Archive for the 'Career/Work/Job' Category

Learn To Accept a Helping Hand [Video In Post]

Published at November 26, 2007 in Attitude, Career/Work/Job, Success and Videos. 9 Comments

Tiger WoodsTiger Woods is a winner. And saying that is an understatement.

I can not define in a single post what the man has accomplished in his life. So for the sake of discussion, let us talk about him on a topic that we are all familiar of: GOLF.

If you don’t know it yet, Tiger Woods has been extremely successful in golf. Do you know that he started swinging the golf club before he can barely even walk? People were already amazed by him. In fact, he was already doing guest appearances on TV when he was 3. But none of these would have happened without his parents. Tiger got the support he needed to be able to embrace his capacity at a very young age.

I want to share with you a clip* of one of my favorite Nike commercials featuring a very young Tiger Woods. I’m not a commercial critic or an expert in deciphering its meaning, but the message I got is that it is open for interpretation. So after watching it, I’m inviting you to stay and read the rest of this post for my own take.

Tiger Woods Wins British Open (Nike “Just Do It” Commercial)

While the focus of the video is Tiger’s supreme talent, in the background, you’ll notice his mother happily taking pictures and his father cheering. Both are extremely happy. Both joyous by their son’s success. Their relationship with Tiger can be felt.

I consider them the wind beneath his wings.

And Tiger? He is a willing student. His parents believed in him and supported him, and Tiger accepted it.

We can learn an important lesson from this twist: to be successful, we have to learn to accept a helping hand.

Some people don’t do this because of these primary reasons: 1.) They are too shy 2.) They are egoistic, thinking they are independent enough, and 3.) Both.

Sometimes, I fall into “both” category. Just last month, when I was struggling to find balance in my work, I confessed to a co-worker that I was finding it hard to update the school website. She offered help. Honestly, I was happy that someone was concerned, so I acknowledged her action.

But I politely declined. Because I was too shy. At the same time, I was driven to prove I can manage to finish the backlog on my own.

I did, but only after a month. I felt unproductive the weeks in between. Imagine if I accepted her offer, it could have saved me more days or weeks, thus giving me a peace of mind.

If you want a faster yet solid path to success, learn to utilize your support group, whether they are your parents, other half, co-workers, or your friends; because for them, your success is their success also.

So if you’ve enjoyed this post and want to offer me help build more traffic to this site, feel free to stumble, digg, zoom, or reddit this entry. It is my pleasure telling you that I’ve learned my lesson: I won’t be shy to accept a helping hand. ;)

By the way, you may have a different interpretation of the clip, so please feel free to post a comment. I’d love to hear/read what’s on your mind.

—–

*The clip is a “spliced” video, meaning the events really happened in different times and places, but was edited to make it look like it took place in one event. If you want to comment directly to the video, please follow this link. Otherwise leave a message below.

Resources: Tiger Woods Interview (CBS), YouTube Clip, Photo

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Don’t Let Your Diversions Take Over Your Job

Published at November 22, 2007 in Attitude, Blogs and Blogging, Career/Work/Job and Responsibility. 24 Comments

I used to be a workaholic, which meant I did my job not just efficiently, effectively, and productively but also going over and beyond expectations. It gave me a true sense of accomplishment. Extra-miling was one of my hobbies — sometimes I even brought my work at home to keep up or to be ahead.

I produced results. And by that, I meant awesome results that made my co-workers and I truly proud. It was a good scenario for me because it made me happy.

I have a weakness, though. When I develop new interests, they sometimes affect my priorities. These interests become diversions.

When I discovered blogging, it became my number one diversion and it interfered with my work.

I used to hone my technical skills.
Now I enjoy lurking in various websites.

I used to read books.
Now I prioritize blog-hopping and commenting in other blogs hoping to increase my site’s traffic.

I used to enjoy updating my school’s website.
Now it took a backseat because I prefer looking for themes and plugins to improve my blog.

Suddenly, I’m the man who can’t produce results. Because at the back of my head, I keep thinking my job can wait. I know I can always do it later.

Problem is, “later” never ever arrives because:

  • I look for and think of something to blog about instead of focusing on the real work at hand.
  • I check my site’s stats whenever I get the chance.
  • I leave my email open and check it every time I go near my laptop.
  • I visit social sites to learn more about blogging tips because I’m afraid to be left behind.

Other people love to malinger during work: extended coffee break, smoking, playing games online, shopping online, and many more. I know, because that’s what I’ve observed from others. Although I consider mine a lesser evil, it is still evil nonetheless, as far as my real work is concerned. Those activities I listed above are just a few examples of little things I insert during work. Little things that when combined, become a bad habit that holds back productivity.

And it has to stop now because that’s not the way I work. I am no fan of mediocrity.

There are reasons why I didn’t quit the 9-5 job (or 8-4 for me) for blogging. It’s because my day job is one of the biggest sources of my income and I enjoy it. Simply ignoring it means taking the risk of gradually losing it. And I can’t afford that. Without my job, this site will cease to exist.

This realization has led me to think that some things will simply have to be bumped down my to-do list. Since I enjoy blogging (or writing) and it makes me happy, I will continue to post and do the “blogging etiquette”, if they are within the boundaries of my priorities; or as long as I can do it while still producing results for my day job.

So how do I intend to do it?

Simple. Stop doing unnecessary things at work. It’s easier said than done, but that’s the responsibility that we all have to take. I’ll summarize it in two quick steps:

Step 1: Eliminate non-related activities during work hours – gradually, then completely. In this case, blogging has to be dropped from my 8-4 schedule.

Step 2: Every night, spend 1.5 to 2 hours at the most (not necessarily consecutive) for diversions. Since blogging is on the top of the list, I will have to settle doing it at night or when I get home. It includes “blog-rolling”, stats checking, commenting, social networking, and the like. I feel I have already built a connection with other bloggers and I don’t want to lose that. My presence will definitely still be felt. Doing Step 2, I will not have to worry about blogging during work hours.

In simple words, I just have to be more disciplined to live more happily.

How about you, do your diversions interfere with your work? If so, what do you plan to do to remain productive?

——

Inspired by:
Haiku Blogging @ ProBlogger.com

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Making A Lasting First Impression

Published at October 31, 2007 in Attitude, Basketball, Career/Work/Job and Success. 7 Comments

I was on the way to the parking lot when I saw the boys practicing basketball at our school playground. So I decided to drop by and watch a little.

Some of them already have the moves while some have the potential, just needing more polishing on basics and fundamentals.

And then somehow, the ball bounced towards me. I picked the ball up and weighed it with my both hands. It’s been a while since I held a basketball. But despite that, I know I can play the game. I can shoot.

The boys were enthusiastically asking for the ball, literally racing. But I didn’t throw it back at them.

Instead, I aimed at the hoop, squared my shoulder, jumped high, and then took a shot at the top of my jump with a slick follow-through in the end.

The kids were awestruck. “Mr. P, you’re good!”

I shook my head and let out a chuckle. Because, it seemed like it was the first time they saw someone shooting the ball correctly.

And because I missed the shot.

I asked for the ball again, and they complied. I did the same thing: aim, square, and jump. I thought, to make this shot, I needed adjustments. The kids were watching intently. And there was a moment of silence. When I released the ball at the top of my jump, I heard them in unison: “Wow!”

But I missed the shot again.

But I got the kids excited. They wanted to copy my form. So I let them play and watched them copy my moves. When they got tired, they asked me to shoot again.

And I did. Seven more times. Seven more times, I shot it correctly: Aim. Square. Jump. Shoot. Follow-through. Adjust. I took a total of nine shots, and made only two. What a horrible percentage, The kids probably though that I stink!

But the kids did not. They actually wanted me to stay a little longer to play with or against them even though they knew I was simply going to kick their butts.

They saw something in me that turned them into believers despite my failure to deliver: I was shooting it right every single time. It didn’t matter that I missed a lot. I was making necessary adjustments. They saw that I knew my stuff, and it’s only a matter of time before I get my rhythm back. And when that happens, they are going to think I’m better than Kobe Bryant because I already have built a good first impression.

I always want a good first impression, and I do it not because of others, but because I want to feel better about myself. What do you think I would feel if my students think my shot looks funny if I tried to be flashy?

Overdoing is not my thing, and if I did that I’ll screw my shots. That’s the reason why as much as possible, I want to keep it simple by not doing things beyond my comfort zone.

And when things are not going my way? I adjust. I’ll probably jump a little higher or release the ball with a softer touch when I take a shot.

Simply put, here’s the formula I follow to making a lasting first impression:

* Make an effort
* Don’t overdo
* Make a follow-up action.

The kids are going to have a practice this week, and if I feel like joining them, I’ll make sure that the first impression I gave them was not a fluke.

——-

Since I talked about basketball, I’ll back it up with a 30-sec video. Watch me (#4) making the winning shot during a basketball tournament, summer of 2006. It earned us the last spot for the Finals, and we won the Championship eventually. Special thanks to our close friend, Elmer Karaan, who taped this game and was also the announcer:



“Saedel with the shot…. Yeah Baby! Yeah Baby!“

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If You Don’t, You Can’t

Published at October 25, 2007 in Attitude, Career/Work/Job, Motivation, School/Teaching and Success. 14 Comments

Tom was nearly crying. The simple math problems glaring at him was killing him. He was on his seat looking around half-expecting his classmates to offer him some help. But they were too busy doing their own; some of them knew what to do, some still ‘getting it’. Clearly, Tom was having a tough time.

“Mr. P?” he softly called me. “I can’t do it…” He was pleading for help – more like scared to try and fail.

I was beginning to feel irritated. I explained the lesson three times already, the last one, just ten seconds ago. But, I remained calm, fighting the negativity that clouded my mind. I glanced at his paper, still unanswered.

“It looks hard…” he said, and looked back at his paper, giving me the impression that he’s staring at strange numerical questions.

A teacher shouldn’t help a student during a short quiz. So I firmly said, “Tom, just solve the questions.”

Knowing he won’t be able to squeeze out anything from me, I saw his lips trembled, and I knew if he uttered one more word, those tears will begin to fall.

Continue reading ‘If You Don’t, You Can’t’

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Responsibility Is A Sacrifice

Published at October 19, 2007 in Career/Work/Job, Responsibility and School/Teaching. 7 Comments

Jack was still sleeping, and it was already past 6 am. He’s late for school now, so his mother tried to wake him up. “Jack, get up! You’re late for school!” But Jack said, “5 more minutes, Mom…” and he returned to sleep.

Minutes later, his mother tried to wake him up again: “Jack, get up! You need to go school!” But Jack loved to sleep, so he turned his back on his mother and said: “But I still want to sleep!” He pulled the blanket to his head.

His mother, now displaying a ‘motherly demeanor’, said: “Jack, you have to get up now! You really need to go to school!”

“But I don’t want to go!”

To which his mother replied: “But you need to! You ARE the school principal!”

It was a fictitious story told to us by my high school teacher; I knew she was just trying to make a point. She said that being responsible is doing things you don’t like. When I was younger, I agreed with her. Jack didn’t want to go to school but he had an obligation, so he still went and did his job. It made sense.

Now, after revisiting the story, I think my teacher might have been mistaken….

Continue reading ‘Responsibility Is A Sacrifice’

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