Happy Exploring

Yesterday, I spent almost 2 hours in the traffic from my house to office which is only 14 km away.
It won’t surprise you –I believe – for you who have come down to Jakarta.
To kill the time, I often fill my heads with music using my Nokia N70 phone.

N70 did really come up with good headset so we could enjoy the music. I really like it. The sound is clear, and I could enjoy the base play of my favorite songs.

Quite embarrassing truth is that I just found it out 3 months ago while I have been using the phone almost for a year. What a shame actually J. I got fancy thing in my hand and I didn’t use for quite some time just because I didn’t try it earlier. It was like a “hidden” treasure on my backyard which is just unearthed.

It actually teaches me lesson: We can NOT capitalize what we don’t have… or what we are unaware of. In my case, it’s only easy music listening that I lost for the past several months. But what if, you have something big inside yourself which you are unaware of. The consequence might be bigger then. What if you have voice as good as Melinda Doolittle but you don’t sing? What if you have such a plant in your old man’s house but don’t know that it is the expensive Anturium?

Well, then in order to get the maximum value we need to explore ourselves, identifying our potentials & growing them. Explore yourself…

• What do you think are your potentials?

  • What are you good at?

  • What do you love to do?

• What other says about you . . . ?

  • What do they think your potentials are

  • What suggestions they have for you to develop your potentials

• Unearth it: Try, and Try and Try

  • Try various new activities: E.g. singing, dancing, cooking, teaching, speaking, diving, surfing, rock-climbing, writing

  • When was the last time you learned/started doing new things?

  •  Expose yourself to various opportunities e.g. involved in various social activities.

• Check it in the context of your respective market:

  • What are the hot items (of high value) there? 

  • Do you have it?

  • How could you then increase your value?

You might then be surprised of your hidden treasure just uncovered.  Share us your thoughts.  
Happy Exploring!!!

 

Jcharis.

 

Networking for Competitive Advantage

An article by my fave lecturer – Bapak Pri Notowidigdo. It was published in The Jakarta Post (12 May 2001). Published on my blog by his permission. Thanks Pak Pri.

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Relationships are at the heart of our lives.  It is also true that our professional relationships are at the heart of our success.

Networking,  therefore,   becomes an invaluable skill,  tool,  or orientation.  “It’s not what you know,  but who you know”  is a well-known saying.  Yet it is only half-true.  The reality is that,  in order to manage a career,  grow a business,  or guide your personal or professional endeavours,  it  is who knows you!

Please download the pdf file for full article.Networking for Competitive Advantage

Cheers,

Jeriel

 

The 2nd Chance

Did you ever almost break up with your girlfriend or boyfriend, and you got a new status?
Some call it a freeze, on-hold, or as Friendster™ suggests – complicated. J

Yups, I had it. Mine is a freeze. It was really an uneasy moment from me with a lot of uncertainty but did hope that I could get the second chance.

Many of us who broke up also would hope that they can get the second chance.

Hm.. do you need a second chance?

Well, just want to share my story, that second chance could take place in every aspect of our life. It’s not limited to our love’s life, but it’s relevant indeed for our career, relationship with our neighbors, as well as with God.

A new boss was coming. A first meeting conducted, and as much as others would– for sure- we want to give him good impressions… After his presentation and discussion, he challenged us who would voluntarily support him looking for certain information.
I thought on myself, definitely this would be a good chance to impress him.
The words “Yes, I will do that” was about to launch from my lips, but my colleague did outpace me. So, he got the job and I thought he certainly should have impressed my new boss, while me, I didn’t make it.

Couple weeks later, my boss was engaged in one task. He gathered us; we brainstormed and left the room. He didn’t ask any of us to continue, but since the case was quite interesting, I then continued the brainstorming by myself and return to him with more inputs. I also prepared a power point presentation for it. To cut story short, he later on made me the person in charge for that task. Thanks God, I finally made it.

Another story….it’s Sad to say, but we have a lot of beggars and scavengers in my city-Jakarta. Once, I was going home from office and saw an old scavenger laid down by the street with his family members. I got a pity on him but at that time I just passed them by. Well, later on I felt that I should have given him some money or food. So, next day I was going home, I brought along an apple from my office with me. And yes, I met another older scavenger and finally I could share my food with him.

Well, as I am looking over my period of life, I am grateful for the second chances that come to me. It does not always come, but some do.

So here are my thoughts . . .

• Take a shoot while the first chance is available
• If you missed – as much of us did – prepare for the second chance to come to you
• But rather than to wait it to come, just create the second chance for you.
  Be prepared, take initiative to create one
• When it comes to you, be excellent and give more than what is expected
• As much as you would like to get the second chance, give others also the second chance
• Be grateful always

Cheers,

jcharis

 

Appreciation Vis-a-Vis Critics

As a leader, your sincere appreciation to your team-members will turn them “on” to be better them. Effective leader practices appreciation to boost their organization’s & people’s performance.

This article is dedicated to my previous boss & good friend of mine H. Arif whose sincere appreciation make me a better leader.

Appreciation Vis-a-vis Critics

Please do comment as it will enrich each of us…

Cheers,

jeriel

 

A Strong Leader’s Foundation 

If I ask you whether you would like to be a good leader, then I am sure most of you would quickly answer me yes. The fact that you are reading this article proves so. But what if I ask you why? Why would you like to be a leader?  Would I get the same quick response from you? I was asking myself as well, why would I?

Through this article, I would like to invite you to re-think about your motives and to contemplate on the most important quality that makes us a better leader.As I am climbing the leadership ladder, I learn that only one kind of people can really become a good leader. Who are they?
They are secure people.

Our leadership journey starts from this very point. It begins with you and you alone. The question you need to answer is: Are you secure? As a leader, you hold your people’s trusts.
They look up to you and ask for direction. They expect you to bring them into the vision you share. They expect you to make it happen. However, no one could guarantee that you would not face the storm along the way. No one could guarantee that you would not make any mistakes.
I would guarantee the opposites would happen. Are you secure to face this reality?
As you are leaving the safe harbor and entering the open sea, that you see nothing but a vast see, are you secure? Are you secure when your dream seems to be so far away?
When you are facing difficulties, conflict and bitterness, doubtful condition, are you secure?
When you made a mistake and you got to confess before your people, are you secure?
When you are corrected by your people, even those who are much younger than you, are you secure? When you should let go your ego down in submission to the achievement of vision, are you secure?

 It is not uncommon that you have to deal with people who are so different from you.
They are “difficult people” for you, but still you need to work with them. Along the way, you might need to change your mind-set towards them, letting go your ego, looking for good things in them. Doesn’t it require a very secure person to do so? The last but not the least, when your man is rising above you, are you secure enough? When he “steals” your people attention away from you, are you secure enough? Are you secure to develop other leaders around you?

As I observe those kind of things, I wonder why I would like to be a leader. Why bother to be a leader if it would sap our energy? That’s why I asked you, why would you like to be a leader?I leave that question to you. As long as your motives right, the only thing you need is to be secure. Only secure people can be a good leader.

Being secure for me means:

·         Having the right motives to lead – Why should I lead?  “A better future for all”

 ·         I am content with myself – I am complete.
I accept my past life and embrace my present life. I forgive those who might have offended me in the past and looking ahead for better future. In Maxwell’s word: “I have nothing to prove, I have nothing to lose, I have nothing to hide”

·         I am working on my strengths
I need to know my talents and capabilities, and operate in it. In the same way, to know my followers’ and help them to operate in theirs as well. There is a unique place for each of us that only we can fill it. No worry about other taking your place, just operate in your strength.  

·         Letting go my ego to
o        Develop good character, get rid off the bad ones
o        Embrace a new better mind-set
o        Change attitudefor the sake of the vision, and the people whom I serve

·         Knowing that to err is human – to admit when I make mistake

·         Knowing that everything works for my good – no matter what might happen

 ·         Knowing well that I will always get the strength I need to carry on 

What does security mean to you? How can you be secure?  I will leave this to you…
For me it is when I know how precious I am before and under perfect care of my God, my Lord Jesus Christ who made me for Himself.As we are secure, I am convinced that we already have the most important quality to be a great leader. How is your foundation then…?