A week ago, I wrote that we are not that good to be humble yet. It means most of us have to constantly promote ourselves until we can make our name.

Here is a nice poem from WS Gilbert on it.

” If you wish in this world to advance
your merits you’re bound to enhance,
you must stir it and stump it
and blow your own trumpet,
or trust me, you haven’t a chance. ”

During China’s Warring States Period, there was a person who reside in the state of Wei who wanted to go to Chu. Chu was located to the south of Wei, yet he asked the driver to start the carriage going north.

His friend stopped him and asked, “where are you going?”

He replied, ” I’m going to Chu State.”

His friend hastily reminded, “Hey, Chu is going to the South!”

He replied, ” It does not matter. Read the rest of this entry »

Here are some take homes after I attended the Microsoft SQL Server 2005 launch. This is obviously for only those readers who are technology-inclined.

- SQL Server 2005 has 40% performance improvement over SQL Server 2000
- SQL Server 2005 has built-in data mining and business intelligence at no extra cost.
- SQL Server can scale better. Largest install for SQL Server 2000- 26,000 users. Largest install test so far for SQL Server 2005 - 93,000 Concurrent users in SAP
- SQL Server 2005 has a 50% off for licenses for competitive database upgrade for a limited time.
- SQL Server 2005 will not charge for licenses for the passive cluster in a high availability active-passive cluster.
- SQL Server 2005 charges by CPU, not by core. So if you use Dual or Multicore CPUs, you only need to pay for 1 server license.
- SQL Server Express 2005 is available for free.

In business, there is that often quoted phrase that a lie repeated often enough gains the semblance of truth.

For the last few years, we have heard numerous stories of the great success of Google, or Amazon, or Ebay, and of the decline of Microsoft. Paul Allen ( a different one than the founder of Microsoft) provides a perspective when he says that the combined market capitalization of Google, Ebay, Yahoo and Amazon still is lower than Microsoft.

Google: $124.9 billion
eBay: $66 billion
Yahoo: $61.2 billion
Amazon: $20 billion
Total: $272.1 billion

Microsoft: $297.7 billion

For the last 2 days, I have enjoyed a chat with my friend, Wilton. He has had a rich and varied life, and he was once a leading executive of a store chain where he helped build it from 2 stores to more than 20.

A few years ago, he had a near death experience. In fact, he was actually a flatliner for some half minute. Then miraculously, he was given a secnod lease to life.

Two years ago, he retired. He now teaches entrepreneurship in a leading school, as well as do a lucrative consultancy and also invests in some startups. He now made a conscientious choice to do only the things he enjoys, and take it easy.

“Everyday, when I need to make decisions, I have one criteria — do I want to earn more money, or live longer? After nearing death, you start to appreciate life better. Now, I spend most time mentoring people about my experiences. ”

He is a respected consultant, and everybody goes to him for wisdom and advice, even the biggest corporations. But he says no to most of them. He is a success because instead of trying to get richer, he choose to live a richer life.

My associate professor in City University of Hong Kong, Prof Reuben Mondejar, who is also an author of the books, “The Guide to Entrepreneurship” and “Business Creativity: Breaking the Invisible Barriers” recently went on a university tour to talk to teachers of entrepreneurship. I was honored to be a guest speaker in one of the forums.

One of the arguments is how much luck does entrepreneurship plays in the person success, and amongst the things Read the rest of this entry »

I was one of four speaker on a business guidance session for high school students, and one of the students asked, probably somewhat vaguely, ” What do I need to do to become successful? ”

I will always remember the answer that the other speaker, a noted businessman gave. He said, ” I think the first thing you need to clarify is do you want to be a successful person, or to be a successful businessman. Because from my experience, the formula for each is VERY different.”

” There are many businessmen who are probably envied Read the rest of this entry »

Most entrepreneurs are self made people. They are people who see opportunities rather than problems. A large part of them tend to be too confident or too optimistic. While this positive disposition helps them gets started, the act of going into business with your own, in which you hold on the reins the potential of your rise and fall ( and including that of others) does add a lot of pressure, and introduce a lot of worries than if you are just merely employed.

One of the things that is important to succeed, or to sustain success is the ability Read the rest of this entry »

I am thinking about this quote:

Life is not a race to be won, but a journey to be savoured…

How would you interpret that in the context of a business driven life?