Friday 29 March 2013

p.I am so xenophobic

Was waiting for my favourite food to be ready at my favourite hawker food centre, so that I can collect it when it is ready. These hawkers no longer gave any services.

Just then, a loud voice singing hokkien songs. The voice came closer and closer. It was a guy with only one leg left on a wheel chair trying his luck at singing his way to some money. He was quite young about 50s. So donation? No way.

But I was impressed with his hokkien-nese. The song was my childhood melody. So I decided to test him. I asked him whether he is a sinkie of that little island. He greeted me, M'dam. Fuck. So donation? No, no way. He said he is still a sinkie and he showed me his begging license and claimed that the fuckers only issued them if they were originally from that little island.

Finally, giving? Checked.

So I gave him a big fat note. He just said a simple thank you, brother. I smiled. He understood me.

A bowl of hot spicy fish porridge suddenly appeared on my table. The old man hawker served me with a big smile.

I felt so xenophobic. Maybe it's harvest time soon for that little island. Good Luck then! Brothers and sisters.

Saturday 23 March 2013

b.Passion business I - The Way

The first part is here:   b.Passion business I - Blueberry Wine (as a) 

The Way is like magic.

Many times when there seemed to be no way out. No possibility of success. No chance to turn things round.

There exists always a wayThe Way of the Heart.

Do not despair as there is always a way.

Continue that passion for you have no other choice.

Grit that teeth and bite that bullet.

The Way will show itself. No matter how desperate you are, be patient, the Way will show you how.

It is easy for man to be tempted by quick success. Do not take the shortest route to success. Take instead the longest road. Enjoy the slow process to success.

When I first conceive the mango wine many years ago. It was laughable as there was no way I can get a winery license from those scumbags. The project has to be a stealthy one. The moment the project is exposed. That little island's defence will spring to work, they will rob me of my hard work.

I moved the project from country to country.

I tried many formulations but none of them succeeded. Each formulation took me 6 months to confirm its outcome. After so many years, finally instead I found solace in the pineapple wine. It was amazing how things have finally come to head.

The pineapple wine was astounding. The taste was fantastic. It has the potential of leading its own admirers.

Now I am able to procure a winery license too.

Why you ask?

I am a believer of hard work. I am a believer of building a good name. I am a believer of respect. I am a believer of goodness always comes from bitterness. I am a believer of trust of man.

Be extremely honest, you will bring out the best of man. For none of these men will try their trickery on you. They dare not. You are like a bright mirror, for they dare not show their stark ugliness as they despise their own sneaky character way more than your honest stupidity. Let them pretend that they are honest and good, for you have nothing to lose.

Mr Feed Me To the Fish,

May I here offer my humble respect for your passing on. You have done a honourable thing for standing up for those people on that little island. My deepest Respect. I am too weak to even bother. That one day will come when I finally join you, may I too have no regrets like you. Enjoy your freedom from now onwards, for there is none that can hold you back anymore.

May all those that you left behind be healthy and great too like you ...

Saturday 16 March 2013

b.The methodology of Squeeze

Pre-requisite

Cash is King!

At the beginning of business, all suppliers will not trust you. You are required to deal in cash in advance for your goods and services. You have no choice but to comply. After a while, once you are more stable, these same suppliers will try to offer you credit terms. DON'T TAKE IT. It takes great wisdom to not take that evil bait.

Once you are offered terms, slowly but surely, you will be addicted to that credits (Really not very different from credit card companies). Once you show signs of not paying, these very same suppliers will stop their supplies and services. You would be left high and dry, and unless you pay up, you will not get your next supplies for continuance of business. They even will threaten legal action if no payment is received by a certain date.

So stay clear of taking any credits.

But, I love that machine or that ERP software that will help me to minimize effort and maximize profit. Banks are willing to lend me the money to own it straight away. No such thing! You can still make money from existing machines which you have paid cash for. Your customer services are still tip-top with personal touch and no bull-shit like ERP software. These softwares are meant only as a show-off to others. It will help no one. I have friends who have installed ERP systems and took them more than 2 years to configure. Later, EVERY ONE threw their softwares away and started yaking on their phones to try to win back their customers. These ERP softwares almost killed their sales systems.

If you can't pay cash for it, it simply means you are not yet ready for that man-toy nor are you ready to expand.

Stay cash terms.

The Squeeze

Once the supplier starts to offer credit terms, it is time to apply that squeeze. It means that your cash payments have proven your credit-worthiness. You are an important account to them. They need your business volume and your monthly business volume is a percentage to their turn-over.

Get your secretary to look for another supplier for the same goods and services. Quote the new one the business volume you are doing with this current supplier and the cash term. Since it is a percentage of sale for the current supplier, it will also be more or less a percentage of sale for the next supplier. Ask the new supplier to better that number (about 5%-10% lower). If the new supplier agrees, cut over 80% of the sale volume. You should be more than welcomed for the new supplier as your cash terms are too valuable for the new supplier. Most clients of theirs are now on credit and not paying well when times are bad (most times are bad for businesses).

The old supplier will ask after a few months why is your business volume so low? Your answer should be: The price quoted by them are no longer competitive and you are in a bad shape. You can't hack the high supply cost. Further you have a partner and he has found a friend to help in this. He has helped by lowering our total supply costs.

The old supplier will ask for a return of business as he is now addicted to your cash terms. It is like an ATM to their business, as they need immediate cash to pay for their installments, employees and rentals. You ask for a further 10%-15% discount from his rates. he will most likely comply as you have proven to be able to walk away.

Transfer back the 80% of sale to him and give the remaining 20% to the new supplier.

Learn to hunger them. Alternate your purchases with them.

Wait for a while and repeat the process. If necessary, find a third supplier.

When do you stop? 

You should stop at 10%-20% above raw material costs. How do you know? Well, that's what big businesses like Macdonalds, Apple and Samsung are paying their OEM contractors.

The raw material prices can be gotten from simple phone calls and internet researches or simply ask friends.

For every squeeze, try to return some of these savings to the consumers. They are your ultimate food providers. They will assist you to protect your market share by accepting that you are indeed the best value for money. 

Conclusion

Business games are not about being fair. There is no fairness. The big boys will always eat the small ones for food and to stay alive. This is the exacting law of the jungle. Please show no mercy. The others will not show you any either, but to constantly plot your demise.

Should you therefore show mercy to your suppliers? NO. They too are accepting gifts from your enemies to see your demise.

As one wise man said, "There are no permanent enemies, only permanent interest."

CASH is your only weapon in winning these cut-throat business wars.

If you deal in cash only, you will be the only one that can effectively play the field.

Tuesday 12 March 2013

b.Price versus Volume Generation

Today marks another beautiful day.

It is so very interesting!!!

My business partner had a very long discussion with me and we discovered that:

Most businesses derive profits from selling volume. To do that, the business will cut price so that they can have a larger business volume. Multiply that by its selling price, the total sale value or volume leadership is always an envy of most other businesses.

But, operating at such low selling price of razor-thin margin, the business lacks the ability to perform research & product development. Sooner or later, general financial crisis will hit the business. The business being poor in product and quality improvement will soon be driven out.

That explained why 3 key and sizable competitors of ours folded this year.

Volume leaders are never the answer to business building.

Ever since we change our business model to price leadership. Our business has grown from strength to strength.

Part 1:   The bigger margin allows us to do research & development of our products. We now achieve better penetration. We are selling much more than before. Instead of producing more per year, we resisted that urge and produced the same amount the following year. We raised price further hoping that the sale volume is just right again instead of increasing year-on-year.

We will continue to increase price until we sell only the amount we have always been selling.

Part 2:   As for those products that we sell less than targeted volume, we increase the quality further in terms of packaging and content, but retain the old selling price. Some time later, we will again achieve the target. Further improvement in products will again grow the sale volume. the mechanism from part 1 is again deployed.

Caveat Emptor:   Product development must be continuous and budget planned for every year.

Sale Volume:   The desired optimal sale volume per product is derived by trial-and-error.

Not many businesses can see through the issue of volume and price leaders effectively. They are always blinded by immediate cash flows and urgent market share issues. Many businesses thought that by selling more and more and the sale volume going higher and higher is the only way to grow. I can emphatically say that they have been mistaken and misled by the market. They will go broke in no time. They will lack funds to build quality products. They will lack funds to weather financial crisis. They will lack business depth to understand market competitors.

This enlightenment is hard to come by. It is derived from years of painful evaluation of many of our competitors.

Business leadership can only be achieved through continuously improving quality, not by lowering price.

Monday 11 March 2013

g.Story - The Challenge of Trust

Not my Story: 

I would just like to take this opportunity to share with all the married men here about my own life and hope that they can learn from my own misfortune.

I married my gf when I was 26. She was a typical average looking and conservative gal. We didn’t have any premarital sex and intimacy was confined to just kissing and hugging. I was looking forward to my new life and eagerly waiting for our first love making session. I was terribly disappointed. There was hardly any foreplay and we only did it in missionary. It was all over in 5 mins and the only BJ I got was she blowing a good night kiss to me. I accepted that and thought maybe she was tired. However, to my disappointment, things never improved.

For the next 5 years, sex was the same. Strip, kiss, missionary and sleep. Despite everything I did to persuade her to improve on our sex life, the answer was the same negative one. All this while, I pampered her with love, care, concern and luxury. I was 100% faithful and didn’t even hang out with friends. I admitted I was also very busy with work as I struggled to earn more to give her a better life but I was always around at night even though it might be past 11pm and weekends were thoroughly free to spend with her. However, despite doing all these, I never could change her. She would still be conservative in both her dressing and in our activity in bed. In fact, she wouldn’t even buy any nighties to wear at home, no matter how hard I tried to coax her.

I even bought a small car for her own use on our fourth wedding anniversary which made her happy but when I presented her the second gift, a simple nightie, she refused to wear it and threw it away a few weeks later. I was very much in love with her and continued to accept all these without once fooling outside. I was committed to my marriage and I told myself that if I love her, I need to accept all the good and bad of her.

Things started to change after 5 years of marriage. She started to buy clothing that was sexier like low cut dresses or camisole. She even started buying nightie, which she put on when we had sex. I was happy and thought that she had finally relented and was now trying to make me happy. Sex was still the same and BJ was still in non-existence but I was contended. I convince myself that over time, she would become more adventurous. However, things didn’t improve over the next 3 years.

Everything was the same. I became frustrated again but I told myself to be patient if I love her. Everything went about as usual until one day; I went home in the afternoon to have a change of clothing as the one I was wearing was dirtied. As I was looking for a new shirt to wear, I suddenly realized that one of her nightie was missing from the wardrobe.

I normally didn’t pay much attention to such things but somehow, that day, something just triggered me. I went about to the washing area and confirm it was neither been washed nor in the dirty laundry. Even then, I didn’t suspect a single thing. I even told myself that maybe she had wore it under her clothing to work and told myself for being silly. I forgot about the whole thing until I went home that night. It was late and she was already sleeping. I changed into my tees and shorts after my bath and brought my clothing out to the laundry basket. Just out of curiosity, I searched the basket for the missing nightie and didn’t see it. It was also not hung out to dry and I was feeling a bit uneasy.

Quietly, I went back to our bedroom and open the wardrobe. I found that nightie hanging inside. I took it out and went into the bathroom. I could see it was fairly crumbled, showing signs that it has been worn and there was her distinct perfume smell on it. My mind began to wonder. It was cleared it had been worn by her today so why didn’t she throw it for washing? I put everything back in place and went to bed. However, I could not sleep. I kept searching for a logical reason but I couldn’t find any.

Suddenly, I began to feel suspicious. Was she seeing someone else? I started to recall past suspicious incidents that I have brushed off previously and the more I thought of it, the more I felt uncomfortable. I couldn’t sleep that night and had problems focusing on my work over the next 2 weeks. While there were obvious tell tale signs, they weren’t conclusive. I also couldn’t bring myself to believe my conservative wife would have an affair. 

I started to pay more attention to her habits and behaviour and I started to see a trend. I found that every one or two days in a week, she would wear something more sexy to work and usually, she would only return home after 9pm, giving various excuses that she was either working late or met up with friends for dinner. 

Another pattern that I discovered was that each time any nightie goes missing from the wardrobe, I will find it hanging back in the night and she would definitely wear that when we had sex either the next night or the following night. I also realize that she was always on her laptop on nights that she didn’t go out and would spend like an hour or so on it.

On Saturdays when I play golf with clients in Singapore, she would say she needed to go back to work but never when I was playing golf in Johor. Another suspicion was that she would always call me when I am playing golf in Johor to ask was the game and what time I was going to finish, once or twice each time but never when I was playing golf in Singapore.

Finally, after 3 agonizing months, I hired a PI and 2 weeks later, I was shown evidence beyond a doubt that she was seeing some other man. I also found out that when I played golf in Johor on Saturday, that man came over to our house to stay for about an hour. I was furious by now but I wanted to know more. I wanted to know what they did behind closed doors and how long it had been going on.

I managed to install a key logger software on to her laptop and finally got access into it. I searched through her laptop and my entire world collapsed when I saw what I found. There were huge log file of her conversation on irc with that guy. There were also countless emails between them. Reading them, I realize they have been fucking behind my back for almost 3 years and have done almost every imaginable sexual act known. 

In it, they describe how much they enjoyed the fuck sessions when they did in various positions, not forgetting how she BJ him and let him CIM and swallowing his semen. They even had anal sex. That guy even wrote stuff like how turned on he was when she told him that she had kissed me when she returned home after she had just swallowed his cum earlier on. He even said he get’s super turned on when he fuck her while she wears one of the nightie as he knows she will wear it the next day with me but that I was having second hand goods.

There were even nude pictures and video of them in her laptop and I couldn’t bring myself to watch them in detail. I couldn’t believe it was happening. I confronted her with all the evidence and she admitted it. She even told me that it was good I found out as she didn’t want to hide it anymore and we eventually divorced.

It’s been 8 years since I divorced and it took me one whole year to recover from my shock as drown myself in sorrow, turning to drinking and losing my job. I finally woke up and started my own business and have been successful since. 

5 years ago, I started becoming an MILF guy. To date, I have lost count of the number of married women I have fucked. I am not trying to gloat about my “conquest”. I just wanted all married men here to know, don’t be too confident with your trust of your wife. Among the MILFs that I have had, they come from all walks of life, age and looks. Many of them are typical women that hardly anyone would expect them to fuck behind their husband’s back but they did. Lastly, don’t be a fucking cuckold like I was just because you think your wife don’t have a high sex drive or don’t enjoy sex. It might just be that she doesn’t enjoy it with you but is letting another guy fuck her brains out behind your back, just like what happened to me and like what I am doing now. No offense to anyone. 

This is a classic case of a beta male turning alpha. Everyone of us are capable of an alpha task, we just need to summon that beast within us.

The storyteller later went on to say:

We did bump into each other a few years later and even sat down to have coffee. That was how I knew that the guy dumped her. We didn't exchange numbers and haven't been in contact again since that one time.

I don't hate her anymore. I pity her. She could have been a rich tai tai leading a good life. Guess she choose the wrong man in the end.

So if you are a gal, be nice to that one man in your life, enjoy your sex with him. He will one day reward you for your faithfulness. If you are a guy, don't waste a single effort in looking for that one pussy, there are millions in the bush. Just build that fucking business empire. Need I say more?

As for the storyteller, his karma will hit him soon as he will soon find out that he can find no true love. To bed hundred of pussies, he must be heartless. Gals dig heartless guys. But since the guy steeled his heart from emotional investment, he will feel no pain, that is how he appears unfazed by the gal's beauty. Gals love cool cucumbers. At the end, the guy will get to screw the gals easily but he will never be satisfied as he showed no emotions even in sex. The storyteller will soon find out that he is not longer capable of loving, as he is suspicious of every single gal that he encounters. A sad way to end it all. This is the price he needs to pay for screwing indiscriminately.

In order to enjoy a relationship, one must invest feelings. But, once feelings are involved, the gals will know exactly how to unleash their most potent power of being a dreadful drama queen. The gals will find out and learn to twirl the guy with their immense beta-rization skills. I have found no survivors in these battles. But, truth be told, the guy will feel absolutely worth their while in the relationship (like the first five years of the storyteller's marriage). Funny shit!

I guess Buddha had gotten it right - the best way is always the Middle Way. In metta ...

p.A Joke in Emigration

One of greatest jokes I received in my years of emigration is I find it funny that most immigrants like to hunt each other.

When I first landed, I was offered great food and drinks in restaurants by "fellow" ex-countrymen. After a few rounds, I was popped the most important question - how am I going to spend my investment monies; such as buying house, insurance and work contracts. Of course, I told them I have not a single cent in my knapsack, otherwise I wouldn't need to emigrate in the first place.

Many !@!$@%$#%^$^&%$^%&*^ curses later, they finally realized that I am one hard cookie to crack. They gave up and moved away from me. Suddenly, I am left all alone. So lonely that a fly from 10 metres away I could hear it. A sad sight for a good 1 year. During this time, I was fully unemployed. I refused to be employed. I refused to join the crowd. I stayed hungry, very hungry and very, very hungry. I need to know how much more hungry I can get to see that light.

You see, as one gets very hungry (the hungrier, the sight more lucid), the window of opportunity will come. It will come in a very silent way. No pride, no falsehood, no show-offs, no penny to spare, no way to get back to that little island, that's when every one around you will come to "pity" you. You are like a hungry little puppy, eager to please, eager to perform tricks for a penny, fetch slippers for a dime. Seeing you in such poor state, they will spare their little pennies to help you get along, otherwise, they wouldn't be able to exact their own original pain on the new fellow. These clever older immigrants knew that even the most excruciating punishment needs an occasional reprieve. That's why there are so many clan associations around the nicest parts of downtown. They are there for a reason, i.e., to sponge off new immigrants.

These previous immigrants were so clueless, poor and "unqualified" (their former education made useless by government policies) that they couldn't find a single suitable well-paying job to help them tie through their current haplessness that they have no choice but to prey on their fellow new and easier blur-kings coming through the channel. They can't be wise enough to sponge off the whites as they were perceived to "lord-over" all of us, the yellows.

These previous immigrants are usually left with no choice but to hunt the weak newer immigrants. That contributed one of the highest form of repatriation back to that little island. When these failed new immigrants conned and returned to that little island, they were usually made fun of and laughed off as useless quitters.

It is so interesting that none of the old and new immigrants understand that the best formation for a minority race must be one of cooperation and support and none of painful self-infliction.

You see to prey on the fellow immigrants is only one time and usually they are also not rich, else they wouldn't have emigrated in the first place (this is a true answer). Once filled with this lean meat, very soon you have to hunt again for the next prey.

Hence, why don't you cooperate and fight to win in the market place? Once successful, you and your clan get to feed forever.

But, not many understand this fundamental approach.

When I explained this concept to them, not all are teachable. For those who believed, I received free food and drinks.

They know that it is only a matter of time that the cooperation will fruit. They wouldn't want to be left out just because their names are on my possible black list.

The choice is yours and yours to make. I don't have a black list and I really don't give a damn.

Sunday 10 March 2013

b.Philosophy of Life

Too many times I walked life blindly without an understanding what life ensues.

It was lucky that I had stopped to ponder what life means.

Many things happened on that little island that brain-washed me into missing my first half of my life.  Fortunately, I survived that and I am now in fuller control of my life.

I now pursue only my life-long interest and dream - to build a business empire that I am proud to display to myself. I have finally found my calling - business building. I have done many things in my life, but none can beat the feeling of creating things from nothing. When that happens, the rush is beautiful. To see a business grow from a baby to a fledgling and to something that delivers value to customers is absolutely pleasing.

When that happened to one business, I realized that I can repeat it again to another business type and so on and so forth. Soon I am surrounded by very good business types.

The happiness is indescribable.

The last 3 days I spent it with my business partner on a long trip north after a long lapse. We talked incessantly and earnestly. The discussion was extremely philosophical and as usual, new ideas were formed and agreed for execution. I have said before, business discussions now are more strategic than menial in nature.

As long as integrity is upheld and the limiting parameters described in full, the support for new directions is never a question.

If one is honest and full of integrity, one need not fear the unknown. Search our deepest feelings, we will find the path leading to richness of life.

Leave if you must, to seek your dream. I will look you up when you are ready.

Today I also reached my target for the mother 0.50000:
I will woo her this week. She has excellent figure and spirit.