It’s that time of the year again, parties, dinners, holidays and celebrations. For many, its where we take the time to look back at the year and reflect on what we did right, try really hard to remember what we didn’t do, bask in the memories of what we did, and then set new resolutions and goals for the coming new year. How was your 2017? Here is my year in a nutshell and some of the key lessons i learnt throughout the year.
“It is not happy people who are thankful, it is thankful people who are happy.”
For those of you who have been following my blog from the start, you’d have come across a post about GRATITUDE PRACTICE and how cultivating such a practice helped me through a rough patch in my life. For those who haven’t read it, i recommend you click on the link above and have a quick read about this scientifically proven practice. I called this post “plus” because this exercise is an add-on to the habits and practices shared in the previous post that will enhance your ability to create the right positive mindset.
This post is rather late, but as they say ‘better late than never’. As i was looking back on the year, 2015 was tough, 2016 though was a year filled with blessings and discoveries. Sure it was rough year plagued with challenges and obstacles, but looking back i chose to count my blessings instead. So 2016 was an amazing year for me, i rediscovered the soul of the team, i had the opportunity to meet alot of new friends and from which new genuine friendships were formed, i met and obtained mentorship from amazing business personalities, i learnt more about entrepreneurship in 2016 then i have in the last 10 years of being in business, i learnt about life, and most importantly i learnt about myself.
My Dato Michael Tio Study Tour Experience Part 2 takes us to the exciting part of the trip because Day 8 is where we hike up Mount Snowdon! I struggled with Part 1, having to crack my head trying to recall every moment of the trip whilst reading through my notes (mind you, my hand writing can rival a doctor’s!). Part 2 is even tougher to pen down because we travelled through mountain routes and stopped in towns whose names i can’t even pronounce. Plus i drove half the route and was co-driver the other half. Had the honour of Dato Tony Looi (DTL) being our driver, who by the way hasn’t driven in a long while because he usually gets chauffeured around in a Bentley. Pretty scary as this was the most dangerous part of our entire trip! But DTL not only drove the big MPV through the narrow winding country roads, he did it whilst discussing leadership and business strategies with the rest of us.
On to our trip!
Oh my, where do i start?!
I’ve been staring at the screen for a half a day and i am still lost as to where i should start because there is just too much to pen down. The sheer number of wonderful friends i’ve made, the amount places we visited, the knowledge gained, the unique experiences, and of course there is climbing the highest mountain in England and Wales, Mount Snowdon…
I am going to pen a 3-part series for My DMT Study Tour (ST) Experience. Part 1 and 2 will be a journal like entry about the overall trip, experiences and places we visited. My final entry in this series aims to share all the entrepreneurial, leadership and life learnings we gained from travelling together. I hope that these 3 blog entries can provide you with enough information so that you too can plan your own self drive trip through England and Wales. I encourage everyone to go on a self drive tour, you get to see and experience so much more of the local culture as well as some interesting sights.
I am elated that a fellow PulsElite shared this video with the rest of the team. That PulsElite is one who continuously goes the extra mile and beyond the call of duty to ensure things get done, and is one who is always ready to assist other fellow PulsElites. I am grateful to be surrounded by amazing people and given the opportunity to hopefully play a role in helping them grow and develop.
“How you do something speaks volumes about the person that you are.”
Xandria Ooi nails it in 2-minutes.
Happiness is a merely a thought away. There are many similar quotes along the lines of happiness being a choice, and numerous studies and articles on how our happiness is internal and not being dependant on outside sources. Like some of the things i share here on my blog, i’ve come across and read numerous articles on happiness, and i have shared and tagged my friends in happiness quotes so annoyingly often throughout the years. Most of us we read alot of things and are constantly exposed to new knowledge so in theory we are more than well equipped to do remarkable things. And most of us either find it hunky dory and cant be bothered applying, have difficulty being uncomfortable and stepping out of our comfort zones, refuse to change our habits, or like all things human we choose the easier path. It takes a determined person to want to learn and be able to apply with discipline, or it takes a significant event in our lives that forces us to make that leap. I am the latter.
“Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance.”
Eckhart Tolle
Sometime back i got an invitation to a networking and sharing session by one of the most unique law firms in Malaysia, Chur Associates. Operating from an awesome building known as The CAstle, Chur Associates was founded by a fellow alumnus, the extremely colourful and energetic Chris Tan. He’s also earned the title The Maverick Lawyer for his unique approach to a rather bland industry. We’ll talk about Chris and Chur Associates in the near future because this post is not about this amazing lawyer, it is about what changed my life after leaving this session.
An old friend was having a conversation with me recently about how one of the best decisions he ever made was to sell his Porsche and buy a Honda Jazz. And no, he has not suffered any loss in income, in fact his business is booming. In that same conversation he talked about a guy he met recently who was just starting his business and was adamant on buying a Mercedes. His justification was that because he was starting up he needed the ‘image’, and my dear friend who has been in business for years tried hard to convince him not to jump into that trap. The conversation struck a chord with me because i’ve gone and made such decisions, hence been on both sides of that fence.
Sharing some of my fave videos that have inspired or helped me. If you haven’t already watched them, do spare the time.
Always Start With Why. Simon Sez.
Simon Sinek’s theory on how leaders inspire action, from his best selling book “Start With Why”.
