A year of Hiatus

Salam and Hi,

Its been more than a year since my last entry, passed two Ramadhans, and coming to third. April 10, 2015 will be two years post Norli. Lots of things been happening since, that sort of kept me busy. January 2014. Azad came into our lives, missing the 'grandma'; Muiz departure to Ireland, fulfilling his mum's wish, Hanis's wedding to Azaruddeen, whom missing his mother in law, Hanif and Hannah graduations, missing their mother's presence. Naim lost for her guidance was just noticeable.


2013 Raya, was a time of awkwardness, without Norli. Azhim and Ezy off to Seremban, Hanis and husband to Bukit Easter, Johor, put a lot of pressure on Hannah. Looking back at old family photo, really shows how course of life have been determined. Looking at Hannah the second baby girl in the photo that now took hold the string to the family ties was heart warming.

Then, there's the Omar's new baby, Faiz marriage on 3rd Raya and baby Adam and later his sudden departure are some of the light, happy and sad moments that are just other reminders of me missing Norli.

Work wise, there has been lots of ups and downs and uncertainty with respect to to directions of the mother ship. To me its the captain lapse of focus, attention and sanity, losing sight of the direction, and clouded by misadvises from 'rocket scientists', as shown by the dismal financial performance vs projections and ventures.  In the end came to realised the need to some insignificant, unsung but dependable members, to shore up the numbers and locked in some positive and huge potential projects in a short period of time.

Some 'fishy' office politics and manoeuvres  were seen but ended biting dusts. The positive and huge potential of PAP project kept my team and i excel even under pressure. Now keeping out fingers crossed for a better run. So 2013 and 2014 was both bad and blessings all in one.

On personal note, i have completed my papers and found a suitable topic for research and hoped to submit and ready by July. Also some prospect of a better days ahead.

hamid

Ramadhan 1434

Salam, it time to write again. It's been ages since I last log an entry. It's been a difficult year since last 2012 Ramadhan. Norlia my beloved wife was diagnosed with a bone and lung cancer. A recurrence of her 18 years old breast cancer, now diagnosed as advanced breast cancer that metastasized to bone and lung. 

It took just eight months since diagnosed till the day she answered the calling of Allah on that fatefull April 4th 2013 afternoon.

Exactly 2 months after Azhim's wedding reception when she witnessed our family welcoming Ezy into our family circle. 

Now it's Ramadhan again, and its my

Most difficult Ramadhan ever. It's when I personally felt at lost and missed her more than ever. It's the month that Norli used to take care of the family with her kind heart and love through her cookings.

Today especially on the 26th day of Ramadhan I felt missing her most. I'm lucky to have Hannah around to help keep the family together during breakfast and sahur. TQ Hannah, missed you Norli. May Allah bless you always..al fatihah

Me

The Employee-Motivation Checklist

BY DAVE LAVINSKY

 | 

NOVEMBER 13, 2012

This entry requires no additional remarks from me. I am presenting it as is by Dave Lavinsky.

hamid

Of course you want employees who are happy, motivated, and productive--who doesn't? Following each of these simple steps will get you where you want to be.4

Great leaders make all the difference.

In business, we see the impact of great leaders such as Tony Hsieh, who took the helm of online shoe retailer Zappos.com from founder Nick Swinmurn. Under Hsieh’s leadership, the company grew from $1.6 million in sales in 2000 to more than $1 billion in sales in 2009.

Through many years of research, trial and error, and working with companies of all sizes in numerous industries, I have identified 16 critical ways to motivate your employees. Learn these techniques and adapt as many as possible in your business.

1. Make employees feel they are doing something meaningful.

A recent survey by BNET (which is now part of CBS MoneyWatch) asked the question, “What motivates you at work?”

The results showed that doing something meaningful is more important than money or recognition to your employees. Twenty nine percent of respondents said that doing something meaningful was the most motivating thing about work. Money motivated 25 percent, and recognition 17 percent.

Therefore, the number one way to motivate your employees is to make them feel that they are doing something meaningful. Now, if your vision is to alleviate poverty, as Kiva’s is, getting your employees to feel like they are doing something meaningful is pretty easy. This might not seem quite as simple for the typical for-profit company. But this, too, is relatively straightforward. Establishing your company’s vision and goals--particularly involving your employees in creating them--will motivate them to achieve these objectives and help them feel that they are doing something meaningful.

2. Effectively communicate and share information.

You also must consistently share new information to ensure that your employees make good decisions.

You must always let employees know how the organization is progressing toward achieving goals. Setting KPIs and posting the associated KPI results monthly will allow you to achieve this.

3. Give employees clear job descriptions and accountability.

It is critical that you give each of your employees clear job descriptions and accountability. It’s not enough to just state each role’s responsibilities; rather, you must specify the expected results and tasks. For example, the customer service manager’s described role might be to handle all inbound customer service calls. Their expected results, however, might be to answer all calls within 15 seconds or less, resulting in 90 percent customer satisfaction in telephone follow-up service. Only by specifying roles and expected results and accountability can you get what you want from each employee.

4. Give and receive ongoing performance feedback.

When things do go wrong, don’t blame. You want to replace who questions with howquestions. For example, rather than saying, “Who screwed this up?” say, “How could we improve this process or avoid this in the future?”

5. Have--and show--faith and trust in your team.

Most humans have relatively fragile self-esteem. If you don’t believe your employees can do something, they won’t believe they can either, and they won’t do it. You must have faith in them. You can’t just say you have faith: you need to show you do to enhance their confidence in their ability.

To achieve this, give your employees some autonomy to make decisions. Let them take ownership of challenging projects and decide how to complete them. Although it can be a challenge for almost any manager, you must let them fail sometimes and not get angry about it.

6. Listen to, focus on, and respect your employees’ needs.

You’ve likely heard this before, but it’s worth repeating that in leadership, listening is more important than speaking. I love this quote: “Questions unite. Answers divide.” Asking questions of your team will get them to participate; dictating the answers will cause them to tune out.

7. Provide recognition to worthy employees.

Recognition is an amazing motivator. Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton authored a book called The Carrot Principle in which they discuss a study of more than 200,000 employees that they conducted over a 10-year period. The study showed that the most successful managers provided their employees with frequent and effective recognition. In fact, they found that managers realized significantly better business results when they offered employees recognition in the form of constructive praise rather than monetary rewards.

8. Provide fair compensation and pay for the performance you seek.

First, you must pay a wage that employees believe is fair compensation. Second, you must pay for performance whenever possible. This does not mean 100 percent contingent compensation. It means that you set expectations for base pay while also providing bonuses and clearly defining success. This will compel employees to strive to achieve the goals you have outlined.

9. Foster innovation.

Managers must realize that the vast majority of innovations come from frontline employees. They come from the people who are manufacturing your products or designing your services, who are interfacing with customers, and who are solving problems on a daily basis. As such, innovation must be encouraged.

10. Establish fair company policies that support the company’s goals.

Developing fair company policies that adequately support the company’s goals will motivate your employees even more. For example, you cannot treat attending a seminar as a personal day if you want to encourage continuous learning. Rather, ensure your policies and practices encourage employee feedback, collaboration, decision-making, and so on.

11. Get ongoing input from employees.

You want to invite your employees to help set goals so that they really buy into them. Seek employee input on key decisions and plans on an ongoing basis.

Understand that as the leader, you will make the ultimate decisions and plans. Even if you don’t follow your employees’ advice or take their suggestions verbatim, however, the very act of soliciting their feedback will give you more information and ideas and will make them feel involved.

12. Manage, but don’t micromanage.

Employees do not like to be micromanaged. It’s disempowering. It’s therefore important to distinguish the difference between checking in and checking up on your employees.

Likewise, when managing, don’t dictate every detail of how to complete a project. Remember, employees can’t grow and gain new skills if you’re telling them exactly what to do for every project they work on. They need a sense of autonomy to feel that they’re succeeding.

13. Encourage teamwork.

Most projects you complete will require input from several employees within your organization. Encourage these employees to work as a team rather than a collection of individuals to complete these projects. The easiest way to do this is to set up an initial meeting for the team, refer to them as a team, and give them enough autonomy so they act like a team.

14. Modify your management approach for different types of employees.

Great leaders let the employees they’re managing dictate the management approaches they use. Some employees may need or desire more handholding and coaching, whereas others will want or require less. It’s important to think about each key employee and determine the best way to lead him or her.

15. Give employees opportunities for personal growth.

Because people who get the chance to grow their skills and expertise take more pride in their jobs, you want to encourage employees in your organization to gain new skills. You can do this in many ways, such as providing on-the-job training and other opportunities to teach your employees new skills.

16. Fire people when needed.

The final technique for motivating your team is to fire people when needed. Underperformers can kill an organization; they can become cancers. When other employees see these individuals getting away with underperformance, then they start to underperform. Therefore, firing--as long as you explain to your team why people were fired--can actually motivate your employees.

Excerpted with permission of the publisher, Wiley, from Start at the End: How Companies Can Grow Bigger and Faster by Reversing Their Business Plan by David Lavinsky. Copyright (c) 2012 by David Lavinsky. This book is available at all bookstores and online booksellers.

Author Dave Lavinsky is the cofounder of Growthink, a consultancy that helps entrepreneurs and business owners identify and pursue new opportunities, develop new business plans, raise capital, and build growth strategies.

[Image: Flickr user Max Sang]

English is Wierd

Hi again, today Hanis my daughter  came back from office with a poem. Apparently she attended an in-house CPD on "Cross Cultural Business English", which to me is very interesting. For one it will improve her command of English, second it will make a better person, staff, worker and member of the public.

Her training stuff caught my attention.  Objective document, activity sheets etc. was simple but fascinating particularly the Poetry called

"Hints on Pronunciation for Foreigners", - Here how it goes;

I take it you already know 

Of tough and bough and cough and dough? 

Others may stumble but not you, 

on hiccough, thorough, laugh and through. 

Well done! And now you wish, perhaps, to learn of less familiar traps?

Beware of heard, a dreadful word 

that looks like beard and sounds like bird. 

And dead: it's said like bed, not bead 

For goodness' sake don't call it deed! 

Watch out for meat and great and threat 

(They rhyme with suite and straight and debt.) 

A moth is not a moth in mother 

Nor both in bother, broth in brother, 

And here is not a match for there, 

Nor dear and fear for bear and pear. 

And then there's dose and rose and lose 

-- Just look it up — 

and goose and choose and cork and work and card and ward. 

And font and front and word and sword. 

And do and go and thwart and cart --

A dreadful language? 

Man alive! I'd mastered it when I was five."

Thank God English is my native tongue!

T.S.W

Upon reading, it further triggers a thought that interestingly opens an opportunity for me to pilot my new certification PEC - Proficiency in Enterprise Communication. Hah!

Just to add spice to the wierdness of the language.... do read both captions.


--
hamid

The history of technology in education

Hi there, its time to write again. This time around i am sharing an animated video on The History of Technology in Education!, my favorite subject and research focus. Nicely composed and delivers the main milestones in the field of Technology in Education. But the main BIG question remains, does this help make our young ones a SMARTER students or learners? Of which i have some doubts...as the word goes Technology is ONLY a means...

Don't pay any attention to the closing BRAND displayed though! Enjoy.

hamid

Master The Art of Giving

Hi, this time i am sharing a wonderful article by Tess Marshall from The Bold Life  as a follow up of my recent post. Enjoy...Perhaps we can learn from this and act accordingly to master the art of giving!

THIS IS A GUEST ARTICLE BY TESS MARSHALLL FROMTHE BOLD LIFE

>“Give others all that is alive in us—our interest, understanding, our knowledge, our humor, everything in us that’s good. In doing so, we enhance the sense of aliveness in others while enhancing our own. When we give, we get a “heightened vitality” of what it means to be human.” –Erich Fromm

With our changing economic times, everyone is asking for help in some form. There are as many reasons to give as there are ways to give.

Some people give for recognition. They want their names in programs, on park benches and in hospital lobbies. Others give expecting to be paid back or thanked, they give to get. Some people want a hands-on-experience and are generous with their time. Some like to give anonymously and don’t want any recognition at all.

People who truly master the art of giving give out of the goodness of their hearts with no self-serving motives. Giving becomes a blessing for the giver and receiver.

It’s human nature to believe, “When I have more I’ll give more.” If you come from this mentality you never have enough of anything to give.

Generosity is a choice that feels right and joyful. Generosity comes from believing you have enough to share.

The following are gifts we all have that can benefit others.

1. Give of Your Talents

Give someone an hour of coaching, a signed copy of your book or a golf lesson. Can you offer child care? Or do you have plumbing, painting, or landscaping skills?

Give things. Clean your home and clear out your closet of unwanted things. Give what you don’t use or need to charity. Your junk is someone else’s treasure.

2. Give blood.

Save a life. I’ve done this on several occasions; it’s a great feeling to know you are helping to save someone’s life.

3. Give of yourself.

Make someone feel loved, special and appreciated with a visit, phone call, email, text or card. Give a hand made gift. Give praise, gratitude and appreciation. This creates heart-to-heart connections.

4. Give someone a lift.

When you encounter a quotation or a good news story, pass it on with a personal “thinking of you” note. This is spirit-lifting. It can make someone’s day. Today hand written notes and cards are rare gifts.

5. Give a recommendation.

Enrich someone’s life by sharing the discovery of a great blog, book, restaurant, product or service. The message you give is “This was a great find for me and I want to share it with you.”

6. Give the gift of laughter.

Laughter brings health and happiness to others. It offers physiological, psychological and spiritual benefits. Laugh loud and laugh often with everyone.

7. Give an invitation.

Being invited to any kind of event means people want to be with you. When you invite someone into your life you are saying, “I want to spend time with you, you are important to me.

8. Give affection.

Appropriately offer a hug, a kiss on the cheek, a pat on the back, a touch on an arm or a tender look. We never lose the need for affection and acceptance. Touching heals emotional wounds.

9. Give good advice.

Ask the question, “Do you want advice or to you want me to listen.” If needed and wanted advice can be life-saving. Shared insights and wisdom is a precious gift.

10. Give encouragement.

When people are filled with doubt and fear they lack courage. When you inspire and motivate someone to act on their dreams, it can be life changing. You are making the world a better place.

11. Give without keeping score.

Real giving is expecting nothing in return. Give when you have the opportunity not because you received something and want to return the favor. Never hesitate to give because you gave last.

12. Give forgiveness.

Forgiveness offers healing to family, friends, coworkers and neighbors. Forgive yourself and others in spite of memories of unlovable times. Drop the story of what they did and what you did and the meaning you have given it.

13. Give money.

Giving stuff is easy. We usually don’t need or want it… But almost everyone likes to hang on to their money. Giving away money is more difficult because it means less for you. Give money because others need it. Give money because we’re dependent on one another.

14. Give An Act Of Kindness.

Kindness is the easiest and most abundant gift we have to give away. Buy Girl Scout cookies, always open the door for the person behind you, return your grocery cart, make cookies for your neighbor. The list is endless. Kindness brings joy to the giver, receiver and anyone witnessing the act!

15. Give love.

It’s easy to love those who love us back. Challenge yourself to give love to those who deserve it the least. Make your love unconditional. Make the world a more loving place. Everyone will reap the benefits!

Tess Marshall is the mover and shaker, at www.TheBoldLife.com, where she’ll hold you accountable for being the boldest you’ve ever been in every area of your life! What would you do if you were 10 times bolder? You can sign up for her RSS feed and receive her updates or follow her on Twitter

The Art of Giving

Hi again...last August 2nd was a significant day in my life and career. This the day that i personally experienced the joy of sharing and giving. More so when its done during the month of Ramadhan 1431M. This year the company's management decided to distribute the zakat to deserving asnafs ourselves.

With the courtesy and kind heart of Hj Abdul Aziz and wife, we've managed to identify the right and deserving recipients in parts of Terengganu. First of all the orphaned brother and sister siblings that were left all alone at a young age without any known close family member, to face the world in Jertih. The kind hearted old single mother neighbor who took them in without any hesitation was overwhelming and humbling.

The joy it brings with such a small help from us to ease their day to day burden seems hugely meaningful and is god send to them. It is an indescribable feeling to be able to share small amount of what we have with the needy in Ramadhan.

Later in Kuala Terengganu, sharing some meaningful moments with a handful of professionals that have taken up and embraced the "Art of Giving" to the limit, in helping making SRI Al Amin KT a reality, through cooperation, sharing of ideas, time, kindness, forgiveness, love, talents, money, effort, and aspirations. Even when we @ Prestariang contributed some cash, it seems so little as compared to what they already did and planned to do at SRI AL AMIN, KT. that will benefit the community and younger generation with education and knowledge.

People gathers early to the Majlis Iftar Jamae'i 2012 SRI AL AMIN, KT. The whole school, principal, staff and community were there to participate and share the occasion, be it simple but meaningful. Meeting friends from university days and teaching days in MPI was a pleasant surprise and was an icing on the cake. May Allah bless them all.

The thought lingers all throughout my flight back to KL that night. What an experience and we must do more to embraceThe Art of Giving!

Its DURIAN time - Putting Zimmerman to shame

Hi All, its that DURIAN time @ Prestariang again. Its our 8th Annual Durian Feast for partners and clients. You can only have this when DURIAN is in season. This time around there 2200 kilos of the 'King of Fruits", 200 more than last year.
Indicating our Durian Feast has become a tradition in its own right and hugely popular among partners and clients!


This time around we have people of numerous nationalities at out feast, namely Korea, Singapore, Australia and Egypt to name a few, and of course our local Malaysians. All at a different level of 'engagement' with the King of Fruits.

To some 'durian virgins', an experience to smell it, some its the first time to hold in their hands the hard prickly thorns of durian, for some its time to sample the different varieties but the rest its time to savour the great taste and gobble it down.

Malaysians have this to say to our foreign partners, "if you have not tasted it you can't be successful doing business in Malaysia but If you liked it you are accepted and one of us."

As a King (of Fruits) they'll always be a few who dislikes as compared the popular majority. Durian has put Andrew Zimmerman of Bizarre Foods to shame. He can take on 'rats' and 'Icelandic rotten sharks meat" but NOT Durian, ha ha, not bizarre enough!

As usual we have top best 18 varieties of Durian such as the expensive "Musang King" to "XO", to D24, to Udang Merah among others. Durian in Malaysia and the region has these binding effects and promote friendship.
We at Prestariang tried to get friends to a get-together through dinner, high tea, kenduri & tahlil without much success, but Durian Feast never fails to attract a huge crowd.

With a combination of Durian, fresh coconut water, lychee, mata kuching and dokong we have trails of people coming in - from CEOs, Chairmans, Board Members, VCs, Government officers, MNC Partners, Vendors, Suppliers and friends from 3.30pm till 7.30pm.

Everyone enjoying the casual air of friendly get together and catching up with friends and buddies. Thats Durian the great equaliser! Look at them..


"To find the aroma of durian offensive, is a sure sign of ones inner toxicity" - Mango the Fruitarian
Thanks Doc, looking forward for another great feast next year.


Hamid