I'm back!

It has been some time since I last blogged. How time flies! What have I been up to? Well aside from work, I think my life has been pretty ordinary. What do you expect?

I've recently finished Richard Branson's second book: Business Stripped Bare. It is more of an autobiography than a source of management secrets of Sir Branson's Virgin Enterprise. Branson's definition of Business is very simple. In his introduction, he explains that business is not about formality, or winning, or "the bottom line" or profit, or trade, or commerce, or any of the things business books tell you it's about.

"It is about what concerns us. If you care about something enough to do something about it, you're in business."

How true this is when applied to my life! When asked by my peers what I am doing in my co right now, their expressions is similar: disbelief.

"Is this your temp job?"
"You own this store?"
"Working for your family?"

Yada.Yada. Is it that strange that I chose to work in the retail line or some kind of low paying job? Why settle for less?

Not much of a mystery really. I like my job. I like the things that I learn. I'm not really into the money for the moment.

For my friends that understand me better, thanks for all the encouragment that you've given me =)

I've been digging my library of unread books and picked up "The Warren Buffett CEO". I'm so hooked to the book. It's excellent! Robert P. Miles went round interviewing and writting up on the lives and mindsets of some of the greatest CEOs that Berkshire Hathaway possess. It really amazes me how great leaders are able to break away from the odds and make difficult decisions to keep the company running. It makes me wonder how I will react when the time comes and I'm poised with the same dilemnas as them.

One particular verbatim that touched me was that of Tony Nicely, the Co CEO of GEICO insurance. When faced with increasing debts and financial and operating troubles, Tony Nicely was forced to downsize his company in order to keep GEICO alive. He says, "That period frmo 1975 to 1976 changed my life, at least as far as business is concerned. I started out as a young man, and in two to three years I became an old man. I had no middle age. because of all the hours I had to put in, for a couple of years, I was neither a father nor a husband. But it wasn't the long hoursor the lack of time off that changed me. It wasn't even the stress of not knowing, after 15 years with the company, whether or not it would still be there at the end of the day. What made me an old man was all the times that I had to look people in the eye- people that I knew well, some of whom had been with the company 20, 25, or 30 years- and say, "I'm sorry. I know you to be loyal and hardworking, but through no fault of your own, as of Monday you no longer have a job." I don't want to ever have to do that again."

The life of Mr Al Ueltchi is one to admire too. Not wanted to relinquish his childhood dream of being a pilot nor willing to let go of the opportunity to provide a more secure training ground for pilots, Ueltchi founded FlightSafety International while remaining a fulltime pilot of Pan-Am. It just WOWS me.

On a side note, I just deleted everything humanly possible of you. No more HP number, old messages, FB, friendster, MSN. Much as I enjoy your company I think we need some time apart for now. I don't want to wrestle with what can be as opposed to what shouldn't be. I'm sorry things had to come to this and even if I regret today's decision, I have no means of contacting you any more. It was a hard decision I've made up my mind and there's no turning back.

Goodbye