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15 Common Cognitive Distortions

2011-09-07T05:32:00.000-07:00

By John M. Grohol, Psy.D.

What’s a cognitive distortion and why do so many people have them? Cognitive distortions are simply ways that our mind convinces us of something that isn’t really true. These inaccurate thoughts are usually used to reinforce negative thinking or emotions — telling ourselves things that sound rational and accurate, but really only serve to keep us feeling bad about ourselves.

For instance, a person might tell themselves, “I always fail when I try to do something new; I therefore fail at everything I try.” This is an example of “black or white” (or polarized) thinking. The person is only seeing things in absolutes — that if they fail at one thing, they must fail at all things. If they added, “I must be a complete loser and failure” to their thinking, that would also be an example of overgeneralization — taking a failure at one specific task and generalizing it their very self and identity.

Cognitive distortions are at the core of what many cognitive-behavioral and other kinds of therapists try and help a person learn to change in psychotherapy. By learning to correctly identify this kind of “stinkin’ thinkin’,” a person can then answer the negative thinking back, and refute it. By refuting the negative thinking over and over again, it will slowly diminish overtime and be automatically replaced by more rational, balanced thinking.
Cognitive Distortions

Aaron Beck first proposed the theory behind cognitive distortions and David Burns was responsible for popularizing it with common names and examples for the distortions.

1. Filtering.
We take the negative details and magnify them while filtering out all positive aspects of a situation. For instance, a person may pick out a single, unpleasant detail and dwell on it exclusively so that their vision of reality becomes darkened or distorted.

2. Polarized Thinking (or “Black and White” Thinking).
In polarized thinking, things are either “black-or-white.” We have to be perfect or we’re a failure — there is no middle ground. You place people or situations in “either/or” categories, with no shades of gray or allowing for the complexity of most people and situations. If your performance falls short of perfect, you see yourself as a total failure.

3. Overgeneralization.
In this cognitive distortion, we come to a general conclusion based on a single incident or a single piece of evidence. If something bad happens only once, we expect it to happen over and over again. A person may see a single, unpleasant event as part of a never-ending pattern of defeat.

4. Jumping to Conclusions.
Without individuals saying so, we know what they are feeling and why they act the way they do. In particular, we are able to determine how people are feeling toward us.

For example, a person may conclude that someone is reacting negatively toward them but doesn’t actually bother to find out if they are correct. Another example is a person may anticipate that things will turn out badly, and will feel convinced that their prediction is already an established fact.

5. Catastrophizing.
We expect disaster to strike, no matter what. This is also referred to as “magnifying or minimizing.” We hear about a problem and use what if questions (e.g., “What if tragedy strikes?” “What if it happens to me?”).

For example, a person might exaggerate the importance of insignificant events (such as their mistake, or someone else’s achievement). Or they may inappropriately shrink the magnitude of significant events until they appear tiny (for example, a person’s own desirable qualities or someone else’s imperfections).

With practice, you can learn to answer each of these cognitive distortions.

6. Personalization.
Personalization is a distortion where a person believes that everything others do or say is some kind of direct, personal reaction to the person. We also compare ourselves to others trying to determine who is smarter, better looking, etc.

A person engaging in personalization may also see themselves as the cause of some unhealthy external event that they were not responsible for. For example, “We were late to the dinner party and caused the hostess to overcook the meal. If I had only pushed my husband to leave on time, this wouldn’t have happened.”

7. Control Fallacies.
If we feel externally controlled, we see ourselves as helpless a victim of fate. For example, “I can’t help it if the quality of the work is poor, my boss demanded I work overtime on it.” The fallacy of internal control has us assuming responsibility for the pain and happiness of everyone around us. For example, “Why aren’t you happy? Is it because of something I did?”

8. Fallacy of Fairness.
We feel resentful because we think we know what is fair, but other people won’t agree with us. As our parents tell us, “Life is always fair,” and people who go through life applying a measuring ruler against every situation judging its “fairness” will often feel badly and negative because of it.

9. Blaming.
We hold other people responsible for our pain, or take the other track and blame ourselves for every problem. For example, “Stop making me feel bad about myself!” Nobody can “make” us feel any particular way — only we have control over our own emotions and emotional reactions.

10. Shoulds.
We have a list of ironclad rules about how others and we should behave. People who break the rules make us angry, and we feel guilty when we violate these rules. A person may often believe they are trying to motivate themselves with shoulds and shouldn’ts, as if they have to be punished before they can do anything.

For example, “I really should exercise. I shouldn’t be so lazy.” Musts and oughts are also offenders. The emotional consequence is guilt. When a person directs should statements toward others, they often feel anger, frustration and resentment.

11. Emotional Reasoning.
We believe that what we feel must be true automatically. If we feel stupid and boring, then we must be stupid and boring. You assume that your unhealthy emotions reflect he way things really are — “I feel it, therefore it must be true.”

12. Fallacy of Change.
We expect that other people will change to suit us if we just pressure or cajole them enough. We need to change people because our hopes for happiness seem to depend entirely on them.

13. Global Labeling.
We generalize one or two qualities into a negative global judgment. These are extreme forms of generalizing, and are also referred to as “labeling” and “mislabeling.” Instead of describing an error in context of a specific situation, a person will attach an unhealthy label to themselves.

For example, they may say, “I’m a loser” in a situation where they failed at a specific task. When someone else’s behavior rubs a person the wrong way, they may attach an unhealthy label to him, such as “He’s a real jerk.” Mislabeling involves describing an event with language that is highly colored and emotionally loaded. For example, instead of saying someone drops her children off at daycare every day, a person who is mislabeling might say that “she abandons her children to strangers.”

14. Always Being Right.
We are continually on trial to prove that our opinions and actions are correct. Being wrong is unthinkable and we will go to any length to demonstrate our rightness. For example, “I don’t care how badly arguing with me makes you feel, I’m going to win this argument no matter what because I’m right.” Being right often is more important than the feelings of others around a person who engages in this cognitive distortion, even loved ones.

15. Heaven’s Reward Fallacy.
We expect our sacrifice and self-denial to pay off, as if someone is keeping score. We feel bitter when the reward doesn’t come.

References:
Beck, A. T. (1976). Cognitive therapies and emotional disorders. New York: New American Library.

Burns, D. D. (1980). Feeling good: The new mood therapy. New York: New American Library.

Paraprosdokians

2011-07-09T23:02:00.000-07:00

I had to look up "paraprosdokian". Here is the definition: A paraprosdokian is a figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected in a way that causes the reader or listener to re-frame or re-interpret the first part. It is frequently used for humorous or dramatic effect. For this reason, it is extremely popular among comedians and satirists.

"Figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected; frequently used in a humorous situation." Eg … "Where there's a will, I want to be in it," is a type of paraprosdokian.

1. Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.

2. The last thing I want to do is hurt you. But it's still on my list.

3. Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.

4. If I agreed with you, we'd both be wrong.

5. We never really grow up, we only learn how to act in public.

6. War does not determine who is right - only who is left.

7. Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.

8. Evening news is where they begin with 'Good Evening,' and then proceed to tell you why it isn't.

9. To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism. To steal from many is research.

10. A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. On my desk, I have a work station.

11. I thought I wanted a career. Turns out I just wanted paychecks.

12. Whenever I fill out an application, in the part that says, 'In case of emergency, notify:' I put 'DOCTOR.'

13. I didn't say it was your fault, I said I was blaming you.

14. Women will never be equal to men until they can walk down the street with a bald head and a beer gut, and still think they are sexy.

15. Behind every successful man is his woman. Behind the fall of a successful man is usually another woman.

16. A clear conscience is the sign of a fuzzy memory.

17. I asked God for a bike, but I know God doesn't work that way. So I stole a bike and asked for forgiveness.

18. You do not need a parachute to skydive. You only need a parachute to skydive twice.

19. Money can't buy happiness, but it sure makes misery easier to live with.

20. There's a fine line between cuddling and holding someone down so they can't get away.

21. I used to be indecisive. Now I'm not so sure.

22. You're never too old to learn something stupid.

23.. To be sure of hitting the target, shoot first and call whatever you hit the target.

24. Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.

25. Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.

26. Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.

27. A diplomat is someone who tells you to go to hell in such a way that you look forward to the trip.

28. Hospitality is making your guests feel at home even when you wish they were.

29. I always take life with a grain of salt. Plus a slice of lemon, and a shot of tequila.

30. When tempted to fight fire with fire, remember that the Fire Department usually uses water.
Source: Internet

如果一个男人真的爱你......

2011-06-23T15:49:00.000-07:00

如果一个男人真的爱你，他不会冷落你超过三天，因为想念你的日子很难度过
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会给你一个甜蜜的称呼，只属于他一个人喊的称呼，即使你有时不喜欢，但这也是爱你的一种！
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会把你当孩子般宠爱，但是自己又说不出宠你的原因
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会让你开心快乐，不会带给眼泪
如果一个男人真的爱你，他的手机会24小时为你开机，随时随地让你能够找到他
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会觉得你是最好的，不会将你和其他女人做比较，即便你并不优秀！
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会抽出时间来陪你，即使自己真的很忙，因为他看不见你会很想你
如果一个男人真的爱你，他不会要求你减肥，因为他会把你的身体健康看作第一位
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会很想和你生活在一起，会把你看成是生命中最重要的
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会经常紧紧地抱着你，让你感受他的心跳
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会在你睡着的时候轻轻吻你，因为你是他的天使
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会给你买你喜欢的东西，并且很高兴陪你逛街
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会默默地为你付出一切，但很少让你知道他所做的牺牲
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会看你吃饭的时候傻笑，然后把好吃都留给你吃，那怕他只喝汤，心里也会很高兴
如果一个男人爱你，他会不厌其烦提醒你吃饭，穿衣服，听你烦了，他还是要提醒你，因为你生病就是对他最大的伤害
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会记住你说的每句话，哪怕是一句小玩笑，他也会放心里。然后努力改变自己的生活习惯
如果一个男人真的爱你，他会只对你一个人好，虽然他身边的朋友说他重色轻友，但是如果他朋友出事，他也会像担心你一样担心他们。所以不要说他不够义气
如果一人男人真的爱你，在你过马路的时候会紧张的拉着你的手，怕你横冲直撞出什么事，所以你不要甩开他的手
如果一个男人真的爱你，他的手机里都是关于你的东西，想你的时候会对着手机傻笑，回忆美好的幸福！！
Source: Internet

Listen, learn ... then lead

2011-04-06T07:13:00.000-07:00

Four-star general Stanley McChrystal shares what he learned about leadership over his decades in the military. How can you build a sense of shared purpose among people of many ages and skill sets? By listening and learning -- and addressing the possibility of failure.

"I don't wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work." Pearl S. Buck

"You are what your deep, driving desire is. As your deep, driving desire is, so is your will. As your will is, so is your deed. As your deed is, so is your destiny." Upanishads

"It's not that some people have willpower and some don't. It's that some people are ready to change and others are not." James Gordon

Bill Gates -11 things not learnt in schools‏

2011-03-09T01:50:00.000-08:00

Bill Gates recently gave a speech at a High School about 11 things they did not and will not learn in school.

He talks about how feel-good, politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the real world.

Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it!

Rule 2: The world doesn't care about your Self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3: You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.

Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss

Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.

Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault , so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.

Rule 10: TV/Gaming is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one. If you agree, pass it on. If you don't agree stick your head in the sand and take a deep breath!

If you can read this - Thank a teacher! If you can read this in English thank a soldier!!!
Source: Internet / Picture: University of Minnesota

"Every man's road in life is marked by the graves of his personal likings." Alexander Smith

没有做不到的事, 只有想不到的事

2011-01-01T15:34:00.001-08:00

Studies tell us that only 3% of people in the USA set goals, and they are among the wealthiest people in the nation! Worldwide, the percentage is probably lower. Why is this percentage so low? There are several reasons, but the one that concerns the most is the lack of know-how. When we ask people why they don’t set goals they often say, “I don’t know how.”

Here are the setting steps (adapted) to help realise your goals.

Step 1. Dream! Let your imagination run wild while you fill up a blank sheet of paper with everything you want to be, do or have... By dreaming you instill hope for your future, and with hope there’s possibility. Your list should include about what you want to be, do or have.

Step 2. After you complete your list, wait 24 to 48 hours and read each item on your list and answer the question: Why? If you can’t verbalize in one sentence why you want to be, do or have this dream, then it’s not a dream and it won’ become a goal. Cross it off your list.

Step 3: Ask the following five questions of every dream on the dream List you created.

1. Is it really my goal?
2. Is it morally right and fair to everyone concerned?
3. Is it consistent with my other goals?
4. Can I emotionally commit myself to finish this goal?
5. Can I “see” myself reaching this goal? (Visionise)

You must answer “yes” to all five questions for each goal, or cross that goal off your dream list.

Here are some questions to ponder:
- Is it really my goal or is it a goal someone else wants me to pursue?
- Is it the right thing to do?
- Will achieving this goal distract from achieving other goals?
- Are you sure you can make the commitment to pursue this goal and see it through?
- If you can’t “see” yourself reaching this goal, you probably won’t.

Step 4: Ask the following seven questions of every dream that remains on your dream List (or goals list).

Will reaching this goal . . .
1. make me happier?
2. make me healthier?
3. make me more prosperous?
4. win me more friends?
5. give me peace of mind?
6. make me more secure?
7. improve my relationships with others?

If you can’t answer “Yes” to at least one of these questions for each goal, eliminate that goal from your list. Be sure to consider your family when you answer these questions. And do not confuse pleasure with happiness!

Step 5: After asking the questions posted in Step 4 you will have eliminated some of your "goals". Maybe these are not really goals, just thoughts or desires at this point, so you’re better off without them.

Step 6: Separate your remaining list of goals into one of three categories:

1. Short-term (one month or less to achieve this goal)
2. Mid-term (one month to one year to achieve this goal)
3. Long-term (one year or more to achieve this goal).

This step will help you quickly determine whether or not you have a balanced perspective between what needs to be done now, versus your dreams for the future.

Remember:
- Goals must be BIG to make you stretch and grow to your full potential.
- Goals must be long-range to keep you on track.
- Goals must also be small, thus you can work on daily to keep you disciplined.
- Goals must be on going to reduce the possibility of short-range frustrations.
- Goals should be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Related to their job, and Time-specific.

Step 7: After specifically identifying your goals, write them down! It is important that you have a written list of your specific goals. Then you will begin to do the daily, weekly action steps that will take you closer to achieving that goal. Be selective. You may not be able to work on all of your goals at one time! Don't over do it. If you only have time to complete one or two goals for the remainder of this year, don’t apologize. Do a little bit more than you think you can, but do not overextend your time to the point that you don’t complete any of your goals. Do not get frustrated by the process! Work the system and it will work for you... Trust the system.

Once you have identified your goals and plotted the activities that you intend to do to fulfill your goals, pat yourself on the back! You have just spent more time planning your future than most of your friends, relatives or associates will ever invest! Good for you.

Adapted from an article by Ziglar
"It is better to look ahead and prepare than to look back and regret." Jackie Joyner-Kersee Multiple Olympic Gold Medal Champion

Choco Pham's First Presentation

2010-12-27T03:23:00.000-08:00

"Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time."

Thomas Edison
1847-1931, Inventor and Entrepreneur

The Model Woman

2010-10-04T17:38:00.000-07:00

Mrs. Kwa Geok Choo - the woman behind MM Lee

While Mrs Lee Kuan Yew was an intensely private person, much could be gleaned from the snippets of observation made of her by the media, heads of state and other political figures, as well as members of the public and even the remarks that she made to her husband as she accompanied him during his travels and public functions during their 63 years of marriage.

Here is a compilation of quotes that gives us more insight into her character:-
Mr Lee Kuan Yew, on how he was a "kept man" during Parliament in 1985:
"Over the years, I've been a kept man. My wife keeps the family."

Mr Lee on her character:
"She's a very caring person, very staid, very caring; she's not frivolous and does not like to socialise, which saves a lot of time".

When asked if she (Mrs Lee) ever had disagreements with Mr Lee in email interviews, she replied:
" Would you believe me if I say we never disagree or quarrel? Fortunately, these are over little matters. Kuan Yew leaves household decisions to me. Family matters have not been a problem."

Then United States President Richard Nixon's compliment to her devotion and loyalty to her husband in 1973:
President Nixon: "Mrs Lee, tell me, is it true that you were No. 1 in the class at Cambridge Law School and your husband was No. 2?
Mrs Lee: "Mr President, do you think he would have married me if that were the case?"

Mrs Lee, on a visit to Kuala Lumpur in 1976:
"I walk two steps behind my husband like a good Asian wife."

Manila Times, observed in 1971 that Mrs Lee was "almost like an invisible entity, unlike other first ladies.

Ms Deborah Barker, daughter of former law minister Eddie Barker on Mrs Lee:
"My father felt that she had very good judgement, and he would go to her for advice on important personal matters".

Wife of former Old Guard minister Jek Yeun Thong:
"To me, Mrs Lee was a humble and courteous person, straightforward with no airs or pretences".

Mrs Elisa Chew, tailor on Mrs Lee:
"She would always greet me when she came into the store, and was even willing to take a photograph with me".

Mr Lee in his memoirs, recounted his wife as the disciplinarian of the house:
"She brought them up well-mannered and self-disciplined".

Mr Chng Jit Koon, 76, former senior minister of state (community development):
"MM Lee is a person who wants everything to be perfect. If there is something not right, he will be angry, especially during his younger days. Of course, those who got scolding would feel very bad, but Mrs Lee would quietly go to the side and tell them, 'Never mind; he is like that' don't take it to heart'."

MM Lee bent over his wife's casket to bid her goodbye. He stretched his hand to touch her, put his fingers to his lips and placed a kiss on her forehead, twice.

"Any marriages would be better if the husband and wife clearly understood that they’re on the same side." Zig Ziglar

Why Successful Women Fail With Men

Source: Diva

Liang Zhi Hu Die

2010-09-10T07:47:00.000-07:00

Develop Great Relationships Over A Lifetime

"The most important ingredient we put into any relationship is not what we say or what we do, but what we are." Stephen R. Covey

Amused

2010-09-04T23:00:00.000-07:00

真爱是不放弃

2010-07-07T20:01:00.000-07:00

"因为想到你比我更脆弱，我就要比你更坚强。因为想到你已经受了苦，却因为有了我的扶持而感到安慰，所以我就要好好活着，让你有所依靠。"吴佩琪

Photo: Rosemarie

"Because when I think of you being more fragile than I am, I've to be stronger for you. And when I think of your sufferings, I've the consolation you have felt comforted by enabling care. I cherish my life, so you'll have me to rely on."

When one is pessimistic one tends to view, say or do things in negative ways... if only communications is everything but...

"You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing that we call 'failure' is not the falling down, but the staying down." Mary Pickford

"Keeping love alive should be like the way you live your life." Vanessa Paradis

"I realized early on that success was tied to not giving up. Most people in this business gave up and went on to other things. If you simply didn't give up, you would outlast the people who came in on the bus with you." Harrison Ford

Thinker; Doer; Teacher

2010-05-23T17:17:00.000-07:00

Dr. Goh Keng Swee

"He who has ambition will do his best in order to satisfy himself. He will stick to his work and see that he is the best man that ever has done their work."

"I don't mind a guy making mistakes but I can't stand idiots and when people refuse to learn."

"Because I think my effectiveness depends on whether I can make a contribution in terms of analysing a problem and telling them that these are the priorities or that is the way of doing it, or whatever. If they accept it, and they find me useful, okay, I carry on. If after some time they say, ‘Look, what you are saying is absolute rubbish,’ then you just hang up your gloves and call it a day."

"...the most important thing is, we are able to meet the deadline. Our deadline in the sense that we are able to provide power, adequate power...."

"So long as they felt that you had done your best, they were content even if you failed to help them at times."

His practical sense: Understanding problem meant identifying the specifics of the dynamics generating it.

"To me, spontaneously is a sign of respect. But if people show indiffernece or leave their personal assistants to handle things, then I know they are insincere."

"If you do things out of love, it is a pleasure and not a chore." Mre. Goh-Dr. Phua Swee Liang.

100 best-paying jobs in Singapore

2010-03-10T16:34:00.000-08:00

1. Specialised surgeon – $30,755
2. Managing director – $24,472
3. General surgeon – $17,872
4. Commodities futures broker – $17,464
5. General manager – $16,667
6. Company director – $15,513
7. Creative director (Advertising) – $13,000
8. Legal service manager – $12,318
9. Foreign exchange dealer and broker – $11,095
10. Operations manager (Finance) – $9,808

11. Legal officer – $9,790

12. Risk management manager – $9,600
13. Research and development manager – $9,385
14. Computer operations and network manager – $9,300
15. Training manager – $9,000
16. Computer and information systems manager – $8,930
17. Ship-master – $8,671
18. Technical manager – $8,595
19. Financial futures dealer and broker – $8,447
20. Personnel / Human resource manager – $8,420

21. Business development manager – $8,290
22. Corporate planning manager – $8,290
23. Fund manager – $8,125
24. Treasury manager – $8,079
25. Budgeting and financial accounting manager – $8,000
26. Marketing manager – $8,000
27. Power generation and distribution engineer – $7,848
28. Engineering manager – $7,819
29. Chemical engineer (Petroleum) – $7,678
30. Manufacturing plant and production manager – $7,645

31. Chemical engineer (Petrochemicals) – $7,547
32. Advertising and public relations manager – $7,533
33. Advocate and solicitor – $7,500
34. Operations research analyst – $7,500
35. Business management consultant – $7,437
36. Procurement manager – $7,416
37. Lawyer (except advocate and solicitor) – $7,400
38. Quality assurance manager – $7,263
39. Customer service manager – $7,142
40. Sales manager – $7,100

41. Logistics manager – $7,050
42. Operations manager (Commerce) – $6,862
43. Chemical engineering technician (Petroleum) – $6,696
44. Automation engineer – $6,680
45. Instrumentation engineer – $6,616
46. Book editor – $6,538
47. Surveyor – $6,523
48. Industrial health, safety and environment engineer – $6,503
49. Building architect – $6,500
50. Transport operations manager – $6,400

51. Editor (Newspapers and periodicals) – $6,369
52. Marine superintendent engineer – $6,340
53. Audio and video equipment engineer – $6,307
54. Premises maintenance manager – $6,304
55. Personal banker – $6,250
56. Chemist – $6,241
57. Electrical engineering technician (High voltage) – $6,225
58. Business analyst – $6,205
59. General physician – $6,173
60. Administration manager – $6,150

61. Financial analyst – $6,000
62. Securities dealer and broker – $5,750
63. Shipping manager – $5,721
64. Building and construction project manager – $5,720
65. Property / Estate manager – $5,715
66. Physicist – $5,700
67. Editor (Radio, television and video) – $5,658
68. Information technology security specialist – $5,646
69. Advertising copywriter – $5,600
70. Director (Stage, film, television and radio) – $5,512

71. Automotive engineer – $5,500
72. Naval architect – $5,480
73. Chemical engineering technician (Petrochemicals) – $5,424
74. Chinese physician – $5,316
75. Financial planner – $5,283
76. Aeronautical engineer – $5,242
77. Chemical engineer (General) – $5,187
78. Broadcasting operations technician – $5,178
79. Market research analyst – $5,174
80. Producer / Director of commercials – $5,150

81. Manufacturing engineer – $5,137
82. Systems programmer – $5,111
83. Actuary – $5,100
84. Production engineer – $5,091
85. Sales representative (Technicial) – $5,089
86. Database administrator – $5,080
87. Semi-conductor engineer – $5,035
88. Mechanical engineer – $5,000
89. Ship rigger – $4,933
90. Systems designer and analyst – $4,914

91. Network systems and data communication analyst – $4,894
92. Sales representative (Medical and pharmaceutical products) – $4,857
93. Flight operations officer – $4,801
94. Civil engineer – $4,746
95. Script writer – $4,740
96. Warehousing manager – $4,706
97. Materials engineer – $4,689
98. Electrical engineer – $4,665
99. Credit analyst – $4,631
100. Electronics engineer – $4,615
MOM Release Date: 30 Jun 2008

“Analyzing what you haven't got as well as what you have is a necessary ingredient of a career.” Orison Swett Marden

學習英語

2010-02-27T20:54:00.000-08:00

How to Learn English Well?

Please let me begin with "How Not to Learn English Well?", then we may all see more clearly why English has not been learned that well, at least for most of the English language learners.

We all know that English is not Chinese. Do we all know that? I believe we do. So, English cannot, for one thing, be learned in the same way as Chinese has been learned. Secondly, English should not be turned into Chinese, but into English, and English only. Only when we can turn hard English into easy English can we say we have learned English, at least some English. If we can turn English into Chinese, hard or easy, we are only reviewing Chinese.

Let us look at how our English has been learned since 1949, or perhaps, since 1900.

1. Grammar: When we talk about English grammar, we use Chinese, do we? A good example is the article in English grammar. Do we have any articles in Chinese? Yes, but not in Chinese grammar. Why do we use a Chinese word for the article in talking about English grammar? Isn't that a waste of time and a waste of English? I think so. If we want to learn English grammar, we need to use English words to learn English grammar, to talk about English grammar, so that at the same time, we are able to learn, at least, some English.

2. Vocabulary: How have we been learning English words? We turn all of them into Chinese, right? Is that called learning English? I don't think so. That is called "reviewing Chinese". We are using English to review our Chinese, in fact. When we learn an English word, we should be able to remember that English word, should be able to translated English into English, not Chinese, not even remember its Chinese equivalent. You know why? Translation is very difficult and can wait until we have learned English so well that we are able to think, speak, write, hear, read, and dream English like a native English speaker. Here is my question for all of you to ponder. All of you can translate any English you have learned so far into Chinese. Can you also translate all the Chinese you are able to use into English? The answer is, you cannot, and I cannot, either. Then, my conclusion is, we are not learning English, but reviewing Chinese by turning anything English into Chinese. When we speak English, we are not speaking English but "speaking Chinese with English words and some grammatical English sentences". And a grammatical English sentence does not mean it is really English. Am I not right?

3. Practice: We need to learn and use English. We all know that. But, how do we use English? If we think in Chinese and speak English, can we speak good English? I think not. English people think in English all the time and sometimes, also, make mistakes. If we think in Chinese, we even make mistakes in Chinese. How can we not make mistakes in English? If we want to use English, we have to think in English. That means when we read English, we do not translate into Chinese any more, but we remember the English, and translate English into simpler English we already know. That means when we hear English, we never turn it into Chinese in our Chinese brains, but remember the English, and only turn it into the little English we know. When we speak and write English, we, first of all, think in English, and think in English whatsoever we want to say or write about. That is what I call practice.

If we think in English, we will speak and write English. If we think in correct English, we will speak and write correct English. If we think in Chinese, we will speak and write Chinese, only after we have learned how to write Chinese characters. Can you all see what I am driving at? If we want to learn English well, English should come from mind to mouth, from man to manuscript.

We all learned something about physics and biology. We all know that thinking takes time. Can any of you think twice as fast as a native English speaker so that when he or she speaks English to you, you can translate into Chinese to understand, then think in Chinese what you want to say, then translate Chinese into English, and then say it? Do you think your listener has the time to wait for you?

In a nutshell, if we all want to learn English well, we have to use English, instead of Chinese, to learn English well, and never turn English into anything else that is not English. That is the only way to learn English well in a place where Chinese is the dominant language.

by Sinosophy (Adapted)

新加坡3类院校入学申请条件：
1.政府大学：高考分数1本录取分数线以上（如：清华，北大，复旦类大学录取分数线左右），雅思6分以上。
2.政府理工学院：高考500分左右，雅思5.5
3.私立学院：至少完成初中学业（如果非高中毕业学生则需读预科），雅思6分（如果没有雅思6分或不到6分，则需先读学校英文课程）
到新加坡怎么读O LEVEL
新加坡日常生活中的常用英文 Every Day English

"A man has no future if he does not read books, nor does a nation." Chinese Premier Wen Jia Bao

KEYS FOR LIVING

2010-02-24T18:34:00.000-08:00

1. The best way to get even is to forget...

2. Feed your faith and your doubts will starve to death...

3. God wants spiritual fruit, not religious nuts...

4. Some folks wear their halos much too tightly...

5. Some marriages are made in heaven, but they ALL have to be
maintained on earth...

6. Unless you can create the WHOLE universe in 5 days, then perhaps giving "advice" to God isn't such a good idea!

7. Sorrow looks back, worry looks around, and faith looks up...

8. Standing in the middle of the road is dangerous. You will get knocked down by the traffic from both ways.

9. Words are windows to the heart.

10. A skeptic is a person who, when he sees the handwriting on the wall, claims it's a forgery.

11. It isn't difficult to make a mountain out of a molehill just add a little dirt.

12. A successful marriage isn't finding the right person-it's being the right person.

13. The mighty oak tree was once a little nut that held its ground.

14. Too many people offer God prayers, with claw marks all over them.

15. The tongue must be heavy indeed, because so few people can hold it.

16. To forgive is to set the prisoner free, and then discover the prisoner was you.

17. You have to wonder about humans, they think God is dead and Elvis is alive!

18. It's all right to sit on your pity pot every now and again. Just be sure to flush when you are done.

19. You'll notice that a turtle only makes progress when it sticks out its neck...

20. If the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, you can bet the water bill is higher.

And last but not least -- God gave the angels Wings, and He gave humans CHOCOLATE.

"You are richer today if you have laughed, given or forgiven."

Author Unknown

The Nature of Luv

2010-02-03T17:40:00.000-08:00

“Money is not the most important thing in the world. Love is. Fortunately, I love money.”

“When I saw you, I was afraid to meet you... When I met you, I was afraid to kiss you... When I kissed you, I was afraid to love you... Now that I love you, I'm afraid to lose you.”

China's Ivy League Universities

2009-12-28T18:00:00.001-08:00

University: China's top varsity and its first national university. Established in 1898, it is noted for producing luminaries such as the writer Lu Xun. It was also at the forefront of student movements, such as the May Fourth Movement and the 1989 Tiananmen protests.

Qinghua University: Alma mater of Chinese President Hu Jintao and Vice-President Xi Jinping. The Beijing-based school is known for its business and engineering studies.

Fudan University: Widely viewed as China's top southern university, the Shanghai-based institution is highly regarded for physical sciences, social sciences and medicine.

Zhejiang University: Seen by Chinese students as the country's No. 4 university, after Beijing, Qinghua and Fudan. The Hangzhou-based college is rated highly in natural sciences and engineering.

Nanjing University: Established in AD258 under the Kingdom of Wu, it is one of the oldest universities in China. It is regarded as a pioneer in many fields, including literature, philosophy and history.

Shanghai Jiaotong University: Known for its engineering strength, the university counts former Chinese president Jiang Zemin and computer giant Lenovo founder Liu Chuanzhi among its alumni.

Harbin Institute of Technology: Famous for its military and space-related research. A key player in China's Shenzhou space project.

Xi'an Jiaotong University: The top university in China's western region. It is well regarded for its science and medicine programmes.

University of Science and Technology of China: The college in northern Anhui province is renowned for its science research. It is well-known, too, for its vice-president, physicist Fang Lizhi, whose liberal ideas inspired pro-democracy student protests in 1986 and 1989.
Source: TST
"疏食飲水，曲肱而枕，樂在其中矣。不義而富貴，于我如浮雲。" - Confucian

"How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in your life you will have been all of these." George Washington Carver

Aim higher; Reach further

2009-12-07T20:30:00.000-08:00

"Our work is the presentation of our capabilities." Edward Gibbon

"Languages make possible both the living of a common history, and also the telling of it." Nicholas Ostler
"There is no failure except in no longer trying. There is no defeat except from within, no insurmountable barrier except our own inherent weakness of purpose." Elbert Hubbard 1856-1915, Writer and Publisher

"The secret of joy in work is contained in one word - excellence. To know how to do something well is to enjoy it." Pearl S. Buck

"When you develop your ability to balance your emotions, unexpected problems won't knock you off balance as easily, and you'll return more quickly to a positive outlook." Peggy McColl

Photos by: Jason Yeo ST

"The leading edge in evidence presentation is in science; the leading edge in beauty is in high art." Edward Tufte

"If you don't design your own life plan, chances are you'll fall into someone else's plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much." Jim Rohn 1930-2009, Author and Speaker

Oral Skills

2009-11-24T20:26:00.000-08:00

The oral exam is an opportunity for you to demonstrate your knowledge, your presentation/speaking skills, as well as your ability to communicate... Answers are often less exact (right/wrong), and value is added for problem solving analysis and method, as well as interpersonal communication and presentation.

Preparation
- Ask your teacher or lecturer what will be on the exam.
- Prepare . If you do not study, you will not do well.
- Write out questions you expect to be asked, then...
- Discuss answering techniques with people in the field or who have had the test.
- Practice answering with classmates.
- Practice in a similar setting, in front of a mirror, to evaluate your "manner".

The Exam
- Look and act professional! Create a good impression. Dress well and appropriately, turn off mobile phones and pagers
- Arrive at the location early to collect yourself and check out the situation
The exam begins the minute you walk in:
- Introduce yourself immediately; Give the instructor all of your attention; look interested and smile!
- Keep good posture and eye contact; If there are distractions (noise outside, etc,) you may mention your distraction and/or nervousness.
- Stay focused through the interview. Be an intelligent listener as well as talker.
- Do not ramble if you do not know an answer. Do not keep silence or stare blankly.
State directly that you do not know the answer but ask if you could outline how you would find the answer, solve the problem, or the method you would employ.
- Maintain your self-confidence and composure if you feel the interview is not going well. The interviewer may be testing you.
- Answer questions with more than "yes" or "no". Stress the positive and not the negative. Use two or three key points or examples to demonstrate your knowledge.
- Watch for signs that the test is over. (i.e., the interviewer looks at the clock, moves the chair back, or completes a set of questions)
- Ask if there is anything you could answer that would add to your evaluation.
- Thank the instructor.

Follow-up
- Summarise your performance; where you did well or poorly. Keep a written record.
- Note how you could do better for the next time. Note if there was a significant "event" during the interview.
- Do not hesitate to question or comment on either the material or your performance, however, do not challenge the teacher, but seek to understand your performance.
- If you have concerns about an inappropriate evaluation after raising concerns with your teacher, discuss them with that department's, or your school's, academic counseling center or a higher authority.

Adapted fm Source

Student with a Cause

2009-11-15T20:16:00.000-08:00

He came, he engaged, he went forth... by having

over 1,000 musicians' copyrights protected.

Musician Pho Duc Phuong, Director of the Centre for Music Copyright Protection of Vietnam.

VietNamNet Bridge. With the three newly signed contracts on November 22, the Centre for Music Copyright Protection of Vietnam now has over 1,000 musician members.

The family of late musician Nguyen Van Khanh, musicians Nguyen Vinh Tien and Hong Kien are the latest people to entrust the centre to protect the copyrights of musical works.

Established four years ago, the centre has sold musical works to businesses in Vietnam and paid fees to musicians.

“Between 2002 and July 2006, the centre collected over VND5 billion ($312,500) from selling music copyrights and this sum of money has been paid to musicians,” revealed Pho Duc Phuong, the centre’s director.

However, this sum of money is still modest since copyright infringement is still popular in Vietnam.

The centre has very patiently discussed copyright fees with some restaurants, hotels and clubs in Hanoi like Blue Wave, Aladin, Seventeen, and New Century, to get their commitments to pay copyright fees. However, from the ‘agreement’ to pay to “payment’ is a great gap that requires great efforts.

The centre has signed bilateral contracts on music copyright protection with 16 countries and territories. Accordingly, firms that use foreign music works will also have to pay copyright fees.

The centre plans to collect music copyright fees from cafes, departments of transportation, supermarkets and restaurants in the near future.

(Source: VNE)

"Originality is undetected plagiarism." W. R. Inge

The tongue has the power of life and death

2009-10-22T17:16:00.000-07:00

"People have inherent value and are to be honored no matter who they are."

Have you ever thought about the way you use your mouth and the results that you see from it? How the words you use affect both you and the others around you, which in turn produces results in your life, either positive or negative.

Here are 7 ways people sabotage themselves with their mouths and some ways to reverse that trend and create success for yourself.

Every time you open your mouth, is it the right thing to do?

With that said, here are the major problems people have with their mouths:

1. Gossip
This may be one of the most ubiquitous problems there is. People telling other people another person’s business. And it usually isn’t very good. Very rarely does anyone pass along “good gossip.”

The Result: Have you ever found out that someone passed along information about you? How did you feel? Exactly my point. Did you want to do business with them? Did you want to help them? Again, exactly my point. Stay away from the harmful effects of gossip, first for the other person’s sake, but ultimately for yours.

The Antidote: Never pass along gossip. If that person wants others to know, they will tell them. If you start a sentence with, “Did you hear about…” Chances are that you are walking on the edge. Watch your mouth!

2. Rumors
Rumors are even worse (if it can be so) than gossip because the person doesn’t even know if the information is true. Rumors are entirely reckless and do no good.

The Result: If you think people will dislike you, and stand in the way of your success, because of gossip, imagine how they will feel when they find out you were passing along untrue information about them! You will lose your friends pretty quickly.

The Antidote: If you choose to never gossip then you will never pass along rumors either, which is good! Make it your policy to only speak good of others, especially when speaking to others about people. The old saying is true: If you don’t have anything good to say about someone, don’t say anything at all! In other words - Watch your mouth!

3. Lying
It is strange to me how parents teach their children to always tell the truth but many of them have for themselves a skewed understanding of what it means to tell the truth. The average person feels it is okay to sometimes lie. The only problem with this is that lying, for whatever reason, can only do one thing: Break trust.

The Result: People will not trust you. They will wonder if you are telling the truth. They will stay away from you when they know they need to count on someone.

But even worse in my mind is that you will not be able to trust yourself. When we lie we teach ourselves that we are not trustworthy. The other person may never know, but we will. And ultimately that hurts us and stands in the way of our success.

The Antidote: Always tell the truth. But what if someone doesn’t like what I have to say? I didn’t say you have to be a jerk, but being an adult means developing relationships wherein you can tell the truth to someone, in a respectful way, and still have a relationship.

So yes, commit to speaking the truth to people at all times. If it is a tough situation, then do it with even more respect. Or, an alternative is to simply say, “I don’t feel comfortable talking about this.” In all things - Watch your mouth!

4. Put downs
Most normal people aren’t too bad at blatant put downs. Where I see more of a problem is the back-handed compliment. Or the behind-the-back put down. But still there are people who have no problem speaking in tones and words that put down others and degrade them, for whatever reason.

The Result: When you are a person who regularly puts down others, people will have the same reaction: The will run, not walk, from you. People simply do not want to be around others who speak this way.

And they will not only not help you along, they will, out of their hurt, actively oppose your advancement. So if you want to cut your success short, speak ill of others.

The Antidote: Only speak good of others. If they have a negative point, focus instead on the good points. Talk about their strengths, not their weaknesses. Tell them what is good about them, not what is bad about them. Watch your mouth!

5. Poor-mouthing
I am always amazed at what I call “Poor-mouthing.” Rich people do it. Poor people do it. This is when you talk about how poor you are and why you can’t afford anything. The actuality that I have found is that those who poor mouth CAN afford what they are talking about, they just don’t want to.

The Result: When people poor-mouth, a few things happen. First, you confirm your poverty mentality. This hurts you. Second, people begin to be disgusted by you, especially if they know how much you make and they think you should be able to afford it. They will begin to roll their eyes at you and disrespect you.

If we really can’t afford something, just don’t mention anything at all. The last thing is for someone to start playing the violins for our sob story.

The Antidote: Don’t talk about how you can’t afford something. What would you be trying to accomplish anyway? If you can’t afford something, keep quiet.

Now you may ask what to do if you are invited to something and you can’t afford it. Respectfully decline. You don’t owe anyone an excuse. Just apologize and say that you will be unable to attend but that you hope to do something with them in the near future. Keep positive and watch your mouth!

6. Bragging
You know the type. Every sentence begins with “I….” The guy whose middle name is “Let me tell you a story about myself.” The woman who has to top every story of yours. After a while all you hear is “Blah, blah, blah.” Bragging is usually based in insecurity and most people don’t even know they are doing it. That is unfortunate.

The Result: Braggers usually have a few different results. One, people try to cut them down to size. Two, they avoid them. Three, they may sit there looking attentive but are inside of their minds making plans for the weekend. It is all they can do to keep their eyes from rolling back in their head.

The Antidote: Humility. Start as few sentences as possible with “I.” Let somebody else’s story be the best one. Ask questions about other people for a change. If they try to turn the conversation onto you, turn it back on to them! Don’t brag - watch your mouth!

7. Cussing
Not much needs to be said here. We all know what this is. I am still surprised by how many people cuss and even in a business situation. In my mind, it simply is intolerable. I don’t know why someone would cuss anymore than tell an off-color joke, but they do.

The Result: People cringe. More than that, cussing makes people question your judgment. A boss will wonder whether or not you are going to offend someone when he sends you on a sales call. Or a business associate may be reticent to make an introduction to someone else for you. Cussing isn’t good. It makes you come off as crass and low class.

The Antidote: Keep your language clean. Squeaky clean. Keep all bad language out. The big question is: What will it hurt to keep it clean? But it can hurt to say something you may regret later. No one will complain because you can't talk well, but they may complain about your cussing. To put it another way - watch your mouth!

Checklist
Have you ever done a “watch your mouth” checklist and then worked on your weaknesses? If not, here is one for you:

Do you gossip?
Do you pass along or start rumors?
Do you lie?
Are you given to put-downs?
Do you poor-mouth?
Are you a braggart?
Do you cuss?
Do you bad signs?

Take some time to think about these things. If you can keep your mouth in good shape and not only avoid the bad ways of speaking but master the good ways of speaking, you will be well on your way to becoming a successful person!

Hey you - watch your mouth!

Because if you do, you will achieve your dreams!

This article is by Chris Widener

China; 60 Years On.

2009-09-28T17:12:00.000-07:00

Pic: Todayonline

Good Goverance: The institution not the personality.

Famous advice on Ethics

"We have, in fact, two kinds of morality side by side: one which we preach but do not practise, and another which we practise but seldom preach." Bertrand Russell 1872-1970, British philosopher and mathematician

"To see what is right and not to do it is want of courage." Confucius 551BC - 479BC, Chinese philosopher, The Analects, Book II, Chapter XXIV

"A business that makes nothing but money is a poor kind of business." Henry Ford 1863 – 1947, American industrialist

"If ethics are poor at the top, that behavior is copied down through the organization." Robert Noyce, inventor of the silicon chip

"I believe that every right implies a responsibility; every opportunity an obligation; every possession a duty." John D. Rockefeller, Jr. 1839-1937, American entrepreneur

"There is no such thing as business ethics. There is only one kind - you have to adhere to the highest standards." Marvin Bower, former managing partner of McKinsey & Company

"Never let your sense of morals prevent you from doing what is right." Isaac Asimow 1920 - 1992, Russian writer and scientist

"Corporation, n., An ingenious device for obtaining profit without individual responsibility." Ambrose Bierce 1842-1914, American columnist, The Devils Dictionary 1906

"The higher the buildings, the lower the morals." Noel Coward 1899-1973, English actor, dramatist, & songwriter

"Relativity applies to physics, not ethics." Albert Einstein 1879-1955; German-born American theoretical physicist

"We may pretend that we are basically moral people who make mistakes, but the whole of history proves otherwise." Terry Hands 1941-, British theatre and opera director

"You can get everything money will buy without a lick of character, but you can't get any of the things money won't buy-happiness, joy, peace of mind, winning relationships, etc. -- without character." Zig Ziglar

Work Hard, Play Hard.

2009-09-03T17:52:00.000-07:00

"Is there a secret to success and failure? The answer is yes. You become what you think about." - Earl Nightingale

English will fragment into 'global dialects'

2009-04-25T19:51:00.000-07:00

Professor David Crystal, one of the world's foremost experts on English, said people will effectively have to learn two varieties of the language - one spoken in their home country, and a new kind of Standard English which can be internationally understood.

The English spoken in countries with rapidly-booming economies, such as India and China, will increasingly influence this global standard, he said.

In future, users of global Standard English might replace the British English: "I think it's going to rain", with the Indian English: "I am thinking it's going to rain", Prof Crystal argues.

Prof Crystal said: "In language, numbers count. There are more people speaking English in India than in the rest of the native English-speaking world.

"Even now, if you ring a call centre, often it's an Indian voice you hear at the end of the phone. As the Indian economy grows, so might the influence of Indian English.

"There, people tend to use the present continuous where we would use the present simple. For example, where we would say: "I think, I feel, I see" a speaker of Indian English might say: "I am thinking, I am feeling, I am seeing". This way of speaking could easily become sexy and part of global Standard English."

"In Singapore for example, 'Singlish' is used on the streets but it involves so much Chinese that you and I wouldn't understand it."

Varieties of standard spoken English
Indian: He’s a real enthu guy.

British: That guy is really enthusiastic.

South African: Jislaaik, china, I was in a bit of a dwaal.

British: Gosh, my friend, I was in a bit of a daze.

Australian: Bring your bathers, chuck some stubbies in the esky and we’ll have a barbie this arvo.

British: Bring your swimming costume, put some beers in the cool box and we’ll have a barbecue this afternoon.

Singaporean/Singlish: Dis guy Singlish damn powerful one leh.

British: This person’s Singlish is very good.

Nigerian Pidgin: I no know wetin u dey yarn.

British: I don’t know what you are talking about.

Islander Creole (from Colombian islands of San Andrés and Providencia): Da wan gud ting se di pikniny dem laan fi riid an rait.

British: It is a good thing that the children learn to read and write.

Cockney rhyming slang: She has such long bacons and lovely minces.

British: She has such long legs and lovely eyes.

Txt speak: "D gr8st booty of r heritage S d en lgn, n itz r gr8st gft 2 d wrld"

British: "The greatest treasure of our heritage is the English language, and it is our greatest gift to the world."

Source: What new English dialects have you noticed?

"Even if you do learn to speak correct English, whom are you going to speak it to?" Clarence Darrow

10 Denials of Truth

2009-04-17T19:46:00.000-07:00

WHY do people choose to deny truth? It really doesn’t matter what that particular truth is, some will deny it. It might be true that smoking is bad for their health, or that spending more than they earn will not make them rich, or that no nation can ever tax its way into prosperity. No matter what, there is always some who will deny the truth. Here are possibly the ten reasons:

1. People deny the truth because it makes demands of them.

2. People deny the truth because it isn’t scientific enough.

3. People deny the truth because it’s more comfortable (and easier) to believe a lie.

4. People deny the truth because they’re blinded.

5. People deny the truth because they think they’re the exception.

6. People deny the truth because they’re biased.
- Political bias - rhetorical
- Regency bias – seeing things or people in their most recent light
- Data Mining bias – looking for trends that really aren’t there
- Correlation/Causation bias – thinking things are causal just because they’re correlated
- Hindsight bias – thinking you “knew” it was going to happen that way and … it did!
- Status Quo bias – having an aversion to change
- Fear bias – fear of the unknown can cause you to deny truth

7. People deny the truth because they’re afraid of standing alone.

8. People deny the truth because they’re afraid of being judged or ridiculed.

9. People deny the truth because they’re afraid of being duped.

10. People deny the truth because it doesn’t fit with their preconceived notion of how the world works.

"If we ever hope to determine if there is such a thing as truth apart from cultural and personal preferences, we must acknowledge that we are then aiming to discover something greater than ourselves, something that transcends culture and individual inclinations. To do this is to look beyond ourselves and outside of ourselves." The Wisdom Journal (Adapted)

"There is no personal charm so great as the charm of a cheerful temperament." Henry Van Dyke

"The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong." Mohandas Gandhi

"The superior man is modest in his speech, but excels in his action."

"[The superior man] acts before he speaks, and afterward speaks according to his actions."

"By nature, men are nearly alike; by practice, they get to be wide apart."

Confucius

老师永远不教的50堂课!

2009-04-14T05:14:00.000-07:00

第一课：你得接受现实，生活本来就是不公平的。

第二课：现实世界和学校不同，在这儿，没人那么在乎你的自尊。你得先有所成就，才有资格自我感觉良好。
第三课：抱歉，你不可能中学毕业一年就年薪六万美金，也不可能当上副总经理还配有专车。很可能，你还得穿大路货的制服呢。
第四课：你没资格……
第五课：不管你老爸怎么说，你并不是真的公主。
第六课：你不可能想要什么就有什么。
第七课：等你有了老板，就知道当年的老师有多和蔼可亲了。
第八课：别把精力都用于关注自己的小世界。
第九课：学校里可能已经废除了优胜劣汰，但生活中可没有。
第十课：生活就像是玩躲避球。

第十一课：毕业之后，你们的竞争对手可不是那些童年的懦夫。
第十二课： “屈辱”是生活的一部分。你得接受它。
第十三课：你不会进NBA的，所以别忙着佩戴那些亮闪闪的奢侈品，先努力干活吧！
第十四课：穿得再辣，也不会让你更强大。
第十五课：在快餐店里端盘子并不是什么丢人的事。在你爷爷那一辈，把这种工作称为“良机”。
第十六课：你的父母和弟弟并不会给你丢人。真正丢人的是忘恩和无礼。
第十七课：你出生前，父母可不像现在那么乏味。都是在为你付帐、来回接送、打扫你的房间、为你存学费、听你倾诉自己是个多么理想主义的人……这些琐事中消磨掉的。
第十八课：现实生活可不是按学期算的，也根本没有暑假这回事儿。
第十九课：如果你把事情搞砸了，那就得自己负责，别怨父母。

第二十课A：抽烟看起来并不酷，反而让你像个白痴。
第二十课B：即使你妈妈很厉害，校长很懦弱，你也不能想穿鼻环就穿鼻环、想干吗就干吗。
第二十一课：有人冒犯你了？那又怎样？我是说真的，那又能怎么样？
第二十二课：你算不上什么受害者，所以别再抱怨了！
第二十三课：总有一天你必须长大、真正搬出父母的家。
第二十四课：蝙蝠侠的女朋友说的没错儿：重要的不是你是谁，而是你做了什么。
第二十五课： “π”可不在乎你的想法。
第二十六课： “道德指南针”并不实际存在。
加课：“无用输入导致无用输出”，这句话不仅适用于你吃的东西，也适用于你的所看所听。
第二十七课：别听下半身指挥。
第二十八课：慎独。
第二十九课：学会面对虚伪。

第三十课：零姑息＝毫无常识。
第三十一课：骨瘦如柴在现实中并不美。
第三十二课：生活和电视剧是两码事。
第三十三课：对那些老实的书呆子和气点儿，没准儿最后你得在人家手下打工呢。
第三十四课：胜利者有一套自己的人生哲学，失败者亦然。
第三十五课：要是你屁股太肥，麦当劳可没强迫你吃他们的巨无霸汉堡；要是你抽烟，那也不是万宝路的错。
第三十六课：你不是刀枪不入、永生不死的。
第三十七课：信息灵通不等于你对一切了如指掌。
第三十八课：与人交流的时候，要注视对方的眼睛。
第三十九课：黑白电影里演的很多都是真人真事。世界也不是从你出生那一刻才开始运转的。

第四十课：那个斥资百万的项目简直是为了把你们变成猪脑子，学着清晰、有条理地思考吧。
第四十一课：很多人都经历过你那些事，你不是第一个，也不是唯一一个。
第四十二课：更换机油。
第四十三课：不要让别人的成功打击自己。
第四十四课：同事不一定要成为朋友，朋友也不是你的家人。
第四十五课：大人们可能已经忘了你们这个年纪有多可怕。但你要记住：这都会过去的。
第四十六课：记得去看看地下室里的豚鼠。
第四十七课：你不完美，也不必变得完美。
第四十八课：回顾一下自己的人生，抓住重点。
第四十九课：别忘了说谢谢。
第五十课：珍惜并享受现在的时光。

- Internet

"It is easy to sit up and take notice. What is difficult is getting up and taking action." Al Batt

"Passive acceptance of the teacher's wisdom is easy to most boys and girls. It involves no effort of independent thought, and seems rational because the teacher knows more than his pupils; it is moreover the way to win the favour of the teacher unless he is a very exceptional man. Yet the habit of passive acceptance is a disastrous one in later life. It causes man to seek and to accept a leader, and to accept as a leader whoever is established in that position." Bertrand Russell

"Really big people are, above everything else, courteous, considerate and generous - not just to some people in some circumstances - but to everyone all the time." Thomas J. Watson

Which grads earn the most?

2009-04-10T18:02:00.001-07:00

By LIEW HANQING

FRESH graduates from the economics degree programme of the Singapore Management University (SMU) are among the best paid in their peer group, with a median starting salary of $3,300.

Those with distinctions fare even better. The corresponding figure for them is $3,750.

SMU's economics programme is among several local undergraduate courses with a 100 per cent overall employment rate for recent graduates.

Prospective students can now have a better idea of which local degree programmes offers the best pay, thanks to data released by the Ministry of Education (MOE) for the first time this year.

Its Graduate Employment Survey is based on responses from recent graduates of the National University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and SMU.

The survey tracks employment data of graduates six months after graduation. The survey results are available on MOE's website, www.moe.gov.sg, on the 'post-secondary education' page. The information available includes overall employment rates as well as mean and median gross monthly salaries of graduates, organised according to the degree courses offered by each university.

For example, about 90 per cent of mechanical engineering graduates from NUS were employed six months after graduation, with a median gross monthly salary of $2,965.

However, the economy and employment conditions have worsened since these graduates got their jobs. A spokesman for MOE said it would publish the results of the GES annually.

'The data gives prospective students a general indication of the employment conditions of the graduates from the various degree courses offered by our local universities,' he said.

He added that MOE decided to publish the survey results to help students make informed course decisions.

The survey was conducted on graduates who completed their studies between May and June last year and entered the labour market by 1 Nov.

Point of reference
Said the spokesman: 'We understand employment conditions may have changed since, but we hope that the data may still be useful as one point of reference for the students.'

The survey covers most available degree courses, but omits data from law, medicine, pharmacy and architecture, as graduates in these subjects must first undergo professional training.

Most students The New Paper spoke to felt the information was useful for those trying to choose a course of study.

Said Tan Ying Quan, 18, who has applied to both local and overseas universities: 'The information is useful because it allows students to gauge the viability of their studies in the current job market.'

He added that the availability of such employment data would prevent students from having unrealistic expectations of their starting salaries or the likelihood of securing employment upon graduation.

But undergraduate Yvonne Poon, 20, said the starting salary is just one factor that most prospective students look at when selecting a possible future career.

'When it comes to the crunch, surely pay doesn't matter that much - aptitude and passion is more important,' she said.

'You cannot brainwash yourself into developing a liking for, say, the highest- paying job around.'

Undergraduate Joanne Chia, 22, said she felt the information would help job hunters have a good idea of what to expect when they enter the job market.

She said: 'There are still quite a number of undergraduates who don't have an accurate idea of what entry-level pay to expect.

'This information would help moderate their expectations and hopefully help them pick their jobs wisely.'

She added that it would be useful if information such as the names of big-name employers, and the number of graduates they hire from each local university, are published as well.

'That would give us a good idea of our chances of being employed by the more sought-after companies,' she said.

- TNP

"When we hire, we look for people who have the ability to be facile with numbers, but that's not the only thing...The ability to convey your thoughts succinctly and persuasively is extremely important. That's one of the things a liberal education teaches you to do...We also look for well-rounded people. Relationships are very important in our business. As you get more senior in the company you start dealing with CEOs and CFOs from other companies, most of whom tend to be very well educated. When you meet at a conference or in a non-business situation, it helps if you know something about the arts, architecture, music, history. You have to have a good product and be cost-competitive and do good work, but if you have all that and you're also intellectually curious and able to talk intelligently on subjects other than business, you often end up becoming good friends." Chris Malone '81, executive director at Morgan Stanley

"Some of us will do our jobs well and some will not, but we will be judged by only one thing, the result." Vince Lombardi

"A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person. You earn reputation by trying to do hard things well." Jeff Bezos

Management Theories 101

2009-04-08T04:39:00.001-07:00

By Fiona Chan

STARTING work can sometimes feel like you are required to learn a whole new language.

Decades of evolving management theories have spawned a corporate vocabulary that can be difficult to understand without serious study.

You may have heard of the Six Thinking Hats, but what about Six Sigma? Do you know the Blue Ocean strategy? Can you recount all the seven habits of highly effective people?

If you are drawing blanks, this is a good place to start. Here is a primer - or a refresher - on five of the most commonly referenced management theories and strategies in the business world today.

Six Thinking Hats
IT IS one thing to look at a topic from both sides, but Edward de Bono's widely used thinking tool aims to help people examine an issue from six individual perspectives.

The theory is that by putting on different 'hats', people can move outside their habitual way of thinking. You could try putting on a 'manager hat' - another favourite phrase - but it does not have quite the same effect.

The exercise starts by donning the white 'thinking' hat, which explores neutral information and factual data on an issue. Then you move on to the red 'feelings' hat, where emotions, hunches and intuition come out in the open.

The third hat is black, symbolising caution and pessimism, and forcing people to search for possible flaws and risks in a given approach. This is followed by the opposite view: the yellow hat, for positive thinking, benefits and compromise.

The last two hats are used to round off the discussion. First comes green, which stands for creative thinking out of the box, and is often applied to generate solutions for the problems thrown up during the black hat phase. Last is the blue 'big picture' hat, which is used at the start and end of each thinking session to set objectives and measure progress.

7 habits of highly effective people
A HUGE hit when it was first released in 1989, Stephen R. Covey's book on the seven habits of highly effective people has sold more than 15 million copies in almost 40 languages. This self-help tome outlines seven principles that lead to 'interdependence' - cooperation to achieve something that cannot be attained independently.

The first three habits are designed to move people from a state of 'dependence' to one of 'independence'. They are: 'Be proactive' (take responsibility for your life), 'Begin with the end in mind' (define a vision and set goals), and 'Put first things first' (focus on your highest priorities).

The next three habits supposedly bring the reader to 'interdependence': They are 'Think win/win' (find agreements that are mutually beneficial), 'Seek first to understand, then to be understood' (don't give out advice until you have properly listened to the other person), and 'Synergise' (value teamwork).

Finally, the last habit, 'Sharpen the saw', talks about living a balanced life. In 2004, Mr Covey banked on his popularity to come up with an eighth habit: 'Find your voice, and inspire others to find theirs'.

Several other authors have put forward their own 'seven habits', with varying success.

Blue Ocean Strategy
NOW used liberally by almost every entrepreneur, the phrase 'blue ocean' originated in a business strategy book by Insead professors W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne.

Mr Kim and Ms Mauborgne differentiated between red and blue oceans, the former being all the industries already in existence today and the latter referring to all the unknown market space in the world.

Entrepreneurs are advised to identify blue oceans: markets and products not yet invented, in which they can create rather than fight for demand, grow rapidly, and set their own rules and boundaries.

Six Sigma
THIS quality management strategy was developed by Motorola and has been adopted by thousands of companies worldwide, including Sony, Samsung, HSBC and General Electric.

It aims to improve processes and eliminate defects, thus saving costs for companies. The goal is to make every project 'six sigma quality', which means that for every one million opportunities (or products), there are only 3.4 defects - in other words, the process is virtually perfect.

The employees within each firm who are tasked with implementing six sigma practices are known as champions, master black belts, black belts and green belts, in order of seniority.

Tipping Point
ONE of the more recent inventions of management theorists is Malcolm Gladwell's Tipping Point, which seeks to explain why some changes take place quickly, unexpectedly and on a large scale.

The tipping point is the moment at which previously small movements gain enough momentum to become a trend. Mr Gladwell's theory is that a new idea will take hold and become successful if a few key individuals endorse it, it is presented well enough to become 'sticky', and arises in a favourable environment.

This theory is not entirely novel, but Mr Gladwell crystallised it in a best-selling book published in 2000. Some criticised it for relying on too many random examples and not being substantive enough, but it has gained significant traction in management-speak.

- ST

"A good manager is one who doesn't worry about his/her own career but rather those who work for him/her." HSM Burns

"You cannot tailor make the situations in life, but you can tailor make the attitudes to fit those situations before they arise." Zig Ziglar

Singapore Botanical Gardens - 150th Birthday

2009-04-03T23:33:00.000-07:00

"The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience." Eleanor Roosevelt

"Pleasure is the flower that passes; remembrance, the lasting perfume." Jean de Boufflers

It's all in your mind

2009-03-30T15:14:00.001-07:00

"All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them." Galileo Galilei

"The trick is in what one emphasizes. We either make ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves strong. The amount of work is the same." Carlos Castaneda

"Knowledge can be communicated but not wisdom. "Herman Hesse

'I will continue to teach until I can't'

2009-03-27T18:38:00.000-07:00

BEN TRE, VIETNAM - "I will continue to teach students in my hometown until I can't."

For 84-year-old Tran Ngoc Anh of Ben Tre Province's Mo Cay District, teaching is akin to breathing. He has been doing it non-stop for 30 years. And his passion for teaching is matched only by his willingness to learn.

Nguyen Thi Suong, principal of My Hung Primary School in Thanh Phu District, says: "Mr Anh is a diligent and enthusiastic teacher who loves his students very much.

"He always learns new things from his colleagues and other sources to enrich his knowledge and uses it for his teaching. I'm very lucky to have been taught by him."

Anh graduated from high school in 1943 under the French curriculum, but he was unable to continue his studies because of many problems in his life then.

Many years later, he joined the resistance war against the French. He returned home in 1954 and focused on taking care of his family - his wife and two children.

Anh began teaching and continued his studies at the Sai Gon Lecturer's University a year later. After graduation, he taught literature at the Thanh Phu High School in Ben Tre Province, going on to become its principal from 1969 to 1973.

Twenty years later, he retired at the age of 65, but two years on, in 1995, he opened his first class, teaching English.

Despite learning under the French curriculum, he had been taught English for two years, and he was ready to build on that.

At the age of 74, Anh would ride his bicycle to teach English in the morning and learn it in the evening at the Ben Tre Foreign Language Centre.

He smiles as he recalls: "Several teachers and students who could be my grandchildren were very surprised when they saw a man over 70 years old go to school."

After three years of study, Anh became much more proficient in English, and began teaching the language in right earnest.

"I have to make teaching plans which help students understand lessons quickly."

He now teaches English to about 20 students, ranging from beginners to ninth-grade students. He also receives a few high school students sometimes.

Many people who have studied English under him have succeeded in life. Some of them are studying at Dong Thap Province's University of Pedagogy and Can Tho City's University and others have become teachers.

Anh is one of the first teachers in the Mekong Delta province of Ben Tre to receive the Viet Nam Medal for the Cause of Education.

Apart from teaching, Anh is also a poet. His poems about education have been published on local art magazines.

Someone once said: You don't grow old. You become old when you stop growing.

At 84, Anh has not stopped growing.

- Vietnam News/Asia News Network

Employers are demanding better English skills to cope with new challenges in the business environment By Dao Phuong Mai, a teacher of English at the Hanoi-based University of Commerce.

"If you think education is expensive, try ignorance." Derek Bok

Babies who gesture have bigger vocabularies

2009-03-24T15:38:00.001-07:00

CHICAGO, Reuters (Adapted) - Babies who use many gestures to communicate when they are 14 months-old have much larger vocabularies when they start school than those who don't, U.S. researchers said on Thursday.

They said babies with wealthier, better-educated parents tend to gesture more and this may help explain why some children from low-income families fare less well in school.

"When children enter school, there is a large socioeconomic gap in their vocabularies," said the University of Chicago's Meredith Rowe, whose study appears in the journal Science.

Gestures could help explain the difference, Rowe told the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual meeting in Chicago.

Vocabulary is a key predictor of school success. Earlier research showed that well-off, educated parents tend to talk to their children more than their poorer, less-educated peers.

"What we are doing here is going one step earlier and asking, does this socioeconomic status relate to gesture, and can that explain some of the gap we see at school entry." Rowe said.

"I don't think of myself as a poor deprived ghetto girl who made good. I think of myself as somebody who from an early age knew I was responsible for myself, and I had to make good." Oprah Winfrey

Most people don’t conduct their day rationally, instead they go about their day based on feelings. They live from feeling to feeling, like stepping on stones while trying to cross a river. The only question is, “Which stone is the closest to me now?” The end result is that they never really cross the stream, but they made a lot of effort! Doesn’t effort count for anything?

"Success is not measured by what you do compared to what others do, it is measured by what you do with the ability God gave you." Zig Ziglar

I am cybernetic human HRP-4C

2009-03-21T19:39:00.000-07:00

Japanese researchers have showed off a robot that will soon strut its stuff down a Tokyo catwalk.

The girlie-faced humanoid with slightly oversized eyes, a tiny nose and a shoulder length hair boasts 42 motion motors programmed to mimic the movements of flesh-and-blood fashion models.

"Hello everybody, I am cybernetic human HRP-4C," the futuristic fashionista said, opening its media premiere at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology outside Tokyo.

The fashion-bot is 158 centimetres tall, the average height of Japanese women aged 19 to 29, but weighs in at a waif-like 43 kilograms, including batteries.

She has a manga-inspired human face but a silver metallic body.

"If we had made the robot too similar to a real human, it would have been uncanny," one of the inventors, humanoid research leader Shuji Kajita said.

"We have deliberately leaned toward an anime style."

The institute said the robot "has been developed mainly for use in the entertainment industry" but is not for sale at the moment.

Hamming it up before photographers and television crews, the seductive cyborg struck poses, flashed bright smiles and pouted sulkily according to commands transmitted wirelessly from journalists via bluetooth devices.

The performance fell short of flawless when it occasionally mixed up its facial expressions - a mistake the inventors put down to a case of the nerves as a hail of camera shutters confused its sound recognition sensors.

The preview was a warm-up for the robot's appearance at a Tokyo fashion show on March 23.

Like its real-life counterparts, robot model HRP-4C commands a hefty price - the institute said developing her cost more than 200 million yen (US$3 million).
- AFP

"The product of the human brain has escaped the control of human hands. This is the comedy of science." Rossum, in Karel Capek's play R.U.R.

"If you do not speak English, I am at your disposal with 187 other languages along with their various dialects and sub-tongues." Robby the Robot (Forbidden Planet)

"The old believe everything; the middle-aged suspect everything; the young know everything." Oscar Wilde

Why we think it's OK to cheat and steal (sometimes)

2009-03-20T19:02:00.000-07:00

Why you should listen to him: Despite our best efforts, bad or inexplicable decisions are as inevitable as death and taxes and the grocery store running out of your favorite flavor of ice cream. They're also just as predictable. Why, for instance, are we convinced that "sizing up" at our favorite burger joint is a good idea, even when we're not that hungry? Why are our phone lists cluttered with numbers we never call? Dan Ariely, behavioral economist, has based his career on figuring out the answers to these questions, and in his bestselling book Predictably Irrational (which will be re-released in expanded form in May 2009), he describes many unorthodox and often downright odd experiments used in the quest to answer this question.

Ariely has long been fascinated with how emotional states, moral codes and peer pressure affect our ability to make rational and often extremely important decisions in our daily lives -- across a spectrum of our interests, from economic choices (how should I invest?) to personal (who should I marry?). At Duke, he's aligned with three departments (business, economics and cognitive neuroscience); he's also a visiting professor in MIT's Program in Media Arts and Sciences and a founding member of the Center for Advanced Hindsight. His hope that studying and understanding the decision-making process can help people lead better, more sensible daily lives.
"If you want to know why you always buy a bigger television than you intended, or why you think it's perfectly fine to spend a few dollars on a cup of coffee at Starbucks, or why people feel better after taking a 50-cent aspirin but continue to complain of a throbbing skull when they're told the pill they took just cost one penny, Ariely has the answer." Daniel Gross, Newsweek

About the video, one comment...
"It seems there are two forces at work. One is the individual's propensity to bend his moral code, to justify advantageous behavior that he knows is "wrong". M. Ariely points out that certain cues can strengthen or loosen this propensity, for e.g., loosening via the reward be an abstraction (tokens or pencils vs money), or strengthening by virtue of posting a reminder of morality (for e.g. agreeing to an ethics code).

The second (related) element, that he hints at with the Carnegie Mellon experiment, is the flexibility or shifting of one's moral lattice structure in a group setting, more commonly known as the "everyone's doing it..." justification (or it's sibling effect, where it's not the group that's the powerful force but the leader/idol/hero figure, etc.). It would be interesting to see the relative strength of one versus the other - what happens when you're reminded of your moral code in an environment where you know everyone else is cheating. My guess is that the second trumps the first, which is why mob mentality is so powerful and prevalent. I would also attribute the wholesale irresponsibility in the stock market to this second element, rather than the first." Farhad Farzaneh

"When you let somebody be dishonest, you are setting him up to become physically ill and unhappy." "When you let a person give nothing for something, you are factually encouraging crime." L. Ron Hubbard

"Someone who thinks the world is always cheating him is right. He is missing that wonderful feeling of trust in someone or something." Eric Hoffer

"I would prefer even to fail with honor than to win by cheating" Sophocles

"It is impossible for a man to be cheated by anyone but himself." Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Do not be too moral. You may cheat yourself out of much life so. Aim above morality. Be not simply good; be good for something." Henry David Thoreau

"Integrity is not a conditional word. It doesn't blow in the wind or change with the weather. It is your inner image of yourself, and if you look in there and see a man who won't cheat, then you know he never will." John D. MacDonald

The real crisis? We stopped being wise

2009-03-18T05:27:00.000-07:00

Chúng tôi dừng khôn ngoan 我们停止了明智

"The darkest hour of a man's life is when he sits down to plan how to get money without earning it." Horace Greeley

"Every decision you make - every decision - is not a decision about what to do. It's a decision about Who You Are. When you see this, when you understand it, everything changes. You begin to see life in a new way. All events, occurrences, and situations turn into opportunities to do what you came here to do." Neale Donald Walsch

"Learn from everyone, and follow no one."‏

The Oscar Robertson Rule

2009-03-14T18:12:00.001-07:00

It was 1960. The Olympics were going to be held in Rome. And the USA was sending its best amateur players. The 1960 US men's Olympic basketball team may be the best amateur basketball team ever assembled.

Ten of the twelve team members would go on to careers in the NBA. Four of them, Jerry West, Walt Bellamy, Jerry Lucas, and Oscar Robertson would be elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame.

They won every game they played, averaging 101.4 points per game. Their average margin of victory was 42 points. Big margins were important, because, in those days, the Olympic rules used victory margin as part of the ranking system. That wasn't all that was different from what the players were used to from the US. The foul lanes were different. Contact rules were different. Even the ball was different. The Olympic ball had a giant seam in it.

The first practice something of a gripe session.

As Coach Pete Newell explained the rules, the complaint level rose. Everybody seemed to be complaining except for Oscar Robertson. He quietly picked up the strange new ball and wandered to the far end of the court. He bounced it, handled it in different ways, shot, and dribbled.

As the complaints started to die down, Robertson walked back to join his teammates. "I know how we can make this work," he said. Then he started showing the others what he'd learned about handling that ball with the great big seam.

These are tough times. When you're confronted with a situation you can't do anything about, you have two choices. You can spend time complaining. Or you can look for a way to deal with the situation.

Remember the Oscar Robertson Rule: You'll do better in sports, in business, and in life if you get to work on "what to do" as soon as possible.

- Wally Bock

"There is no eternal enemy in this world, neither are there friends forever. I do hope friends can be forever, but there is definitely no eternal enemy... it is meaningless to keep talking about the past when we are moving forward." Nicholas Tse

I want to make late dad proud

2009-03-10T15:57:00.001-07:00

HE made history in his junior college by becoming the first student to score seven straight As in the A-level examinations.

"Life is about growth. There's just no staying still. We're either moving backward or forward all the time."

CLUELESS: Ming Da looking composed before the school named him as top JJC student.
Yet, while the vice-principal was lauding his achievement when the results were released yesterday, Tok Ming Da, 18, began to cry.

For his is a story of determination and resilience in the face of tragedy and adversity.

What should have been his happiest day was tempered by the sudden death of his father from a heart attack last September, just six weeks before he sat for the exams.

The Jurong JC (JJC) student found it hard to come to terms with the shock loss as his father had seemed to be in good health.

But rather than mope, Ming Da decided to use the memory of his father to motivate him for the exams.

When his touching story was told to his college mates yesterday, many of them were inspired by his success, but also red-eyed over his loss.

As vice-principal Chua Lek Hong put it, Ming Da is a testament to how anyone, no matter how old, can overcome all odds to achieve great success.

When Mr Chua mentioned his family tragedy, the boy couldn't help but shed a few tears, as his friend passed him a piece of tissue paper.

SAD: He turn tearful when the vice-principal relates his story to the school.
Ming Da topped the JC's previous record of six As by getting As in all his seven subjects - General Paper, economics, mathematics, physics, chemistry, project work and Chinese.

'I did it to make him proud,' said the soft-spoken boy, referring to his father, Mr Tok Khoon Hee. He was 55.

Recalling the tragedy, he told The New Paper: 'He woke up at 3am and started coughing non-stop. He complained that he couldn't see very well.

'We rushed him to the hospital but his condition worsened very quickly. His heart stopped but the emergency crew managed to get it pumping the first time. But it stopped again and we had to let go.'

His father had run an automation company. His mother is a housewife and his sister, 28, who had just become a teacher, became the sole breadwinner.

Said Ming Da: 'My father was the one with a true resilient spirit. He dropped out of school after O levels, did odd jobs here and there and made it to run his own company recently.

'Even though he didn't do A-level maths, he was a maths genius and helped me a lot with my homework.'

- TNP

"Don't be distracted by criticism. Remember - the only taste of success some people have is when they take a bite out of you." Zig Ziglar

"Change one's mindset and boost one's ability. Do not hold onto thoughts that 'things will always be like that'. One must always be true to one's word and determined in deed. Be realistic - it is better to have tried and failed than not to try at all." Claire Chiang

"One day at a time - this is enough. Do not look back and grieve over the past, for it is gone: and do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come. Live in the present, and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering." Ida Scott Taylor

Macro-Pessimist; Micro-Optimist

2009-03-07T17:52:00.001-08:00

Stairway To Success Extracts
You cannot give that which you do not possess.

Relationships break down when there is a preoccupation with self.

Winners compare their achievements with their goals, while losers compare their achievements with those of other people.

The practical side of dreaming is being willing to pay the price to make those dreams come true.

If you work only on days you feel like working, you'll never amount to much.

Are you a thermometer or a thermostat? A thermometer only reflects the temperature of its environment, adjusting to the situation. But a thermostat initiates action to change the temperature in its environment.

Those with a strong self-image realize that the only way to keep from making mistakes is to do nothing -- and that's the biggest mistake of all.

The process of growing and learning always involves risk. No one ever becomes perfect; but anyone can improve.

Whether you are a success or failure in life has little to do with your circumstances; it has much more to do with your attitude.

If you could view your life as you do a highway from an airliner, many of the detours and curves would make more sense.

The practical dreamers know the harder they work, the luckier they get.

No failure, misfortune, or mistake is ever so great that nothing good can come from it.

Only when your memories are more important to you than your goals are
you old.

Fixing the blame is never important, and fixing the relationship is never unimportant.

You can't think your way into acting positively; but you can act your way into thinking positively.

People who are looking for something to make them happy, somehow never seem to find it. Yet those who find a way to be happy while they are looking for something, typically find what they are looking for.

What matters is not so much how you got to be the way you are now, but what you do with the person you have become.

A strong awareness that you are loved by God provides the most solid foundation for building high self-esteem.

Your best bet for a good job is to do the best you can with the one you have right now.

Those who spend their lives searching for happiness never find it, while those who search for meaning, purpose, and strong personal relationships find that happiness usually comes to them as a by-product of those three things.

13 Things Not to Share

"The prizes go to those who meet emergencies successfully. And the way to meet emergencies is to do each daily task the best we can." William Feather 1889-1981, Publisher and Author.

"The result of our people-judgments is that we often throw away someone's ideas because they are voiced by the wrong person or because we don't agree with all of their ideas." Thayer White

"Real obstacles don't take you in circles. They can be overcome. Invented ones are like a maze." Barbara Sher

Reading, Writing and Understanding

2009-03-04T04:15:00.001-08:00

"An education isn't how much you have committed to memory, or even how much you know. It's being able to differentiate between what you do know and what you don't." Anatole France

READING
Students learn and practice beginning reading skills through building their knowledge about language and letter-sound relationships and developing fluency in their reading and must then begin to use these developing reading skills to learn – to make meaning, solve problems, and understanding something new. They need to comprehend what they read through a three-stage meaning-making process.

Stage One: Prereading
It's not uncommon for a struggling secondary reader to declare, "I read last night's homework, but I don't remember anything about it (let alone understand it)!" Therefore, asking such questions as, "What do I already know and what do I need to know before reading?" or "What do I think this passage will be about, given the headings, graphs, or pictures?" helps students anticipate the text, make personal connections with the text, and help to promote engagement and motivation. Brainstorming and graphic organizers also serve to strengthen students' vocabulary knowledge and study skills.

Stage Two: Guided Reading
The ability to monitor one's own reading often distinguishes effective and struggling readers. Thus, guided-reading activities should provide students with the opportunity to reflect on the reading process itself – recording in a log how their background knowledge and experience influenced their understanding of text, identifying where they may have gotten lost during reading and why, and asking any questions they have about the text.

Stage Three: Postreading
During postreading, students test their understanding of the text by comparing it with that of their classmates. In doing so, they help one another revise and strengthen their arguments while reflecting and improving on their own.

WRITING
Writing is often used as a means of evaluating students' understanding of a certain topic, but it is also a powerful tool for engaging students in the act of learning itself. Writing allows students to organize their thoughts and provides a means by which students can form and extend their thinking, thus deepening understanding.

Research suggests that the most effective way to improve students' writing is a process called inquiry. This process allows students to define and test what they would like to write before drafting.

The three stages of writing-based inquiry:
1) stating specific, relevant details from personal experience;
2) proposing observations or interpretations of the text; and
3) testing these assertions by predicting and countering potential opposing arguments.

Through inquiry, students discover and refine something worth writing about.

Writing-to-learn activities can include freewriting (writing, without editing, what comes to mind), narrative writing (drawing on personal experience), response writing (writing thoughts on a specific issue); loop writing (writing on one idea from different perspectives) and dialogue writing (for example, with an author or a character.)

"Not surprisingly, writing-to learn activities are also known as 'writing-to-read' strategies – means by which students can engage with text in order to understand it." Vicki Jacobs

UNDERSTANDING
The relationship among reading, writing, and understanding is clear. Students engaged in reading-to-learn will also be prepared to write well. In turn, students who are engaged in writing-to-learn will become more effective readers. Through both approaches, students will gain a better understanding of material and a greater ability to demonstrate that understanding.

Critical Thinking framework - Using Tamblin and Ward’s (2006) Triple A approach
1. Acquaint yourself with the topic
Do you have enough information to proceed? Reading lists, Your own literature search, Internet, etc. What else might you want to find out?

2. Analyse the information
Logic e.g.:Are all the claims backed up by evidence? Is the theory or information consistent? Are all the claims justified or are assumptions being made? Are the points relevant to the overall argument?

a) Emotion e.g.:Does the author use emotional language? Is the argument overly emotional? Does the author have a vested interest in persuading the reader? Is there bias in the argument?

b) Omission e.g.: Is the information lacking in detail or precision? What is omitted? What is included? What sway? Why?

c) Research e.g.: Why was the research undertaken? What was the aim? Where was the research carried out? When did the research occur? Who took part? Who presented the research?

3. Advance the argument e.g. Why is this an important topic? What are the implications and applications of the arguments presented? What's the bigger picture.
Then use your critical analysis of the sources to create your argument in your assignment.

Useful phrases when writing
In order to show that you have thought about information in a critical way, you will need to demonstrate your critical analysis in your writing. The following phrases (adapted from Gillet 2006) are examples of language that can be used when writing about your own critical analysis.

Presenting your point of view
a) There are many reasons why.....
It is important to point out that....
Presenting another point of view
In a study of X, Y claims that.....
It has been suggested that.....
According to X......

b) Commenting on another point of view - negatively
These views are open to doubt.....
Reservations can be raised against this.....
One objection to this argument is......

c) Commenting on another point of view - positively.
One of the main arguments in favour of X is that....
Another point in favour of X is that..
Indicating a lack of knowledge in a particular area
Little research has been done...
Research has tended to focus on A, rather less attention has been
paid to B...

Drawing conclusions
In short....
On the whole...
Altogether...
It may be concluded that....
Comparing and contrasting
Similarly
Likewise
Correspondingly
Whereas

by HGSE Lecturer Vicki Jacobs, (adapted).

10 Characteristics of Good, Effective Writing

"Be careful the environment you choose for it will shape you; be careful the friends you choose for you will become like them." W. Clement Stone 1902-2002, Author and Businessman

Singapore English

2009-02-28T17:12:00.000-08:00

Keep it clear, keep it simple

Thirty years ago today, on Feb 27, 1979, then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew called a meeting of ministers, ministers of state and senior civil servants to discuss how government papers and minutes can be written in clear, clean prose.

Singapore's GDP has grown almost sevenfold since 1979. Marina Bay didn't exist then. Changi Airport was still two years away from completion. Singapore has been transformed beyond recognition in the last 30 years. But the same, alas, cannot be said of the quality of written English, which remains recognisably the same now as it did in 1979. We reprint excerpts of Mr Lee's address to mark a melancholy anniversary.

I WANT to discuss the importance of simple, clear, written English. This is not simple. Dr Goh Keng Swee gives every officer whom he thinks is promising and whose minutes or papers are deficient in clarity, a paperback edition of Sir Ernest Gowers' The Complete Plain Words.

It presupposes that the man who attempts to read the book has reached a certain level of literary competence. The book, written words, cannot convey to you the emphasis, the importance, the urgency of things, unless the receiver is a trained reader. And in any case, human beings are never moved by written words. It is the spoken word that arouses them to action. Arthur Koestler rightly pointed out that if Adolf Hitler's speeches had been written, not spoken, the Germans would never have gone to war. Similarly, Sukarno in print did not make great sense.

The spoken language is better learnt early; then you will have fluency. However, my thesis is that the written language can be mastered at any age without much disadvantage. It is learnt fastest when your written mistakes are pointed out to you by a teacher, friend, or senior officer. That was the way I learnt.

When I was in school my compositions were marked. When my children were in school they simply got grades for their written work. Their teachers had so many essays that they never attempted to correct the compositions. This has contributed to our present deplorable situation.

I want to convince you, first, of the importance of clear, written communication; second, that you can master it, if you apply yourself.

The use of words, the choice and arrangement of words in accordance with generally accepted rules of grammar, syntax and usage, can accurately convey ideas from one mind to another. It can be mastered.

When I was a law student I learnt that every word, every sentence has three possible meanings: what the speaker intends it to mean, what the hearer understands it to mean, and what it is commonly understood to mean. So when a coded message is sent in a telegram, the sender knows what he means, the receiver knows exactly what is meant, the ordinary person reading it can make no sense of it at all.

When you write minutes or memoranda, do not write in code, so that only those privy to your thoughts can understand. Write simply so that any other officer who knows nothing of the subject can understand you. To do this, avoid confusion and give words their ordinary meanings.

Our biggest obstacle to better English is shyness. It is a psychological barrier. Nobody likes to stop and ask, 'Please, what does that mean?' or 'Please tell me, where have I gone wrong?' To pretend you know when you don't know is abysmal folly. Then we begin to take in each other's mistakes and repeat them, compounding our problems.

The facility to express yourself in a written language is yet another facet or manifestation of your ability, plus application and discipline. It is a fallacy to believe that because it is the English language, the Englishman has a natural advantage in writing it. That is not so. He has a natural advantage in speaking the language because he spoke it as a child, but not in writing it. It has nothing to do with race. You are not born with a language. You learn it.

- ST

"Your work is to discover your work and then with all your heart to give yourself to it." Buddha

"Books defy universal physical laws — they are time machines transporting us backwards and forwards to lost civilizations and futuristic worlds." Renie Garlick

" I've always worked very, very hard, and the harder I worked, the luckier I got." Alan Bond

Help or Harm

2009-02-25T03:25:00.000-08:00

Anyone who attains a minimal level of success or even a degree of enlightenment understands that there is no true and lasting achievement without helping others and making a difference in the world around one.

While most everyone would agree on the fact that they want to help others, the act of helping another person is not as easy to identify as one might think.

Abraham Lincoln said, "The worst thing you can do for anyone you care about is anything that they can do on their own."

People who are given things, opportunities, and solutions without earning or paying for them often are harmed more than they are helped. Wealth without work, position without effort, and remedy without resource is seldom positive in the long run.

The majority of lottery winners are in worse financial condition five years after their winning number is called than they were before playing the lottery. They suffer a much higher divorce rate and instance of drug abuse and alcoholism.

At some point in life, all mature people learn that action shave consequences -- either good or bad. The sooner we can learn this lesson, the more productive and peaceful life we will have.

If you shelter a child from all consequences of their decisions, you may protect them temporarily from a few bumps or scrapes. Unfortunately, you may relegate them to making a poor decision during a life or death situation. We all need to learn that the stove is hot--one time--the hard way. From then on, we are cautious around stoves and begin to consider the consequences of other decisions.

Any study of successful people in our society will reveal a disproportionate number of underprivileged immigrants achieving great success in a relatively short period of time.

There is nothing innate about financial struggles, language barriers and cultural challenges that make people succeed. It is simply that enduring problems and overcoming barriers is a habit that, once learned, carries over into every area of our lives.

That person that turned you down for help may have done you the greatest favor of all. Self-reliance and independence are critical parts of succeeding in life.

All of us have received a hand up at one time or another, and hopefully have offered the same to those coming along behind us; but it is important to be sure that we are helping and not harming those that we care about.

As you go through your day today, look for ways to assist others, and eliminate any harm you're doing by trying to help in ways that people can perform on their own.

- Jim Stovall (adapted)

"Through adversity and life's challenges I am made stronger for having had overcome and worked through each particular hardship. I remind myself that on the other side of every single challenge which stands before me, I have within me, though it may be hidden deep, the necessary ingredients to overcome and thrive." Jim Stovall

"Any rough patch that you're going through right now will smooth out to a tiny wrinkle by the day's end, so you shouldn't waste too much time worrying about things. Turn your thoughts to tomorrow, when all of this will be over and things will be so much better. You can't have a good day every day, but you can certainly choose to focus on positive things instead of negative ones. And if the only positive thing in your life right now is hope, then so be it."

"Only enemies speak the truth; friends and lovers lie endlessly, caught in the web of duty." Stephen King

"The money I have is in direct proportion to the value I've given to others. The more I give of myself, incredibly, the more economic power comes my way." Tod Barnhart

Billionaire wishes to donate wealth

Bias for Targeted Action

2009-02-21T17:55:00.001-08:00

What are you doing? What are you studying? What's your objective?

Geoffrey James's business perspectives (adapted).

1) Any business activity that can’t be measured quantitatively and objectively is a waste of resources.
2) The point of commerce is to generate profitable revenue, so all measurements should tie back to sales.
3) Everyone’s compensation should be tied to their ability to help sales generate profitable revenue.
4) Employees who object to being measured quantitatively and objectively are running a scam.
5) Effective marketing are activities that can be objectively and quantitatively measured that make it easier and quicker for sales to take place.

Brand Management
1st - Confidence
2nd – Quality
3rd – Service
4th – Selection
5th – Price

"I will act now. I will act now. I will act now. Henceforth, I will repeat these words again and again, each hour, each day, every day, until the words become a habit as my breathing and the actions which follow become as instinctive as the blinking of my eyelids. With these words I can condition my mind to perform every act necessary for my success. With these words, I can condition my mind to meet every challenge." Og Mandino, author and motivational speaker (1923 - 1996)

"Whatever we learn to do, we learn by actually doing it; men come to be builders, for instance, by building, and harp players by playing the harp. In the same way, by doing just acts we come to be just: By doing self-controlled acts, we come to be self-controlled; and by doing brave acts, we become brave." Aristotle, Greek Philosopher (384 BC – 322 BC)

"All who have accomplished great things have had a great aim, have fixed their gaze on a goal which was high, one which sometimes seemed impossible." Orison Swett Marden
1850-1924, Author

"Action makes more fortune than caution." Luc DeClapiers

Assessment

2009-02-18T04:36:00.000-08:00

"Assessment is often described as having two purposes: one lies in measuring someone's performance to communicate it to the outside world; the other in helping the student to learn. The NUS, and many academics who study assessment, argue that there is currently too much emphasis on the former at the expense of the latter." Rebecca Attwood Adapted

NATIONAL UNION OF STUDENTS' PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE ASSESSMENT, UK.

1. Should be for learning, not simply of learning
This positions assessment at the heart of learning rather than it serving as a simple add-on at the end of the process.

2. Should be reliable, valid, fair and consistent
It is crucial for staff, students and employers to have confidence in the assessment processes and their outcomes.

3. Should consist of effective and constructive feedback
Effective feedback on assessment is a crucial aspect of assessment processes and a key feature of enhancing the learning process.

4. Should be innovative and have the capacity to inspire and motivate
Formative assessment practices have the potential to inspire and motivate, and this aspect can be captured by innovative approaches, including those making use of new technology.

5. Should measure understanding and application, rather than technique and memory
Assessments need to have a holistic approach that transcends the particular method being used; only this will truly test and reflect levels of learning.

6. Should be conducted throughout the course, rather than being positioned as a final event. Positioning assessment as an integral part of the course helps facilitate continuous learning.

7. Should develop key skills such as peer and reflective assessment
Not only do such mechanisms allow students to receive extra feedback on work beyond that of their tutor, they also help develop the key skill of self-reflection.

8. Should be central to staff development and teaching strategies, and frequently reviewed
Assessment processes must be innovative and responsive to learners' needs, and as such they need to be central to staff development and teaching strategies.

9. Should be of a manageable amount for both tutors and students
While assessment should be placed in a central role in learning, for it to be effective neither tutor nor student should be overburdened.

10. Should encourage dialogue between students and their tutors and students and their peers (Mutual Goals)
It is important that students and staff share the same definitions and ideas around standards. This can be fostered by increased dialogue and engagement.

"'Fitness for purpose' - To give them the maximum opportunity to perform you want to provide a wide variety of opportunities. Somebody who is not terribly good at writing essays may be very good at presenting a paper or doing a project. The more kinds of assessment you use, the more you get a proper picture of what the student can really do." Patricia Broadfoot

They say that we live in an A.D.D. (Attention Deficit Disorder) society and that we are bombarded with: ==> so much advertising ==> so many refined foods ==> and literally thousands TV channels, it is not surprising that more and more people are turning out to have ADD than ever before...

"The difference between great people and everyone else is that great people create their lives actively, while everyone else is created by their lives, passively waiting to see where life takes them next. The difference between the two is the difference between living fully and just existing." Michael E. Gerber

Being Happy

2009-02-13T04:36:00.000-08:00

The path to happiness
No money? No marry

Count your blessings
With the economy in bad shape, it may be time to take stock of the other things in your life that you can be happy about, like having friends, family and being in good health.

'Reflect on what really matters and re-chart your course to one that will bring joy, meaning and fulfilment to your life,' said life coach Kenny Toh.

Money can't buy happiness
Material ambitions can sometimes be our downfall in building a happy life, as a bigger income can often lead to more desires and expectations.

Thus, our overall happiness may not increase by much even as we get richer, said psychotherapist Stephen Lew.

His advice: Engage in more meaningful activities like bonding with family and friends, or pursuing charity work.

Avoid 'toxic' people
Ms Zaibun Siraj, author of the book, Zany, Zeal, Zest And Zing: The Z Way To Happiness, said that it is best to avoid those who may bring you down with their persistently negative attitudes.

Conversely, happiness is infectious so one can find joy in both spreading and receiving it.

Show gratitude and appreciation
Mr Lew also advised people to keep a diary consisting purely of the happy events in their lives.

This may seem hard at first but it can bring about reflection and acknowledgement of the good things in one's life.

Another easy way to feel happy, he added, is to write a letter of appreciation to someone close to you, to thank them for who they are and what they have done for your life.

Keep things in perspective
The key to happiness, said psychiatrist Adrian Wang, is balancing your expectations with the reality of your situation and your own perception of things.

Keeping things in perspective, in this sense, is essential to maintaining high spirits.

For instance, losing your job does not mean that you are a total failure, as your career is only one part of your whole life, said Dr Wang.

- ST

"It boils down to thinking and coping strategies. Happy people are able to problem-solve instead of dwelling on the negatives." Dr Adrian Wang

Xuan Mai

2009-02-07T21:46:00.000-08:00

Authentically Vietnamese. Beauty queen turned spy and now chef.

LINING the walls of a Vietnamese restaurant in Bangkok are newspaper clippings trumpeting the owner's illustrious past as an FBI agent.

And yet some of 58-year-old Vietnamese-American Meyung Robson's customers still think the former spook is in deep cover.

"Many people suggest that I'm working undercover as a restaurant owner. But once I quit (the FBI), I quit," says the owner of Xuan Mai restaurant.

Pointing at the framed articles from American, French, Japanese and Thai newspapers and magazines, Robson continues: "If I'm undercover, I would not – you know – show off."

Asked why she displayed her clippings, she replies, "I'm proud of my past (as a FBI agent)." Her past reads like a best-seller memoirs.

Robson, the daughter of a three star general who was second-in command of the South Vietnamese army, was Miss Saigon in 1970.
On the afternoon of April 29, 1975, a day before the fall of Saigon to the North Vietnamese army, her family – carrying only US$60 – fled the city via a South Vietnam navy ship for the US.

"We went from the sky (a privileged existence in American-backed Saigon) to the bottom (refugees picking strawberries in New York)," she relates.

In 1984, she became the FBI's first Vietnamese-American special agent.

She went through a 16-week training programme, and to pass she had to score 85% in 10 exams (including firing 8,000 live rounds).

Although she is not generous with anecdotes of her undercover days, Robson did show me a photograph of her masquerading as a refugee. It was amazing to see the beauty queen transformed into a downtrodden immigrant.

In 1999, Robson was posted to Bangkok, working at the FBI legal attache office at the US Embassy.

Her two biggest achievements as an agent are assisting in the capture of two fugitives in the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list – a Vietnamese-American murderer who fled to Vietnam and an American paedophile who jumped bail when he was arrested in Bangkok.

On Christmas night in 2005, Robson – after retiring from the FBI – opened Xuan Mai (which is named after her daughter).

The plan was for her to be a silent investor while her Vietnamese friend, a professional chef, took charge of the kitchen.

"On opening night we had a huge fight (it had been simmering for three months because she disagreed with the chef's preference for MSG and artificial colouring) and I was left to cook the ten dishes on our original menu,"she says.

It turned out to be "a totally happy accident" of how she became a chef.

Robson taught herself Vietnamese cuisine. And she does not use a recipe book. "I have a gift of taste. I can even remember the taste of dishes that I ate when I was 10," she says.

Back in the 70s, her family who "entertained a lot" had two full-time chefs. "I grew up watching the chefs prepare the dishes and, somehow, I can cook the dishes from memory," she says.

Since her debut three years ago as a Vietnamese cook, numerous Thai publications have named her as one of Bangkok's top chefs. She credits her accolades to her philosophy of serving authentic Vietnamese dishes.

Is her restaurant popular because she is an ex-FBI agent or is it her cooking?

"At first customers come because of the write-ups. For some reason – I did not plan it – this formula of 'ex=beauty queen + ex-FBI agent + chef' works," she says.

"FBI is a catchword. But if you cook junk, trust me, they will not come back."

Asked if she had used her FBI skills in running her restaurant, Robson says: "Profiling? It is fun to watch people."

How? "It is a trick of the trade, so I can't tell you," she replies, giggling. Who do you profile – your staff or your customers?

"My customers," she says, quickly adding “sometimes so that I can serve them better”.

"What other FBI skills have you found useful as a restaurateur?" I query.

"No, I can't tell you," she says. Probably if she did, she would have to shoot me.

How to get there: Take the Skytrain (BTS) to Nana station. Walk up to Sukhumvit Soi 13. From there you can either walk to the restaurant (which is located close to the end of the soi) or take a motorbike taxi (10 - 15 baht).
Open: Tuesday-Thursday & Sunday 11:00 - 14:00, 17:00 - 22:00;
Friday & Saturday 11:00 - 10:30, 17:00 - 24:00
Skytrain: Nana
Contact: +66 (0)2 251 8389

Cash accepted only.

by Philip Golingai, The Star (adapted)

Trung Nguyen Coffee
02-34 to 35
Liang Court Shopping Centre Level 2
River Valley Road
Tel: 6837-2480
Open daily: 9am to 11pm

"Venture all; see what fate brings." Vietnamese Proverb

Mind Your Language

2009-02-04T04:22:00.000-08:00

"Ordinary Person; Extraordinary Passion"

Lunar Reunion

2009-01-25T00:41:00.001-08:00

"When eating a fruit, think of the person who planted the tree." Vietnamese Quote

陈潇的剩余人生店

2009-01-24T03:10:00.000-08:00

She sells her 'life' on the Net By LIEW HANQING
MEET the woman who's selling "the rest of her life"on the Internet. Miss Chen Xiao, a 25-year-old Beijing native, started her unusual online business last month on auction website Taobao.com.

Her online shop is aptly named "Chen Xiao's remaining life shop". (Chen Xiao của cửa hàng còn lại cuộc sống)

Miss Chen wrote in her online mission statement: "People can sell their personal time. Planning my time is your right. Completing your tasks is my mission."

On the site, she sells time slots - ranging from eight-minute to one-day slots - where she offers to perform any service, except "sex, porn, violence and anything illegal".

People who wish to book Miss Chen for an assignment need only to log on to her auction site, send her a description of the intended task and the estimated time the task will take, and,upon her approval, send her payment.

Business has been brisk - in just a month, she has sold more than 80 time slots, and made as much as 2,000 yuan ($436) in a single day. Her auctions have attracted more than 9,000 views each.

In a write-up on her site, Miss Chen explained her rationale for setting up her unusual business: "Life has no meaning... I want to change my lifestyle - so I'll let you plan the rest of my life."

To prove her sincerity, Miss Chen posted her personal information, including her online messenger ID, e-mail address and phone number on the website, along with a recently-taken passport photograph.

The response to her online auctions was almost immediate.

Her first assignment, which came just a few days after her online store was set up, was to "pose triumphantly" for a photograph and post it online.

Then came several other assignments: To photograph a flag-raising ceremony at Tiananmen Square, to get herself photographed at the entrances of Beijing University and Tsinghua University, and to have a bowl of noodles at a well-known food outlet.

It seems Miss Chen has taken all her assignments seriously, diligently completing each task as instructed.

This shows in the feedback her "clients" have left on her profile on the auction site.

One netizen, who booked Miss Chen for eight minutes, wrote: "An intelligent, beautiful woman, deserving of praise. I hope you find meaning and purpose in life."

Varied & Interesting
Another commented: "Thank you for finishing my assignment. Take care of your health, and I hope you will keep doing this for a long time."

Miss Chen's assignments have been interesting and varied.

She has been tasked with picking up people from various locations, delivering coffee, buying train tickets, delivering meals for beggars and sampling food on behalf of netizens.

Miss Chen told technology website tech163.com that even though she has received some harassing e-mails ever since she set up her website, most of the people who contact her are "friendly and sincere".

Her most lucrative assignment was a 2,000-yuan assignment, where she was asked to collect pictures of smiling people for a charity event.

Some maybe skeptical about the longevity of her business, but she has become a mini-celebrity in cyberspace in just over a month.

In a forum post on a popular Chinese website, one netizen wrote: "As long as it's nothing illegal, this is a really creative form of business.

"She'll get to experience different things, and every day is new and unexpected."

Added another netizen: "Even if this just a gimmick, it's a heartwarming, fun one. She's made cyberspace a little more personal and warm with her small business."

- TNP

"Your living is determined not so much by what life brings you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens." Lewis L. Dunnington

Japan learns English from Obama speech textbook

2009-01-20T15:57:00.000-08:00

TOKYO - President-elect Barack Obama's speeches are proving a best-seller in Japan - as an aid to learning English.

Obama's Speech: 'A More Perfect Union'

An English-language textbook, "The Speeches of Barack Obama" (website), has sold more than 400,000 copies in two months, a big hit in a country where few hit novels sell more than a million copies a year.

Japanese have a fervor for learning English and many bookstores have a corner dedicated to dozens of journals in the language, many of them now featuring the new U.S. leader's face.

"Speeches by presidents and presidential candidates are excellent as listening tools to learn English, because their contents are good and their words are easy to catch," said Yuzo Yamamoto of Asahi Press, which produced the best-selling text book.

"Obama's is especially so. His speeches are so moving, and he also uses words such as 'yes, we can,' 'change' and 'hope' that even Japanese people can memorize," he said.

Speeches by President George W. Bush and former nominee John Kerry's four years ago did not have the same appeal, however, and nor do those made by Japanese politicians, Yamamoto said.

"In Japan, we don't have politicians who have such a positive influence. That's why we have to turn to a foreign president for someone in whom to place our hopes."

The 95-page paperback features Obama's speeches in English from the 2004 Democratic National Convention and during the Democratic Party primaries, in which he defeated Hillary Clinton. They are accompanied by Japanese translations.

The 1,050 yen (S$17) book, which includes a CD of the speeches, tops the bestseller list on bookseller Amazon's Japanese Website.

"Readers have sent in postcards saying that when they heard the speeches, they were so moved and cried even though they don't understand English very well," Yamamoto said.

He said lawmakers from Japan's main opposition Democratic Party had bought the book to study Obama's speeches.

Following Obama's inauguration on Tuesday, Asahi Press plans to issue a sequel that includes his inaugural address, as well as President John F. Kennedy's 1961 inaugural speech. It will also feature a reading of President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg address of 1863.

By Yoko Kubota (Adapted)

"If you're walking down the right path and you're willing to keep walking, eventually you'll make progress." Barack Obama

"We need to internalize this idea of excellence. Not many folks spend a lot of time trying to be excellent." Barack Obama

"Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a certain poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. Because it's only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you realize your true potential." Barack Obama

Best ways to make extra money

2009-01-17T17:02:00.000-08:00

Question: I'm a college student, and I've been reading your articles online. I receive a weekly allowance from my parents, and with the tough times these days, sometimes it's not enough. And in a few weeks, tuition for the second semester will be due and I wish I could help with that. What can a student like me do? Jong C.

Answer: In the US, it's not unusual for children to earn some extra money. Some young children sell lemonade, while the older ones offer services like babysitting, dog walking, lawn mowing, and newspaper delivery.

Here in the Philippines, most students focus on their studies. However, opportunities also abound for the student to find some extra money, and some college students, have in fact taken advantage of them.

There are many ways you can do to make some extra money. The best thing to do is to start first by assessing your talents and gifts. What are you good at? Below are some ideas:

1. Emceeing: If you have the gift of gab, you may emcee at events (even wedding programs) for a fee.
2. Singing/Dancing: If you sing/dance well, you can gather a group of friends and sing/dance at parties, again for a fee.
3. Cooking: Are you good in cooking? Then whip up some food specialty, package it well, and sell it as a gift item...
4. Trading: Buy stuff you like from wholesale suppliers (examples: clothes, accessories, etc.) and sell these in bazaars or even through websites. Many enterprising students do business online through sites like Multiply, and they do well.
5. Coaching: If you excel in one sport, you might be interested in coaching sports teams for grade school kids. Sports programs that need coaches include soccer, basketball, and volleyball.
6. Writing: Think you have a knack for words? Consider contributing to the youth section of your favorite newspaper, where you will get paid for every article that gets published.
7. Scrapbooking: Some people want to have scrapbooks but do not have time to make them. Network with scrapbooking clubs as they offer this service to interested people.
8. Editing: Edit other students' papers for a fee, but don't make the mistake of doing the writing for them.
9. Dog breeding: If you like pets, consider breeding dogs with the help of your family.
10. Modeling. People with the look, flair and style can earn much by modeling for print and TV ads. Check out legitimate modeling agencies for more info.

These are just some of the things a college student may do. The possibilities are endless; just look at what you have. It's important to bank on your talents and gifts so working will not be a chore. It will instead be something you enjoy and look forward to doing outside class hours. But be sure your work will not affect your studies.

So you're earning; now what?
Let's say you have zeroed in on a way to earn more income. There are some things you should keep in mind if you want your earnings to be maximized.

1. Save. Because times are hard, and because you want to be financially secure someday, make it a habit to save at least 10 percent of your extra income. If you can commit to save more, so much the better. Deposit this in a savings account under your name, and don't touch it as much as possible.

2. Invest. Savings accounts give only a small amount of interest as compared to other forms of investment. When you have enough in your savings account to make the minimum investment required, move some of your money to a time deposit which will give you a higher rate of interest in return for you keeping your money in the bank for an agreed term (30 days, 90 days, 1 year, 5 years - it's up to you).

There's also another way to let this money earn more: by investing in pooled funds like a mutual fund or a unit investment trust fund. There's some risk involved as market values of investments go down, but with it comes the possibility of earning more. Study this option and talk to a bank officer, financial adviser, and your parents about it.

3. Limit your spending. It's nice to spend what one has earned, but if you spend for unnecessary stuff, you may end up with hardly nothing at all. Use your money wisely by prioritizing your needs. Steer clear of buying branded goods and expensive gadgets. If you can live with simpler stuff, do so. Your friends love you for who you are, not for what you own.

INQUIRER.net and Citibank invite readers to ask questions regarding financial matters. Send your questions to personal_finance@inquirer.net or comment through our personal finance blog called MoneySmarts: The Value of $8.00)

*Disclaimer: Readers are solely responsible for their own investment decisions and should thus conduct their own research and due diligence and obtain professional advice. INQUIRER.net will not be liable for any loss or damage caused by a reader's reliance on information obtained from our web site. INQUIRER.net receives no compensation of any kind from companies or industries or funds that are mentioned here.

(This is part of Take Charge of Your Money, a partnership between INQUIRER.net and Citibank to help readers handle their personal finances well.)

"Nothing endures but personal qualities." Walt Whitman

Climbing the world's biggest trees

2009-01-16T03:26:00.001-08:00

Science writer Richard Preston talks about some of the most enormous living beings on the planet, the giant trees of the US Pacific Northwest. Growing from a tiny seed, they support vast ecosystems -- and are still, largely, a mystery.

"One hesitates because he feels inferior, another is busy making mistakes and becoming superior."

"Listen or thy tongue will keep thee deaf." Native American

"What is wanted is not the will to believe, but the will to find out, which is the exact opposite." Bertrand Russell

"We make ourselves rich by making our wants few." Henry David Thoreau

Measures

2009-01-14T14:51:00.001-08:00

MEASURES keys to success in place-based learning by James Lewicki (Adapted)

Measurable lifelong-learning skills are embedded in an academic core. These include the skills to:

- follow an interest with a passion
- be able to precisely observe, record, and analyze data
- be a tenacious learner
- demonstrate effective collaborative skills
- recognize and utilize dynamic systems
- develop an intellectual balance of skepticism and openness
- use the power of intuition along with the discipline of deduction
- be able to cooperate through a shared dilemma
- draw conclusions independent of authority
- tolerate ambiguity
- select problem-solving strategies appropriate to a complex task

Effort is obvious and public.
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." Mark Twain

Aligned with clear academic standards.
Open inquiry is active learning, and clear academic standards can keep a student focused.

Student opportunity for initiative, simply put, is endless.
"Practice precedes the possibility of observation and formulation; the results of practice must accumulate before mind has anything to observe." John Dewey

Understood by parents and the community.
Constantly bridging the gaps between school, home, and community is an active ingredient of a worthy place-based project. Parents, besides wanting to know what is learned, will often contribute to the learning itself.

Reflection time for establishment of meaning is built-in; preparatory project understanding is critical. Hands-on learning is only as powerful as the meaningfulness derived from all that activity. To be able to step back and ask, "What worked?" and "What didn't work?" can make all the difference.

Evidence is clear, credible, and compelling, leading to future endeavors. How can you prove to me that you know something? Show me, demonstrate, explain so that I can learn, and -- above all -- convince me that what you accomplished with that place-based project moved you forward in your understanding of the world. Finally, a completed project, in the end, will bring up more questions than it answers.

Sustainable learning beyond the expectations of adults, for learning's sake itself.
Sandi's poem ->
Have You Ever . . . ?
Have you ever stopped to look
to see what you could see?
Have you ever really wondered,
what maybe could be?
Have you ever sneaked a glance,
at wild birds in the sky?
Have you ever seen a stand of oaks
and stopped to wonder why?
Have you ever seen a river,
a-winding off afar?
Have you ever walked upon a ridge,
and wondered where you are?
Have you ever counted colors,
as you strolled along the way?
Have you ever witnessed fall,
and its colorful array?
Have you ever stopped to look,
to see what you could see?
Have you ever really wondered,
how it changes you and me?

"Desire is creation, is the magical element in that process. If there were an instrument by which to measure desire, one could foretell achievement." Willa Cather

Naughtiness at school; failure in life

2009-01-11T14:17:00.000-08:00

They are likelier to end up with dud jobs and poor health. - AFP

PARIS - CHILDREN who badly misbehave in school are likelier to end up with a dud job, poor mental health, teen pregnancy or divorce, according to a British study published on Friday.

The paper, published online by the British Medical Journal (BMJ), provides statistical backing for teachers who sound warnings about anti-social behaviour, its authors say.

It draws on an exceptionally long-term investigation, launched among 3,652 Britons who were born in 1946. With their consent, these volunteers have been monitored at occasional intervals since their birth, filling in questionnaires about their health, family and professional life.

At the ages of 13 and 15, this group was assessed by their teachers, who were asked to grade their behaviour as having severe, mild or no conduct problems.

A total of 9.5 per cent of the teenagers were identified as having severe problems; 28.8 per cent had mild problems; and 61.7 per cent no problems.

Forty years later, the follow up inquiry found a clear link between misbehaviour at school and difficulties in adult life.

"Adolescent misconduct might adversely affect developing social behaviours and result in pervasive social and mental health difficulties throughout adult life." the paper suggests.

"青年期不端行将会有威力不利地影响在成人生活中弥漫的社会行为和精神健康困难结果。"

"Thanh niên vi sai trái có thể ảnh hưởng bất lợi đến phát triển xã hội và hành vi kết quả pervasive trong xã hội và sức khỏe tâm thần dành cho người lớn những khó khăn trong suốt cuộc đời."

Compared with those with no conduct problems at school, those who severely misbehaved were twice as likely to become a parent before the age of 20; likelier to get divorced or have relationship problems with spouses, children or friends; four times likelier to leave school with no qualifications, and twice as likely to be in a manual job or unemployed.

Problems in life also extended, but to a lesser degree, to those with milder forms of misbehaviour.

Males accounted for 62.6 per cent of those with severe behavioural problems at school and 54.8 per cent of those with mild problems. If the father had a manual job, this too was a major factor among teenagers in these categories.

The study is led by Ian Colman, an assistant professor of public health at the University of Alberta, Canada.

Prof Colman says the study provides a useful guide for focusing resources to help teenagers whose behaviour could prove costly both to themselves in adulthood, and to society.

He admits that the study has some limitations - there are no data to explain why children misbehaved, for instance.

On the other hand, the teachers' assessment was a good indicator of a child's risk of delinquency, and a better guide than the parents' own assessment, he argues.

FIVE STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES: Dolores Mirabella (Adapted)
1. Communication:
a) Read and listen actively to learn and communicate.
b) Speak and write effectively for personal, academic and workplace purposes.
2) Human Relations:
a) Use social interactive skills to work in groups effectively.
3) Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving:
a) Think critically in evaluating information, solving problems, and making decisions.
4) Technology:
a) Select the appropriate use of technological tools for personal, academic, and career tasks.
5) Personal Responsibility:
a) Be motivated and able to continue learning and adapt to change.
b) Value one's own skills, abilities, ideas, and art.
c) Take pride in one's work.
d) Manage personal health and safety.

"I tend to be attracted to characters who are up against a wall with very few alternatives. And the film then becomes an examination of how they cope with very few options. And that's, I guess, what interests me in terms of human behavior." William Friedkin

Young & Jobless

2009-01-09T18:21:00.000-08:00

College Relationship

"Every year, a diverse mix of students from all over the world make their way to Singapore. Singapore offers world-class education, which is industry-relevant and prepares students for an international career. With more than 7,000 multinational corporations (MNCs) alongside 100,000 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) having set up their base in Singapore, students can look forward to excellent professional networking as well as job opportunities in one of the best business environments in Asia. Today, there are over 86,000 international students from 120 nationalities studying in Singapore... " Ms. Rebecca Lim, Area Director, West India, Singapore Tourism Board.

"ATTiTUdE: BELiEVE it, you will sEE it."

"You don’t have to get it right, you just have to get it going."

10, 000 hours

2009-01-06T14:43:00.000-08:00

There are several myths about success:

1. Hard working entrepreneur pulls himself up by his bootstraps, works hard at an original idea for a few years, and becomes a hugely successful businessman. But there are many hard working entrepreneurs who never make it.

2. Born into the right family with the right connections and a fancy college education, an heir or heiress parlays their grandfather’s business into a huge multi-billion dollar company. But there are many people born into money that lose or squander it all.

3. Lucky all her life, she got all the right breaks, and always seemed to be in the right place at the right time. But not everyone is lucky 100 percent of the time.

"To truly master any skill, he suggests, leaning on various pieces of research, requires about 10,000 concentrated hours. If you can get those hours in early, and be in a position to exploit them, then you are an outlier." Malcolm Gladwell, best-selling author of The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference and Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, has a new book coming out called Outliers: The Story of Success.

"If A is success in life, then A equals x plus y plus z. Work is x; y is play; and z is keeping your mouth shut." Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)

"My mother drew a distinction between achievement and success. She said that 'achievement is the knowledge that you have studied and worked hard and done the best that is in you. Success is being praised by others, and that's nice, too, but not as important or satisfying. Always aim for achievement and forget about success.'" Helen Hayes (1900 - 1993)

"People can be divided into two classes: those who go ahead and do something, and those who sit still and inquire, 'Why wasn't it done the other way?'" Oliver Wendell Holmes

Why I dropped out of school

2009-01-05T05:13:00.000-08:00

KOTA KINABALU, MALAYSIA - Thirteen-year-old Michael Losion works as a greasing-boy for a contractor. The mild-mannered Kadazandusun packs a solid handshake and was proud of the job he got a month ago.

"I help to grease the 'Case' and 'Hitachi'. I hope to become a driver," said Michael, pointing to the bulldozer and excavator that he helps to service as an apprentice to his uncle, the mechanic.

He doesn't want to talk about school. After finishing Year Six at SK Rompon in Tambunan, Michael left school.

"I don't know," when pressed on why he quit, but he pledges to ensure his four younger siblings continue schooling.

Pinda Dula, the village chief of Saliku Sumatalun, a remote Murut village in Pensiangan that takes two days to reach by road, river and footpath from here, offers a reason why rural children in Sabah quit school.

"They tell me they cannot catch up with the other children and feel sidelined."

Majunjum Ambiloh of Lumpagas, also in Pensiangan, said most villages did not have schools.

"We have to leave our children in makeshift hostels looked after by teachers, friends or relatives. Some can go through it but others might not.

"I had to stay with my child for over a month when she started school.

"The school is four hours by boat from our home," he said.

Living in hostels far from home also makes these rural children easy prey for bullies.

Anthony Simon, 19, recalls being bullied when he was at the SM Datuk Peter Mojuntin hostel in Penampang. After Form One, he decided to quit.

"I was beaten up for no reason, mocked by others and did terribly in my studies. I did not have anyone to turn to," he said.

Social worker Henry Kassim, a Murut from Saliku Sumatalun, said he was fortunate to have been "rescued" by a teacher at SM Nabawan, Penampang.

"Bullies forced me to flee the school but a teacher caught me as I was escaping from the hostel and took me to his home.

"Things could have been different if the teacher did not take me in."

New Straits Times

"Respect yourself, respect your time, your resources, your knowledge and your company."

"Nine tenths of education is encouragement." Anatole France

"Parents can only give good advice or put them on the right paths, but the final forming of a person's character lies in their own hands." Anne Frank

"Your ability to learn faster than your competition is your only sustainable competitive advantage." "快速学习能力会是你竞争所能承受的优势。" "Khả năng của bạn để tìm hiểu nhanh hơn của bạn cạnh tranh của bạn là chỉ có lợi thế cạnh tranh bền vững." Arie de Gues

No Pain, No Gain

2009-01-02T20:51:00.000-08:00

Ever wonder why you aren't getting anywhere? Then, have your attitude redefined playfully... by JK.

1) Work Smart 爭氣 Làm việc khó khăn
Hard on the effort NOT on yourself

2) Just Do It 索性 chỉ Làm
Wanna do, Stoppa doubt

3) Go for the Kill 一乘势意 Về cho giết
Focus, focus, focus.

4) Up Your Stake 桩注 trên của bạn stake
Seize the moment; grab the break

5) Never Say Die 天無絕人之路 Không bao giờ nói chết
Your thoughts; your destiny

6) Go Deep 深入 Về sâu
A 100ft tree’s not shy.

7) Fear and Pride 恐惧与傲慢 Sợ hãi và Pride
Lose them.

8) Avoid Mental Games 避玩手腕 Tránh tâm thần trò chơi
You won’t have time, anyway.

"You can't 'try' to do things. You simply 'must' do things."

The Practice of Leadership 成功人士的秘密 US $ 1 triệu jackpot

"You cannot escape the results of your thoughts. Whatever your present environment may be, you will fall, remain or rise with your thoughts, your vision, your ideal. You will become as small as your controlling desire; as great as your dominant aspiration." James Allen

"If I supply you with a thought, you may remember it and you may not. But if I can make you think a thought for yourself, I have indeed added to your stature." Elbert Hubbard

"Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man." Benjamin Franklin

Your Worth in $

We've only just begun

2008-12-29T08:05:00.001-08:00

"It takes a minute to have a crush on someone, an hour to like someone, and a day to fall in love with someone, but it takes a lifetime to forget someone." Author Unknown

Read, Learn, and Think Your Way to Success

2008-12-27T18:51:00.000-08:00

Ten Thinking and Dreaming Exercises for Creativity and Innovation

1) Read with pen and notebook in hand; jot down any idea that comes into your consciousness.

2) Keep a notebook in which you can keep track of ideas, by your bed and in your car.

3) Write one idea down on a piece of paper and brainstorm any thought that comes from it: how to accomplish the idea, what to do about the idea, where to use the idea, who can help you implement the idea, and any other thought that enters your mind.

4) Read a non-fiction book every week. Read magazines, journals, online articles... all the time.

5) Clip articles and place them in a folder of related articles or ideas. Periodically, glance through the folder.

6) Create “idea files” in most folders in your computer. Create an idea or to-do file in your email program. Add ideas as they come to you.

7) Take time to stare out your window (if your setting deserves attention), play with a desk toy, take a quiet walk. Do any rote activity that allows thoughts to swirl through your mind.

8) Encourage your staff and coworkers to do all of the above and share ideas with each other at “think” or brainstorm sessions. Schedule annual retreats or off-site meetings to plan and generate ideas.

9) Develop an employee suggestion process.

10) Schedule think weeks, think days, or think hours for yourself or your work group.

Thinking time and learning time are both critical to creativity and innovation. The old adage: “stop to smell the roses” is true for both your current work and your career. Take time to plant and harvest the ideas that fuel your progress and success.
By Susan M. Heathfield (Adapted)

"An entrepreneur assumes the risk and is dedicated and committed to the success of whatever he or she undertakes." Victor Kiam

Web boom in English-obsessed Korea

2008-12-26T17:23:00.001-08:00

SEOUL - Armed with the world's fastest Internet and an even stronger desire to learn English, South Koreans are using the latest Web resources to master a language that is the economic and emotional focus of their education.

On any given day, students ranging from kids learning their alphabet to adults preparing for job interviews sign in on their Internet messengers, fire up their webcams and wait for English teachers to appear -- from faraway continents.

They hope one-on-one chats with foreigners will help them fix pronunciation, get rid of native accents and feel more comfortable with a foreign language. The country's official teaching methods, based on grammar exercises and vocabulary lists, have consistently failed to deliver such benefits.

South Korea's average score in the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is below the world average despite having the largest number of students taking the test.

"It is really nice to look at my English teacher through the computer screen and feel like having a chat with a new friend outside the country," said Oh Sun-young, who takes a Web-camera English course on Skype with her Philippine instructor.

Web English is the latest hit in South Korea's booming English education market, enabled by handy gadgets and widespread fiber-optics networks.

The new service, along with more traditional conversation courses offered by phone, is one of the fastest growing segments in South Korea's private English education industry, which is estimated at 15 trillion won ($13 billion) a year -- almost half of the country's annual education budget.

About 150 to 200 companies are in the market offering phone and Web English tutoring.

"Students who are very inexperienced with English may initially find the classes challenging, but within three months, there is a tremendous improvement in most of the students' speaking ability," said Tara McKibben, a phone English tutor who has been teaching over seven years from the United States.

KT Corp, South Korea's dominant fixed-line and broadband operator, provides a service called "Hello ET" cooperating with a South Korean English education company.

"We provide Web-cameras to our videophone English customers so that they can log on the website and have live chat with instructors," said Kang Joo-hyun, a "Hello ET" spokeswoman.

One-on-one conversation in English is technically close to real-live talk, held in Web phone service such as Skype. A message board opens adjacent to the conversation browser, so that participants can check the spelling of a word or start writing if they struggle to understand each other.

Internet portal SK Communications runs "Spicus" which includes a job interview drill on a video-chat platform. Applicants hand out their completed English resume before the drill. An interviewer stages a simulation interview through webcam, looking through resumes, and later provides feedback on logical speaking and communication skills.

"Interviewers are former officials in human resources department of big U.S. (companies) such as IBM," Ryu Hee-jo, a spokeswoman for SK Communications, said.

Cheap and credible

Good English test scores and speaking skills are considered an indispensable key for success in South Korea. In their quest for fluent English, a great deal of wealthy South Koreans simply flee their country's school system and its rigid teaching methods.

South Korea ranks No. 1 in the number of international students in the United States, ahead of more populous India and China, according to U.S. Student and Exchange Visitor Information System.

However, for those who cannot afford thousands of dollars a month in learning English abroad or spare time for look for meeting arrangements, video chat at home fulfills their aspiration at much cheaper prices. A three-times-a-week Web English course can be covered for about 100,000 won a month.
(Reuters - By Park Ju-min, Editing by Rhee So-eui and Derek Caney)

"Even a fish wouldn't get into trouble if it had kept its mouth shut."
"Put off for one day and ten days will pass."
"If you starve for three days, there is no thought that does not invade your imagination."
"Words have no wings but they can fly a thousand miles."
"If there is a rich man in the area three villages are ruined."
Source: Korean Wisdom

Spontaneous Order

2008-12-24T19:07:00.000-08:00

Mathematician Steven Strogatz shows how flocks of creatures (like birds, fireflies and fish) manage to synchronize and act as a unit -- when no one's giving orders. The powerful tendency extends into the realm of objects, too.

Strogatz is convinced that his research will help solve many problems in science that are related to complex, self-organizing systems in which vast numbers of components influence each other and interact simultaneously.

Self Organisation & Balance of exploitation and exploration

"People are definitely a company's greatest asset. It doesn't make any difference whether the product is cars or cosmetics. A company is only as good as the people it keeps." Mary Kay Ash

2008-12-23T14:22:00.000-08:00

"Fish, to taste right, must swim three times - in water, in butter, and in wine." Polish Proverb

"Worthless people live only to eat and drink; people of worth eat and drink only to live." Socrates

"We plan, we toil, we suffer - in the hope of what? A camel-load of idol's eyes? The title deeds of Radio City? The empire of Asia? A trip to the moon? No, no, no, no. Simply to wake just in time to smell coffee and bacon and eggs." J.B. Priestly

Student by day, 'kopitiam' boss by night

2008-12-22T14:13:00.000-08:00

Meet Lee Cheng Wee - undergraduate by day and Geylang coffeeshop owner by night.

The enterprising 24-year-old, currently a student at the Singapore Institute of Management, came to be his own boss eight months ago when he and two partners pooled together about $10,000 to rent and renovate a coffeeshop.

The store, D E Eating House, is located in Geylang Lorong 17 and houses a total of seven stalls.

However, working and studying at the same time does not come easy for the banking and finance undergraduate.

Mr Lee, who will graduate in June next year, told Lianhe Wanbao that he works seven days a week, rain or shine. Together with his employees, he does all tasks at the coffee shop, including brewing coffee.

As his two partners have their own businesses to take care of, the third-year student has to supervise the daily operations of the coffeeshop.

Whenever he runs into problems at the shop, he will consult his more experienced partners for advice and learn from putting their words into practice.

First coffeeshop in Geylang to have free wifi

Having a young boss can sometimes bring about new ideas for the industry. For instance, Mr Lee has introduced a free wireless Internet service at his coffee shop.

His eatery is believed to be the first in Geylang to do so.

Customers can surf the Internet at the coffee shop upon obtaining a log-in password from the staff.

Cheng Wee pointed out to Lianhe Wanbao that the main motive of this 'free Internet' move is to attract more tourists and white-collared workers.

However, he emphasised that the coffee shop would not neglect other customers or place a premium on food or drinks to cover the cost of providing Internet access.

A father's encouragement

Mr Lee also shared with the Chinese daily that he decided to take this business plunge because of his father's encouragement.

"My father has always cultivated an entrepreneurial spirit within me since young. He was very supportive of my decision to start a business," he explained.

He also revealed that, apart from food and transport fees, every single cent he earned had been re-invested into the coffee shop.

"We should take advantage of our youth to try new things and pick up experience.

"I hope I can break new ground in the food and beverage industry," adding that he hopes to run a chain of youth-oriented coffee shops in the future.
Source: AsiaOne

"Life is not fair; get used to it. As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others. Your time is a valuable resource." Bill Gates

"As long as you're going to be thinking anyway, think big." Donald Trump

"Early to bed, early to rise, work like hell and advertise." Ted Turner

Learn, Unlearn, Relearn.

2008-12-19T04:57:00.000-08:00

"Learning becomes hard because experience with our first language 'warps' perception. We see things through the lens of our native language and that 'warps' the way we see foreign languages." Dr Paul Iverson

ZoukOut

2008-12-17T04:24:00.001-08:00

Over 26,000 people partied all night at the ZoukOut 2008 beach party at Sentosa's Siloso beach. Known as one of the region's biggest dance parties, it also attracts tourists from as far as Australia and India.

"Strange that these party animals should invest a good amount of time to look attractive only to end up having to vomit and what nots on themselves, disheveled and disorientated. Is that the new expression of party fun? The young Brits in the UK have started this alcohol binging trend decades ago, do Singaporeans really need to be copy cats of such ugly display of drinking habits?" Niederanven

"The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it." Michelangelo Buonarroti 1474-1564, Italian Renaissance Painter and Sculptor

Don't party till you drop
"We lie the loudest when we lie to ourselves." Eric Hoffer

Money for Nothing

2008-12-16T06:34:00.000-08:00

One day an employee sends a letter to his boss asking for an increase in his salary.

Dear Bo$$

In thi$ life, we all need $ome thing mo$t de$perately. I think you $hould be under$tanding of the need$ of u$ worker$ who have given $o much $upport including $weat and $ervice to your company.

I am $ure you will be able to gue$$ what I mean and re$pond $oon.

Your$ $incerely,
Norman

The next day, the employee received this letter of reply:

Dear NOrman,

I kNOw you have been working NOt very hard. NOwadays, NOthing much has changed. You must have NOticed that our company is NOt doing NOticeably well as yet.

NOw the newspapers are saying the world`s leading ecoNOmists are sure that the world is getting into aNOther recession. Even after the NOvember presidential elections things do NOt look good.

I have NOthing more to add NOw. You kNOw what I mean.

Yours truly,
Manager

Source: Internet
The Art of Saying “No”

"No one means all he says, and yet very few say all they mean, for words are slippery and thought is viscous." Henry Brooks Adams

Life Long Learning

2008-12-12T17:07:00.000-08:00

"Take anything and everything seriously except yourselves." Rudyard Kipling

Lo Hwei Yen

2008-12-04T06:13:00.000-08:00

In Memoria

"People are like stained glass windows: they sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light within." Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

"Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything that is beautiful. Welcome it in every face, in every sky, in every flower." Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Whenever God wants to give us a gift, he wraps it up in a problem." Norman Vincent Peale

Mind Talks

2008-12-03T04:08:00.000-08:00

Mapping Brain Growth

Theory of How Brain Builds Images Earns Grawemeyer Prize

Can what we eat and drink really increase our focus and concentration?

1. Caffeine Can Make You More Alert - the effects are short term. And more is often less: Overdo it on caffeine and it can make you jittery and uncomfortable.

2. Sugar is your brain's preferred fuel source - That’s why a glass of something sweet to drink can offer a short-term boost to memory, thinking processes, and mental ability. Consume too much, however, and memory can be impaired, along with the rest of you.

3. Protein - Eating a diet rich in lean and low-fat protein is good for weight loss and overall health though it's hard to draw a connection with brain function.

4. Fish Really is Brain Food - Fish is rich in omega 3 fatty acids, essential for brain function and development. For brain and heart health, eat two servings of fish weekly.

5. Add a Daily Dose of Nuts, Dark Chocolate - Nuts and seeds are good sources of the antioxidant vitamin E, which is associated with less cognitive decline as you age.

6. Avocados and Whole Grains - Eating whole grains and fruits like avocados can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and enhance blood flow, offering a simple, tasty way to fire up brain cells.

7. Blueberries Are Super Nutritious - Help protect the brain from oxidative stress and may reduce the effects of age-related conditions such as Alzheimer's disease or dementia.

8. Less is more - Strive for a well-balanced diet chock full of a wide variety of healthy, wholesome foods.

9. Exercise - help sharpen thinking. Get a good night's sleep. Meditate to clear thinking and relax.

WebMD (Adapted)

Brain Atlas

The Secret Life of the Brain

Artificial Intelligence

"It is not the brains that matter most, but that which guides them—the character, the heart, generous qualities, progressive ideas." Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1821 - 1881) Russian novelist

"The essence of knowledge is, having it, to apply it; not having it, to confess your ignorance." Confucius

您外面情况是您内在想法的反射

Hoàn cảnh bên ngoài của bạn được phản ánh, nhưng bên trong suy nghĩ của bạn

Carpe Diem - 'Seize the Day'

2008-11-29T20:21:00.000-08:00

"I have always striven to do things that my able-bodies friends can do, though not without moments of frustration. So, it was practice, practice, practice - and laughter. People around me showed patience and encouragement. I have a perfectionist trait and can be quite determined in achieving my goals... I can't remember where I read this quotation but it is one of my favourite: Aim for the moon and even if you miss, you will land among the stars." Laurentia Tan, Paralympic Games Medalist.

The Big Boss: 李小龍

2008-11-25T06:13:00.000-08:00

"The cup is useful because it is empty." Bruce Lee

Good Boss; Bad Boss

2008-11-25T04:25:00.000-08:00

"Every good chief executive officer is able to do what is legal and what is good for business but the bigger challenge is to do things that are ethical and that are socially responsible." A Professor, Business Ethics.

Source: Today

"Argue for your limitations and they are yours. Argue for your possibilities and they are yours as well." Various authors

"Humanity had to abandon its warlike ways or technology would decimate it." H.G. Wells

"The aim of science is not to open the door to infinite wisdom, but to set a limit to infinite error." Bertolt Brecht

"Let some of the troops dismount. The officers must give up their horses. Not a man must be left behind." Andrew Jackson

How to convince your boss to keep you... quit crying about merit and fairness and start improving your chemistry with your boss . . . and walk away from Friends to Networking.

Note: Bad bosses are energy vampires
Bad bosses may damage your heart

Young Dragons

2008-11-21T20:02:00.000-08:00

5 Waves of Chinese Immigrants in Singapore (Adapted)

"While the initial waves of Chinese immigrants came here to make a living and for a better lifestyle, the current wave has come here to explore, to see the whole and to broaden their horizons." Straits Times.

"Because English is my second language, I had to put in thrice the effort. It's been all hard work, no short cuts." Lin Song, Lawyer, from loan officer to firm partner in 8 years, Khatter Wong, local Law Firm.

"I have matured a lot over the past 10 months in the army and learnt more about Singapore than in my 6 years as a student." Luo Sheng, NS Man.

Communicating Persuasively

2008-11-19T06:53:00.000-08:00

According to a 2002 study, researchers found that men are often more responsive to email because it downplays their competitive tendencies. On the other hand, women react better to in-person encounters because they are more relationship-oriented.

Women may be fed up with being stereotyped as the chattier sex, but the cliché turns out to be true – in macaque monkeys, at least. Researchers have found that female macaques make 13 times as many friendly noises as males during chit-chat between individuals. The finding adds weight to the theory that human language evolved to forge social bonds.

"In the Social Media world, the most powerful person is the one who shares the most.
Control in Social Media is like grabbing water: the stronger you grab, the less you hold. There’s a right way to retain water, but not by being forceful." Pauline Ores

"There is an interesting phenomenon* at work in human relations. When one person yells at another, the other has an impulse to yell back. One ... actually sets an example of how he should be treated. A is mean to B so B is mean to A. A is friendly to B so B is friendly to A." L. Ron Hubbard (* phenomenon = an observable fact.)

"良好而健全的人格还包括，一个人应当具有陈寅恪先生所说的“独立之精神，自由之思想”。独立之精神，意味着一个人在人格上不依附于他者，意味着一个人不随波逐流；自由之思想，意味着一个人的思想没有任何形式的桎梏和羁绊，不受任何外在的限制。这是一种高洁脱俗的境界，是一个大写的人应当具备的品质。尽管达到这种境界并非易事，但教育者应当以此型塑自己的学生。学校里不应当灌输唯唯诺诺、言听计从的奴才品格，而应当培养超然不群、自由独立的公民精神。" 知道分子之王建勋专栏

"Assumptions are the termites of relationships." Henry Winkler

Spirit of Si Chuan

2008-11-17T13:49:00.000-08:00

"Through our great good fortune, in our youth our hearts were touched with fire. It was given to us to learn at the outset that life is a profound and passionate thing." Oliver Wendell Holmes

Speak, Learn, Listen, Do.

2008-11-15T20:47:00.001-08:00

All four of these skills are true. What we need to realize as humans today, is that everyone is different. We all exist in some state of chaos together, and the order in which we deal with this chaos is going to define who we will eventually become.

Speak: "Let others know exactly what you think, whether it is wrong, right or just, let them know. Suppressing a point simply because it is of a minority view is not the way to go. Accepting a minority viewpoint is also not the way to go unless the view point has merit. Speak, therefore, let others hear you as much as you possibly can."

Learn: "Understand what is spoken, let others understand where you are coming from when you voice what you assumed is correct. Understand also, that, many people do not make decision based on reason, instead that of faith or social dogma existence, let these people understand that what is best for one is not necessarily better for the others. Learn what is indeed proper and just for all, based on some form of chaotic order."

Listen: "One can not learn or speak without first listening. For the issue always comes before the spoken thought. If we simply wish to speak and learn, then we need to work through understanding by listening to all points of the issue, and finally tabulating within our own reason what is the correct answer. It is hard to listen, as many don't wish to use reason for this, but we must strive to make people listen, and listen for the merit of the issue, not just the dogma of it."

Do: "The final and most complete step. We have Spoken, Learned, Listened and finally we have made up our minds. We understand that an issue can be hard to accept, it can be hard to implement, and it can be hard to adjust to. But, we know that these issues must exist if we are to work past the differences amongst the humans of this world. Action, the process of doing, is what is needed as the final step."

Even then, the process itself is not complete, as the cycle never ends. Once an action is taken, the words must be spoken again, to ensure that the action is indeed warranted and just.

Humanity is the pure essence of who we are, of what we wish to project, and of what we wish to be. If we can not Speak, Learn, Listen and Do within these confines, then we have failed as a thinking race.

Phillip (Adapted)

"We're all of us guinea pigs in the laboratory of God. Humanity is just a work in progress." Tennessee Williams

"Life was a lot simpler when what we honored was father and mother rather than all major credit cards."

Managing The Generations

2008-11-12T12:33:00.000-08:00

Some say they're entitled. Others say spoiled.

Not so fast, says workplace expert Tamara Erickson. Generation Y--those born between 1980 and 2000--have had a lot to contend with in their young lives. For those now in the workplace, their ideas of the world were shaped during the Columbine school shootings in 1999 and Sept. 11. If they've learned anything from those events, it's that life is fleeting. Live for the moment.

That can be frustrating for their managers. Members of Gen Y prioritize life-work balance; they don't stay in jobs for long, and many of them bring their parents in whenever there's a problem.

But as Erickson shows in her book, Plugged In: The Generation Y Guide to Thriving at Work, this is a generation that loves to learn--and they're good at educating themselves. Managers who are willing spend some time guiding them may find them to be an incredibly effective group of employees.

Erickson talked to Forbes.com about how they became this way, how to motivate them at work and why Gen Xers shouldn't be so hard on them.

What is an adjective you'd use to describe Gen Y?
Immediate. They're a generation that wants to make sure what they're doing today is meaningful and worthwhile and fully engaging.

Is that because they've grown up with technology that helps everything get accomplished quicker?
No, that's an amplifying effect. The most important drivers were the events they witnessed as early teens--between ages 11 and 13. For them, it was terrorism and school violence. They were unexpected, and it created a sense in these kids that they need to live life to its fullest. I think that's a logical conclusion. Anything can happen at any point in time.

How are they different from Gen X?
One adjective I'd use for Gen Xers is self-reliant. They often ask themselves, "How do I reduce risk? How do I develop backup plans? What are my options?"

The differences have to do with events that occurred when they were kids. For Gen Xers it was being latchkey kids. They lived through the first wave of women being working mothers. It was dramatic and impactful. For Ys, their moms have always been at work. The point is, we tend to be heavily influenced by things happening for the first time, particularly when we're in our early teens. Although all of us lived through terrorism, it happened during Gen Y's formative years.

How does this impact how they work?
There is a difference between Gen X and Y in terms of collaboration and independence.

When I asked Gen Xers how often they wanted to interact with their boss, many said twice a week. I'm a boomer, I would've said twice a year! Ys would say twice an hour.

Why do they want so much interaction--what are people doing during these meetings?
Ys are learning. They want the boss to coach, to guide. Boomers look as it as judging. When I interact with my boss, it's because he or she is handing down a judgment. Who wants that? Xers are different still. They see these interactions with the boss as getting validation.

Is the need for so much time from the boss a bad thing?
No. They learn in a different way. I tell companies don't over-train them. They don't want to go to three weeks of class and get a 52-point checklist and follow a policy manual. Give them a task and the names of people who they can call if they need help. They'll call when they have a question. It may be often at first, but they like learning that way. I don't think it's a character flaw; it's a learning style.

Some employers use the word "entitled" when describing them. Where does that come from, and what does it say about how they're perceived as employees?
One of the most common complaints I get from Gen Xers who manage Ys is that they're entitled. If we broaden the lens, we see two factors at work. One thing we confuse is the action of the Ys and the motivation of their parents. A lot of the trophy phenomenon--every kid got a trophy for playing soccer--is driven by the fact that boomers are insanely competitive. No boomer wants to stand there for three hours in the rain watching their kid play soccer and not get a plastic trophy.

As for Xers, they entered work at time when the economy was poor, and they were forced to take jobs that were not as challenging as they wanted. They've had to work their way up and follow the rules. Then, you get these Ys who are very confident--high self-esteem characters rolling in full of ideas. The Ys are a little on the brash side and the Xers have not had the [same] kind of opportunities as them.

What should managers know when it comes to motivating them at work?
Learning. The most important thing to do with Ys is give them tasks that are truly challenging. Give them enough rope to figure it out as they go.

How will this economic downturn affect their job prospects?
Certainly there's going to be a dampening affect. I do think that of all the generations, the Ys will come out on top. They probably have more financial flexibility because of parental help, they don’t own homes and they don't have kids. They have more flexibility to take a job that's interesting but doesn't pay as much. They also didn't lose money over the past few months.

If they invest in a 401(k) now, they buy at the bottom and ride up. Xers are the worst off. They bought houses at the peak and have all the financial responsibilities that come with that.

What's the generation after Y?
That generation is being formed this year. They're 11 to 13 now and born around 1995. I think this year is materially different from the last 15 years. Issues that are impacting them are resource constraints, such as water shortages and endangered species.

They're hearing about penguins on melting ice caps. Polar bears dying. They may have taken their vacation in a tent in the backyard this summer. They'll be under no illusions. They'll have to confront tough problems. I'm calling them the Re-generation." The "R" is for reality, recession and resources.

Tara Weiss, Forbes.

"The character education component will be the driver to the students' success. It doesn't matter how much we invest in facilities. If the students are not equipped with character, they are less likely to succeed in life." Mr Wee Tat Chuen

Why You Have to Listen First and Speak Later

2008-11-11T05:01:00.001-08:00

Does anyone pop out of their mother's womb speaking a language and comprehending nothing? Which comes first: Comprehension or Speaking?
View more »

The less you say, the more you learn.

"One hears only those questions for which one is able to find answers." Friedrich Nietzsche

"If you don’t understand a problem, then explain it to an audience and listen to yourself." Tom Hirshfield

"Always listen to the experts. They’ll tell you what can’t be done and why. Then do it." Robert Heinlein

"I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen." Ernest Hemingway

"It is the province of knowledge to speak and it is the privilege of wisdom to listen." Oliver Wendell Holmes

"Everybody wants to be somebody, but nobody wants to grow." Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

To be a Big Fish

2008-11-08T19:34:00.000-08:00

Source: Sunday Times

"Be the change you wish to see in the world" Mahatma Gandhi

Thoughts heal you, kill you

2008-11-06T04:44:00.000-08:00

Good thoughts, bad thoughts

"A person goes through about 66,000 thoughts a day, both negative and positive." says mind science consultant Professor Dr R.Kadeer Ibraheem.

"We go through many thoughts in a day, but whether they have a positive or negative impact is up to us." Negative thoughts of anger and hatred are so powerful that they can destroy our health, mood and happiness.

"Hatred, anger, grudges and judgment destroy friendships, business dealings, opportunities and several other aspects of our lives. Thought can also be used for good and we can do almost anything, but only if we first believe in ourselves." says Kadeer.

We must eliminate our fears, step by step. We must do everything in stages and not rush it. After we develop this ability to believe in ourselves, we will enjoy the results.

The power of the mind should never be underestimated, because it's the one facet of a human being which can tease, trick, convince and destroy. Its powers have long been used to create wealth, kick habits and lose weight .

Over the past few years, the mind has taken on a new role: It's been a key player in the body's healing process.

Silva Method Malaysia managing director Steven Soh Teck Toh is convinced that whatever goes into your mind will come to pass. Whatever you put into your mind and believe is going to happen will happen.

This works for good and bad thoughts. So be careful with what you feed your brain. That's why it's so important to only have positive thoughts, especially when fighting a disease. Every time a negative thought gets into your mind, you should consciously tell yourself, 'can - cel, cancel'. Soh has seen the power of believing work in people who have had various medical issues, from warts to a low sperm count.

"An accountant and his wife were desperately trying to have a baby, but the doctor told the husband that his sperm count was low, and that it was almost impossible. He asked the doctor for a sperm map and looked at it every night, picturing and believing that his sperm count would increase. His sperm count did go up and, a year later, he was the proud father of a baby boy." Soh says it's also important to clean your "mind archives" every day to make room for positive thoughts.

Any concerns or worries you have should be addressed daily. Don't keep them in. Recognise them, deal with them and get rid of them.

Keeping them all in will clog your 'mind pipe' and prevent you from feeding yourself positive thoughts." According to Soh, the onset of cancer is usually after a traumatic encounter.

Most cancer patients would have had traumatic experiences, six to 18 months before the onset. The first thing cancer patients should do is trace the experiences they've had in the past two years.

When they have identified the cause, they should accept the situation.

"It could be a financial problem, or a death in the family." Unfortunately, many terminally ill patients don't want to be cured." Soh says. "They say they do, but deep in their hearts they don't mean it. Many don't have the will to live, and that attitude is enough to kill them."

"If you're dying and want to be cured, you'll break all other appointments and do what it takes to be healed. When your mind doesn't want to get better, your body releases enzymes that make that thought a reality." Soh says that the more you reject the reality of things, the more you attract it. "Cancer is not deadly if you take precautions in the beginning."

"People should understand that the mind is the first tool they should use to overcome cancer." Clinical psychologist Leong Huey Mei says: "When you adopt a positive attitude you find that everything is possible. Having positive thoughts mean giving yourself a choice."

Too often, we hear those sick or in trouble say they have no choice.

When they say that, it becomes something that cannot be resolved.

A positive attitude gives you energy to move on. Those who waste their energy on negative thoughts are killing that energy.

"But, if they think positive, although the situation seems impossible, they'll find a solution. It's all mind over matter." Leong says illnesses and bad situations befall anyone. "Things don't always go the way we want. But if we keep complaining and living in the 'whys', we are digging a deeper grave."

We have to learn to adapt to the new situation and find ways to remedy the problem or we won't be healthy. Adjust to the environment.

Deal with the issue instead of exploding.

Don't let it accumulate.

Don't dwell. Let other people help if you can't deal with it. Talk to positive people and surround yourself with positive thoughts. Being aware of your negative thoughts is a very important part of recovery.

Each time a negative thought crosses your mind, you must challenge it. If you keep telling yourself it's useless and you can't do it, then that is what will materialise.

Even if you think there's only a 20 per cent chance of getting through this tough time, work on it. Stop focusing on the other 80 per cent.

"That's wasted energy." First, she says, one must be able to identify the negative thoughts in order to change them.

"Recognise those thoughts and then push them out of your mind, each and every time. Replacing negative thoughts with positive ones is another way of doing it." She says some people claim that positive thinking is just a way of cheating yourself. "Maybe it is. But, if it's helping the situation and making you feel better, why not?" As the words of the poet John Milton go, "The mind is its own place, and in itself, can make heaven of hell, and a hell of heaven".

New Straits Times/Asia News Network

SELF TALK & Forms of Self Talk
'If you hear a voice within you say "you cannot paint," then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.' Vincent Van Gog

Parts of Speech

2008-11-04T00:38:00.000-08:00

The words that we use to construct a sentence can be divided into these classes:

1) Noun 名词 danh từ - A noun is a type of word that represents a person, thing, or place, like mother, apple, or valley. Chart

2) Verb 动词 động từ - A verb is a type of word that describes an action or a state of being, like wiggle, walk, run, jump, be, do, have, or think. Chart

3) Pronoun 代名词 đại từ - A pronoun is a substitute for a noun. Some pronouns are: I, me, she, hers, he, him, it, you, they, them, etc. Chart

4) Adjective 形容词 Tính từ - An adjective is a word that describes something (a noun). Some adjectives are: big, cold, blue, and silly. One special type of adjective is an article, a word that introduces a noun and also limits or clarifies it; in English, the indefinite articles are a and an, the definite article is the. Chart

5) Adverb 副词 Phó từ - An adverb is a word that tells "how," "when," "where," or "how much". Some adverbs are: easily, warmly, quickly, mainly, freely, often, and unfortunately. Chart

6) Preposition 前置词 Giới từ - A preposition is a word that shows the spatial (space), temporal (time), or logical relationship of its object to the rest of the sentence. The words above, near, at, by, after, with and from are prepositions. Chart

7) Conjunction 连接词 Sự Kết nối - A conjunction is a word that joins other words, phrases, clauses or sentences. Some conjunctions are: and, as, because, but, or, since, so, until, and while. Chart

8) Interjection 感叹词 Lời nói xen vào - An interjection is a word that expresses emotion. An interjection often starts a sentence but it can be contained within a sentence or can stand alone. Some interjections are oh!, wow!, ugh!, hurray!, eh?!, and ah!. Chart

9) Punctuation

English Grammar

"It's the little things you do that can make a big difference. What are you attempting to accomplish? What little thing can you do today that will make you more effective? You are probably only one step away from greatness." Bob Proctor

Secrets of Success

2008-11-02T02:32:00.001-08:00

"Leadership is practiced not so much in words as in attitude and in actions." Harold S. Geneen

Transform your Character; Transform your Personality

2008-11-01T00:28:00.001-07:00

REMAKE YOUR CHARACTER

Throw greed, selfishness, jealousy, and envy to the wind by...

Becoming more likeable.

Becoming more agreeable.

Becoming more respectful of yourself.

Becoming more respectful of the gift called work.

by Mike Litman

"Blessed is the man who, having nothing to say, abstains from giving us wordy evidence of the fact." George Eliot

真正爱你的男人

2008-10-29T15:13:00.000-07:00

1. 真正爱你的男人，一下子说不出真正爱你的理由，只知道自己顾不上注意别人。　
　　
2. 真正爱你的男人，其实总惹你生气，你却发觉不了他到底做错了什么。
　　
3. 真正爱你的男人，很少当面赞美你，可是心里肯定你是他最棒的。
　　
4. 真正爱你的男人，会在你忘记回复他短信时狠狠地说你一顿。
　　
5. 真正爱你的男人，只可能在你一个人的面前流眼泪，当你触摸到他时，也触摸到了那颗只为你跳动的心。
　　
6. 真正爱你的男人，会默默地记住你不经意说过的话，在某时某刻重复它们。
　　
7. 真正爱你的男人，不会轻易做出承诺，因为他想让自己成为你心中说话最算话的男子汉，只想给你最可靠最安全的幸福。
　　
8. 真正爱你的男人，总告诉你不要胡思乱想，因为其实他在为你们谋划着最美丽真实的未来。同时让你无忧无虑地等待他要给你的惊喜。
　　
9. 真正爱你的男人，可能不像你一样清楚地记得某些纪念日，他觉得爱你是每时每刻的，并不是靠这几天简单的日子。
　　
10.真正爱你的男人，不会轻易对你当面说“我爱你”，因为他为你做过的每件事都已经这么说了。除非在非常时刻，为了不让你无端地误解他。
　　
11.真正爱你的男人，总觉得有些话只说一遍就够了，因为你已经了解他的心。说得多了，他会觉得不珍贵。
　　
12.真正爱你的男人，如果他去机场接你，不会像你期望的那样捧着玫瑰大声叫“亲爱的”，只是自然地提过你的行李，然后想用眼睛抱紧你似的心疼地说，怎么瘦得像豆芽菜了？
　　
13.真正爱你的男人，当你发脾气时，只会不做声地听你把火发完，然后慢慢地说，你明天有课吗？早点睡吧。
　　
14.真正爱你的男人，不懂当你生气挂掉电话后应该立即打来，过了若干小时后会发条短信问你消气了没有？如果你质问他为何这么久才打来，他会理直气壮的说，你生气时我的解释一定没有用，等你的火消了，我的解释才有效果。
　　
15.真正爱你的男人，总是叫你小姑娘，可是每次他做什么重大的决定，却总想先听听你的建议。
　　
16.真正爱你的男人，不喜欢玩具小毛熊，却一直把你送他的小熊放在床头。　
　　
17.真正爱你的男人，当和你发生争执时，总是控制不了地先妥协，先承认“我错了”，过后发来短信以“神经病”开头，以“宝贝”结尾。事实上你也清楚，这次是你有点无理取闹。　
　　
18.真正爱你的男人，很想很想你时，也会买玫瑰送你，傻傻地等着你，却不知道自己捧的是月季。没关系，他的心里送的是玫瑰。
　　
19.真正爱你的男人，都不甜，但是他的吻能传递他嘴巴所有的热情。
　　
20.真正爱你的男人，当听到你对他讲很“酸”的话时，他反而会装得很正经，其实心里很甜很甜。
　　
21.真正爱你的男人，如果不能经常见到你，他会让自己忙碌起来，为了不去想你，因为他知道一想你将会一发不可收拾．．.

"The well-dressed woman draws her husband away from another woman's door." Spanish Proverb.

"Women shouldn't be too smart, and try not to pick at details in a marriage." Quan Yifeng

Task Based Learning

2008-10-28T15:50:00.000-07:00

Pre-Task Activities

While-Task Activities

Post-Task Activities

"Know your numbers and keep a record of your daily measurements."

From dateless geeks to dating bosses

2008-10-25T17:54:00.000-07:00

THEY were outcasts in school, introverted, with no girlfriends.

But these 'computer geeks' have now made it their business to put couples together.

Mr Andy Lim, 28, and Mr Vary Yong, 27, are the co-founders of Who Works Around You, a matchmaking agency that allows singles who work late or on shift duty to meet up with other singles who may have the same working hours and work in the same area.

It was during one of their 'no-life' moments last year when the two web designers came up with the idea.

Mr Lim had been working overtime one night and eating cup noodles for dinner when he realised that there were other colleagues around.

'We often see lights in the building next door,' he said.

'I thought, I'm sure there are people here wishing they could date a 'neighbour', then they wouldn't feel so lonely.'

Now, their matchmaking agency is on the verge of being one of the first to be accredited by the Social Development Unit (SDU).

The New Paper understands that the accreditation process is in its final stages and the announcement is expected soon.

Accredited agencies will be awarded the SDU Trust Mark and will be listed in the Registry of Dating Agencies and the Registry of Dating Practitioners.

Not bad for a pair who, not too long ago, had trouble meeting people themselves.

'Social outcasts'

Mr Lim said when he studied digital media design at Nanyang Polytechnic, he was a loner.

He said: 'I was academically weak and a lot of people didn't want me to be in their project group. I was pushed from group to group, depending on which group didn't have enough members.

Added Mr Lim: 'During lunch, I would take away food and eat alone. I also watched movies alone and even ate at buffets alone.'

Mr Yong was similarly geeky and said he 'only had one or two friends' when he studied multimedia in Ngee Ann Polytechnic.

Whenever a new computer game was released, he would play for up to 17 hours a day.

Mr Lim and Mr Yong met online through a group of friends in 2006.

Last year, together with another business partner, they each put in about $15,000 from their website design company iFoundries to create www.whoworksaroundyou.com.

The firm, which became operational in January, has since attracted more than 1,300members, with at least six couples going on to have steady relationships, they said.

The website currently provides free subscription, but members who want personalised match-making can sign up for their packages, which cost $388 onwards.

Pharmacist Serene Leong, 31, and paramedic Johnny Tan, 31, who have been going steady 'for a couple of months', have the duo to thank for pairing them up.

The venture has drawn some flak.

Financial consultant Tracy Lim, 23, for example, said: 'They don't look like the sort of people who can create love.'

But Miss Leong retorted: 'Making yourself look good is just a marketing gimmick.

'If you can't deliver what people want, then what's the point of being so attractive?

'They (Mr Lim and Mr Yong) are more focused on their clients than on generating business quotas.'

Looks irrelevant

While Mr Lim admits he is no Brad Pitt, he insists that looks have nothing to do with being a good matchmaker.

He said: 'You can be a geek, a nerd, the ugliest person in the whole wide world, as long as you have the passion, confidence, you can still be a good matchmaker.'

So, can two 'geek' matchmakers cut it themselves when it comes to love?

Mr Lim said he has been in a relationship for four years, with someone he met while volunteering in the PAP youth wing.

Mr Yong proposed to his girlfriend on 08/08/08 and they plan to marry on 09/09/09.

To which Mr Lim commented: 'I can't believe an outcast can be so romantic.'

by Benson Ang, TNP.

"If you want to be successful, find someone who has achieved the results you want and copy what they do and you'll achieve the same results." Anthony Robbins

Hey doc, how good is your English?

2008-10-23T15:40:00.000-07:00

FOREIGN-TRAINED doctors will have to meet more stringent English language requirements before they can practise here.

The Singapore Medical Council (SMC) has said that it wants foreign-trained doctors to be able to do equally well in understanding, speaking, reading and writing in the language.

They will be given a score on each of these skills on a nine-point-scale, and must do equally well in all four, scoring seven. Nine is the top score. This differs from the present method, which requires them to get an overall score of seven.

The change, announced on the SMC's website, applies to the scoring system for the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). Other tests recognised by SMC are the Test Of English as a Foreign Language and Occupational English Test.

The scoring of the IELTS, administered by the British Council, has led to some confusion about what level of proficiency is regarded as adequate.

Dr Charles Vu, who sits on the medical manpower development panel of Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH), said: 'You can potentially have someone from Myanmar or Vietnam who can read and write but not be able to speak English well.

'Listening to and speaking English should be just as, if not more important, when communicating with patients.'

The issue of foreign-trained doctors' ability to communicate with patients has surfaced time and again, but is more significant now, with the Health Ministry's expanding the list of recognised foreign medical schools from 20 in 2003 to nearly 160 last year.

Among the recognised universities are some which do not use English as a medium of instruction, such as Nagoya University's faculty of medicine and The West China College of Medicine in Sichuan University.

Dr Vu said that with the expanded list of recognised schools, more stringent English requirements are more important now than ever before.

Said an SMC spokesman: 'Casenotes, requests and communication between health-care professionals are all in English, so for patient safety, whatever is communicated in the management must be understood.'

There were 524 foreign-trained graduate doctors registered here in 2006, up from 460 the year before. About 8 per cent, from countries such as Japan, South Korea, Belgium, Germany and China, need to take language tests.

Various hospitals here have programmes to immerse foreign-trained doctors in local culture. Alexandra Hospital organises events for staff to showcase their culture, and Tan Tock Seng Hospital holds Chinese and Malay language classes for its foreign doctors.

But Associate Professor Tay Eng Hseon, who chairs the medical board at KK Women's and Children's Hospital (KKH), cautioned against too stringent requirements for the language.

He said KKH lost an excellent anaesthesiologist who just could not make the cut in the language department. Despite repeated attempts, the doctor only managed a score of six. The hospital appealed to retain the doctor but was unsuccessful, said Prof Tay.

Jessica Jaganathan, The Straits Times

"Learning in itself isn't difficult, the difficulty is in the mind."

Pronunciation

2008-10-18T19:50:00.000-07:00

Daily Pronunciation

SELF DIRECTED LEARNING
"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life." Steve Jobs.

Any Time is Good Time

2008-10-17T18:01:00.000-07:00

Get familiar with financial terms

2008-10-16T15:00:00.000-07:00

I HAVE been amused by comments on forums about investors asking the Government for help with their failed investments.

Although information is easily accessible, many of us ignore obvious facts and instead choose to make our decisions based on sales pitches.

Therefore, it is important to have a basic understanding of financial terms, so that we would know what constitutes misselling:

Low- or no-risk savings
The only low- or no-risk savings instrument is a pure savings or fixed-deposit account without an insurance element.

As long as an insurance element is included, it is a form of investment.

By default, it involves the participating or life fund of an insurance company, which consists of equities and fixed-income instruments.

Life-fund growth projections have been cut aggressively over the last ten years to 3 to 4 per cent now, after distribution charges are accounted for.

Equities generally appreciate in normal times, while fixed-income instruments do not.

As life funds contain a large proportion of fixed-income instruments, it is not difficult to understand why the returns from life and endowment policies are not impressive.

If the growth rate falls below the inflation rate of 5 to 6 per cent, the risk would be the erosion of my savings by inflation.

Therefore, if I had chosen an investment-linked product, which is perceived as being higher- risk, and chosen to have my investment fully allocated to fixed-income instruments, would that make my investment safer, as the salesperson would have me believe?

The so-called 'savings' are also cancelled out by the commission and insurance charges.

How can such an investment fairly be called 'low-risk'?

Long-term savings
Life-insurance and endowment plans of 25 to 30 years take on average 20 years to 'break even'. As a savings plan, it is ineffective.

Guaranteed payout by end of term
The 'guaranteed' payout at the end of a policy term is actually the sum assured of an insurance policy.

While most think the bonuses as guaranteed, they are actually almost entirely non-guaranteed, and dependent upon the performance of the life fund.

Product or fund of the month
There is always a rush for certain funds if they are seen as being the best investments at the time.

While their launch might coincide with their peak, things could go down from there.

Low-risk or guaranteed funds
These are commonly sold whenever markets take a downturn.

Guaranteed products were aggressively promoted in 2002 to 2003, and structured products from 2005 up to the present.

If not for the financial crisis, structured products would still be sold as 'safe' products.

Incentives and gifts
More complex and sophisticated products usually come with gifts or incentives, as they are harder to sell.

Complex financial terms
Terms like 'leveraged' and 'enhanced' sound good but do not reveal anything about a product.

When it comes to investing, act prudently and understand what you are getting yourself into, and learn to accept and embrace the outcome.

Mr Teo Eng Kiat, My paper.

The New English: Chinglish

2008-10-14T15:31:00.000-07:00

... Thanks to globalization, the Allied victories in World War II, and American leadership in science and technology, English has become so successful across the world that it's escaping the boundaries of what we think it should be. In part, this is because there are fewer of us: By 2020, native speakers will make up only 15 percent of the estimated 2 billion people who will be using or learning the language. Already, most conversations in English are between nonnative speakers who use it as a lingua franca.

In China, this sort of free-form adoption of English is helped along by a shortage of native English-speaking teachers, who are hard to keep happy in rural areas for long stretches of time. An estimated 300 million Chinese — roughly equivalent to the total US population — read and write English but don't get enough quality spoken practice. The likely consequence of all this? In the future, more and more spoken English will sound increasingly like Chinese.

It's not merely that English will be salted with Chinese vocabulary for local cuisine, bon mots, and curses or that speakers will peel off words from local dialects. The Chinese and other Asians already pronounce English differently — in both subtle and not-so-subtle ways. For example, in various parts of the region they tend not to turn vowels in unstressed syllables into neutral vowels. Instead of "har-muh-nee," it's "har-moh-nee." And the sounds that begin words like this and thing are often enunciated as the letters f, v, t, or d. In Singaporean English (known as Singlish), think is pronounced "tink," and theories is "tee-oh-rees."

English will become more like Chinese in other ways, too. Some grammatical appendages unique to English (such as adding do or did to questions) will drop away, and our practice of not turning certain nouns into plurals will be ignored. Expect to be asked: "How many informations can your flash drive hold?" In Mandarin, Cantonese, and other tongues, sentences don't require subjects, which leads to phrases like this: "Our goalie not here yet, so give chance, can or not?"

One noted feature of Singlish is the use of words like ah, lah, or wah at the end of a sentence to indicate a question or get a listener to agree with you. They're each pronounced with tone — the linguistic feature that gives spoken Mandarin its musical quality — adding a specific pitch to words to alter their meaning. (If you say "xin" with an even tone, it means "heart"; with a descending tone it means "honest.") According to linguists, such words may introduce tone into other Asian-English hybrids...

Any language is constantly evolving, so it's not surprising that English, transplanted to new soil, is bearing unusual fruit. Nor is it unique that a language, spread so far from its homelands, would begin to fracture...

by Michael Erard (Extracted)
Full Text: Wired

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