Thanks for the fun and laughter fellows.
The Invite
2 days ago
11 February 2009
Inebriated by hope
Recently I met up with this friend of mine for dinner. Throughout the dinner, snippets of his negative work environment and (some) unfriendly and weird colleagues were shared generously and the rest of us could only nod our heads in empathy with the continual comment of "Why don't you quit your job?"
By the time dinner ended, it was clear to me he was not going to quit his job anytime soon. Besides finding his work fulfilling in some ways (the job is not easy by the way), he was held up by the promise of hope, that the people and environment will change for the better. And that he wants to see this challenge through and not look back on this juncture and lament what could have been the possibilities if he had stayed on.
He returned me a book when I lent to him earlier, Nassim Taleb's "The Black Swan". As I was browsing through the book subsequently, this chapter stood out and I would like to just extract these few paragraphs which could remind him that he needs to move on when enough is enough.
======================
GD is a man of promise. He has just graduated from the military academy with the rank of junior officer, and active life is just starting. But things did not turn out as planned: his initial four-year assignment is a remote outpost - not too desirable a position.
GD thinks that his assignment in the outpost is temporary, a way for him to pay his dues before more appealing positions present themselves.
What is GD to do in this hole? He discovers a loophole, a way to be transferred after only four months. He decides to use the loophole.
At the very last minute, however, GD takes a glance at the desert from the window of the medical office and decides to extend his stay.....
Sure enough, GD spends the rest of his life extending his stay, delaying the beginning of his life in the city - thirty-five years of pure hope, spent in the grip of the idea that one day, from the remote hills that no human has ever crossed, the attackers will eventually emerge and help him rise to the occasion.
At the end of the novel, we see GD dying in a roadside inn as the event for which he has waited all his life takes place. He has missed it.
By the time dinner ended, it was clear to me he was not going to quit his job anytime soon. Besides finding his work fulfilling in some ways (the job is not easy by the way), he was held up by the promise of hope, that the people and environment will change for the better. And that he wants to see this challenge through and not look back on this juncture and lament what could have been the possibilities if he had stayed on.
He returned me a book when I lent to him earlier, Nassim Taleb's "The Black Swan". As I was browsing through the book subsequently, this chapter stood out and I would like to just extract these few paragraphs which could remind him that he needs to move on when enough is enough.
======================
GD is a man of promise. He has just graduated from the military academy with the rank of junior officer, and active life is just starting. But things did not turn out as planned: his initial four-year assignment is a remote outpost - not too desirable a position.
GD thinks that his assignment in the outpost is temporary, a way for him to pay his dues before more appealing positions present themselves.
What is GD to do in this hole? He discovers a loophole, a way to be transferred after only four months. He decides to use the loophole.
At the very last minute, however, GD takes a glance at the desert from the window of the medical office and decides to extend his stay.....
Sure enough, GD spends the rest of his life extending his stay, delaying the beginning of his life in the city - thirty-five years of pure hope, spent in the grip of the idea that one day, from the remote hills that no human has ever crossed, the attackers will eventually emerge and help him rise to the occasion.
At the end of the novel, we see GD dying in a roadside inn as the event for which he has waited all his life takes place. He has missed it.
Excerpt of judgement from ERA agent case
I have always admired how judges write judgements. No matter how complex the case is, written judgements have to persuade the reader of the rationale and logic of the decision and stand the test of time because all judgements set precedence in some way, unless refuted by a higher court.
Here, the presiding judge comments on the ethical responsibility of agents acting on behalf of their clients. I especially like the analogy at the end of the paragraph of a farmer (agent) of the chickens (client) negotiating with the fox.
==========================
I am of the opinion that the Mike and Jeremy were ethically wrong and in breach of contract by reason of creating a conflict of interest between their client and themselves. Jeremy was the contractual link between the plaintiffs and the defendant, but Mike was person behind the scheme, and his position in the defendant rendered Jeremy’s breach even more reprehensible. The misconduct of Jeremy, Mike and the defendant in question is a matter of such importance that I feel bound to explain as simply and as briefly as I can the reasons as to why I think that the agents’ conduct was wrong so that no property agent can claim ignorance after this. When a property agent is engaged to sell or buy real property, he (the agent) is the agent of the person who engaged him. That other person is his principal. The property agent has professional as well as specialised expertise and knowledge of the market that the property owner or buyer may not have. When he is so engaged, the agent has a responsibility to act in his principal’s interests – not his own, or his friends’, or his relatives’ or his boss’s. When a person has been appointed an agent of another, he becomes an extension of that other and so far as his endeavours are for the benefit of his principal he cannot create benefits for himself or his friends without due disclosure. That is the law of agency. This responsibility that the agent bears is the foundation of the ethical rules and contractual principles that prohibit an agent from acting in conflict of interests, and reaping secret profits for himself or his friends. The relationship that an agent has with his principal is fiduciary in nature; that is to say, it is one founded in trust. When a farmer negotiates with the fox on behalf of the chicken for its safe passage the farmer cannot have a personal interest in the deal or the chicken might be doomed for it has given its trust to the farmer and placed its safety in his hands.
Here, the presiding judge comments on the ethical responsibility of agents acting on behalf of their clients. I especially like the analogy at the end of the paragraph of a farmer (agent) of the chickens (client) negotiating with the fox.
==========================
I am of the opinion that the Mike and Jeremy were ethically wrong and in breach of contract by reason of creating a conflict of interest between their client and themselves. Jeremy was the contractual link between the plaintiffs and the defendant, but Mike was person behind the scheme, and his position in the defendant rendered Jeremy’s breach even more reprehensible. The misconduct of Jeremy, Mike and the defendant in question is a matter of such importance that I feel bound to explain as simply and as briefly as I can the reasons as to why I think that the agents’ conduct was wrong so that no property agent can claim ignorance after this. When a property agent is engaged to sell or buy real property, he (the agent) is the agent of the person who engaged him. That other person is his principal. The property agent has professional as well as specialised expertise and knowledge of the market that the property owner or buyer may not have. When he is so engaged, the agent has a responsibility to act in his principal’s interests – not his own, or his friends’, or his relatives’ or his boss’s. When a person has been appointed an agent of another, he becomes an extension of that other and so far as his endeavours are for the benefit of his principal he cannot create benefits for himself or his friends without due disclosure. That is the law of agency. This responsibility that the agent bears is the foundation of the ethical rules and contractual principles that prohibit an agent from acting in conflict of interests, and reaping secret profits for himself or his friends. The relationship that an agent has with his principal is fiduciary in nature; that is to say, it is one founded in trust. When a farmer negotiates with the fox on behalf of the chicken for its safe passage the farmer cannot have a personal interest in the deal or the chicken might be doomed for it has given its trust to the farmer and placed its safety in his hands.
08 January 2009
Book Review - Why Smart Executives Fail
I think I'll get the book.
Source of review: http://www.boardoftrade.com/bbro_page.asp?pageid=2596
-------------------------------
Published in Sounding Board, May 2006.
Dr. Owen A. Anderson
Why Smart Executives Fail and What You Can Learn from Their Mistakes — by Sydney Finkelstein (Penguin, 2004, New York)
This book focuses on failure and what you can learn from it. Author Sydney Finkelstein breaks the mold of most business books and writes about "worst practices" instead of best practices. His book profiles the seven habits of spectacularly unsuccessful people.
Habit No. 1
Many CEOs suffer from the illusion of personal pre-eminence and believe that they are personally able to control all aspects that will determine the company’s success or failure. Rather than scrambling to keep track of changing conditions, these CEOs succumb to this illusion and believe that they can create the conditions under which they and their company will operate.
Leaders who suffer from this illusion reveal this in the way they treat people. These leaders consider their employees as instruments to be used and materials to be molded. Business leaders who think this way often use intimidation and excessive behaviour to dominate the people who surround them.
Habit No. 2
Unsuccessful business leaders identify so completely with the company that there is no clear boundary between their personal interests and their corporation’s interests.
Habit No. 3
Ineffective leaders think they have all the answers. This is the image of executive competence that we’ve been taught to admire for decades. Movies, television shows and journalists continually offer us recognizable vignettes of dynamic executives making dozens of decisions a minute, snapping out orders that will redirect huge enterprises, dealing with numerous crises at once, and taking only seconds to size up situations that have obviously stumped everyone else for days. Generally these leaders are also control freaks who try to have the final say on everything their company does.
Habit No. 4
Unsuccessful leaders eliminate anyone who isn’t 100 per cent behind them.
Habit No. 5
Unsuccessful leaders are consummate company spokespersons and are obsessed with company image.
Habit No. 6
CEOs who succumb to this sixth habit tend to see obstacles as though they are minor difficulties, when many of them are, in fact, major hurdles. They constantly underestimate major obstacles. Executives who have achieved a string of successes are particularly prone to underestimate obstacles.
Habit No. 7
Unsuccessful leaders stubbornly rely on what worked for them in the past. Many CEOs on their way to becoming spectacularly unsuccessful accelerate their company’s decline simply by reverting to what they regard as the "tried and tested." These and many other high-flying CEOs failed, not because they couldn’t learn, but because they had learned one lesson all too well.
One of the most vital skills for a successful executive to have is the ability to create a learning organization. By studying mistakes and failures, we open up a window to learn not just what we shouldn’t do, but also what we should do. Smart executives succeed by learning from the mistakes of others, by understanding the underlying causes of failure and how to be alert to them, and by creating organizations that are open-minded enough to acknowledge and learn from their own mistakes.
Source of review: http://www.boardoftrade.com/bbro_page.asp?pageid=2596
-------------------------------
Published in Sounding Board, May 2006.
Dr. Owen A. Anderson
Why Smart Executives Fail and What You Can Learn from Their Mistakes — by Sydney Finkelstein (Penguin, 2004, New York)
This book focuses on failure and what you can learn from it. Author Sydney Finkelstein breaks the mold of most business books and writes about "worst practices" instead of best practices. His book profiles the seven habits of spectacularly unsuccessful people.
Habit No. 1
Many CEOs suffer from the illusion of personal pre-eminence and believe that they are personally able to control all aspects that will determine the company’s success or failure. Rather than scrambling to keep track of changing conditions, these CEOs succumb to this illusion and believe that they can create the conditions under which they and their company will operate.
Leaders who suffer from this illusion reveal this in the way they treat people. These leaders consider their employees as instruments to be used and materials to be molded. Business leaders who think this way often use intimidation and excessive behaviour to dominate the people who surround them.
Habit No. 2
Unsuccessful business leaders identify so completely with the company that there is no clear boundary between their personal interests and their corporation’s interests.
Habit No. 3
Ineffective leaders think they have all the answers. This is the image of executive competence that we’ve been taught to admire for decades. Movies, television shows and journalists continually offer us recognizable vignettes of dynamic executives making dozens of decisions a minute, snapping out orders that will redirect huge enterprises, dealing with numerous crises at once, and taking only seconds to size up situations that have obviously stumped everyone else for days. Generally these leaders are also control freaks who try to have the final say on everything their company does.
Habit No. 4
Unsuccessful leaders eliminate anyone who isn’t 100 per cent behind them.
Habit No. 5
Unsuccessful leaders are consummate company spokespersons and are obsessed with company image.
Habit No. 6
CEOs who succumb to this sixth habit tend to see obstacles as though they are minor difficulties, when many of them are, in fact, major hurdles. They constantly underestimate major obstacles. Executives who have achieved a string of successes are particularly prone to underestimate obstacles.
Habit No. 7
Unsuccessful leaders stubbornly rely on what worked for them in the past. Many CEOs on their way to becoming spectacularly unsuccessful accelerate their company’s decline simply by reverting to what they regard as the "tried and tested." These and many other high-flying CEOs failed, not because they couldn’t learn, but because they had learned one lesson all too well.
One of the most vital skills for a successful executive to have is the ability to create a learning organization. By studying mistakes and failures, we open up a window to learn not just what we shouldn’t do, but also what we should do. Smart executives succeed by learning from the mistakes of others, by understanding the underlying causes of failure and how to be alert to them, and by creating organizations that are open-minded enough to acknowledge and learn from their own mistakes.
07 January 2009
Lost and found Hawker: Eng Huat Fishball from old Zion Road hawker
I finally found my favourite fishball mee stall. This was the stall I frequented almost every Saturday with my wife at the old Zion Road (not the new one but the one directly beside the Boys Brigade) for its salty fishball and fishcake. I chanced upon it a few days ago after a failed lunch attempt to eat at Beo Crescent Hawker Centre as the food selection was lousy and there was a strong odour from the wet market section. So I walked over to the Havelock Cooked Food Centre and saw the familiar faces of the uncle and the old auntie (uncle's mother). I was so delighted to find this stall that I went back again the following day to eat mee kia tah ($3) with more chilli. I ordered a separate whole fishcake ($2) as well. Woo! Shiok!
04 January 2009
A little history on Deng Xiaoping
I was having tea with some colleagues last week when we discussed the many China engagements we had now. A little history was discussed and we could not agree on how and why Deng Xiaoping was purged and later returned to power.
As I just finished reading a book written by his daughter Deng Rong on Deng Xiaoping during the Cultural Revolution, I thought I might share some information I gathered from the book.
The Cultural Revolution was endorsed by Mao Zedong. Then premier Liu Shaoqi and 2nd man Deng could see the negativeness of its impact and hence instituted a few measures to try to mitigate and soften the impact largely by slowing down the process and interpreting it in a positive way.
For doing this, Liu and Deng were criticised, demoted and purged. Liu died before the Cultural Revolution ended. Deng was however spared although he was also purged and sent to Jiangxi to labour. It is possible that Mao understood that Deng was important for the economy of the country and did not want to destroy Deng.
Deng came back into the limelight when the economy turned bad and then Premier Zhou Enlai maneuvered to have Deng return.
On Zhou's death (he suffered from cancer), Deng was once against purged by the Gang of Four. He was reinstated only after Marshal Ye captured the Gang of Four (after Mao's death) with then Premier Hua Guofeng's endorsement.
After Mao's death, history books were rewritten and the Cultural Revolution became sort of a holocaust for the Chinese people. As for Mao, Deng labelled him 70% good and 30% bad. But that was of course after Mao's death.
The learning point for me is first the perseverance of Deng who bounced back time after time and served his country till old age, way past the official retirement age in Singapore. In fact, when he was first purged, he was already in his 60s.
Second, if anyone should think he is not moving fast enough in his career, he can take comfort in Deng.
Third, I believe Deng did not seek personal gratification nor power but instead for meaningful contribution to his country and country men. I think this was the reason how he was able to survive the tribulations in his life and not become cynical and defeated.
As I just finished reading a book written by his daughter Deng Rong on Deng Xiaoping during the Cultural Revolution, I thought I might share some information I gathered from the book.
The Cultural Revolution was endorsed by Mao Zedong. Then premier Liu Shaoqi and 2nd man Deng could see the negativeness of its impact and hence instituted a few measures to try to mitigate and soften the impact largely by slowing down the process and interpreting it in a positive way.
For doing this, Liu and Deng were criticised, demoted and purged. Liu died before the Cultural Revolution ended. Deng was however spared although he was also purged and sent to Jiangxi to labour. It is possible that Mao understood that Deng was important for the economy of the country and did not want to destroy Deng.
Deng came back into the limelight when the economy turned bad and then Premier Zhou Enlai maneuvered to have Deng return.
On Zhou's death (he suffered from cancer), Deng was once against purged by the Gang of Four. He was reinstated only after Marshal Ye captured the Gang of Four (after Mao's death) with then Premier Hua Guofeng's endorsement.
After Mao's death, history books were rewritten and the Cultural Revolution became sort of a holocaust for the Chinese people. As for Mao, Deng labelled him 70% good and 30% bad. But that was of course after Mao's death.
The learning point for me is first the perseverance of Deng who bounced back time after time and served his country till old age, way past the official retirement age in Singapore. In fact, when he was first purged, he was already in his 60s.
Second, if anyone should think he is not moving fast enough in his career, he can take comfort in Deng.
Third, I believe Deng did not seek personal gratification nor power but instead for meaningful contribution to his country and country men. I think this was the reason how he was able to survive the tribulations in his life and not become cynical and defeated.
03 January 2009
Dr Lee Kai Fu
For this post, I would like to introduce a person and his website. I came to know of Dr Lee Kai Fu, fomerly of Microsoft and now Google, from a book I was reading on Microsoft's strategy in China. Only after reading the book did I realised that Microsoft had been tapping the vast talents that China offers for some time. In fact, as testament to the importance of Chinese talent, Dr Lee rose to Corporate Vice President by the time he left Microsoft.
In China, Dr Lee led the research center of Microsoft in Asia and having a Chinese person helm it was strategic because of the need to work through the many layers of government. But my post is not on this subject of the 'guanxi' building.
Dr Lee became well known in China because of his Microsoft work. For the Centre, he had to recruit and interview many Chinese students and through this, he set up a website to offer advice to youths on career options and life in general. Like many Chinese, their roots are unshakebly Chinese and contributing back to the motherland was always on their mind. The website was one of the ways Dr Lee engaged the youths.
I visited the website and was impressed by the vast content available. The resources are open to anyone who can understand Mandarin. Shortly, I will share some of the articles which I find useful and translate them to English.
The URL is http://www.5xue.com/
In China, Dr Lee led the research center of Microsoft in Asia and having a Chinese person helm it was strategic because of the need to work through the many layers of government. But my post is not on this subject of the 'guanxi' building.
Dr Lee became well known in China because of his Microsoft work. For the Centre, he had to recruit and interview many Chinese students and through this, he set up a website to offer advice to youths on career options and life in general. Like many Chinese, their roots are unshakebly Chinese and contributing back to the motherland was always on their mind. The website was one of the ways Dr Lee engaged the youths.
I visited the website and was impressed by the vast content available. The resources are open to anyone who can understand Mandarin. Shortly, I will share some of the articles which I find useful and translate them to English.
The URL is http://www.5xue.com/
22 December 2008
07 December 2008
Subhas Anandan
The name Subhas Anandan should not be new to most Singaporeans, especially those who read the newspapers especially Wanbao and Shinmin. If you have not heard of his name, you will definitely recognise his face, thick beard and hair, looking almost fierce.
He is a well known criminal lawyer taking on the most infamous cases, of murders, rapes etc.
I used to have an unfavourable impression of him, that he is out for publicity.
But after reading his book and completing it over 2 nights, I only have admiration and respect for the man.
He was framed by some policemen in his younger days and it probably became a personal crusade for him that every accused person deserved a fair and proper trial. The first half of the book relates his life and what a life it was, of mischief, firm friendships, standing up to bullies, authority, personal defeat and standing up. It makes for engaging reading!
In the second part, he shares some personal thoughts on some of the sensational cases he has represented. He is very candid and forthright, offering comments where legal practices can be improved in Singapore.
Let me know if you wish to borrow the book. Better still, buy it!
He is a well known criminal lawyer taking on the most infamous cases, of murders, rapes etc.
I used to have an unfavourable impression of him, that he is out for publicity.
But after reading his book and completing it over 2 nights, I only have admiration and respect for the man.
He was framed by some policemen in his younger days and it probably became a personal crusade for him that every accused person deserved a fair and proper trial. The first half of the book relates his life and what a life it was, of mischief, firm friendships, standing up to bullies, authority, personal defeat and standing up. It makes for engaging reading!
In the second part, he shares some personal thoughts on some of the sensational cases he has represented. He is very candid and forthright, offering comments where legal practices can be improved in Singapore.
Let me know if you wish to borrow the book. Better still, buy it!
01 December 2008
Terrorists
While news on the Mumbai attacks flood the tv channels and newspapers, I can't help but think how on earth can one human being engage in such terroristic activity with such strong faith and determination? To achieve their own idealistic state, they threaten, hurt and kill the same kind, many of whom are defenceless and helpless. Total disregard of the law and humans, they bring blood and sorrows to the world. Frankly, I don't know how they (the terrorists) can sleep in peace. Maybe they don't, maybe they are not looking for that in their lives? But what do they really want? If taking Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs to justify their inhumane acts, probably many of them don't have enough to eat and to live? Being a terrorist, they have the "power" to strike fear, the "authority" over the people and the sense they belong somewhere? Or is it purely for some psychotic reason which they get their pleasure from inflicting fear to the world.
In this Mumbai attack, if not for the loss of our people, I think many of us are still quite ignorant about the impact of terrorism. And somehow, it makes me more aware that this can really happen to anyone of us anywhere. As much as I do not wish to see this in Singapore, we cannot be complacent cos' we never will know when and will never know what they are thinking. The least we can do is to be more alert and observant.
In this Mumbai attack, if not for the loss of our people, I think many of us are still quite ignorant about the impact of terrorism. And somehow, it makes me more aware that this can really happen to anyone of us anywhere. As much as I do not wish to see this in Singapore, we cannot be complacent cos' we never will know when and will never know what they are thinking. The least we can do is to be more alert and observant.
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