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Tuesday, October 30, 2012
So you want to start your own business?



I don't know why but I seem to be surrounded with people who want to build their own business. Or maybe it is just a trend nowadays. Few weeks back, I heard friends telling me that they are thinking (and re-thinking) of building their own businesses.'So you want to start your own business?', I asked my friend. 'Yes I am.', answered my friend proudly. I am excited for them. I believe that second to having more law-implementers, this country needs more businessmen. Business builds industries and industries builds nations.However many dreamers fall for the basic pitfalls of starting a business.

Pitfall #1. Unclear and Multiple Goals.
Pitfall #2. Paralysis Analysis

They key to all of this is to have one clear goal of what you need to do and just start something. Adjust the sail along the way. Do not over analyze anything just get going. It is important to plan but execution is more important. Keep pushing forward. If there is a need to test the market do so just keep moving forward. Ask for advice but overall if you truly believe in your goal then your belief should have the final say.
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Friday, August 31, 2012
No job security? What can you do?


Times are changing and it's changing fast. Change can happen in an instant and many lives are affected. Nowadays, you hear a lot of news about companies closing or workforce cutting. Two to three decades ago, the employee stays with the company all their lives and when they retire they get retirement packages and lives on pension. Today, the idea of job security needs some rethinking. Is there such thing as job security? Does the idea of get-a-secure-and-stable-job-and-stay-there-until-retirement still holds water? Recently news on job cutting and retrenchment is filling the airwaves and many of us cannot help but think, "Am I next?" This question tortures the minds of many employees across the globe. The fear of being 'next' is oftentimes paralyzing because it arousing the feeling of helplessness.  

But is there something we can do? The philosophy surrounding jobs before no longer holds true. Adhering to these philosophies does more harm in today's employee. What are these philosophies? Here are some example:
1. I am entitled to job security.
2. I am secure because I am with the company for X years.
3. I work only within my job description.

What are the new philosophies in today's market?
1. You create your security. You are not secure because the company says so. You are secure because you know that no matter what happens to the company you have the skills to make it in the marketplace. The more skill you have the more valuable you are.

2. It's all about creating value. You are paid not because of the time that you give to the company but because of the value that you bring on the day-to-day basis. So your goal is to be able to create and bring value. Coming to the office at 8AM and leaving at 5PM is NOT A GOOD GOAL.

3. Be valuable. Be multi-skilled. Invest an hour a day for your technical and personal growth. Understand the marketplace. Where is the market going? What value can I give with this information?

If you do that then you don't have to think if you are 'next'. All you need to improve is your value. How valuable are you? What skills do you have that others don't have? 

There is no such thing as job security. But you can help yourself by building your value in the marketplace.
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Thursday, August 23, 2012
Should I join this networking company?



"Should I join this networking company?", asked a good friend. I shared to her the many times I got burned by a networking company. One time, I joined a company then in a few month, the company closed. In another, I invested money only to find out that there is something wrong with the product. This is not a post about avoiding networking at all cost. This is a post on a guide to Filipinos on what are the things to watch out for before deciding to join the company. I have written few rules that I use before I decide to join a networking company. Following the rules will minimize the risk that you are going into (any business has a risk or two tied up to it). 

#1.The Company needs to be registered in Direct Seller's Association of the Philippines. I used to say that as long as a company is SEC or BIR registered that it's OK. But after seeing two companies close, I made it a number one rule - not part of DSAP then I will have to think much about it. 

 #2. Majority of your earning should come from product movements and not on recruitment. There are many companies now that gives huge incentives if you can recruit new members. In the end you will find out that recruitment has become the 'heart and soul' of the company. This is really bad because a real business should earn from sales and not recruitment. I always say, 'if you profit due to recruitment then maybe your company is an HR company'. Also, I would like to point out here that the compensation plan should be good. You cannot waste your energy on compensation plans that are weak.

 #3. The Company needs to have good track record (OLD and STRONG). Old is safer. The old ones are less likely to fail. I know owners of start-up MLM company might hate me for this but think about it OLD MLM companies has more established systems than the new ones. 

#4. The Company needs to be innovative. It's not enough to be OLD, the company needs to have INNOVATION. Why? Because without INNOVATION, you will have less chance for profit. You need to ask what are the products that the company is planning to launch in the future?

 #5. The Company needs to have good training. Good training is the KEY to success in any business. The promise is that MLM is like a franchise. When you buy any franchise you need to be trained to run your business. It's not enough for the company to have training in recruiting. You need to have training in leadership, communication, product knowledge, and others.

To me these are simple rules to keep in mind before you join any MLM company. The industry in itself has birthed many millionaires in the past. Some companies lure people into thinking that you will earn a lot just by 'talking to your friends'. This is not really the whole package. Joining an MLM business is a matter of picking the right company for you. I hope that you will find the right one for you.
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Thursday, July 12, 2012
Look at the stars and don't give up!


I believe that each one of us is born for success. You don't believe me? Think about it. Out of the millions of sperms that your father released to your mother, it is the sperms that contains your DNA who won the prize - egg. Each of our lives started with a race and yet for some reason you (who is reading this) won that race! You are born for success.:) I know it may sounds simplistic (and hopefully funny) but that is the truth! God created you to reign in life! That's the reason why every time you feel that you are not winning you feel out of place. Your place is to win!

What separates the winners from the losers is the ability to remember who they really are. Winners remembers that they are winner thus they continue to try some more. Losers forgets who they are and starts losing hope. If you forget that your place is to win then you simply give up. If you lose hope in this life or in a project or in your family then its easy to slip by and accept defeat. But if you remember that you are created for success then you simply look pass your circumstances and lift your head for the brighter future.

There are times when its hard to resist the temptation to give up. This is the best time to look up and see the bright sky. When the great Patriarch Abraham got discourage, God told Abraham to look at the stars in the sky and count the stars. God told Abraham that the numbers of the stars in the skies would equal the number of his descendants. The good news is, there are countless stars in the skies! In another occasion, God told Abraham to look at the sands in the dessert and He said that Abraham's descendants will be as many as the sands in the dessert. Today, we see Abraham's numerous descendants!

Do not give up! Look at the stars in the skies. The band Switchfoot has a very interesting song titled Stars and chorus goes like this:

But when I look at the stars,
when I look at the stars,
when I look at the stars I see someone else

When I look at the stars, 
the stars, I feel like myself

Look at the stars and see someone else - some one who is succeeding in life. Look at the stars and feel like yourself again - a winner!
Again look at the stars in the evening and the sands in the morning and know that the plan of God for you will never fail.

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Tuesday, July 03, 2012
Fight For Your Dreams

The world will tell you to quit on your dreams. People around you wants to get by and drift. If you forget your dreams, you wake up one day very old and no longer has the strength to see your dreams come to pass. It's easy to believe God for small things and pray small or pray zero prayers. But that is not faith because faith is when it seemed impossible. Faith is when we say move forward to win despite of the odds. Faith is one more step when you are tired and ready to give up. Faith is seeing that you are a victor and not a victim. Faith is not letting your circumstance define you; it is understanding that the circumstance is serving you.

The world will tell you to give up. Many of the people around you already gave up on their dreams. But you are different  because you are a person who did not lose sight of your God-given dream. You are like Moses, who despite of being surrounded by complainers choose to listen to the voice of God and not men! You are like Joshua, who understand that the only destination is the Promise Land. You cannot settle in the wilderness! You cannot camp in and be comfortable in the wilderness. God gave you a dream; a mission not to be ordinary but to be significant.

God will tell you that you are loved. He, unlike men, will not waiver in His trust in you. He understands that even when the crucifixion is certain, resurrection and victory will surpass it. He understands that when the world's provision stops is a time for the miraculous. Jesus did the impossible- to bring a wayward man back to His Holy Dad. You are His child and inside of you is the One who understands that Nothing is Impossible with Him. You cannot be discouraged in life's adversity. You cannot allow your dreams to die. You cannot give up. You must fight for your dreams.
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