Month: October 2019

Side Mirror

Recently, I lost my car’s side mirror at the passenger side. I felt so handicapped without it, as I felt so unsure when changing lane or parking or reversing as I can’t see my blind spot! It made me think of living life with blind spot and wondering what is my blind spot.

I figure that one of the blind spot I have is my limiting beliefs. Past bad experiences has shaped what I believe I can, and cannot do. Fear of Failure has kept me away trying new things. Fear of Winning has kept me within my comfort zone, as winning might mean more responsibility and new challenges.

My analogy of having a side mirror in life is to have friends, in particular, Accountability Partners, who can see your blind spots and hold you accountable for your actions. If you set any goals, be it health, business or any goals, your accountability partners can help you see through your excuses and justifications, guide you in your journey, get you back on track when you have sidetracked, and make you accountable. They should “mirror” who you are and show you your blind spots as you drive along your journey towards your goals. It certainly has a significant impact on my life having accountability partners!

Prayer that changes me

Yesterday, I was struck by a quote from the movie ‘Shadowland’, a very old movie about the famous C.S. Lewis. He said that prayer doesn’t change God, that prayer changes me.

I pray because I can’t help myself. I pray because I am helpless. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time, waking and sleeping. It doesn’t change God. It changes me. – C.S. Lewis

I thought about how I need to be praying persistently, and more importantly, I have to pray persistently – until it changes me. Often, we pray to change our situation, our job, or our (addictive) habits, our children, even our spouse! So, my prayer should be to change me – to change my perspective or my mindset – to develop my character or to strengthen me.

Many times, we are unable to control our situation, but we can control how we react to the situation. We can control our perspective of the situation, and hence, we can change from a negative to a positive perspective. That each situation is a lesson in the making, and that we can learn from our failures and mistakes, and hence grow stronger from the experience. Our prayer should help us to see God’s will for us and how He wants to change us and develop our character. That, I believe, is one of the important aspect of Prayer.

PichaEats Malaysia

With the help of PichaEats, we met some Myanmar refugees who shared their stories. I was amazed with one of PichaEats founder’s story of how the three of them decided to help refugees in Malaysia, while still studying in university! They found a unique way to help refugees – turning their culinary skills into a quality and delicious food business.

Through PichaEats, refugee families who are forced to flee to Malaysia can get a chance to rebuild their lives, regain their dignity, and provide for their family.

As I reflect on the PichaEats team and the refugees’ sharings, I am reminded again of how blessed I am to have my home, my family, my job and my friends, and many things that I take for granted! It also reminded me to stop complaining about what I lack, but to appreciate what I already have, which is more than enough!

PichaEats team is a young dynamic entrepreneurial team. I salute them for their courage and tenacity to start and maintain this business of helping refugees in Malaysia, and inspiring more people to help others. Read their story, support them by ordering their food if possible, and be inspired to do something to help others too.

L.E.A.D.E.R

Acronym for Leader

Recently, I attended a Talk by Cash Flow Story founder, Alan Miltz, in Kuala Lumpur. He gave the acronym for leader that I found most useful and insightful:

L – Listen

E – Empathy

A – Attitude

D – Decisions

E – Energize

R – Resilience

These are the admirable qualities of a leader! What a apt acronym for them! Furthermore, he highlighted that the letters for the word ‘listen’, are the same letters for the word ‘silent’, signifying that we must learn to be silent when listening! So true!

Do you have these qualities as a leader?