It’s all good
I used to agonize over things. I always wanted to classify things, put them into easily differentiated bins so I knew what they were. When I realized I couldn’t classify the world, I was crushed. I stopped caring. That was when it hit me. The world didn’t stop moving whether or not I cared about it. Life goes on, with or without you. So are you going to be a part of it? If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. If you’re not making it better, you’re making it worse. Don’t like the way something works? Yo there’s 6 billion other people to take your place.
My conversations about improving at syarikat have been reaching dead ends because the things I want to address are directly related to the people that run the syarikat. Improve all you want, change all you want on the bottom end, but when it comes to the top, “welcome to corporate America.” Lol. I can now hear the snickers and chuckling back then when they asked me what I liked about the syarikat. I said “people here are really open to change.” Ahahahahahaha. Innocence personified. But the jaded cynic doesn’t change nor inspire the world. The practical idealist does.
Things have a way of sorting themselves out eventually, ie. change is inevitable. The only difference we can make is whether the process is a positive (happy) or negative (unhappy) one. There is no shortage of skill. There is however a shortage of the right attitude. Too many of us repeat the same steps, same actions over and over again and expect different results. Stop brainstorming and start trystorming. In other words, stop thinking and do. Easier said than done, but when it happens, boy does it happen. Adrenaline rush. It’s infectious when you actually start being the change you want to see in the world.
And then of course you start to crave that rush. Not getting it leads to a crash not unlike one from a low-quality energy drink. What can I do different? What can I do that’s new? What haven’t I tried before? The future is always going be out of reach. But the present is where all our actions shape that elusive future. Everything you do or don’t do now will have an effect later on. Unfortunately, it’s much easier to get into the habit of not doing, ie. curling up in our comfort zones. Eg. I should be jogging instead of writing this, but words are always aching to be poured out.
No time to think about weakness. Everyone has weaknesses. I prefer enhancing strengths instead of eliminating weaknesses. I don’t think it’s the same. I think weaknesses are chipped away at, because they are ingrained – this is a slow, arduous process. Building strengths is much more fun – there is no ceiling, no limit to what can be achieved with an open mind – and this can literally happen overnight. Do not allow anyone, not even yourself, to limit you. If you think you can/can’t, you’re right.
This then leads to being dissatisfied with everything because you always want better. Now what? Do we then start getting better at not getting better? Do we start being dissatisfied with dissatisfaction? So funny. The vicious cycle continues. But hey, there is no such thing as right or wrong. Thinking makes it so. Everyone has an opinion. Do some peoples’ matter more than others? Most certainly. But I have to say, it is our loss if we filter opinions through the people who say them. Loss of objectivity leads to emotion-based decision-making. This is an excellent way to make a decision that will be regretted later on.
We have standardized processes and procedures at work. But at the root of it is still a human need to make an emotion-based decision. It isn’t purely objective – there is still an element of holding back progress, if only to keep more people working. If my cellphone can do everything a computer does, I find it hard to believe that there isn’t a manufacturing plant out there that cannot run with just 5 or less people. Society as a whole needs to catch up. Time is moving along, but the improvement curve is getting steeper by the day. If we do not educate or more importantly, give people access to the tools they need to be educated, we are shooting ourselves in the foot. Management’s job is not to improve processes, but to create the conditions in which processes can be improved.
Suffer – I like. The more suffering, the more appreciation for life. If everything came easy, I’d be bored to death. Is it wrong to want more bad than good? Everything balances out eventually, and if you’re one of the unique individuals who experience more of one than the other, take pride in the fact that your life will be good teaching tool for others in the world. Hehe. Life is unfair, but why can’t it be unfair in my favor? 
Wish I could buy some people drinks and remind them that the world is actually quite a fun place. Persevere, everyone. We can do this. It’s all good.
The Story of Our Lives
..is one of discontent.
Discontent, is in a word, the reason we live our lives the way we do.
Discontent with our current state implies that there is a better state to be reached. How do we know this? Are we all born innately discontent with ourselves? Or did we subconsciously form these opinions in the course of our upbringing?
What compels human beings to strive for change? Why are we so allergic to the status quo? Why is change our only constant?
The Only Constant in Life
…is change.
Hearing it many times doesn’t make it any easier to deal with.
Humans are paradoxical creatures. We strive to find steady ground, but are compelled to create change for ourselves when there isn’t enough. Granted, this doesn’t apply to all humans. Of course, if I’m one of them, I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one.
Was supposed to post some pictures. Maybe later. For once I feel more overwhelmed by non-academic stuff than school stuff.
What will happen? Why does it never seem to be clear? Do we want it to be clear? What happens when we know our future?
It changes.
Motion
The main difference between the living and non-living is motion.
Whether it be visible, physical motion, or invisible, mental motion.
If we acknowledge this to be true, it would be fair to say that the more motion we experience, the more of life we live.
Conversely, it would also be fair to say that our minds’ and bodies’ natural instinct to protect itself from losing it’s life will in effect, try to prevent excessive motion.
It’s all a matter of which side of life we are more inclined to – the live side, or the (ironically) dead side of life.
Here’s an example of the concept above taking place:
Wearing my skis, I awkwardly step off the ski lift. I fall down. I think whether I really want to do this. I pick myself up with difficulty, and waddle my way to the edge of the hill. My heart pounds. I mentally prepare myself for the speed I know I will be experiencing. I think again about whether I am really doing this. I decide to go down the hill, and not regret if I break both legs. Having said that, I tell myself to stabilize myself, not to panic, and lean/turn with enough force at the bottom of the hill so I stop. In other words, all the things I need to do to ski safely. I take the first step, and I begin sliding slowly. I pick up speed quickly, and soon everything is a blur. The wind blowing against me reminds me of the sound a plane makes when it is taking off. My mind, confused and afraid that I might actually take off, instinctively tells my body to fall over (which will stop the excessive motion).
There are 2 possibilities at this juncture.
1. I fall over and slide to a stop. Though my mind calms down almost immediately, another thought comes in just as fast – frustration and disappointment, inadequacy.
2. I deliberately focus on the snow, stabilizing myself, and telling myself that I won’t take off. (This will change when I take on jumps and cliffs..) I think about my two feet in firm contact with the ground, and as I reach the bottom of the hill, I lean hard to my left and put force on my left foot to turn against the snow, coming to an effective stop. The rush of having been through “excessive motion” is evident; the adrenaline, the heightened heart rate, the overall euphoric feeling that envelopes the body and mind after having achieved something.
We can further combine the theory of excessive motion with the theory of life balance. We could then say that in order to live a balanced life, the amount of static must equal the amount of dynamic. In other words, we must experience (physical and/or mental) motion in a measure so that it equals our lack of (physical and/or) motion, and vice versa. Doing otherwise will result in an unbalanced body, mind, and therefore, life.
Change is motion. To deny change is to deny motion, and therefore life.
Embrace change; embrace life.
And So It Begins
Datuk Seri Wan Azizah, leader of Malaysia’s Opposition has stepped down as MP of her constituency, Permatang Pauh to let her husband, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim contest in a by-election which if he wins, gets him into the parliament of Malaysia, the 5 km restraining order notwithstanding. (more…)
No-Kia
We Malaysians are a scared bunch. We are scared of everything. Scared of injury, scared of losing money, scared of losing girlfriend, scared of getting scolded, scared of losing face, and the Kia list goes on.
And not without reason! The reason we all think that way, or at least are influenced to think that way is because the government not only allows it, but encourages fear as a tool to rule. But they fail to realize that by using fear to rule, they themselves become fearful. They fear anything that even bears a hint to looking like something that smells like it might threaten their position of power. (more…)
