How does One Measure One's Life ? By Adding Value to our Workplace, Relationships and the World at Large

      Last year I read this fascinating book on Steve Jobs. It was a par excellence book written by Walter Isaacson (former managing editor of Time Magazine) and it encompassed many interviews of people from his past and present. Steve Jobs passed away almost 3 years ago and his legacy in his products still live on to this day.  


     It detailed though the many interviews with his parents, his student day friends,, his ex-girlfriends, wife, ex-partners, friends, casual acquaintances, subordinates, board members past and present and business associates. It showed a brilliant, visionary ruthless, sometimes naive man who was fixated in building the best of the best personal computer in the world - and he succeeded. Halfway reading it, I wondered, why people are fascinated with a person with so many character 'flaws' and did the meanest things  ? Yet he was idolised, hero-worshipped from afar. 

Our Family 

      It dawned upon me, that Steve Jobs added value to the world. In terms of producing the best designed, user-friendly PCs, handphones (practically three quarters of this planet own an IPhone or aspire to own one), notebooks, entertainment stations IPods which were 
'game changers ' - products which changed the way people communicated, or interacted.

     He was not the best father to his first child, a daughter, even threatening his ex-girlfriend with a lawsuit on the paternity results, he ignored his daughter for more than 10 years, he bullied his 'working class' parents to pay for expensive tuition fees at Reed College, a private college, when he had won a scholarship to study at Stanford University, because it was where he could smoke weed, cut class and basically bum around in school. He bullied his partner Steve Wosniak on many things, on how the company should be run, the designs he imposed on them, the many petulant outbursts with his staff and business associates, the list of immoderate behaviour would run into the hundreds.

     If he weren't the genius entrepreneur who told the world what to buy when, he would have been labelled a misfit, an asshole who meant nothing or added nothing to this world. 

    Yet there are numerous books about him, and his cool company, Apple. Why ? Because and only because, Apple changed the way the world looked and used the PC from the 70s to the 90s to the 2000s. It changed people's mindsets about how to interact with other people, namely using the phone as an entertainment device first with the call function second. His vision added tremendous value to everyday lives and his products were so good that even the parts which you don't see are sourced from the best suppliers and have been worked at. rewired and reworked more than a thousand times. Such is the emphasis to perfection which was the philosophy of Steve Jobs.

 My niece, Hannah 

   In a small way, we all must add value to our relationships, our businesses, our workplace, our families and possibly to society at large giving of our time, our know-how, compassion, money and leadership which will truly be the measure of how we will look back at our lives and say :

" Yes, I did make a difference !" 

   Seize the Day my friends. 

All the Cousins at Christmas Party 2013

   

Argyle Sweater - Single Strip Cartoon for Intellectuals

   I've always tried to enjoy Scott Hillborn's Argyle Sweater which is a single strip cartoon where the punchline is always there. It reflects society's strange attractions or fads and you need to be clued in to age - old nursery rhymes, puns, synonyms,or even  idiomatic expressions  (an example is don't let sleeping dogs lie).

  Enjoy this one, which I have pasted on my wall next to my desk. 

Skiing - The Exhilaration and the Risk

    Recently on 30th December, the 8 times world F1 champion Michael Schumacher had a horrible accident off - piste (outside the demarcated ski slopes_ and inflicted a terrible head injury, which today he is still in an induced coma.

    As a skier myself, though not in the expert range as the pros, I am well aware of the speeds at which skiers can and do normally go at. It was reported that Schumacher was going at speeds of 60 to 100 kmper hour (!) downslope when he turned a corner and slammed into a hidden rock. Such is the perils of off piste skiing, which can leave you feeling like the king of the hill one day and the next day, in a wheelchair with broken ribs, arms, a leg, or even worse, in a coma.

    Many expert skiers do not live long lives as they have succumbed to the mountains as going from ridge to ridge is highly dangerous and the need for speed and to feel that adrenalin rush just that one more time is so addictive, they make the move, but the body just can't balance or be as adept as when in their prime, hence, the accidents and the tragedies.    

     It was fortuitous that Michael Schumacher wore a helmet, but the fact that it broke into 2 shows the forceful intensity in which his head slammed into stone. I can only shudder and my prayers are out to him and his family for hopefully a miracle and that he can recover some or all of his previous self and wit.

    I remember last year in Japan, when I first skied down the intermediate slope, I lost control and cartwheeled on the slope and hit my head on the slope. Luckily the helmet absorbed the majority of the impact and I picked myself up, rather giddily, and continued skiing down.  

    

Skiing in Korea December 2010

     People who want to ski, please take lessons, also wear helmets, and most of all follow the signs according to your ability. These simple steps  will possibly one day save your life. 

Dec 1st 2013 Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon - No. 8

At the Finish Line

2013 Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon held on Dec 1st (Sunday) was the 8th time I had completed the full marathon. At 51 years of age, I feel I am still in my prime mentally, though physically I have probably dropped about 30% from the peak fitness of the mid 20s and early 30s. I had prepared on and off during the year for this marathon and I feel blessed that I can still complete the full 42.194km distance. My best time to date is 4 hours 45 minutes set in 2007. I believe if I train regularly enough, this time is beatable, because, when then is an iron will to succeed, the body will adapt to overcome the odds to achieve it. 

Finishing in style (at least I think so) 

For posterity I will recap the route as this will be a good record of the coming marathons. The 5.00 gun at Orchard Road went off and 16,000 full marathoners (I believe a full 5,000 did not finish or DNF) took to the cool and humid streets of Singapore's shopping belt Orchard Road.

I had the pacer strapped to my hand and was quite happy to be going at a 7 minutes pace per km for the first 20 km. I had taken a full bottle of Red Bull (Europe made) and in my training runs, this had proven super effective in warding off the tiredness for over 3 hours. Previously I would pop Power Gels every 10 km or so, but with the Red Bull in me, it was my Secret Weapon. I carried with me the following ; 

a) Anti muscle ache spray (Tiger Balm, small bottle, 75 ml)

b) Pocari Sport bottle (in my hand - top up my tank anytime)

c) Small cloth (wipe off any excessive perspiration, and also act as a heat dissipater)

d) Oakley Sunglasses  (for vanity reasons, and of course, cutting back the glare of the sun)

The race in its early stages was smooth, I had been training up to 4 times a week in the lead up of 3 months before December, and I must state that IT IS VITAL TO RUN AT LEAST 5 RUNS ABOVE 30 KM. So I had around 4 - 5 runs this year of almost 4 hours. This is what I would call body conditioning. It is imperative that I run around 50 km per week 1 month or even 2 months before the actual marathon. 

I practised in the late morning, again, for body conditioning. This would ensure that even in the searing heat, I could endure, therefore, the morning heat of the actual marathon should not be a big problem for me. 

The first 10 - 20 km were basically just focussing on getting my gait right, not overpronating, neither was I pushing too hard. I was fluctuating between the run pacers of 5 hours (which I thought was great), to 6 hours (which I thought I could definitely beat), drinks stations were plentiful, at every 2 km, and I hardly drank from my bottle for the first 30 km.  After close study of the route, I knew when I would take my toilet breaks (twice), once around the 23km mark and another around the 30 km mark all within the East Coast Parkway. The runspirators (or people cheering us on) were fantastic, with plenty of hand slappers, bananas, aid stations for massage, and ice cream. I did not really stop at any of these as I was super focussed on finishing the race.

Amazingly around the 30 km mark, I felt fine, the legs felt strong, and no stretching or muscle pulls were evident. I pressed on only to pause for toilet and drink breaks, plus to spray on the muscle relaxant after the 30 km mark. 

Around the 33km mark, which is before the Gardens by the Bay, I started to stop a little, and decided to walk about 100 m. "Get going !!" the voice inside me shouted and I moved on. So I would run about 800m and walk for 100m for about 3 km up to the Marina Barrage. I was so fired up at that time to break the 6 hour mark, I practically vowed to run till I dropped, and the phrase popped up " One day I will not run another step, but TODAY is NOT THAT DAY !!".   So off I went ignoring the aches and stiffness and I willed myself to the finish - in style.

My final time of 5 hours 53 minutes is far from my best time, but its better than the last 3 years timing (5 : 59, 6 : 04 , 6 : 09). 

Well Done !! 

  

The last 5 to 10 km are the most challenging !

This new year, 2014, I set myself a new interesting challenge, that is to run 2 overseas marathons. You see, I am not getting any younger, my business is quite secure, and I am at that stage in life in achieving or self actualising myself. It sounds selfish, but I want to add value to the society at large and for the Paris Marathon which I signed up (or intend to anyway), I am helping the British Heart Society raise funds for heart research in the UK. Minimum of BP 1,000 which will be donated to the charity. 

So 2 Overseas Marathons is my target, 1st one is Paris Marathon 2014 on 6th April 2014.

Where will or when will the next one be ? Hong Kong ? Macau ? Korea ? Delhi ? All these places I have business interests in.  Your guess is as good as mine !  

I take solace in a Mr. Chong who is 83 years of age, and has run 97 (yes 97 !) marathons in his lifetime.  When interviewed by the Straits Times recently, he said and I quote :

 " Running is like breathing to me, the day I stop running, is the day I will die "  

Well I hold the exact same view, although I don't think I will drop dead if one day I cannot run a step more. It would be ideal actually if I did die during a run, for it would be something which I loved doing my whole life. 

  Seize the Day !!! 

Mr. Brown Expresses (pun intended) his views on the Most Congested Expressway - Hilarious !

Mr. Brown is a 40 something satirist about life in Singapore. His posts on Youtube reflect the current sentiments about 'happenings' in Singapore everyday life as well as some of the current 'coffeeshop chatter' amongst many Singaporeans.  

This post is about the recently opened Marina Coastal Expressway which links the East Coast Parkway with the Ayer Rajah Expressway underground. In the near future, the Banjamin Sheares Bridge will be decommissioned, and all thoroughfare (vehicular traffic) will use the MCE to get from West to East and East to West.

There have been hiccups since the opening, with poor signage, drivers not sure where to turn off the Expressway and people expecting much greater jams once the start of the working year begins in full swing - on  Monday 6th January 2014. Already there were massive jams on the day it opened.

Watch the video and let out some steam fellow citizens.

Out with the Old in with the New - 2014

Happy New Year !! 

2013 has come and gone in a flash. I have turned 51 from 50 in what has seemed like a day. It is true the old adage which goes "Time crawls when you are a baby, it walks when you are a youth, it runs when you are a young adult, and it flies when you get past 50". Well the last past, I added that on myself. It really seems that the older we get, the feeling that time is slipping way too fast for our liking is all to real.

2013 has been a rather difficult year for me, on the business front, as a small business owner, the economy though it grew by 3.7 %, manufacturing and services on the whole have been sputtering and only in the aeronautical, biomedical clusters have seen some positive growth. I had taken the step  for my company to distribute Asian Quality Assurance Test Equipement brands - since 2012- and I have never regretted that decision. 

Since venturing into the Test Laboratory services, we have a lot more visibility with the customers especially in the Singapore and South Malaysia territories. Orders are coming in on a more regulated basis, I am happy to announce, and hopefully 2014 will see a major kickoff in the transport simulation test services section of our business. 

With My brother's relatives on Christmas Day Dinner

Personally I have completed my 8th marathon, at a time I am happy with, 5 hours, 53 minutes. This is almost 20 minutes faster than my 2012 time, and with minimal training too ! So it is a cause for celebration. My 2 young men, Noel and Andrew are well into their teens and as December (just past) is the winter holiday term break, both have started working in temporary jobs as wait staff. My wife and I were most pleased to see the good attitude as well as the desire to work and earn an honest wage in the food establishments at Clarke Quay and Tanglin Mall respectively.

Cheers ! 

As the transition from boys to men, my fervent wish is that they follow the right path to achieve a decent University education following which they can start their own careers and build their own nuclear families.

The 50s is an age of reflection as well as building a lasting legacy for oneself. A wonderful book given by my brother and sis-in-law, called "How do you measure your life ?" The message is for me is to lead a meaningful life which I and only I can add value to the world, my family, friends and the people I interact with.

Seize the Day ! Happy 2014 !   

This is the month

     This is the month of November, I am expecting many good outcomes from it, and that is why I had omitted to write anything since November till end of the year to focus on what is truly important. 

     if you, the reader think this is a rather cryptic post, you are correct. Only time will decide whether the outcomes have been good for me personally.