"If something is a problem, by definition, it must have a solution. So focus on finding the solution(s). If something doesn't have a solution, it's not a problem. It's just a hindrance that you'll have to learn to live with."
*Got this from {:—SuBaNg BoY—:}
"The illiterate of the 21st Century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn."
Alvin Toffler
I read with interest Onn Yeoh’s latest entry about the meaning of life. It’s a very short and to the point entry.
The meaning of life
I had an unexpected late night online conversation with a friend last night. He told me that lately, he’s been thinking about life and has concluded that it’s quite pointless.
I instinctively knew what he was talking about and told him about an interview I had with the Chief. I had asked him, “What’s the meaning of life?” and the Chief’s reply was “There is no meaning.”
What the Chief meant and what my friend felt is quite simply this: We are here. And there’s all that there is to it. While we’re here, though, we might as well make the most of it. Do something to relieve the suffering of yourself and others, and do something meaningful to gain some form of self-fulfillment. That’s the best we can do.
It’s exactly how I feel too.Posted on Saturday, May 27, 2006 at 03:26 by
Oon Yeoh |
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What caught my attention is not the entry, it’s Chief Rev’s reply. “There is no meaning.”
What is there to live for, by the way?
Life is impermenant, anyway. We’re all going to die one day.
This reminds me of a book that I read some times ago. Many Lives, Many Masters, by Brian L Weiss, MD. It’s an interesting book, and maybe I shall write about it later.
Coming back to the meaning of life topic, sometimes I really felt there is no real meaning to life. What is there to live for, really?
Some want to excel at work.
Some want to become a successful businessman.
Some want to be filial.
Some just want to enjoy themselves.
Some want more money.
Some want to travel.
Some want to do more charity work.
But we are all going to die anyway. And when you die, does all these really matters? People work hard and dedicate a big portion of their lives to achieve something, but when they are gone, it doesn’t really matter if you are the richest man in the world, or a beggar by the street. You die, and you are left with nothing. You come with nothing, and thus, you leave with nothing.
What Onn Yeoh says is true!
“What the Chief meant and what my friend felt is quite simply this: We are here. And there’s all that there is to it. While we’re here, though, we might as well make the most of it. Do something to relieve the suffering of yourself and others, and do something meaningful to gain some form of self-fulfillment. That’s the best we can do.
It’s exactly how I feel too.”
I feel that way too! Sometimes, I try my best to achieve something, and once in a while, I do ask myself is all these worth it? I really don’t know, but when I succeed, I felt a certain level of contentment. At least, I’ve lived to be a useful person.
Sometimes I feel listless too. Restless as if something is troubling me. I become worried, and couldn’t sleep. I just don’t know why. I don’t know what I am doing, and don’t know why I am doing. My mind is filled with question marks! A lot of things that I do not really know. At times, I don’t even know whether what I’m doing is right or wrong. Or whether my decision is a good one or a bad one. I don’t know. It’s all in question marks.
But, one thing I surely know is that I must treasure my family members. There are billions and billions of people in this world, and to be born into the same small family, there must be some bond that brings us together. Why am I not born into the Gates family? or the Tan Sri’s family? There must be something really special and mysterious that brings us together, in one family.
As I grows up, I’ve learned to treasure my family members more and more. I’ve never seen my grandma’s angry face, even from young. My parents? I wouldn’t trade them with any other in this world. And I couldn’t have asked for better sisters than I have now. They are the Fantastic Five! And my brother, he ain’t heavy, he’s my brother.
Here is a summary of the book Copycat Marketing 101 that I've just read for the second time. Book like this is worshipped by the MLMers, and often it let you take a cold hard look at your life and what you are doing right now.
I agree with what Burke says about true wealth. It is not about buying expensive things. True wealth is synonymous with freedom!
My summary here more or less sums up all the important points (I think) in this book. 
SAME DOOR LEADS TO SAME RESULTS
“If you continue to do what you’ve done, you’ll continue to get what you’ve gotten.”
Most people want more for themselves, more for their families, than being dead, dead-broke or still working to make ends meet at the age 56.
Imagine
Imagine if time and money weren’t an issue in your life.
Imagine being able to walk your kids to school every morning, and never having to miss a school play or soccer game because you had to work.
Imagine planning your work around your golf, instead of your golf around your work.
Imagine going on vacation and coming back when you want to come back, rather than when you boss says you have to come back.
Current system most people copycat is designed to create temporary income, not true wealth, because it’s based on linear growth – trading time for dollars.
We copycat everything else in our lives.
One thing that we failed to copycat is creating wealth.
We copy others, others copy us and all too often, we ASSUME we are copying the right people!
That’s exactly what happens when we take a job without really thinking about why we took a job.
Most people assume that jobs are the best way to create wealth, when in fact, jobs don’t create true wealth – jobs create temporary income!
Why haven’t we found a way to copycat creating wealth?
The answer is painfully obvious – most of us have been copycatting the job track instead of the wealth creation track.
Most people assume that a job is the only way to actualize their financial dreams.
Perhaps they are unaware of the alternatives to the job.
Perhaps they don’t believe there are other sources of wealth.
“Wealth – is not just about being able to buy things, although that is a nice side benefit. True wealth is synonymous with freedom.”
Wealth is about having enough money and enough time to do what you want, WHEN you want.
Most people think true wealth is having lots of money so that you can buy material things.
But, the wisest people understand that true wealth isn’t so much about buying more things as it is about having more time to do what you want to do.
Think about it:
When you’re old and gray, sitting on the front porch of a nursing home, contemplating how you lived your life, what are you most likely to regret?
Not buying a more expensive home? Or not spending more time with your kids when they are young?
Not working around the clock for that promotion at the office? Or not spending more time with your parents and your friends when they needed you?
Time is our most precious commodity – far more precious than gold – because once it’s gone, you can never get it back!
The biggest benefit of true wealth is having the freedom to choose how you spend your time.
Doctors and lawyers who make upwards of $150 000 per year – but they feel trapped.
They have the money to buy and do what they want to do, but most do not have the TIME because they have to keep working at their jobs.
They have to work to create income, so that they can maintain their lifestyle.
Income creation is;-
10 hours of work = 10 hours of pay
Income creation is an endless treadmill.
It’s called time-for-money.
When the treadmill stops, the income stops.
Where would the highly-paid doctor be if he developed arthritis in his hands and could no longer create income because he had to stop working?
More to the point, where would you be if you could no longer create income because you have to stop working?
According to the Business Week magazine, “It takes the average worker half his lifetime to purchase a home, accumulate some savings and retirements benefits. It takes about six months of unemployment to lose it all.”
Residual income = keeps earning money whether you show up at work or not!
40/40/40 = work 40 hours a week, for 40 years, retire with a retirement dinner and a $40 watch.
50/50/50/50 = 50 hours a week, 50 weeks a year, for 50 years and retire on 50% of what we can’t live on today.
Time-for-money treadmill
The outcome is proportional to the input, which means you get out what you put in – nothing more nothing less.One unit of time equal to one unit of money.
Gary – a house painter.
Work 10 hours per day, $10 per hour.
1 x $10 = $10 per hour
60 hours per week = $600
50 weeks per year = $30 000 per year
He only gets to spend one day a week with his wife and children.
He’ll never make more than $30 000 a year, no matter how hard he works.
He seldom gets time-off, and when he does, he is too tired to enjoy it.
Worst part, he only gets paid once for the work he’s done.
“I’d rather earn 1% of 100 mean efforts than 100% of my own.”
The Energy, Water and Communications Minister Datuk Seri Lim Keng Yaik today announced that the electricity tariff will go up by 12% on 1st June.
It will not affect the low to medium income group. Hahahahaha… never expected my family to be classified in the high income group. Hahahahahahaha…
And oh yeah… as usual, the same lame reason was given.
"Even with the 12% tariff increase, he said, Malaysia still had the cheapest electricity in the region with the exception of Indonesia."
Good news is there is no advice to change lifestyle this time around, but….
"…consumers need not set their air-conditioner at 16°C and that 24°C was good enough."
Checkout Screenshots for a more critical point of view.
Update: Niamah ringtones, featuring Patrick Teoh.
There's this story about a princess. She was old enough to get married. But, the King want the only the best for her daughter, and only the bravest person can marry her.
So, the King ordered all his men to dig a river around the castle. They then infested the river with hungry crocodiles.
Once the river is ready, the King summoned all the men in his kingdom, and tell them this;
"Whoever manage to swim across this river to the castle will marry my daughter, and inherit this kingdom!"
All the men shivered, and no one even dare to stand near the river. It was infested with hungry crocodiles, awaiting its victims.
Out of a sudden, a young man jumped into the river, and swam across it. When he reached the other side, he was quickly help out of the river by the King. The King congratulated him for his bravery. The young man will marry his daughter, and inherit the kingdom on his demise.
Before the King ended his announcement, he asked the young man if he has any other request. The young man nodded.
As he turn to the crowd, he asked, "Who pushed me into the river?!!"
STRESSFUL
Work is getting more stressful lately.
Life is just as stressful.
Buddha’s words is so true…
“Life is suffering…”
But, what is the cause of my suffering?
How can I end this suffering of mine?
Kill stress.
"I'm a slow walker, but I never walk back. "
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)
23rd IDC
Clarity of Truth, Charity of Joy
Are you busy with commitments, responsibilities and obligations? Are you satisfied with your past achievements, current goals and future…. or you want more? Happiness – is there a ready answer to it?
In the latest edition of the 25th INCOVAR Dhamma Camp (25th IDC), you will be introduced to the essence of the Four Noble Truths – the most fundamental of the Buddha's teaching – with the emphasis on understanding what Happiness is.
It is through the appreciation of the simplicity in our daily lives that we find the answers. At the heart of a simple life is an emphasis on a harmonious and purposeful living. Being simple in nature will give rise to happiness within oneself, and then share it with others!
Theme: "Clarity of Truth, Charity of Joy"
Date: 29 June – 2 July 2006
Venue: Fo Guang Shan Dong Zhen temple in
Jenjarom, Selangor.In the dawn of the 21st century, the centuries-old Buddha's teaching, which is experiential by nature, is becoming ever more practical to us all. You might be thrilled, but we prefer that you just "chill" in the glow of Buddha's insights.
For enquiries please contact
Wendy @ 017-3195881.Feel free to visit our website at www.incovar.org.
You can register online NOW.The closing date is
31 May 2006.because @ INCOVAR
…we inspire…
The INCOVAR Dhamma Camp is back!
Check on our website for more information, and register early to avoid disappointment!
Oh yah, we accept international participants as well, as we've had participants from Japan, Korea, Thailand and Singapore.
Send us your enquiries and see how we can arrange for your participation in this 25IDC.
You can also contact me for more information.
*Watch this space for more updates in the future!
