My New Year Resolution 2008

2008 will be a year of making more money and giving back to society. I want to double the profit making from stock markets from 22% to 44% and I want to be a volunteer and blood donors (if eligible). I have clocked 4 volunteer hours in 2007, I believe I can do more in 2008.

What?
- Achieve 44% ROI from stock markets
- Learn to make money online
- Be a competence communicator
- Be an active volunteer by spending > 10 volunteer hours
- Be a blood donor for 1st time (if i am eligible)

How?
- Engage new technique to generate more money from stock markets and spend minimum 1 hour/day to do research and learn new technique.
- Spend 5-6 hours per week on generating quality content for my blog
- Complete 10 assignment from competence communicator manual
- Actively participate in helping hands activities organized by company
- Attend volunteer orientation to get better understanding on the journey to volunteering and type of volunteering opportunity out there
- Donate blood 2 times (March & September)

To achieve all these goals, I must stay healthy, physically fit and happy throughout the coming 365 days. Of course, I will continue to exercise 3 times a week and recently, I signed up 10 session fitness programme starting 4th January. To stay positive and happy, I will be friend with positive peoples and read lot of self improvement and motivational books and charge my body with positive currents. Lastly, I want to spend more quality time with my family, I want them to know I love them and that whatever we do together is important and special.

Wishing you and your loved ones a very happy and fantastic 2008

Toastmasters Club - Speak More in Learning Environment (SMILE)

It is a quite day in the office, so I can take the opportunity to publish new post today. I thought I should share my personal experience with Toastmasters Club.
For those who don't know me, I am the quite one who sits in the back and never volunteer for presentations or speeches. In the office, I don't like to talk either, I like actions (thats why it is so boring today) but, I find it difficult to survive in this corporate world, if I focus on tasks or actions alone, somehow I need to express my thought and feeling in professional manner at all levels.
I was lucky that a trainer from the presentation and communication skill course recommended me to continue improving my presentation skill by attending Toastmasters Club at the end of the course. I remembered when I saw myself on the video recorded by the trainer, it was really really horrible (wrong posture, bad eye contact not sure why I always look at my shoe, so many ah, eh, etc...). I don't think I can convenience the audiences.
From that day onwards, I decided to go ahead to search for Toastmasters club in my neighborhood. Officially, I joined a Toastmasters club on Feb 8th 2004. Frankly, I find it very hard to go to the meeting fortnightly, most importantly, I find it so embarrass to foul myself in front of members, therefore, I have not been very active at the beginning. I took my sweet time to prepare my projects and avoid attend meeting.
But now, when I looked back, I must said that it has an excellent 10 series of projects with specific objectives for beginner and depending on the club, the meeting is full of fun, learning new thing and meeting new peoples. By the way, I still have problem with table topic, sometime my mind goes blank, cannot think fast and speak within the given 2 mins, but I know that every attempt that I made either table topic or prepared speeches, I will learn and I know I will learn, speak more in the positive learning environment. Do take a look at this website, Toastmasters International and consider to join as a member.

Forex Loss: What A Disappointment !!!

With the news that Yahoo President bought 47,000 shares of Yahoo! stock at $23.60 in August and most importantly, I have faith with new CEO Jerry Yang is back to run the company. It worked at Apple and Dell, I think it works at Yahoo! too. So, I decided to buy some YHOO's shares. It was the second stock that I owned since I made a debut in US stock market in August 2007.
I was really happy as YHOO's share price soared to a record high of $34.08 toward the end of October, that was 43% profit. Unfortunately, it did not last long as the share price declined a week later and kept declining until I sold it at $25.23 with 5.99% profit. Not a bad investment though until I received a credit note stated that I made a loss from the investment. What A Disappointment! Yes, I forgot to consider Forex into account (-6.02%). Luckily, it was not a big amount.
Lesson learned from this incident; I created new field for exchange rate in the excel sheet and I will learn value investing technique for US stock market. Happy investing
Wish you all a very Merry Christmas

Money

In February 2002, I read a book called Financial Self-Defense by Charles J. Givens. This book created significant impact on my life and changes my perspective on money.

According to Charles Givens, Financial Self-Defense means to take charge of financial future. Taking control of your financial future means to create dynamic plan to achieve what you desire in the shortest possible time with minimum amount of sacrifice along the way

Every person needs to create their financial blueprint to provide financial control, direction and security. An effective and complete financial blueprint is made up of a set of four dynamic lists:

1. Dream list (whay you would do if you had unlimited money, time and energy)

2. Value list (the principles of life you consider to be most important)

3. Goal list (the specific objectives you want to accomplish)

4. Strategies list (knowledge, information and actions you will use to achieve your financial goals and dreams)

Here is my financial blueprint;

1. Be Financial Independence by 2014 and Be a successful Public Speaker

2. Family and Good Health come first, then career and not forgetting giving back to the society

3&4. Seven Years to Seven Figures by investing in real estate, equity market, unit trust, etc & Exercise 3 times a week to reduce high cholesterol (5.5mg/dl at the moment)

.......Personally, I think it is worth to create one and review them on regularly basis. I guess the only difference between people who achieve their financial dream and those who only talk of what they would like to accomplish is PLANNING and CONTROL.

You may want to consider creating your own financial blueprint!!!

Ice Breaker

I grew up in a village in the heart of the paddy district in seberang prai in Penang, Malaysia. As a small town kid, I have a dream to study overseas and start working life in big city ie New York, Sydney or Tokyo. Unfortunately, I am not a straight A student and my family cannot afford to send me study overseas. I started working after finished my diploma.

Even since, I don't dare to take the challenge to fulfill my dream (since cannot study oversea then still have opportunity to work in big city, right?) . Luckily, my friend (Vincent) told me that this great fortunate teller that can make me a rich man, so we went to this remote place, though I did not strike the number but she told me that I must go out from my comfort zone and start looking for a outstation job. Somehow, this time, I believe the fortunate teller and went ahead with job searching away from my small town.

I went for a few job interviews in Kuala Lumpur, capital city of Malaysia and was soon hired as an Engineer. Through hard work and a lot of discipline and resilience, I have steadily climbed the corporate ladder. I must say that I am a lucky person as I have very supportive boss and colleagues. I stayed in KL for almost 10 years, before I move to Singapore a year ago

Looking back, I am glad that I follow my heart (or fortune teller advise). Here I am working in big city…enjoying hectic & stressful life in Singapore. However, deep in my heart, when I retire, I would like to be back to hometown and adore the slow pace of life in my small town

Coffee, Money and Public Speaking

I have been struggle to start my own blog since June 2007. Trying to find the right topics from friends, relatives and colleagues and finally, I decided to go with Coffee, Money and Public Speaking. The rationale is coffee is part of my daily routine and I must drink coffee in the morning, of course any other time in the day but I must emphasize a must in the morning to wake me up.
Then, I like to find way to achieve financial independence by 2014? So far, the investment method include real estate, unit trusts, equity markets and possibly home based internet business.
Lastly, I want to be effective and successful public speaker, that's my long term professional aspiration and hopefully, by that time, I will spend more quality time with my family.
I wish to share my life journey here and hope you can shape my journey and future too