Information Filtering

This is a wonderful time to live. You can learn almost anything. And that, without leaving your house and for free. 

You get to know people from all over the world and realise that we have all the same fears and hopes and everyone needs to go the toilet.

You can look at photos of other people's house, lawn, pet. Sometimes they even let you see them having sex.

You can search for anything and everything. You have no excuse to be bored, ever.

But do you really need all the information? Do you really need to know that in 1859, 24 rabbits was released in Australia and within 6 years the population grew to 2 million.  What good is that piece of information to you?

There are too much useless stuff. You can survive well without them. You don't need to know all that is happening out there.

Filter out information that you do not need and you will be more productive

Book Review - The Art of Thinking Clearly

 I love this book. I have read it once and I am going to read it again and again and again. Written by Rolf Dobelli - a bestselling Swiss writer - this book is  sheer delight.

What started as a list for his own use which he compiled as an reminder how he can be mislead has grown and is now a best selling book.

Here is its opening :

 "This is not a how-to book. You won't find "seven steps to an error-free life...Although this book may not hold the key to happiness, at the very last it acts as insurance against too much self-induced unhappiness...If we could learn to recognize and evade the biggest errors in thinking...we might experience a leap in prosperity."

This book will entertain, surprise and most importantly educate.

I don't usually recommend books unless they are really good.  And this is one of the best I have read this year.

Go here to read the what others have to say about this book.

This Is Inevitable

Sitting in the lounge of the Kuala Lumpur International Airport a few years ago, waiting for our flight number to be called, my colleague was describing all the possible scenarios that can go wrong in a flight. He said he did not want to die, I told him neither do I and added that eventually we all will die. After I said the possibility of dying that night is real and that the airplane crashing is just one way of the countless ways we can lose of lives, he stopped talking and distanced himself from me.

We did not crash that night or the trip back. But the possibility of dying is as real and true today as it was on that day  for him, for me and for all who are living. It is inevitable, isn't it? However it is one eventuality that many of us refuse to accept. In some culture it is taboo to talk about dead. Some think talking about dead somehow increases the possibility of dying and if that is true, talking about money should then increase the possibility of getting wealthy.

I believe thinking about dead is a good thing. It gives us a whole new perspective about living. Accepting that we will die regardless of our station in life will make us all the more eager to seize our living moments and be grateful for our time on earth.

It will makes us appreciate those around us. Make us realize that nothing should be taken for granted. We will learn to give more and complain less.

Accepting the fact that we will be dead will makes us think of the legacy that we want to leave behind.

Rich People Think Differently

“The very rich, are different from you and me.”  ~ F. Scott Fitzgerald

Steve Siebold, who spent nearly three decades talking to millionaires around the globe to find out what separates them from everyone else and author of " How Rich People Think" listed 21 ways rich people think diffrently from the rest of us.

 1. Average people think MONEY is the root of all evil. Rich people believe POVERTY is the root of all evil.

2. Average people think selfishness is a vice. Rich people think selfishness is a virtue.

3. Average people have a lottery mentality. Rich people have an action mentality.

4. Average people think the road to riches is paved with formal education. Rich people believe in acquiring specific knowledge.  

5. Average people long for the good old days. Rich people dream of the future. 

6. Average people see money through the eyes of emotion. Rich people think about money logically. 

7. Average people earn money doing things they don't love. Rich people follow their passion. 

8. Average people set low expectations so they're never disappointed. Rich people are up for the challenge. 

9. Average people believe you have to DO something to get rich. Rich people believe you have to BE something to get rich.

10. Average people believe you need money to make money. Rich people use other people's money.  

11. Average people believe the markets are driven by logic and strategy. Rich people know they're driven by emotion and greed.

12. Average people live beyond their means. Rich people live below theirs.  

13. Average people teach their children how to survive. Rich people teach their kids to get rich.

14. Average people let money stress them out. Rich people find peace of mind in wealth.  

15. Average people would rather be entertained than educated. Rich people would rather be educated than entertained.

16. Average people think rich people are snobs. Rich people just want to surround themselves with like-minded people.  

17. Average people focus on saving. Rich people focus on earning. 

18. Average people play it safe with money. Rich people know when to take risks. 

19. Average people love to be comfortable. Rich people find comfort in uncertainty.

20. Average people never make the connection between money and health. Rich people know money can save your life. 

21. Average people believe they must choose between a great family and being rich. Rich people know you can have it all. 

A Thought on a Sunday Morning

We are quick to make heroes for ourselves and then when they fall short of our expectations we destroy them.

The case Lance Armstrong comes to the mind. We celebrated him, we made him our inspiration. He was a cancer survivor that went on to conquer his sport. We rooted for him and many of us  wanted be like him.


That was then. Now he is, for want of a better word, a pariah.

We are good at this. We create and destroy heroes and after that we look for new heroes and before long we destroy them too.

We want to be inspired and we want to be like our heroes. Our lives are sometimes so empty on the inside that we need something from the outside to inspire us. We follow trends and get caught with consumerism to fill this void inside of us.

Most of us a living lives scripted by marketers and advertisers. Buy this and you would  be like that. Buy that and you would be like this. Use this perfume and you  be like Serena Williams. Wear that underwear and you are going to bend it like Beckham.

We need to pause and reflect everyday of our lives.  Take time to ponder who we are and enrich ourselves mentally, spiritually and physically. Then we do not have to look outside for inspiration, we can look on the inside.

10 Quotes That Can Change Your Life

Below are 10 quotes from the late  Zig Ziglar that have the power to completely change the direction of one’s life.

1) “If you can dream it, you can achieve it.

2) “Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude.”

3) “A goal properly set is halfway reached.”

4) “If you go looking for a friend, you’re going to find they’re scarce. If you go out to be a friend, you’ll find them everywhere.”

5) “Expect the best. Prepare for the worst. Capitalize on what comes.”

6) “People don’t buy for logical reasons. They buy for emotional reasons.”

7) “There has never been a statue erected to honor a critic.”

8 ) “People often say motivation doesn’t last. Neither does bathing—that’s why we recommend it daily.”

9) “You will get all you want in life, if you help enough other people get what they want.”

10) “Remember that failure is an event, not a person.”

10 Traits of Successful People

This article recently appeared  in Investor’s Business Daily  on what makes people successful. IBD spent years analyzing leaders and successful people in all walks of life and put together a list of the ten traits which, when combined, can turn dreams into reality:

1. How you think is everything. Always be positive. Think success, not failure. Beware of a negative environment.

2. Decide upon your true dreams and goals. Write down your specific goals and develop a plan to reach them.

3. Take action. Goals are nothing without action. Don’t be afraid to get started. As Nike says, “Just do it.”

4. Never stop learning. Go back to school or read books. Get training and acquire skills.

5. Be persistent and work hard. Success is a marathon, not a sprint. Never give up.

6. Learn to analyze details. Get all the facts, all the input. Learn from your mistakes.

7. Focus your time and money. Don’t let other people or things distract you.

8. Don’t be afraid to innovate; be different. Following the herd leads to mediocrity.

9. Deal and communicate with people effectively. No person is an island. Learn to understand and motivate others.

10. Be honest and dependable. Take responsibility. If you don’t, numbers 1-9 won’t matter!