NLP Presuppositions

I have attended some NLP trainings and did some reading on it. I love the idea of being able to change the result or your outcome by reprogramming your mind and action based on those who have succeeded in doing what you want to do. It's like a step by step process if taken, would have brought you close if not exactly to what you want to achieve.

There are some presuppositions in NLP that I like as it gives us the power to change ourselves and not blame others or leave things to fate. I like to refer to some of them where appropriate during my training.

1. The meaning of communication is the response you get.
2. There is no failure, only feedback.
3. Resistance in a client is a sign of lack of rapport.
4. People like people who are like themselves.
5. Respect other people's model of the world!
6. People are not their behaviors. (Accept the person, change the behavior)
7. People have all the resources they need to succeed and to achieve the desired outcome.
8. The map is not the territory.
9. There are no unresourceful people, only unresourceful state.
10. All procedures should be designed to increase flexibility.
11. Underlying every behavior is a positive intent.
12. People are only doing the best with the resources they have.
13. The past does not equal the future.
14. You cannot not communicate.
15. Change makes change.

If you google for NLP Presuppositions, you'll probably see different variations of the presupposition. The one I have is from one of the training I attended. For the original presuppositions, you'll probably need to read the book by Richard Bandler and John Grinder, the founder of NLP.

The Blue Ocean Strategy - A Review and Summary

This book truly gives a powerful lesson about creating a company that's in a class of its own. Imagine selling your products or services in a new untapped market with huge demand and an opportunity for a very profitable growth. Every business would salivate at the mere thought of it. The subject is heavy. You have to really give a deep thought into each step to bring your organization closer to the deep blue ocean. If it is easy, everyone would have done it already right!

To start with, you can use this Four Actions Framework.


One of the case study shared in the book is about Cirque De Soleil that repositions its offering in a new market that is not quite circus and not quite theatre. Alas, a new market is created. It didn't have to go head on with competitors and compete to win the shrinking market. Using the Four Action Framework, look at the strategy below.

Eliminate
- Star performers
- Animal shows
- Aisle concession sales
- Multiple show arenas

Reduce
- Fun and humor
- Thrill and danger

Raise
- Unique venue

Create
- Theme
- Refined environment
- Multiple productions
- Artistic music and dance

The book also use Southwest Airlines as it example but in our local context, I can't help but think of AirAsia.


Instead of competing with other airline companies, Southwest Airlines targets the land transport users with its offering. They stripped off all the fancy trimmings and offered a no-nonsense Point A to Point B speedier travel at a price of traveling by car. For other airlines that compete on best business travel, best first class, best meal on flight and so on, there's no way for them to take all that fancy trimmings away and started competing with Southwest.

To find your own blue ocean and reconstruct your own market boundaries, you can use the 6 Paths laid out in the book. In drawing out your strategy canvas, you have to look beyond the numbers and stare at the big picture. Charts and statistics can be manipulated to present a rosy picture. Get all the top executives to survey their own market. Do not outsource this task as many are doing right now because a famous artist did not draw a masterpiece based on another person's description. A very apt way of describing it.

I started my book summary from one interesting point to another and without realizing it, I can make a book from my own summary after the slides grow to 55 :) Find my full book summary here. You can also see a preview of the book here.

Free Office Application With No Strings Attached

Petrol prices are dropping but prices of other necessities remains high. Workers are getting retrenched and you could be wondering what's in store for you in the year to come. You tried to cut on some spending but you still need to eat, work and survive. You're wondering what else you can do. If you're interested to find out about something that is free, can be used by you or your business and there's no asterisk to indicate some hidden conditions, read on.

If you're having a problem with your toddler who has just discovered the joy of saying "NO", try giving him an option. If it is about getting him to dress, ask him to choose between the Spiderman t-shirt or the Ben 10 t-shirt. If it is about eating, give your toddler some choices too and see whether you have a more pleasant time getting them to eat their meal. As adults we also like to have options and the ability to choose.

For that reason, I love this particular website that allows me to customize my laptop purchase based on my exact requirement. I spent one whole day going through the different models, reading the online reviews and selecting the specifications. Once I'm satisfied with the hardware requirement, I have to select the right software for my use.

First, would be to choose the Operating System or OS for my laptop. OS is like an engine of a computer. Without it, all you can see is the black screen and no matter how great your hardware is, without the OS, your laptop will be useless. The basic specification for the operating system given in the website is Windows Vista Home Basic which is a big NO for users who are used to many applications like me. If I choose Windows Vista Home Premium, I have to add RM120. This is still not good enough as I will also use my laptop at work. There could be domain network connectivity issues without some of the features available with the Windows Vista Business version. If I choose Windows Vista Business, I have to fork out extra RM218 but I won't have many of the entertainment features I'd like to use for my personal photos and videos. So I ended up choosing Windows Vista Ultimate and pay an additional RM525 for it.

If you still want to use Windows XP with the option to upgrade to Windows Vista, you have to pay more for it too. Windows XP with Windows Vista Business costs RM327 more while Windows XP with Windows Vista Ultimate is RM634 extra. Unfortunately, you can't choose only Windows XP. Many users choose Windows Vista Ultimate or Windows XP with Windows Vista Ultimate because they don't want to get in a rut not having certain features required when they need it. Isn't that brilliant packaging? They give you several options but you ended up choosing the one that has everything in it. People like to be prepared. Better pay extra for something that you may never use than get caught without certain features when you need it.

Some may argue why don't just use Mac or Linux. We will return to the same argument which is the ability of some applications that we are used to in Windows. No doubt some who are brave enough to switch will learn to adapt to the new Operating System but for many, why take the risk of the unknown? So after deciding on the OS, I have to choose my Office version.

I swear I will not pay a single cent for an Office version if I don't need it for my training. I almost make the wrong choice by selecting Microsoft Office 2007 Basic which costs RM522. Who would have thought PowerPoint is not in the Basic package. All the applications I need are actually available in the Microsoft Office Home & Student 2007 OEM Version which only cost RM288 extra. Thank God for that. If you wanted the Microsoft Office 2007 Small Business version it will cost you RM810 and in this case if you're thinking to get the version that has everything to prepare yourself for any eventualities, the Microsoft Office 2007 Professional OEM Version cost an astounding RM1080. My jaw almost dropped. No wonder some choose to buy the pirated version that only costs RM10.

I can't imagine how much organizations are paying for their Microsoft licenses. Even with special package or discounted price, I'm sure it will add up to a substantial amount of money. I tried checking the price of the software from Microsoft Malaysia website but gave up after a few minutes. I wanted the ability to choose, not get confused. There were so many options available with many scenarios it can be mind boggling. You can install here but not there, you can do this but not that and you can pay this way or that way. Sigh!

Too many options to choose from may not be good too. Anyway why spend all that money when you can have similar applications for free? I highly recommend the usage of OpenOffice.org for all your Office application needs. If you have tried using OpenOffice.org before and decided against it, you should give OpenOffice.org Version 3.0 a try. The layout and performance is at par with Microsoft Office applications. I actually wanted to say better but that's my biased opinion.

If you are writing a manual, a book, a report or a thesis paper and finds Microsoft Word so frustrating, refuses to let you do what you wanted to do and has a mind of its own, you should give OpenOffice.org Writer a try. After a short familiarization period, you will be amazed with its ability to customize everything you want, the way you want them. You have to trust me on this. I often have to write newsletters, training notes and manual, I will not even have to think twice on which application to use. OpenOffice.org Writer is the way to go even when I'm preparing things for my Microsoft Office training. I especially love the Navigator function which can be good for reviewing and checking.

If you are thinking your spreadsheet is so complicated there's no way a free application can do what Microsoft Excel can do, think again. Some of the wizards can be better than those available in Microsoft Excel and it might be simpler too. For example, the Subtotal function in Excel requires you to set the function in the menu again and again if you wanted to do a nested Subtotal but in OpenOffice.org Calc, you can do it in one step as the menu screen shows three tabbed screen for three groups of Subtotal. I have not found any function or menu that I'm used to in Excel that's not available in OpenOffice.org Calc. Way to go free application!

If you want to impress your audience with your presentation, why don't you give OpenOffice.org Impress a go. You might miss the many templates found in PowerPoint but Layout selection and the Master Slide in OpenOffice.org Impress is good enough for me. I can still customize the slides to my liking. Sometimes people forget the message they want to deliver is more important than the twirling diagrams and the direction their text is flying. But then again, probably some deals are closed based on the most impressive slide show than the content and context. By the way, you can also get your diagram to twirl and text to fly in whatever direction in OpenOffice.org Impress too. All my presentation worked fine with this free application so I have nothing to complaint.

Sharing documents is a breeze with the ability to save as Microsoft Office document or export it as a PDF document, a capability available even from OpenOffice.org version 1.0. There are skeptics who argue the formatting did not work properly when viewed the document saved from OpenOffice.org using the Microsoft Office application but then again, there will be some thing that will not work properly even using different Microsoft Office versions right? So I rest my case.

For organization who wants to keep their productivity up by having the shortest familiarization period possible and learn some of the tips and tricks in OpenOffice.org application that can save time and work better, click here.

How Do You Live Your Life?

Have we ever taken a moment to reflect about life? Ours to be more specific. Are we living life with joy or worry? Will we, on our 80th birthday, feel grateful of a life well-lived or regretful of the many things we didn't do? Randy Pausch has left an amazing legacy to his children that has also benefited many people.

He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2006 and was told he only has 3-6 months to live. He appeared on Oprah in 2008 and passed away on July 25th, the same year. Watch this video and see what you can learn from him.




Randy has also written a book. The official website is called The Last Lecture.

Talent Is Never Enough

I'm currently reading 'Talent Is Never Enough' by John C. Maxwell. Here's an interesting excerpt from Chapter 6. It is about change.

Here's what to look for and how to focus your energy to get the kinds of changes that will change you for the better:

Don't change just enough to get away from your problems - change enough to solve them.

Don't change your circumstances to improve your life - change yourself to improve your circumstances.

Don't do the same old thing expecting to get different results - get different results by doing something new.

Don't wait to see the light to change - start changing as soon as you feel the heat.

Don't see changes as something hurtful that must be done - see it as something helpful that can be done.

Don't avoid paying the immediate price of change - if you do, you will pay the ultimate price of never improving.

How To Connect In Business In 90 Seconds Or Less

I managed to quickly browse through this book today. I like the fact that the book is thin but packed with important points. While the points are nothing new really. But sometimes, we human tend to forget the simple rules in building relationship and communication.

Many new sales people would sell to family and friends. However, they can't survive just by relying on the small pool of people they already know. This is where the book can be useful. How do you approach a stranger and make them feel as if you're their long lost friend? How do you approach a stranger and make them feel as if they can trust you? The rules are simple really. Here they are:-

Rule #1 - When you meet someone, look them in the eye and smile
Rule #2 - When you want them to feel like they already know you, be a chameleon
Rule #3 - Capture the imagination and you capture the heart.

How many times have we heard the phrase, "Smile and the world smiles with you!" How many of you feel smiling, especially to strangers, is the most difficult thing to do? Fake it till you have it :) There must be something worth remembering in your life that day before you meet this particular client, so think of that memory and smile.

The power of persuasion is extremely crucial in business relationship. It gets others to want to do what you want them to do. To be able to persuade effectively, you must have these three ingredients:-

1. Have a trusting first impression - can be from your job title, credentials or reputation
2. Use an indisputable logic - something that make sense
3. Tug at the emotions

In the book, the example given to appeal to the emotion is when an advertising manager for the largest-circulating weekly magazine in the UK (this was way back in the sixties) met one of his potential client, he dumped over 2000 envelopes in-front of his client to show how by advertising with his magazine, the client can get similar response his competitor is currently getting. The client's imagination was triggered and the advertising manager walked away with 26 weeks advertising contract.

Make people feel as if, "I can trust you, you make sense and you move me".

In business, the measures of effective communication lies in the response it gets. If the response you get is not what you want, you can try again or change tactics. Futility is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting a different result. So to get a different response, change what you do. The three aspects of successful communication:-

1. K - Know what you want
2. F - Find out what you're getting
3. C - Change what you do until you get what you want

Notice 3 small concrete things you don't like or don't want to happen at work place. Then, imagine it as positive desire. For example, instead of thinking you don't want a confrontation, focus on you want collaboration. Once you know what you want, be creative, flexible and try out possible solutions.

Tell me if you don't know any one of the points mentioned above. Tell me also if you have been using all those rules and ingredients all your life. From what I know about people, many do not practice these simple rules hoping for a more complex solution that can help them. Probably also expecting to put the blame on the complex solution when they did not succeed in their sales and communication.

The book is a simple read that can be a guide to young sales people and as a refresher for the more veteran sales person. So happy connecting and start practicing all the simple rules to connect in business.

Case Study on Tiger Woods

I found many interesting articles here. One that I like is a case study on Tiger Woods.

If you're considered the best among the best, would you even think of CHANGE to make yourself even better? Tiger Woods illustrated a good example of someone who strives to make himself better by making CHANGES to improve himself.

Here's the summary of the case study.

Tiger Woods turned pro in August of 1996 and in his first attempt as a pro at the famed Master's Tournament in 1997, he walked away with an unprecedented 18 under par victory. This enormous win resulted in new levels of fame for Tiger.

Not long after his world-renowned victory, and amidst the whirlwind of fame, Tiger called a meeting of his team. He had reviewed Golf Digest's swing sequence photography, considering his swing "almost perfect" yet deciding that his game required a major overhaul. People had already called him the best golfer in the world. Yet Tiger knew that his skills were not yet so superior that he was in the best position to win every tournament he teed up in.

In September 1997, with a new coach and team, they worked for more than a year to break down all the mechanics of his swing and completely rebuild it. This process included countless hours of tedious drills and practice shots. They started all over, asking, "What do we need to do to change this?"

During this transition time, Tiger's game suffered. The media and public began to wonder what had happened - the young star's playing seemed to worsen as time went on.

The changes clearly paid off; in 1999, he was voted PGA Player of the Year and AP Male Athlete of the Year. He earned a record $6.6 million in PGA Tour winnings alone, nearly double the second-leading money-winner, David Duval, who earned $3.6 million.

Time will tell just how long Tiger Woods can dominate his sport. Some called him supernatural." But a closer look at his story, especially in the critical years of 1997-1998, reveals many other factors and ingredients beyond god-given gifts that have allowed him to achieve peak performance.

Fish! Philosophy

Most people spend the majority of their time doing work and work-related activities, and yet, not many enjoyed that part of their life. Some endured their working days by focusing on the upcoming weekend and public holidays. I have the opportunity to conduct a series of training to 120 staff recently. 85% said they wanted to retire as early as they can because it is so stressful at work. Wow!!! Every time each one of them said 'retire', I was astounded to know how so many people can live through their life like that. And they're not even looking for another job!

As for me, I do enjoy my work but I love weekend and public holidays too :)

This book tells a story of Mary Jane, a widowed working mother of two who was sent to manage a department described as "toxic energy dump" by all the other departments in the organization. She was asked to turn the department around without much support from the top management. While walking during one of her lunch time to clear her mind, she stopped at a fish market. The lively fish market attracted the attention of so many people. With the help of a helpful fishmonger who gave four easy but valuable lessons, she roped in all her staff to change the place where they spent most of their life to a much better place.

The Fish! Philosophies are:

1. Play


2. Make Their Day


3. Be There


4. Choose Your Attitude

It is about choosing to have fun at work, to get everyone feeling involved, to give full undivided attention to co-workers and customers when you're communicating with them and to serve the customer well. They may not buy now but they might be our customer in future.

If the fish market can do it, why can't our organization? There are no "How To" section in the book but Mary Jane's way of getting everyone in the department to buy the idea of change (won't work without this!) and contribute to the change is imitable. Why not? Everyone is involved and have a finger in the pie. Then coming to work will not be such a chore and retire early will not be every staff ultimate dream.


Here's a video of the real Seattle's Pike Place Market where the author draws his inspiration for the book.

This post was originally published here.

Official Website of Fish!.

Who Moved My Cheese

I have read this book aeons ago. Recently I stumbled upon the summary I created immediately after reading the book. I remembered when I was reading it, the feeling was like reading a simple bedtime story with many powerful lessons. I got so excited to create a summary so I can share with as many people as I can... to those who have read the book and also those who have not... you might want to read more of it after going through my summary.

There are many individuals who felt like the moment they join an organization, that's where they will retire. I feel lucky I never have such notion. I'll be loyal to an organization as long as there's opportunity to learn and grow. If there's none worth staying for, I owe it to myself to find one that satisfies my learning desire and move on.

Of course the cheese meant in the book might refer to a different position or different department instead of a different organization. It depends on how you want to interpret it and what's best for you.

Now you can even watch Who Moved My Cheese short movies on YouTube.

Who Moved My Cheese


View summary of Who Moved My Cheese.

This post was originally published here.

Official Website of Who Moved My Cheese

AWeber Affiliates

I become one of AWeber affiliates because I find the service useful. I will also promote my E-Books using AWeber once they're completed. I have been looking around for affiliate programs that I believe in because I don't believe in pushing products and services that I do not care about.

What AWeber does is it allows you to create email newsletters, provides a reliable email delivery for your email follow up, ad tracking and real-time stats, it even has email templates and autoresponders. Most people who promotes their products and services online would want to have these features without the trouble of finding a web developer do it for you.

I did not discover AWeber via any link or promotion. I love E-Books and newsletters. Whenever I subscribed to newsletters or wanted to download E-Books I found the URL changed to AWeber's. That got me curious. Why did different E-Books and newsletter providers uses the same URL. So I put www.aweber.com at my URL address and the rest is history.

I received a welcome letter from AWeber several days after signing up. I was surprised and pleased at the same time. Normally we receive confirmation or whatever information from websites we signed-up online via email. AWeber has definitely put the service they provide at a notch higher than most online products and service provider. I haven't even promoted my blog yet.

I know it is just a welcome letter for me to make such a big fuss about... not a cheque in the mail. But I'm very pleased and I believe they have shown how serious they are in business. We thought traditional banks will become obsolete about 10 years ago once we have the self-service machines and the internet but it isn't so. People still need the human touch. Banking business has evolved into a more personalized banking experience for their customer. AWeber has given that personalized touch for online business experience.