Quite a Long Way From Bagful of Stocks

Had a fantastic ride to Jakarta and I was welcomed with a broken seal.

Our first container of goods have arrived! :)

Work That Matters

More Here.

Feed It Oxygen

The busier you are, the more you should run (or exercise).

Yesterday I ended the day with half a dozen problems. Woke up early, tied my shoes and ran with my team until we had no more road. I now have a dozen opportunities in my head... more than what I bargained for.

Another wonder of the internet

Translation.

There are no more excuses. A Thai website features Cycles below:

Thai Version

And is translated here:

English Version

in less than a second!!! Wow.

Beyond Compare

I got my Kindle end of 2009 and it has changed the way I read. I find myself reading more, enjoying more.

The Big Win I think is when I finish a book and do not realize that I was holding an electronic device. Reading the Kindle truly feels like you're reading a normal book. Sometimes I think I even read faster.

I've always been a light packer and the Kindle with 1,500 full book-capacity and 1 week battery life is perfect!

Somehow, I discover new things with it every week. The other week, my daughter figured it out and she bought our first Children's book. I can imagine having Kindle-like devices by the time she hits high school.

Have Gas?

"The big secret in life is that there is no secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you are willing to work. It is called massive action. Action is the gas in the tank. Without it, the car will not run."

- Marcy Blochowiak, Author of No Glass Ceiling

When Asia Will Overtake the West

I'm a big fan of Hans Rosling and I believe this is his best online talk yet. It pretty much explains why I am betting all my chips in mother Asia.

Simple Basic Way to Get Rich

I saw Dragon's Den last year in a long haul flight and I've been looking for it in every plane seat with a screen. The entrepreneurs face the dragons and with 3 minutes and no BS they have to tell why their business is worth investing in.

This is the book of one of the dragons, Duncan Bannatyne. I was able to finish it through my Kindle and it is an amazing read. Filled with basic, simple and useful advice I highly recommend the reading. It is also well written and you'd feel Duncan is just telling you a story.

He started poor, started late and didn't finish college. He's now a multi-millionaire. Read Anyone Can Do It to find out.

Doing It Everyday!

I'm a morning person.

I think the fastest, I am most creative, I get a lot of things done in the morning than any other part of the day. And I work very well alone, just me and my coffee.

I can have all the chit chats and discussions later in the day, but my mornings are for me.

Do you BANG your keyboards when you type?

If yes, well then congratulations! You're passion and enthusiasm is seeping through your fingers.

I just realized that the best work I get done is when I bang my damn keyboards. I think Apple makes robust keyboards because I've never had any breakdown... even after the abuse.

So go ahead... don't listen to your boss. BANG that keyboard and make something beautiful!

Hello 2010!

If I am to put a theme to it, it would be a year of systems and getting things done.

Open to reinventing yourself?

P&G in the US is the doing just that. The $80 billion company realizes that two thirds (THAT'S BIG!) of US consumer spending is in services.

How do you grow a company at $80 billion in revenues and what can mature brands like Mr. Clean do? Transform. Much like IBM's move from boxes to services.

Enter Mr. Clean Carwash.

I LOVE Fast Meetings

I just had one earlier this week with an amazing organization that will go places. I missed sitting down with people with that kind of mindset, who get things done really fast.

Saw this 30sec MBA program with FastCompany. I highly share their methods.

Click Here to start your program.

Write from the heart

Does your company have a soul? Do you write like a watered-down committee or like a person? Matt of 37signals gives us a very good example.

Here's Samsonite:

By identifying trends and interpreting travelers’ needs, Samsonite continues to infuse innovation and new ideas into travel, re-igniting the sophistication and experience of the past.

Here's Saddleback Leather Company:

It all began when I had my first bag made while living in Southern Mexico as a volunteer English teacher to kids who needed a little help. I had looked everywhere for just the right bag, but with no luck…

In my search, I walked into a little leather shop and met the fellow working leather in the back. I asked him if he could make me a bag if I were to draw it out. I told him that I wanted this bag to be made so well that my grandkids would be fighting over it while I was still warm in the grave. He said “Si” and I said “Bueno” and that’s how it all started.

One is a bunch of words that somewhat makes boring sense. The other, a real living, breathing person talking to me.

Keep it real.

Cycles now in Mothercare

You can now buy Cycles in the upscale and beautiful chain stores of Mothercare Indonesia. Cheers to Pak Jay, Pak Eddy and Tirta for reaching ELECTRIFYING heights.

Mothercare Kelapa Gading

Mothercare Pacific Place

Mothercare Plaza Indonesia

Cycles is initially available in 7 out of 11 Mothercare stores in Indonesia.

Theory of Relativity

I now have proof that time is relative.

My three days in the office coming from abroad feels like exactly 1.5 weeks! Ha! I'm sure my team can relate. Enjoy the ride...

Small is Beautiful: Jack Ma, alibaba.com

'In the last century, big was better,' said the China-based e-commerce company's founder. 'But in the 21st century, I believe small is beautiful because it is not about how much equipment you have, it is about how quickly you can change yourself to meet the market.'

Straits Times

11 vs 41 Words

I've noticed something very subtle yet very important.

Google home page is cleaner... for a few seconds. And I like it. When you launch the page it will look like this:

After a few seconds it goes back to the old one, with the bells and whistles are in place:

It reinforces why you go back to Google. The site is damn simple.

Made in China TV Ad

Two things came to mind after watching the ad which the Chinese government aired first in Asia and then to the rest of the world including the US.

1. It is TRUE, almost everything you see around us wherever you may be was assembled or has a component that came from China.
2. It is FALSE to think that you can change people's perception overnight, and with a TV ad. Care to drink Chinese-made milk in the morning?

This is true now, but in 5 years, or a decade from now, perceptions can truly change.

It Just Works

My mom, who for me is the example of an ultimate entrepreneur recently asked me to get her a Mac. I was truly shocked.

How can someone who uses the computer for business 99% of the time want a Mac? It turns out that she's tired of her computer hanging while doing emails, the wasted time with viruses and scans, the incompatibility of the components especially in Skyping and perhaps her current computer looks darn ugly around her office universe.

I got her a 13-inch MacBook Pro, giving her the power at the same time she can bring it around her trips. I installed everything she needed - office, YM, Skype, taught her and in around 40 minutes she got it.

I still remember teaching her more than a decade back on PC and it took me 4 days.