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July 29 Motivated by LoveIt's really been a while since I last posted an entry here. On this rather relaxing Tuesday afternoon, decided to take some time to pen some thoughts.......
Last week was an intensive yet fulfilling one for me. I spent 5 long days conducting a training for a group of adults who were looking for re-employment in Singapore's service industry. All of them were 40 and above, many with growing children. Spending 5 days with them was a very meaningful and thought-provoking experience for me. Everyone had a story to tell.
On the second day of the training, one participant came up to me and said something that touched my heart:
"Now I have the confidence and believe that I can find a job to supplement my family's income. My husband make only $1,200 a month, and that is not enough to support our 4 kids. I now feel hopeful that I can find a job and get my children a computer at home." - 40-year-old Homemaker.
After saying the above, she teared. I smiled, looked at her compassionately, and nodded assuringly. It was a heartwarming moment.
On the last day before she left, I reassured her that with the skills set and mindset that she has acquired, she will definitely be able to get a job and then a computer for her children. She teared again. I know how much she wants to provide her children with a computer, just like any parent.
From these 18 participants, I saw the following traits of would-be life winners:
- Responsible for one's own learning and life
- Undeterred by challenges, certainly not age
- Great love for family
I wish the 18 of them bliss and happiness ahead. Thank you for showing me the greatest motivation - Love.
June 20 The Power of Asking by Jack CanfieldThe Power of Asking; 7 Ways to Boost Your Business
by Jack Canfield The gift called “asking” has been around for a long, long time. One of life’s fundamental truths states, “Ask and you shall receive.” Kids are masters at using this gift, but we adults seem to have lost our ability to ask. We come up with all sorts of excuses and reasons to avoid any possibility of rejection. Yet the world responds to those who ask! If you are not moving closer to what you want, you probably aren’t doing enough asking. Here are seven asking strategies you can implement in your business (and in life) to boost your results and your bottom line: Asking Strategy #1: Ask for Information To win potential new clients, you first need to know what their current challenges are, what they want to accomplish and how they plan to do it. Only then can you proceed to demonstrate the advantages of your unique product or service. Ask questions starting with the words who, why, what, where, when and how to obtain the information you need. Only when you truly understand and appreciate a prospect’s needs can you offer a solution. Once you know what's important to them, stay on this topic and find solutions for them. Asking Strategy #2: Ask for Business Here’s an amazing statistic: after giving a complete presentation about the benefits of their product or service, more than 60 percent of the time salespeople never ask for the order! That’s a bad habit, and one that could ultimately put you out of business. Always ask a closing question to secure the business. Don’t waffle or talk around it—or worse, wait for your prospect to ask you. No doubt you have heard of many good ways to ask the question, “Would you like to give it a try?” The point is, ask. Asking Strategy #3: Ask for Written Endorsements Well-written, results-oriented testimonials from highly respected people are powerful for future sales. They solidify the quality of your product or service and leverage you as a person who has integrity, is trustworthy and gets the job done on time. When is the best time to ask? Right after you have provided excellent service, gone the extra mile to help out, or in any other way made your customer really happy. Simply ask if your customer would be willing to give you a testimonial about the value of your product or service, plus any other helpful comments. Asking Strategy #4: Ask for Top-Quality Referrals Just about everyone in business knows the importance of referrals. It’s the easiest, least expensive way of ensuring your growth and success in the marketplace. Your core clients will gladly give you referrals because you treat them so well. So why not ask all of them for referrals? It’s a habit that will dramatically increase your income. Like any other habit, the more you do it the easier it becomes. Asking Strategy #5: Ask for More Business Look for other products or services you can provide your customers. Devise a system that tells you when your clients will require more of your products. The simplest way is to ask your customers when you should contact them to reorder. It’s often easier to sell your existing clients more than to go looking for new ones. Asking Strategy #6: Ask to Renegotiate Regular business activities include negotiation. Many businesses get stuck because they lack skills in negotiation, yet this is simply another form of asking that can save a lot of time and money. Look at your vendors and suppliers and see if there are areas where you can be saving money. Just ask. All sorts of contracts can be renegotiated in your personal life, too, such as changing your mortgage terms and rate, reviewing your cell phone plan and requesting a policy review with your insurance agent. As long as you negotiate ethically and in the spirit of win-win, you can enjoy a lot of flexibility. Nothing is ever cast in stone. Asking Strategy #7: Ask for Feedback This is a powerful way to fine-tune your business that is often overlooked. How do you really know if your product or service is meeting your customers’ needs? Ask them, “How are we doing? What can we do to improve our service to you? Please share what you like or don’t like about our products.” Set up regular customer surveys that ask good questions and tough questions. HOW TO ASK Some people don’t enjoy the fruits of asking because they don't ask effectively. If you use vague language you will not be clearly understood. Here are five ways to ensure that your asking gets results. Ask Clearly Ask with Confidence Ask Consistently Ask Creatively Ask Sincerely © 2008 Jack Canfield Jack Canfield, America's #1 Success Coach, is the founder and co-creator of the billion-dollar book brand Chicken Soup for the Soul and a leading authority on Peak Performance and Life Success. If you're ready to jump-start your life, make more money, and have more fun and joy in all that you do, get your FREE success tips from Jack Canfield now at: www.FreeSuccessStrategies.com June 01 The Courage to Make a U-TurnOver the past week, I have been waiting eagerly for an update - the result of Linda's Everest summit push. As of my last blog entry, we know that Linda was at Camp 4, 8000m above sea level. From what I understand, she spent 3 nights at Camp 4, which is pretty amazing as one's digestive system doesn't function well at that altitude.
Linda pushed for the summit on evening of 25 May, and was scheduled to reach the summit around Singapore noon time the following day. According to a report on Red Sports (http://redsports.sg:80/2008/05/28/linda-aborts-summit-attempt/), Linda turned back after climbing for 4-5 hours as "she was moving too slowly and knew she would not be able to make it to the summit in time. Climbers typically have a fixed window each day before wind speeds pick up making the summit too dangerous".
Imagine this: If you had spent the last 5 years of your life training, saving up, making numerous sacrifices, and overcoming all odds for your dream, how difficult it would be for you to turn back when you are just so close to it. Yes, Linda was just a few hundred metres from the summit, but at the altitude, the distance is amplified many, many times. I have not had the opportunity to speak with Linda yet, but I know it must have been a very difficult moment for her to decide to turn back when her dream, the summit was just so near; talk about the courage to make a U-Turn. I second Linda's decision, and am so proud of her courage and clearheadedness in making the difficult yet necessary decision to turn back. Kudos to you my friend!
In one of John C Maxwell's audio program "Traveling Through Life", he talked about the importance of appreciating the U-Turns in life. Some U-turns are easier to make, some are rather difficult. For Linda, it must have been a very, very tough and painful one; but also one with lots of significance and valueable life lessons.
I look forward to Linda's return to Singapore next week, meeting up with her, and giving her a heartwarming and congratulatory hug. She has been an excellent example of someone who dares to dream big, put everything on the line, do whatever it takes, overcome all obstacles, breakthrough limiting beliefs, and yet be able to make difficult decisions when situations call for it.
Well done Linda, you are our inspiration! May 25 My May 2008Hi! It's been more than a month since I posted my last entry on this motivational blog. My apologies to those drop by frequently for your regular dosage of life's encouragement and inspiration. The month of May has been very very exciting and enriching (of course not to mention busy) for me. Really glad to finally have the time to sit down and pen this blog entry.
Coaching U ARE THE ONE Contestants
As many of you may know, SPEAK for Life is involved in training and coaching MediaCorp talentquest "U ARE THE ONE" contestants. Thus over the past weeks since the competition started, I have been making frequent trips to MediaCorp to speak with the contestants, and to do one-to-one personal motivational coaching and psychological empowerment for some of them. Among those whom I have had the privilege to coach individually are: M2 Zhang Zhenhuan, M6 Louis Fong, F6 Tang Shiying.
Being able to coach these young aspiring individuals in unleashing their potential, exuding their charisma, and achieving peak performance in the competition has been a great pleasure and very fulfilling. It always warms my heart to see them exceeding their perceived limits and delivering breakthrough performances on stage. Well done Contestants!
Remember to catch the guys semi-final round this coming Monday (26 May 2008), where four of them will be selected to compete in the Finals on 15 June 2008.
Co-Hosting on Radio 100.3FM
Every Sunday morning at 11am-12pm, I co-host with DJ Luo Ke Min on Radio 100.3FM in a motivational talk show "Yuan Qi Brunch". On the show, Ke Min and I engage in an hour of motivational sharing with listeners, where we discuss a variety of life topics including family, relationships, career, studies, personal challenges etc. In addition, we also answer questions from listeners sent to us via sms or email.
We have been doing "Yuan Qi Brunch" for about two months now and have received many smses from listeners with very positive feedback on the programme format and content. To our listeners, thank you so much for your encouragement and support. Do continue to tune in to "Yuan Qi Brunch" every Sunday at 11am - 12pm and speak to us via sms to Radio1003 @ 9717 1003 or email jensen@speak-for-life.com or kemin@radio1003.com
Meet you on-air every Sunday 11am - 12pm on Radio 100.3FM!
Update on Linda Tan's Everest Expedition
As of Sunday, 25 May 2008, Linda has reach Everest Camp 4, the last camp before her summit push. If you have been following news on Linda's progress, she was originally scheduled to push for the summit on 15 or 16 May, but her health condition wasn't ideal then. Thus she made a conscious and responsible decision to descent to a comfortable altitude to rest and recuperate before ascending again.
Now at Camp 4, Linda is doing well and her body is generating enough heat to keep her warm. I understand that she will be making her summit push on 26 May 2008, attempting to reach the summit at around Singapore noon time. I wish her success. For more updates on Linda's Everest expedition, click here.
Linda, our blessings are with you. You are our inspiration!
April 21 Answering Listeners' QuestionsOn yesterday's morning radio show "Yuan Qi Brunch" that I co-host with DJ Luo Kemin every Sunday on Radio 100.3FM, we attempted to answer and discuss the questions our listeners have sms-ed us on the previous Sunday. Here are a few interesting ones that I have picked out:
1. Where to learn Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP)?
There are several organizations running NLP workshops in Singapore. Generally, there are two broad kinds of NLP courses:
One, intensive workshops leading to formal NLP Certification, e.g. NLP Practitioner Certification, NLP Coach Certification etc.
Two, soft skills workshops incorporating NLP techniques for various purposes, e.g. NLP for Sales, NLP for Managers, NLP for Success etc.
Different courses cater to individuals with different needs. You could google "NLP" to understand more about the different offerings and NLP course providers in the market. Alternatively, you could email me at jensen@SPEAK-for-Life.com and I could reply with some recommendations.
2. How to plan for our future?
Planning for our future takes a different meaning at various parts of our life. When we are a child, it could mean planning our academic route ahead. For a young adult, it could mean career and family planning. For a middle-aged man, it would probably mean life after retirement. So how do we plan for our future? Something that has worked for me and which I am going to recommend, is to start with The Next 5 Years.
Ask yourself the following questions:
* "Where would I be in 5 years?"
Have you thought about it? Many people have, but are not able to give specific answers. Any answers like "I think.....", "Most probably......", "I guess........" are as good as not having any answers. Being SPECIFIC is the key. If you have not thought about it, then ask yourself - "Where would I really like to be in 5 years?"
* "What are my values, strengths, talent, interests, and passion in life?"
I know there are too many items listed on this plate, and that's life, isn't it? In planning our future path, we have to take into considerations all these aspects. There is no right or wrong, no good or bad, but only WHAT YOU TRULY WANT.
For those who really like to know "How to plan for our future", you may like to download and read the article "The ABCs of Achieving Your Life Goals" from http://www.speak-for-life.com/resources.htm
3. How to be a good presenter?
Being a good presenter is a combination of having the right public speaking skills to engage your audience and present your messages effectively, and using psychological empowerment techniques to present confidently and convincingly.
For those who are interested to know more, you may like to download and read the article "Delivering an Engaging Presentation" from http://www.speak-for-life.com/resources.htm
You are also welcome to email me at Jensen@SPEAK-for-Life.com to discuss further on areas of your personal and professional development.
To life's success, cheers! April 11 Catch me on Radio 100.3FM!Starting this Sunday (13 April 2008), I have the privilege of co-hosting another personal empowerment show "Yuan Qi Brunch" on Radio 100.3FM (www.radio1003.com), one of Singapore's most popular Mandarin radio station.
Every Sunday, from 11am to 12pm, I will join Radio1003 DJ Kemin (blog.sina.com.cn/luokemin) in discussing about life's success, happiness, and fulfillment. In the programme, we'll be sharing many real-life stories and everyday examples in a fun and conversational manner to bring about a beautiful start to your Sundays!
See you on Radio 100.3FM every Sunday @11am!
*** Pictures will be uploaded soon *** April 01 U ARE THE ONE - Backstage during the first Live! showLast evening was the first Live! show of MediaCorp Channel U's talent competition, "U ARE THE ONE" where the 8 male contestants competed on national television for the "Hunk" title, the night's theme. As I was one of their trainers (www.SPEAK-for-Life.com), I had the privilege of being invited backstage to give them support, both physically and psychologically.
I reached the backstage slightly before 7pm and met the contestants, who were busy practising their poses and calming themselves down. A few of them were visibly nervous, thus I spoke with them and reminded them to be in their "peak state" using the "champion moment" psychological technique that I have imparted in class.
Among them, I remember one who was rather worried because he had not done well during the rehearsal. I then discussed with him what he could do if the same situation were to happen again. I reinforced in him that it is not so much the actions, but the psychological state that he has to be in to deliver his best performance and exude his charisma and personality. Guess what, he did excellent on stage for the talent performance item!
While the male contestants were getting ready and busy changing in and out of costumes during the Live! show, the 8 female contestants were backstage rooting for them. I took this opportunity to discuss with the ladies what was well done and what could have been done better so that they could apply accordingly during their Live! show next Monday.
It was certainly an exciting night both on stage and backstage. No matter who has emerged the winner, all the 8 male contestants definitely gave their best on stage last evening at their debut Live! show - Kudos to them for their diligence, courage, and excellent performance!
Catch the 8 female contestants next Monday @ 8pm on Channel U as they vie for the title of "Sexy Babe".
"Living an extraordinary life is just about pursuing your dreams with courage and faith" - Jensen Siaw, www.SPEAK-for-Life.com
March 27 Coaching "U ARE THE ONE" ContestantsJust a few days ago on Monday afternoon, I was in MediaCorp doing Communication and Peak Performance coaching for the female contestants of Channel U's "U ARE THE ONE" talent quest competition. During the 3 hours I had with them, I observed that they possess some very commendable traits:
* Modesty and extreme eagerness to learn
* 110% involvement and participation during coaching
* Passionate about life & going all out to pursue their dream
These are youths in their late teens and early twenties who will be appearing on TV to showcase their personality and face potentially harsh criticisms from judges and the audience. They are certainly committed to and courageous in pursuing their dream of becoming a media personality or entertainment artiste.
I always find great pleasure in coaching people who are passionate about their dream and go all out to give it a shot, because I feel that's what makes life worth living, won't you agree?
I will be seeing the male contestants this Saturday. I look forward to meeting these passionate youths and helping them to achieve their peak performance to shine on stage and in life.
Catch "U ARE THE ONE" every Monday at 8pm on Channel U! March 18 An Extraordinary Lady - Linda TanIn the most recent Sunday Times (16 March 2008), there was an article on someone whom I would consider a Superwoman - Linda Tan, Singapore's first woman to attempt Everest. 28-year-old Linda will leave end of this month to complete her 5-year journey of setting foot on the Everest summit.
Why "Superwoman" and why "5-year journey"?
I consider Linda a Superwoman not only for her physical endurance and mental gusto in attempting to conquer Everest, but also for her never-say-die attitude. Over the past 5 years since she set a goal to attempt Everest this year, she has made numerous personal sacrifices and overcome several major setbacks. People have told her that she is not good enough, obstacles were placed in front of her, and others have tried to stop her dream. However, Linda always held onto her goal of conquering Everest - she is focused.
For her, I have utmost admiration and respect because she has demonstrated the following qualities of an extraordinary person:
- Dare to dream BIG (she aimed for the highest mountain)
- Exceptionally strong faith and determination
- Willing to put everything on the line for one's dream
- Willing to do whatever is necessary for one's dream
- Passionate about one's dream and life
I am currently coaching Linda in Peak Performance to help her prepare mentally for her expedition. It's a great honour and priviledge to be working with this extraordinary lady and playing a small role in helping her to fulfill her dream, one which I believe would inspire many more women to pursue their dreams in life, no matter how big the dreams may be.
(To read Linda's article, logon to www.SPEAK-For-Life.com) March 08 Talk @ MDIS Open House 8 Mar 08Dear friends, I will be delivering the following talk at the Management Development Institute of Singapore (MDIS) Open House:
Discovering Your Life's Passion & Empower Yourself for Success Using NLP
Date: 08 March 2008, Saturday
Time: 2.30pm - 3.30pm
Venue: MDIS Unicampus
For details, check out www.mdis.edu.sg/openhouse08.
See you there! February 22 Choice, Accountability, & The Lotus SpiritIn a group of 10 people, how many would you think possess a positive attitude? One? Maybe two? One thing is for sure - in most organizations, the majority of their people do not possess a positive attitude, especially toward changes and challenges. What about you?
People have a tendency to conform to the culture in the group or place that they function in. As such, it is only natural that it is difficult to stay positive when there are many negative people around us. However, all is not lost. We have the Power of Choice and Accountability.
Power of Choice
Well-known wheelchair-bound Motivational Speaker W Mitchell said: "It's not what happens to you, but what you do about it". Co-author of Chicken Soup for the Soul and America's Success Coach Jack Canfield said: "Events + Response = Outcome". As these two gurus advocate, we can choose our responses and our actions, and thereby create the results and outcomes. All of us have the power of Choice. Most people misused this power by choosing negative reactions, negative actions, and thus achieve negative results. To achieve positive outcomes, simply choose positive responses and positive actions.
Power of Accountability
Accompanying Choice is Accountability. Being accountable means being responsible for our own life, understanding that everything that happens in our life is our own creation, the result of our own thoughts, feelings, and actions. When we take responsibility for our own life, we do not blame people, situations, and circumstances for poor results. Instead, we look within ourselves, analyse the issue, and take corrective actions to achieve more desireable outcomes.
Being accountable for our own life doesn't mean that we blame ourselves when things fail either. There is no blame involved. We simply acknowledge that things have gone wrong and then act to make things right, that's all. There should be no negative emotions such as self-blame, anger, and guilt; because such negative emotions drain our positive energy and stop us consciously and unconsciously from achieving positive results.
Live like a Lotus
There is a chinese saying - Lotus can still blossom clean, pure and beautiful despite growing and emerging from a muddy pond. If we were to use this analogy in the context of our life, it means that we can also stay positive and rise up amist the negative people, situations, and circumstances that we are in. Isn't it true?
By executing our Power of Choice and Accountability, we can blossom in life just like the Lotus, that's right. February 13 Success Begins with Believing - Jack CanfieldAnother excellent sharing by Jack Canfield that serves as a good reminder to us, especially in tough times.
Cheers to a Happy, Successful, & Fulfilling year of the Rat!
Success Begins with Believing
by Jack Canfield, America's Success Coach In a previous edition of Success Strategies, I talked about how in order to be successful, we must first define what success means to us, and that means getting CLEAR about what you want, writing it down, and thinking BIG!
If you are going to be successful in creating the life of your dreams, you have to believe that you are capable of making it happen. You have to believe you have the right stuff, that you are able to pull it off. You have to believe in yourself. Whether you call it self-esteem, self-confidence, or self-assurance, it is a deep-seeded belief that you have what it takes - the abilities, inner resources, talents, and skills to create your desired results.
Ultimately, you must learn to control your self-talk, eliminate any negative and limiting beliefs, and maintain a constant state of positive expectations.
Control Your Self-Talk
Researchers have found that the average person thinks as many as 50,000 thoughts a day. Sadly, many of those thoughts are negative -- I'm not management material... I'll never lose weight... It doesn't matter what I do, nothing ever works out for me. This is what psychologists call victim language. Victim language actually keeps you in a victim state of mind. It is a form of self-hypnosis that lulls you into a belief that you are unlovable and incompetent. In order to get what you want from life, you need to give up this victim language and start talking to yourself like a winner -- I can do it... I know there is a solution... I am smart enough and strong enough to figure this out... Everything I eat helps me maintain my perfect body weight.
You Are Always Programming Your Subconscious Mind
Your subconscious mind is like the crew of a ship. You are it's captain. It is your job to give the crew orders. And when you do this, the crew takes everything you say literally. The crew (your subconscious) has no sense of humor. It just blindly follows orders. When you say, "Everything I eat goes straight to my hips," the crew hears that as an order: Take everything she eats, turn it into fat and put it on her hips. On the other hand, if you say, "Everything I eat helps me maintain my perfect body weight," the crew will begin to make that into reality by helping you make better food choices, exercise, and maintain the right metabolism rate for you body. This power of your subconscious mind is the reason you must become very vigilant and pay careful attention to your spoken and internal statements. Unfortunately, most people don't realize they are committing negative self-talk, which is why it is best to enlist another person -- your success partner -- in monitoring each other's speaking. You can have a signal for interrupting each other when you use victim language.
Use Affirmations to Build Self-Confidence
One of the most powerful tools for building worthiness and self-confidence is the repetition of positive statements until they become a natural part of the way you think. These "affirmations" act to crowd out and replace the negative orders you have been sending your crew (your subconscious mind) all these years. I suggest that you create a list of 10 to 20 statements that affirm your belief in your worthiness and your ability to create the life of your dreams. Of course, what to believe is up to you, but here are some examples of affirmations that have worked for others in the past:
I am worthy of love, joy and success.
I am smart and make wise choices. I am loveable and capable. I create anything I want. I am able to solve any problem that comes my way. I can handle anything that life hands me. I have all the energy I need to do everything I want to do. I am attracting all the right people into my life. Believing in Yourself is an Attitude
Believing in yourself is a choice. It's an attitude you develop over time. It's now your responsibility to take charge of your own self-concept and your beliefs. It might help to know that the latest brain research now indicates that with enough positive self-talk and positive visualization combined with the proper training, coaching, and practice, anyone can learn to do almost anything. You must choose to believe that you can do anything you set your mind to - anything at all - because, in fact, you can!
© 2008 Jack Canfield
Jack Canfield, America's Success Coach, is the founder and co-creator of the billion-dollar book brand Chicken Soup for the Soul and a leading authority on Peak Performance. If you're ready to jump-start your life, make more money, and have more fun and joy in all that you do, get your FREE success tips from Jack Canfield now at: www.FreeSuccessStrategies.com
January 30 A Reminder to Give"The act of giving already begins the process of receiving."
I don't exactly know who said this, but my mentor often quotes this in his training workshops and speeches. I have not done any posting on this blog for about 2 months now as I took time to reflect, review, and attend to developments in different aspects of my life. Today, I decided to write the first post for the year after two significant incidents touched me recently.
Within a period of a week, I was involved in extending help to parties involved in two separate traffic accidents. The first one involved a good friend. He was driving on the expressway when a lorry hit him from behind, leaving him with whiplash injury to his neck and back. I accompanied him on two occasions to seek treatment from an acupuncturist whose professional and personal philosophy impressed me.
A Giving Acupuncturist
This acupuncturist travels around the island daily to attend to patients from 8am till past midnight. He does not accept a professional treatment fee, and patients just pay whatever they are comfortable with in red packets. From my understanding, patients usually pay about $5 - $10 per treatment, an amount that I doubt could even cover the cost of the needles. At times, he would receive a parking ticket which he would quietly absorb.
Speaking to this acupuncturist has reminded me that we exist in this world to GIVE ourselves to others. He believes in using his skills to help others recover without expecting something in return. In fact, he sees many of his patients as his friends, and always thinks twice about going for holiday as he would not be able to attend to them while he's away. In him, I see the true spirit of giving. When we truly give, we will be given. The universe will take care of whoever truly gives.
Help When You Can
The second incident occured just yesterday. I was driving on the expressway with a friend when we saw a motorcyclist lying on the extreme right lane, bleeding from nose and mouth. Seeing that no one was attending to him, we promptly stopped to help. My friend who has a medical training background immediately rendered first aid while I called for the ambulance and answered the victim's mobile phone, doing my best to provide critical information and put his relatives at ease.
It was the first time I had stopped to render assistance to an accident victim. The victim was seriously injured and bleeding at the nose and mouth in a semi-conscious state. My friend helped to clear his airway so that he could breathe as we waited for the paramedics to arrive. Shortly after, the paramedics arrived and took over. After informing the victim's relatives which hospital would he be sent too, we left the scene.
Honestly, I don't know whether I would have stopped if my friend had not asked me too. However, both of us left the scene feeling glad that we have lent a hand to someone in distress. At this moment, I just pray that the victim is doing well and recovering.
Is there someone whom you could give or lend a helping hand to? Go ahead and give what you can without expectations, because "the act of giving already begins the process of receiving"........ November 25 7 Days in ParisBoujour! Just spent 7 days in Paris for business and touched down in Singapore only at 7am this morning after a 12-hour flight. It was 7 days of work, interaction with participants from around the globe, lots of wine (it's a practice to drink at every meal), and some rest & relax on Eiffel Tower and along the famous Champs-Elysées (street famous for boutiques and branded stuffs like Louis Vutton).
Weather was pretty cold, temperature of 0 degree celsius when I arrived. Having gotten used to a temperature of 0 to 5 degree celsius in the past week, our current local weather seems rather warm; kind of missing the cool weather and good wine in Paris
 Eiffel was indeed a very breathtaking sight (see photos), and dining on it was a great pleasure. The walk along the well-known Champs-Elysées saw many people nicely dressed in trench coats, scarfs, leather boots, suits etc. We chanced upon a very nice restaurant on one of the side streets and had a sumptous dinner that consisted of a wide spread of starters, huge portions of main courses, desserts, and not forgetting two bottles of very fine wine.
As you know, my blog entries always come with some inspirational sharing, and so will be my entires on Paris. During this first trip to the beautiful city, there were several new experiences and encounters from which I have drawn learning points. So in the next few days, I will be sharing them on this blog, do come back to learn more about what I saw, heard, and felt in Paris. Meanwhile, enjoy the photos taken (more will be posted next week).
Merci beaucoup! (Thank you very much!)
November 08 Allow yourself to be happyHi friends,
It's been a month since I last posted an entry in this motivational blog, my apologies. With 15 days of business trip coming up in the next 2 weeks, I guess I better do some sharing in case you start to wonder if Jensen's blog has been closed.
How does this month look on your calendar? I will be heading to Malaysia and then to Paris for business. This is my first trip to this romantic and beautiful city, and I am looking forward to a hosted dinner on Eiffel Tower on one of the evenings. Though it's going to be a long flight, it's a great comfort to know that I will be flying with the best airline and our regular client, Singapore Airlines.
The past few weeks have been very fruitful for me. Besides conducting training for corporate clients, coaching individuals, I attended quite a number of workshops myself. In fact, I am in the mist of a 3-day Advanced Counselling Workshop conducted by Psychologists and Psychiatrists. With my keen interest in Psychology, I am sure this comes as no surprise to those who know me.
Now is the time to go into the core of this blog entry, I would like to share about a very impactful and enlightening workshop that I attended over the past weekend. It's called Psychology of Vision, a psychological workshop that deals with unresolved issues in the subconscious and unconscious mind. In this 2-day workshop that was attended by over 100 people in their early 20s to their 70s, we focused on what I would say is the most important link in our lives - our relationship with our parents.
You may not believe this. Many people shed volumes of tears as they shared, dealt with, and tried to resolve issues in their relationships with their parents. These issues have been deeply suppressed from childhood and are often the root of the problems in our lives today. Counsellors and psychologists would tell you that many times, a current problem is a result of unresolved psychological issues in the past. These could be in the form of guilt from a past mistake, phobia from a traumatic experience, loss of self-esteem due failures, self-blame after the passing of a loved one etc.
When we do not acknowledge and deal with these unresolved negative emotions, and yet continue to suppress them inside us, we may still be able to lead our lives. However, now and then, these negative emotions will surface to affect us following a trigger in the form of an event, extreme stress, or words others say. These negative emotions could also affect us by burdening our personal growth, our relationships with others, our career success, our finance, and our happiness in life.
Can't really comprehend? Here's a simple example to illustrate:
John did not do well in school when he was young. Although he was reasonably hardworking, his grades weren't good. Over his childhood and teenage years, he had flunk tests and examinations and his parents were greatly disappointed. Today, John is in his 30s and trying very hard to carve out a career for himself with little success. He often faces obstacles and challenges that seem too insurmountable.
A possible psychological reasoning could be that deep within himself, he "believes" that he is not-good-enough to succeed (because of his childhood failures in studies) and he blames himself for having disappointed his parents and causing them pain. John's lack of success in his career now could be his unconsious way of punishing himself for hurting his parents in the past. If so, he needs to forgive himself and reconcile at a deep heart-to-heart level with his parents. Only then could he move on in life to achieve success and happiness.
Over the past several years, I have benefitted a lot from my studying and experiencing with the field of Psychology, be it in Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), Psychology of Vision (POV), Time Line Therapy, Hypnosis, Power of the Subconscious Mind, Counselling Techniques etc. I have learnt a lot about myself, my past, and my present. I have recognized and dealt with several unresolved negative emotions from my past and am continuing to do so. Today, in my personal and professional capacity, I am also glad to have the privilege to share with and coach others in dealing with their negative emotions. Let's all work toward living a life of happiness filled with abundance of love, health, and wealth.
2007 is coming to an end very soon. Let's take some time to look within ourselves to search for at least one unresolved issue from the past that has been bothering us, whether consciously or unconsciously. This step certainly requires courage. Be brave, be honest, and be kind to yourself. Allow yourself to cry to release a suppressed grief in the past, to say sorry to someone whom you have hurt, to hug your parents whom you love and tell them "I love you", to forgive your life partner whom you truly treasure, to forgive yourself and dissolve the guilt from a past mistake, and to allow yourself to be yourself and be happy.
Happy Holiday and Deepavali. October 05 "Facing The Giants"Have you watched the movie "Facing The Giants"? I watched it on DVD last evening and felt extremely inspired and moved by the movie. Here's a sypnosis taken from the DVD:
"In his six years of high school football, coach Grant Taylor has never led his Shiloh Eagles to a winning season. When faced with seemingly insurmountable professional and personal crises, the idea of giving up has never come easier. It's only after an unexpected visitor challenges him to trust in the power of faith that he discovers the strength to persevere."
Throughout the 111 minutes of the show, I saw many scenes of what I have always been sharing in my training workshops and motivational speeches. I felt so glad that I had picked the DVD off the library shelf to enjoy for the evening, and to be empowered.
In the movie, you would find several references to Christianity. Being a non-Christian, I still found it to be a very touching and empowering watch. To me, those references were pointing toward Life, Faith, and Giving of oneself.
As I watched the movie, I took down some notes for personal learning, among which is this very motivational story:
"There are two farmers who needed rain desperately. Both prayed for it, but only one went out to prepare to receive it. Who do you think trusted god to bring the rain? - The one who prepared for it of course. Which side are you on? God will bring the rain when he is ready, you got to prepare your field to receive it."
My personal interpretation of this story:
God is whoever we define him to be. Whatever it is that we are pursuing will be brought to us by the POWER of FAITH, PERSEVERANCE, & PREPARATION. The question is, when the "rain" (desired outcome) is brought to you, are you still on the field? Or have you given up and moved to somewhere else?
Do watch this movie about life. I give it a 5-star rating. See www.FacingTheGiants.com
September 29 When Success is Slow, What Can You Do? - Jack CanfieldJack Canfield is one of my favourite Success Coaches. Below is his recent sharing in his "Success Strategies" enewsletter that I believe will help us continue on our route toward success, whatever we define it to be....... Enjoy this empowerment by Jack, cheers!
When Success is Slow, What Can You Do?
by Jack Canfield Pop Quiz: Can success be sped up? Is there an antidote to slow outcomes despite arduous planning and actions taken? What is the secret for seeing huge results right now?!
I get versions of these questions frequently from people who feel frustrated at sluggish progress in their success journey - despite all the know-how and principles they rigorously employ. First, let's get one thing straight... When we admire someone's success, or even our own, we often focus on the end result and not so much on the effort (and time) that it took to get there. This can cultivate unrealistic expectations, especially the idea that overnight success can happen through careful strategy and an execution of sound advice. The truth be told, success typically follows a series of little events and achievements that can seem to take an eternity, that include a few disappointments along the way, and that challenge everything about you to the core - your stamina, courage, integrity, and even your willingness to keep going. If you focus on what's not working, guess what: You're likely coming from a place of aggravation as your mind wraps around all that is wrong. You may even have negative thoughts like "I'm not good enough," "It will never work," or "Something must be wrong with me." What this mentally does is engender more of these counter-productive feelings. And given what we know about the Law of Attraction, you attract what you are feeling. So negative experiences, people, and results will beget more negative experience, people, and results. There's not much success in that. The key, then, is to focus on what IS working. To do so, I recommend two simple practices: journaling and meditation. Maintaining a journal (I call it an Evidence Log, Results Journal, or Gratitude Journal) is a great way to steer your attention to the positive and continually renew your vision for yourself. Start each day with reflections on what you are grateful for in your life (list them out!) and end each day with notes on what went right (again, write them down), however small. Meditation can be powerful tool for arriving at solutions to problems and shifting your attitude so you can attract success sooner rather than later. The magic of meditation is its ability to essentially shut down the outer layer of your judgmental, highly-critical brain and allow your unconscious mind to take over. This is where you enter a deeper state of inner peace and joy, tapping into a higher level of creativity that will help usher in the results you want. Don't know how to meditate? Lots of books and materials are available to guide you this practice. It's easier than you think. Okay, let's say you're doing ALL these things, but you still aren't happy with your results. I'll ask you, are you taking real ACTION? You may be taking the actions you are used to taking. But therein lies the problem: if you keep doing what you've already done then you'll keep getting what you've always gotten. It's a matter of practicing some new behaviors. Shake things up a bit and see if you can take new actions or modify existing ones. Remember the Rule of 5. Every day do five specific things that take you toward your goal. Change up the five actions regularly and be open to feedback so you know when you're off course. Lastly, I want to remind you about patience. It's natural to underestimate how long a certain goal can take, especially a profound one. When I set a goal to become a millionaire the year was 1983. How long did it take? Eleven years. It took time for Chicken Soup for the Soul to hit the bestseller lists. You could say our tenure on the New York Times list was more than a decade in the making. That's a lot of patience for someone who initially wanted overnight success. So, yes, patience is a virtue. But keep at it, and in no time, you'll be only one week, or one day away from your ultimate success. Remember... be grateful, reflect on what IS working and continue to take ACTION! © 2007 Jack Canfield Jack Canfield, America's Success Coach, is the founder and co-creator of the billion-dollar book brand Chicken Soup for the Soul and a leading authority on Peak Performance. If you're ready to jump-start your life, make more money, and have more fun and joy in all that you do, get your FREE success tips from Jack Canfield now at: www.FreeSuccessStrategies.com September 13 Is your strategy working?Late last evening, I was coaching an entrepreneur who was telling me about his business challenges and such. We spoke for more than an hour on a number of issues, among which were the difficulties he encountered in his business, how he has been trying to bring in sales, and the business model and strategies he has been adopting.
Using a variety of NLP techniques, I coached him to see that certain of his beliefs and strategies were working against him, yet he has still been using them in the past year he's been in business. There were some occassions where he adopted a different strategy and brought in positive results. However, he still went back to those strategies that didn't work because of some of his beliefs.
You must be thinking - how ironical. That's right. It is indeed ironical when sometimes we choose to use ineffective strategies or continue to function ineffectively because of certain beliefs even though results are not showing. But the truth is many people are doing that.
We use the same strategy in everything we do everytime we do it; be it studying, working, cooking, teaching children, buying big ticket items, driving, courting, shopping etc. There are times where strategies work and thus replicating them makes sense. But for those strategies that are not working, shouldn't we change them?
Let's look within ourselves today to see which are the strategies that we should retain, and which are those that we should discard. By doing this, we could replicate success over and over again. August 27 Breakthrough with NLP!"Breakthroughs! Breakthroughs! Breakthroughs!" is how I would describe what I saw in many people last week in KL. They were all participants of our training company's Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) Practitioner & Coach Certification program, taught by our International Speaker/Master Trainer Dr Billy Kueek, a Certified NLP Trainer with the American Board of NLP (ABNLP).
Within a span of 5 days, participants learnt highly empowering techniques to create the difference and breakthroughs in themselves and others. They defined their personal life goals, eliminated bad habits, overcame addictions, resolved internal psychological conflicts etc. Let me share some examples on the breakthroughs that I witnessed (real names protected):
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