Wow, I'm a Copyright Holder!

I got back and checked my email today, and was surprised to see this in my inbox.

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Dear Mr. Tan

I am writing to request permission to reprint your article “Who says the young are good only at Facebook?” which was published in The Straits Times on 26 January 2009 in a forthcoming title, Human Resource Management: An Asia Edition.

Please refer to the attachment for details.

I look forward to your favourable response soon.

Han Lian Siew
Publishing Executive
Cengage Learning Asia Pte. Ltd.
5 Shenton Way, #01-01 UIC Building, Singapore 068808
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Dr Han requested for my permission to reprint the article in full for his book which is slated for a circulation of 8000 copies in August 2009. I have granted him permission without need to acknowledge my name, should it be necessary.

For the first time in a very long while, it feels wonderful being a published writer, especially having your name cited in a secondary source.

The original article, published in the Straits Times: YouthInk, can also be accessed here.

And on a separate note, I finally found the feature article (click here to view) on fencing that I wrote for the Straits Times in 2007, after a random google search. It was featured in the press desk of SMU, Sporting Singapore, the Singapore Sports Council, and a couple of other business directories.

My ex-coach, Mr Jeffery Lopez, would be so proud!

Desperado...

Desperado (By Emi Fujita)

Desperado
Why don't you come to your senses
You been out ridin' fences
For so long now

Oh, you're a hard one
But I know that you've got your reasons
These things that are pleasin' you
Can hurt you somehow

Don't you draw the queen of diamonds, boy
She'll beat you if she's able
You know the queen of hearts
Is always your best bet

Now it seems to me some fine things
Have been laid upon your table
But you only want the ones
That you can't get

Desperado
Oh you ain't gettin' no younger
Your pain and your hunger
They're drivin' you home

Freedom, Ah freedom
That's just some people talkin'
You're prisoners walkin'
Through this world all alone

Don't your feet get cold in the wintertime
The sky won't snow and the sun won't shine
It's hard to tell the night time
From the day

You're losin' all your highs and lows
Ain't it funny how the feelin' goes away...

Desperado
Why don't you come to your senses
Come down from your fences
Open the gate

It may be rainin'
But there's a rainbow above you
You better let somebody love you (let somebody love you)
You better let somebody love you
Before it's too late...

Father's Day is over but...

Hillsongs concert was...

Simply amazing!!!

Let me introduce two of my favourite hits from them:





Even though it has been a difficult and tiring week, I had a great deal of time to seek the Lord this weekend, more so in a long while. Actually, it's not about the amount of time that we commit but rather what is more important is that we are intentional in seeking Him.

For it is said in Deuteronomy 4:29 that "if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul". Hence, do as Isaiah 55:6 says - "Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near."

Among other things, He showed me how I could be a better friend for others by making a stand for them, and also to pray and intercede on their behalf. Also, He reminded me of the importance of bringing Him into whatever that I do in my work, commitments and relationships.

What does it mean to be a friend?

I'm not someone who loses my temper easily. But when I do, there's always a good reason for it.

I lost it over a friend whom I've always looked up to for her beliefs and convictions. She was one of the reasons why I sought God again this year because if there is someone who truly understands the meaning of walking with God in her journey, it's her and she has inspired me.

But then, she always has the knack of jumping into commitments without thinking of the effects it has on others, even on herself. When something untoward happens because of that, someone has to clean up the mess. Someone has to pay the piper.

And yet, she's doing it again. One too many times. And this has shook my impression of her. How can someone like her waver so much in her convictions? It's hypocrisy!

I shared this with a friend yesterday. And her response is: My anger clearly showed that I still care for this friend. If I didn't care, I wouldn't have wasted my breath and lost my temper.

Perhaps old feelings die hard but to me, the most important thing is that she knows what she is doing and she is willing to bear the consequences of her actions. I'm not her father and I'm in no position to dictate the way she should live her life.

As a friend, for now, I can only support her in doing the things that make her happy.

But that also arises the question of: What does it mean to be a friend to others? Do we just keep out of the way and let a friend continue doing whatever he\she is doing even though it's wrong? Or are we willing to make a stand for a friend because we care?

Serving my country again...

Reservist.

2 weeks in camp.

With a programme that includes IPPT training, live firing exercise, outfield training and camps, with tons of hours sitting around and doing nothing.

But still, you learn so much about human relations, leadership and communication.

My friends during my NSF days will know how much of a ang-moh-pai I am. My Chinese isn't really fluent and when I do speak it, I tend to use a more formal lingo compared to the conversational lingo that is more prevalent in the army. So when I find himself in a new unit, stuck with strangers who speak Chinese (95% of the time) for 2 weeks, imagine my discouragement.

Some of my platoon mates are already tight-knitted because they were from the same unit during their NSF stint. This makes it harder for newly-posted folks like me to integrate into their circle.

But then I learnt something. Regardless of the language one speaks, the language of values and actions are more important. People will respect you because you help them, watch out for them, care for them, and learn from them. And most of the time, they will reciprocate with the same values and actions.

And funny how it's always the hokkien-peng and the ones who are less educated who have better values.

I'm so glad for the new friends I made in-camp. There's still another 9 years that I will be spending with them. Some will stay. Others will leave. But the bond that we forged while talking rot during our outfield exercises and just helping each other, well, that's priceless.

And I also learnt something about communicative leadership . In the army, when there are a whole bunch of people who dread the experience of being forced to do things they don't want to do and can't wait to get out of camp, it really pays to communicate your intentions with them. Let them know what they are doing, and why they are doing it for. For instance, share with them the urgency of the tasks, link it to a bigger objective, and throw in incentives for doing the task properly.

We can be going through hell but if we know that there's a good reason for doing so, we'll gladly go all the way.

Wow, our best national day song so far...

I've never been a big sucker for national day songs but I think "What Do You See" should be rated as the best thus far.

While the music video copied elements from Coldplay's style, mood, melody and pace, the lyrics were catchy, and the scenes provided a sense of familiarity. This gave the song a very uniquely Singaporean feel, in a positive way of course.

And so, enjoy! This could prove to be the best national day thus far!

Who you are DOES make a difference!

Got this from a friend who is co-chairing this year's International Day of Peace celebrations in SMU.

This could just be the magic bullet that we're looking for to initiate some kind of social experiment in the campus based on the concept of passing on goodwill. It also reminded me of what the Landmark Forum taught us of the importance of being "open" with the people around us.

Just as it has inspired me, I hope that it will inspire you too!

Reflections from Chiang Mai (Part 2)

When I came back from Chiang Mai slightly less than 2 months ago, I was still overwhelmed with what I've seen, done and learnt in the 2 weeks of the expedition with Project Elephant Nature Park (ENP).

As I reflected, the project represented the journey of a life-time for me, to be able to lead this project and work with an awesome team to be engaged in contributing towards elephant and nature conservation.

The following pictures are snap-shots of some of the work that the team has done since the conceptualisation of the project began last October...

We were fortunate to be working closely Mr Grant Pereira, the Singapore Director of the Chiang Mai-based Elephant Nature Park. In January, we organised a talk on elephant conservation by Grant, as part of a series of public outreach and education initiatives.

Grant was also instrumental in being the main liaison between our team and the Elephant Nature Foundation. He was recently featured in the Channel News Asia series Saving Gaia - Asia's Leading Green Heroes.

What is organising an OCIP without fund-raising? The team applied to be sponsored by the NYC's Youth Expeditionary Fund (YEP) which sponsored 50% of the cost of the project while SMU co-paid 10% of the cost. The balance had to be paid for by the team and fund-raised.

The 4-months-long fund-raising experience itself was extraordinary. We sold everything from popcorn, Chinese New Year goodies, postcards, ENP mementos to friendship bags filled with goodies, and our team-designed T-shirts. It was like running a 42-km marathon that required much patience and stamina.

The campaign was a success as we were able to exceed our target of $5000 and publicise this project to hundreds of our peers.

The building block of the project is definitely the team itself. We had a team-bonding camp during the term break to build trust and friendships, and peppered our semester with facilitation sessions to learn about conservation issues, team-work, and preparations for the trip.

On the first day of the trip at Chiang Mai, we were treated to a wonderful dinner at a cafe run by a guest inn that we stayed at for the first and last nights of the trip. Of course, on our agenda too was the shopping at the famous bazaars that sold anything from clothes to traditional handicrafts and food.

We had to take a van on an hour-long journey to the ENP. At the first day at the Park, we were briefed on the history of the Park and safety procedures for handling elephants. We were also introduced to many of the elephants at the Park, and even had the opportunity to feed and wash them in the adjacent river.

If you thought washing your cars was just plain painful, wait till you wash these towering, humongous beasts that had to be bathed twice a day!

Oh, how can we forget about the morning chores at the Park? Apart from cutting corn from the corn-fields in the outskirts of Chiang Mai that was meant to supplement the elephants' diet, we also collected elephant poo from the shacks that housed the elephants. The poo was meant to be transported to poo factories that made commercial items like notepads and books.

We also supported the Park in other activities such as collecting bamboo and concrete meant for the expansion of the Park's facilities.

Planting teak-tree seedlings was fun! We spent a couple of days transporting seedlings from the nursery and planting them at selected locations along the Park. These trees will one day provide shelter and food for the elephants.

This is part of a reforestation campaign to restore the natural habitats of these elephants since the rapid deforestation and urbanisation was a contributing factor to the decline of the elephant population in Thailand.

We spent 4 days at a Karen village that was supported by the Park. Recognising that promoting the welfare of the hill-tribes was part and parcel of preserving the eco-system involving nature and the elephant population, the Park launches many initiatives to preserve the cultural identity and welfare of these hill-tribes.

Our team sponsored the building of a well, and worked with the villages to dig the well at a site that was once a swamp consisting of a sludge pool of mud and rotting vegetation. Getting knee-deep into the mud, hacking at the ground with shovels and pick-axes, and involving the entire team to transport buckets of sludge from the well-site was simply draining but memorable.

Of course, the villagers were also exceptional hosts, always cooking and providing the best accomodation for us. They truly lived up to their reputation as a generous and welcoming people.

That's the well that was shaping up by the second day of our digging. We had to transport sand, stones and cement from outside the village, mix them into cement, and transfer the materials into the well. By the end of the third day, the villagers had taken over the project and adding their finishing touches to the well.

We also visited a nearby village school that served students from the nearby villages. We were thankful to have collected boxes of stationery, toys, paper and biscuits for the kids from our collection drives in Singapore, contributions from two secondary schools, and sponsors like Pilot and Blessings in a Bag.

That's the satisfied team with the adorable kids. What better way to mark the end offour stay at the village by putting a smile on the kids' faces with our gifts and the many games we played with them? Simply priceless and worth all the effort.

So what's in store for the team and the project? We have our work cut out for us for the months ahead where we plan to:

• Work with our school's corporate communications office to create footages of the project meant for Channel News Asia to showcase the Park's work, details of our project, and our experience as a team.

• Organise a photo-essay exhibition and have it in either SMU or the National Library (or even both!). This will cap our post-expedition project of increasing publicity for what the Park does, and educating the people on the pertinent issues of elephant and nature conservation

• Have a final debriefing and official gathering for the team where we remember our work and the great times we have experienced together as a team

• Start planning with the leaders of the next ENP project! We will review our strategic branding, processes, target audiences and such. More importantly, we will see how we can ensure the continuity and sustainability elements of the project, such as the idea of the social business that the school intends to start to market products made by the constituents of organisations like ENP

Guerilla marketing - Stop and stare

Been youtubing for some innovative examples of guerilla marketing - the kind of marketing that makes people stop and stare at what you're doing out of awe or intrigue. The result: the brand gets the message across in an effective way, and a new brand connection is forged between the advertiser and the customer.