“This game is seven card stud”
Most of you who play poker or read ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ by Tennessee Williams will recognize this quote. It somehow flashed out in front of me after a certain epiphany.
I have always been in favor of the idea that we determine our own fates, our destinies, and ultimately our lives. However, this fails to hold true on deeper thought. It is now more plausible to say that we can merely influence the direction of our lives, but to have absolute control is somewhat puzzling.
Everyday, we are presented with new opportunities. Opportunities to study, to make friends, to exercise….which opportunities are best for the future? Who really knows? The guy sitting next to you might have an unique connection with you, but a conversation fails to flow through because you’re both afraid of strangers. After that, the conversation is lost, and the person who could have been your best friend, your new network, or what have you, has left you as a foregone opportunity.
People say playing video games is a waste of time. I beg to differ – video games have never been a better source of socialization method. So are comic books, or books, or anything. I have made friends just by talking about dota/HON (and I didn’t even have to play an actual game with them). And there they were – our parents saying that it’s completely a waste of time. At that time I thought they were right. But upon reflection – not really.
I guess I’ve taking on a highly investment-like view of time. We never know what type of opportunities we actually hold until we either lose or gain them. It feels almost like a game of chance, where we simply make some decisions, and life and its many factors take us for a ride.
Am I simply saying sit back and enjoy the ride? Sort of. Am I saying that we have absolutely no control of our lives? Not exactly. Like on a roller coaster, it’s not guaranteed you won’t fall off. What I’m trying to say is that there’s always those that try to become something that they are not. Those who act, doing something they have see no pleasure in doing. When they do it, and their actions don’t reach the goal they anticipated, they feel out of control and spiral into a whirl of depression.
So what? Well, live life decisively – reflect everyday to make sure you know where your values lie, who you are. Build on your strengths, and one day, lady Fortuna will reward you for sticking persistently to your values. It’s all a game of chance anyways, so why not make your bet on actions that you enjoy making? Don’t regret it when you think other people have better outcomes than you, because sooner or later, those say outcomes could come looking for you.
Stick to your values persistently, and let life guide you through. Prepare to live and enjoy your life.
Very interestingly, Toyota has managed to report over 1.2B worth of profit this quarter. Not only this, but Goldman Sachs are optimistically looking towards the future despite their legal liabilities. What’s this? China’s economy STILL hasn’t overheated after around 10 reports per day saying that they would by last year?
Forget these large companies; forget the economy; how often in life do we find things not turning out the way they’re supposed to?
Take a good one second to think.
I don’t know about you, but I’m already reflecting upon trends that have happened due to expectations.
Just when people start understanding relationship concepts about ‘hard to get’ it seems ineffective. Why? Because EVERYONE is now ‘hard to get’. And it gets to a point where it’s sort of annoying, especially in group projects; you know when people are deliberatively seeming busy, but actually have nothing to do with their spare time except to stall you.
Just when everyone thinks they know the secrets of business success, that formula shatters. Just when people think they know everything is good, everything turns bad.
I guess part of this concept comes from the fact that we are all human, and our expectations fuel us towards certain directions. Think about it this way, those managers at Toyota probably worked their bums off to preserve a profit gain. Likewise for officials in China and the CEO of Sachs. I would go as far to say that their strength and determination have gripped them to transcend pre-written realities.
Now, apply their mentality onto all human beings. Aren’t we all the same? Whenever our expectations become factored into the equation, the outcome turns completely differently. The fact that we are all inextricably interlinked animals makes it so that your expectations will affect my reality. In any game where you and I are interlinked, if I tell you my expectation, I can pretty much expect that my expectation isn’t going to come true, because now I have to factor in your expectations. Think for example – if I tell you that I expect you and your girlfriend are going to break up, my expectations might influence you to not break up, because you want to prove it to everybody that the relationship will work. Take another exam, if I expect house prices to rise, and I start telling everybody, then eventually everybody will start investing. If everyone’s investing, then nobody is truly buying, and therefore we’d have an asset bubble created.
So if you have any new business ideas or plans, don’t share. This doesn’t mean to say that you shouldn’t help your neighbour, but when ideas and expectations for the future are yours, you should keep it to yourself. At least this way, you can minimize the chances of an outcome which defies your expectations.
I recently tested the carbon footprint calculator, and it is surprising that I reached a score of 8.105. I consider it to be relatively high, since I was told average carbon emissions range between 4 to 6. However, when I looked at the breakdown of my score, I immediately understood the reasons behind my carbon emission levels.
The majority of my carbon emissions came from long distance travel. Since I travel from Vancouver to Hong Kong to visit my family every year, and airplanes are known sources of carbon emissions, I can understand the high rate of carbon emissions. However, what surprised me was the fact that my food caused my carbon emissions than my sheltering and commuting did combined. I always thought that taking the transit or having my heater on was doing more harm to environment than me simply digesting food purely for my survival. I guess I’ll have to cut back on the meat now. Oh boy.
Do your carbon footprint test here.
In an article by Richard Branson published in Canadian Business Online, the famous entrepreneur shares the insights of a successfully creative business.
Virgin airlines started off small, but they have created value like none other – they have utilized the valuable asset of humor.
Other fascinating ideas include “stainless steal” imprinted on all forks, and ads which showed Hilary Clinton screaming “I can’t keep my bill under control!”
Reflecting upon these innovative business ideas, none of it could have happened without the dedication of Branson himself. By using himself as a model, and jumping off buildings, planes, mountains, you name it, he has created a team of fun-loving and risk-taking individuals inspired to keep a smile on customers’ faces.
Of course, none of Virgin’s successes can be claimed if Virgin was not a competent force, but it is the humor which differentiates them from other companies.
So what does this all mean to me? It is inspiring to see a company achieve professionalism and humor simultaneously. It gives me a bit of reassurance that anything in this world is possible, and that life is filled with surprising opportunities. Sometimes, planning isn’t the ultimate source of wisdom, it is action which counts, and defines.
Life is but a perception of what we deem to be reality, so how can we truly know how others see the world?
The answer is – to share their experiences with them.
No, I do not intend for this post to be philosophical, but such knowledge is detrimental for our understanding of evolving outsourcing tactics. We tend to think of ‘outsourcing’ as large American companies choosing cheap labor in China and India over manufacturers in developed economies. However, this is normally not the case for outsourced researchers. HP, a large American IT corporation, did not choose to outsource researchers for being less expensive, but because outsourced researchers have gifted insight into large consumer markets.
Think about it this way, in terms of innovation, how can an American researcher know what Indian consumers value?
It’s the value which matters, isn’t it? Indian consumers are relatively poor, but they do still spend. They can afford cars. They can afford televisions. They can afford scooters. it all comes down to what is valued.
So if researchers are outsourced, then they can focus on what consumers value, and therefore bring about innovative implementations which agrees with corporate strategy – earn profits in the long run.
It is clear that globalization has made cultural understanding one of the most challenging but useful assets to possess. Business students, travel more! It will surely enrich your understanding and connectivity with the current world.
In economic models, innovative companies try to maximize economic profit, but long run economic profit is always driven to 0. This is may be a microeconomics theory, but it is highly relevant in today’s society.
Victoria’s Secret became the largest lingerie company in the world by actually being the first to enter the lingerie business. In the 1970s, many failed to see the profitability in a lingerie business concept. It was Roy Raymond who expressed entrepreneurial qualities and created a cozy, inviting store for women to feel secure shopping in. It is interesting to see how they have suppressed strong conservative attitudes in the past and brought forth an entirely new industry based on sexy visuals.
However, as the Victoria’s Secret profited, many new competitors entered the market to steal profitability. Victoria’s Secret has recently announced an expansion into Canada, combating competitors such as La Seneza. This indicates the intense rivalry faced within the lingerie industry nowadays. In fact, Victoria’s Secret is invested into the openings of over 600 retail shops. Such a sum of money is impressive all by itself.
It also highlights the success and power of visual marketing. Through using highly controversial catalogs and fashion shows, Victoria’s Secret was ultimately able to grab the attention of the consumer and create a market on their own. A similar example may be FCUK, which is rumored to be started because an exporter in Hong Kong mis-spelled the word in in a business letter to a French trader.
Economic profit is not precisely 0, but Victoria’s Secret ultimately has reduced profits as from before when they had a huge proportion of market share. Now holding on tight to their customers, we’ll see how they do in Canada.
Everyone knows Apple make a couple billion of dollars every year, but how many is ‘couple’ exactly?
Do you recognize this?:
Analysts have predicted Apple’s 2010 revenue to be around 11 billion, but methods inconsistent with GAAP have raised it to a startling 15.6 billion. FASB say that the new computation method has given Apple over 3.5 billion dollars of a boost.
It is somewhat amazing that these accounting methods have given Apple such a huge boost. We see in our Financial Accounting Class what a deferred revenue is, but to see its significance in the work-force is a stroke of insight for me. Revenue generated from the iPhone is up by a startling 90%!
In my opinion, these accounting changes for Apple are quite fair. It provides a much more accurate picture as to why Apple’s cash stock is so high. It is pleasing to see this change.
Most of us today remember Machiavelli to be a pragmatic man who taught us ‘means justified ends.’ Few forget that the end should always be virtu, or in other words, honor.
China’s booming economy is apparent, but are the means truly honorable?
Perhaps what is more upsetting is the fact that pressures have been growing amongst families to do well. Computer giants such as Apple and Dell are growing tremendously in our digital age. It is saddening to reveal that the recent launch of Ipad has caused suicide rates in China to grow. On the one hand, I am proud that the Chinese economy is growing rapidly, but perhaps on a deeper national level, I am sad to see the lost lives of our silent soldiers.
In any business school, networking is something that teachers tell you to do and to start doing. But the problem is, they never teach you how to do it. So here’s a video to start off some ideas.
Cards – This tip, as taken from the video, seems pretty feasible for first year students. Nobody else has one, and you’d look so much more professional. The only problem is, this tactic seems practical only for charismatic people.
Listening – this seems pretty intuitive. Be interested, pretend to be interested, maintain eye contact, etc.
Linked In – Networking seems to equate to social networking for our generation. As long as we don’t become like…
…I guess we’re fine. Opportunities fly and bounce around with social networking, so utilize them well.
My own personal thoughts….
I tend to think (rather cynically) that nothing in this world comes for free. When someone helps you it’s because they want something back. So one of the ways I’m going to suggest is…
Referrals – Give them to others. You can’t take from others what you didn’t give. Gifts that are not genuine will be identified immediately (e.g. giving up something you didn’t really need, or that nobody wants in the first place).
Writing down reflections – This will help you become an expert. As you are exposed more to a certain industry and reflect upon it on your writing, you will enhance your knowledge. There’s something to these blogs after all. 😉
Apple’s Ipad is definitely number 1 for being this year’s most exciting release for Apple users. But how many people know exactly what they are buying?
Many people believe that the Ipad is an enlarged Iphone. In many ways, it is exactly that. Same functions and features, but different experience. Whereas the Iphone was geared towards mainly being a phone, the Ipad is geared to function as being more of a mini-portable computer. Interestingly, however, Ipads are sold with micro SIM card slot, meaning that Apple is Ipads so that they can be used with telecom. Perhaps we’ll be seeing an improved version of the Iphone? If Ipads do get accepted, they can replace laptops, although it might take a while for Apple to improve the Ipad even further and for the rest of us to get used to typing on touch screen. But until then….
Unfortunately, we can’t find out whether Ipads are accepted by society yet or not. That’ll have to come after time’s test. At the moment, I can only predict that Ipads will generate huge profit for Apple. This report might clarify my position:
“That model has become standard practice for Apple when pricing its iPhone and iPod, for example. For the iPad, the 32GB model will be the most profitable. “At a BOM and manufacturing cost of $287.15, and a retail price of $729, the 32Gbyte/3G version is expected to generate the highest profit of any member of the iPad line on a percentage basis,” according to the report.
The 32GB versions of the iPad cost only $29.50 more to produce than the 16GB versions, but the retail price gap is $100, iSuppli said. After the display, the NAND flash memory is expected to be the most expensive item. In the mid-range 3G model, the 32GB of NAND accounts for 21.4 percent of the total BOM, iSuppli said.” (http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-10450987-64.html?tag=mncol)
Apple really knows how to make money off us eh?
