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	Tuesday, November 30, 2004

Putting the Right Pressure on the Right Places ( on business) The other evening, I decided to drop by the spa to get a massage on the way home, a little indulgence I give myself  now and then. The attendant assigned to me was young, eager, and ... new.  It was pretty obvious from the start that he was doing his best, and  not quite mastering the art yet , he was compensating it by trying harder, ...  or rather pressing harder. Now,  firm pressure can be soothing and relaxing, but only coupled with the right technique and in the right places. Unfortunately pressing heavily on the wrong places can be painful, and he did it more than once. Which makes me think that doing a massage right is not much different from managing a business right. If you know where to press, you don't have to work very hard or press very hard to deliver results. And just like the massage, pressing hard on the wrong places can deliver bad results, just as focusing too hard or working hard on the wrong places can equally be problematic in business. Now, I would be the first to say that working hard is very important, but learning the proper way to do it still is the key.  As you may well know, sometimes, in our eagerness to deliver results, we or our people may, without meaning to, work too hard on the wrong things which can still be similarly disastrous. Managing and properly growing a business, just like managing a family  ( or doing the massage)  is still the right combination of two things. Effectiveness  - doing the right thing. Efficiency - doing the thing right. Take time to learn the trade, NOT JUST THE TRICKS OF THE TRADE. And you will know when to apply pressure, where to apply pressure, and when to loosen up, and not waste your strength. 7:42:07 PM     comment []   trackback []

	Saturday, November 20, 2004

What Good is an MBA?  ( on business) After I finish the MBA, so what?  Is it the end of the road?  Or the beginning? I have a wealth of notes, readings, observations during the MBA days which have been very fruitful that I will want to share.  But since I started blogging at about the same time I finished the program, I will start sharing it more and more in the coming months. First, I visit the question which I think is of relevance to those that have finished the program, or those that are still contemplating to start.  What good is an MBA degree? I had different thoughts about it twelve years ago when I was yearning to get one.  I had different thoughts on it almost three years ago when I started the program, and I now have different thoughts on it now that I have finished.  I don't know if my thinking is more relevant to what you want to know, but I am sure I will be more credible and authoritative to sound it off now that I am done with it.  So I am now speaking from first hand experience rather than wishful think.  To sidetrack slightly, it is always good to remember credibility is very important when you are doing business and in all aspects of life. I have seen many people who think they have had it made when they graduate.  It is as if their days of cultivation is over, and they are now in harvest mode.  In fact, in most parts of Asia, the responsibility of the parent is UPTO when the child graduates from college or university.  After that, you are supposed to be MADE and can be on your own.   That is so far from the truth.  A new degree signals  a new beginning, with emphasis on beginning. The hard work is not over -- it will just be in a different form.  In fact, just like marriage, the romance ( and the challenge)  should just be beginning, not ending. Many people get a degree, especially an MBA for career employment and promotion.  They don't usually think so, but act as if when they get the degree, their career is made.  This wrong notion will not do damage, but it will hamper the person IF he thinks that getting a degree is more important than learning the skills that the degree represents. Which essentially brings me to what I really want to say: Your degree will open a door, but  how far you walked into the door ( which defines your accomplishment and success)  will still depend on what you have inside - your skills , your creativity, your motivation, your initiative etc. It will open doors in the sense that when you send your CV, people will pick you out easily from other ten applicants who may not have an MBA.  It will open doors in the sense that the manager may be willing to give you five minutes more interview or ten minutes more time to present your case.  But you get that job still because of what you were able to do, or accomplished -- in this case how far you can walk into a door that has been opened.  By and itself, it is not worth much, except when new.  But if after ten or twenty years of work, if your work does not speak for itself, and all you can still boast about is that MBA you got so many years ago, then it may just highlight an expectation that you were not able to fulfill.  Your MBA opening doors from you should mean that in the next 10 years of your work, you are expected to walk farther into the door than if you have not gotten one.  That would be the true measure of your degree. In short, the value is not how high or far it places you initially, but how far it enables you to move forward. This is just one aspect.  I wanted the blog to be short, in byte size pieces.  But you will continue to read more on various aspects on technology and business here. 4:16:26 PM     comment []   trackback []

	Monday, November 08, 2004

Buying a Reputation ( on business) There are very few things that can give you sustainable competitive advantage.  Not price, not location, not expertise, and certainly not legislation.  But reputation is one. When all else is lost, reputation stays.  A business needs to care about its reputation.  Actually, all of us, whether employer or employed should also care about our reputation too.  I read about this story over 20 years ago, and since I'm currently in China, I'd like to retell this.  This old chinese story happened over a thousand years ago, but its lessons are as relevant today. "There was this old rich official who owned hugh tracts of land. He asked his assistant to go collect the rent, and then buy him something that he still did not have.  What do you give a person who has everything? The assistant went to visit the farmers, and then proceeded to burn the collection receipts. The old official was flabbergasted, and told the assistant that he absolutely was reckless. A month after the official went to visit his land. He was greeted by huge cheers of the farmers in gratitude for his kind consideration to waive that years rent. He then understood what the assistant meant. He had everything but the reputation and goodwill of his tenants.  For him who had everything, he lacked 'a good name. ' It would have been great if reputation can simply be bought.  Sometimes, it can.  But the reason it is so valuable because it requires time, dedication and sacrifice to develop a reputation for trust and reliability.  However, once developed, it can give back many times over.  The Chinese have a saying, "The tiger will leave its skin, but for people, the only thing you will leave when you are dead is your good name." What have you done to enhance your reputation lately? 9:10:03 PM     comment []   trackback []