What's Your Standard?

What's Your Standard?

What's Your Standard?  Apologies for this sweeping interrogative statement as this could mean practically anything and everything in life but for today's piece, let us have a peek into our standards from a first-person standpoint.  How are we managing our life?  How's our ethics?  How's our self-discipline?  How's our self-motivation?  How's our sense of purpose?  How's our trek to achieve the goals we did set?

If in the very competitive Olympics, the standard is NLT [no less than] the GOLD medal, why can't we set a GOLD STANDARD in our life as well?  To set a GOLD STANDARD does not achieving all the glitz and glitter that's akin to GOLD but it is that optimal level that gives you the vantage point to achieve the goals you set because of your self-motivation that is in full-throttle.

Thing is, in any of our pursuits in life, if your pre-set goals at the level of a silver or bronze medal, is that something that will propel you  to lofty heights that can be within the realms of what GOLD Standard is all about.  Let's start from the time we step into university.  Way back, I made it a habit at the start of the academic term to scribble my TARGET GRADE for each subject.  When the academic term ends, I'd compare my TARGET versus ACTUAL

WHAT or WHO then is our worst enemy?  It's us, our very own selves, dude.  It's us who set the constraints and limits as to how far can we trek in life.  It's us who ends as the SAIL of the BOAT, dictating which direction of the compass will we take.  This picture is quite pathetic because the doctor seems helpless with his patient who, he thinks, is DEAD INSIDE.  And the dilemma is that to define what DEAD INSIDE is, is very relative vis-a-vis GOLD Standard i

So what's our FIX for us to go GOLD Standard? Take plunge once you put your mind and soul into it.  I was in that 'deep hole' [decades back] when I decided to leave my country and explore for greener pastures in a multi-cultural country whose multi-cultures I was least familiar with.  I remember on my very first Christmas in Singapore, I gifted my boss a Chardonnay wine and when I handed it over to him on Christmas Day, he was simply flabbergasted.  But at hindsight, I patted myself and murmured that this is my GOLD STANDARD📌📌📌
 

What Will Be Will Be

What Will Be Will Be

Oh, I'm getting nostalgic now when I started to reminisce my childhood years when my aunt would request my uncle to play the piano as she sings QUE SERA SERA.  Little did I had any inkling at all that one day, I''d write this piece to discuss What Will Be Will Be because literally this means QUE SERA SERA in Spanish.

So where's the fuss here?  Let's traverse back in time.  How often you have seen people lament for failing on this and that?  Only to shrug off one's shoulder and retort "WHATEVER WILL BE WILL BE".  Ouch.  While we can be fatalistic, it does NOT mean that you will NOT lift a finger for you to carry on and see things through with your set goal.  What explains why the situation of some people just became damn too pathetic because they fail and fail and fail over and over again and if you eff them to do a post-mortem, they'll retort that this is their fate.

One can get unleashed and run across the wide open fields in the countryside but the best things in are NOT for one's picking up in the wide open fields.  Problem is, some of those who get 'off tracked' have a slanted view of things.  Couple that up with a convoluted understanding of the multifarious variables in life's equation.

Fact check:  IF YOU ARE FATED TO FAIL, SHOULD YOU GIVE UP, UP FRONT BECAUSE OF THAT PERCEIVED FATE?  So sorry but this is all wrong, all off-track.  Everything is left at our very own hands, right in our face.  It's for us to DO things or just lose things in default.  A consistent combination of blood, sweat and tears is what will get you through.

Whether you eventually take the left, center or right direction, it's immaterial but what matters most is that you remain damn focused with your goal which you can only achieve with that razor-sharp steadfastness to achieve what you aim for.  And if you fail?  Go pick up the pieces and continue from where you got stalled.  Only then WHAT WILL BE WILL BE📌📌📌

One Swallow Does NOT Make A Summer

One Swallow Does NOT Make A Summer

One Swallow Does NOT Make A Summer, is that true or is it a fallacy?  Very true indeed but we're not about to spend time talking about birds but instead, let's swing over to our daily lives and look back how often have we seen people not just admonished and chided but instead castigated and to borrow a Christian term, 'crucified' simply because one has erred.  Sadly, I've witnessed this recurring dilemma a zillion times.

If you are avid footfall fan, in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, Spain was doing wonders not until they got unceremoniously kicked out from the Top-16 with that loss to Morocco.  What happened next is anybody's guess.  Spain's Coach Luis Enrique was immediately fired, solely because of that solitary loss to Morocco.  And while we know that taking an exit at the hands of lowly Morocco was indeed a shock, where else did Coach Luis Enrique go wrong?

Now, this brings me back to the swallow because if this is the twisted logic we will embrace in life, I'll have the phobia to commit even a single mistake in any of my undertakings.  But is that fair and just?  Were we all born to be more than just become humans but super humans instead?  If we recently got married with our partner/spouse, then arguments happen here and there, will we run right away to file for divorce in the local court?  Or for Muslims, will we simply send a 'TALAK' via social media?

Think about it, isn't it that premature and overhasty?  Why do decisions need to be unfairly rash?  

WHY can't we give newly-minted couples that fair chance to know each other deeply and until such time when they know each other like the 'palm of their hands' will they come to terms by calling a spade a spade?  BTW, even the hardened criminals are given a reprieve by the courts and they are even granted a furlough and when they're deserving, they end up being on parole.  Why can't our life replicate those FAIR PRACTICES?

Without being lenient in life, why can't we be magnanimous and humane by giving those who err or offend us at least a reprieve, that chance to right the wrong, akin to the way most of the doting parents will treat their children?  Even at work or in business, me thinks it's unfair to drop the axe on the first infraction.  Whether you are a Christian or a devout Muslim, we got to accept the fact that ONE SWALLOW DOES NOT MAKE A SUMMER📕📘📗

Why Did You DO What You DID ?

Why Did You DO What You DID ?

Why Did You DO What You DID ?  But hey. isn't this one of the most ordinary things in our daily life NOT worth talking about?  But hey, let me pose this question:  ARE YOU FULLY AWARE WHY YOU DID WHAT YOU DID [whether that was yesterday, a month ago, a year ago or a decade ago] ?

Truth is, approximately 20% of all the things we've done, we're not 100% sure WHY WE DID WHAT WE DID.  Most of us can easily retort back by being defensive by blurting 'OF COURSE I KNEW WHY I DID WHAT I DID'.  Really?  C'mon, philosophically, of course we can defend ourselves that we're cocksure of every single thing we did be.  But let me play devil's advocate.  When you were doing things by IMPULSE, those deeds were more IMPULSIVE more than anything else.

Even when you were spending time with your BFF's, not everything that's done is logical or rational enough.  IMPULSE comes into play.  And when it surfaces, logical and rational gets [unknowingly] thrown out of the window.  Why?  Those are moments when even REASON gets thrown out of the equation.  Why?  It's all because of the circumstances.

Now let's throw another variable in the equation, that EMOTIONAL component.  Who can affirm and take an oath that all his past deeds which arose from an emotional outburst or emotional moment were deeds that arose from logic and rationale?  I myself, I lost control quite several times in the past, no thanks to the emotional piece of our equation.

That's the thing.  When our emotions do take over our own self, sanity gets thrown out of the window.  Reason becomes nothing but just lip service.  Once our emotions lord it over, we can be akin to our very own heart which can OPEN or CLOSE at the spur of the moment.  How do we counter all these?  Be mindful to know WHY YOU DID WHAT YOU DID📌📌📌

Life Is Like A 'ROUNDABOUT'

Life Is Like A 'ROUNDABOUT'

Life Is Like A 'ROUNDABOUT'.  If you DON'T go with the flow, you will [likely] get LOST.  Quick sharing.  Seven months ago, I drove and visited my hometown after twenty two [22] years.  By the time we finally reached the city proper [and it was dark by then around 7pm, I found myself in a roundabout where there was bumper-to-bumper traffic.  And I realized by then that I was 'LOST' with the directions because I admitted to my family that I didn't know the way to go anymore [ooops, I didn't launch WAZE because I never expected to get lost in the maze of my very own hometown.  In the end, I pulled by the roadside, lowered my windows and asked some passers by for the correct way to go.

So, that's it, I had to go with the flow.  Can't chart my own way, so I had to tap the helpline.  In our daily life, the road we travel is not just a straight line or at least similar to the inter-state highways in the U.S.  Life has more twists and turns and we all know, after all those twists and turns, God knows if we remained unscathed,  bruised or badly battered.  Either way, this is a given in life which we all should accept because there's no way to avoid the ROUNDABOUTs.

So, how do we handle the roundabouts in our life?  First off, besides being the driver seated behind the steering wheel, you got to be the navigator as well because life is more than just driving 

Instead, life is a daily grind of navigating thru NOT just through the ZIGs and ZAGs but more importantly, navigating along those ROUNDABOUTs where sometimes there are even NO signages to guide you.  How many times in our life did we get LOST in the midst of the ROUNDABOUTs?  By analogy in life, these are the instances when we are faced with two or more options/choices wherein each did NOT offer a clear advantage over the other.

So, the fix here is to identify the direction [in life] where we'll be either 'better off' or where we WON'T get off-track. The worst thing to happen is getting off-tracked as that could be akin purgatory, where you're neither here nor there, which you would lament.  So, this is no rocket science.  Let's remain mindful that Life is indeed a ROUNDABOUT, not by choice though📙📗📘

Treading Uncharted Waters

Treading Uncharted Waters

Who has not been treading uncharted waters, at least in the past?  Me thinks, everyone of us did tread uncharted waters at some points in our life.  I'll admit I did tread uncharted waters countless times in the past.  In a bit, let's align and agree as to what should we all define 'uncharted waters' so that we DON'T end up with diverse interpretations of today's piece💊💊💊

This recent global pandemic could be the best classic example of uncharted waters the whole global village just went through [till now].  Thing is, all of us collectively confront a sea of difficulties and charged with navigating unchartered waters.  And let's admit it, till today as we speak now, these are uncertain times.  Unfortunately, by nature, we are ill-suited to uncertainty.

Much as we are gifted with imagination, we sometimes tend to project the future and analyze possible scenarios.  Scenario planning does help us prepare for contingencies.  Unfortunately though, our imaginations can also paralyze us with panic.  Heard of 'ANALYSIS PARALYSIS'?  When some of us get caught up and hostaged by the cycles of analysis till we realize that decisions are 'hanging up in the air', no thanks to ANALYSIS PARALYSIS?

Much as we have our immediate families at home and our work colleagues at the workplace, most of the time we are ALONE.  As such, we need to control our minds and NOT let them run rampant into 'dark places' that end up freaking us out.  The mind can be like a SPIDER that, if we allow it, it will spin webs and twist everything together into a confused mass. 

We then end up blaming the 'caught up' things for the web we created where we want to be free of.  Bluntly, we tend to 'kill the things we love' only to sing about our grief.  Hey dude, the time for smug cynicism has passed.  The situation we are in may be unique but the ways to deal with it are as ancient as it is.  Bottom line is, let's brace ourselves treading uncharted waters because that's part and parcel of our lives📗📘📙 

Scraping The Bottom Of The Barrel

Scraping The Bottom Of The Barrel

No sirrrrs, today's piece is NOT a FUN' one but instead, we'd like to touch whenever we're Scraping The Bottom Of The Barrel because that's something frequently missed out and overlook in our daily lives not because it does NOT happen but simply because we're so overwhelmed with all the challenges we face when in reality, we're Scraping The Bottom Of The Barrel

In reality, though, we're scraping the bottom of the barrel maybe more times than we ever thought.  what could explain why the awareness is at a very low level, if at all?  Truth is, when we're seemingly scraping the barrel, it is not triggered by one single event.  Scraping the barrel is a CONFLUENCE of EVENTS because of the multifarious triggers.

WHEN you keep getting low grades in school despite all the efforts you have been pouring.  WHEN almost everyday, arguments with your spouse/partner are happening and as the days pass, things seem to turn from BAD to WORSE.  WHEN at work, you have been guilty of one fumbling act after another.  WHEN you have been manifesting various symptoms, all leading to your failing health.  WHEN your business P&L is very much 'in the RED', with your business burdened by mounting debts from various debtors.  All these are tell-tale signs that manifest that very likely you're scraping the bottom of the  barrel.

Problem is, when we are so overwhelmed and buried by the avalanche of problems that seem to turn from BAD to WORSE, we fail to realize that we're scraping the Bottom of the barrel and the common culprit for this circumstance is that we refuse to see and accept reality.  Even when things are exploding right in our face, we tend to downplay it and instead, we seem to be patting our backs with comforting words like "NO WORRIES, YOU'LL BE FINE", whew.

So what's our FIX for this conundrum?  FACE the music.  FACE the problem.  NEVER avoid reality.  And worse, never let those problems linger around you because we can guarantee that those problems will NEVER die a natural death, they just WON'T go away.  NOT UNTIL you fix it.  NOT UNTIL you resolve it.  NOT UNTIL you close it out.  Let's just throw out in the window that scraping the bottom of the barrel📌📌📌

Does The END Justify The MEANS?

Does The END Justify The MEANS?

Does The END Justify The MEANS? Of course, the answer is both a YES and a NO because neither answer is incorrect based on the circumstances that abound for the given moment.  But blurred pictures just became murkier, no thanks to us who tend to take things on a 'stretch'.  We tend to stretch it out with extreme interpretations simply to straighten what seems a crooked understanding of things.  Sometimes we [and I'm guilty of this in the past], we tend to bend things [unfairly] to our favor.

The thing is, the answer to the question Does The END Justify The MEANS depends on what the ends or goals are and what means are being used to achieve them.  If the goals are good and noble, and the means we use to achieve them are also good and noble, then YES, the ends justify the means.  But that's not what most people mean when they cling and succumb to this over-abused mantra.  Most of us tend to use it as an EXCUSE to achieve one's goals through any means necessary, no matter how IMMORAL, ILLEGAL or ILLEGITIMATE the mans may be⏳⏳⏳

Instead, this over-abused mantra seems to have been twisted to mean "IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW YOU GET WHAT YOU WANT AS LONG AS YOU GET IT", whew.  The 'ENDS JUSTIFYING THE MEANS' usually involves doing something wrong to achieve a positive end and justifying the wrongdoing by pointing to a good outcome.  An example would be lying on a CV/Resume to 'window-dress' one's credentials to boost one's chances in aiming for a new job.

That convoluted rationale is justifying the LIE by implying that the bigger income in that new job he/she is aiming will enable the 'LIAR' to provide more adequately for his/her family.  Another might be justifying the abortion of a baby to save the life of the mother.  Lying and taking an innocent life are both morally wrong but providing for one's family and saving the life of a woman are morally right📌📌📌

Where, then, does one draw the line?  The END/MEANS dilemma is a common scenario in our daily lives.  Usually the question goes like this:  IF YOU COULD SAVE THE WORLD BY KILLING SOMEONE, WOULD YOU DO IT?  If the answer is YES, then a morally right outcome justifies the use of IMMORAL means to achieve it.  But there are different things to consider, the MORALITY of the action, the MORALITY of the outcome and the MORALITY of the person performing that action.  Think along those lines before blindly subscribing that the ENDS JUSTIFY THE MEANS📙📘📗

See What Needs To Be Seen

See What Needs To Be Seen

Happy Weekend folks.  And to help lead us towards a more restful weekend, I thought our piece today regarding our EYES and what we can SEE and ought to SEE deserves today's space.  So, the question is as much everyone is gifted with the EYES to SEE, do we always See What Needs To Be Seen?  I doubt it, to be honest.  Quite often [and this happened a few times to me in the past], much as we are gifted with that sight and vision, for various reasons [and some of which are unfathomable], we are are unable to See What Needs To Be Seen, whew.

Which reminds me of this sharing from Quora [posted by Jerusalem Artichoke] on November 20th].  A blond went up to the police officer on the street and said 'Officer, I locked my keys in my car over there.  Can you help me?'  The officer said 'How good is your vision?'  The blonde said, 'I have 20/20 vision but what's that got to do with unlocking my car?'  The officer said 'Well, I can see from here that your windows are rolled down', whew.

Truth is, you first need to learn how to view your problems differently.  When you encounter a problem, think about the outcome and then, pick up the lesson learned from there. The first instinct may be to whine and complain but over a few days, the purpose of the problem will reveal itself to you, it will surface out and there's just no way for you, for us to deny and refuse that that problem "CAN'T BE SEEN" at all.  Unfortunately, it is hard to change our way of thinking the negatives into positives.  But over time, that skill can be acquired. 

If you are patient with yourself and do not intend of rushing your thoughts.  Sometimes, some of our most frustrating problems in life can be the most valuable lesson we can ever learn from.  To think of it as a lesson rather than an obstacle helps you  to accept the fact that that problem is intended to help you become a better person [and not a bad person].

Even if we wade through the waters along the famous canals in Venice, the most exciting news of our problems in life is that is that it can happen anywhere but yet those lessons aren't taught to us in school at all.  Those problems are often like a volcano, dormant as we know it but next day, it spews lava when it erupts, These problems teach you more than 'JUST BE NICE'.  Instead, it teaches us the value of character and the true understanding of why it happened.  We just need to SEE HAT NEEDS TO BE SEEN✅✅✅

BUFFET Meals Versus BUFFET Learning

BUFFET Meals Versus BUFFER Learning

Good day readers.  Here's a 'silly' question to pick your brains.  What's the difference between BUFFET Meals Versus BUFFET Learning?  Let's start with their commonality.   Both are buffet-driven so both will offer you that much UNLIMITED options.  But commonalities end up there because from that point onwards, there is a huge gap between BUFFET Meals Versus BUFFET Learning

Juxtapositioned against BUFFET LEARNING, this is when the waters in the RED SEA will part ways.  Whereas in BUFFET MEALS, at some point you will grind to a halt because any further intake becomes inimical to your health, with BUFFET LEARNING, it's really UNLIMITED.  You can't go on and on, as long as you have that intestinal appetite to LEARN, nothing can stop you therein.

Not to wet your appetite for all these foodies, let's swing over to LEARNING because that is at the very core of our piece today. With BUFFET Learning, you really have everything to gain and NOTHING TO LOSE at all.  Some [wrongly] perceive that since our brain's capacity is as finite as our laptop's HDD, there is this logic being popularly [but wrongly] peddled that we should be selective of things to learn so as NOT to exhaust our brain's HDD.

What were the worst things you heard to date?  WHY I SHOULD I KEEP LEARNING WHEN I GRADUATED ALREADY?  WHY LEARN WHEN I'M PAST MY PRIME?  ARE YOU PUSHING ME TO LEARN AGAIN?  NO WAY I'M PAST THAT PHASE.  These are all baloney, BTW.

German Physicist Albert Einstein's famous one-liner was this:  ONCE YOU STOP LEARNING, YOU START DYING.  What a scary and morbid statement but that CAN'T be farther from the truth. You can challenge and ask me if I'm walking the talk?  Yes sirrrrs I got to confide to you that I extensively scribble on my iPhone notepad because I am an ardent believer of BUFFET LEARNING❗❗❗