When I'm back for good...

It's been a good 9 months since I last posted, and guess what, some people are asking if I still blog at all. Not bad, at least I know some people are reading it!

Well being out of the blogging scene does not mean I've been doing nothing, in fact so many things have happened that I don't know where to start. Let's talk about my Masters programme since this is the only formal educational program that is 100% self funded.

I am left with 2 more units to go, namely Resource Management and Professional Project; 4 down 2 more to go. Both will take me right up till end of Sept this year. Frankly I am pleased with my results so far, though I am not sure if there is anything to do with intellectual ability or pure luck; I think the former makes more sense. For the first 3 units, I'm on a a pretty good run not relative to anyone, but relative to my own academic performance. Not bad for a person who was once an academic failure in my earlier school days.

In my primary school days, I was doing alright. But in secondary, I went down hill. Red colours starts to creep into my report book, perhaps in that growing up days other things seem more fun than books, being in normal stream is enough to put books in 2nd place. I dropped subjects just to finish my 'O' with 5. Among my group of friends, my 19 points for 'O' was one of the highest! In today's context, 19 points is a hopeless case already. I went to Ngee Ann Poly with a vengence, I can still remember how inadequate I felt when I was one of the very few among 100s in the lecture theatre whose hand stayed up when the maths lecturer asked: "Who did not do A math in 'O'?" It was a spite to my ego which later on spurred me to be obsessed with the alien word called 'distinction'. I finished my diploma with merit. My bachelor's program was a part time one. Similarly I did my best with some good results.

This master's program wasn't an easy run though, but I'm glad I was able to share some tips and approaches for the benefit of others. At least Vic found my tips useful and according to him over lunch, has improved his results in his assignments. Pat on your back, Vic. Somehow I enjoy sharing of knowledge, as long as it matters and as long as someone benefits from it. I'm not bugged by 'kung fu master syndrome', I can share everything if it makes sense, though I observe that there seems to be skeptics to this proposition. Its ok, life goes on... for one thing I learn through my 37 years in life, is that 'you scratch my back and I scratch yours'. Besides the stuff about this master's program, the network and knowing people is as valuable as the certificate itself... social capital? Indeed, no man is an island.

The key focus on the current unit is about sustainability, I think it makes excellent sense in every situation and context. At a personal level, we should be seeing our own success from a sustainability standpoint. Rich one day and bankrupt the next, morality one day and gone the next, distinction one day and fail the next. So really successful people are those whom are able to sustain their achievements over a reasonable period of time. Organizations alike needs a sustainability imperative. The overwhelming focus on short term results will come back to haunt in uglier ways. But lack of short term result is going to drive investors away. So what should organizations do? Start with the leader!

The power of the leader is very often underestimated. In many situations, a casual word from the leader is taken as a policy as the message trickles down the ranks. Particularly in hierarchical organizations, each layer of the hierarchy adds a degree of urgency and significance to the message. While this could be intentional and deliberate on the part of the leader, consider the following metaphor... Supposing the leader is the chef who whips up a bowl of noodles, by the time it reaches the diner it would have become inedible if each waiter sprinkle salt and pepper on it at their disposal. In reality, this metaphor is exemplary of most organizations, public or private alike. When the CEO wants a 10% increase in overall market share, every GM down the ranks add a 10% buffer just in case if we don't hit the stars we land on the roof. The entire culture of the organization is then shaped in a way that is invisible to the CEO. All the CEO wants is 10% increase, but people on the ground are suffering with impossible targets. Minister Mah recently mentioned the use of a 6/7 million population as a norm for planning public infrastructures, the citizens took it as a drive towards indiscriminate population increase. Did we clean our ears or was it selective listening?

Some say the world is flat, but I think the world is stacked!