I love basketball.
Not because of Kobe Bryants', LeBron James' or Steve Nashs' but because it is a beautiful exhibit of team play. Even if you have the best player in the game, one can still find himself/herself losing games if team basketball is not embraced.
Let me say upfront that my reason for this assessment of the current IE-EMG Student Council is like a locker room talk in halftime of a basketball game. The locker room talk is a time to reflect on what happened on the first half of the game (1st term and 2nd term). Dissect what went wrong (things to reflect on and change) and identify what went right (things to continue). The objective of this exercise is for adjustment so that the team can still finish strong and win the game.
So, let's start with "things to reflect on and change"
1. The key personalities of this SC have embraced the idea that they are entitled to be leaders. Please do not forgot that leadership is not entitlement. It is about results. And excellent results happen when one truly thinks, truly plans and is truly and deeply involved to see and make things happen. Excellent results comes from a painful and dedicated process. "Free lunch" does not exist here.
2. The key personalities of this SC have embraced the idea that to be intelligent is to be a leader. Please do not forget, Adolf Hitler was a very intelligent man and look at what happened? Should we count how many lives he took? Have you read Anne Frank's Diary? Intelligence must always be couple with a heart that has love for his fellow man. Look at Mahatma Gandhi or Lee Kwan Yu. Read them. Learn from them.
3. The key personalities of this SC have mixed loyalties. Some to their boyfriends. Some to their girlfriends. Some to their sleeping habits. Some to their lifestyle. Please do not forget we voluntarily chose to be in this situation. We owe it to the people who elected us and gave us the victory to give them our best. Remember, without the belief and the trust they have given us during election - would you have the right to write on your resumes that you are an elected student leader?
4. The key personalities of this SC have forgotten the power of their dreams. Common-held dreams transform an individual. Transform a group. Transform lives. Change destinies. Dreams make us better human beings.
And now, for "things to continue"
1. I have confirmed that there are two individuals within the SC that will never let it turn into a flat-out and for the books painful memory. I hope both your spirit and your hearts will be an inspiration to the half-awakes. Dumami pa sana ang lahi 'nyo = )
2. I have confirmed that when the SC see a foreboding event that's about to happen, they act accordingly.
3. I have confirmed that the SC has the ability to respond and to improve, to do things better. You truly belong to School of Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management in that sense.
4. I have confirmed that there would be an excellent pool of leaders for the next Student Council. I mean, if the present junior officers will still choose to go at this painful learning experience again next year.
Lastly, please do not ever stop being a student of life and I don't mean be a college student for life. These two are continents apart = )
Saturday
overheard
I was at my running 'halfway and turning point' when I heard two common Joe having this exchange about the Philippines, "They do not have a lot of everything. But they have little of everything!"
Having a lot and a little? Hmmm, the thing is no one knows when exactly one has a little and when he has a lot. If one is greedy, one will always have a little. If one is content, one will always have a lot.
It always a question of the heart.
Having a lot and a little? Hmmm, the thing is no one knows when exactly one has a little and when he has a lot. If one is greedy, one will always have a little. If one is content, one will always have a lot.
It always a question of the heart.
Friday
why do this?
I've seen the beauty of knowing. I've seen the beauty of learning. I've seen the beauty of the moment. I've seen the beauty of being able to think. I've seen the beauty of being able to analyze. I've seen the beauty of being able to decide. I've seen the beauty of knowing you have a choice. I've seen the beauty. I've seen the blessing.
Now, what kind of a man would not share the beautiful things he have seen and experienced? That beauty, I can never contain in my heart. That beauty needs expression. That beauty was meant to be shared.
I hope not to enter into a debate. I hope that the beauty I've seen would contribute to your ability to see the beauty that surrounds us, always.
Now, what kind of a man would not share the beautiful things he have seen and experienced? That beauty, I can never contain in my heart. That beauty needs expression. That beauty was meant to be shared.
I hope not to enter into a debate. I hope that the beauty I've seen would contribute to your ability to see the beauty that surrounds us, always.
Thursday
supply & demand, then oil prices
By the way, the oil price is high not because the oil spigot was closed. It is because India and China needs more of it now than a decade ago. If supply is relatively constant but the demand for oil increased, price increases.
Is that bad?
Well, we have to see the whole picture then conclude for ourselves if that is bad or good. But the more important thing is - when we see the whole picture, let's not stop there. We have to act upon what we know.
So, is it bad?
The easy answer is - yes, its bad!
But the best answer as of the moment is - nobody knows for it depends on where we are at the moment. It depends on where we see ourselves in reference to the situation.
If China and India is the culprit behind the increase in oil prices, then by merely talking to them to stop demanding more oil is the solution but by doing so we have stepped on their human rights and on their nation's sovereignty. And our history is filled with story of blood and gore when it comes to the issue of nation's sovereignty. Let's not get into that.
The key question is what are we doing with the knowledge that the economies of China and India is growing? How do we turn that fact to our benefit?
And the beautiful thing about high oil prices is that it makes the alternatives sources of energy economically viable. If oil prices is up (and profits, too) it "fuels" the drive to get innovative, entrepreneurial. I mean do you think Toyota's Hybrid, the Prius, will come to be if oil prices is not that high?
But I do agree that on the short term this is really ugly. But we have to know and understand the whole picture. We have to know. We have to understand. We have to know all of these. We have to understand this so that we won't be swayed by the biggest voice in the room.
We need to know the truth.
Is that bad?
Well, we have to see the whole picture then conclude for ourselves if that is bad or good. But the more important thing is - when we see the whole picture, let's not stop there. We have to act upon what we know.
So, is it bad?
The easy answer is - yes, its bad!
But the best answer as of the moment is - nobody knows for it depends on where we are at the moment. It depends on where we see ourselves in reference to the situation.
If China and India is the culprit behind the increase in oil prices, then by merely talking to them to stop demanding more oil is the solution but by doing so we have stepped on their human rights and on their nation's sovereignty. And our history is filled with story of blood and gore when it comes to the issue of nation's sovereignty. Let's not get into that.
The key question is what are we doing with the knowledge that the economies of China and India is growing? How do we turn that fact to our benefit?
And the beautiful thing about high oil prices is that it makes the alternatives sources of energy economically viable. If oil prices is up (and profits, too) it "fuels" the drive to get innovative, entrepreneurial. I mean do you think Toyota's Hybrid, the Prius, will come to be if oil prices is not that high?
But I do agree that on the short term this is really ugly. But we have to know and understand the whole picture. We have to know. We have to understand. We have to know all of these. We have to understand this so that we won't be swayed by the biggest voice in the room.
We need to know the truth.
Wednesday
Higher food prices? A good thing?
First, no government will allow prices of commodities (food) to increase by design. It has become a staple, it seems, for central bankers to control food prices. Why? because of the shared and common ill-feeling almost everybody has on price increases or in economic and high-fa luting terms - inflation.
If inflation is any higher, those who benefit from kicking out the current government would have an easier job. It is easier to entice hungry people. As they say, "Hungry people, are angry people!" = )
But let's not get into easy explanation just yet because high prices could also suggest better profits. If profits are higher and invested back, the story is different than what our easy explanations would suggest. It would be different than what most of our telenovelas propagate.
Higher prices leads to higher profits which leads to increase liquidity which allows businessmen to be creative and to be entrepreneurial which will lead to increase employment which leads to something really good.
This is the easy logic but one has to know that this cause and effect scenarios happen across time. Sometimes a long time and one could get really impatient. But if we have learned that our impatience could get us nowhere, what is time but a canvas where we draw, if God allows it, and make our aspirations true?
An increase in price will definitely lead to increase in profits and make the whole delivery system very efficient.
How? Let's take a look at what happened in the oil industry and let's go back in time, the 70s.
Two events changed the whole complexity of the business of oil, the price shock in early 1970s and the fall of the Shah of Iran that even made the price of oil increase. This made the oil consuming countries and the oil producing corporations to re-think the whole business system of oil.
By the late 1970s, investment in oil exploration and refining has sunk so much investment in it that we have not seen such magnitude to this date. We are all currently reaping the benefits of decisions made 30 years ago.
Now, let's put that into the context of food business.
Higher prices would lead to higher profits which in turn be use to justify investment made in the capital intensive "delivery side" of the food business system. By capital intensive, I mean think better roads, better transportation methods or even better drying and milling facilities.
Up to this moment, we only use "This is the responsibility of the government!" to justify pave road projects and look at where it brought us? What if we allow the dynamics of business to take part and make the farmers in the cooperative context richer in the process?
Are we not solving the poverty in the urban cities by giving the next generation farmers an alternative to these three fatalistic choices: 1 Makipagsapalaran na lang tayo sa Manila, 2 the OFW option and 3 Migration.
Think. Seriously think.
But again, this will happen across time. Patience is needed. But by patience I mean, "We endure what we understand." And for this to happen, a new kind of businessman will have to emerge. This will be the businessmen that were called to do this noble task.
P.S.
If the whole oil business system can reconfigure itself why not the business of food . I mean, we can live without oil for months but that could not be said about food even if one is fasting. (Jesus Christ, the Son of God, fasted for 40 days and 40 nights only.)
So, why not?
If inflation is any higher, those who benefit from kicking out the current government would have an easier job. It is easier to entice hungry people. As they say, "Hungry people, are angry people!" = )
But let's not get into easy explanation just yet because high prices could also suggest better profits. If profits are higher and invested back, the story is different than what our easy explanations would suggest. It would be different than what most of our telenovelas propagate.
Higher prices leads to higher profits which leads to increase liquidity which allows businessmen to be creative and to be entrepreneurial which will lead to increase employment which leads to something really good.
This is the easy logic but one has to know that this cause and effect scenarios happen across time. Sometimes a long time and one could get really impatient. But if we have learned that our impatience could get us nowhere, what is time but a canvas where we draw, if God allows it, and make our aspirations true?
An increase in price will definitely lead to increase in profits and make the whole delivery system very efficient.
How? Let's take a look at what happened in the oil industry and let's go back in time, the 70s.
Two events changed the whole complexity of the business of oil, the price shock in early 1970s and the fall of the Shah of Iran that even made the price of oil increase. This made the oil consuming countries and the oil producing corporations to re-think the whole business system of oil.
By the late 1970s, investment in oil exploration and refining has sunk so much investment in it that we have not seen such magnitude to this date. We are all currently reaping the benefits of decisions made 30 years ago.
Now, let's put that into the context of food business.
Higher prices would lead to higher profits which in turn be use to justify investment made in the capital intensive "delivery side" of the food business system. By capital intensive, I mean think better roads, better transportation methods or even better drying and milling facilities.
Up to this moment, we only use "This is the responsibility of the government!" to justify pave road projects and look at where it brought us? What if we allow the dynamics of business to take part and make the farmers in the cooperative context richer in the process?
Are we not solving the poverty in the urban cities by giving the next generation farmers an alternative to these three fatalistic choices: 1 Makipagsapalaran na lang tayo sa Manila, 2 the OFW option and 3 Migration.
Think. Seriously think.
But again, this will happen across time. Patience is needed. But by patience I mean, "We endure what we understand." And for this to happen, a new kind of businessman will have to emerge. This will be the businessmen that were called to do this noble task.
P.S.
If the whole oil business system can reconfigure itself why not the business of food . I mean, we can live without oil for months but that could not be said about food even if one is fasting. (Jesus Christ, the Son of God, fasted for 40 days and 40 nights only.)
So, why not?
2007 Blessings
Here's my (incomplete and in no particular order) list of Audience of One's blessing this 2007.
1. The fact that I am still alive and in good health.
2. My ever deepening relationship with Him... He has been faithful for "even if I walk through the valley of the shadow and death, You are with me."
3. The passion to teach and the privilege to express this passion in an engineering school in historic Intramuros.
4. The healing I got last October from dengue. (My younger brother succumb to it 4 years ago.)
5. Beb's Singapore miracle.
6. When the key personalities of the 2006-2007 IE-EMG Student Council personally met the Omnipotent One.
7. My parent's relative good health in their advance age.
8. The fact that my Dad can still put in valuable work for the only company he ever worked for. Lord, you are faithful to him and to his family. My prayer is that I hope I can even come close.
9. After three beautiful nieces, a nephew - Jan Ellis.
10. Beb.
11. IMAJ business performance is a miracle.
12. AB's resolve to make peace with Him.
13. The Convergence and IE-EMG Night that could have ended in a lot of worse ways. For someone who had a personal idea of what it means to be in Martial Law. That night had a heightened spirit in it.
14. My ever present anger and disgust with mediocrity.
15. This blog.
16. The students who have made me a better learning facilitator.
17. The wonderful hearts of the IMAJ team.
18. The two pregnancies in the IE-EMG Faculty Room.
19. Finally, I got to sing a Rick Astley song in a karaoke = )
1. The fact that I am still alive and in good health.
2. My ever deepening relationship with Him... He has been faithful for "even if I walk through the valley of the shadow and death, You are with me."
3. The passion to teach and the privilege to express this passion in an engineering school in historic Intramuros.
4. The healing I got last October from dengue. (My younger brother succumb to it 4 years ago.)
5. Beb's Singapore miracle.
6. When the key personalities of the 2006-2007 IE-EMG Student Council personally met the Omnipotent One.
7. My parent's relative good health in their advance age.
8. The fact that my Dad can still put in valuable work for the only company he ever worked for. Lord, you are faithful to him and to his family. My prayer is that I hope I can even come close.
9. After three beautiful nieces, a nephew - Jan Ellis.
10. Beb.
11. IMAJ business performance is a miracle.
12. AB's resolve to make peace with Him.
13. The Convergence and IE-EMG Night that could have ended in a lot of worse ways. For someone who had a personal idea of what it means to be in Martial Law. That night had a heightened spirit in it.
14. My ever present anger and disgust with mediocrity.
15. This blog.
16. The students who have made me a better learning facilitator.
17. The wonderful hearts of the IMAJ team.
18. The two pregnancies in the IE-EMG Faculty Room.
19. Finally, I got to sing a Rick Astley song in a karaoke = )
Thursday
we are
I think it was Yancey who wrote,
"We are spiritual beings having human experiences...
Not human beings having spiritual experiences."
"We are spiritual beings having human experiences...
Not human beings having spiritual experiences."
Tuesday
stared upon by angel eyes
I run.
It is something I enjoy doing thrice a week every morning. I would usually run a distance of 10 kilometers. Sometimes I time myself. Sometimes I don't. Sometimes I beat my best time. Sometimes, well, I just run = ) I run because the health experts suggest that for 30-somethings, like me, a cardio exercise is a must.
But this morning, my cardio-routine took a turn towards a life moment.
After running, I would usually walk to a street vendor and have my 10-peso bottled water as I cool down and "normalized" my heartbeat. Then after a few minutes, I'll board a jeep to go home.
This particular morning just as I uttered, "Mama, bayad ho," a mother cuddling her less than a year old baby boy boarded the jeep. Nothing quirky about that except, maybe, that they sat across me and the bundle of joy was staring at my sweaty self. He was looking because my hair was up.
This little bundle of joy just stared at me. The big round eyes seemed to get bigger as the moment passed by. At first, he had a questioning look. He looked at my hair then to my eyes then back to my hair again as if asking, "What happened here?" Funny. Because this "guy" was fearless, honest, pure.
As he looked, or should I say stared, I caught myself smiling. It's been awhile since I was stared at and felt amused about it. And as I smile, the little boy smiled back. The toothless-smile was enough to take away the voluntarily-induced weariness away.
I was smiling. The boy was smiling and then the mom said, "Mama, para po."
I was still smiling as they went down and walked away.
It is something I enjoy doing thrice a week every morning. I would usually run a distance of 10 kilometers. Sometimes I time myself. Sometimes I don't. Sometimes I beat my best time. Sometimes, well, I just run = ) I run because the health experts suggest that for 30-somethings, like me, a cardio exercise is a must.
But this morning, my cardio-routine took a turn towards a life moment.
After running, I would usually walk to a street vendor and have my 10-peso bottled water as I cool down and "normalized" my heartbeat. Then after a few minutes, I'll board a jeep to go home.
This particular morning just as I uttered, "Mama, bayad ho," a mother cuddling her less than a year old baby boy boarded the jeep. Nothing quirky about that except, maybe, that they sat across me and the bundle of joy was staring at my sweaty self. He was looking because my hair was up.
This little bundle of joy just stared at me. The big round eyes seemed to get bigger as the moment passed by. At first, he had a questioning look. He looked at my hair then to my eyes then back to my hair again as if asking, "What happened here?" Funny. Because this "guy" was fearless, honest, pure.
As he looked, or should I say stared, I caught myself smiling. It's been awhile since I was stared at and felt amused about it. And as I smile, the little boy smiled back. The toothless-smile was enough to take away the voluntarily-induced weariness away.
I was smiling. The boy was smiling and then the mom said, "Mama, para po."
I was still smiling as they went down and walked away.
Saturday
environmentalism and food prices
The Nobel prize went to Mr Gore and to the many scientist working in United Nations. The work of throwing unto our muddled-media minds the condition of our one and only planet defines their life's work and it will also define our generation's soul by the response we will give.
The funny and also painful thing within the inconvenient truth is, if we move forward passionately without thought with our "environmentalism adventure" - there's a possibility that we could doom the poor by taking the food they eat out of there reach by higher prices.
Follow this logic. Ethanol comes from corn. Ethanol is needed to bring down the bad greenhouse gases. If we collectively put corn into the fuels we use, which we have not done in the past, in effect we are actually taking out the corn out of the mouths who eats it for our transportation use.
One could say, "... but we can solve that by increasing production!" True but that would also mean asking our farmers to plant corn instead of other produce, like rice. And the fact that we already have the La Nina and the El Nino twins does not help the situation.
We only have so much land. This land is finite, a resource that we took for granted because it is "free" for the longest time. Now, it seems that our very existence depends on how smart we are going to use our arable lands and diminished forest.
Do you still remember how this situation turns out - if supply is finite and demand is increasing, what happens to price?
We are now in a new world. Our former thougths and actions led us to this, to put it politely, interesting twist.
I admire Adam Smith. Without his treatise and writings, we would still be waging wars to grow our economies but his equation, apparently, had a "flaw" which showed its head in the documentary film An Inconvenient Truth - natural resources are finite.
I am not trying to throw mud for if we read through his life and times and get the context, Mr Smith is one of the greatest thinkers humanity has ever produced. He found a way to grow our economies without the bloodshed that went with wars. Ever wondered how come all of our histories had wars in it?
Mr Adam Smith did away with the over thousands of years of way of life and of wars.
But now, we are in a new awareness as did Mr Smith was when he penned The Wealth of Nations. Now we need to add something to the equation.
This is truly "the worst of times and the best of times."
Interesting. Exciting times.
The key is "green profit".
And this green profit is not the greedy one. This green profit is the ethical one who also put into consideration our generation's obligation to the next.
More on that later.
The funny and also painful thing within the inconvenient truth is, if we move forward passionately without thought with our "environmentalism adventure" - there's a possibility that we could doom the poor by taking the food they eat out of there reach by higher prices.
Follow this logic. Ethanol comes from corn. Ethanol is needed to bring down the bad greenhouse gases. If we collectively put corn into the fuels we use, which we have not done in the past, in effect we are actually taking out the corn out of the mouths who eats it for our transportation use.
One could say, "... but we can solve that by increasing production!" True but that would also mean asking our farmers to plant corn instead of other produce, like rice. And the fact that we already have the La Nina and the El Nino twins does not help the situation.
We only have so much land. This land is finite, a resource that we took for granted because it is "free" for the longest time. Now, it seems that our very existence depends on how smart we are going to use our arable lands and diminished forest.
Do you still remember how this situation turns out - if supply is finite and demand is increasing, what happens to price?
We are now in a new world. Our former thougths and actions led us to this, to put it politely, interesting twist.
I admire Adam Smith. Without his treatise and writings, we would still be waging wars to grow our economies but his equation, apparently, had a "flaw" which showed its head in the documentary film An Inconvenient Truth - natural resources are finite.
I am not trying to throw mud for if we read through his life and times and get the context, Mr Smith is one of the greatest thinkers humanity has ever produced. He found a way to grow our economies without the bloodshed that went with wars. Ever wondered how come all of our histories had wars in it?
Mr Adam Smith did away with the over thousands of years of way of life and of wars.
But now, we are in a new awareness as did Mr Smith was when he penned The Wealth of Nations. Now we need to add something to the equation.
This is truly "the worst of times and the best of times."
Interesting. Exciting times.
The key is "green profit".
And this green profit is not the greedy one. This green profit is the ethical one who also put into consideration our generation's obligation to the next.
More on that later.
Monday
the memory of our future
I am not the first to have grouped these words. I think it was Monsieur Arie de Geus who originally penned it.
My contribution, I hope it is of value, is to put it into the context for the 20 year old who takes Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management in an Engineering Institute in historic Intramuros.
Dreams. They are powerful. Pushes us forward. Makes sense of our every experience and every encounter in our daily lives. Puts meaning to every pain. Every sigh. Every triumph.
I once asked for the generic principle. I was hoping for this - it is our vision, our mission, our aspirations and our dreams that allows us to scan through the seeming random changes in environment and decipher which one is any value to us.
The aspiration we embrace and nurture guides us to say - that (pertaining to an event in the environment) is bad for us, that is good for us. Without this aspiration, this dream - whatever happens to us has no meaning. We can not know if this is bad or good for us. We are blind.
Like for example, if we dream to be with a particular gentleman or a particular lady, what he or she goes through is important for us. Because we dream to be with this person. We want this person! His or her experience is important for us.
This is the same for companies. The aspiration of what the companies want, guides the leaders and the whole organization to decipher through the changes, frame it and act on it.
Personally, when we hurt, we should embrace it. For in that moment "yourself" is telling "yourself", "Hey Dude (or Dudette), answer why you hurt and when you know, put it on stone for this is important! Listen!"
Without dreams we are blind.
My contribution, I hope it is of value, is to put it into the context for the 20 year old who takes Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management in an Engineering Institute in historic Intramuros.
Dreams. They are powerful. Pushes us forward. Makes sense of our every experience and every encounter in our daily lives. Puts meaning to every pain. Every sigh. Every triumph.
I once asked for the generic principle. I was hoping for this - it is our vision, our mission, our aspirations and our dreams that allows us to scan through the seeming random changes in environment and decipher which one is any value to us.
The aspiration we embrace and nurture guides us to say - that (pertaining to an event in the environment) is bad for us, that is good for us. Without this aspiration, this dream - whatever happens to us has no meaning. We can not know if this is bad or good for us. We are blind.
Like for example, if we dream to be with a particular gentleman or a particular lady, what he or she goes through is important for us. Because we dream to be with this person. We want this person! His or her experience is important for us.
This is the same for companies. The aspiration of what the companies want, guides the leaders and the whole organization to decipher through the changes, frame it and act on it.
Personally, when we hurt, we should embrace it. For in that moment "yourself" is telling "yourself", "Hey Dude (or Dudette), answer why you hurt and when you know, put it on stone for this is important! Listen!"
Without dreams we are blind.
For all those who came...
For those who came to the Convergence-IE/EMG Night - Thank you!
Admittedly - the show could have been better.
Straightforwardly - the show we had last Thursday, 29 November, was not the show the student leaders planned.
The show that we all experienced was a mere, at the most, 65% of what we planned. Why? We changed the show's objective, on the fly, from staging a grand show to a simple puritanical objective of finishing it by 11pm so that majority of those who came will make the curfew.
We all do not want to add a traumatic experience at the police station on top a fun filled night with hints of moments spent looking for table, chairs and food = )
Thank you also for your patience and your understanding.
Above all, thank you for your support.
As an adviser to the IE-EMG SC, I promise to do a better job being an adviser to the Student Council so that we all can serve you, the IE-EMG Students, better!
Merry Christmas!
Admittedly - the show could have been better.
Straightforwardly - the show we had last Thursday, 29 November, was not the show the student leaders planned.
The show that we all experienced was a mere, at the most, 65% of what we planned. Why? We changed the show's objective, on the fly, from staging a grand show to a simple puritanical objective of finishing it by 11pm so that majority of those who came will make the curfew.
We all do not want to add a traumatic experience at the police station on top a fun filled night with hints of moments spent looking for table, chairs and food = )
Thank you also for your patience and your understanding.
Above all, thank you for your support.
As an adviser to the IE-EMG SC, I promise to do a better job being an adviser to the Student Council so that we all can serve you, the IE-EMG Students, better!
Merry Christmas!
Saturday
charming and substantial truth
for every successful man
is a story of a woman
for every unsuccessful man
is a story of two women
is a story of a woman
for every unsuccessful man
is a story of two women
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