So, What's Next?

Okay, so I'm finally done with a 5-week event for Fraser. It had been a long and tiring, but at the same time a fulfilling experience from which I learned something. While dragging myself home, I feel a sense of emptiness. I asked myself "So, what's next?"

I am sure many of you have this moment when you ask yourself "So, what's next?" We are constantly trying to fill up every minute of our time with activities, keeping ourselves occupied. Why is this the case? Is it because we are afraid of loneliness and boredom?

I think that this is the result of our life is filled with too many activities, especially in such a fast-paced society, so much so that we sub-consciously lost the ability to spend quality time with ourselves. We are used to constantly having activities to spice up our daily life. We need to do something, or the companion of somebody to feel at ease. Being alone, not doing anything, is something that we are not accustomed to.

I am not disagreeing with spicing up our life with interesting activities. In fact, I think we need to have that so as to keep us connected to our peers, to our society. We need to have sufficient social life in order to stay on track with this fast-paced society.

However, connecting with our peers, connecting with society is not enough. We need to connect with ourselves too. We need to constantly take a step back, look at what we have done and reflect on them. From there, we can analyse what we have done right and what we have done wrong, and thus learn from it and improve ourselves. We need a moment of loneliness, quietness, emptiness, so that we can really sit down and do some self-reflections, undisturbed. We need some time and space to converse with ourselves.

So, instead of constantly asking "So, what's next?", you may want to consider letting your mind run wild once in awhile and think back on the stuff you have done lately, try to see if you could have done it any better. You don't learn just from others, you can learn from yourself too, learn from your past mistakes.

Strike a balance. Assign sufficient time for you to connect with your peers, the society, and yourself.

Now that I'm almost done with this article. So, what's next?

-The god has spoken

Product-Driven Behaviours Or Behaviour-Driven Products?

I have been working with a particular bunch of part timers for the past three or four weeks, and I observed a trend. Each and everyone of them carries at least one portable charger for their mobile phone, or they call it power bank nowadays, with them. For those who forgot to bring their's, they could be borrowing power bank from the others as early as 12pm.

Apparently, people are losing the habit of charging their phones at night. Of course, the heavy usage of their phone plays an important part too. So why are they not charging their phones at night when they are sleeping? The common answer I got is that they always text their friends till they fall asleep.

As a person who are deeply into mobile phone technology, I know that phones, especially flagship phones, are getting bigger and bigger batteries. According to gsmarena.com*, the flagship phones released since 2013 can last at least 60 hours in a single charge on normal usage. Normal usage is defined as 1 hour of watching videos, 1 hour of talking on phone, 1 hour of surfing the net every 24 hours. That's 3 hours of battery-sapping activities per day, and the phone should still last you at least two and a half day before you need to charge it up. 

Remember the days (just 3 to 4 years ago) when flagship phones only had around 1200 to 1500mAH of battery (iPhone 4 has 1420mAH)? We never had problem with battery life, and didn't need a portable charger. Now the flagships all have around 2500 to 3000mAH (Galaxy S5 has 2800mAH), and yet users need to carry a portable charger with them. Mathematically speaking, we are spending approximately four to five times more time using our mobile phone as compared to 4 years ago. 

I started to wonder is it the increase in usage of mobile phone that prompted manufacturers to create phones with bigger batteries, or manufacturers creating phones with bigger batteries spoiled consumers to use their mobile phones more often? I am more inclined to think that it is the consumers' increasing usage that prompted manufacturers to create phones with bigger batteries. 

Too often we have moments in our daily life that we cannot do anything but to wait, such as waiting for elevators, waiting for public transport, waiting for food to be served, travelling time etc. These are time when people have nothing to do, and mobile phone, or more specifically smartphones, are the perfect solution. It allows people to entertain themselves during these moments, be it playing games, surfing the net, or browsing through social media platforms to see updates of their friends. 

Other than that, smartphones gradually became the "excuse" to not talk to each other. There are moments when we have nothing to talk about to another person. In the past, there will be an awkward silence, and everyone will be waiting for someone else to break the silence. Right now, when we have nothing to talk about, we just start using our smartphones. Everyone will be occupied and no one will notice the awkward silence. The word "Phubbing" was created to describe such an act.

Of course, we have the all-popular application known as "Whatsapp" taking over the traditional SMS. As of 22 April 2014, Whatsapp has more than 500 million active users monthly. Whatsapp has more functions than our traditional SMS, which makes majority of the consumer prefer using Whatsapp over SMS. However, one of the only few downside of Whatsapp as compared to SMS is that it requires internet connection, and it doesn't take a genius to know that using internet connection, be it 3G/4G or Wi-fi, is more taxing on the battery of the phone. 

There are many more reasons why consumers are using their mobile phones more than ever, and it doesn't seem like the reliance on mobile phones will go south in anytime soon. It is exactly this behaviour that prompted manufacturers to make bigger batteries for phone. It is exactly this behaviour that popularised portable charger. Therefore, I believe that it is the behaviour of consumers that drives product. What about you?

*gsmarena.com is a leading website that provides news and detailed reviews on mobile phones

-The god has spoken

Be Considerate: Leave A&E for the Emergencies!

My wrist was in pain since last week, and it worsened today, so I decided to get it treated. As it was almost 10pm by the time I end work and go home, the General Practioners (GPs) that I knew were all closed, so I went to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's A&E department.

The waiting area was crowded with patients. Despite so, I didn't wait too long for my registration. I was told to wait before the triage for my turn. Being the "kiasu"* guy, I waited at the front row of seats. While waiting for my turn, I saw many other patients with way more serious conditions than mine. I even managed to hear some of them when they explained to the staff about their condition. A man in his 50s got his toe smashed by a 10kg rock. An old lady got a fish bone stuck in the throat. A middle-age man scalded himself with boiling water. Another old lady was vomiting as she was explaining her condition.

I suddenly felt ashamed that I was wasting time and resources for such a minor condition. As if it wasn't enough, a screen at my 2 o'clock direction read something like "Non-emergency cases take up time for the emergency cases". I almost wanted to cancel my request, but my $108 receipt held me back.

I waited for less than an hour before it was my turn to see the doctor. After explaining to the doctor my condition, she told me that it should be just a strain, but recommended me to take x-ray just to be sure. After getting my wrist x-rayed, the doctor assured me that there wasn't any fracture or whatnot. I went over to the pharmacy to collect my medicine before I head back home. Before I left, I turned back and looked at the waiting area. The waiting area was the same as when I entered - crowded with patients.

Dear readers, please be considerate. Do not misuse the A&E department of a hospital. There are patients in great pain waiting to see the doctor. If your condition is not that serious, visit any polyclinics or GPs near you. If they are closed, try to endure if you can. Imagine yourself being the one who is in serious pain, but your consultation got pushed back by people with minor conditions. How will you feel? So let me reiterate my point, DO NOT misuse the A&E department. A simple act like this will help to let those in pain to get attended to faster.

*kiasu - afraid of losing out

-The god has spoken

How to Say No

I was having dinner earlier today with a group of part timers from an event that I'm currently working on. Together with us was one guy whom I had not met before. I couldn't care less about him as I was pretty hungry. Despite so, I portioned out some of my attention to listen to their conversation.

The guy whom I had not met before was trying to convince one of the part timers to join him in a Multi-level Marketing (MLM) scheme. I had heard enough stories in the past about MLM to know that MLM isn't good, and I was pretty certain that the part timer wasn't keen to be part of the scheme too from his replies, but wasn't sure how to reject him. I thought that I could lend a helping hand, so I decided to interrupt the conversation.

"Hi, I was listening to your conversation just now, and the prospect of this plan sounds promising. Can I have your name card?" 

"Errr... I don't have a name card." 

"You are working for this company, yet you don't have a name card, and you are representing this company as you are talking to us?" 

"Wait, let me show you my distribution license." He began to clumsily search for it in his bag for about 15 seconds. "You see, this is my distribution license." He hands over a bulky transparent plastic card holder that was flipped to the page with his license.  

"So these numbers represents your distribution license ID? How do I verify it? And under which authority was this license sanctioned by?" 

He started clicking his pen and stutter "Errr... I don't know, but if you all are interested, you can attend the talk that I mentioned earlier on. All your doubts will be clarified there." Signs of nervousness. 

I started questioning the identity of him and the company, and he couldn't answer.  

"Alright, let's give you the benefit of doubt. Just leave your contact with him (the part timer), and if he is intereted or has any questions, he will contact you. Sounds good?" 

"Yeah, good. He already has my contact."

I thought I just did something great, but after some clarifications with another part timer, I then realised that the MLM guy was the friend of the part timer. And I felt bad suddenly, as I was pretty rude, and that could have put the part timer in an awkward spot. I regretted being too harsh, as I should have tried to understand their relationship better before acting.

Feeling apologetic, I kept reflecting on the incident and thought how I could have handled the situation better while on my way back home. I came to the conclusion that there are two ways to reject someone:

1. Direct
2. Indirect

As you are reading this, you may be thinking "duh... I don't need you to tell me that", but my analysis of these two ways of rejection may help you decide how to reject somebody in the future.

Direct Rejection

A direct rejection often involves using a firm, or even harsh tone, and you are straight to the point in expressing your disinterest in whatever the speaker is presenting. Some techniques includes criticism, sarcasm, expressing doubts on the item being presented. What I did earlier on was a direct rejection.

Let's do a simple SWOT analysis* for this form of rejection.

Strengths,  Direct rejection is straight to the point. It allows little points for the opposition to leverage on and continue his presentation, thus ending the presentation swiftly. It also express your disinterest and displeasure in a strong manner, creating a deterrence effect.

Weaknesses.  Direct rejection may come across as being offensive, especially in Asian's culture where harmony and good relationship is vital.

Opportunities.  The opposition will better know what you are not interested in, and may be able to offer something different that may interest you. If he doesn't have alternate proposal, he will leave you alone. 

Threats,  You may leave a negative impression to the opposition. If the opposition is someone related to you, the relationship may turn sour. Even if he has a better alternate proposal, he may not want to share it with you.

Indirect Rejection

An indirect rejection involves using a polite tone, and tends to go in circles before reaching your point. Some techniques includes expressing uncertainty over prospect of proposal, giving excuses, postponing, bring up/create stories that depict negativity of the item proposed.

Let's now do a SWOT analysis for indirection rejection too.

Strengths,  Indirect rejection allows both party to engage in a calm conversation, even though you are gradually steering it towards your favour. It is polite and not offensive. It leaves spaces for the opposition to retreat without making the encounter awkward.

Weaknesses.  Indirect rejection takes a longer time for opposition to get the message that you are uninterested. It leaves a lot of leveraging points for a experienced presenter to exploit and continue his persuasion.

Opportunities,   The opposition will still feel positive about you, and may offer you better proposals that may interest you. The relationship between both parties will not be hurt much, therefore retaining/making a friend, and allows future collaborations. 

Threats.  The opposition may feel that you are a soft person, and will continue to present you with other proposals.

I hope my analysis can help you decide when to use which method of rejection in the future when you come across annoying salesperson, insurance agent etc. However, I will still advice you to listen to their speech with an open mind before you shut them out. Sometimes, they may really have something great in stall for you.

*A SWOT analysis is a method to understand something through its Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, and Threat.

-The god has spoken

How Much Is Your Ego Worth?

I was having lunch with a friend of mine at Junction 8's Ajisen Ramen 2 weeks ago. While paying for the bill, I saw an employment poster at the side of the counter which I thought was interesting and worth sharing.

They were looking for 5 positions, namely supervisor, cook, kitchen helper, dishwasher, and part timers. What caught my attention was that salary of a dishwasher is second only to that of a supervisor. I have no intention of belittling the importance of a dishwasher in a restaurant, but I cannot come around to the fact that they earn more than a cook/chef. Not to mention, the salary of $1700 ~ $2000 is comparable to that of a fresh diploma holder. Some may argue that because it is a dirty and tiring job. Shall we compare it to the salary of a maid, toilet cleaner or a construction worker then?

My friend commented "Aiya, this is like a street cleaner job. If you get a salary of $8000 for being a street cleaner, will you pick up the job?"

It then all come clear to me that a portion of the offered salary is to comfort the ego of the applicant. Everyone has ego. Being a dishwasher is not something you want to write home about. It may sound offending, but dishwasher, along with some other jobs, are deemed as the "lower class" jobs that nobody wants to do. So in order to pay for the loss of pride, a dishwasher is better paid than a supposedly more "high class" cook.

This does not just apply to dishwasher. This applies to all jobs. Your salary can be portioned into 3 parts:
1. Reward for your contribution to the company
2. Compensation for your loss of time
3. Compensation for the hit on your ego

1 and 2 are pretty self-explanatory, so I will not touch on those two. I will be touching on 3.

Every often you hear your friends complain about their unhappiness at their workplace. They got scolded by superior, they got disrespected by peers etc. It is a lot about the ego. More often than not it is a case of "I am not born to get scolded by you" rather than "The scoldings are giving me too much pressure". Some people may have difficulties in identifying which case they belong to. A simple to know is to check how you feel right after the scolding. Do you feel angry? Or do you feel guilty, stressed? If it's the former, it is your ego at work.

Sometimes you feel wronged, especially by clients, and you are required to apologise. Will you insist that you are right and try to defend yourself? Or will you just apologise so as to close the case and avoid causing more unhappiness? If it's the former, it is your ego at work.

So it boils down to whether the money outweighs the ego or the ego outweighs the money. How much is your ego worth?

-The god has spoken

A Little About Myself

I thought that I should dedicate a post to allow readers who don't know me or don't know me well to know a little more about what kind of person I am.

I'm a Singaporean Chinese, born on 17 October 1991. I personally do not believe in horoscopes, but for those who believes in it, I'm a Libra. And according to Ganeshaspeaks.com, I am tactful, romantic, charming, just, diplomatic, balanced, but at the same time, superficial, detached, unreliable, laid-back, indecisive, and self-indulgent. Some of them do apply to me, some of them are disputable.

This sounds somewhat unbelievable by today's standard, but believe me, I had never went to a club before. And I don't intend to. Majority of today's youngsters had gone to clubs to party before. Not all of them like it, but most of them do. For me, I don't need to go to know that I won't like it. Some of the reasons are that it is noisy, crowded, and chaotic. The most important reason, however, is that it is expensive yet it doesn't add value to my life. It may even leave a bad impression for whoever that is judging me.

Yes, I am an introvert. I find it exhaustive to socialise and mix with people, therefore things that people like about clubbing are things that I dislike about clubbing. I require more time to feel comfortable with someone before I start engaging with the person. Some may misunderstood it as me being "dao".

I am admittedly someone who cannot catch up with trend. Or should I say I refuse to catch up with trend? Take social media platforms for example. I have only Facebook, YouTube, and this blog. I do have a Twitter account, but I don't use it. I do not have Instagram. Yes, I do get shocked reactions from people when I tell them that I do not have Instagram. For me, I just don't see the point in it. K-Pop is still the in-thing in Asia, but I condemn K-Pop. I still listen to Mandopop and Cantopop. I watch HK dramas and not Korean dramas. I watch Taiwan variety shows and not Korean variety shows. Perhaps this is why I connect better with older people than people of my age or younger.



I have colour appreciation deficiency, or commonly known as colour blind. I have problems identifying colours with shades of red and green. What does that means? I cannot effectively recognise if the colour is blue or purple, light orange or yellow, light green or yellow, so on and so forth. There are always people who start to ask questions like "So what colour do you see red/green as?" or "So what colour is this? (points at a red/green object)". I actually hate it when people do that to me, because they have a misunderstanding of my condition, and it is hard to explain it to them. Nonetheless, I will still try to explain how the world looks like in my eyes, and share how it affects my life on a daily basis.

This is enough of sharing about myself. These cover some major aspects of my personality and beliefs. If you feel that this post is insufficient in helping you to know me better, drop by my blog more often. I'm sure you will be able to know me better from my future posts.

-The god has spoken

Welcome Back!

With all the new forms of social media taking the world by storm in the past half decade, it seems that blogging is a trend on decline. However, I am convinced that words (coupled with appropriate usage of images) are still the best medium to translate a thought or an emotion. That is why I am back on this platform after a 3-years hiatus.

I was a semi-active blogger last time. I had lots of words and pictures to share with my readers what's going on with my daily life. Then, blogging to me was like writing a biography for myself. There's nothing wrong really wrong with that, except that nobody cares to know what you eat, where you go, what you do, who did you hang out with etc unless you are a celebrity (or at least a semi-celebrity).

Now, I have a new view on blogging. It is a platform for me to share my thoughts, emotions and knowledge. I will still post about some interesting happenings, but will focus more on what's going through my mind. This will be a bridge to connect you to my inner-self, and therefore knowing me better. I may also do some reviews on interesting places, events, items or movies.

With that, welcome back to blogging.

-The god has spoken