6 things you should consider when taking up a home loan in Malaysia

To the common folk, choosing a home loan is almost as hard as choosing the property itself. If you’re currently in the midst of shopping for a home loan to buy the house of your dream, here are six things you should consider before making what could arguably be the biggest financial decision of your life.

1) Type of home loan

First and foremost, consider what works best for you: a traditional term loan or a flexible home loan (“flexi-loan”). A traditional term loan requires you to pay a fixed amount each month for the entire tenure of your home loan (eg. 30 years), while a flexi-loan gives you the option of reducing your interest whenever you wish (i.e. by saving your extra money into a linked current account. The more you save, the less interest you pay).

If you have a strict and predictable cash-flow pattern, a traditional term loan may be best. If you prefer flexibility in paying off your loan, a flexi-loan is recommended. 

2) Interest rate

As of all loans, your priority should probably go to the bank that offers you the lowest interest rate. Citing an example for a home loan of RM500,000 over a period of 30 years, the difference in interest between an interest rate of 4.2% and 4.15% (i.e. a mere 0.05%) could be well over RM5,000! To find out which bank offers the best home loan interest rate, iMoney.my provides a home loan comparison table.

3) Margin of financing (how much you can borrow)

Depending on various factors which include the value of the property as well as your standing with the bank, different banks may offer you different margins of financing. As you’ll be required to pay any amount not covered by the home loan upfront, this becomes very important especially if you’re short on cash.

As an example: for a RM500,000 house, you’ll need to pay RM100,000 upfront if your Margin of Financing is 80%; but you’ll only need to pay RM50,000 upfront if your Margin of Financing is 90%. 

4) Lock-in period

Lock-in period is the period you’ll incur a penalty (usually 2-3% of the principle loan amount) if you choose to pay off your home loan in full before it reaches the end of its tenure. When it comes to choosing a home loan, it pays to have a lock-in period that is as short as possible with a penalty that is as low as possible. Also, some banks do not charge a penalty at all if sufficient notice is given. Again, iMoney provides a table comparing lock-in periods of all Malaysian banks.

5) Fees & charges

A home loan application involves professional and government-regulated processes such as preparation and disbursement of loan agreement, payment of stamp duty and processing by the bank, just to name a few. All these processes usually come with fees and charges that will be borne by you, the buyer.

In certain cases, it may also be wholly or partly borne by the banks as part of your loan packages. Hence, is it best to sit down with the loan officers (for all the banks you are considering taking your home loan from) and have them run through the fees and charges with you. The task may be repetitive and time-consuming… but it’ll be time well spent.

6) The bank

Lastly, understand that you’ll be dealing with the bank on a very frequent basis for as long as your home loan is in effect (which may be 20 to 30 years). With that in mind, you should probably choose a bank you are very comfortable with. Some of the things you may wish to think about include:

·         Do you have an existing savings or current account with the bank (for ease of inter-account transfer)?

·         Are you satisfied with their standard of service?

·         Is a local branch available near your home or office?

·         Do you consider the bank to be trustworthy and reliable?

·         Does the bank offer value-added services that will make your life easier for the long haul?

·         How is the bank’s reputation as a whole?

·         Does the bank provide online banking facilities which allow you to pay your instalments easily?

·         Is your loan officer approachable, so that you can phone him or her anytime you have a question?

Bearing all these matters in mind, good luck in finding your next home loan and we hope that you have a smooth and beneficial relationship with the bank which provides you that loan.

This article by www.iMoney.my which compares between the various loans, savings and insurance schemes available in Malaysia.

Home Loan Explained

 

Extracted from http://www.imoney.my/home-loan

Buying a house is probably the most important purchase you’ll ever make. Your home loan is likely to be not only your biggest household expense, but the largest financial commitment of your lifetime. For this reason, we’ve compiled a short guide to explain how a home loan works, and what you need to know before you apply for a home loan.

What is a home loan?

To put it simply, a home loan is a loan used to purchase property. Home loans are also commonly referred to as “mortgages”. In Malaysia, home loans are available from banks, building societies or specialist mortgage lenders.
If you already have an existing home loan and want to change to another product or lender without moving home, it is known as a “refinancing”.

How do home loans in Malaysia work?

When you take out a home loan in Malaysia, you enter into an agreement with the lender (usually a bank) and promise to repay your loan over an agreed length of time (also known as the “loan tenure”).
Interest rates for housing loans in Malaysia are usually quoted as a percentage below the Base Lending Rate (BLR). For example, if the current BLR is 6.6%, the interest rate on a “BLR - 2.4%” loan would be 4.2%.

In a typical Malaysian home loan, you make monthly payments for an agreed period (i.e. the loan tenure) until you’ve fully repaid both the principal of the loan and the interest. During the early years of the home loan, the majority of your monthly repayments are used to repay interest on the loan, however, as time passes, a larger proportion of your repayments will go into paying down the loan principle.

Because your housing loan interest is calculated based on what you owe on your home loan each month, by paying a little bit extra each month, the interest on your loan in subsequent months will be lower.

Some factors you need to be aware of when you choose a home loan

Margin of Financing: the margin of financing is also known as the loan-to-value ratio. The margin of financing is the amount of your home loan expressed as a percentage of the property’s value. The lower the margin of financing, the more “equity” there is in the property.

The margin of financing could go as high as 95% (of the value of the house), and is assessed on factors such as:
1) Type of property
2) Location of property
3) Age of the borrower
4) Income of the borrower

Early Termination Penalty: Some mortgage lenders may apply an early termination penalty if the loan is paid off in part or in full within a specified time period, including if you refinance the loan with another lender. This specified time period where you are liable to pay an early termination penalty is called the “lock-in period”. Depending on the term and size of your home loan, this charge can be quite significant.

Home Loan Fees & Charges: There are a number of related costs (such as professional fees and government charges) that you would have to pay when you take out a home loan. Some common fees and charges you would expect to incur include:

1) Stamp duties: Sale & Purchase Agreement (0.5% to 1.0%), Loan Agreement (0.5%) and Transfer of Title (1.0% to 2.0%)
2) Disbursement Fees: varies by state, land office and type of property
3) Processing Fees: one time charge by the lenders (up to a few hundred ringgit).

Common Home Loan Terms

Base Lending Rate (BLR): The BLR is a reference interest rate used by banks to decide how much to charge for various products they offer. It is a rate that takes into account banks’ cost of operations, and is typically similar among the major banks. In Malaysia, home loans are normally quoted as a percentage above or below the BLR. This means, if the BLR increases or decreases by a certain amount, the interest rates charged on floating rate home loans also increase or decrease by the same amount.

Downpayment: An upfront payment made by the buyer of a house or car (or other highly priced goods/services). Downpayments are typically expressed as a percentage of the full purchase price. For example, a 5% downpayment of a RM500,000 home is RM25,000.

Foreclosure: A foreclosure happens when the bank repossesses your property and attempts to sell it in order to settle the outstanding amount on your home loan. This usually happens when you fail to pay your home loan.

Loan Tenure: This means "period" or "number of years". If a home loan has a "tenure" of 30 years, it usually means it would take 30 years to fully pay off the loan.

Mortgage Reducing Term Assurance (MRTA): This is a type of mortgage insurance. An MRTA provides protection for an outstanding loan amount (usually a home loan), in the event of death or total permanent disability of the person insured. The amount of protection reduces over time, and normally matches the outstanding loan amount.

Prepayment (of house loan): Fully or partially paying off your (home) loan before it is due.

Can the developer confiscate your booking fee?

I found my dream house. The developer’s office said the project was selling like hot cakes. Sales were on a first come first serve basis’ and I must pay a deposit otherwise she would have to give it to someone else. Or was it a booking fee she called it?
I begged her to give me one week. Three days, she said. How very sweet and understanding of her. Bank loan? No problem… 85% loan margin? No problem, she assured me. If I could not get a housing loan I could always cancel and get my money back. I left the developer’s office feeling on top of the world. I had secured my dream house by paying the deposit. My dream turned into a nightmare when I could not get a bank loan. I had no choice but to forgo the house.
As if letting go of my dream was not bad enough, the developer now refuses to give me back my deposit. The lady said her hands were tight because it’s a management decision. It was not stated in the option letter’ or booking form’ that my purchase was subject to the loan approval. On reading the terms and conditions in the option letter/booking form, I now realised that all terms were inclined in favour of the developer.
What do I do? I just want my money back. I don’t mind if they keep a small sum for cost of paper work and for administrative purposes.

The above scenario is not at all uncommon.

Many house buyers are unaware of lending guidelines requiring loans to be tagged to net income as opposed to gross income. Many find that they are unable to obtain the financing they want and have to withdraw from an intended purchase before the sale and purchase agreement is even signed. The developer then refuses to refund the deposit or booking fee or whatever other payment which may have already been paid.
The unfortunate part about this whole thing is that house buyers do not have the luxury of a learning curve in which they can acquire the necessary skills to avoid getting themselves into trouble. Very often by the time they realised that they have made a mistake, it is already too late and the result can be traumatic and financially crippling.
This very noble and seemingly simple undertaking of buying a house, in a lot of cases, have gone terribly wrong.

Can developers collect booking fee or deposit?

The sale and purchase agreement (Schedule G, H, I or J) as prescribed by the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Regulations, 1989 (the Housing Regulations) provides very clearly how the purchase price is to be paid. The first 10% is payable immediately upon the signing of the sale and purchase agreement (SPA), not before.
No collection of any payment is allowed before the SPA is signed. Deposit, booking fee, advance payment, administration charges are just some of terms used by some devious developers in their vain attempts to circumvent or contract out of the Housing Regulations and to confuse, mislead and convince nave house buyers especially the first-timers.

Collection of any payment by a housing developer before the signing of the SPA is an offence. This is very clear under the Housing Regulations and it does not matter what the developer calls it.
The Housing Regulation 11(2) stated: “No housing developer shall collect any payment by whatever name called except as prescribed by the contract of sale”. (In this context’ contract of sale means the SPA)

Commission of such an offence under the Housing Regulations means that the developer in question can be prosecuted, fined and/or even imprisoned under Regulations 13. Even those persons who knowingly and willfully aids, abets, counsel, procures or commands the commission of such an offence shall be liable to be punished.

Prosecution, however, is in the hands of the public prosecutor whose action or non-action the house buyers are not able to dictate. House buyers and indeed the general public are of course at liberty to lodge a complaint against any developer in breach of any housing laws. Such complaints can be lodged with the Enforcement Division of the Ministry of Housing and Local Government: www.kpkt.gov.my
The law as regards non-payment before the signing of the SPA is very clear and house buyers are strongly urged to understand the law and not be misled by some cunning, unscrupulous developers or their smooth talking sales representatives who either do not know the law or simply do not care about the law.

Profit orientated developers care about nothing but profit. The more they sell the more they gain. They engage marketing commission agents and sales representatives whose only mission is to sell. In their quest to sell their products, some unprincipled commission agents (secondary markets included), who are untruthful will not hesitate to mislead, conveniently telling “white lies” and make empty promises to make a quick buck. Some are so well trained in the art of selling they can probably sell sand to the man in the desert.

Ever wondered why the sales office told you there are only five units left but three months later there are more than 10 units still available? Did the developer’s office tell you the unit you want is already booked but called you two days later to congratulate you because the same unit has just become available? Ever gone to a developer’s office in the hope of getting the “Early Bird Discount” advertised the day before only to find that the project was launched more than a year ago?

Filing a claim for refund
Free gifts, rebates, and waivers of this or that are also fairly commonly seen and are often stated to be for a limited time only. House buyers hurry to meet the deadline. Three months later the same advertisement appears, again for a limited time only or perhaps extended due to popular demand. Gimmicks of “Free legal fees” offer but you must use the developer’s panel lawyers are commonly marketed.
The list of marketing ploys used by developers and their marketing alliance goes on and unscrupulous developers and real estate agents are not likely to stop trying to exploit vulnerable house buyers any time soon. House buyers must therefore be very wary and not be easily swayed by promises made by the developer’s office.

House buyers who are already caught in tussles with housing developers over refund of booking fee or deposit are at liberty to file their claims at the Tribunal for Homebuyer Claims (the Housing Tribunal). The Housing Tribunal was set up as an alternative forum for house buyers to save them the costs and hassle of fighting with housing developers in the civil courts.

The filing fee is only RM10; no lawyers are required and hearings are normally fixed within a month. The Housing Tribunal is empowered to hear disputes between house buyers and licensed housing developers even though the SPA is yet to be signed but the claims must be filed within the time frames provided under section 16N of the Housing Development (Control & Licensing) Act 1966 (the HDA). Check out the link: www.kpkt.gov.my TTPR

Can the developer forfeit such payment?

Where booking fee or deposit or any other payment is collected by the developer before the SPA is signed, the house buyer would normally have been asked to sign a document indicating the house/apartment/condominium he/she is interested and agreeing to sign the SPA within a certain time frame, say 7 or 10 days or upon notice from the developer. This document may be in the form of an option letter, letter of offer, sales proforma, booking form or another document by whatever name the developer chooses to call it, all in an attempt to disguise a collection prohibited by law.

The amount varies and in some cases it is as much as 2% of the purchase price RM10,000 for a RM500,000 house. When the house buyer decides to withdraw from the intended purchase, the developer refuses to refund the deposit, or was it booking fee, or was it …?

Written by Chang Kim Loong is the honorary secretary-general of the National House Buyers Association: www.hba.org.my, a non-profit, non-governmental organisation manned by volunteers.

What makes a great business or organisation even greater?

It takes two to make anything happen Organisations and talents should know that unless either one is contented with the other, neither one will have a chance of being as great as it believes it can be

What makes a great organisation even greater?

The common answer to that is its people. And what makes a great talent greater? Obvious you might say, to be in an organisation that they can best showcase their skills. Whilst the debate continues on who deserves the credit for making either successful, the fact remains that neither an organisation nor a talent can achieve its objectives one without the other.

We are privileged to be in a position to witness the evolving expectations that organisations and talents have in their quest to find the best. The middle ground can sometimes be a blur when both parties fail to listen to the silent whispers of expectations from either side. The line of purposeful work that we do allows us to have a first-hand view of the common expectations that organisations and talents strive to find as their dream talent or dream organisation.

I am sure it doesn't cross the mind of many that there is more to finding a fitting organisation besides compensation and benefits.

We still encounter organisations that believe that if they provide the basic necessities to their employees, all is fair and well. Perhaps, in the early 20th century, that would have been sufficient and fair. However, in the present era, that would not be acceptable.

The last few decades have presented an evolving market from the East to the West, Asia has become literally the place to be; technology has advanced learning and the availability of instant information; new generations have a different view of work and life is now immersed in our workforce.

So, it's of no surprise that talented employees of the generation now' are looking out for the overall package in their organisation of choice.

l Impact to something greater

It's more prevalent that there is a growing desire to do work that makes a difference, if not all the time, then at least most of the time; a contribution that is seen to be worthy to the world through organisations that operate with special attention towards their customers, community, the planet and making a difference.

The organisation builds a culture that encourages work by their employees that serve a purpose; the teams in the organisation would constantly demonstrate commitment towards bettering the clients, even if their suggestions may not be taken into consideration.

Whatever the outcome, the employees feel that they have the ability to make a difference and do work that can create an impact.

Some go as far as expecting to work with organisations that display a sense of responsibility towards issues beyond their bottom line.

Growth of the organisation
Besides being a part of an organisation that is stable, there is growing interest amongst employees to be a part of an organisation that has shown progress and growth. Growth is viewed as the organisation's development, either through successful acquisitions or its evolvement with a cohesive story while capturing market opportunities.

 A further expectation is that the organisation has the ability to be forward-looking coupled with the capacity to consistently deliver on its promises, with an integrity compass in check.

Affiliation and a sense of belonging

Employees today want to be associated with colleagues who are deemed as outstanding, either stars in their areas of expertise or great minds. The interest to work in a collaborative environment with highly capable individuals is seen to be challenging, stimulating and incredibly rewarding.

Employees find themselves learning and growing in such an environment, nudging them to constantly raise the bar for themselves, whilst forming a strong bond with high achievers.

Coupled with that is the ability of the employees to feel a part of the organisation. They want to be able to assimilate to the culture and feel a sense of belonging. Employees feel that it's critical to be a part of an organisation where they feel accepted and welcomed in order to be successful.

An organisation with the ability to present itself as a place that enlists the best talents and is able to make employees feel a sense of acceptance is perceived to be the place to be.

 l Career opportunities
Exposure, learning or development is deemed to open doors for many employees today. We've gathered that being with an organisation that has continuous opportunities for their employees provides a sense of stability and encourages employees to have a reassuring view of the organisation.

The CARE factor
Although I've touched on this earlier, to recap, the care factor is specifically manifested through the organisation via its employees, partners, and even leaders who go out of their way to make life better for its employees.

The culture encourages fair treatment policies, transparent communication, fun at the work place and teamwork. It can be seen that the management practices an open-door policy and make themselves available to listen to their co-workers' concerns and requests, almost all the time, while work-life balance is understood and respected.

The leader
We've heard the phrase people join organisations but leave their leaders' before and many would agree that this still holds true. We have observed that there have been many instances when employees trail their leaders to a new organisation, only to prove that loyalty to leaders who make a difference does exist.

 There is more interest amongst employees today to know more about the leaders within the organisation even before joining them by conducting their own references within the market place.

Employees today are keen to work for leaders who have the depth, insight, foresight and a heart in leading teams to success.

Many of the organisations that we work with time and time again remind us that finding the right talent with the X' factor is becoming far more challenging. Nevertheless, there is insight into what organisations feel is a talent worth fighting over.

Intellectual depth and competence
In a majority of studies, it is evident that the productivity and contribution of an employee is determined by his or her level of intelligence and competence. This is defined as the ability to plan, organise, set priorities, solve problems and execute tasks. It is also seen in the employee's level of common sense and practical ability to deal with the day-to-day challenges of the role.

Personable nature
Organisations too want employees who care; they believe that people who are warm, friendly, easygoing and cooperative with others can help instil a healthy culture of care and concern within the workplace.

Organisations want employees who can immerse in a team and be part of the work family. It is also quite natural that employees with good personalities are invariably more popular and able to rally the support of their teammates.

Leadership ability
Leadership skills should not only be visible when someone is in a leadership role. Organisations today want these characteristics even before the role has been presented to the employee. It is demonstrated by the willingness and the desire of the employee to accept responsibility for results, their ability to take charge, volunteer for assignments, and accept accountability for achieving the required results of their assignments.

Integrity
Integrity is probably the most important quality that has surfaced time and time again for organisations today. It has been viewed as a business expectation aligning them to the company's values in serving their customers. The characteristics in judging integrity stem from being honest in relationships with others, the ability to admit to weaknesses and strengths and the ability to admit when mistakes have been made.

Courage
As shocking as this may seem, organisations are also looking for employees who are willing to take calculated risks. Calculated risks are a result of well-balanced decision-making derived by weighing the positive or negative consequences of the risk at hand. The courage to do so is displayed in the willingness of the employee to accept challenges, the willingness to take on larger assignments or even new opportunities where there is a high degree of uncertainty and the possibility of failure.

Courage also means the willingness to speak up and say exactly what you think and feel in a difficult situation even if it may ruffle some feathers.

Resilience and emotional strength
Inner strength means that employees have the ability and determination to persevere in the face of adversity. It requires the quality of persistence during tough times. Organisations view this as a potential upside when employees have the resilience to undertake the highs and the lows of the assignment unwaveringly. This characteristic is hardly built over time, it requires specific development to bounce back in the face of adversity and emotional strength to overcome it.

No doubt, both organisations and talents will have to accept the inevitable fact that unless either one is contented with the other, neither one will have a chance of being as great as they believe they can be. There must be continuous efforts by both parties to meet the evolving expectations of each other; it will take two to create something greater! My humble view is to keep changing to adapt to the surrounding expectations or risk being extinct. Is that not what progress is all about?

Melissa Norman is managing director of Kelly Services Malaysia

Leaders always execute and get things done

Mission accomplished
Datuk Lee Choong Yan, President of Genting, shared stories of numerous occasions early in his career, where he had to work hard and execute. His ability to execute was the determining factor on his performance and success. It sounds so easy, but the ability to get things done, is one of the most treasured acts in business.
Just like many of you, I battle distraction and am overwhelmed by numerous tasks and opportunities daily. There is always a torrent of attention-grabbing things tempering my curiosity. A rib-tickling YouTube video, a thought-provoking article, 500 emails a day and never-ending meetings. There is never enough time to do “real work”.
This battle for execution is one that I wage daily. And it never ends. Yet, it is this battle that needs to be won. Great leaders not only triumph over distractions, they succeed and get real work done. They understand that the art of getting things done.

A study from Fortune reveals that 70% of CEOs failure is the result of CEOs not taking action. What actions did these CEOs fail to take? By not getting things done, by being indecisive, by not delivering on commitments and by bad execution.

Charles Schwab rose from laborer to the executive ranks through his ability to execute. “Schwab was not an originator, he was a builder”, commented his boss Andrew Carnegie. Schwab once told a story of a highly talent mill manager who worked for him who just could not get his mill to produce fully. The manager tried everything he could but failed.

Schwab went over at the end of the day, took a piece of chalk and asked the day supervisor “How many heats has your shift made today?” The supervisor answered “Six”. He chalked a big “6” on the floor, and then passed along without another word. When the night shift came in they saw the “6” and asked about it.
“The big boss was in here today,” said the day men. “He asked us how many heats we had made, and we told him six. He chalked it down.”

The next morning Schwab passed through the same mill and saw that the “6” had been rubbed out and a big “7” written instead. The night shift had surpassed the day shift. That night he went back and the “7” had been erased, and a “10” paraded itself. He had somehow created a competition among the night and day shift without a single word. This went on for months until the mill, formerly the poorest mill, became the highest performing plant of all. He somehow managed to get it done.

The best leaders, like Schwab, know how to ensure work gets done. So, do great companies. In the 80s and 90s, Toyota produced better results than General Motors (GM) because it executed better.

Execution is critical

The number one enemy of any strategy is poor execution. Dell's business model and strategy is public property yet few have been able to replicate it. The reason, according to Michael Dell, founder of Dell, on why his “direct business model” continues to work, is because “we execute it. It's all about execution.” Southwest Airlines has been profitable every year for the past 30 years. Its' strategy is known, yet like Dell, no company has successfully copied its execution. Walmart won for years through the power of its ruthless execution, becoming the world's largest store.

Banking is great example of execution determining success. Most retail banks have strategies that are practically indistinguishable. Their strategies generally revolve around targeting and engaging the same customers, having world-class service and relationship management, innovative product development, and risk management. Yet, there are winners and losers in banking. The winners: Banks that distinguish themselves by the quality of their execution.

The windows of opportunities open and shut much quicker than ever before. Customers today expect everything from service to resolving their problems instantly. Delay is not acceptable, is costly and can destroy businesses. The best leaders never procrastinate. They possess an innate drive that values speed and action to complete a task.

Ideas are critical. Businesses get created through the development of innovative products that aid people, resolve problems, create value and are scalable. Yet, there will always be more good ideas than the capacity to execute them. Yet this capacity to execute will determine if a good idea ends up as a product in the market or dies an unlived life.

Having an idea is meaningless unless someone steps in and does some work. That separates an idea from an actual innovation. But taking action is pretty tough. It requires decisions to happen, products to be made, politics to be navigated through and budgets to fought for. It all boils down to execution.

Years ago, HP hired Carly Fiorina, as CEO to take the company forward with new innovative ideas and a bold new direction. She set in place the greatest merger in history and planned to have innovative new products from this merger. Seven years later, the merger failed and she was fired. New CEO Mark Hurd came in and pulled a great turnaround through ruthless execution and no-nonsense discipline.

He cut expenses, improved efficiencies and put the right people into key roles, driving operating results in the process.
Learn to execute

Mark Douglas, an expert trader said, “The proper execution of your trades is one of the most fundamental components of becoming a successful trader and probably the most difficult to learn. Most traders find it is much easier to identify an opportunity, than it is to act upon it.” The same applies to all fields. Making opportunities a reality requires discipline and focus.

The key problem is habitual. Taking action is painful and forces us to do stuff, requiring discipline. Most of us hate discipline as prefer to remain in our comfort zones.

The trick is to start at the beginning stage of a task. Starting is very hard so start immediately. Start working on your to-do list the moment you wake up and don't procrastinate. Once you get one task done, even if it is a seemingly insignificant task, adds momentum to your day. This is first lesson on getting things done: Don't wait for a perfect opportunity. Just Do It Now.

Everyone can learn execution. There is no secret ingredient. It's all about hard work and discipline, but it can be mastered. Here are my top 10 ways on how to master getting things done:

1. Win the early morning battle daily. Resist the temptation to get sucked into checking email or wasting time in meaningless work. A quick win in the morning sets the right tone for determining how the rest of the day plays out.
2. Make a list of the tasks you need to accomplish. Assign realistic priorities to each task (due today, tomorrow, next Friday etc). Work on your MITs (most important tasks).
3. Work on small portions of each task daily. Don't wait till its near due date to complete the task. When you hit a wall, stop working on the task and work on another task. Don't watch TV or go on Facebook. Keep working on another task instead.
4. Eat the Cockroach: Do your most unpleasant task first. If the first thing you do in the morning is “eat a cockroach”, the day can only get better from then on.
5. Work in intervals and then take a break by rewarding yourself with a chocolate (or a healthier snack!) and then return to finish another portion of work. Make sure you decide upfront on your intervals to work and your timing for the break and stick to that decision.
6. During your break, reassess where you are and see if there is a new perspective you can bring to the work for the next interval.
7. Always keep track of your progress. Cross things off the list as they are completed. It will give you a good sense of achievement and motivate you to complete all other tasks.
8. Be Clear About your end goal. Reassess your execution list daily. Rewrite and reprioritise as needed. The clearer the end goal is, the easier it is to get moving. Always ask yourself “What needs to be done next to move this project forward?”
9. Leverage technology to complete tasks more quickly, efficiently or accurately. There is always a shorter and better way to get things done. Look for the fastest option which will give you the best results.
10. Be passionate about your work. Passion brings energy. If you don't actually care about what you're doing, it's very unlikely you will not do it.

Final thoughts
I love the African tale about the importance of running and getting things done: “Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up and knows it must run faster than the fastest lion, or it will be killed and eaten. Also in Africa a lion wakes up and knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle, or it will starve to death. It does not matter if you are a lion or a gazelle, when the sun comes up, you better start running.”

This same tale applies to us as individuals and as businesses. If we want to succeed, planning which shoe to wear for the run may be important, but never as important as the running itself. That is what great leaders do. They just get things done. As Nike would say, they “just do it”. Are you getting things done?

Roshan Thiran is CEO of Leaderonomics

Profiles in Greatness: Walt Disney

The Walt Disney Company, which reported more than $38 billion in revenue in 2010, was started by a high-school dropout who loved to draw and had a passion for learning. Walt Disney founded an empire on fantasy and risk taking. While he was at it, he built fantastical amusement parks, developed a brand recognized by children and adults all over the world, and created an educational foundation for future entertainment innovators.


Not a bad legacy for a man who, after his first studio went belly up, placed his career in the hands of a cartoon mouse. So for this month’s sit-down with a legend, we “heard from” the founder himself.

Q: You like to draw. Lots of kids like to draw. How did you go from being a kid who likes to draw to a man who revolutionized an industry?

A: “Somehow I can’t believe there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secret of making dreams come true. This special secret, it seems to me, can be summarized in four Cs. They are curiosity, confidence, courage and constancy, and the greatest of these is confidence. When you believe a thing, believe it all the way, implicitly and unquestionably.”

Disney was born in Chicago, Dec. 5, 1901, and grew up on a farm in Marceline, Mo. He was fully engaged with the four Cs that would become his professional philosophy well before he went to high school. In 1911, Disney spent his Saturdays taking courses at the Kansas City Arts Institute, and after the family returned to Chicago, he took courses at the Chicago Institute of Art.

At 19, he and a friend founded Iwerks-Disney Commercial Artists. Not long after opening the commercial art business, Disney needed money. So he started working full time at the Kansas City Film Ad Company, and Iwerks-Disney Commercial Artists folded.

Then, when he was 20, he founded his own studio, Laugh-O-gram Films. Despite a talented staff, the studio’s high overhead and minimal profits forced him to close. In 1923, He moved to Los Angeles, where he and his brother Roy founded the Disney Brothers Studio.


Q: Your career was saved by a mouse. When you were facing bankruptcy, how did you decide to put your faith in one little idea?

A: “Mickey Mouse is, to me, a symbol of independence. He was a means to an end. He popped out of my mind onto a drawing pad… on a train ride from Manhattan to Hollywood at a time when business fortunes of my brother Roy and myself were at lowest ebb and disaster seemed right around the corner. Born of necessity, the little fellow literally freed us of immediate worry. He provided the means for expanding our organization to its present dimensions and for extending the medium of cartoon animation toward new entertainment levels. He spelled production liberation for us….

“All we ever intended for him or expected of him was that he should continue to make people everywhere chuckle with him and at him. We didn’t burden him with any social symbolism; we made him no mouthpiece for frustrations or harsh satire. Mickey was simply a little personality assigned to the purposes of laughter.”

Before the mouse hit the big screen, Disney and his brother Roy were creating cartoons for Universal Pictures, including the increasingly popular Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. But when Disney asked for more money from Universal and didn’t get it, he parted ways with the studio and was forced to leave Oswald and most of his animators behind.

Disney transformed his beloved black-and-white-faced Oswald character into Mickey Mouse and made three cartoons before finding a distributor. Steamboat Willie was released in 1928. Not only was it one of the first cartoons with synchronized sound, it made Disney a household name and is still recognized as one of the best cartoons ever made.

And in 2006, after a long life under various owners, Oswald returned home. The Walt Disney Company purchased the rights to the character.

Q: In Disneyland, you created a living, breathing fantasy world. How did you do it?

A: “When we consider a project, we really study it—not just the surface idea, but everything about it. And when we go into that new project, we believe in it all the way. We have confidence in our ability to do it right. And we work hard to do the best possible job.”

Disney gathered inspiration from everything and nothing escaped his eye. By the time he was ready to bring his ideas to fruition, they’d been perfected. Disneyland is a prime example. The roots of the theme park lay in Electric Park, an amusement park in Missouri that was 15 blocks from the Disney family home. The train that ran behind his home lived in Disney’s imagination for years, along with the sense of comfort and freedom it brought. When he was finally ready to realize Disneyland, Disney reached into his childhood memories and brought forth the idea of a train, which circles the park.

From a design standpoint, Disney started working on his fantasyland when he was a kid. It wasn’t until the late 1940s that he got serious about it. After visiting an Oakland, Calif., amusement park, Children’s Fairyland, Disney decided he wanted to build something similar where his employees could play with their children.

While Disney knew what he wanted and several employees volunteered to work on the project, financing was a major issue. Confident in his idea, Disney mortgaged everything he had, including his personal insurance, to procure the $17 million needed to build the park. Five years later, in 1955, the characters, places and designs Disney had been dreaming about since he was a child were realized in the grand opening of Disneyland.


Q: Out of all your accomplishments, what would you say has been your greatest reward?

A: “Well, my greatest reward, I think, is that I’ve been able to build this wonderful organization. I’ve been able to enjoy good health…and also, to have the public appreciate and accept what I’ve done all these years. That…that is a great reward.... Happiness is a state of mind. You can be happy or you can be unhappy. It’s just according to the way you look at things, you know.”

Disney wasn’t one to listen to naysayers. In fact, one of his greatest successes—the creation of full-length Disney movies—was resisted by two of his most trusted confidants, his wife, Lillian, and his brother Roy.

By 1934, Popeye the Sailor had surpassed Mickey Mouse in popularity. Disney knew the studio needed to develop something else to engage its audience. Though his wife and brother were against it and industry experts predicted that Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs would mark the demise of the Disney Studio, Disney pushed ahead with its production.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs became the first animated film in English and Technicolor. The movie went on to earn more than $8 million in 1938, making it the most successful moving picture produced that year.

The success of Snow White allowed Disney to build a new Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, Calif. Pinocchio, Fantasia, Bambi, Alice in Wonderland, and Peter Pan soon followed in an era now known as the “Golden Age of Animation.”

Q: Looking back, is there anything you’d do differently?

A: “I do not like to repeat successes. I like to go on to other things.”

Disney collected ideas like many people collect excuses, waiting for the perfect opportunity in which to use them. He had plenty of competitors and setbacks, but regardless of his failures or letdowns, he never stopped believing he could make things bigger, better and more enjoyable for children of all ages.

by Ivy Hughes

Why Happiness Matters

“Tell me about your mother.”

Anyone who has been in therapy at any point during the past century has likely heard that request, now a go-to punch line for an entire industry of mental health. Starting with Sigmund Freud in the late 1800s, exploring one’s past for hidden or repressed hurts and psychoses has been the therapeutic model for attaining emotional well-being. Freud’s idea of the “talking cure” remained unchallenged for decades.

But focusing on why people are miserable—and reliving that misery one 45-minute session at a time—in order to get happy became, well, depressing for many in the mental health field. “For every 100 [scholarly] journal articles on sadness, there is just one on happiness,” bemoans Martin Seligman, Ph.D., in his 2002 best-selling book, Authentic Happiness.

That’s why, in 1997, when Seligman was elected president of the American Psychological Association, he made it his mission to change the focus of the influential organization from diagnosing and treating disorders to cultivating happiness, creating an entirely new field of research and practice called Positive Psychology. He encouraged APA members to change the question at the heart of their work from “Why are we sad?” to “How can we become happy?” Instead of trying to fix people’s weaknesses, Seligman wanted to encourage their strengths. Grant and research money followed his passion.

Though critics contend that Seligman’s approach is not so new and bears much resemblance to the humanistic psychology championed by William James in the late 1800s, Seligman’s work gained momentum. Over the past 20 years or so, he and his colleagues have amassed a formidable portfolio of data on what makes people feel content.


Happily, there’s plenty of good news in their findings: First of all, we’re already pretty happy. Second, we can control how cheery we feel. No matter how often our mothers hugged us when we were young or whether grumpiness is in our genes (and it may be to some extent), we can still make ourselves a lot happier.

And you should. Not just because it feels good to be happy (duh!), but happy people are healthier, live longer and do more good for their families, businesses, communities and ultimately, the world.

So what are you waiting for?

Happy Together

For researchers to measure increases in happiness, they needed to know how happy we already are. Turns out, humans are a surprisingly upbeat bunch. In 1985, Ed Diener, Ph.D., author of Happiness: Unlocking the Mysteries of Psychological Wealth, created five simple questions to assess overall happiness—the Satisfaction with Life Scale—which has since become a universal survey used in most happiness research. The majority of people in economically developed countries fall in the average to above-average score groups, meaning that they are generally satisfied with their lives. “People are in a good mood on average 80 percent of the time,” Diener says.

The Gallup Global Well-Being poll, devised in part by Daniel Kahneman, Ph.D., a Nobel Prize-winning psychologist and a premier researcher in the study of happiness, had similar findings. Almost all of the 155 nations examined experience above-average levels of positivity. Even among people in very unfortunate circumstances—those who had experienced hunger or homelessness or who had been assaulted or robbed within the past year—the overwhelming majority claimed to enjoy their lives. On the day these “hardship” participants were polled, 62 percent said they “laughed and smiled a lot yesterday,” which was consistent with the results of the non-hardship participants.

Happy Genes

How can anyone who has recently experienced hunger or homelessness maintain such a sunny disposition? It’s called the “set-point” theory of happiness. We all have a set range of happiness due to our genetics that we naturally return to after events—a job loss or promotion, say—that briefly move the needle in one direction or another. In 1996, a landmark study of 4,000 sets of twins—The Minnesota Twin Family Study—found that identical twins had very similar levels of happiness across their lifetimes, whether they were raised together or apart, suggesting a strong genetic component to emotional well-being.

“An adopted identical twin has as much chance at being similar in temperament to the twin he never met as he does to his adoptive family,” explains Gretchen Rubin, author of The Happiness Project. The study determined that 44 to 52 percent of our happiness is inherited. Scientists since have debated the precise ratio, but almost all research shows that up to 50 percent of a person’s well-being is genetically determined. Common sense suggests the same. “We all know people who seem to have been born Tiggers and others who were born Eeyores,” Rubin says.

Happy Returns

But if so much of our happiness is predetermined and we’re already pretty jovial, is it worth your time striving for even more? You bet your booty! Check out the following facts:

❉ The happier people are, the healthier they are. When we’re content, our bodies secrete chemicals including oxytocin, dopamine and serotonin, which help modulate our immune systems, thereby enhancing our health, says Deepak Chopra, M.D., co-founder and chairman of the Chopra Center for Wellbeing. An aggressive immune system can contribute to autoimmune disorders while a depressed immune system can lead to infections and certain types of cancer, he explains. Positive moods also have been shown to reduce death rates in patients with HIV, renal failure and certain types of cancer. One study found that postsurgical physical recovery among coronary bypass patients was quicker for optimists, as was resumption of normal activities after hospital discharge. People with high self-reported levels of happiness (known in the research world as subjective well-being, or SWB) have been shown to weigh less and have lower blood pressures and incidences of cancer.

Though the exact ways in which mood can alter health have not been fully defined, studies have found people with depression or anxiety to be at higher risk for cardiovascular disease. And excessive amounts of the “stress hormones” adrenaline and cortisol—released during negative states such as sadness, fear and anxiety—increase heart rate and blood pressure over time, triggering a host of other health problems.

❉ The healthier you are, the longer you live. Several studies that follow participants over a significant length of time have concluded that high SWB is closely connected with longevity. “The results leave little doubt that subjective well-being can predict longevity,” Diener wrote in his meta-analysis of dozens of health and happiness studies, published last year in Applied Psychology.

❉ In addition to longer lives, the greater health of happy folks makes them more fertile. And happy people’s cheerfulness rubs off on their offspring, in part thanks to genes, but also because happy people engage in happiness behaviors—such as expressing gratitude, showing appreciation and connecting with others—which their kids mimic.

❉ People with high SWB make more money, too. Why? Happy people are very positive, and positivity has a strong causal link to higher incomes, perhaps because people who see the glass half full tend to see and be more open to opportunities, to be easier to work with and for, and more likely to find creative solutions and less likely to give up. Studies have found that employees with high SWB are also less likely to lose their jobs. So while more money doesn’t necessarily make you happier (see the discussion of salaries below in “Happiness Roadblocks”), more happiness just might make you more money.

❉ Satisfied individuals have more harmonious marriages and are less likely to get divorced. Oh, and they have more sex, too.

❉ But being happy isn’t just fun for you; it’s good for your community and the world at large. One study out of Michigan State University last year found that communities across the United States with higher life satisfaction had greater life expectancies, with lower levels of mortality from heart disease, homicide, liver disease, diabetes and cancer.

Articles by Patty Onderko

20 Rules for a Joyous Life

Few of us escape feelings of fear and self-doubt as we go about our lives. But the good news is that we can learn how to create within us a wonderful sense of confi dence and peace of mind as we face all situations in our lives. Here are 20 rules to help us handle the challenges, accomplish what we want and create a beautiful and satisfying life.


1. With eyes of gratitude, notice all the beauty around you.

2. Smile as you recognize the many blessings in your life.

3. Joyfully say thank you to all who contribute to your life.

4. Pick up the mirror and ask, “How can I be more helpful here?”

5. Commit to putting more love into everything you do.

6. Know that you count—and act as if you do.

7. Feel joy in the knowledge that your life has meaning.

8. Take a deep breath and cut the cord to any unhealthy dependency.

9. Let go of blame, stand tall and take control of your reactions to all life experiences.

10. Learn something valuable from all life experiences— good or bad.

11. Do your best and let go of the outcome.

12. Act responsibly and lovingly toward yourself and others.

13. Rise above your fear, and focus on all you have to give to the world.

14. Let go and allow the river to carry you to new adventures.

15. Be patient and trust “It’s all happening perfectly.”

16. Quiet your mind and trust that your inner wisdom will lead you wherever you need to go.

17. Relax knowing you can handle all that needs to be handled.

18. Reach out and invite others into your life.

19. Always choose the path with the heart.

20. Touch the world with love wherever you go.

By Susan Jeffers

Take Control of Your Life, Your happiness is in your hands

We can’t do it all, so we do most things poorly—on a good day. And we’ve lived like this for so long that we don’t even realize how very far we are from reaching our potential!


Most times, we’re just reacting, as though we’re being jerked to and fro by some gigantic remote-control device. We’re trying desperately to keep one thing or other from crashing and burning. And we’re doing well just to make sure the kids are off to school wearing matching socks, and we don’t forget the big proposal on the kitchen table after working on it most of the night, and we’re getting most of our bills paid before they’re 30 days overdue.

Goal-setting? Forget about it. Attitude? Do you really want to know? Happiness? Come on!

And what about managing our money and taking control of our income? How’s that possible when we live paycheck to paycheck? As for our relationships—who would know? We hardly see each other or talk.


The signs of a life out of control may seem subtle: Your kids are growing up before your eyes, yet you hardly know them; you dread going to work at a job you’ve had for years; you want to say “no” before you even hear the question because saying “yes” means adding something to your plate.

Does any of this sound familiar? Is it normal to live a life out of control? Does it have to be?

The first step toward regaining control is examining your life and determining where you have problems. So take the self-assessment quiz that follows. Then read the insights offered by some of the best-respected experts and thought leaders.

You can change your attitude so you’re open to opportunities, so you feel it’s possible to chart your own course and drive your life forward. You can set goals—and you can reach them! Despite the economic chaos, you can take control of your income and start your own business. You can build wealth. You can reconnect with your family. And you can be happy.


Is Your Attitude Your Challenge?

1.Do you believe that now is the perfect time to seize opportunities?

2.Do you feel confident that your future is full of prosperity?

3.Do you believe that you have the skills and abilities to meet your goals?

4.Do you look at the challenging people in your life as teachers rather than enemies?

If you answered NO to 0-1 questions, congratulations! You have a winning attitude that inspires others and keeps you on track to your goals. If you answered NO to 2-4 questions, you may have a great attitude when things are going your way but struggle to stay positive in challenging times. Check out Jim Rohn’s advice for changing your attitude to change your life.

Are You Pursuing Your Goals?

1.Have you written down your long-term goals?

2.Have you written down a few things you want to achieve by the end of the year?

3.Have you developed specific steps to meet your larger goals, plus a way to measure your progress?

4.Do you meet your goals regularly and set new ones?

If you answered NO to 0-1 questions, congratulations! You are a champion goalsetter. If you answered NO to 2-4 questions, you could be settling for status quo instead of reaching for your dreams. Read Brian Tracy’s advice on goal-setting and achieving.

Is Your Life Fulfilling?

1.Do you feel like something is missing from your life?

2.Do you neglect your hobbies or interests in favor of daily tasks?

3.Do you find yourself watching the clock, waiting for the day to end?

4.Do you fill your downtime with mindless distractions like too much TV?

If you answered YES to 0-1 questions, congratulations! You balance your personal interests and passions with your responsibilities to stay happy and fulfilled. If you answered YES to 2-4 questions, it’s time to make a change and bring the joy back into your life. It’s never too late! Read Deepak Chopra’s advice on creating happiness.

Do You Need a Relationship Checkup?

1.Do you opt out of family activities because of work?

2.Do you think you’re too busy to connect with old friends?

3.Has your social life dwindled down to your spouse or co-workers?

4.During stressful times, do you avoid “burdening” others with your problems?

If you answered YES to 0-1 questions, congratulations! You’re doing a great job of making relationships a priority in your life. If you answered YES to 2-4 questions, don’t let another day go by without refocusing your daily life on what’s truly important: people. Read Richard Eyre’s advice on relationships.

Do You Have a Grip on Your Finances?

1.Do you know where your money goes each month?

2.Are you allotting money each month to your savings goals?

3.Do you feel in control of your credit card spending?

4.Are you on track to build wealth with your income?

If you answered NO to 0-1 questions, congratulations! Your money management skills are in top form. If you answered NO to 2-4 questions, you could be creating unnecessary financial stress and keeping yourself from achieving true wealth. Read Dave Ramsey’s advice on money management.

Do You Control Your Income?

1.If you face a layoff, do you have an alternate income source?

2.Do you feel you have just as much control over your financial situation in an economic downturn as you do in a boom?

3.Do you have a plan for building wealth?

4.Have you taken steps toward starting that business you’ve always dreamed of owning?

If you answered NO to 0-1 questions, congratulations! You understand the secret to building wealth is owning your own business. If you answered NO to 2-4 questions, there has never been a better time to take control of your life and your income. Read Robert Kiyosaki’s advice on entrepreneurship

The Likability Factor

How to leverage relationships and be the provider of choice

Have you ever called a supplier or service provider with a question and gotten passed around the company from one person the next? Or maybe you’ve met with a product rep, and he acted as if he was anxious to get on with his day and get you out of the office?
It’s that kind of experience that led retail consultant Rick Segel to write Becoming the Vendor of Choice. “I was just mad as hell and couldn’t take it anymore,” he says. “Sometimes I felt like shaking vendors and saying, ‘Don’t you get it?!’ ”

Segel worked in retail more than 25 years before starting Rick Segel & Associates, so he knows what it’s like to work with vendors who have no concept of an effective relationship. And the problem is pretty pervasive. For most providers, “it’s more about the lowest price and the best product,” he explains, but even with those advantages over the competition, you can lose customers (or fail to get them to begin with) if you don’t have the “likability factor.”

In his book, Segel writes in depth on how to make the customer relationship about more than just purchasing merchandise. “You don’t want to do business with people you don’t like,” he says, “no matter the price, incentives or product. If Al Gore or Hillary Clinton were more likable, they could have been president,” he adds.

Are you buying it?
If not, consider the Apple Store. “Nothing has ever come close to it in the history of retailing,” Segel argues. “Imagine bringing people to the store to teach them how to use the product.” No other computer company manages relationships the way Apple does, and that’s why the company has a devoted fan base.
Does Segel’s argument hold water in an age when experts claim there is no such thing as customer loyalty? Absolutely. “Relationship-building applies to any industry,” he says. “Today the key word is ‘free.’ What kind of creative, innovative and educational things can you come up with to make your customers loyal?”

Segel’s Top Tips for Relationship-Building

Get one-on-one. Nothing beats face time. Be a consulting partner, not just, say, the company that provides office supplies.

Offer education and expertise. If you can offer advice on your industry or related products for free or as a value-added service, do it. Remember the Apple store. Customers will flock to you if they feel they’re getting a product as well as an education in using it to improve their lives.

Use the web as a history lesson. Feature success stories of specific businesses you serve, how they use your product and service, and how their success could apply to other businesses.

Recognize your customers. Offer competitions and awards that honor them for their business and thank them for their loyalty.

Become a networking resource. Bring your customers in similar industries together to compare best practices. They may not know each other, but you know all of them. Help them get connected to learn from one another.

by Rick Segel

Four Things Your Business Can Learn from The Avengers

Every projection about this summer’s blockbuster The Avengers severely underestimated its earning potential. As the No. 3 top-grossing movie of all time, only behind Avatar and Titanic, The Avengers has currently grossed over $1.4 billion worldwide—a number that continues to grow more than a month after its release.

So what made a seemingly normal comic book movie into the year’s biggest hit? And how can you apply that to your business? Here are four takeaways we gathered from The Avengers’ success:

1. Reward your true fans. Let’s face it. The geeky comic book fan is a small and special subset of the movie-going population. Many Batman or Spiderman fans grew up watching the TV shows, might have flipped through a comic book or two, but they couldn’t tell you what Superman’s birth name is (for the curious, it’s Kal-El). You would think this translates to a tuned-down version when creating a movie for the masses, but instead, they didn’t shy away from pleasing the fanatics. The dialogue is filled with nerd-speak and insider references to things like Chitauri or the Tesseract. It excited hardcore fans and leisure fans didn’t mind. If anything, the geeky terms were less of a turn-off and more of an appealing touch to the comic book flick. While it sometimes seems necessary to cut time with old and trusty clients in an attempt to attract new ones, never forget your loyal fans. Consistently reward your devoted fan base, and the new ones might be motivated to join in on the insider fun.

2. Think big picture. Five years ago, Marvel Studios planned to package, develop and market four of their superheroes so that they could eventually create a “super movie” featuring all of them. Marvel’s President of Consumer Products Paul Gitter explains: “We took the superheroes — Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, and Hulk — that we felt were the most relatable, relevant and aspirational to build into one package. Every Marvel movie since 2008 was created with the full intention of this super franchise.” What about your business? Are you thinking of the big picture or are you just focusing on the sales you can make for the week? Marvel Studios was willing to wait five years to create six different movies with various cliffhangers and lead-ins to essentially put all of their eggs in one basket for The Avengers. And it worked. Which also leads us to...

3. Take risks. Believe in someone unlikely. Having come from Buffy: The Vampire Slayer fame, director Joss Whedon was a risk. Sure, he had directed cult classic TV and sci-fi, but he wasn’t an industry staple in the world of action movies, and he certainly wasn’t someone who first comes to mind when heading up a movie worth five years of work. Joss Whedon turned out to be a fantastic risk; the dialogue and directing was praised by critics. Having achieved cult-level status in the world of geekdom definitely didn’t hurt, either. (Another example of Reason No. 1 of this list; San Diego Comic Con fans rejoiced when Mr. Stan Lee himself announced Whedon as The Avengers director.) Having indie art house film actors Mark Ruffalo (The Hulk) and Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye) instead of seasoned action stars was a risk that was also well-rewarded; they ended up being two of the most memorable characters. Everybody has to start somewhere. When was the last time you took a chance with someone?

4. Place Strategy. As featured in the June issue of SUCCESS, marketing expert Dan Kennedy explains place strategy—the idea that an increase in clients and sales comes from where you are. Redefining a target market and physical or medium relocation are all ways that a business can find better opportunities than before. Probably without even knowing it, The Avengers employed great use of place strategy. Their release came at the perfect time, with no other rivals at the box office, either before or after their box office debut. The only other competing action movie out on opening weekend was the dystopian flick The Hunger Games, which, at the time, was going on its 7th week at the movies. It’s notable that The Avengers was released right before the start of summer, crushing Battleship on its debut weekend, and well before the highly anticipated The Dark Knight Rises and The Amazing Spiderman releases could threaten its earning potential.

And if all else fails, here’s what comic book legend Stan Lee said about the success of The Avengers at Dallas Comic Con: “Want to know why The Avengers was so successful?... I have a small cameo role in every movie. But they’re kept very short! So if you turn away for even a second, you’ll walk away from the movie thinking, ‘Hey! I didn’t see Stan Lee! I guess I have to go see The Avengers again.’… And that’s why it was such a hit.”

Seeds of SUCCESS
seeds@success

Telling the boss he is wrong: Career suicide or fast lane to promotion?

Most of us baulk at the idea of indicating, even in the slightest manner, that the boss is anything but god-like in his decisions and ideas.
“Let’s do X merger” “Yes, boss!”
“I think the sky is green today” “Yes, boss!”
People who do nothing but agree sycophantically are scorned as ‘yes’ men, but is the alternative even possible? We’ve all felt the pressure to stay in the boss’ good books, and one of the easiest steps seems to be to agree with said boss. Right?


Wrong.


Stating a fact or airing an opinion that contradicts your boss is not necessarily career suicide. In fact, doing so may show that you have courage as well as a working brain, both of which are positive characteristics that may work well in your favour when it comes to your annual appraisal! That said, you are not advised to embarrass your boss or openly cause dissent, because that would be unprofessional and can come off as petty or vicious. Here are 5 easy steps you could take to make your point or stand without ruffling any feathers.


1. Above and beyond everything else, remember that your boss is still your boss. That means respecting his or her authority; so watch that tone. It’s important to phrase your points carefully, eg: “I understand your point, but…” Avoid, at all costs, saying things like “This is MY area of expertise,” as it will automatically make your boss go on defensive mode and may lead to sparring matches from which you will definitely emerge the loser.

2. Be professional. You want to be heard and not shut out immediately, so avoid whining or taking things to a personal level. Do say things like “X way will save the company up to RM Y” and avoid saying things like “My way is better.” The best way to get your boss’ attention is to show that your point is being made with the company’s best interests at heart.

3. Set a proper time for the discussion. One good way to ensure that your points are heard is to plan your timing well. Arrange a time that is convenient for your boss as well as yourself, by asking either verbally or through writing – via email would be a good option, so your politesse is recorded. You will find that with proper timing comes better results! After all, you wouldn’t like it either if you were ambushed on your way to the car park with criticisms or complaints so don’t inflict it on others.

4. Don’t give up after one try. Nobody will change their opinions overnight, so just one great presentation may not be enough to turn your boss’ frown upside down. But that doesn’t mean you should throw in the towel and call it quits: If you truly feel that your idea is a fantastic one, persist in trying to pitch your idea. But be pleasant about it! Try saying “I took your previous comments into consideration, and have revised the plan some more. Could I have 5 minutes of your time to show you the amended copy?”

5. That said, you also need to know when to let it go. While you shouldn’t give up after one try, 10 tries is just too much. If you sense your boss is starting to avoid you, or worse, resent you then it’s time to step back gracefully. And by gracefully, we mean avoiding statements like “I’m invisible around here,” and “Nobody listens to employees.” Try statements like “Thank you for your consideration” or “Thanks for listening to my views” instead; and if you know what’s good for you, never climb over your boss’ head and approach his boss instead! The bottom line is, it is possible to have your own opinions and stands. Bosses are not (usually) totalitarian dictators, so a mature discussion about the best move for the company should be perfectly doable.

by Lim May lee

An effective team member is one who also thinks and behaves like a leader.

Walk into any bookstore or library and you will find no shortage of books on leadership. A search for the word “leadership” on Amazon.com results in more than 60,000 entries. Search for “followership” however and only 150 entries pop up.

While there is clearly an overwhelming desire to learn about leadership, interest in followership is decidedly underwhelming. Does this mean that it is very easy to become a good follower?
If your idea of a good follower is someone who does whatever he is told, then the answer is “yes”. However, the organisation of today does not want its people to simply follow instructions.
Indeed, organisations expect every individual to take the initiative and constantly seek to achieve higher levels of personal effectiveness. In other words, followers should think and behave like leaders.
While many of us understand the need to practise personal leadership, people may take on attitudes that detract from their effectiveness as followers.
Here are some such attitudes:

Not clarifying
This is the mindset of “do what you are told; don’t ask questions”. Sometimes when you are tasked to do something, you tend to work on it without asking questions.
The fear is that if you ask too many questions, you may come across as negative or as someone with “attitude problems”. However, understanding the rationale for a task is very important. It leads you to get a big picture of your work.
For example, if you are tasked to organise a company dinner, ask questions to find out the underlying objectives. Is it meant to celebrate success, recognise individuals or promote team bonding? With a clear understanding of what is expected, you stack the odds of success in your favour.


Not challenging
This is characterised by the assumption that “the boss is always right”. A classic example of how the boss is not always right comes from the legendary Henry Ford, founder of Ford Motor Company.
In the early 1900s, powered by the Ford Model T, the company produced more cars than all other car makers combined. Ford was so proud and protective of the Model T that he once famously remarked: “Any customer can have a car painted any colour that he wants so long as it is black.”
Four years after the first Model T was produced, his engineers surprised him with a prototype of an upgraded version of the car. Ford was apparently so incensed that his prized asset was modified, he destroyed the prototype with his bare hands.
Thereafter, his engineers never dared to suggest modifications to the Model T, and it remained unchanged for the next 15 years. The company was finally superseded by other carmakers who continued to innovate to produce better cars. Despite efforts to play catch-up later, Ford never regained its No.1 position.
Today, business has become so complex that it is no longer possible for one person, including your boss, to be an expert in all areas.
Your boss may have blind spots in terms of his prejudices, perspectives and knowledge. A good follower is one who can highlight these blind spots to his superior. The idea is not to challenge the boss but rather, to question the thought process behind the decision.


Not committing
In moments of frustration at work, many of us may think: “I don’t agree with the decision, so I am not going to carry it out” or “I’m just going to pretend to do so.”
Intel addresses this with a slogan that says “Disagree and Commit”. They encourage people to disagree, raise arguments, innovate and find better ways of doing things during the decision-making process. But once the group makes a decision, everyone is expected to commit to its implementation even if they disagree with it.
By all means, challenge a decision objectively and openly, but do not undermine it once it is made. Commit to its success even if you do not personally agree.
Everybody should realise that they work as members of a group and sometimes trade-offs and sacrifices have to be made for the greater benefit of the organisation. Covert resistance, such as bad-mouthing the organisation or your colleagues, not only undermines the success of the organisation, it creates tension, distrust and toxicity in the workplace.


Effective followership
It is somewhat unfortunate that the topic of followership has not received as much attention as leadership. Being a follower is the first thing that everybody must learn to do well when they enter the workforce.
Practise the 3Cs of effective followership: clarifying, challenging and committing to become a more effective team member. Even if you aspire to lead others one day, you must realise that to lead, you must first learn to follow. -

Article by Lim Poh Guan, vice-president of Learning & Organisation Development at the United Overseas Bank. Singapore Straits Times/Asia News Network

Personal branding: Make your first impression your best impression

Branding is not just for companies and products. Professionals also need it to project the right impression to colleagues, bosses and customers.

Wendy Lee, a professional image consultant and president of the Malay­­­­­sian Association of Brand & Image Consultants (Mabic) answers some questions on personal branding.

What is personal branding?
Lee: Personal branding is the business of marketing the brand called YOU. Personal branding is a way of communicating what makes you different and special. It is about understanding your unique attributes — strengths, skills, values, and passions — and using them to separate yourself from your competitors or peers.
But, do bear in mind — your brand is not your logo. Your brand is not your company name. Your brand is not your product.
In reality, you do not own your brand. Your brand is owned by your customers, the people you work with, and anyone else who has an impression of you. Your brand is other people’s perception of what it’s like to do business with you, work with you, or be with you.
Your brand is really a collection of perceptions in the mind of others.


If a client wanted a full branding makeover, what are the steps you suggest he takes?

Lee: I would use a simple formula known as:


YOU = mpc2 (M = Mindset, P = Packaging, C2 = Consistency, Consistency)


Mindset: Having the right mindset to embrace change, to grow as an individual and to move forward is of utmost importance. Your thoughts are everything. They form your moods, attitudes and habits.


Packaging: Your packaging or Personal Branding Toolkit must convey the same message as your brand. This includes: Your wardrobe, business card, websites, Facebook, blogs, Twitter, email address, etc.


Consistency, consistency: Once you have established your own style and your brand, stick to it. Walk your talk. Make the effort to ensure you gain a reputation for saying what you mean and meaning what you say.

How does one know if he or she needs a professional image makeover?
Lee: There are a few ways to know if you need a makeover:
·You want to create YOU™ — Your own personal brand.
·You would like to create a great impression on everyone you meet.
·You are fresh out of school and would like to master the art of dressing for both business and leisure.
·You have not been working for years and do not know what is deemed suitable at an office environment.
·You have not been receiving positive comments on your dressing or on the way you look.
·You are stuck in a style rut.
·You feel you have nothing to wear although you have a closet full of clothes.

In my years of experience as an image consultant, I have had clients coming to me for various reasons — people who recently got promoted, who are now coming out to the workforce, who have not bought any clothes in ages, or who just simply want to learn something new.

How should someone present himself or herself when potential employers call or e-mail?
Lee: You must have your “elevator speech” ready. The term “elevator speech” was probably coined from the idea that we sometimes meet the important people in our lives in elevators. The odd situation we encounter in most elevators is that nobody speaks or looks at anyone else, and yet we have a captive audience for that short period of time.
Very few people are ready to interact in case someone does speak. The idea of an “elevator speech” is to have a prepared presentation that grabs attention and says a lot in a few words.
Who you are, what you do, who your clients are, and what happens as a result could be part of your “elevator speech.” For example, this is my elevator pitch:
“I’m Wendy, I’m an image consultant.
“I work with both companies and individuals to enhance their image for effective customer relations and sales.”
So, when your potential employers call or e-mail you, don’t say:
“I’m Jared, and I like to meet people and conduct sales calls.”

Say instead:
“I’m Jared. I like helping businesses improve the way they market their products, so that they find more clients and close more deals.”
It sounds more professional and makes you sound more interesting.

What are your five easy tips for a polished look?
Lee: 1. Your hair is your crowning glory.
Men — Billionaires don’t sport oily looking or long dishevelled hair. Think Simon Cowell.
Ladies — No grandma perms and keep your hair away from your face. Your style must say
current, healthy and professional.
2. Your face is your fortune.
Men – Keep your face clean without stubble.
Ladies — Light makeup is a must.
3. Your clothes show your style.
Men – You wear your clothes, not the other way around.
Ladies — Think feminine yet professional. Not loud and trashy. A suit is a foolproof way if you are unsure of what to wear.
4. Your posture shows your confidence. So, stand straight and smile, genuinely.
5. Your smell shows your personal hygiene. A light spray of eau de toilette will earn you extra brownie points.


The proverb goes “Do not judge a book by its cover,” but really, in this day and age, do we even have the time to delve deeply into a person’s psyche before making a decision? Your outward — physical as well as cyber — appearance can and will make an impact on how the world perceives you. With so much hinging on your ability to present yourself in the best and most appealing way, are you sure you can afford to take personal branding lightly?

Reduce staff turnover by increasing flexibility

Workplace flexibility is a term that has been around for a while now, but most organisations are not as flexible as they can be.

Sure, if you fit neatly into a category like “working mother”, they will be politically correct and offer you flexible hours, as long as you don’t mind feeling like you are on the career track to nowhere.
Senior management in many industries still believe that people who are serious about their careers do not take up workplace flexibility options, and there is certainly anecdotal evidence of this.
The real test of any flexibility programme is not how many people take it up, but how many senior people take it up and how they are viewed as a consequence.

Let me give you an example: I have a client who has invited me to facilitate their management conference for the last couple of years. Prior to the event, I met up with each division’s senior manager to go over their contribution and discuss the event.

Last year, one of our meetings ran over time and I was advised that my final appointment for the day would have to be rescheduled as the senior manager had to leave to see his child play a sport. This comment was made without any negative tone or eye rolling. This is a workplace that truly believes in work-life balance for all. Would it be the same in your workplace or would that manager be seen as less than committed to his role?

Perhaps your organisation is making attempts to be more flexible but doesn’t really understand what flexibility means.
I met a senior manager from an accounting firm recently who proudly told me his partners had introduced a workplace flexibility scheme, which involved everyone having the Friday afternoon off. He didn’t understand why staff were not that impressed with the new policy. They had missed the point.
The other growng phenomenon is that people who are younger, childless, or both, want flexibility.
Here’s another example I use in my programmes on engaging younger generations.

The human resource manager had a visit from a young male staff member wanting to renegotiate his working hours from five days a week to four days. He put forward a well thought out case for why the job could be done in four days without affecting customers. When the HR manager asked why, he responded “so I have time for my life”.
As there was no precedent for this type of request in the company policies, the HR manager referred to the chief executive officer. The response was a definite “no’’ and eventually, the young employee left the company, taking with him valuable skills and knowledge.


No singular solution
So why don’t more organisations do it properly? As far as I can see, it boils down to two issues: administration and fairness.
Creating a good flexibility programme will mean more administration but think of the up side. If you do it right, you should have less staff turnover, fewer performance management issues and less stressed managers.
This argument is like the disorganised person who doesn’t have time to attend a time management course. If he goes, then he would be more organised.

On the issue of fairness, a lot of people confuse “fairness” with “sameness”.
Ask yourself: “Would you buy all your children the same Christmas or birthday present?” The answer is no; you would tailor it to their needs. The same is true of workplace flexibility options. If you try to make a one-size-fits-all option, you will end up pleasing no one.


The local context
So, how do Singaporean organisations rate in terms of workplace flexibility? A report in late 2008 issued by the Manpower Ministry, which surveyed 2,940 companies employing over 840,000 workers, showed that only one in 10 employers are adopting flexible work arrangements.

On the upside, eight out of 10 employers granted more than the legal requirement of leave. Besides the legislated annual, sick and childcare leave, they also granted compassionate leave and many allowed wedding leave.

If you recognise that your organisation can be more flexible, you may start to think what you can do differently.

Here are some ideas:

Purchasing extra leave;
Grandparent leave;
Compressed work week;
Job sharing at a senior level;
Floating cultural day;
Birthday leave;
Community service leave;
Bringing pets to work;
Aged care centre;
Outcome-based employment contract; and
Extra leave to compensate for business travel.


To take action, there are two aspects of workplace flexibility issues to consider.

First, closely examine your workplace flexibility policies and procedures to see if they need upgrading to include the areas mentioned above.
Second, and most importantly, do an informal survey to find out if the policies and procedures are being used in practice.

In other words, how these policies are perceived by staff at all levels, including senior management. Only when these are actually being used can you say that your organisation is really flexible.

- Source: Singapore Straits Times/Asia News Network

Unleash your Net Generation employees' FULL pontential!

Whether we like it or not, we are living in the digital age where new rules are made and changed by those who have grown up in this era.

Digital natives, otherwise known as the Net Generation (Net Gen), are no longer satisfied with the old human resource model of recruiting, training, supervising and retaining. Companies should adopt a new model in acquiring and retaining them, that is, initiate, engage, collaborate and evolve.
Net Gen employees are ideally suited for the current working conditions. They are savvy, confident, upbeat, open-minded, creative and independent. This can also make it a challenge to manage them.
To meet their demands for more learning opportunities and responsibilities, ownership, instant feedback, greater work-life balance and stronger workplace relationships, companies must alter their culture and management approaches.

Properly cultivated, this generation’s attributes will be a critical source of innovation and competitive advantage to the organisation.
Thus, employers have two options. They can refuse to adapt to this group, stick to their old hierarchies, and reinforce the generational firewall that separates the managers from the newly hired. But if they do, they will forfeit the chance to learn from the Net Gen employees — to absorb both their mindset and their tools of collaboration.

Companies in the corporate world that choose to embrace the Net Gen employees’ collaborative ways will emerge winners.
Research shows that companies that selectively and effectively embrace Net Gen norms perform better than those who don’t.

There is a difference between those who have grown up digital and those who are introduced to technologies in later stages of life. While these digital immigrants (those over 30) can become very good at using technology, few achieve the ease and comfort of a member of the Net Gen, to whom technology is as natural as breathing.
How then can employers on these two generations to produce a more productive organisation?

Learn to adapt
For a start, design work systems according to the Net Gen norms. Look to the Net Gen culture and behaviour as the new culture of work and the new enterprise.


Re-think authority
Be a good leader, coach, mentor, facilitator or enabler, but understand that in some areas, you will be the student and the Net Gen employee will be the teacher. Net Geners need plenty of feedback, but recognition must be authentic. False praise doesn’t work.


Lifelong learning
Rethink training and engage them for lifelong learning. Rather than traditional training programmes that are separate from work, look to strengthen the learning component of all jobs. To achieve this, encourage employees to blog.

Harness social networks
Don’t ban Facebook or other social networks. Figure out how to harness them. New tools like wikis, blogs, social networks, jams, telepresence, tags, collaborative filtering and RSS feeds can be the heart of the new high performance workplace.


Encourage collaboration
Rethink management processes and design jobs and work for collaboration. Give the Net Gen staff a chance to put collaborative tools to good use — for example, by joining one of the company’s volunteering efforts.


Listen to them
Unleash the power of Net Gen capital in your organisation. Listen to the young people. Put them in the driver’s seat alongside you when designing work spaces, processes, management systems and collaborative working models.


The Net Gen youngsters should also do their bit. They should:


Go to college
It’s more interesting than high school and you will need more than a high school diploma to succeed in a knowledge economy.


Be patient
Keep calm, especially when you see old, outdated technology and bureaucratic ways of doing things. Your knowledge about collaboration will drive innovation and success this century. Boomers might be your best allies. They have kids like you and are more likely to understand you and your use of technologies.

Value experience
You are an authority on something important — but you are not an authority on everything. As you enter adult institutions, you have much to teach, but you also have much to learn. If it doesn’t work out, your experience will make you a better entrepreneur, activist, teacher or whatever you choose.


Don’t give up
When adults criticise your generation, don’t take it personally. You are the smartest generation — really. You are the first global generation. You have a better world within your grasp. Reach out, hold on and make it happen. – Singapore Straits Times/ Asia News Network


Article by Dr Don Tapscott, the author of Grown Up Digital: How The Net Generation Is Changing Your World, and the founder and chairman of nGenera Insight.