Do you Evangelize?

I've been asked thrice during my recent trip to Indonesia on my title Chief Evangelizing Officer (CEO). These were CEOs, Presidents, VPs of major distribution and Pharmaceutical firms. With a straight face I told them that it is my job to convert communities, groups and individuals unto our brands. The supermarkets, pharmacies and traditional stores are our churches. I can see that they saw my sincerity.

The single best question you can ask yourself if you're championing a brand is how many people have you converted to your brand this week? How about today? Each point of interaction is an opportunity to evangelize (not just inform) people on your cause.

I HATE IT when moms use mild detergents (mild is a very subjective word), their babies DESERVE a hypoallergenic detergent.
I HATE IT when lotion sunblocks make beautiful people ugly (have you seen them ghosts) in the beach.
I HATE IT when the sweetener that you put in your coffee actually makes you less healthy.
I HATE IT when you've stopped WOWing your partner in Bed because you don't have the tools.

I feel enraged about it so much that I decided to do what I do.

Ask yourself, have you converted anyone today?

Perfect Timing

I was chatting with a friend who was previously assigned in Vietnam. He loved the place, saying he can imagine relocating there.

I have similar sentiments given Saigon's charm and proximity. And then he told me something that struck me.

He told me that I'm brave stating an operation given Vietnam's decade-record high inflation rate. I paused and told him a man's got to do what a man's got to do.

Or maybe... an entrepreneur. You see, I don't think too highly of great timing. I don't think it exists. Most of what we hear on timing success is all hindsight. If you wait for favorable conditions, it may never come. Air Asia for example, the leading low cost carrier in the region started three days after 911.

I'd even argue that when times are bad (like what we see daily in TV and radio), that's the best time to hit the START button because it's the time when most would sit down in the sidelines, play it safe and reflect on bad economy or high inflation.

Using iPhone

I've noticed I haven't been
Posting lately. I hope that with the new iPhone program I'd be able to share my thoughts more often.

Topping the Week

I've always enjoyed eating out.

Earlier today my wife and I decided to finish the week by hearing mass and having dinner outside. We ended up eating in Fish & Co to check the ongoing partnership as well.

After my favorite Best In Town Fish & Chips and a creamy pasta dish I ordered coffee and THERE IT WAS!

Halo can now be enjoyed in MOST if not all of Bistro Group Restaurants! To those who are not too familiar of Bistro Restos, they are where a lot of people I know go when they are out on a date, eat out with family and/or friends.

I'm sure you've tried them before: Friday's, Itallianni's, Fish & Co, Outback and now their latest, Flapjacks. I'm proud to say that Halo has partnered with one of the best resto group, if not in the Philippines, of South East Asia.

Quote from a Master

"Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful…What is likely is that the market will move higher, perhaps substantially so, well before either sentiment or the economy turns up. So if you wait for the robins, spring will be over."

- Warren E. Buffett on when to buy

I don't know about you but I think it is time to be AGGRESSIVE. I did interviews last week and everyone knows of a big company laying-off, halting marketing campaigns or even closing down. If you have the money look into investing now.

Engineer Your Team For Change

"There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in his home." - Ken Olsen, President Digital Equipment, 1977

This was just 31 years ago.

You've heard it before, the rate of change now is faster than ever before. Look around you. Cellphones that can email more and more are becoming entry level, all SLR cameras I see are digital and people don't want to bring CDs, they bring their iPods.

I think to survive you need to be ready for faster, crazy times ahead.

And I thought, I need to get my team ready!!!

Presenting the Rebirth of Extreme Saturdays. Done once or twice a month, it is an invitation to the members of my team to experience something new, to challenge comfort zones, to live. A few things we did in the past: Stock Market Crash Course, How to Fire A Gun, Wine & Cheese Session, Scuba Dive Intro (Batangas), First time motorbike ride.

This weekend 14 COURAGEOUS people in the office signed up for Adidas King of the Road. Most are first timers to marathons. Most are doing 10K. I am inspired by their heart and changed my mind over the weekend... I'm upping my event to 21K.

Get to know what others do, and then do the OPPOSITE

Benchmarking competitors is preached in schools and boardrooms around the world. I believe in benchmarking too but not in the usual sense.

I like to know what everyone is doing so I can do EXACTLY the opposite.

The world is filled with sameness (read: safeness). You have the same products in the shelves offering the same benefit only incrementally better or perhaps a bit cheaper, or sporting a new color. You have college graduates giving me the same boring-looking resume like they all came from one seminar telling the to do's and not-to-do's in CV writing. SAME SAME SAME...

If you want to be live a safe predictable life, go ahead and benchmark your direct competitors and be a bit better. If you want an adventure and a chance at greatness, go beyond being different, be the opposite.

A typical void-finding session in the office