to the influence of students whom they perceive to have contact with powerful community members

• Student as Insider: a student's capacity to successfully influence the teacher may also be based on his relative position within the social system of the classroom

Linkages to School Context:

• Quality of School Experience: the article touched on two key components in the QSE's "Social Process", namely "Teacher-Student Relationship (TSR)" and "Peer Relation (PR)"

• SEM: it is also reflected in our SEM Criterion 5.1 where we examine the processes of identifying students' needs, SEM Criterion 5.5: Student Leadership

• Quality of Relationships: in the core theory of success, we all understand that quality of relationships is the critical link that binds all other areas, hence based on that it is assumed that with a weak link in relationships, success becomes difficult to sustain

Possible Recommendations/Insights:

• Investing in relationships is, according to Stephen Covey, a Quadrant 2 activity, which means you need to act on it as it does not act on you. Hence it is important but not urgent. As a result, we sometimes ignore investing in relationships as we are too focused on working on things that are "urgent". It is "urgent" to finish the syllabus. It is "urgent" to just get things done first. And we neglect "investing in relationships"at our own peril.

• Before we invest in relationships, we first need to understand that you cannot give what you do not have. For instance, if we do not have the knowledge, skills, and attributes; then it is difficult for us to "give" or teach others. On the same note, if we are not "secure" (as in feeling insecure), then how do we share or teach others how to be secure? In the classroom, if the teacher is not a lifelong learner him/herself, how can s/he encourages or be an example for students to become a lifelong learner?

• Therefore, one of the underlying foundation that one must have is "personal mastery". As an extension of a Peter Senge's 5th Discipline, Stephen Covey's 7 Habits, John Maxwell's 5 Levels of Leadership, and Jim Collins' Level 5 Leadership; we propose a three-level of "mastery"; namely Personal Mastery, Engaged Mastery, and Professional Mastery.

• In the Principles of Engaged Mastery(TM), we discuss about the 9 Principles that one must observe; where the first four principles (self-discipline, vision, rectitude, and legacy) are focused at a "personal" level. Once one has demonstrated their minimum mastery of these principles, they will then be prepared to move to the next level of "engaged mastery".

• At the "people" level (for engaged mastery), individuals will need to learn the rules of engagement. First, the "mind-set" is "we engage another person with integrity". This would mean, before we engage another person in conversations or for professional matters, we need to be clear in terms of our intentions. Covey calls this "Think Win-Win".

• The "skill-set" requires for engagement include learning to listen, learning to build rapport, learning to pace and then lead. As a process, we sometimes felt the urge to lead then listen.

• And the "tool-set" that is useful for honing the skills is the SCORE Model, which is used for coaching purposes (coaching is also a Quadrant 2 activity). If one has the "mind-set", "skill-set", and "tool-set" of engagement, s/he is then seen as exercising principle number five of the 9 Principles of Engaged Mastery.

• To exercise the remaining four principles (Synergy, Abundance, Leverage, and Empathy); we can then bring in the "professional" context. Here is where we identify the various environment in which we are operating in and that will decide the kind of "skill-set" and "tool-set" that we can use. But in order to do all that, we must have the "mind-set" at the level of Professional Mastery, which is "to engage another person with integrity to progress towards a common purpose".

Three things you can do:
So, the next time there is an opportunity to engage another person, you can do these three things:

1. Set your intentions before you start your conversation,
2. Exercise the principle of "engage" where you must engage the other person with integrity, and
3. Practice the three "Ls" of listen, learn, then lead

Your friend,
Melvyn Tan

The First Law of Ecology

Before we talk about ideas, we need to understand ecology.

Well, basically the term "ecology" was first coined by the German biologist Ernst Haeckel in 1866, who defined it as "the comprehensive science of the relationship of the organism to the environment."

The key words here are "relationship" and "environment". We need to understand that in the larger context of an all encompassing environment, organisms are related to each other one way or another.

Which leads us to the quote by Barry Commoner that "the first law of ecology is that everything is related to everything".

And from my observations, people who are deemed as innovative and enterprising are usually those that are able to put two seemingly unrelated areas together to create a new way of doing things.

One of the greatest individual with that ability is Leonardo da Vinci. Leonardo is a scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, painter, sculptor, architect, botanist, musician, and writer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest painters of all time and perhaps the most diversely talented person ever to have lived.

Another, perhaps, lesser known individual is Reed Hastings of "Netflix". Netflix rents movies on DVD using the Internet as the ordering platform and the postal service as its delivery system. How Hastings came up with the idea was because of a "late fee" that he incurred for returning a movie late, as the rental services charge a rental for the movie and a late fee for not returning on time.

As he was driving to the gym, he thought about the gym's business model whereby they charge a flat fee and do not monitor his usage. And that's how he came up with the business model for Netflix. Netflix has a huge library of movies where customers can choose from. It charges a flat monthly fee but restrict rental of up to four movies at any one time. Customers are sent their selection through the postal service and provided with a return envelope. They can choose to return the movie at any time and they can only rent another movie if they return the current ones.

Here is a classic example of using a business model of one industry to tackle an issue of another. At LINE Consulting - Singapore, we have also experimented with a similar idea in the past where we observed how the software industry was using the 30-day trial for their programs so as to enable the potential customer to experience it before buying. It has paid off handsomely through our LINEAR™ Program where Schools get to experience the kind of work we do before deciding if they want to engage our services.

One more example that we can quote is that of combining a cellphone, an iPOD, and an internet access machine; iPhone. When Apple introduced the iPhone it was not only a phone to die for, it also set the industry standard for smartphones and cellphones alike. Its touch-screen function is unrivaled (Samsung's Omnia doesn't even come close). Of course there are many other flaws, which Apple claims the iPhone 3G-S addresses those concerns such as battery life, copy and paste function, and an anachronistic 2 mega pixel built-in camera. Of course with Apple's ingenuity in marketing solved many of those issues.

With the above as the "mind-set", we will need to look at what is the "skill-set" required here. And that is to be able to bring together two or more seemingly unrelated areas together in creating a value proposition.

Three things you can do to enhance this skill that you already have is this:

(1) Over the next seven days, while driving or riding on the sub-way, pick any object that you come across. Then set a target for yourself to come up with as many uses as possible for that object. For instance, on day one, after picking an object, set yourself a target (say 7) and then challenge yourself to come up with seven usage for that object before you reach your destination. After doing that for three days, then set yourself a higher target, maybe 13. And then either you scale this target by increasing the number or by keeping the number but shortening the time frame. After doing this for seven days you would have activated your mind to finding relationships for a chosen object.

(2) For the next phase of another seven days, you would want to randomly pick not one, but two items such as "elephant" and "newspapers" and look for possible combinations from these two items. For instance, here we may think of using elephants as a logo for a newspaper or using newspapers to educate the public on why they should not buy ivory products. Again, set a target for each exercise and scale it over the seven-day period. For this, you would have developed the ability to find relationships when given two seemingly unrelated items.

(3) Now, for the next seven days, you will then identify a work area where you want to see improvements or you have an issue with. You will then search for plausible solutions by adapting practices from other industries. For this phase, we just want to explore possible solutions, so throw that "critical mind" of yours out of the window. Because having honed your skill-set of finding relationships in the first two phases, you are now better equipped to see the interelatedness.

Once you have done this exercise for 21 days, you will be prepared for using the "tool-set" provided by James Webb Young, in his little (but important) book titled: "A Technique for Producing Ideas".

Young stated that the key talent in generating new ideas is an ability to find relationships and patterns among things you already know. Which is why we want you do that exercise above to first hone the skill.

Now, with this five-step process you now have a structure or approach to help you generate ideas that work. Briefly, the five steps are:

Step 1: define the problem - frame the problem not too broadly or too narrowly.

Step 2: research relentlessly - it prompts lots of different thoughts about how to solve the problem. Some people call this step "brainstorming".

Step 3: let it cook - trust your subconscious mind to find patterns, combinations, and possible solutions to the problem.

Step 4: catch the ideas as it flies by - be alert to possible solutions that may come up, capture it - this is where you have to program your conscious mind to catch it.

Step 5: shape and polish - run the solutions in your head, with a group of people, "future pace" it and see what kind of criticism (real & imaginary)

For details on the five-step, please pick up a copy of Young's book or simply drop me an email for detailed description of these steps.

We hope you will experience tremendous success here. Please drop me a note to let me know how you are doing.

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Consistency

One of the key lessons I've learned from John C Maxwell when he was in town recently is consistency.

If you think about it, isn't it true that the real leaders are those that are consistent? Its not just about doing something only when it is convenient or when we feel like it.

For instance, when Lance Armstrong was training for the Tour de France, he didn't train only if the weather is good or when he is in the mood. He trained daily and day by day push himself a little further until he was ready for the race.

Take John C Maxwell as another example. He is committed to five key actions every single day and the result of it is that he's got a book published almost every year. The five things he is committed to are; read, write, ask questions, think, and file.

So, let's see how we can put this into action.

First, ask yourself this question; "what might be the list of things that you are committed to doing every single day?"

You may start with just one single action that you are committed to doing it consistently everyday for at least 21 days. For some of us it might be praying, for others it might be setting their intentions for the day before they start their day, while some may choose to read their goals every day when they get out of bed.

Second, ask yourself what is/are the reason/s why you chose that particular action. It is usually helpful if that action will lead you closer to your goal.

Certainly we are more likely to commit to that particular action if the motivation is towards an end-in-mind that we want to work towards. For example, some of us might choose to save ten dollars a day because after a certain time the amount saved will allow us to buy something we want.

Third, and most crucial is to ask ourselves; how is this action consistent with our values and beliefs? To illustrate this point, we just need to ask ourselves; how do we tell if someone is practicing what s/he preaches? We see if that person walk-the-talk.

For instance, in our work environment, the people who have your utmost respect are those that live out their values. Also it would be really tough for one to commit to an action that is incongruent with their values. If we believe that "you can't teach an old dog new tricks"; then it would really be trying for us to want to commit to looking for opportunities to develop people evryday.

That said, please take this opportunity to ask yourself; what might be an action that you will commit to doing it consistently on a daily basis that will help you move towards a goal and that that action is consistent with your values and beliefs.

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Been up in the "mountain"...

Dear friends,

You might notice of late that I've been quiet on the blog scene. In case you're wondering; I've been conducting some research and readings in three areas, chiefly; (1) leadership, (2) ideas, and (3) culture.

Over the next few weeks I will be writing again to share on my research and what I've learned and also to provide some useful tips for application.

And boy, am I excited about some of the findings that could help us answer some questions such as:
- how does one create an organization where everyone is willing to serve and lead?
- what is the best possible way(s) to sell an idea? [read: your vision, goals, and objectives]
- what do we do with people who do not conform to our organizational values; how do we change their mindset?

All three areas are relevant to any industry or sector, but of course you'd notice by now that my heart lies in the school sector.

But nonetheless, you will find these findings generic enough to be applied to whichever industry you're in; essentially because these are timeless principles.

To ensure that you do not miss out, I'd encourage you to sign up for the automated delivery of the articles into your in-box so that you can refer to it at your convenience.

You may sign up at this link (http://bit.ly/mASJg).

Thank you.

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Singapore, 44 years on...

As the Nation celebrates its 44th birthday this weekend, it is indeed exciting to take a sneak peek where Singapore will be 44 years from now.

But before we whip out the crystal ball, perhaps our history will give us a clue or two.

Back in my PSB-days, I was privileged to be chosen as one of the trainers for PMP, or Productivity Management Program. It was one of the compulsory programs that all officers have to not only attend, but also sit for a test. Failing which, the officer will have to re-sit for the course and the assessment, till s/he passes.

It was a course to inform or perhaps educate Singapore's journey towards a first-world nation. Briefly, we cover the progress from a labor-intensive economy to a capital-intensive one. Where machines replaced people (and lower value added work); it pushed the country to look at productivity. In other words, for each person employed, we should see an increase in output.

Then from capital-intensive, we moved to an investment-intensive one. Which means we no longer just focused on getting machines in, we are watching how each investment dollar can bring about a higher level of output.

Its not that we were crazy about production, but the higher the output, the higher our gross domestic product. Which in lay terms mean higher income per person. Then between the time I left the service up until now, it was generally focused on the service economy.

For a country to shift its dependence on services; we need two critical elements. One, people (and smart ones at that). Two, ideas (and good ones at that). However one may argue, the statistics speak for themselves. While we aim to tilt the scale towards a service economy, it is not working as well as it should.

One could argue that while Singaporeans are smart; ideas and good ones are far and few between. So, where does this leave us?

A common factor that runs through the years in keeping the country afloat is the inbound element. In the 70s to even till recently, Singapore rely mainly on foreign multinationals, foreign direct investments, foreign talents, and the likes. And this will also be the cornerstone of this country's development in the next forty years.

Imagine Singapore in 40 years time. Where would it stand in the global economy? For a start, the global economy will definitely be Asia-centric. Much like it has been US-centric in the last 100 years. In the year 2053, the world economy will be dependent on Asia.

However there is but one problem. Asia has a more diverse culture than Europe or US. Income disparity will also be wider than Europe or US. Language. And educational level too.

Where does Singapore fits in? Well, for a start, there will still be the dependence on foreign ideas. How it would pan out? This is my read.

This is the future.

In 2053, Singapore will be a mini-Asia (ex Japan and Korea). What that means is that, if you are from Europe or US; or even some other parts of Asia, you will come to Singapore. Because it is here where you will find a mini-Vietnam, a small India, a taste of Mongolia. How could this be possible?

One word, education (both pre-employment and continuing education).

And all this is possible because the government has developed this place to be an education-hub. And with good quality educational institutions (both mainstream and private), you will naturally draw talents to this place. If in doubt, count the number of brilliant people going to the US.

Once you draw the talents to this place, they will see for themselves the kind of possibilities and opportunities for them. Hence these foreigners after getting their education here may choose to stay here for a while. And since this place is highly competitive, if you don't make it, you leave. Just like New York.

So, for those who stay here, they are likely to be the ones that are more competitive, more enterprising, more resourceful, and of course, more good ideas. Hence, instead of looking at foreign investments, it is now foreign ideas.

It is good, as with the influx of new ideas, it will enable the country to generate a higher income or gross domestic product. Because ideas are not dependent on physical resources, ideas are non-competiting (meaning if you have an idea it doesn't cause me to be poorer of), ideas are exponential (meaning a simple idea can generate 1000%, 10,000%, or even 1,000,000%), ideas when mixed with other ideas can become a new idea, and the list goes now.

In other words, a country that depends on ideas will experience abundant wealth. As there are no limits. Hence, the government needs to create an environment that ideas are encouraged, ideas are given chances to be nurtured, ideas can lead to more ideas!

So where does this leave us?

One word - education.

What our Schools are currently doing will not only ensure the survival of Singapore, it will also increase the likelihood of survival for Singaporeans. It is time we ask ourselves, how are we nurturing ideas creation in School.

Do we give enough emphasis to encourage ideas? Not just for the kids, but what about the teachers? Are we ensuring that we are able to harness knowledge? Get our teachers to create knowledge? Do we have the systems to select, collect, and capture knowledge? Will we become a true knowledge-based economy?

Or will we see our children becoming employees (nothing wrong in becoming an employee) to these foreign ideas? Where because our children are unable to generate better, more valuable, creative ideas than the foreign ideas?

In summary I recommend three things we can look at:

(i) idea mind-set: we need a shift in paradigm towards being idea-rich. You don't need to have lots of money to be rich. You can be idea rich. What it means is that, banks should ask for ideas as collaterals. We also need to shift the mind-set towards "the best idea wins". So let's examine our own mind-set. How strong are we?

(ii) idea skill-set: we need a different set of skills. For instance, the ability to synthesize now becomes really important. Are we able to put two ideas together and come up with an even better idea? Or maybe to do a one+one = 100? Do we have the necessary skills? Its not just about being creative. That's so 2000. Its now about who have the ability to also sell those ideas.

(iii) idea tool-set: our environment must facilitate the growth of ideas. How do we give people the tools to make their ideas work? What kind of tools are these? Some are tangible, some are not. Laws are necessary but the societal acceptance of ideas abound is equally necessary.

Remember Victor Hugo said, "No army can stop an idea whose time has come."

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Key points from "A New School Leader in NY" (NYT: 7/31)

Some key points for us to reflect upon over the weekend?

1) hold teachers accountable for learning teaching skills that improve student performance,

2) a lack of arts education in the public schools, &

3) instructional and curriculum weaknesses that leave many high school graduates unprepared for college work.

Read full article here: http://bit.ly/cOtYW
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Excellence before Innovation? Or Innovation before Excellence?

I posed this question to the School that we were conducting a strategic planning session recently. Apparently, we have two schools of thought here.

Allow me to share my thoughts here.

Firstly, definition. To me, excellence is where someone has gone from unconscious competence to performing his craft with such high standard, his work has reached the level of excellence. In fact, it is because he can do it so well and is continually improving it that it is said that he is working at the level of excellence.

Innovation is where someone applies creative and critical thinking in the process of making quantum leap in improvements that create significant value. In other words, his end in mind being to create value means he has gone beyond just making incremental improvements.

With that out of the way, I'd describe the process as follows. In the beginning, one has to have the courage to undertake a particular task or choose a specific trade. Why courage? Because it may mean not subscribing to the deferred life plan (see "The Monk and the Riddle"). Or it may mean being true to yourself by embarking on a path that is aligned to your purpose in life. It requires courage because it may mean; earning less, putting in more hours, sacrificing on certain wants, etc.

Once that choice is made, one must make learning a lifelong pursuit. Learning from the best in the trade, learning more skills or content, or even learning from others outside the trade. However, this is merely head knowledge. Until one put it into practice, at best it will be retained; worse forgetting it altogether. Just try to recall your calculus unless you have still been putting it into use.

By practicing what's learned, one will then gain experience. But experience must be evaluated or it would result in making the same mistakes repeatedly. Hence, evaluating the experience will in turn feed back into learning. And then the cycle repeats itself.

Now, so how does excellence comes about? I believe excellence requires not only competencies, experiences (evaluated ones), it also requires the right attitude. Why? Unless one poses the right attitude, excellence will not happen. And attitude comes from whether the work that the person engages in is meaningful. And it is only meaningful when it is aligned to their core beliefs and their purpose in life.

Rarely, people advance to this stage. For those that do, they will definitely stand out in the crowd.

Once it is done with excellence, it means the person is willing to make further improvements in their work. Which again feed back into evaluated experience and learning. And of course it being aligned to their purposes and core beliefs; it further reinforces the behavior and gives them even more satisfaction.

Now, even that is not enough to go from good to great. It will only be at the level of "best". Hence, until creativity and innovation come in, he will not go from best to great. However, innovation must significantly not just add value; it must create value. Put it differently, it means the reason why anyone should innovate should be for win-win scenarios. If its only innovation without creating value for customers and only benefiting oneself, at some point in time it will at best be ahead of its time. At worst, it is only a novelty.

Only when it is innovation with a win-win mindset can it bring about value for both client and yourself. And that win-win mindset is also called the abundance mindset. In other words, unless one sees that it is possible to give more and also receive more; it will not be a win-win situation. And I believe that the way to see abundance is where because innovation is made possible through ideas that work, and ideas are limitless, hence it is possible to give more and also have more.

Hence my believe that "excellence" before "innovation".

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Happiness - An Eternal Emotion

In a recent article in NYT, Simon Critchley wrote about happiness and how it is God-like (http://bit.ly/19qDAS).

What I found to be profound was his citation of Ludwig Wittgenstein - "Tractatus" that "the eternal life is given to those who live in the present."

Reason I can identify with that sentence was my personal subscription to Zen philosophy. The main thesis being "be in the present". Whatever you are doing right now is the most important thing. Whoever you are with is the most important person. And the best time to do anything is now.

Stated simply, and in non Zen-language, is to be totally present in the here and now. You cannot be doing something but with your mind thinking about what happened last night as you cannot go back and change things. Likewise focusing on what to do next is fruitless as you cannot do anything right now.

For instance, when spending time with your child, you should not be thinking about the meeting you had nor should you be thinking about the work that needs to get done later.

John Wooden says it this way; you need to give your 100 percent during training as you are not able to give just 60 percent and make it up tomorrow by giving 140 percent. At any point in time, you can only give up to 100 percent.

Therefore, I find that to do something and not regret about it later, as " time is nothing but the experience of the present through which one passes without hurry, but without regret". (Cited from the NYT article).

And to have an experience without regret is to be present, do it to the best of your ability (giving your 100 percent), and focus your mind on it totally (in other words, to not be distracted).

Can you imagine a air-traffic controller who is not being present, giving only 60 percent of her ability, and getting distracted by her date with her dream guy after work? What if, because of that, she slipped and a plane crashed as a result?

That would be disastrous! Imagine she saying, well, tomorrow I'll give my 140 percent? If she has any conscience, how do you think she can live with the fact that lives were lost because she was not being present?

Ridiculous as you may say. But is it really?

Finally I believe it comes back to three fundamental principles. One, the concept of being present. We must not be held hostage by our past nor worry unduly about our future when engaged in any task. We can't change history and we can't do anything about the future until we get there. That doesn't mean you should live life without a care in the world. You should and it must be done at an allocated time. Not when you are doing something else.

Two, the idea of being true to yourself. People cannot see your intention but only your behavior. And intentions are clearly aligned to your values. And if you are a person of integrity, you will be doing whatever you are doing with the best of intentions. As we can fake it. But then your behaviors would not be consistent. And eventually it will show.

Three, the thing about your ability. If you are a 6 in performing a task, then you must give a 6 each time. Clients don't pay you to be a 4 when you are a 6. And of course, because you are a 6, you cannot be expected to be paid like a 9. Which means you should take the effort to improve but this is outside the scope of this discussion.

Hence, if we are present, with good intentions, and give your best everytime; of course with consistency, soon people will come to recognize that. And it will certainly lead to the eternal emotion that we all want; and that's happiness.

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

No Question is too Big

I admire the works of Jim Collins. Having read both "Built to Last" and "Good to Great", it has given me insights into two key concepts. Chiefly, Right People on the Right Seats and Hedgehog Concept.

A recent article in The New York Times, "For Jim Collins, No Question is too Big" (http://bit.ly/1ar8cR), inspired me to relook at three key areas in my life. One is the use of my time. While I have always observed the use of time as an instrumental factor in determining if someone is (or will be) successful, I didn't have a clue how to set a goal in this dimension.

Collins has it spelled out. 53 percent on creative activities, 28 percent on teaching, and 19% on others. Obviously Collins' formula doesn't fit mine but it gave me an insight into how I would effectively allocate my time so as to fulfill my purpose in life. I do lots of consulting work currently and enjoy it. However, I do find myself doing certain low value-add activities that wears me and slows me down. Also, while I want to embark on researching on how to build engaging relationships, I find myself doing it on an ad-hoc basis or at best opportunistic.

In fact, if I were to allocate time to three key activities, it would be learning & growth, putting what I've learnt into practice and doing it with excellence (in other words, investing in up to 10,000 hours as Malcolm Gladwell puts it), and finally doing creative and innovative work (to create new materials which will generate multiple future growth paths). As a matter of fact, it ties in with my core values (and that of my firm LINE Consulting - Singapore).

This I find it to be an exhilarating breakthrough for me as it gives me an idea of how I should better invest in my time. As Linkin Park sings it, "Time is a valuable thing, watch it fly by as the pendulum swings, watch it count down to the end of the day, the clock ticks life away".

The second key area is in the way Collins manages his firm. In the article it was said that he keeps his overheads low and runs a tight ship by hiring only five people. And that idea came from none other than management guru Peter Drucker that if you build a big organization, then you will end up managing it instead of allocating your time to the most productive and meaningful work.

And finally, the third key area is about being completely Socratic. Though, as NLP-trained, I've learnt the technique of asking questions using different techniques, I find the concept of Socratic questioning absolutely seductive. Reason?

It challenges assumptions. We all make assumptions in life. An as a trained economist, of course I for one should understand and appreciate making assumptions more than others. However assumptions also get us into trouble. Therefore, getting people to re-examine their assumptions doesn't always mean to get them to come up with different answers. Often times, it get them to re-look at the same issue from a different perspectives. And with different perspectives come alternative solutions or at least to gain greater clarity in why people do things.

That said, I'm all set for the next 99-Day phase for this year. Bring it on!

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Reverse Mentor

I was reading "Six Ways to Boost Creativity" from the Corner Office and one of the ideas really caught my attention. That of hiring a "reverse mentor".

The idea is as follows: as the world is changing at such a rapid rate, it would be beneficial to hire someone younger (and more in touch with NG - new generation) to get you up to speed on new trends and developments; such as leveraging on social networking or blogsphere.

Reason I found it to be really attractive is this. Many of us might have the experience of the "old economy" that we are unfamiliar or even intimidated by the "new economy". I didn't use Facebook until much later (am a laggard in this respect) as it initially didn't have the appeal for me and also I didn't think it fits my professional profile.

It was not until I recognized the power of social networking and how I can leverage on it as a tool for marketing, positioning, and branding that I decided to take another look. Even that still didn't give me a compelling reason to make the leap. Then, after realizing that social networking if done right, in a professional manner, with consistency, and done within the context of my work-flow; it can not only be effective, it can also be profitable.

During my trip to Japan to attend the International Aikido Federation in 2008, I uploaded pictures and wrote about the event as the day unfolded. It generated much talk among my fellow Aikido practitioners who were in Singapore. In fact some of them visited my Facebook account throughout the trip in order to be updated on what's happening. I was flattered.

And then it struck me that using similar platforms (such as Facebook, Twitter, and Blog) could allow me to update my friends and Schools that I work on (i) what we've been up to, (ii) share about our new developments, and (iii) engage them through meaningful and valuable discussions such as this.

In fact, through this channel, we have been able to let the Schools know that we were engaged by MOE to designe, develop, and deliver the training for School Staff Developers (SSDs) in April. And to my delight, several key people from Schools in fact asked me about the training.

That definitely gave us that added credibility that we've already established with Schools. Also, since they are on my Facebook, I didn't have to 'push' that information to them; they were actually 'pulled' to it.

An added point is that, as people will trust their friends more than advertisements; the fact that these photos were made available to "everyone" and not just "my friends" gave us that ability to share with others what we do in ways that were previously not available to us.

So, while I didn't exactly have a reverse mentor; I did manage to tap into this rich resource nonetheless. So, in case you are wondering, we are off to the next NG tools to give us the leverage to take us to 3.0.

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Life's Disappointments are not God's Denial

We all experience failures at some point in our lives. As Einstein said, "anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new." And if we look at it from another perspective; as Edison did, "I've never failed, I've just discovered 10000 ways not to do something."

Einstein's quote is about our willingness to make a mistake, or fail at something, so as to discover a new way of doing things; while Edison's quote speaks about failure as an evaluated experience.

As leaders, we ourselves must learn to reflect on our behaviors each day, so slow down the thinking process and evaluate if and how we can make improvements in our daily activities so as to achieve our ultimate goal, and that is to fulfill our life's mission.

I'm not sure what's yours but its probably very different from mine.

Three points I would like to make on today's discussion about "life's disappointments are not God's denial".

First, as a believer I know that God has implanted in each of us a mission in life. That mission is to do great things. It may seem insignificant to another but the point is, if we go about it each day to work towards fulfilling that mission; we would have led a full life.

Hence, as leaders we must not see our roles as in nurturing talents but to believe that everyone already have the talents. Meaning, we must believe in the intrinsic worth of every individual.

John Buchan said it nicely that the task of leadership is not to put greatness into people, but to elicit it, for the greatness is there already.

Second, as leaders we must recognize that when people fail, we must work with them to evaluate their actions and identify why they failed. Was it due to conditions that were beyond their control or was it due to reasons within their influence.

Here, individuals who are proactive will look within to identify the reasons why they fail. Reactive ones will look outside for excuses for their failure.

As John Maxwell puts it, "it's easier to go from failure to success than from excuses to success". I find that to be so true.

Third and final point is this. We will all experience some form of disappointment in life. But to think that it is because of God's denial is definitely a faulty thought. Since our thoughts about things will affect our feelings about it; we cannot deny the fact that if we have empowering feelings the results will greatly differ if we habor disempowering feelings.

Hence, how can we get ourselves to feel happy regardless? I believe the secret lies within. And that means, if we are being "present" and focusing on what we are currently doing (and not be held hostage by the past nor worry about the future - where both are outside your span of influence) and do it to the best we can, given our ability, we will always be in that state of happiness.

And what could be better than be doing something, which you know it's God's plans for you, your life's mission? I'll leave you with a verse from the Bible.

Ecclesiastes 2:26 (NIV) - To the man who pleases Him, God gives him wisdom, knowledge, and happiness, but to the sinner He gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Three Key Lessons from Apple (without Steve Jobs)

By now, some of you would have heard me talked about how I've come one full cycle with regards to computers.

You see, I started with a Mac and have recently only bought a Mac. What's funny is that, at that point in time when I bought it (more like my Dad got it for me), Jobs was in some kind of trouble with the Board. I recalled my friend's (who introduced me to the Mac) mom commenting that would Apple go downhill as Jobs was no longer the boss. Our replies were, nay, how can a company be so dependent on just one person.

Boy, how wrong we were. Of course since Jobs return in 97, Apple has made the quantum leap to a phenomenal company with super-normal profits (and not to mention the securities prices).

Now in 2009, when my purchase of the MacBook Pro, Jobs is on medical leave of absence. Am I in trouble again? Well, I must say in this respect I am indeed a laggard as there were so many considerations; from software to accessories to learning how to use the machine.

I finally took the plunge anyway as the ability to equip myself with the necessary resources to boost my productivity and also to enhance my ability to produce aesthetically desirable materials (clearly the PCs just doesn't do it) was just too huge to ignore.

Then I got this e-newsletter from Bnet.com which carries the article on "Life at Apple after Steve Jobs". (You may read it here - http://is.gd/FVPz)

The article said that Jobs is a one-of-a-kind business icon and history shows that without Jobs, the Apple is likely to flounder. What really caught my attention was the three key lessons. Let's look at each lesson in turn.

(1) Just like people, all companies have lifecycles. This should come as no surprise since people run them.

I agree with the first point, as in Economics we studied economic cycles, this is no stranger to me. In fact, all companies go through the four phases. If the business survives the "survival" phase, then it will go on to the "growth" phase, before it comes to the third phase (which could be different for different companies - see my other discussion on Strategic Inflection Point) and finally the fourth phase.

This third phase could be "dominance" as in the company dominates the industry, or it could be the "maintenance" phase where the business simply maintains (and defends) its existing market share (which could be due to a resource issue), or it could experience a "phenomenal" era, where the company grows at an exponential rate through new markets and/or products.

Then for sure, it will come to the fourth phase. This finally phase could be demise for some or it could be where companies do great things, as in Good to Great (Jim Collins). Some companies do not even go through Phase 3 (or just briefly) before they go into Phase 4 and fade out. Some do well in Phase 3 but lost direction and fizzle out. There are just few that go from good to great in Phase 4.

I think part of how to move from good to great can be found in the other two lessons:

(2) When it comes to evaluating companies and businesses, people tend to have very short memories - here it is so true for companies or businesses, especially in the service sector. And that is why it is critical that companies remember to, ever so often, dominate the mind-share of consumers. Then again decide early if you want the premium or mass market for the strategies greatly differ.

My wife and I eat out a lot and recently we visited a higher-end restaurant and one of the main thing I noticed was that the servers acknowledge most of the customers by name. It was highly personal and though we are not one of the regulars; we were well attended to nonetheless. Also, with the personalized treatment, it effectively engages people at the emotional level (people like it when being treated in a focused manner). This is even more critical for service industry as barriers can be low when it comes to product/service innovation, which leads us to the next lesson.

(3) Product and brand momentum counts for something, but when a technology company stops innovating, it's over. I would like to add that it applies to service companies as well.

In our firm, we seek to innovate in the way we serve, in our product offerings, in our marketing. Reason is because I believe innovation is the only way to not just survive (phase 1), grow (phase 2), dominate (phase 3), and finally hopefully do great things as an organization that people want to be a part of and customers want to be associated with us.

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

The Law of Empowerment

By Dr. John C. Maxwell

Biographers universally agree that personal insecurity factored heavily in the downfall of former American President Richard Nixon. Rather than empowering others, President Nixon clutched at power so tightly that he lost all sense of morality and ethics.

Obsessively fearing his critics, Nixon authorized a domestic espionage group to spy on his political opponents. When members of the group were caught burglarizing the Watergate Hotel, Nixon tried unsuccessfully to cover up the incident. Eventually he resigned in shame, having left a dubious legacy of scandal.

Nixon's behavior in office violated the Law of Empowerment: Only Secure Leaders Give Power to Others.

Today, at a time when managers must do more with less - less people, less budget, less margin for error - leaders have no choice but to empower followers to share the load. Insecurity simply isn't compatible with survival. Even so, human nature resists empowerment. Let's look at three common tendencies that make empowerment a tricky task.

Three Obstacles to Empowerment

1) Desire for Job Security

The number one enemy of empowerment is the desire for job security. Weak leaders worry that they will become expendable if they train up talented subordinates. As a result, they retain a monopoly on select knowledge in the hopes of positioning themselves as irreplaceable. Some misguided leaders even go as far as undercutting those they perceive as potential rivals. Not wanting to be surpassed, they intentionally make others look bad from time to time.

Insecure leaders who prize job security are fiercely territorial. They stake out their turf and refuse to delegate. They want to be the go-to-guys so badly that they may senselessly refuse to train and empower others who could offer them assistance.

The truth is that the only way to make yourself indispensable is to make yourself dispensable. In other words, if you are continually able to empower others and develop them so that they become capable of taking over your job, then you will become so valuable to the organization that you become indispensable.

2) Resistance to Change

Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck asserted, "It is the nature of man as he grows older to protect against change, particularly change for the better." By its very nature, empowerment brings constant change in that it encourages people to grow and innovate. Change is the price of progress.

Insecure leaders view change as a threat rather than an opportunity. They fear change rather than inviting it. As a consequence, insecure leaders have been known to act coldly toward newcomers. They cling to the established order and generally resent anyone who may disrupt it. Instead of empowering incoming personnel, they avoid working with them.

3) Lack of Self-Worth

Many people derive personal value and esteem from their title or position. When either is threatened, they feel as if their self-worth is under assault. Accordingly, they will firmly resist anyone or anything that could reduce their status.

On the other hand, author Buck Rogers says, "To those who have confidence in themselves, change is a stimulus because they believe one person can make a difference and influence what goes on around them. These people are the doers and the motivators." They are also the empowerers.

Summary

Enlarging others makes you larger. The purpose of power is to be distributed, not hoarded, but only secure leaders are able to give their power away. Recognize and resist the natural inclinations to keep a tight grip on power. In the long run, you'll be rewarded for letting go.

I'll close with a quotation on empowerment from decorated war hero and former vice presidential candidate, James B. Stockdale:

"Leadership must be based on goodwill... It means obvious and wholehearted commitment to helping followers... What we need for leaders are men of heart who are so helpful that they, in effect, do away with the need of their jobs. But leaders like that are never out of a job, never out of followers. Strange as it sounds, great leaders gain authority by giving it away."

"This article is used by permission from GiANT Impact. Find other leadership content, resources, training, and events at www.giantimpact.com."
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Life's experiences - evaluate & improve

Someone once said that life is but a collection of experiences. When you speak to someone, isn't it true that if he has more experiences to share, that person is also more interesting to talk to; compared to another who has little or no experiences.

I find this to be true. During my training sessions, the more experiences I share with the participants about what we went through with other Schools; the more interesting the sessions turn out to be.

However, I also believe that with experiences we will need to exercise two key principles in order to get the most out of the experiences. One, is to evaluate or reflect on the experience. Say, if the experience was conducting a session where participants didn't find it useful, it is important to evaluate or reflect on that experience.

Here, evaluation must be done looking from a different perspective or seen from a bigger picture point of view. In other words, evaluated experiences give us perspectives. It could shed light on areas that we fail to see. Give us insights into certain angles of the same issue.

This will also give us plausible solutions or different ways of addressing the same issue with better results. Here, it brings to light what better ways we can approach this matter and bring about different and better outcomes. At this point, it is important to bring in the second principle; improve or to have the self-discipline to make changes to bring about better results.

It is not enough to know that we need to do things differently. It is also not sufficient to think of the possible ways to do it. We must also act on it. Once an experience is evaluated, we must take the steps to improve our approach. So that we will not be dragged into the same outcome again. The situation might be the same but the approach will be different and hence it might bring about better results.

So remember; while life is a collection of experiences, these experiences must be evaluated and the approaches must be improved so as to bring about better outcomes!

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Strategic Inflection Points

Andy Grove wrote about the Strategic Inflection Points (SIP) in his book "Only the Paranoid Survive". Its an old book but I think it contains a timeless principles that we can all learn from.

Long story short, organizations go through various SIP and what they do during and afterwards determine a large part of whether they will survive or not.

To relate it to personal experiences; its pretty much the same for individuals. Three short pointers for today:

1) Anticipative: it is one skill that if we master it will give us that significant leverage over many others. To prepare and train yourself for the SIP to happen. Just like what John Wooden said, "when the opportunity arrives it is already too late". So ask yourself how can you prepare and train yourself?

2) Seize the day: when you are well-prepared and the opportunity shows itself, be sure to act and act fast and decisively. Show no hesitation and move like a general would when the battle is fought.

3) Learn the lessons: no one can win every battle. What's more important is that we learn the lessons that come with it. Don't fall into the category of people who wonder what happened. Reflect and ask how else can you do it differently. It always start with self.

That said, it is my reflection of Chapter 3 of Leadership Gold on "defining moments".

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

What if I was wrong

Discipline, discipline, discipline.

As guys, most of learned about true discipline was went we served as conscripts. During my time, I was to get up at a certain time daily, polish my boots, clean my rifle, go on about our daily routine of a series of exercises. I hated it. Because it is against my will to do all these. What choice do I have but to comply.

Now, when we get a chance, our discipline is largely a factor of our willingness to comply to ourselves.

But what if I was wrong? By being disciplined it actually brings about no benefits whatsoever?

Let's look at the natural laws surrounding "discipline". I believe there are four natural laws that govern self-discipline. And they work for you if you acknowledge them and they work against you when you ignore them.

First is time. If you acknowledge it and make optimal usage of it by being self-disciplined; it works for you as you will see that the investment you've made will pay off everytime, like clock-work.

Second is relationships. If you acknowledge the importance of relationships and maintain self-discipline; you will almost always gain a better relationship than otherwise.

Third is money. Invest it wisely according to a set of self-disciplined rules and you will reap your rewards; else you will lick your wounds.

And finally, its health. Maintain a self-disciplined lifestyle and you will be in the pink of health. Otherwise, you will be spending time and money trying to get it back and at the same time cannot achieve quality relationships.

So, what if I was wrong? I will be engaging in time-wasting activities, spending money where it offers no real returns, beating my body up with toxic waste, and having lousy relationships with others.

So, what if I was wrong? Well, big time loser I will be!

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

99-Day

For those of you who have been following me on Twitter, you would have noticed that I've set myself up on this 99-Day journey.

A refresher for those not familiar; the 99-Day was modeled after President Obama first 100-Day in office. But I tweaked it a little, where I chose 99 instead of 100 because I have always been fascinated with the number "9". In case you are interested, according to numerology, my life path is also a 9!

I am reserving the 100th day for reflection and also to take another 9 days to set my targets for the next 99-Day journey. Personally I find this rather intriguing. First, to see the year in 365 days format seems too long for me. Besides, it would be a disaster to go all the way just to find out I wasn't even close in achieving my goals!

Second, seeing it in three phases of 99-Day appears to be better too. Perhaps I prefer seeing the year in three blocks rather than four (quarters). Additionally, if I set my goals for each quarter, then I may not have time to reflect and review my achievements and misses. So, in three phases of 99-Day allows me to work on my goals during each phase, after that take 1 day off to reflect and then take another 9 days to set goals for the next phase.

Third, it also allows me to measure up against my goal for the entire year. Giving me the opportunity to adjust my goals or to work harder on areas I've neglected.

As a concluding note, my professional goals were all achieved or even surpassed. But there are some personal and people goals that I will need to work harder on. So, off to my retreat for the 100th Day!

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Where there is no vision...

...the people perish. (Proverbs 29:18)

Helen Keller once remarked that there was one thing she knew of that was worse than being blind; it was to be able to see but have no vision.

The vision as the end in mind is so essential. And all leaders have seen in their minds' eye what the end goal is like. It is essential, if not critical, that we need an end in mind in our lives.

Imagine waking up each day and having no objectives to work towards, that's like it really doesn't matter whether you wake up or not!

Another reason why having a vision is so essential is this: everything that you now see; the plane and telephone all existed in the minds' eyes of the Wright Brothers and Alexandra Graham Bell.

But before we can have that visual representation of what we want to create, we need to unleash our imagination. Einstein said, "imagination is more important than knowledge". I totally buy-into that because given our existing knowledge (or thinking or paradigm or mindset) we cannot think about new possibilities unless we imagine, fantasize, day-dream. (So quit telling your kids to stop day-dreaming)

Einstein also said, "the current problems we have cannot be solved by our current level of thinking". That's why Covey preaches about changing behaviors lead to incremental improvements; while changing our paradigm (or current level of thinking) lead to quantum improvements!

So, leaders do (and I must) have a vision, an end-in-mind, but they also (and I must) think differently from others [see John Maxwell's book "Thinking for a Change" or his upcoming book on "How Successful People Think"].

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

John Wooden’s Strategy to Find Happiness

Today I'll like to share with you one phenomenal individual that I have come to know. He is John Wooden.

John Robert Wooden (born October 14, 1910) is a retired American basketball coach. He is a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame as both a player (class of 1961) and as a coach (class of 1973). His achievements include 10 NCAA National Championships in 12 years while at UCLA are unmatched by any other college basketball coach.

He has a strategy in finding happiness and I'd like to share with you here.

John Wooden states that one should make and keep nine promises to find happiness. They are:

1. Promise yourself that you will talk health, happiness, and prosperity as often as possible.

2. Promise yourself to make all your friends know there is something in them that is special and that you value.

3. Promise to think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best in yourself and others.

4. Promise to be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.

5. Promise yourself to be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.

6. Promise to forget the mistakes of the past and press on to greater achievements in the future.

7. Promise to wear a cheerful appearance at all times and give every person you meet a smile.

8. Promise to give so much time improving yourself that you have no time to criticize others.

9. Promise to be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit trouble to press on you.

Now, how's that for happiness?

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Leadership... It's all about me!

Of course it's all about me! What were you thinking?

Now before you slam it down on me, hear me out yeah?

To paraphrase Gandhi, I must be the change that I want to see in the world. Hence of course leadership must first be all about me.

Until I am able to effectively lead myself, I can forget about leading others; let alone engage them. John Maxwell, in Chapter 2 of Leadership Gold, talked about the most difficult person to lead in the world is myself.

Walt and Selby Kelly themselves wrote and animated We Have Met the Enemy, And He Is Us in 1970. Covey said, "when you think the problem is out there, that very thought is the problem".

Hence, going by the wisdom of so many great men, I've come to believe it is without a doubt the truth. In fact, in the Principles of Engaged Mastery (TM) program, we urge participants to first master the art of self-mastery through the continual practice of four key principles: self-discipline, vision, rectitude, and legacy.

I firmly believe if you find a leader, look out for his level of self-discipline. You'd be amazed. Successful people hate it as much as less successful people when it comes to taking action. What makes them successful is their ability to subordinate their feelings and do it anyway. Less successful people just look for reasons or excuses for not doing it.

Another area that we can learn from leaders is how they manage their actions around time. There is no way anyone, save God, can manage time. Its simply a misnomer. But what we can manage is what we would within a given time-frame.

David Allen, the founder of Getting Things Done, taught me about the 2-minute concept. He said, if something can be done (and be done with it) within 2 minutes; do it. Don't wait, don't procrastinate, don't re-schedule it. Reason is simple. It takes more than 2 minutes to re-schedule it; so you are better off just getting it out of the way.

Will be back with the other three; reaching my stop in the subway.

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Feelings Follow Thinking

One of those phases that has always been on my mind is, "why do we do what we do when we know what we know"?

Covey said, "common sense doesn't mean common practice".

As I attempt to uncover why do these happen, I found that John Maxwell also talked about this in "Go for Gold", where in one of the chapters he discussed "Feelings follow Thinking".

A good model that I refer to a lot and guides me in the many things I do is Gregory Bateson's neurological level of change. Bateson talked about the five levels; identity, values/beliefs, capabilities, behaviours, and environment.

Several people, including myself, have adopted and adapted this for their (my) work. Some replaced it with mindset, assumptions, actions, and results. For me, I add another dimension before identity; spiritual and uses a collective sum total of each level for an organizational context.

Today, let's just look at it from an individual's perspective to explain "feelings follow thinking".

Let's examine our actions. Our actions today will bring about the kind of outcomes tomorrow. In other words, our outcomes today were a product of our actions yesterday. In this times where the economy is in a tail-spin, how prepared we are is a function of what we have done in the past and it is also the environmental landscape in which we operate.

For instance, if we have always taken personal responsibility in our own development; in today's climate because of our cutting-edge knowledge and skills we will be spared the pink-slip. However, trained as we may be, if the organization we work for is not able to withstand the onslaught of the recession, we'll be axed nonetheless.

But if you ask anyone who's been shown the door if they knew about it, the odds are they knew. So, if they knew about it, then why didn't they do something about it previously when there was an opportunity?

Chances are, their replies would range from times were good, we were too busy, we didn't have the time, or we didn't think it will happen to us.

All said and done, I believe it is all about feelings. But where do we get our feelings from? Let's examine this closely.

I believe context gives words the emotional dimension. In his book, Blink, Malcolm Gladwell talked about the experiment where individuals are showed a particular cluster of words and with that it evokes certain feelings. He went on to describe that if the words are shown in a particular sequence it evokes a feeling different from one where the sequence is changed.

That said, words (either flashed to us or said to us) can trigger certain feelings. In NLP we call this syntax. Studies have shown that if words were said to us, we were touched in a particular way, and in a certain type of environment we could feel loved.

Take for instance when giving feedback, do we tell the other person their flaws then give them the positive remarks or if we reverse the sequence it could result in very different reactions. What complicate matters is the fact that for different people, the same sequence could trigger different emotions.

Hence, understanding how particular type of feeling emerges and under what circumstances will give us a clue to how to re-create the same feelings over and over again.

Now, what's the benefit of that, you might ask. Think back to a time when you did something exceedingly well. Whether it is in the classroom or when you were making a great presentation. How would you describe the feelings? Did you feel resourceful or engaged or was it just a "flow"? What is it? Until we are able to identify those feelings, can we then narrow down to the specific elements that need to be there in order for you to experience those feelings again.

And what about the things that occupied your mind? What were you thinking? Was it an alignment of your thoughts and your beliefs/values that triggered those feelings? Once we can identify these elements, we can then re-create all those factors in our mind over and over again so that we can feel that way on demand and hence get us to take those specific actions over and over again.

Another benefit of this experiment is this. It helps us make the necessary changes.
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Why I don't like Powerpoint

Those of you who have observed my presentation these days would notice that I am more comfortable using flip-charts than powerpoint slides.

The reason is very simple.

Using powerpoint slides constrain me, flip-charts give me the flexibility. One of the NLP presuppositions is this: there are no resistant audience, only inflexible communicators.

While powerpoint has its advantages, it usually restrict you during the presentations. I find that using powerpoint, you will often need to adhere to a certain script. That is find if you are presenting a paper to an audience of hundreds and there are no interactions between you and the audience.

However, if you want to connect with the audience, then powerpoint slides don't do it. Instead I find using flip-charts help me connect with my audience and also it gives me the flexibility to customize my presentation according to how the audience respond.

In order to do this effectively, there are five things that you need to do. First, you must have the wealth of information, knowledge, and content to begin with. Only when you have that can you then tailor the presentation accordingly.

Next, you must be able to provide an overview of your presentation in a manner that the audience can visualize. Once you have a visual representation of your presentation, you are already painting a picture of the desired state that you want to lead your audience to.

The third thing is to then go back to current situation and describe what are the existing situation like. With that description, you will now able to bridge the gap between the current and desired state.

And the final thing to do is to "walk" the audience through those steps again; from current, to bridging, to desired state.

Of course, while doing that you must listen carefully to the audience and then offer the content accordingly. That is why your wealth of information, knowledge, and content of your subject matter is the number one thing you must have.

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Work-Life Harmony

I recently spoke to one of my friends working in the financial industry and he was just sharing with me about how stressed up he is.

You see, as his company trimmed the workforce, he is being asked to cover what used to be others' work. As such, being fearful of retrenchment, my friend needs to be effective and efficient in his work. As a result, his workload increases and so does his stress level.

In view of this, it is said that the government is encouraging firms to focus even more on work-life harmony. I believe in Schools, this is even more essential.

My argument is this. There are certain industries, where being stressed up doesn't help. Pilots, surgeons, and education; just to name a few that comes to mind.

If you are onboard a plane, you want to know that the pilot is free from stress and is able to effectively get you safely to where you want to be.

If you are lying on the operation table, the last thing you want to know is that the doctor is not under pressure to meet KPIs that might compromise his performance during the operation.

In Schools, you want to know that your child's teacher is not hard-pressed to do 1001 things that are beyond their classroom duties.

I believe every job has its challenges and the ability (or expectations) to not only cope with these challenges but to excel and perform in a peak state requires a two-pronged approach.

Firstly, the management of an organization must first recognize what they can do to maintain or achieve this state called "work-life harmony". Schools have increasingly adopted the PIES approach, where the Well-Being Committee looks into the physical, intellectual, emotional, and social (or spiritual) domains. Some have similar approaches such as the EPMS (emotional, physical, mental, and social).

With this approach, or how the School defines the domains of Well-Being, the Committee is then able to introduce ways to address these different domains. For instance, we share with Schools that they can use the 4-D Approach (TM) in its deployment and review.

First, they need to Define what are the needs under each domain. What might be the physical needs, for instance? Here, we need to establish what these needs are. Would it be needs in the area of being and staying healthy? Let's say, for physical we are focusing on how our staff can stay healthy and with that what kind of benefits does it accrue to the individual and also to the School?

We may suggest that by being healthy; it not only contributes to the physical well-being of our staff but they also feel more energetic and confident. That way our staff will be better able to relate to the children. Another dimension could be that they become role-model to the students. And also it would lead to them taking fewer medical leave and hence lesser disruption to the classes.

Hence, once these needs are identified we can then look at how to Design programs or activities to drive it. We could adopt a eat-fruits day or having an exercise friday or simply through raising awareness of eating healthier food. Once these range of activities have been identified, we could then open it up for participation.

Recognizing that kicking a ball may not be everyone's cup of tea; with this range of activities we can then allow staff to pick and choose which activities suit them better. With that, the Delivery of our programs will be centered around how each program can best reach out to our audience. And hence giving us the flexibility to integrate some of these activities with existing ones. For instance, some simple stretching exercise or health talks can be integrated with the morning assembly programs.

Finally, after the delivery, it is now time to Determine the effectiveness of the programs and activities and that calls for different tools. It could be feedback, participation rates, outcome indicators, etc. Main point is, we need to know what's good and what can be done better.

Of course all these can be instituted but more importantly is the second-prong that needs further evaluation. The second-prong requires everyone to practice Habit 7: Sharpening the Saw. Unless everyone undertake this habit and adopt it as a way of life; the programs at best will encourage individuals to take this seriously.

So, let's us start the new month with a goal to at least address one dimension a week in the PIES domain. Beginning with week-one for physical, week-two for intellectual, week-three on emotional, and week-four on social (spiritual).

*You may combine emotional (self) and social (engaged) for week-three and allowing week-four for spiritual (meaning address your purpose in life).

Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)

Need to Belong

No man is an island, and for everyone of us, the need to belong is indeed one that can be, for some, insatiable.

Today, I'll like to offer four areas for our consideration as we build teams at work, family bonds, and of course culture in an organization.

The first area is in the area growth. Since the dawn of time, man has always the need for growth. Whether conscious or otherwise, whether we do finally take action or not is another issue altogether. However, we all want to grow, to improve our well-being, and to better ourselves. Hence in any organization, unless one feels that they are growing; be it learning new skills, testing new grounds, or breaking new frontiers.

Therefore, when building our organizational culture, we must provide opportunities for growth. Besides, the intensity of our growth gets magnified through working in teams. You see, it sometimes doesn't matter what the outcomes are but more importantly its what we did together. If in doubt, just observe what people talk about what they get together for gatherings; its about re-living those experiences again.

Another critical area is that of contribution. Ever wonder why when you ask people if time nor money is an issue, what would you choose to do and their answers would almost always be about how they can help or contribute. Hence, being part of any organization, the very least is where people feel that they have or can contribute.

See it in another way, its about how people are being valued. If we value each other as individuals; then we will respect their views, recognize the differences, engage their talents in tasks. The last thing anyone needs is for you to show them their views are not needed, that the fact that they are different is not tolerated, or to have them dig a hole then fill it up.

You see, only when people feel that they are valued, the best you will get out of them is willing compliance. In other words, they will only complete the task because they are obliged to being part of the organization. Well, unless you are running a death camp, you would want your team to take initiatives, to seek creative solutions, and to go the extra mile. That way, you can not only delight the customer, you will also have a competitive edge that your competitors can't copy quickly.

Closely related to contribution; people also want to feel significant. Now, this is not just about rewards or recognition. Though they are important, these are not the sole motivational factors. You see, in one of our previous discussions, we spoke about internal and external motivation. And an added dimension of that is away-towards motivation.

In order for individuals to feel significant, the matrix of away-towards and internal-external motivation must be examined. As such, if we only have motivational factors that are skewed to one or the other, we are then able to look at first are these factors aligned to our corporate values and then re-examine how we can introduce new or refine existing factors to accentuate significance.

The last area is connection or network. You see, leveraging on the power of "network effects", the more nodes a network has, the value of the network increase exponentially. Hence, establishing a well-connected network is extremely critical. Everyone wants to be part of a network that is able to increase their worth. In other words, the above three areas are actually dependent on the last area.

Because in an organization with a well-connected network, individuals in that organization will be better able to grow, contribute, and enhance their level of significance as compared to being part of an organization that does not have such a network.

Therefore, in order for us to build an organization that people want to be part of; these four areas must be worked on. Having said that, in which order do we start off with will depends on the level of the organization and its leadership.
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Sent from my Blackberry Bold)