As a college senior, I read some chapters of this book by Paul Krugman and Maurice Obstfeld. While I aced the basic economics class the year before, I only received average marks for this course. I found it difficult to understand some of the theoretical chapters so I ended up having some knowledge of international trade and finance, but not any intuitive understanding of its concepts. Last year, six years after college, I finally read this book from cover to cover. I doubt I can explain comparative advantage to someone else anymore than I could when I was in college, but I feel I have a better grasp of the economic headlines today - the sovereign debt crisis in Europe, the impact of foreign exchange on the Philippine economy, and recurring fears of another global recession.
I once seriously considered taking a master's degree in Economics. After taking a couple of graduate subjects in Political Science, I realized there was not much new to be learned from my professors so I planned to enroll in the School of Economics. But life happened. I became a father at 22 and my career in IBM just kept on growing that I finally gave up on graduate school.
As a manager in the BPO industry, I actually see how currency exchange fluctuations can frustrate my attempts to reduce cost. This is international economics in practice.
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Thursday, December 8, 2011
After Dark
After Dark describes a night in Tokyo, but I can hardly remember the plot. The focus is less on the narrative, but more on the setting and the mood, on how an entirely different world exists when the sun is out. I wonder how Murakami would have written this had he been in Manila instead.
In Manila, the world after dark is brimming with life and energy. Not just from the usual centers of night life such as red light districts, but almost every concentration of tall buildings has probably more people working at night than during the day. After all, Manila is now the number one outsourcing destination for voice services. With most of the BPO companies still operating out of Manila, most of the half a million people working for this industry make Manila after dark vastly different from Tokyo or any other city after dark.
Here, workers who hardly see the sun start their day after sunset. Usually waking with a nasty headache, they usually head to Starbucks before reporting for work at 9pm. They then answer calls and emails and process transactions for the next nine hours or so. They usually spend their breaks drinking more coffee and smoking outside the lobbies. On a Friday or on any weekday they feel like it, they start happy hour at 7am and will drink until late morning.
I was once a call center agent myself. I am now in a senior manager role and start work in the afternoon, but it is exactly midnight as I write this. This is Manila after dark.
In Manila, the world after dark is brimming with life and energy. Not just from the usual centers of night life such as red light districts, but almost every concentration of tall buildings has probably more people working at night than during the day. After all, Manila is now the number one outsourcing destination for voice services. With most of the BPO companies still operating out of Manila, most of the half a million people working for this industry make Manila after dark vastly different from Tokyo or any other city after dark.
Here, workers who hardly see the sun start their day after sunset. Usually waking with a nasty headache, they usually head to Starbucks before reporting for work at 9pm. They then answer calls and emails and process transactions for the next nine hours or so. They usually spend their breaks drinking more coffee and smoking outside the lobbies. On a Friday or on any weekday they feel like it, they start happy hour at 7am and will drink until late morning.
I was once a call center agent myself. I am now in a senior manager role and start work in the afternoon, but it is exactly midnight as I write this. This is Manila after dark.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
How the World Came to Be What It Is
Steve Hagen invites us to see the world as it is, unmediated by concepts. This was tough reading for me even though the Buddhist thoughts being explained were quite familiar. I remember reading this book at the airport while waiting for my wife to arrive from her US business trip. I went to the airport really early, around 5am, and I waited for over two hours. I was really tense while waiting as I did not inform her beforehand I would be there and there was a chance I might not spot her among the crowd.
I actually almost missed her. For some reason, I was certain she had already passed by so I started running past the barricades to the area on the other side of the gates where the taxi cabs were waiting. And I found her there, pleasantly surprised to see me. It was the first time we had been apart for two weeks so it was great to give her a surprise welcome. I also did it because I once came home from abroad really hoping to see her at the airport but it was not to be.
So how is this personal note related to Steve's book? I do not know. This is how I saw things when I was reading. So this is what I wrote about.
I actually almost missed her. For some reason, I was certain she had already passed by so I started running past the barricades to the area on the other side of the gates where the taxi cabs were waiting. And I found her there, pleasantly surprised to see me. It was the first time we had been apart for two weeks so it was great to give her a surprise welcome. I also did it because I once came home from abroad really hoping to see her at the airport but it was not to be.
So how is this personal note related to Steve's book? I do not know. This is how I saw things when I was reading. So this is what I wrote about.
Monday, November 14, 2011
Analects and the Art of Ruling
Below are some timeless precepts from Confucius' classic Analects. Much of Confucian ethics is consistent with what one can read in leadership books, but the emphasis on integrity, respect for authority, and on being a gentleman, give it a uniquely Asian perspective on the art of ruling.
- Rule over them with dignity and they will be reverent; treat them with kindness and they will do their best; raise the good and instruct those who are backward and they will be imbued with enthusiasm.
- The gentleman desires to be halting in speech but quick in action.
- If I took anyone it would have to be a man who, when faced with a task, was fearful of failure and who, while fond of making plans, was capable of successful execution.
- The Master is cordial yet stern, awe-inspiring yet not fierce, and respectful yet at ease.
- The gentleman helps others realize what is good in them; he does not help them to realize what is bad in them. The small man does the opposite.
- If a man is correct in his own person, then there will be obedience without orders being given; but if he is not correct in his own person, there will not be obedience even though orders are given.
- When a man in office finds that he can more than cope with his duties, then he studies; when a student finds that he can more than cope with his studies, then he takes office.
Some of my colleagues question my respect and reverence for those who lead me. While I understand the value of argument as a former college debater, there is a lot to be said for respecting the established order unless the Son of Heaven loses his mandate from heaven.
- Rule over them with dignity and they will be reverent; treat them with kindness and they will do their best; raise the good and instruct those who are backward and they will be imbued with enthusiasm.
- The gentleman desires to be halting in speech but quick in action.
- If I took anyone it would have to be a man who, when faced with a task, was fearful of failure and who, while fond of making plans, was capable of successful execution.
- The Master is cordial yet stern, awe-inspiring yet not fierce, and respectful yet at ease.
- The gentleman helps others realize what is good in them; he does not help them to realize what is bad in them. The small man does the opposite.
- If a man is correct in his own person, then there will be obedience without orders being given; but if he is not correct in his own person, there will not be obedience even though orders are given.
- When a man in office finds that he can more than cope with his duties, then he studies; when a student finds that he can more than cope with his studies, then he takes office.
Some of my colleagues question my respect and reverence for those who lead me. While I understand the value of argument as a former college debater, there is a lot to be said for respecting the established order unless the Son of Heaven loses his mandate from heaven.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Hey, Nostradamus
I have never understood why students will bring guns to school and start shooting at random the way the shooters did at Columbine. I have often wondered whether it was an American, or a developed country phenomenon as it has not happened in the Philippines. In Hey, Nostradamus, Douglas Coupland depicts the story of a young couple whose lives are forever changed by a school shooting incident. One life is snuffed out senselessly, and another tries to move on with life, but the past continues to haunt him until his own life ends violently. I can only describe this novel as bleak.
The book forces the reader to feel the pain of a victim and it is a truly depressing feeling. I do not know if I could have reacted any more differently than Jason if I were in the same position. I do not even want to imagine violent crime, but there is no use denying its existence. It has happened to real people, and it will continue to happen to real people. Perhaps I cannot understand this because there is nothing to understand. It is senseless and that is all there is to it. Life truly can be nasty, brutish and short so it is good to be reminded how we should enjoy every moment we have with the people we love.
The book forces the reader to feel the pain of a victim and it is a truly depressing feeling. I do not know if I could have reacted any more differently than Jason if I were in the same position. I do not even want to imagine violent crime, but there is no use denying its existence. It has happened to real people, and it will continue to happen to real people. Perhaps I cannot understand this because there is nothing to understand. It is senseless and that is all there is to it. Life truly can be nasty, brutish and short so it is good to be reminded how we should enjoy every moment we have with the people we love.
Monday, October 24, 2011
100 Masterpieces of Painting
Last year, I had a sudden yearning for art. The year before that, I was looking for spirituality, and I still am. It is, in my view, part of my own natural quest for meaning. It is my ascent in Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Three promotions in five years have earned me a good salary for my age and making good investments as everyone was risk averse because of the global recession has meant a higher level of material security than I felt five years ago. I obviously would not have been promoted if I had not earned recognition at work so I do not want for affirmation. It was only a matter of course that I began looking for the true, the good, and the beautiful as Imelda or, more accurately, Plato would put it.
So for my 26th birthday, I bought myself a copy of Michel Nuridsany's 100 Masterpieces of Painting. It was quite expensive, but it was all worth it. I was treated to page after page of full color reproductions of 100 masterpieces of art. While I did go through a high school subject called Communication through the Arts, and six units of Humanities in college, I never really appreciated art until I read this book. It was an immersion into the creative history of humanity from the cave paintings of Lascaux to the post modernist works of the late 20th century. My appetite for art was only whetted even more by an encounter with Ramon Hofilena of Silay, art connoisseur and raconteur par excellence. I almost bought a couple of abstract works by Hechanova from him. Maybe I should have given in to impulse.
I have since continued to read about art. I have visited art galleries and museums and went to the latest ManilART fair. But aside from a painting of a mother and child given by my wife's friend to her when she was pregnant, I have yet to really start my art collection. Armed with more knowledge, and, hopefully, a more refined taste, I hope to fill my home with art so my kids will grow up seeing beauty in a world that is often ugly and painful.
So for my 26th birthday, I bought myself a copy of Michel Nuridsany's 100 Masterpieces of Painting. It was quite expensive, but it was all worth it. I was treated to page after page of full color reproductions of 100 masterpieces of art. While I did go through a high school subject called Communication through the Arts, and six units of Humanities in college, I never really appreciated art until I read this book. It was an immersion into the creative history of humanity from the cave paintings of Lascaux to the post modernist works of the late 20th century. My appetite for art was only whetted even more by an encounter with Ramon Hofilena of Silay, art connoisseur and raconteur par excellence. I almost bought a couple of abstract works by Hechanova from him. Maybe I should have given in to impulse.
I have since continued to read about art. I have visited art galleries and museums and went to the latest ManilART fair. But aside from a painting of a mother and child given by my wife's friend to her when she was pregnant, I have yet to really start my art collection. Armed with more knowledge, and, hopefully, a more refined taste, I hope to fill my home with art so my kids will grow up seeing beauty in a world that is often ugly and painful.
Monday, October 17, 2011
Candide
Avant de travailler chez IBM, c'etait mon reve d'etre philosophe comme Voltaire pendant la Lumiere et Jean Paul Sartre et Michel Foucault au 20eme siecle. Ici aux Philippines, j'ai bien admire les intellectuels publique comme Randy David, professeur de sociologie et Winnie Monsod, mon ancien professeur aux sciences economiques. Je voulais faire mes etudes au troisieme cycle dans les grands universites au Royaume Uni - Oxford, Cambridge - ou aux Etats-Unis - Harvard, Yale, etc. Et puis, je voulais etre professeur dans l'Universite des Philippines ou j'enseignerais le science politique et ecrirais des livres, et, de temps en temps, ferais des commentaires sur les grandes questions du jour. Mais la vie s'est interpose. Je suis devenu pere a l'age de 22 ans et j'ai decide de faire carriere dans IBM. Cette semaine, je vais celebrer mon cinquieme ans dans la societe.
Dans l'oeuvre de Voltaire, Candide a perdu son optimisme apres des experiences incroyables et epouvantables. Il a appris que ce n'est pas vert que ce monde est toujours le meilleur de tous les mondes possibles. A la fin, il decide de s'occuper de sa terre, de cultiver son jardin. C'est par cela qu'il passe de la reflexion philosophique at a l'action concrete. Et moi aussi, j'ai passe de la reflexion vide et deprimante au travail, un travail fatiguant et ennuyant quelquefois, mais, en fin de compte, precieux et important pour moi-meme, ma famille, at la nation.
Dans l'oeuvre de Voltaire, Candide a perdu son optimisme apres des experiences incroyables et epouvantables. Il a appris que ce n'est pas vert que ce monde est toujours le meilleur de tous les mondes possibles. A la fin, il decide de s'occuper de sa terre, de cultiver son jardin. C'est par cela qu'il passe de la reflexion philosophique at a l'action concrete. Et moi aussi, j'ai passe de la reflexion vide et deprimante au travail, un travail fatiguant et ennuyant quelquefois, mais, en fin de compte, precieux et important pour moi-meme, ma famille, at la nation.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Sputnik Sweetheart
Reading Sputnik Sweetheart made me profoundly sad. I could not pinpoint any reason for the feeling of loneliness and desolation other than perhaps a residual reaction to the disappearance of Sumire and K's own longing for her. Images of Sputnik, the world's first artificial satellite, orbiting the earth in black, empty space, all alone, kept recurring in my mind as I read this book.
I do not always understand Haruki Murakami's symbolism. Sometimes I just read for the pleasure of it, and I think that's fine. I have come to love his quintessential lonely male characters who often drink scotch and have a strong liking for classical music. I am not exactly lonely, but I must admit there were several moments in my life when I really felt depressed, sometimes because there was a compelling reason like failing to graduate with honors or being heartbroken, but sometimes for no apparent reason at all. My wife says I am naturally melancholic and I tend to agree. I would rather be alone than be in a crowd unless, ironically, I am called to speak. And I am sad more often than I am happy. I would like to be happier. I would like to smile more as people see me as always serious. That's because I probably am always serious.
I love classical music too and many forms of old music, like big band music and military marches. People are very likely to find that weird. But I have learned to be comfortable with myself. I have learned to be okay with the idea of being alone sometimes even as I truly relish the company of the people I love. Perhaps my wife sometimes feel she has a Sputnik for a sweetheart.
I do not always understand Haruki Murakami's symbolism. Sometimes I just read for the pleasure of it, and I think that's fine. I have come to love his quintessential lonely male characters who often drink scotch and have a strong liking for classical music. I am not exactly lonely, but I must admit there were several moments in my life when I really felt depressed, sometimes because there was a compelling reason like failing to graduate with honors or being heartbroken, but sometimes for no apparent reason at all. My wife says I am naturally melancholic and I tend to agree. I would rather be alone than be in a crowd unless, ironically, I am called to speak. And I am sad more often than I am happy. I would like to be happier. I would like to smile more as people see me as always serious. That's because I probably am always serious.
I love classical music too and many forms of old music, like big band music and military marches. People are very likely to find that weird. But I have learned to be comfortable with myself. I have learned to be okay with the idea of being alone sometimes even as I truly relish the company of the people I love. Perhaps my wife sometimes feel she has a Sputnik for a sweetheart.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Tao of Physics
I dreamed of becoming a theoretical physicist when I was a science high school student. I used to spend my two hour bus rides to my home in Cavite - only twenty kilometers away but notorious for its legendary traffic - discussing physics concepts with my best friend James. I selected Physics with Computer Engineering as my first choice at the Ateneo and I would have probably finished that course had I decided to go there instead of UP. This fascination for science was partly responsible for my atheism back then, and my skepticism towards anything mystical or supernatural. It would take years, the wisdom gained from living a decade more of real life, and the influence of my wife before I overcame my aversion towards reading books like the Tao of Physics by Frank Capra.
As I read about Buddhism and other forms of Eastern Mysticism, I began to realize how arrogant I was to think that the Western rational scientific paradigm was the supreme and only legitimate way of looking at things. As one digs deeper into quantum physics, common sense notions of space and time almost become meaningless. Probability waves, rather than definite positions and velocities, define reality. These concepts seem far removed from Newtonian mechanics and are better explained by Eastern mysticism.
I find a lot of solace in Buddhism. The ability to meditate, to find moments of stillness in the middle of the drama of others at work who create a false sense of urgency, is something I treasure. It grounds me and gives me perspective. It is, therefore, especially satisfying to find a book that is attuned with both hard core physics and the great teachings of the Eastern sages.
As I read about Buddhism and other forms of Eastern Mysticism, I began to realize how arrogant I was to think that the Western rational scientific paradigm was the supreme and only legitimate way of looking at things. As one digs deeper into quantum physics, common sense notions of space and time almost become meaningless. Probability waves, rather than definite positions and velocities, define reality. These concepts seem far removed from Newtonian mechanics and are better explained by Eastern mysticism.
I find a lot of solace in Buddhism. The ability to meditate, to find moments of stillness in the middle of the drama of others at work who create a false sense of urgency, is something I treasure. It grounds me and gives me perspective. It is, therefore, especially satisfying to find a book that is attuned with both hard core physics and the great teachings of the Eastern sages.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Ten Best of Everything
I love lists because I believe life is too short not to be spending my time on only the best. I have a list of one hundred books to read because, at the rate I am going, I can only read about three books a month, which means I can only finish 360 books in ten years. For a bookworm like me, I can only echo the quote: "so many books, so little time." I have a list of 100 films to watch and a wish list of places to go and things to buy because no matter how rich I become, there is only so much time in the world to enjoy the fine things in life. This is why Lande and Lande's Ten Best of Everything was a joy to read. It was one of those books that gave me a sense of how best to experience distant places like Africa and South America whither, if it all, I may have but once chance to go.
The book also has lists of things like the ten best watches, pens and wines. At this point, much of the list is aspirational. It will take time before I can reward myself with a Rolex or a Patek Philippe and I already consider a one thousand peso bottle of wine expensive. I do not want to be too materialistic and measure my worth through the purchase of expensive trinkets. Yet I believe the aspiration for status symbols also has its value, especially if one does not mistake the symbol of achievement with the actual one. If I really wanted to, I can buy an expensive watch right now or perhaps take out a loan to purchase a luxury car. But to do so would be to remove the value of these objects for they are precisely the best because I need to work hard for them and earn the right to enjoy them. Cheers to the good life!
The book also has lists of things like the ten best watches, pens and wines. At this point, much of the list is aspirational. It will take time before I can reward myself with a Rolex or a Patek Philippe and I already consider a one thousand peso bottle of wine expensive. I do not want to be too materialistic and measure my worth through the purchase of expensive trinkets. Yet I believe the aspiration for status symbols also has its value, especially if one does not mistake the symbol of achievement with the actual one. If I really wanted to, I can buy an expensive watch right now or perhaps take out a loan to purchase a luxury car. But to do so would be to remove the value of these objects for they are precisely the best because I need to work hard for them and earn the right to enjoy them. Cheers to the good life!
Monday, July 18, 2011
Go Negosyo or Why I Want to be Rich
I read Joey Concepcion’s Go Negosyo to understand how successful Filipino entrepreneurs made it. I wanted to see which industries they ventured into and what methods they used to start and grow their businesses. Since the book is a compilation of two page profiles, it does not go into a lot of detail regarding how a particular entrepreneur decided on what business to start and the hard work and thinking that went behind building a business empire. Nevertheless, reading about the story of business moguls like Henry Sy, John Gokongwei and Andrew Tan, and realizing they all built their fortune from scratch inspires me to dream about generating my own wealth.
I want to be rich not just because I want to retire early. I want to have financial freedom, which will allow me to pursue things I have always wanted to do, but could not do because I needed to pay the bills. I want to be able to travel and immerse myself in other cultures. I want to learn more foreign languages. I want to appreciate art, and perhaps create art. I want to read history, do research, and write history.
Beyond my own personal dreams, I feel I owe it to society to be rich. I have been given with enough intelligence that it would be inexcusable not to become rich. And by having enough money to transcend my personal needs, I will be in a position to help more people have a better life.
I want to be rich not just because I want to retire early. I want to have financial freedom, which will allow me to pursue things I have always wanted to do, but could not do because I needed to pay the bills. I want to be able to travel and immerse myself in other cultures. I want to learn more foreign languages. I want to appreciate art, and perhaps create art. I want to read history, do research, and write history.
Beyond my own personal dreams, I feel I owe it to society to be rich. I have been given with enough intelligence that it would be inexcusable not to become rich. And by having enough money to transcend my personal needs, I will be in a position to help more people have a better life.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
1421: The Year China Discovered America
Gavin Menzies aims to rewrite history by making the extraordinary claim that not only did the Chinese discover the New World, they actually sailed around the world almost a century before Magellan did. Academic historians criticize Menzies for his claims, but I found many of his arguments plausible, and I truly enjoyed reading his work.
I actually envy Menzies because he is exactly the sort of historian I would like to be. Like him, I would like to pursue my passion in history by writing something revolutionary yet I do not see myself becoming a full time professor, at least not yet. I would like to research and write for the sheer pleasure of it rather than simply satisfy academic requirements or write theses only a few old historians would care to read. Why, if my wife can pay for my travel and research like his wife does, then I can probably write that Filipinos discovered Spain instead of the other way around!
Conventional history accepts that the Chinese did explore the Indian Ocean and reached all the way to East Africa. It is also acknowledged that Admiral Zeng He's fleet was the largest the world had ever seen. Whether they actually rounded the Cape of Good Hope or not does not diminish the greatness of Ming China.
I actually envy Menzies because he is exactly the sort of historian I would like to be. Like him, I would like to pursue my passion in history by writing something revolutionary yet I do not see myself becoming a full time professor, at least not yet. I would like to research and write for the sheer pleasure of it rather than simply satisfy academic requirements or write theses only a few old historians would care to read. Why, if my wife can pay for my travel and research like his wife does, then I can probably write that Filipinos discovered Spain instead of the other way around!
Conventional history accepts that the Chinese did explore the Indian Ocean and reached all the way to East Africa. It is also acknowledged that Admiral Zeng He's fleet was the largest the world had ever seen. Whether they actually rounded the Cape of Good Hope or not does not diminish the greatness of Ming China.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Celestine Vision
I have not read James Redfield's Celestine Prophecy so I was not able to appreciate fully this book's recommendations on living with spiritual awareness. I did glean from the book that his earlier works highlight mysterious coincidences as unique opportunities to learn more about our life purpose. Synchronicity include events such as thinking about someone and seeing him on the same day, or dreaming about something only for it to appear in reality. Seemingly unrelated events converge to create special meaning.
I am not comfortable enough with these concepts to go out and preach about them. There is enough of the skeptical scientist in me to keep me from really exploring these ideas in detail. However, I have learned enough about life to suspend my disbelief and keep an open mind. There are things we cannot rationally explain. There are critical turning points in my life that seem to have been part of God's plan even though these events appeared meaningless or even sad at the time they happened. For example, my career would not have progressed as fast as it did had I not been rejected by IBM the first time I applied.
On the other hand, I do not want to read too much meaning in coincidences. I do not know how to explain it but I still believe in human agency and our ability to determine our future. Yet at the same time, I am humble enough to admit that there is a lot beyond our control. And I am comfortable with the idea that I cannot resolve this apparent contradiction.
I am not comfortable enough with these concepts to go out and preach about them. There is enough of the skeptical scientist in me to keep me from really exploring these ideas in detail. However, I have learned enough about life to suspend my disbelief and keep an open mind. There are things we cannot rationally explain. There are critical turning points in my life that seem to have been part of God's plan even though these events appeared meaningless or even sad at the time they happened. For example, my career would not have progressed as fast as it did had I not been rejected by IBM the first time I applied.
On the other hand, I do not want to read too much meaning in coincidences. I do not know how to explain it but I still believe in human agency and our ability to determine our future. Yet at the same time, I am humble enough to admit that there is a lot beyond our control. And I am comfortable with the idea that I cannot resolve this apparent contradiction.
Monday, July 4, 2011
1000 Places to See Before You Die
Reading Patricia Schultz 1000 Places to See Before You Die was sheer delight. She manages to capture in just a few paragraphs the history and the magic of a particular place. I know I cannot possibly visit all of the places in the book, but it does make me want to get rich faster so I can retire earlier and visit as many as I can. I also now have a good idea of the best places to stay in in the cities covered by the book. Most of the hotels she features are high end, but I do not really mind as part of the reason I travel is I want to experience the good life. I normally travel with two kids so staying at a hostel and being "authentic" is not really an option.
The book has almost 1000 pages, but I looked forward to reading it everyday until I finally managed to travel around the world vicariously by reading about one thousand beautiful places. It will take some planning, and a lot of saving, but I definitely want to see and experience the world, and this book has managed to fire up my wanderlust even more. My family is taking baby steps by exploring the country and neighboring countries first. So this December, we will be spending New Year's eve in Hong Kong. Too bad we cannot afford a room at the Peninsula yet, one of the featured hotels in the book and reportedly one of the best in the world, but I will make sure we savor views of the harbor. I cannot wait for the New Year countdown. This time we will see fireworks over one of the most beautiful cityscapes in the world rather than just another Manila street seen from another hotel in Manila.
The book has almost 1000 pages, but I looked forward to reading it everyday until I finally managed to travel around the world vicariously by reading about one thousand beautiful places. It will take some planning, and a lot of saving, but I definitely want to see and experience the world, and this book has managed to fire up my wanderlust even more. My family is taking baby steps by exploring the country and neighboring countries first. So this December, we will be spending New Year's eve in Hong Kong. Too bad we cannot afford a room at the Peninsula yet, one of the featured hotels in the book and reportedly one of the best in the world, but I will make sure we savor views of the harbor. I cannot wait for the New Year countdown. This time we will see fireworks over one of the most beautiful cityscapes in the world rather than just another Manila street seen from another hotel in Manila.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World
I do not remember much detail from Murakami's novel other than that two separate plot lines eventually converge in the end while he takes the reader through an endless series of twists and turns.
I recall reading and finishing this book during the first few days of Magnus at Waldorf. Straight from my night shift and with hardly any sleep, I was actually as excited to go school as him. Waldorf, located on top of a mountain in San Mateo more than half an hour away, served as a momentary refuge from the stress of work. Reading in the van about the adventures of a human encryption machine and the parallel world in his head served as a welcome chance for silence and solitude. There could not be any more ideal setting to continue reading than Waldorf. The school is bordered on one side by a forested ridge while, all around, one has a magnificent view of Manila and Laguna Lake. Those first few days were tiring, to be sure, but they were soothing to the soul.
Murakami's penchant for characters who drink scotch may have been partly responsible for my own preference for drinking whisky. I only wish I can also acquire the good taste of his characters for music. While I listen to more classical music than the average 26 year old, I do not have the fine taste they have for specific recordings of classical pieces. Nor do I have as much knowledge about jazz and the other relaxing songs he plays in his novels.
Finding time to commune with nature and appreciate art are both important in ensuring I have a sense of balance even as I grapple with the challenges of being a young father and manager.
I recall reading and finishing this book during the first few days of Magnus at Waldorf. Straight from my night shift and with hardly any sleep, I was actually as excited to go school as him. Waldorf, located on top of a mountain in San Mateo more than half an hour away, served as a momentary refuge from the stress of work. Reading in the van about the adventures of a human encryption machine and the parallel world in his head served as a welcome chance for silence and solitude. There could not be any more ideal setting to continue reading than Waldorf. The school is bordered on one side by a forested ridge while, all around, one has a magnificent view of Manila and Laguna Lake. Those first few days were tiring, to be sure, but they were soothing to the soul.
Murakami's penchant for characters who drink scotch may have been partly responsible for my own preference for drinking whisky. I only wish I can also acquire the good taste of his characters for music. While I listen to more classical music than the average 26 year old, I do not have the fine taste they have for specific recordings of classical pieces. Nor do I have as much knowledge about jazz and the other relaxing songs he plays in his novels.
Finding time to commune with nature and appreciate art are both important in ensuring I have a sense of balance even as I grapple with the challenges of being a young father and manager.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Bohol 2011
My Lakbayan grade is C!
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Created by Eugene Villar.
Monday, June 6, 2011
Nurture Shock
My two boys are now vastly different from what they were just one year ago. They are growing so fast even their personalities keep on changing. I find that what worked for them one year ago does not work anymore today. I am, therefore, not surprised as Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman demolish accepted truths about parenting simply by examining the scientific evidence. Truths such as the power of self esteem in ensuring success. Anyone who watches American Idol will see that indiscriminate praise has not led to a generation of successful Americans, but a generation who grew up with an extreme sense of entitlement but little understanding of the value of hard work.
Bronson and Merryman also go on to cast doubts on the value of screening for so called gifted children at an early age with many "gifted" children turning out not so gifted after all. And if teaching children a foreign language by exposing them to Baby Einstein videos sounds like it's too easy, that's because it's not that easy.
Destroying parenting myths does not mean Bronson and Merryman have arrived at new certainties. If anything, this book only underscores how much we do not know about parenting. My key takeaway is the reminder to be humble about the extent to which I can control my children's lives through excessive parenting. I can provide them a platform on which to perform through emotional and financial support, but what they ultimately choose to do on that stage can never be predicted by science.
Bronson and Merryman also go on to cast doubts on the value of screening for so called gifted children at an early age with many "gifted" children turning out not so gifted after all. And if teaching children a foreign language by exposing them to Baby Einstein videos sounds like it's too easy, that's because it's not that easy.
Destroying parenting myths does not mean Bronson and Merryman have arrived at new certainties. If anything, this book only underscores how much we do not know about parenting. My key takeaway is the reminder to be humble about the extent to which I can control my children's lives through excessive parenting. I can provide them a platform on which to perform through emotional and financial support, but what they ultimately choose to do on that stage can never be predicted by science.
In Search of Excellence
Peters and Waterman identify the eight virtues of excellent corporations:
1. A bias for action, active decision making - 'getting on with it'.
2. Close to the customer - learning from the people served by the business.
3. Autonomy and entrepreneurship - fostering innovation and nurturing 'champions'.
4. Productivity through people - treating rank and file employees as a source of quality.
5. Hands-on, value-driven - management philosophy that guides everyday practice - management showing its commitment.
6. Stick to the knitting - stay with the business that you know.
7. Simple form, lean staff - some of the best companies have minimal HQ staff.
8. Simultaneous loose-tight properties - autonomy in shop-floor activities plus centralised values.
Many of these are now considered conventional wisdom. IBM, the company I work for, demonstrated its understanding of the eighth principle when it renewed its values through an online jam session several years back. It recognized that it was impossible to manage an organization of 400,000 employees through command and control. It was more effective to appeal to the deep seated values its employees actually believed in. At the end of the exercise, the new set of values were not really new, but were more like an updated version of the original set of values, but it was clear they were the shared values of IBMers.
On 16 June, IBM will celebrate its centennial and I have no doubt its ability to demonstrate simultaneous loose-tight properties through management by values was critical in its ability to last for a century.
1. A bias for action, active decision making - 'getting on with it'.
2. Close to the customer - learning from the people served by the business.
3. Autonomy and entrepreneurship - fostering innovation and nurturing 'champions'.
4. Productivity through people - treating rank and file employees as a source of quality.
5. Hands-on, value-driven - management philosophy that guides everyday practice - management showing its commitment.
6. Stick to the knitting - stay with the business that you know.
7. Simple form, lean staff - some of the best companies have minimal HQ staff.
8. Simultaneous loose-tight properties - autonomy in shop-floor activities plus centralised values.
Many of these are now considered conventional wisdom. IBM, the company I work for, demonstrated its understanding of the eighth principle when it renewed its values through an online jam session several years back. It recognized that it was impossible to manage an organization of 400,000 employees through command and control. It was more effective to appeal to the deep seated values its employees actually believed in. At the end of the exercise, the new set of values were not really new, but were more like an updated version of the original set of values, but it was clear they were the shared values of IBMers.
On 16 June, IBM will celebrate its centennial and I have no doubt its ability to demonstrate simultaneous loose-tight properties through management by values was critical in its ability to last for a century.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Sacred Path of the Warrior
Chogyam Trungpa is the teacher of Pema Chodron. It was Pema’s work Places That Scare You that opened my eyes to the beauty of Buddhism. It was pure delight going back to the source and reading about his vision of enlightenment. I can clearly remember riding a bus from Bacolod to Sipalay while reading The Shambhalla Warrior and I must have smiled the smile of an enlightened soul reading about wisdom, courage, and compassion while the bus was winding its way around roads hugging steep cliffs, the sun’s rays shining on me, and a magnificent view of the sea serving as a backdrop.
Chogyam teaches us to be genuine every moment. Being genuine means seeing ourselves as we are, and seeing our world as it is, and having the courage to live every moment unencumbered by ego. It means having compassion for others and for the self in recognition of the suffering we all bear as human beings. Life is full of suffering because of our failure to see and accept the world as it is, a world that is impermanent and full of pain, but also a world full of beauty and wonder if we only learn to keep the mind still.
Mindfulness is the key to becoming a Shambhalla warrior. To live mindfully is to be self aware and to have respect for other beings. It is difficult to live mindfully if one has to think about so many problems at work and at home, but it is precisely through watching our thoughts and focusing on our breath during meditation that we learn to stay still and stop resisting the reality of life. It is not by running away from the stressful, and hectic life in the 21s century that one becomes enlightened. It is precisely by living in the middle of all of this chaos and finding inner peace that one becomes a warrior.
Chogyam teaches us to be genuine every moment. Being genuine means seeing ourselves as we are, and seeing our world as it is, and having the courage to live every moment unencumbered by ego. It means having compassion for others and for the self in recognition of the suffering we all bear as human beings. Life is full of suffering because of our failure to see and accept the world as it is, a world that is impermanent and full of pain, but also a world full of beauty and wonder if we only learn to keep the mind still.
Mindfulness is the key to becoming a Shambhalla warrior. To live mindfully is to be self aware and to have respect for other beings. It is difficult to live mindfully if one has to think about so many problems at work and at home, but it is precisely through watching our thoughts and focusing on our breath during meditation that we learn to stay still and stop resisting the reality of life. It is not by running away from the stressful, and hectic life in the 21s century that one becomes enlightened. It is precisely by living in the middle of all of this chaos and finding inner peace that one becomes a warrior.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Science of Self Realization
The cover alone would have been enough to repel me had I seen this book back in college. It depicts Krishna with glowing blue skin and with a black background as if floating in space.
This book, one of many written by Swami Prabhupada, founder of the Hare Krishna movement made especially famous by the Beatles, explains through a collection of lectures, essays, and interviews some of the key tenets of the movement, and of Hinduism in general.
I find some sections simplistic, and circular in reasoning. Swami Prabhupada sometimes sounds like a Christian fundamentalist when he insists that the Vedas, the Hindu scriptures, contains the incontrovertible truth. This should not really be surprising since all religious writers claim to know the revealed truth, except that he also labels his work as scientific.
Evidently, I am not about to chant Hare Krishna, but the key messages of Swami Prabhupada do resonate with me. Chanting is really another way of meditating and clearing the mind. Going back to Krishna, the supreme personality of the godhead, is a reminder of the interconnectedness of everyone, and everything. There is nothing permanent in this world for we live in a world of illusion, of maya, and we can only be truly happy once we are back with Krishna.
This book, one of many written by Swami Prabhupada, founder of the Hare Krishna movement made especially famous by the Beatles, explains through a collection of lectures, essays, and interviews some of the key tenets of the movement, and of Hinduism in general.
I find some sections simplistic, and circular in reasoning. Swami Prabhupada sometimes sounds like a Christian fundamentalist when he insists that the Vedas, the Hindu scriptures, contains the incontrovertible truth. This should not really be surprising since all religious writers claim to know the revealed truth, except that he also labels his work as scientific.
Evidently, I am not about to chant Hare Krishna, but the key messages of Swami Prabhupada do resonate with me. Chanting is really another way of meditating and clearing the mind. Going back to Krishna, the supreme personality of the godhead, is a reminder of the interconnectedness of everyone, and everything. There is nothing permanent in this world for we live in a world of illusion, of maya, and we can only be truly happy once we are back with Krishna.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Freakonomics
I find economics fascinating: I am actually reading a textbook on International Economics right now despite having a full time job as a senior manager and being a dad to two kids. But as a political science major and history buff, I often favored historical explanations over rational choice models. Explanations that assume utility maximization by rational actors are just too abstract to account for complex events in any satisfying way.
Levitt and Dubner’s work, however, demonstrates how powerful economic analysis can be when the right questions are asked and when applied against the right set of data. Conventional explanations about crime reduction in the US or misplaced notions about the impact of excessive parenting on education all fall apart when confronted by rigorous data analysis. Catching cheating in school testing and in sumo tournaments just by looking at the data is, too me, really an ingenious piece of analytics.
Thick anthropological description, contingent historical explanations, and psychological analyses all have their place in completing the story of an event, but Freakonomics just showed how economic analysis can be a compelling tool for understanding not just market forces, but the rest of society as well.
Levitt and Dubner’s work, however, demonstrates how powerful economic analysis can be when the right questions are asked and when applied against the right set of data. Conventional explanations about crime reduction in the US or misplaced notions about the impact of excessive parenting on education all fall apart when confronted by rigorous data analysis. Catching cheating in school testing and in sumo tournaments just by looking at the data is, too me, really an ingenious piece of analytics.
Thick anthropological description, contingent historical explanations, and psychological analyses all have their place in completing the story of an event, but Freakonomics just showed how economic analysis can be a compelling tool for understanding not just market forces, but the rest of society as well.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Warren Buffet Way
Warren Buffett is the third richest man on earth, estimated to be worth $50B as of 2011, and he made his billions solely through investing. Robert Hagstrom, in the bestseller Warren Buffet Way, explains Buffett's approach called value investing. Buffett does not look at daily or weekly trends, but instead measures the value of a business and buys stock - pieces of a business - when they trade significantly lower than they're actual value.
Before I read this book, I read all of Buffett's letters to the stockholders of Berkeshire Hathaway and my investment decisions have since been influenced by Buffett's methods. I have not yet earned billions, although I really hope I can buy a few great businesses and sit on my ass (search Mungerisms), but I have earned significant returns - 80% in two years - simply by following his advice. Since I was not yet an expert investor, and I did not have the time to study businesses with the diligence required, I simply bought a set amount of shares of a mutual fund every month, and watched my assets grow as the stock market recovered from the 2008 Great Recession.
It was not all smooth sailing as I did not enter the market exactly at the bottom - and Buffett counsels it is foolhardy to try and time the market. I actually lost 25% of my money at one point before riding the rally several months later. Now, I am trying to apply some of what I learned from Buffett and pick my own stocks.
My investing journey has just begun, but I have earned enough money and confidence to go for returns greater than the market. I hope the Warren Buffet Way allows me to sit on my ass soon.
Before I read this book, I read all of Buffett's letters to the stockholders of Berkeshire Hathaway and my investment decisions have since been influenced by Buffett's methods. I have not yet earned billions, although I really hope I can buy a few great businesses and sit on my ass (search Mungerisms), but I have earned significant returns - 80% in two years - simply by following his advice. Since I was not yet an expert investor, and I did not have the time to study businesses with the diligence required, I simply bought a set amount of shares of a mutual fund every month, and watched my assets grow as the stock market recovered from the 2008 Great Recession.
It was not all smooth sailing as I did not enter the market exactly at the bottom - and Buffett counsels it is foolhardy to try and time the market. I actually lost 25% of my money at one point before riding the rally several months later. Now, I am trying to apply some of what I learned from Buffett and pick my own stocks.
My investing journey has just begun, but I have earned enough money and confidence to go for returns greater than the market. I hope the Warren Buffet Way allows me to sit on my ass soon.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Tipping Point
When the tipping point is reached, rapid changes spread like a virus. It is, according to Malcom Gladwell, "the moment of critical mass, the threshold, the boiling point." One of the key points he makes is a restatement of the Pareto principle - the Law of the Few. Influencing a few key people - the connectors, the mavens, and the salesmen - is critical to inducing a widespread change in behavior.
This is an important point I must remember as my scope at work expands. If I am to scale my influence, I should find the connectors, mavens, and the salesmen in the team. Managers are natural hubs, but they are not always the most effective in spreading influence. It is often better to find influential employees for they are extremely credible to the rest of the team if one is able to gain their buy in. Conversely, they are also dangerous to overall team climate if one loses their trust. A recent experience with multiple attrition underscores the disproportionate influence of certain individuals.
There is only so many hours in the week and there will never be enough to speak to every employee one by one. The most effective leaders understand the principles of the tipping point and take advantage of them to effect viral change.
This is an important point I must remember as my scope at work expands. If I am to scale my influence, I should find the connectors, mavens, and the salesmen in the team. Managers are natural hubs, but they are not always the most effective in spreading influence. It is often better to find influential employees for they are extremely credible to the rest of the team if one is able to gain their buy in. Conversely, they are also dangerous to overall team climate if one loses their trust. A recent experience with multiple attrition underscores the disproportionate influence of certain individuals.
There is only so many hours in the week and there will never be enough to speak to every employee one by one. The most effective leaders understand the principles of the tipping point and take advantage of them to effect viral change.
Lessons from the Top
Here are the key lessons from this book of CEO profiles by Neff and Citrin:
1. Live with Integrity and Lead by Example
2. Develop a winning strategy or "big idea"
3. Build a Great Management Team
4. Inspire Employees to Achieve Greatness
5. Create a flexible, responsive organization
6. Tie It All Together with Reinforcing Management and Compensation Systems
You can't go wrong with the principles above, but the bias is for leadership and organization climate concepts. I am realizing now that there is a need to have a strong foundation in finance, and, probably later on in my career, in sales and marketing.
Below are the key traits of successful CEOs.
- Passion
- Intelligence and Clarity of Thinking
- Great Communication Skills
- High Energy Level
- Egos in Check
- Inner Peace
- Capitalizing on Formative Early Life Experience
- Strong Family Lives
- Positive Attitude
- Focus on "Doing the Right Things Right"
I think I need to work on sustaining my energy level, and gaining inner peace. My recent mentoring session with my second line manager has given me insight on better time management - he's even more obsessive-compulsive with his time. Deepening my spiritual knowledge and practicing my meditation religiously will be key to truly having inner peace.
1. Live with Integrity and Lead by Example
2. Develop a winning strategy or "big idea"
3. Build a Great Management Team
4. Inspire Employees to Achieve Greatness
5. Create a flexible, responsive organization
6. Tie It All Together with Reinforcing Management and Compensation Systems
You can't go wrong with the principles above, but the bias is for leadership and organization climate concepts. I am realizing now that there is a need to have a strong foundation in finance, and, probably later on in my career, in sales and marketing.
Below are the key traits of successful CEOs.
- Passion
- Intelligence and Clarity of Thinking
- Great Communication Skills
- High Energy Level
- Egos in Check
- Inner Peace
- Capitalizing on Formative Early Life Experience
- Strong Family Lives
- Positive Attitude
- Focus on "Doing the Right Things Right"
I think I need to work on sustaining my energy level, and gaining inner peace. My recent mentoring session with my second line manager has given me insight on better time management - he's even more obsessive-compulsive with his time. Deepening my spiritual knowledge and practicing my meditation religiously will be key to truly having inner peace.
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