Just for Laughs

This is Rebecca. She has been with the company for many years. She is in the sales department and has won the best sales award several time. I do not recall Rebecca sending me any email before. That is why I was surprised when I got an email from her this morning. The subject of the email was “Just for a laugh” but I think it is a lesson for all of us especially the leaders in the office.

This is her email to me.

"How to Kill Creativity"

1. Always pretend to know more than everybody around you.
   
2. Get employees to fill in time sheets.
   
3. Run daily checks on progress of everyone's work.
   
4. Ensure that highly qualified people do mundane work for long periods.
   
5. Put barriers up between departments.
   
6. Don't speak personally to employees, except when announcing increased targets, shortened deadlines and tightened cost restraints.
   
7. Ask for a 200-page document to justify every new idea.
   
8. Call lots of meetings..
   
9. Place the biggest emphasis on the budget.
   
10. Kill any idea that is not your own
    

We need to remember that creativity is what keeps things growing, keeps the mind sharp and keeps people enthusiastic in all their endeavors, from home to work to personal life. So next time you have the opportunity to stifle creativity – Don’t – whether it is in the workplace, the kitchen, or from a smiling 3 year old. Thinking out of the box is what brings society its leaders. Restricting creativity only hurts oneself.

Thank you Rebecca.

Enjoy Nature

Today is Easter Sunday, the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He was crucified and now risen from the grave. For Christians, it is a victorious day as Jesus has conquered death and those that believe in Him and accept Jesus as Savior will have eternal life.

At 8.45 am, I picked up Stephen, Alicia and John to go to church. They are staying at the Sanctuary service apartment. It costs almost S$500 per day. They will be staying for 10 days and then head off to Jakarta for the Global Internet Summit. My church is only 10 min from where they are staying.

I am glad that they enjoyed their time in Singapore. It could be the food. More so, I think it is the friends they have around here. One time, someone asked me which is my favorite country since I travel so frequently. It really caused me to think. My favorite country need not be the most beautiful or the most dynamic place. It is the place where I have the most friends.

A few days ago, I brought Stephen and John to walk up the Bukit Timah Hill. Bukit Timah Hill at 164 meters is the highest land point in Singapore. The shortest trekking route to the summit follows the forest reserve which is just over 2 km and follows a paved road. We had a great time and it was fun.

The best part of this walk is that we are able to talk and share and get to know each other better.

We spend so much time working and making money that many of us don’t know how to appreciate nature and have fun.

Take time to get away and enjoy nature.

What is your net worth ?

I am at the airport now waiting for my flight to Singapore.

Last night, I did a presentation in Malaysia to 150 people on acquiring businesses and property with no money down. It is an interesting topic that attracted a wide audience. There are those that come and learn and also skeptics who think it is a myth. I shared with them my experiences on how I have acquired businesses and properties with no money or little money. Most of the ideas that I shared are not what ordinary people do. Successful people don't do ordinary things too.

At the end of the talk, I also encouraged them to attend the Financial Mastery seminar on this coming 12-13 May. This seminar is based on the teachings of Robert Kiyosaki.

At the end of the presentation, 25 people rushed to sign up for the seminar. During the question and answer time, one participant asked me what my net worth is. This is the first time someone has asked me this question. It is a very interesting question. Most people do not know how much they are worth. They do not take time to do an audit of themselves. There is also another group of people who are too afraid to know their net worth because they do not want to know the truth. The truth will hurt. They are the escapists. These two groups normally do not plan their finances and their lives. If you do not plan, you will very likely not go anywhere.

Your worth is not necessarily measured in the area of money. To the people who love you, you are priceless. To God, your parents, your children, your friends, you are priceless.
You are not necessarily measured by how much money you have made but how you have contributed to people’s lives. For example, if you provide financial help to a child from a poor family to help him finish his education, he will never forget your kindness.

No one really cares if you have millions for just yourself. If you give to the world your time and money, your net worth will be measured by your legacy.

For the next few months, I will be working on listing one of my businesses. I will be sharing with you the progress. It is hard work but very interesting.

You are invited to comment on my blogs.

Thank you, Richard

What you have now is enough to be successful!

I was only in Singapore for a day. Now I am on my way to the airport to fly to Medan, Indonesia.

It is very refreshing driving along the Pan Island Expressway (PIE) to the Changi Intertnational Airport. You can see plants and flowers all over. And then you will drive through a few kilometers of trees on both sides that have grown to form a tunnel sheltering your car as you drive through. I have never seen any place in the world that has so much greenery and gardens, integrated in an urban lifestyle like Singapore.

In 1972, the Singapore Tourist Promotion Board handed Lee Kuan Yew (Former Singapore Prime Minister) a report. Roughly, the report stated the following: "Singapore is not like Egypt, we do not have the great pyramid; Singapore does not have The Great Wall like China; Singapore does not have Mount Fuji like Japan; Singapore is not like Hawaii that has abundant waves, all we have is four seasons of sunlight, nothing historical and nothing else." The report kind of concluded that for Singapore to be a tourist destination was going to be an uphill task.

After Lee Kuan Yew read the report, he was angry. It was said that he put a comment on the report and sent it back to the Promotion Board and his comment was, “What else do you want God to give to us? Sunlight - isn’t sunlight enough? Later Singapore would use the four seasons of sunlight to grow plants, flowers and trees. In a very short time, Singapore became known as the "garden city". Singapore has won the third favorite tourist destination in Asia for many years.

God gave every country and city something, but not very much. Hangzhou was given West Lake. God gave Medan, Lake Toba. God gave Bangkok the Chao Praya River.

God gives individuals even less. For Isaac Newton, he gave him only an apple and the apple was even thrown down from the tree. Walt Disney was only given a mouse. And this mouse only appeared on the bread that was all Walt Disney could afford at that time.

The sunshine that God gives Singapore has made Singapore a garden city, the apple that God gave to Newton made him a leading scientist in history, the mouse that God gave to Disney made him an empire and brings happiness to both children and adults around the world.

Have you ever felt that God is unfair? Why did some people get beauty, height, money, position? What has God given to you?

If you have faith, whatever you have right now is already enough for you to be successful. You don't need more.

The very chair that you are sitting in now, if you have faith , is already enough for you to be successful.

Have Faith now! Have faith in what you do and who you are. You will be successful.

I pray he don't fall asleep along the way.

It is still raining. I have just finished my presentation at the Marriott Hotel in KL. With this rain and traffic jam, I am happy that the program started on time. More then 120 people braved the rain and traffic to come to my talk.

The car was waiting in the lobby to drive me back to Singapore. The night drive usually takes 3-4 hours from KL to Singapore. In this weather, I will probably be in Singapore at 4 or 5 am in the morning. I have a morning meeting with Yang Po (YP) and Siew Chong on the IPO listing issues. I jumped into the car. The driver is an elderly man with thick glasses. I prayed he doesn’t fall asleep as easily as I do. My thought floated to thinking of YP and the IPO listing. Better take a nap first so that I can be ready for the morning IPO meeting.

Those of you who are at the Marriott Hotel and are reading this, just bear with me for a day or two. I will upload the presentation powerpoint when I get back.