Learning-linx

Kodak files for bankruptcy protection

2012-01-19T11:43:00.003+04:00

BBC Kodak files bankruptcy protection - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-16625725
The 132-year-old photography firm has struggled to keep up with competitors who were quicker to adapt to the digital era.

So, the only sustainable competitive advantage is still the ability of employees to accept new paradigms, learn new things, develop and grow and adapt to changing environments faster than any competitor.

That is exactly how I serve my clients, sharing ideas that give opportunities to expand their thinking.

"The mind, once expanded to the dimensions of larger ideas, never returns to its original size". - Oliver Wendell Holmes

Thoughts for 2012 -

2011-12-28T19:28:00.002+04:00

"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded." -
Ralph Waldo Emmerson

Verse 53 Tao Te Ching

2011-12-24T11:53:00.000+04:00

I have been reading Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching, one of the most translated books in history. My version is published by The Sacred Arts translation by Ma-Ho Kwok, Jay Ramsey and Martin Palmer. I have also been reading Dr. Wayne W. Dyer's wonderful book "Change your thoughts, Change Your Life" and listening to the audio version while I drive. This book is also based on the teachings of Lao Tzu and contains Wayne's reviews of the teachings.

As this is the "Season of Goodwill" then Verse 53 of Tao Te Ching is remarkable:

Sacred Arts version - quote:
"If all I know is a fraction then my only fear is losing the thread
The Great way is easy but people are forever being taken down sidetracks
They look after the palaces but ignore the fields
The granaries are empty but they wear wonderful clothes
They go about with arms and gorge themselves on fine food and drink
How rich they are and they have stolen it all from the poor
They are the robber barons of now, this is not the real Tao"

Wayne Dyer version - quote:
"If I have even just a little sense, I should walk in the Great Way and my only fear would be straying.
The Great Way is smooth and straight and yet people prefer devious paths.
That is why the court is corrupt and fields lie in waste, the granaries are empty.
Dressing magnificently, wearing a sharp sword stuffing oneself with food and drink, amassing wealth to the extent of not knowing what to do with it is being like a robber.
I say this pomp at the expense of others is like the boasting thieves after looting.
This is not the Tao"

One translation written in 1944 by Witter Bynner is also quoted in Wayne Dyer's book - quote:
"See how fine the palaces
And see how poor the farms
How bare the peasant's granaries
While gentry wear embroideries
Hiding sharpened arms
And the more they have the more they seize
How can there be such men as these,
Who never hunger, never thirst
Yet eat and drink until they burst."

It strikes me that the last three years or so many people have strayed down "devious paths" and that it is time to return to the Tao, the Great Way.

The planet is overpopulated, wasteful and lacks compassion for fellow humans. Despite the efforts of many "good people" over the years there is still War and famine.

Perhaps we should all read Lao Tzu's works that have lasted for over two thousand five hundred years and realise that Mother Earth is providing for us and that we should be more careful how we treat each other and our planet, if we are to survive for another two thousand five hundred years.

If we have years of "Goodwill" rather than seasons then we may well have a Planet earth in AD4562.

Your as old as you feel and probably older than your car :-)

2011-12-14T19:37:00.001+04:00

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/10/automobiles/packard-81-is-a-youngster-to-its-driver.html?_r=1

101 year old lady drives her 81 year old Packard

2011-09-14T12:03:00.001+04:00

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-14889165
Great article on the Beeb that now confirms Norman Cousins 1970's theory that Laughter really is the best medicine

Have fun at work, have good laugh and everything will be fine,
as it says in Kung Fu Panda:
"yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift, that's why they call it the present" - enjoy this present from good ol' BBC :-) and of course Oxford University - city of the Dreaming Spires

TRUST

2011-07-02T14:10:00.000+04:00

http://www.dkvevents.ae/ExpertsChannel/newsletter_data.php?id=264&issue=14
My recent article for Knowledge Village Dubai

BPS Research Digest: Why positive fantasies make your dreams less likely to come true

2011-06-03T11:47:00.000+04:00

BPS Research Digest: Why positive fantasies make your dreams less likely to come true

Why Middle Managers May Be the Most Important People in Your Company

2011-05-26T11:13:00.000+04:00

Very interesting paper from Knowledge at Wharton
http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=2783

Presenting Yourself - Developing Confidence

2010-12-06T12:31:00.001+04:00

http://www.dkvevents.ae/ExpertsChannel/newsletter_data.php?id=236&issue=12

No Arms No Legs No Worries

2010-12-06T11:15:00.001+04:00

Knowledge Village Experts Channel - Personality Profiles

2010-06-28T11:47:00.000+04:00

http://www.dkvevents.ae/ExpertsChannel/newsletter_data.php?id=189&issue=10

Dear Minister letter

2010-06-06T18:39:00.001+04:00

Out of the Ordinary :-)

This was actually taken from a UK passport application and a member of staff copied it,
as it made her laugh all day.

Passport Application

Dear Minister,

I'm in the process of renewing my passport but I am a total loss to understand or believe the hoops I am being asked to jump through.

How is it that Bert Smith of T.V. Rentals Bournemouth has my address and telephone number and knows that I bought a satellite dish from them back in 1994, and yet, the Government is still asking me where I was born and on what date?

How come that nice West African immigrant chappy who comes round every Thursday night with his DVD rentals van can tell me every film or video I have had out since he started his business up eleven years ago, yet you still want me to remind you of my last three jobs, two of which were with contractors working for the government?

How come the TV detector van can tell if my TV is on, what channel I am watching and whether I have paid my licence or not, and yet if I win the government run lottery they have no idea I have won or where I am and will keep the money to themselves if I fail to claim in good time.

Do you people do this by hand?

You have my birth date on numerous files you hold on me, including the one with all the income tax forms I've filed for the past 30-odd years. It's on my health insurance card, my driver's licence, on the last four passports I've had, on all those stupid customs declaration forms I've had to fill out before being allowed off the planes and boats over the last 30 years, and all those insufferable census forms that are done every ten years and the electoral registration forms I have to complete, by law, every time our lords and masters are up for re-election.

Would somebody please take note, once and for all, I was born in Maidenhead on the 4th of March 1957, my mother's name is Mary, her maiden name was Reynolds, my father's name is Robert, and I'd be absolutely astounded if that ever changed between now and the day I die!

I apologise Minister. I'm obviously not myself this morning. But between you and me, I have simply had enough! You mail the application to my house, then you ask me for my address. What is going on? Do you have a gang of Neanderthals working there? Look at my picture.. Do I look like Bin Laden? I don't want to activate the Fifth Reich. I just want to go and park my weary backside on a sunny, sandy beach in Barbados for a couple of week's well-earned rest away from all this crap.

Well, I have to go now, because I have to go to back to Christchurch and get another copy of my birth certificate because you lost the last one. AND to the tune of 60 quid! What a racket THAT is!! Would it be so complicated to have all the services in the same spot to assist in the issuance of a new passport the same day? But nooooo, that'd be too easy and maybe make sense. You'd rather have us running all over the place like chickens with our heads cut off, then find some tosser to confirm that it's really me on the picture - you know... the one where we're not allowed to smile in in case we look as if we are enjoying the process!

Hey, you know why we can't smile? 'Cause we're totally Hacked off!

I served in the armed forces for more than 25 years including over ten years at the Ministry of Defence in London . I have had security clearances which allowed me to sit in the Cabinet Office, five seats away from the Prime Minister while he was being briefed on the first Gulf War and I have been doing volunteer work for the British Red Cross ever since I left the Services. However, I have to get someone 'important' to verify who I am - you know, someone like my doctor... who, before he got his medical degree 6 months ago, WAS LIVING IN PAKISTAN!

Yours Sincerely,

An Irate British Citizen.

Putting Reward Strategies at Risk

2010-02-23T14:48:00.001+04:00

Interesting article in this monthsCIPD magazine about balancing risks and rewards (pay and benefits structures) to encourage optimum performance. They identify seven reward risk groups:

Strategic, Behavioural, Financial, Operational, Implementational and Change Management, Legal and Ethical and Governance.

If there is misalignment of reward strategy to organizational goals the risk could be an inability to attract and retain people necessary for organizational success. The rewarding of unproductive or inappropriate behaviours undermines any work done in staff development. Without appropriate reward cost management value for money is eroded. Inefficiencies, inaccuracies and frauds not being correctly identified, result in undeserving rewards. If Change Management is required and rewards are given irrespective of changes taking place then more cash goes down the drain. All employees must comply with legal, ethical and societal and coprprate governance requirements to obtain appropriate rewards. Otherwise the reputation of the organization suffers.
The article is written by Charles Cotton, CIPD advisor and Jonathan Chapman, Canfield School of Management mote information at
http://www.cipd.co.uk/subjects/pay/general/_managing-reward_risks.htm
Seems to me someone at long last has recognized that bonuses should only be paid to staff who really contribute to achievement of organizational goals and objectives

Mnagement & Leadership

2009-12-16T09:25:00.001+04:00

IMy recent article for Dubai Knowledge Village nesletter - follow this link
http://www.dkvevents.ae/ExpertsChannel/newsletter_data.php?id=144&issue=8

Attitude not solitude

2009-11-17T15:16:00.000+04:00

The first line of this poem is well known, yet possibly the title "Solitude" is not. The poem was written by Ella Wheeler Wilcox (1850-1919). She reminds us how important it is to have a "joyful" attitude

LAUGH, and the world laughs with you;

Weep, and you weep alone.
For the sad old earth must borrow it's mirth,
But has trouble enough of it's own.
Sing, and the hills will answer;
Sigh, it is lost on the air.
The echoes bound to a joyful sound,
But shrink from voicing care.

Rejoice, and men will seek you;
Grieve, and they turn and go.
They want full measure of all your pleasure,
But they do not need your woe.
Be glad, and your friends are many;
Be sad, and you lose them all.
There are none to decline your nectared wine,
But alone you must drink life's gall.

Feast, and your halls are crowded;
Fast, and the world goes by.
Succeed and give, and it helps you live,
But no man can help you die.
There is room in the halls of pleasure
For a long and lordly train,
But one by one we must all file on
Through the narrow aisles of pain.

Author.Ella Wheeler Wilcox "Solitude." Women's History: Poems by Women. Jone Johnson Lewis, editor. URL: http://womenshistory.about.com/library/etext/bl_wilcox_solitude.htm (17th November 2009)

Michael's Story

2009-11-11T12:08:00.001+04:00

(I am not sure where this originated but it is something I wish to share for it demonstrates the great value of PMA)

"Michael is the kind of guy you love to hate. He is always in a good mood and always has something positive to say.

When someone would ask him how he was doing, would reply, "If I were any better, I would be twins!"

He was a natural motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, Michael was there, telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.

Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Michael and asked him, "I don't get it! You can't be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?"

Michael replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to myself, you have two choices today.

You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood. I choose to be in a good mood.

Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it.

Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life.

"Yeah, right, it's not that easy," I protested.
"Yes, it is," Michael said. Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice.

You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood.

The bottom line: It's your choice how you live your life."

I reflected on what Michael said. Soon thereafter, I left the Tower Industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.

Several years later, I heard that Michael was involved in a serious accident falling some 60 feet from a communications tower.
After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Michael was released from the hospital with rods placed in his back.

I saw Michael about six months after the accident. When I asked him how he was, he replied. "If I were any better, I'd be twins. Wanna see my scars?"

I declined to see his wounds, but I did ask him what had gone through his mind as the accident took place.

The first thing that went through my mind was the well-being of my soon to be born daughter," Michael replied. "Then, as I lay on the ground, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live or I could choose to die. I chose to live."

"Weren't you scared? Did you lose consciousness?" I asked.

Michael continued, "...the paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the ER and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read "he's a dead man. I knew I needed to take action."

"What did you do?" I asked.

"Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me," said Michael. She asked if I was allergic to anything.

"Yes, I replied." The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, "Gravity."

Over their laughter, I told them, "I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead."

Michael lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully".

Attitude, after all, is everything. "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." After all today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.

You have two choices now:

1. Ignore the advice.

2.Share it with the people you care about.

You know the choice I made - Enjoy each day, each breath and mostly---each and every friend!!!

Hugging

2009-11-07T15:05:00.000+04:00

Hugging is healthy as it helps the body’s immune system.

It:

• Keeps you healthier

• Cures Depression,

• Reduces stress

• Induces sleep

• is invigorating

• Is rejuvenating

• Has no unpleasant side effect

• Is Natural 100% wholesome

• Is organic

• Naturally sweet

• Contains no pesticides or artificial ingredients

• Requires no periodic check ups

• Is low energy consumption and requires no batteries and provides high returns

• Is inflation proof

• Is none fattening

• Is theft proof

• Is none taxable

• Is non polluting

Hugging is in fact nothing less than a “miracle drug” and of course it is fully returnable

Think and Grow Rich - free copy available

2009-11-05T18:20:00.003+04:00

My friends Vic and Lisa Johnson are doing this crazy marketing test where they're giving away Napoleon Hill's "Think & Grow Rich." I'm helping them with their big giveaway and wanted to make sure you got your copy before they take this offer down.

Get the details here:

www.FreeTGRbook.com/learninglinx

Feel free to pass this on to friends. They can get one too if they act right away.

This is one of my favorite books. I know you'll love it!

Ibbsie

How about more FUN in the World

2009-10-31T14:53:00.001+04:00

Go to this link for a new musical experience
Make life fun

and for Rubbish go here!
Fun is Rubbish

Success keys

2009-10-26T09:36:00.000+04:00

Napoleon Hill is probably the most influential of all the great motivational speakers of the 20th Century. His work inspired such modern greats as Tony Robbins, Jack Canfield; Mark Victor Hansen, Brian Tracy, Jim Rohn, Denis Waitley and I could go on. He has also inspired me (strangely enough!).

Think and Grow Rich was first published in 1937 and is one of the bestselling books of all time. Hill devoted his life to discovering the keys to success by studying and then recording the habits of the most successful people of his era (504 of the World's richest men). He then disseminated the information so people could "model" (ah NLP) these habits.

One of his most famous quotes is

"Whatever your mind can conceive and believe, you can achieve!

So the most fundamental question to ask to start on your road to success is:

"Where are you going?"

Lewis Carroll writes about Alice as she wanders down a pathway, that she reaches a fork in the road. She looks to the right and then to the left and wonders. She sees the Cheshire cat in a tree and asks:

"Which road shall I take?"

To which he replies,

"Where are you going?"

Alice responds. "I don’t know"

She receives the reply,

"If you don't know where you are going, then any road will do."

So Hill’s suggestion that we have a “major definite purpose” has been adopted by all of the most successful people from his research until this day! So what is yours?

My next few blogs will be my thoughts on how to apply Hill’s keys to success. These thoughts were inspired by one of the quotes in his book, a proverb:

“If you would plant for days, plant flowers,
If you would plant for years, plant trees,
If you would plant for eternity, plant ideas”.

A couple of these ideas worth cultivating are:

“The attitude of gratitude:”

This concept has been adopted by almost all modern gurus from Hill’s original works. He says,

“If you make your prayers an expression of gratitude and thanksgiving for all the blessings you already have, instead of requests for things you do not have, you will obtain results much faster.”

The second idea I wish to pass on is,
“The extra mile formula”:

Brian Tracy says,

“There are no traffic jams on the extra mile.”

Napoleon Hill wrote a very simple formula:

“Q1 + Q2 + MA = C”

Q1, he defines as the quality of service you supply to others.

Q2 is the quantity of service rendered, or the effort you put in.

MA is the mental attitude with which the service is rendered. (Much of his work is about how to approach life with a positive mental attitude).

C is the “Compensation” you will receive. Here Hill does not mean “money”. He defines compensation as:

Money, joy, harmony, spiritual enlightenment, faith, an open mind, a sense of tolerance or anything else worthwhile that you seek.

Remain true to the spirit of going the extra mile and cultivate the attitude of gratitude and maintain your positive outlook. These have certainly helped me, maybe they will help you.

Free Think and Grow Rich book

2009-10-23T11:45:00.002+04:00

Want a Free Think and Grow Rich Book?It's Already Created a Million MillionairesI've Got a Copy Reserved For You At http://www.FreeTGRbook.com/learninglinx

Apples & Oranges - Peter, Marcelle & Maha

2009-10-11T14:11:00.001+04:00

Marcelle Peter Maha and Opposite with Hisham

Apples & Oranges Discovery Session

2009-10-11T13:51:00.001+04:00

8 October at Emirates Golf Club, Majlis Suite, was a great day for Peter, Maha and Marcelle. Thanks for the support from Hisham, (Quest, Cairo). The Celemi Discovery Day went off extremely well. We had guests from a number of high profile Dubai and Abu Dhabi institutions and they responded brilliantly to the material. The final part of the day resulted in fierce competition from the teams involved, 3's Company, Ace, Fun, Pioneers and Super Lollipops. In the end Pioneers and Super Lollipops were involved in a nail biting tie breaker and still nothing could separate them. Finally one question decided the winners with Mahmoud from Pioneers getting the answer slightly faster than Islam from Super Lollipops.

Some photos will soon be on Learning-linx.com in the gallery.

Thanks to all the delegates for their participation and we hope that the learning will be utilzed effectively

Creating Your Brand Experience - Everything Counts

2009-10-05T17:15:00.000+04:00

Very Happy that my article has been published for Knowledge Village Experts Channel - hope you have time to read it
:-)
http://www.dkvevents.ae/ExpertsChannel/newsletter_data.php?id=110&issue=7

Attitude

2009-10-03T17:17:00.002+04:00

Zig Ziglar says,

"It’s your attitude that determines your ultimate altitude", that suddenly got me to thinking, which attitude will be the best to get you to the top (another of his quotes is "See you at the top").
So I looked up attitude in a couple of places and came across this:
"A posture of the body supposed to imply some mental state" it originates in Italian - "attitudine" for “disposition, posture"

Dictionary.com suggests

"Manner, disposition, feeling, position, etc., with regard to a person or thing; tendency or orientation, esp. of the mind",

And

"Position or posture of the body appropriate to or expressive of an action, emotion"
So what mental states will determine high altitude, what are the empowering emotions? Well according to Tony Robbins they are:

Love and warmth, gratitude, curiosity, excitement, determination, confidence, flexibility, cheerfulness, vitality, making a contribution.

And what body language and postures will generate these emotions.

Well smiling for one, it's universal. A smile says you are pleasant, attractive, sincere, sociable and competent. A smile sends endorphins to the brain to give an overall feeling of wellbeing. It is one of our most natural abilities and yet adults will only laugh about fifteen times a day whereas children laugh about four hundred times a day. Fact it takes seventeen muscles to smile and forty three muscles to frown. So be wrinkle free!

Try this exercise, when you go to the bathroom in the morning, smile at yourself in the mirror. If the mirror does not break you will have a great day!

And then, relax, breathe slowly and evenly and eliminate any anger, frustration, regret, guilt, fear hurt, disappointment from your life.

Two great quotes to close:

Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, toady is a gift, that is why it is called the present!

And St Francis’s quote:

God grant me the courage to change the things that I can change, the serenity to accept the things I cannot change and the wisdom to know the difference.

Love, laugh and create positive energy for everyone you meet, generate enthusiasm, be friendly and helpful. Live in the here and the now.

Last 1/4 of 2009 is about to hit us so......... :-)

2009-09-27T13:30:00.006+04:00

Some questions to consider:

How has 2009 been for you so far? - your results to date:

What went well and why?
What could have been better?
What have you learned that you can now apply to add more value to your life?

What have been your biggest wins?

What will you continue to do?
What will you stop doing?
What will you start doing?

How is your "health" "wealth" "wisdom"?

What will make 2009 the best year yet?
What actions will have to take between now and 31 December 2009 to make sure everything you want to happen actually does happen?

Just imagine its now 31 December at 11.59.59. in one second it will be 2010, what has happened in your personal and/or professional life that has made 2009 an amazing year?

What do you need to do, starting today, to make this a reality?

Good luck

Peter

Fun Quotes

2009-09-27T10:27:00.003+04:00

A committee is a cul-de-sac to which ideas are lured and then quietly strangled! (John A Lincoln)

Most of us never recognize an opportunity until it goes to work in a competitors business.

Every winner was once a beginner

Weekly Review

2009-09-27T09:55:00.005+04:00

Well what a week that was!

Really working hard now on major project in Abu Dhabi. Looks as though it will be great fun and rewarding work. Very happy about working with Lina again and getting other associates involved.

We now have the venue for the Celemi Apples & Oranges simulation, "Discovery Day" - Emirates Golf Club, Dubai, Majlis Suite. Looking forward to that on 8 October and working with Maha and Marcelle. Quite a few high profile delegates.

Had a great conversation with my US associate Ruth Sherman. "Media mastery; Control the media before they control you". This will shortly be available in MP3 format. Ruth is working on her schedule so she can visit Dubai in the near future. I will keep you all posted. Interesting quote from our conversation:

"The people who don’t do well (speaking to the media) lose control of the message and the story. To fill the void, the press and public then make up their own stories about them and about their business. Once rumors get started, it is much more difficult to debunk the rumors and reclaim the story than to start strongly out of the gate".

As the green shoots of recovery show it will be critical to ensure the information in the media reflects the truth and not the rumours. Ensuring people are properly trained to deal with the media will be a part of what we have to offer through Ruth Sherman. She has a unique ability to pinpoint key areas for quick client improvement and to achieve stunning results on impossible deadlines.

Spent quite a long time at the Murooj Rotana, Dubai on Friday and Saturday. Met some really interesting people there at the ISS event. Best speakers for me were, Sean Roach, Adam Ginsberg, (I won his book - "How to buy, sell, profit on eBay" - autographed copy! ) Chris Guerriero and Brian Koz. Looks like opportunities will be realized as a result of attending!

I made lots of notes and feel it was worthwhile, action oriented, event. Special acknowledgement to the hotel staff. They are amazing, the way they cleared the ballroom on Friday evening at around 6pm to set up for a wedding that same evening and then the ballroom was back to conference by 0800 on Saturday.

Good week ahead, further trip to Abu Dhabi