LESS IS MORE! Is it?

 

LESS IS MORE!  NO sirrrrrrs.  Before I get suspected of infringing into IP [Intellectual Property] rights, I'm NOT referring to a home services in New Zealand which has expanded significantly.  LESS IS MORE embodies that idea that simplicity leads to much better clarity and ultimately, to a more profound form of beauty.  To the many believers of being a MINIMALIST, LESS IS MORE can infer to multiple stuff LIKE owning LESS stuff, focusing on FEWER tasks OR having LESS in the way if only to give us more time, more freedom, more bandwidth and more resources we can tap for much more meaningful purposes.  In communications, it speaks volumes WHEN we hear LESS IS MORE as it seems to buttress the argument that saying OR spewing LESS words can, in fact, be more effective than spewing out MORE words in fact💜💛💚

From a literary perspective, LESS IS MORE means that simplicity is many folds better than any kind of elaborate embellishment and sometimes, something SIMPLE will likely look better than something complicated OR even elaborate in its look and feel.  Tracing back [to give WHERE credit is due], LESS IS MORE was first heard in 1855 from a poem by English poet and playwright Robert Browning.  Till to date, millions of folks have embraced this expression more than just as a philosophy OR inspiration BUT more impressively, even manifesting this the way we live our daily lives💧💧💧

The very essence of this expression can be deduced to the fact that, at times, we can end up overdoing something.  LIKE for movies, having one too many dialogues in an action movie could disappoint the viewers because they expected fight scenes BUT instead, viewers found lots of sitting around and talking scenes.  In that situation, LESS dialogue is MORE effective for an action movie.  And this idea is so much applicable to many different facets in our daily lives💥💥💥

Looking back through my life experiences, I did learn [sometimes the HARD way] that having MORE will potentially help trigger OR cause a disconnect that can worsen into a conflict [especially WHEN that heavy barrage of exchanges of words will transpire].  And before we know it, our frail and vulnerable emotions would join the fray until the situation becomes a full-blown conflict❌❌❌

Our takeaway:  We can even dissect into the field of arts WHERE LESS IS MORE is much embraced both by artists and art lovers.  Add in the threads veering into aesthetics and beauty, then LESS IS MORE becomes the more compelling message that resonates day-in day-out.  As we live our daily lives, let's consider LESS IS MORE as a guiding light more than anything else😊😊😊

2 Million Views and Counting....

 

2 Million Views and Counting.  YES I was watching Netflix's RUN AWAY starring James Nesbitt.  As he faces uncontrollable challenges managing his daughter, he ends up mauling a homeless thug.  And as much as he expected compassion and understanding from everyone for having a huge problem in her maverick and activist-minded daughter, that DOESN'T happen💚💛💜

Instead, as he was hitting that homeless thug that looked more like he was the mauler and the latter was the victim, people were taking their videos of that fight that happened in the middle of a public park.  Even as he was released by the police with no charges, by the time he went home, he was so drained and down by then.  And expectedly, he thought he could feel the compassion and sympathy at least from his wife as he's the purported victim in those circumstances💦💦💦

Quick lesson here.  These days, WHETHER you are on the correct side OR you are on the wrong side, our unseen nemesis here is social media WHEREIN once it captures something, before you know it, you were in the center of a video with 2 million views and counting.  And the harsh reality there is that today's video can distort the real truth of a situation BUT instead, people [running in the millions [and still counting]] will continue to unfairly FEAST UPON YOU in circumstances WHERE you are totally unable to defend yourself?  WHY?  Because those people sort of 'throwing stones on you' are faceless.  HOW can you defend your hapless self then???

That's the harsh reality of social media.  Once things get viral and you happen to be in the middle of a storm, HOW can you protect your name and honor if you happen to be one of the COLLATERAL DAMAGES of an incident you DIDN'T least expected to just pop-up in the most unlikely timings?  Indeed, the harshness of a so called informal 'grand jury' WHEN you are caught in the middle of a sandstorm❎❎❎

Our takeaway:  NOT to unduly cause a scare across because I myself I continue to embrace social media everyday, the obvious takeaway here is to CHOOSE YOUR BATTLES and if you are in the middle of a disconnect that turns into a raging conflict, be very mindful if one of the protagonists will leverage on social media.  Even IF not done in bad faith, once the damage is done on you, that CAN'T be UNDONE dude.  Remember WHEN there are 2 million views and counting😡😡😡

Quote 'WHERE THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD'

 

Before we get suspected of plagiarism, allow me to piggy-back on that "WHERE THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD" as a spin-off from the Firestone Tires ad campaigns in the 1950s [as per AI].  WHICH reminds me during my stint with Goodyear, another global tire player, much as we wanted to hitch on that one-liner, we CAN'T as it happens to emanate from another market player.  BUT allow me to ride on that to draw its parallelism to our daily lives💚💛💜

Simply put, "WHERE THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD" refers to the moments in our life WHERE we need to put to test anything that has been discussed, deliberated and plotted on paper and in theory.  It's jumping from the drawing board straight into the frying pan [and NOT the fire yet anyways].  Almost all of us went through years of education and post-graduation, we get rolled-in for on-the-job trainings and all sorts of entry-level workplace programmes!!!

And IF you ask me WHAT's the failure rate post "WHERE THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD" phases, I DON'T have the validated statistics.  Even AI confirms that thee are NO universal failure statistics.  So, allow me to speculate that FAILURE RATES post "WHERE THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD" could go anywhere between 30 to 60% [+/- 10% as its error of margin].  YES, that's how it can go up💥💥💥

The thing is, almost everyone fails and flops especially in one's first foray[s] into a domain that was totally foreign to him prior to plunging into that new field.  WHEN I got introduced into IBM's mainframe computing, I DIDN'T have either the heads OR tails of computing.  Admittedly, I had to exert more than the mean efforts for me to reach and achieve the acceptable absorption level that aligns with the industry norms and thresholds.  WHAT we're harping now is that IF and WHEN THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD, it's very fine to fail, flop and flounder✅✅✅

Our takeaway:  Allow me to repeat that IF and WHEN THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD, it's very fine to fail, flop and flounder.  I did fail, did flop and did flounder zillion times over BUT if there's one thing I refused to succumb, I DIDN'T want to flip over, surrendering and abandoning my plans and its execution simply because I hit a road hump OR worse, I hit my head on a concrete wall.  Instead, I told myself, this and that failure means I am a step closer to realizing my goals and achieving the very success I crystallized for myself.  YES dude, WHERE THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD, carry on, never give up and abandon things.  CARRY ON dude😀😀😀

Get Things From The Mud [if warranted]

 

WHO says good tidings are scheduled to be delivered to you via FEDEX OR UPS come next day?  WHO says your good news will be brought over to you via UBER next morning [just like that foot-long Subway sandwhich]? And WHO promised you that you'll be promoted to that plum position up in the hierarchy within your expected timelines?  And WHO falsely raised your expectations that WHEN you buy all those lotto tickets, you'll get the major prize in the next draw?  NO sirrrrs, IF you need to GET THINGS FROM THE MUD, go for it dude💚💛💜

Obviously, it's much easier to preach and pitch BUT translating those verbose words and executing them into fruition takes tons of efforts.  In the rowdy world of the very competitive world of sports [be it basketball, football OR even board games like chess, name it], PHYSICALITY is the very name of the game [YES, even in chess where classical games can last way beyond 4 to 5 hours, whew].  And in contact sports like boxing and basketball, things can get NOT just dirty BUT damn brutal, seriously💧💧💧

In the process, the protagonists DON'T just get injured BUT literally bludgeoned [that bloody sports of boxing is damn scary] and YET, the bigger question that looms is WHY do the protagonists remain so focused and determined to remain in those most physically competitive [YES, you can include the mental-wracking classical chess games] worlds of sports?  And that brings us to draw the parallelism in life because a huge part of the things we want to succeed in life will have to be earned THE HARD and sometimes THE HARDEST ways💥💥💥

Let's swing over to the world of the world's most successful names like the TRUMPs, the BEZOs, the ZUCKERBERGs, the MUSKs. I can vividly remember one interview WHICH Elon Musk obliged WHEREIN he admitted that he knocks off from work on a given day WHEN WHAT he wants done gets done.  Translating it to concrete terms, if his task was less than 100% successfully done as per his success criteria, he's NOT done and he'll burn the midnight oil, if need be😂😂😂

Our takeaway:  C'mon dude, let's roll up our sleeves, get our hands dirtied and if need be, plunge INTO THE MUD and do WHAT it takes for us to inch and inch closer until we catch the plum and succeed in every endeavor we decided to plunge up front.  YES dude, let's GET THINGS FROM THE MUD [if warranted]✅✅✅

Never Cease Challenging The STATUS QUO

 

Anyone NOT in his comfort zone now?  I doubt it.  I'll get that maybe [at least] 90% are within the confines OR fringes of their comfort zone.  BTW, there's NOTHING wrong with that.  I'll confess that in the past, I was living and lingering within my comfort zones for the longest time UNTIL I DIDN'T want to step out.  Dude, NEVER CEASE CHALLENGING THE STATUS QUO💥💥💥

I remember those years WHEN I sometimes confronted myself with in-the-face questions LIKE CAN YOU GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE NOW without the slightest hesitation?  The bad OR dark side of me would blurt out LIKE WHY SHOULD I WHEN I'M ENJOYING THE FRUITS OF MY LABOR.  Obviously that was well said.  In the end, the weaker side of me would often give way to all those endless whispers that the STATUS QUO is the way to go BUT dude, trust me WHEN I NOW admit that I was totally wrong then!!!

Even across major global organizations, there was this most recent survey by Harvard Business Review asking senior leaders IF EVER they challenged the STATUS QUO OR at the very least, asked them to think out of the box?  Hold your breath, only a very paltry 3% admitted that they did that always.  The rest of the pack?  They were kind of fence-sitters, neither here nor there, which was appalling to say the least❎❎❎

NOW for the mother of ironies.  WHEN Harvard Business Review validated their research results, ironically, a huge majority are excited about change, about transformation and the endless possibilities of the NEXT BIG THING.  But alas, WHAT happened next?  AWAN.  NADA.  NICHTS.  NOTHING.  WHY?  Deeper studies concluded that unsurprisingly, the STATUS QUO offers us all that preservation of one's existing state of affairs.  It's about doing WHAT is comfortable & thinking inside an existing box!@#$?

Our takeaway:  WHAT does all these tell us?  In the fewest words, we CAN'T and WON'T ever find comfort outside our existing comfort zones UNLESS and UNTIL we embrace the NOT so obvious need to challenge the STATUS QUO because if we remain unwilling to take the plunge, nothing and no one can help UNSTUCK ourselves except us😡😡😡

Still DOOMSCROLLING?

 

Per se, there's nothing wrong with DOOMSCROLLING, right?  Because you're NOT sowing inconvenience OR trouble to people out there.  Because, NOT to be defensive, almost everyone of us happen to be one of those COLLATERAL DAMAGEs triggered by the unstoppable galloping of social media across cultures and societies.  Partly though, I CAN'T stop blaming our human nature of us succumbing to all kinds of stuff related to BAD news, BAD tidings and even BAD developments unfortunately.  I'll even personally it back to all the forms of media [print, electronic, name it] WHOSE focused goals are to garner more views and readership [obviously to up the ante aligned to their target revenues]💚💛💜

Swinging back to our lives, let's think about it.  Let's face it, if everyday, your breakfast, lunch and dinner [and bundle-in all your snacks] all hover around any stuff that's either bad, tragic OR saddening.  WHAT IF this becomes your default daily recipe of absorptions? WOULD that mean anything that's depressing OR saddening to hear and know becomes your catalyst in your daily life???

WHAT happens next?  It's like we will end up with that enormous appetite to hear, read OR listen to anything that veers on the negativities, right?  Think about it if a breaking news ends up sucking you in a never-ending DOOMSCROLL at the moment?  And that moment extends and lingers on? That human nature  WHEREIN the more you saw OR the more you heard, the more you SCROLLED?  Until getting lost in threads and seeing the shocking comments, then unconsciously you would feel your mood slipping and yet you just COULDN'T stop that skid?  YES dude, that activity of SCROLLING and searching for bad news even though it's disheartening is that very same activity prevailing almost all over, an activity that has risen in [ironically] 'popularity' alongside baking banana bread as we navigate in life✅✅✅

HOWEVER, unlike baking,  DOOMSCROLLING is a totally human reaction to WHAT we're going through.  WHEN stressful things are happening in our life [YES, I dread remembering that recent pandemic], our sort of 'primitive' brain takes over and it becomes concerned with keeping us alive above all else.  This can then lead us to be 'SCANNING FOR DANGER', putting ourselves on high alert for anything that could be perceived as a threat😡😡😡

Our takeaway: As I am NO expert in this domain, let's piggy-back on the experts' inputs for our consideration if we have that gumption to fight-off DOOMSCROLLING:

• Make your mornings SACRED.  Otherwise, you will find yourself scrolling even before you rose up from bed, ouch
• Allocate time for PHONE CHECKING.  If you're anything like me, phone checking will become a habit, ouch
• Check-in with yourself more often.  WHY?  Because DOOMSCROLLING is often a 'mindless' habit
• Use the 'STOP' technique LIKE WHEN you find yourself DOOMSCROLLING, say out LOUD to yourself 'STOP IT'
• Find an alternative to scrolling [YES, I admit I enjoy much more my blogging whose frequency has gone from weekly to daily and of late, even twice a day😀😀😀

Just Do It

 

It's NOT worth spending even a fraction of time for us to dip our hands into private lives, that's just so basic.  And IF you're in a room of 10 folks, you DON'T owe them as to WHAT you will do next [unless you're in a formal ceremony OR event WHERE you've got a role to play].  Otherwise, as the age-old Nike ad goes, JUST DO IT.  Pursue your NEXT plan, take your NEXT step, concretize things with your NEXT action.  NOT to stir the hornet's nest here BUT often we would hear [and know about it via social media] that this and that billionaire will donate hefty sums of monies to this and that beneficiary.  Of course, its a non-news anymore to read that a First World country will donate to a Third World country.  That's most commendable at the very least💚💛💜

Enter Mackenzie Scott, the ex-wife of Jeff Bezos [WHO, depending on the timings of Amazon's wealth fluctuations, would rank either third or fourth wealthiest globally now with a net worth fluctuating from US$ 239bn to 259bn], has etched her name all by her own, almost effortlessly in fact.  Following her divorce from Bezos, she took home US$ 38bn.  So, HOW did Amazon's co-founder [WHO founded the Amazon business from their garage] spend the cash?  In 4 years, she donated US$14 bn and she has been giving it away more quickly than anyone else in history.  MacKenzie Scott had that rare opportunity to participate in the billionaire game WHICH includes philanthropic galas, private jets and hedge funds.  Instead, SHE REWROTE THE RULEBOOK, donating over US$ 14bn to more than 1,600 organizations since 2019.  NO conditions.  NO right to name.  NOTHING. NADA.  NO grant proposals longer than 200 pages.  Simply have faith to communities, universities, food banks, racial justice organizations, YES even shelters for women.  The types of companies that typically DON'T have billionaires on the phone.  That simplicity of her philanthropic model is indeed radical, to say the least🙏🙏🙏

WHILE it's just a pipe dream for anyone of us to approximate .00001% of MacKenzie Scott's net worth [even as it significantly dropped now], the messaging we're trying to impart across is the NOT so obvious fact that in life, WHEN you want to do something, JUST DO IT [ because more often than NOT], you have made and reached that informed decision [of course there will always be outlier narratives WHERE a person commits a string and a streak of faux pases.  You've got your advocacy, your passion, your interests, pursue it and follow it through WITHOUT worrying any others' opinions, reactions OR unsolicited commentaries [that sometimes end up via social media]💧💧💧

Point is, in life, it's NOT about them, NOT the reactions OR commentaries from naysayers and the sort of 'do-nothing' folks.  Your life is yours for you to drive it, steer it, take it to the path that aligns with your best judgment.  It is indeed true that NOT all our judgments are correct in life BUT as long as you manifested good faith in arriving at that best judgment call, then you'll be fine.  The worst is for you to hold unto your thoughts, decisions and plans, all because you're more concerned with this and that reaction.  WHILE we do understand our human nature, to hell with it, right?  Express yourself,  pursue your passions, find your path and take the high road you have plotted for you to thread💥💥💥

Our takeaway:  I've seen and know first-hand and up-close people WHO, even through their adulthood, remained shackled and tied-up, too paralyzed to go on and ignite their own plans and actions, all because of that apprehension [a.k.a. F-E-A-R] of reactions coming from various quarters.  Sadly, that will be one of the contributing culprits that will stall someone else's journey, until being stalled leads one getting stuck to the status quo.  NOT the best pragmatic approach and ironically, one is doing himself the worst disservice ever IF IF IF ever you end up in a predicament similar to this.  Our short and sharp message:  Go for it, JUST DO IT, dude😊😊😊

When Our SELF-RESPECT Becomes Overdue!

 

SELF-RESPECT is one of the least discussed topics, if at all. WHY oh WHY?  Probably because it may come out as self-serving, right?  And moreover, with tons of issues we face everyday, more often, the last challenge we want to get diverted to [imagine your aircraft approaching the runway for landing only to be diverted for reasons the pilot OR control tower will use their jargons like 'technical issues'!@#$%

Here's a  bonus question:  Can SELF-RESPECT be practiced easily?  Answer is:  YES and NO.  YES, if you are disciplined enough to manifest SELF-RESPECT in a consistent manner.  NO if you're a people-pleaser!  That fear of saying NO can keep you stuck in a cycle of neglecting your very own needs and giving into things that DON'T serve your genuine interests in the first place.  Unfortunately, WHEN we let others take advantage of our very own selves, we chip away at our self-esteem💥💥💥

And WHEN our self-esteem gets chipped and chipped away, studies show that will likely lead to anxiety, less interpersonal effectiveness and expectedly, your SELF-RESPECT will skid down and go down south until it may deteriorate to a point WHERE you CAN'T arrest that skid.  I'd admit that in the past, even as I did practice personal effectiveness, I sometimes found myself in situations that would prompt me to unconsciously give away my very own SELF-RESPECT.  It could be as petty as you're at the grocery check-out counter and it seems the cashier mistakenly scanned another price.  Would you argue that it WON'T affect your SELF-RESPECT WHEN you keep thinking that you were shortchanged???

That may sound like a petty example BUT let's face it, the truth is, each time you stand up for WHAT's fair, you RESPECT yourself, right?  And WHEN others take advantage of you, it can do one of three things, namely:  Trigger anger WHICH may lead to an outburst OR internal anger and you'll have that feeling of hopelessness and reinforcing the false belief that you DON'T deserve RESPECT and lastly, prompt yourself that sense of ownership and help you act assertively✅✅✅

Our takeaway:  It's NOT being petty BUT think about it, if everyday you shrug off your shoulders ten times WHEN you were at the receiving end for ten times on a given day, WHO thinks that those incidents WHICH initially look like outliers will NOT pile up and even eventually overflow to a point WHERE you would end up like that headless chicken unable to take counter-measures WHEN the floodgates are swung wide open, even overwhelming you with its sheer force?  BUT again, it's NEVER too late to rectify things so you get back on track to give your SELF-RESPECT WHAT you deserve after all, dude😁😁😁

Staying The Course, Halfway 2026

 

What's our score, halfway 2026?  Obviously, there are one too many experts, from Feng Shui to astrology, and NOT to forget, our own NEW YEAR's resolutions, ouch!@#$%?  BUT not to downplay all the brewing excitement WHEN 2026 kicked in 7 months ago, I have to admit that I've never believed that change should be reserved for special days BUT again, I'll be the first one to admit that every NEW YEAR tends to carry a sense of promise and hope for us all.  BUT how about now that's halfway 2026💛💜

You and me may NOT ride that bandwagon BUT let's admit it, every looming NEW YEAR often brings along that surge of clarity, motivation and hope that maybe things really could be different.  And then, as January kicks in, that excitement combined with oozing energy builds up UNTIL that initial energy seems to fade and fizzle out as the new calendar rolls out.  Then, responsibilities pile up.  Then, our bandwidth tends to shrink.  And before we know it, we're pulled back into the familiar current of obligations, far from the shore we hoped for😁😁😁

Nope, I DON'T buy the version that we lack willpower OR discipline.  To be fair, most of us are and have been trying our darn best all along, right?  WHAT we often need though is the right kind of mindset combined with the appropriate support to help us stay the course WHEN life inevitably intervenes.  At this point, I have to admit, I am NO expert and I DON'T have a monopoly of the best advisories we can share and counsel for the upcoming year.  Year on year, we have evolved to become like experts!!!

So, WHAT else can we counsel?  Just some tidbits:

LIKE physical health and vitality

LIKE habits, mindset and purpose

LIKE living life with a joy and purpose

LIKE emotional and mental well-being

LIKE harmony, sort of aligning with the stars

LIKE financial health, which we need to work for it

LIKE communications, ensuring it's all in good faith

Our takeaway:  Regardless WHETHER you are a staunch believer that WHEN a new year kicks in, new hopes are enhanced and if there is lingering confidence, that just gets stronger.  BUT these are NOT figments akin to DIY solutions.  From Day-1 to Day-365 of Year 2026, it behooves that we be consistent in our pursuit of the plans we will [OR have plotted] as aligned with our preset GOALS.  Hoping everyone keeps track of one's progress [OR even non-progress, ouch, for 2026.  In 7 months, we'll be welcoming 2027💥💥💥

Beware Of BROWSER FINGERPRINTING

 

BROWSER FINGERPRINTING!  Sound techie?  YES it seems BUT before you shun this off in an instant, allow me to beg you to hang-on for a minute please?  BUT I won't be a hypocrite to claim domain knowledge about it because I am NOT and I DON'T have it.  Instead, allow me to piggy-back on Ritoban Mukherjee's recent sharing via lifehacker.com as he highlights the risks way below the surface and offers a cost-free solution WHICH even non-techies like us can consider☝☝☝

Allow me to quote EN TOTO Ritoban's sharing "Uninterrupted browsing used to be a lot simpler.  Disable third-party cookies, blacklist known tracking domains and get an ad blocker.  BUT now, online platforms can pick on things like your screen resolution, basic hardware specs, timezone, and installed fonts to establish a fingerprint unique to your browser and device.  Websites can query a lot of seemingly harmless data from your device without prompting any security reaction"!!!

WHAT's scarier here is that unlike cookies, "FINGERPRINTING does NOT require a website to install files OR extensions to your web browser.  Instead, it uses server-side and JavaScript-executed signals to collect innocuous details about your device and setup".  IF that does NOT scare you, in the simplest terms, it can likely breach through your login credentials to your online banking.  There you go, lock, stock and barrel❌❌❌

Is there a FIX RIGHT NOW?  Yes there is, and it's FREE.  Accessing for free EFF's "COVER YOUR TRACKS", I was able to run FREE scans that showed me exactly HOW EXPOSED my device is/was.  The site generates an immediate report that tells me WHETHER I have cookies or trackers enabled in my browser, along with the types of data my device is "LEAKING" that can then be accessed by FINGERPRINTING technology.  BUT the thing is, we CAN'T fully stop browser fingerprinting because the technology does NOT rely on a single point of access to collect data from our device💥💥💥

Our takeaway:  WHILE there is no fool-proof FIX to this BROWSER FINGERPRINTING, I can attest that by leveraging on 'COVER YOUR TRACKS' [which offers the 'FREE SCAN' of your browser], I am alerted at the earliest possible time WHEN a potential data leak becomes imminent.  Dude, please DON'T shun off from this practical advice simply because you'll claim you're NOT a techie [BUT hey, this piece is for laymen like us😂😂😂