5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace

By doing the following, it could potentially increase the value of your company and productivity + efficiency of your employees:

Express genuine appreciation to coworkers & staff — even on a tight budget.
Increase loyalty with the employees and volunteers in your organization.
Reduce cynicism and create a more positive work environment.
Decrease staff burnout and the sense of being ‘used’.
Improve your ability to show appreciation for difficult colleagues.

Taken from 5lovelanguages.com, written by Dr. Chapman and Dr. White, though I’m yet to buy the book, but having to read through the 1st chapter of the book simply made me realize the power of true communication using sincerity not just at home or with friends, but at workplace.

How I came across this? This was actually recommended by a good friend of mine, Dave Rogers, and so, I searched up for it. It’s a really good read, and I urge anyone who has been running or working in a business to get a copy of this book! =) I’ll soon be getting my copy! *grins*

Rock Your Business Malaysia

Have you ever felt like there was things could have been better, but you don't know what or how to do? Or ponder on how things are, but you've yet to figure it out? Well, I used to indulge into what seems as answer-less questions, most times I get through, sometimes I don't and for this, it repeatedly haunts me every now and then, like your shadow that appears when there's light.

How can it be done?
How is it possible?
How to change?

During 29th to the 31st July 2011, I was invited to join in a highly interactive international business convention, known as Rock Your Business (RYB) Malaysia. That weekend session turned things around for me. No longer was I held back by miserable questions, but I found CLARITY in what I have been needing all the while. Whilst I'm no starting-up entrepreneur or any ongoing businessman, I had found the benefits that empowered my personal life as well as my working life.

Haha, this is an illustration of how I was to how I am..
Note: that's not me, and neither was he lost like me *grins*

Now you may wonder what RYB is about and what it does that makes me go saying all this, I'll gladly tell you that RYB is unlike any conventional event or business program that only teaches you 'HOWs' of business. As a matter of fact, RYB is the opposite of it, as it focuses on the cruciality of asking the eminent questions in the order of 'WHY', 'WHO', 'WHEN', 'WHERE' and last but not least 'HOW'.

WHY is it in this order? "Yes, you've asked a great question! And for that you'll get a great answer!" The reason or the secret behind most successful entrepreneurs or businesses, is the WHY they started it in the first place. The magnitude of the WHY is what defines the dignified success of entrepreneurs such as Jack Welch, Tony Fernandez or even Oprah Winfrey. This 'WHY' then leads to the next question, WHO am I, WHO inspires you or WHO you aspire to be. By understanding that, you'll then kick start your plans that states 'WHEN' it is to be actualized and 'WHERE' it would take you to. Leveraging on these areas, it articulates to the success you want and opening windows to 'HOW' you can do it.

Dave showing the magnitude of WHY that elevates the success factor

"Yes, you've asked a great question! And for that you'll get a great answer!" - Mike Handcock

This is Mike Handcock showing us some awesomeness!
Well, not quite the best picture, but it certainly shows you
what you might get if you had asked the right question =)

Btw, the question there and then was "Pose?" =P

"HOW this applies to me?" Nooooo, you got the order all wrong! *points back to the 2 paragraphs above, that's merely the last question to ask...* RYB not only helps entrepreneurs or businessman in gaining CLARITY, but those who attends RYB 3-days session will learn the tips and tricks that applies to personal life. The questions that was mentioned above, if you were to fine tune those to your current life, you would know how much you'll be able to change your life around or enhance it for the better. The things anyone could learn from are from the vast experience that the business experts have acquired throughout their years in the respective fields. For me, it was the best thing that had happened to me in years!

'WHO' were there, and 'WHO' are they? I'll cut it short; The people there were ranging from successful businessmen to starting entrepreneurs, to students (Note: the students weren't from business courses). They, from all ages, backgrounds and/or business, came for a common reason, which is to learn to bring themselves/their business to the next level and of course, to gain/branch network ("One can never have too many friends, only too many to properly take care of" - Rod McKuen).

"Play a bigger game" - Mike Handcock

Rock Your Business (which came from Rock Your Life), as the name states, it aims to get anyone to start rocking their businesses and/or lives! RYB helps one to rediscover him/herself with the possibility of unlocking the hidden potentials of one's self with the different levels of value and learning to take home after each session at RYB.

"When people asked what will they get out of Rock Your Business. My best response would be – What are you looking for? Different people is in search of different things in life, their career and for their business. And … Rock Your Business will amaze you.. it’s all about asking the right questions, shifting the energy, knowing who should be in your team, finding out what sort of collaboration or partnerships you should have, or understanding the investors’ mindset. That’s just to name a few.." - Terri Chan

So what has it done for me? Since I'd mentioned RYB had given me a boost to my personal and work life, I'll just share with you some of the things you could see happening instantaneously once you put it to practice:

• I learned that using the word 'AWESOME' had a significantly big difference as compared to 'Good' or 'Not bad', as it somewhat gives an empowering effect onto the energy that I emit. Try this when someone asks you how are you doing, answer "I'm AWESOME!" with a big heartfelt smile on your face. You'd be surprised by the atmosphere you've just created!


• Speaking of energy, one is able to SHIFT from the 'Dull', 'Gloomy' or 'Stormy' energy to 'Sunny', 'Bright' and 'Awesome' energy by simply changing locations (for discussions, work or personal matters), alternating the breathing methods and changing the choice of words to more constructive manners (this can be related to the above point).


• GRATITUDE - An amazing word which simply means to show appreciation. Instead of putting blame or plunge yourself in the depths of helplessness, why not show thankfulness to those who have taught you well? WHO are these teachers? Everyone! Be it a Mentor, Stranger or even your Enemy, these people have indeed showed you much lessons in ways you've least expected. A good example would be disappointment or failure, the Teachers have demonstrated what it looks, feels, smells and tastes like. With that, when we show gratitude, we are able to look at things from a whole new perspective, not only can we are able to fall forward but we can also stand up taller and reach out (and possibly take quantum leaps) to greater heights of success (whether personal or business wise, or both!)

Let's not forget to show gratitude to the wonderful people whom were present during the 3-days session at RYBM:

Introducing the panel SAGES that has very much guided us,
harnessing their expertise in respective fields to
share their experience and knowledge with us:
(in a clock-wise order, starting from top left)

• Mike Handcock – Bestselling author of 11 books, founder of Rock Your Life and Asia’s leading Edutainer.
• Matthias Gelber – Greenest Man on the Planet & Eco Mentor.
• Paul Zaman – He led the equity research and marketing of the world’s largest A$14 Billion IPO of Telstra in 1998.
• Dave Rogers - Asia’s leading Entrepreneur Coach.
• Lilian Lim – Franchising & Licensing expert.

"The RYBM Family of July 2011!"
Simply an awesome bunch! =)

Gone? Back?

Most people would have thought I'd give up on blogging already. Nope, I did not. Just that I've been REALLY REALLY busy to the point, I'd barely have time for myself. That's honest to the heart.

So what's happening? Well, I've been traveling lately, BUT it's for business purposes. Recently, been assigned to certain project (of which details I cannot disclose to you due to private and confidential matters) and it requires me to be onshore/on-site at my client's office(s). What I can share with you is that I've been around Jakarta and Bangkok these couple of weeks =P Unfortunately, due to time constraint I didn't have the luxury to explore the cities nor have time to take pictures - unless you're interested in hotel views from the inside, and the buffet breakfast in which I had most mornings, or even the canteen/food court food during lunches and dinners. *takes a look at you* Well, I guess not.

So what's before that? Seriously, busy office works. No doubt, I was the runner for many projects (yes, I'm involved in various projects). Organizing, planning, development, coordinating, leading, you name it - I've been in many areas, far beyond my job scope as well. Now you know why I'm busy? Why? I guess I wanted to make a point to everyone - Jeffro's in town, and he's playing a strong game!

Inspiration, Aspiration, Motivation, & Realization

Came across these 4 words before? Do you know that these 4 words are interrelated? In fact, you'll actually find them to be interchangeable at some time. In order to complete a milestone, accomplish a goal, achieve the desired results, stand at the peak of success and etc., one would require to understand these 4 terms. They are what defines one's journey or path from one end to the other. Without either or any of them, one would either be stuck halfway or one would have never gone far beyond the few steps taken.

What do you aspire to be?
What inspires you?
What motivates you?
What made you realize it? / How do you realize it?

Between Inspiration and Aspiration, some find it hard to tell apart from one another. While others are just not bothered about what they are. One day, you'd be asked "What are your aspirations in life?" or "What are your life's inspiration?", or both. What and how would you answer?

Between Inspiration and Motivation, many wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the two due to they both share in common. "Aren't they the same thing?" The answer is Yes and No. Logically looking at how it has been used interchangeably, they simply mean the desire/force to do something. But are they really the same?

Between Aspiration and Realization, it's pretty easy to determine eh? Simply because one is To-Be/To-Do and the other is Been or Be-ing/Done or Do-ing. Sounds easy? So have you realized your aspiration? If you're reading this, most likely it's a "Hahaha, I'm on the way!" or "Errr, still looking around". If your answer's the former or somewhat similar, then "Congratulations! I'll see ya at the finishing line! We'll cheers to that!" But if your answer's the latter, I'd suggest you to wake up from your fantasy / dreamy world to reality that you've got bills to pay, people to take of care, and that you better start picking up the pace! So, which answer have you?

Alright, enough of the trivial questions (I'd be glad if it wasn't) and let's go into the real deal here. We'll be going through a series of definition (No it's not going to be from the Oxford dictionary. Rather it'll be from experience.) based on situations that we're mostly familiar with.

Inspiration:
Ever feel the need to rush / run to the toilet just because your stomach had a pinch in the inside? No, that's not inspiration. Inspiration's something (usually a solid reason) that one going on doing something that's different from usual. For example, a young lad who wants to be a fire fighter, after seeing a heroic fireman saving an old lady from a burning building. That heroic fireman, or that heroic action is the inspiration for the lad's journey on being a fire fighter. It's the kick-start factor, that usually leads to a long-term path towards that the specific something (goal).

Motivation:
Same definition as Inspiration? No. As compared to Inspiration, Motivation would mostly be the reason as to why one would continue doing something (after a period of time). Motivation may get one started in working up something, but unlike Inspiration, it requires one to "re-visit" (or "repeat") it, otherwise, it'll just "burn out" or (fade-away). In other words, Motivation is what keeps one's Inspiration "alive", and without Inspiration, Motivation doesn't have much affect on the things you do. A good scenario is which I'd come across before. When back in junior school, music captured my attention and I was inspired to take up music and make it a career path. Appearance of celebrities like Wang Lee Hom (a big fan of his), Christina Aguilera (love her voice), and etc, motivated me to practice the pieces and score sheets. Then, I found friends who are great in guitars, keyboards, and drums, and it pull me more into spending time on practicing music. In time, I was transferred to another school, and had lesser and lesser time to meet up with the gang. And so I practice lesser and lesser. Before I knew it, I'd let go of the acoustic guitar (it's kept away) and celebrities on TV just became people on TV. So what I'm trying to say is that good friends (motivating factor) or the lack of enthusiasm in music (another motivating factor), the inspiration of going into the music industry just "dies" off.

Now, some of you might be asking, "So, a motivation can also be an inspiration?". Not really, it's not like smoking where your friends tell you to smoke, you tried and you get addicted to it. No, motivation and addiction is on two separate pages. If your friend ask you to do voluntary work, and you obliged to it (well, I'll be damn sure that you'll agree to it if you're a guy and the person who ask you is a HOT girl, or the other opposite gender around), that's the Motivation there, the charms. But hey, if the voluntary work is cleaning up after elderlies at the old folk's home, would you continue on? Some say 'Yes', some say 'No'. I bet the 'Yes' is due to the Motivation there. But if I take away the motivating factor there, would you still continue? If your answer is 'No', then you should know what's the difference between Motivation and Inspiration. If your answer is 'Yes', well then, I believe you've found your inspiration that made you continue on. Another scenario is Studying with "Benefits" (Motivation factor) at the end. Unless you want to be the next Einstein or Plato, I believe there's nobody who'd like to do academic studies, BUT you'd do it if you were paid for it, or if you were promised an XBOX, iPhone, Alienware or a Burberry accessory. Take the Motivation factor away and voila, you stop studying like a machine without electrical power.

In short, without Motivation, Inspiration can still get you going on, but perhaps at a slower rate to reach where you're targeting. But if there was no Inspiration to begin with, and you lost your Motivation along the way, you'll immediately stop what you're doing.

Aspiration:
"I want to be the world's greatest Formula 1 racer!" Heard of that? Yeah, then the next thing you hear, especially back then, when it was a trend everywhere... engines roaring, tires screeching, and then BAAAAANNNGGG!!! Well, that's not my point. What I meant was the person you want to be, that's Aspiration. And yes, Aspiration is a synonym to Ambition. So, have you gotten the answer to the first question I asked?

Realization:
This word here is a little tricky, as the meaning tend to change strongly depending what phase/stage/situation you are at. If you're at the beginning (or in the midst) of something, Realization simply means you've gain awareness or you're fully aware of a fact that determines the direction, the goals, or your understanding of the plan. However, if you're at the middle or at the end of something, it simple means you're doing (realizing) your work, or you've completed (realized) the designated work. So Realization covers from the act of gaining awareness, to make it real and keeping it real. A good example of understanding what I meant would be, "Have you realized it?" could you referring to "Have you noticed it?" or "Have you done it?"


Understanding these doesn't necessarily means that you're done with it, or that you've achieved something great. That goes with saying, "You've only successfully understood what was told. Doesn't mean you're at success." This only provides you with mere understanding and how to distinguish them. However, making full use of this knowledge will bring you somewhere greater than you think - Kick start your Aspiration with Inspiration, with the support of Motivation, in order to achieve Realization in whatever you do or plan.

I wish you success in whatever you do.

"Success is the ability to go from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm"
-Sir Winston Churchill-

Spot the Diff !

This is very disappointing, I mean like seriously... Enough of dirt/mess on the ground but now you wanna try and grow them on trees? No matter how good green-tech will be, it ain't gonna help if people are gonna stuff their leftovers/dirt/mess on the actual greens...

A hint: Color difference...