must catch... "Kungfu Hustle" by Stephen Chow...

been listening and seeing so much of its reviews and advertisements... good and bad... some say it's just as good as shaolin soccer but some say it's not as good... hmmmm... which is which... i tink the best thing is to find out myself... ehehehehe... dun worry, i'll definitely catch it by tis week the latest... while waiting, let's do some reading...ehehehehe....



Synopsis:
Set amid the chaos of pre-revolutionary China, small time thief, Sing, aspires to be a member of the sophisticated and ruthless Axe Gang whose underworld activities overshadow the city.

Stumbling across a crowded apartment complex aptly known as "Pig Sty Alley", Sing attempts to extort money from one of the ordinary locals, but the neighbours are not what they appear to be.

Sing's comical attempts at intimidation inadvertently attract the Axe Gang into the fray, setting off a chain of events that brings the two disparate worlds face-to-face.

As the inhabitants of the Pig Sty Alley fight for their lives, the ensuing clash of kung fu titans unearths some legendary martial art masters. Sing, despite his futile attempts, lacks the soul of a killer and must face his own mortality in order to discover the true nature of a kung fu master.

verdict: 3/5 stars(considering the lousy storyline but credits will be given to the cgi... hahaha!!!)

The demise of Common Sense

TODAY we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend by the name of Common Sense.

No one knows for sure how old he was since his birth records were lost long ago amidst bureaucratic red tape.

But he will be remembered as having cultivated such valued lessons as knowing when to come in out of the rain, why the early bird gets the worm, and that life isn’t always fair.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don’t spend more than you earn) and reliable parenting strategies (adults, not kids, are in charge). His health began to rapidly deteriorate when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place.

Reports of a six-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate, teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch, and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student only worsened his condition!

It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer aspirin to a student but could not inform the parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Finally, Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Command-ments became contraband, churches became businesses, and criminals received better treatment than their victims.

Common Sense finally gave up the ghost after a woman failed to realise that a steaming cup of coffee was hot, spilled it in her lap and was awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust; his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by two stepbrothers, My Rights and I’m Whiner. Not many attended his funeral because few realised he was gone.

Study: Laptop heat a threat to fertility

yo guys, check tis out... a new threat to our produtivity... ehehehe... rather interesting... dun believe it, try it! ehehehe...cool... TGIF! ;)

Settling into a New Role

==================================================

haven't been blogging for sometime. reason due to busy with work and job hunting. now slightly better as i alredi found a new job and also starting to handover all my work in the current company to my predecessor. ehehehe...ok cool! Here are some guidelines which i found it rather useful and important especially for newcomer like myself in the working world... sometimes we could just have overlooked some of the points which mentioned in this article. ehehehe... ok, here you go: (article title is as above)

==================================================
Once you commence at your new employment place, do as much as possible to increase your awareness of the new organization. This will boost your confidence, give you a positive frame of mind and reduce the steepness of the learning curve when you do eventually begin. You may wonder as to how you may build up your information resources. You can build your information source from:

• The research which you should have undertook before the selection interview.
• The knowledge gained at the actual interview.
• The knowledge which your new employer can provide after you have accepted the offer: for example, literature on products and services, visits to familiarize yourself with procedures, technology, etc.
• The knowledge gained from reading or experience which you or your existing employer can arrange.
• Reviewing your self-assessment profile. What could you do differently this time around to build a stronger career and avoid some of the weaknesses of your past, e.g. to delegate or meet deadlines more effectively, relate better to colleagues, maximize your potential, etc? You may find it helpful to strengthen your resolve and formulate some strategies here by talking these issues through in advance with a friend, mentor, counselor, etc.
• Furthermore, before going in on the first day, do consider what “image” the employer feels may be appropriate to your job - appearance, clothes, life-style, and attitudes.

Soon after starting, try to establish:

• The organizational structure.
• 'Who's who' - formally and informally.
• The relationship of your job to others.
• Communications: up, down and sideways; 'dotted lines', support services available - e.g., personnel department.
• Preferred communication networks: word of mouth, memos, E-mail, committees, etc.
  What the rules and procedures operate within the organization - written or oral - e.g. concerning health and welfare, discrimination, etc.
• Whether the organization has received any type of quality accreditation.
• The history of the enterprise.

One more point to note here once you start I that, if you do not have a job description already, ask for one, and then try to define as clearly as you can the boundaries of your job. You are not seeking to establish the minimum acceptable benchmarks, but frontiers within which you can make your best contribution. Do this constructively and as quickly as you can. Within the first month would be ideal.

To further ensure you are on the right track, go further to find out:

• What the limits of your authority are.
• What the parameters and main objectives of your job are.
• What the expectations of your superiors and colleagues are.
• What kind of feedback you will receive from superiors.
• The limits of your responsibilities - personnel, products, services etc.
• The way your job meshes into any quality system in use.
• What resources you will be available to have.
• What priorities in the job as well as the proportion of your time that you should be giving to each.
• What the main problem areas, pitfalls and the 'uniqueness' of the job are.

Try to start by:

• Listening a great deal to instructions, names and other important information.
• Being modest, well behaved and courteous.
• Exercising tact and much diplomacy.
• Being a 'Day One' performer.

Avoid starting by:

• Constantly speaking about how you used to do it in your last job.
• Criticizing your new, or former, employers or colleagues.
• Encouraging stories about your predecessor.

Plunge in with vision...

Before you become an entrepreneur to execute your business idea, consider how you can fit into the market
Are you decisive? Do you have a strong desire to succeed? Are you ambitious? Are you very hardworking? Do you have strong motivation to move yourself forward every day? Do you want to make a difference in your life and leave a legacy?
If you have answered yes to the above, you may want to consider becoming an entrepreneur. Of course, you must have a vision or dream of what you want to achieve and make it a reality.
Before you quit your job to become your own boss, you need to find your own market space. The following points can help you in your process.
Decide on your goals
What are the goals for your business? You need to set realistic goals, not goals that are beyond your reach. What do you want the results to be? How many hours do you want to work? How many employees do you want to have? What do you want in your employees? How much sales do you want to make? What will be the acceptable profit margin?
The idea is to get a clear vision, or a big picture, for the business. Once you decide how it will look like when it is established, you will know what needs to be done to get you going.
Conduct market research
Spend some time to determine how much you will be able to charge for your product or service, and what kind of volume you will be able to sell within a time period. Think about the amount of effort you are willing to put in in a day so you can get a rough idea of the amount you can make.
Once you have these estimates, you can then decide if the money you can make or the time you need to put in are worth the effort. There are some people who spend many years working in a business that is just not capable of becoming what they had initially hoped for, and they end up becoming a slave to their business.
Many entrepreneurs think that success is all about developing a great product or service, but it also means being able to market and sell it well.
Before you spend a lot of time and money developing or perfecting your product, try to make a prototype or develop a clear and concise description of what it will be like, and do some market research. Determine who your prospective customers will be and take the opportunity to talk to them. Ask them as many questions as you can. Find out the price they are willing to pay. Consider this feedback and modify your product design accordingly, if necessary.
Next, try to look at other market players that are selling similar products or services. Find out what they charge, how they market and sell their products or services, and what their competitive advantage is. Find out what they are doing as well as why and how customers respond to their product.
Once you think you have a clear understanding of what the market really wants, you can then move ahead with your product or develop your service.
Starting the business
When you begin your business, work from home for a while if possible or rent the minimum amount of space and equipment necessary. It is very important to keep your overhead costs as low as possible, at least till things start to take off.
You need to resist the temptation to rent a nice office and fill it with nice furniture, carpet and equipment. Though impressive, it will be a large outlay for an entrepreneur who is just starting out.
From the start, it is critical that you communicate a consistent message to all potential customers. Start with the following:
Business cards: Get plenty and hand them out at every opportunity.
Website: This is to showcase your company’s range of products or services and to provide a downloadable brochure as well as useful information such as e-newsletters.
Marketing: Create a memorable theme that will stick in the minds of the customers.
Networking: Attend business and social activities to get your company’s name out in the industry.
Starting a new business is challenging and at times confusing. It is easy to get overwhelmed by the huge number of tasks you face every day.
Ask yourself: “What can I do to increase sales and market my product or service better today?” If you are thinking about this constantly, the other details will eventually fall into place.

2004 coming to a close...but still not much improvement...

yeah tt's right... yr 2004 is coming to a close but i'll still no different as compare to last yr. Still working for people although lately been quite rough ride trying to find myself a new challenge in life hoping that i would be able to enjoy every single moment of my life more meaningfully and satisfactorily but all in vain. In Anthony Robbins - Awaken the GIANT Within, i read through this book before. In it, mostly all postive and motivational quotes from famous people which is meant to giv us a "push" in our current state of life so that we could "pull" something dramatically and quickly to "change" the way we live our life. Many claims that they have read the book and it turns out to be very effective and useful especially the kind of impact it provides to throttle our life. But as for me, after reading it for the 2nd times, i still feel the same although do have some positive feeling while reading it but all these went off the moment i stopped reading it. Why? It's the book isn't good enough or i'm just too weak to be trained as a great positive thinker and executor? Am i lack of the capability to further excel or i'm just holding myself back because of the risks involved? What kind of risks are we talking here? Risks of being killed...No i don't think so... i tink it's more like personal risk... scared to fail, lack of self-motivation, self-confident, self-disciplined, and the lists will go on n on... neverending same goes for this! What am i trying to achieve all these years? What am i looking for? What's the catch? What's the hunt? Couldn't believe after so many years of hard and solid self-disciplined and motivational training i imposed on myself, and here i'm now writing abt all these which i should have mastered them long time ago. What's wrong wt me? Am i'm going crazy? Afraid not, i'm just being and feeling too insecured in this world, need to find a quick, positive and effective solutions else all my years of hardwork will goes down the drain... wouldn't want that to happen... how i wish i could be given another chance?... oh god... confused and frustrated life!