EVERY SUCCESS STORY IS ALSO A STORY OF GREAT FAILURE

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

He it is Who hath placed you as viceroys of the earth and hath exalted some of you in rank above others, that He may try you by (the test of) that which He hath given you. Lo! Thy Lord is swift in prosecution, and Lo! He verily is Forgiving, Merciful.-Surah Al-Anaam ayat 165

Allah SWT berfirman di dalam al-quran Surah Al-Anaam ayat 165 yang bermaksud:

Dia yang melantik kamu khalifah-khalifah (pengganti-pengganti) di bumi, dan menaikkan sebahagian kamu dalam darjat di atas sebahagian yang lain, supaya Dia menguji kamu pada apa yang Dia memberikan kamu. Sesungguhnya, Pemelihara kamu cepat dalam pembalasan sewajarnya; dan sesungguhnya Dia Pengampun, Pengasih.- Surah Al-Anaam ayat 165




A model of an 1879 street light burns in the Edison Museum in Edison, N.J., in front of a portrait of inventor Thomas A. Edison.





EVERY SUCCESS STORY IS ALSO A STORY OF GREAT FAILURE

Failure is the highway to success. Tom Watson Sr. said, , "If you want to succeed double your failure rate."

If you study history, you will find that all stories of success are also stories of great failures. But people don't see the failures. They only see one side of the picture and they say that person got lucky: "He must have been at the right place at the right time."

Let me share someone's life history with you.

Abraham Lincoln
This was a man who failed in business at the age of 21 ; was defeated in a legislative race at age 22; failed again in business at age 24; overcame the death of his sweetheart at age 26; had a nervous breakdown at age 27; lost a congressional race at age 34; lost a senatorial race at age 45; failed in an effort to become vice-president at age 47; lost a senatorial race at age 49; and was elected president of the United States at age 52. This man was Abraham Lincoln.

Would you call him a failure? He could have quit. But to Lincoln, defeat was a detour and not a dead end.

Lee De Forest
In 1913, Lee De Forest, inventor of the triodes tube, was charged by the district attorney for using fraudulent means to mislead the public into buying stocks of his company by claiming that he could transmit the human voice across the Atlantic. He was publicly humiliated. Can you imagine where we would be without his invention?

Wright Brothers
A New York Times editorial on December 10, 1903, questioned the wisdom of the Wright Brothers who were trying to invent a machine, heavier than air, that would fly. One week later, at Kitty Hawk, the Wright Brothers took their famous flight.

Colonel Sanders
Colonel Sanders, at age 65, with a beat-up car and a $100 check from Social Security, realized he had to do something. He remembered his mother's recipe and went out selling. How many doors did he have to knock on before he got his first order? It is estimated that he had knocked on more than a thousand doors before he got his first order. How many of us quit after three tries, ten tries, a hundred tries, and then we say we tried as hard as we could?

Walt Disney
As a young cartoonist, Walt Disney faced many rejections from newspaper editors, who said he had no talent. One day a minister at a church hired him to draw some cartoons. Disney was working out of a small mouse¬ infested shed near the church. After seeing a small mouse, he was inspired. That was the start of Mickey Mouse.

Successful people don't do great things, they only do small things in a great way.

Thomas Edison
One day a partially deaf four year old kid came home with a note in his pocket from his teacher, "Your Tommy is too stupid to learn, get him out of the school." His mother read the note and answered, "My Tommy is not stupid to learn, I will teach him myself." And that Tommy grew up to be the great Thomas Edison. Thomas Edison had only three months of formal schooling and he was partially deaf.

In 1914, Thomas Edison, at age 67, lost his factory, which was worth a few million dollars, to fire. It had very little insurance. No longer a young man, Edison watched his lifetime effort go up in smoke and said, "There is great value in disaster. All our mistakes are burnt up. Thank God we can start anew." In spite of disaster, three weeks later, he invented the phonograph. What an attitude!

Henry Ford
Henry Ford forgot to put the reverse gear in the first car he made.

Do you consider these people failures? They succeeded in spite of problems, not in the absence of them. But to the outside world, it appears as though they just got lucky.

All success stories are stories of great failures. The only difference is that every time they failed, they bounced back. This is called failing forward, rather than backward. You learn and move forward. Learn from your failure and keep moving.

Below are more examples of the failures of successful people:

1. Thomas Edison failed approximately 10,000 times while he was working on the light bulb.
2. Henry Ford was broke at the age of 40.
3. Lee Iacocca was fired by Henry Ford II at the age of 54.
4. Young Beethoven was told that he had no talent for music, but he gave some of the best music to the world.

Setbacks are inevitable in life. A setback can act as a driving force and also teach us humility. In grief you will find courage and faith to overcome the setback. We need to learn to become victors, not victims. Fear and doubt short-circuit the mind.

Ask yourself after every setback: What did I learn from this experience? Only then will you be able to turn a stumbling block into a stepping stone.

A GOOD COMMAND OF ENGLISH (Part II)

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

Allah SWT berfirman di dalam Al-quran Surah Al-Baqarah ayat 155 yang bermaksud "Sungguh, Kami akan menguji kamu dengan sesuatu daripada ketakutan, dan kelaparan, dan kekurangan harta, dan jiwa, dan buah-buahan; dan berilah berita gembira kepada orang-orang yang sabar."



What went wrong (www)?

Let me begin with this simple question. What actually went very wrong with our education systems resulting in poor command of English language amongst the school leavers and university graduates? To answer the question I need to analyse my very own circle of influence, to find out if there are any attributes that are extremely different in comparison to our children, brothers and sisters circle of influence. I can only speak for myself who were fortunate enough to enjoy two governments i.e. British Rule and of course the Federation of Malaysia AND two examination systems (Form 5 Level) i.e. Senior Cambridge (SC) and Malaysian Certificate of Education (MCE).

This case study is based on my life story which will make easier for me to narrate the experience rather than to have a generic scenario which will posed several constraints for me to write freely. The other reason why I choose my life story as a basis of the analysis is simply because my case is “the worst case scenario” by any standards.

My Early Education Circle of Influence – Depicted below are the main headings that I would based my analysis of “What Went Wrong (www)?” with our education system resulting in poor command of English language amongst our school leavers and university graduates. Kadayan school leavers and university graduates are no exception.

1. My family background
2. Our standard of Living
3. Pre-school education
4. Physical condition of my primary school
5. Medium of instruction
6. Teaching methodologies
7. Subjects taught
8. Text books
9. Resource centre (library)
10. Pupils
11. Teachers
12. Co-curriculum
13. School discipline and punishments
14. Tests & examinations
15. Other school facilities
16. Exposure to outside world (radio and newspapers)
17. Others

…………to be continued

WINNERS vs LOSERS

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Firman Allah SWT di dalam al-quran Surah al-Ra‘d, ayat 11 yang bermaksud: Sesungguhnya Allah tidak mengubah nasib sesuatu kaum sebelum kaum itu mengubah apa yang ada pada dirinya sendiri.

Table 1 - Winners vs Losers (Click to enlarge)

William James of Harvard University said, "If you are going to change your life, you need to start immediately and do it flamboyantly."

A GOOD COMMAND OF ENGLISH (Part 1)

Part 1


I’m prompted to publish this write-up after receiving an e-mail from a good friend of mine and viewing some of the video clips in YouTube with regard to an interview between Al-Jazeera TV (English) and a Cabinet Minister pertaining to the so called “illegal rally” organised by BERSIH on Saturday, November 10, 2007. One of the video clips had been viewed by almost 10,000 users at the time when the writer is publishing this post.

I am not going to comment on the video clips neither the verbal English of the concerned Cabinet Minister nor his way of managing the international press. A great number of the local bloggers had done that by expressing their independent views with regard to the interview between Al-Jazeera TV (English) and the Cabinet Minister. I just love this quote from one of the bloggers "His style of answering questions posed by Aljazeera- an international TV interview, downgraded him from a status of statesman to a mere ketua kampong or perhaps even less." The titles of the video clips posted at the YouTube are self explanatory.

The readers can access the video clips from YouTube as mentioned above to appreciate the different between good and “not so good” command of verbal English albeit the Cabinet Minister’s journalistic experience / back ground and the portfolio he is holding in the Government.

The objective of this posting is to create awareness amongst the Kadayan / Kedayan people in particular and non-Kadayan / Kedayan in general on the importance of a good command of written and verbal English and how to generate interests amongst our children to position English as a second language.

It is a known fact that most of our university graduates and school leavers particularly amongst the bumiputeras are weak in written and verbal English. My personal experience in conducting job interviews in a GLC (Government Link Company) since the 80’s until Y2K were the testimony of such predicament. Being an interview panel chairman / member, I insisted the candidates to speak English through out the interview session. It was a sad affair, where majority of the bumiputera candidates were not proficient in English, even those who were graduated from overseas universities of English speaking countries (United Kingdom, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand) were equally poor in verbal English.

A good command of English does not necessary mean that you have to speak English in British or North American accent or slang. In simple terms, it means correct grammar, correct pronunciation, moderate speed and above all the listener understands what you are saying. Avoid using jargons and words difficult to understand.

Now is not the time to blame our National Education Policy for producing school leavers and university graduates not proficient in English language, particularly amongst the bumiputeras. I’m not going to repeat what has been widely said in the media, parliament, and by the two Education Ministers about the issue, suffice it is to mention here that the government is aware of the issue in hand and the way forward is to formulate effective & working action plans to remedy the weaknesses.

……to be continued

THE DEFINITION OF SUCCESS

Earl Nightingale


HOW DO WE DEFINE SUCCESS?

What makes a person successful? How do we recognize success?
To some people, success might mean wealth. To others, it is recognition, good health, good family, happiness, satisfaction, and peace of mind. What this really tells us is that success is subjective. It can mean different things to different people. The definition that I feel summarizes "success" well is:

Success is the progressive realization of a worthy goal.- Earl Nightingale

Let's look at these definitions carefully.

"Progressive" means that success is a journey, not a destination. We never arrive. After we reach one goal, we go on to the next and the next and the next.

"Realization" means it is an experience. Outside forces cannot make me feel successful. I have to feel it within myself. It is internal not external.

"Worthy" refers to our value system. Which way are we heading? Positive or negative? Worthiness determines the quality of the journey. That is what gives meaning and fulfillment. Success without fulfillment is empty.

Why "Goals" are important? Because they give us a sense of direction.
Success does not mean being accepted by everyone. There are some groups I would not want to be accepted by, out of choice. I would rather be criticized by fools than appreciated by unsavory characters.

I define success as a manifestation of good luck that results from inspiration, aspiration, desperation and perspiration; generally in that sequence.

Success and happiness go hand in hand. Success is getting what you want and happiness is wanting what you get!

Existence alone is not success! It is a lot more!
Do more than exist -- live
Do more than touch -- feel
Do more than look -- observe
Do more than read -- absorb
Do more than hear -- listen
Do more than listen -- understand
- John H. Rhodes
















Success by Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

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

Interesting comments from the blog reader

Depicted below are the comments I received over my e-mail and I would like to share the comments with other readers. It is a very informative, interesting and highly intellectual comments and I leave it to the readers to read and evaluate the comments. For the sender, I thank you for the comment.

QUOTE - "The story at http://darahkedayan.blogspot.com/ has little to do with
intelligence or even knowledge. It has to do with the failure to
recognise that his own land is full of diamonds. This is a failure of
knowledge, not of intelligence because he was successful before he
started becoming greedy.

If you want to discuss what intelligence is you may start with my blogspot at
http://scientificintelligence.blogspot.com

Actually it is not easy to define success scientifically.
Do you consider Hitler or Bill Gates as a success?

How about those in between? Are they a success or a failure?

Those walking encyclopaedias such as Einstein and Newton, why do you
consider them as failures because they are only in between? Or because
they are not well off financially.

Actually, in order to understand how to evaluate success is to
understand Shannon's Information Theory which is the basis of my
intelligence theory. You don't need to define how useful any
information is. You just measure how much information content there
is.

Is monetary wealth the only criteria for success?

Walking encyclopedias may not be respected by many people because they
are poor, but I certainly welcome them because they contribute to more
knowledge. Just look at the wealth of knowledge that our ancestors had
accumulated, such as the food that had been invented by our ancestors.
In order to preserve their knowledge for eternity, we should document
them as quickly and as permanently as possible. Blogspots are
certainly the best way of doing it at the moment. That is why
http://sabahexoticfood.blogspot.com was setup.- UNQUOTE

EDUCATION DOES NOT MEAN GOOD JUDGEMENT

Harvard University





There is a story about a man who sold hot dogs by the roadside. He was illiterate, so he never read newspapers. He was hard of hearing, so he never listened to the radio. His eyes were weak, so he never watched television. But enthusiastically, he sold lots of hot dogs. His sales and profit went up. He ordered more meat and got himself a bigger and a better stove. As his business was growing, the son, who had recently graduated from college, joined his father.

Then something strange happened. The son asked, "Dad, aren't you aware of the great recession that is coming our way?" The father replied, "No, but tell me about it." The son said, "The international situation is terrible. The domestic is even worse. We should be prepared for the coming bad time." The man thought that since his son had been to college, read the papers, and listened to the radio, he ought to know and his advice should not be taken lightly. So the next day, the father cut down his order for the meat and buns, took down the sign and was no longer enthusiastic. Very soon, fewer and fewer people bothered to stop at his hot dog stand. And his sales started coming down rapidly. The father said to his son, "Son, you were right. We are in the middle of a recession. I am glad you warned me ahead of time."

What is the moral of the story?

1. Many times we confuse intelligence with good judgment.
2. A person may have high intelligence but poor judgment.
3. Choose your advisers carefully and use your judgment.
4. A person can and will be successful with or without formal education if they have the 5 Cs:
• character
• commitment
• conviction
• courtesy
• courage
5. The tragedy is that there are many walking encyclopaedias who are living failures.

Look at this: -

A study attributed to Harvard University found that when a person gets a job, 85% of the time it is because of their attitude, and only 15% of the time because of how smart they are and how many facts and figures they know. Surprisingly, almost 100% of education dollars go to teach facts and figures which account for only 15% of success in work!

Islam - Way of Life

Al-quran



Some of the lessons learnt from Quran that apply to our general living!

1. Respect and honour all human beings irrespective of their religion, colour, race, sex, language, status, property, birth, profession/job and so on [17/70]

2. Talk straight, to the point, without any ambiguity or deception [33/70]

3. Choose best words to speak and say them in the best possible way [17/53, 2/83]

4. Do not shout. Speak politely keeping your voice low. [31/19]

5. Always speak the truth. Shun words that are deceitful and ostentatious [22/30]

6. Do not confound truth with falsehood [2/42]

7. Say with your mouth what is in your heart [3/167]

8. Speak in a civilised manner in a language that is recognised by the society and is commonly used [4/5]

9. When you voice an opinion, be just, even if it is against a relative [6/152]

10. Do not be a bragging boaster [31/18]

11. Do not talk, listen or do anything vain [23/3, 28/55]

12. Do not participate in any paltry. If you pass near a futile play, then pass by with dignity [25/72]

13. Do not verge upon any immodesty or lewdness whether surreptitious or overt [6/151].

14. If, unintentionally, any misconduct occurs by you, then correct yourself expeditiously [3/134].

15. Do not be contemptuous or arrogant with people [31/18]

16. Do not walk haughtily or with conceit [17/37, 31/18]

17. Be moderate in thy pace [31/19]

18. Walk with humility and sedateness [25/63]

19. Keep your gazes lowered devoid of any lecherous leers and salacious stares [24/30-31, 40/19].

20. If you do not have complete knowledge about anything, better keep your mouth shut. You might think that speaking about something without full knowledge is a trivial matter. But it might have grave consequences [24/15-16]

21. When you hear something malicious about someone, keep a favourable view about him/her until you attain full knowledge about the matter. Consider others innocent until they are proven guilty with solid and truthful evidence [24/12-13]

22. Ascertain the truth of any news, lest you smite someone in ignorance and afterwards repent of what you did [49/6]

23. Do not follow blindly any information of which you have no direct knowledge. (Using your faculties of perception and conception) you must verify it for yourself. In the Court of your Lord, you will be held accountable for your hearing, sight, and the faculty of reasoning [17/36].

24. Never think that you have reached the final stage of knowledge and nobody knows more than yourself. Remember! Above everyone endowed with knowledge is another endowed with more knowledge [12/76]. Even the Prophet [p.b.u.h] was asked to keep praying, "O My sustainer! Advance me in knowledge." [20:114]

25. The believers are but a single Brotherhood. Live like members of one family, brothers and sisters unto one another [49/10].

26. Do not make mockery of others or ridicule others [49/11]

27. Do not defame others [49/11]

28. Do not insult others by nicknames [49/11]

29. Avoid suspicion and guesswork. Suspicion and guesswork might deplete your communal energy [49/12]

30. Spy not upon one another [49/12]

31. Do not backbite one another [49/12]

32. When you meet each other, offer good wishes and blessings for safety. One who conveys to you a message of safety and security and also when a courteous greeting is offered to you, meet it with a greeting still more courteous or (at least) of equal courtesy [4/86]

33. When you enter your own home or the home of somebody else, compliment the inmates [24/61]

34. Do not enter houses other than your own until you have sought permission; and then greet the inmates and wish them a life of blessing, purity and pleasure [24/27]

35. Treat kindly Your parents, Relatives, The orphans And those who have been left alone in the society [4/36]

36. Take care of the needy, the disabled, those whose hard earned income is insufficient to meet their needs, And those whose businesses have stalled, And those who have lost their jobs. [4/36]

37. Treat kindly Your related neighbours, and unrelated neighbours, Companions by your side in public gatherings, or public transportation. [4/36]

38. Be generous to the needy wayfarer, the homeless son of the street, and the one who reaches you in a destitute condition [4/36]

39. Be nice to people who work under your care. [4/36]

40. Do not follow up what you have given to others to afflict them with reminders of your generosity [2/262].

41. Do not expect a return for your good behaviour, not even thanks [76/9]

42. Cooperate with one another in good deeds and do not cooperate with others in evil and bad matters [5/2]

43. Do no try to impress people on account of self-proclaimed virtues [53/32]

44. You should enjoin right conduct on others but mend your own ways first. Actions speak louder than words. You must first practice good deeds yourself, then preach [2/44]

45. Correct yourself and your families first [before trying to correct others] [66/6]

46. Pardon gracefully if anyone among you who commits a bad deed out of ignorance, and then repents and amends [6/54, 3/134]

47. Divert and sublimate your anger and potentially virulent emotions to creative energy, and become a source of tranquility and comfort to people [3/134]

48. Call people to the Way of your Lord with wisdom and beautiful exhortation. Reason with them most decently [16/125]

49. Leave to themselves those who do not give any importance to the Divine code and have adopted and consider it as mere play and amusement [6/70]

50. Sit not in the company of those who ridicule Divine Law unless they engage in some other conversation [4/140]

51. Do not be jealous of those who are blessed [4/54]

52. In your collective life, make rooms for others [58/11]

53. When invited to dine, Go at the appointed time. Do not arrive too early to wait for the preparation of meal or linger after eating to engage in bootless babble. Such things may cause inconvenience to the host [33/53]

54. Eat and drink [what is lawful] in moderation [7/31].

55. Do not squander your wealth senselessly [17/26]

56. Fulfil your promises and commitments [17/34]

57. Keep yourself clean, pure [9/108, 4/43, 5/6].

58. Dress-up in agreeable attire and adorn yourself with exquisite character from inside out [7/26]

59. Seek your provision only by fair endeavour [29/17, 2/188]

60. Do not devour the wealth and property of others unjustly, nor bribe the officials or the judges to deprive others of their possessions [2/188]


Taken from:
http://english.islamway.com/bindex.php?section=article&id=271
Thanks to Hamzah Hasan for the article.

acres of diamonds

ACRES OF DIAMONDS

There was a farmer in Africa who was happy and content. He was happy because he was content. He was content because he was happy. One day a wise man came to him and told him about the glory of diamonds and the power that goes along with them. The wise man said, "If you had a diamond the size of your thumb, you could have your own city. If you had a diamond the size of your fist, you could probably own your own country." And then he went away. That night the farmer couldn't sleep. He was unhappy and he was discontent. He was unhappy because he was discontent and discontent because he was unhappy.
The next morning he made arrangements to sell off his farm, took care of his family and went in search of diamonds. He looked all over Africa and couldn't find any. He looked all through Europe and couldn't find any. When he got to Spain, he was emotionally, physically and financially broke. He got so disheartened that he threw himself into the Barcelona River and committed suicide.
Back home, the person who had bought his farm was watering the camels at a stream that ran through the farm. Across the stream, the rays of the morning sun hit a stone and made it sparkle like a rainbow. He thought it would look good on the mantle piece. He picked up the stone and put it in the living room. That afternoon the wise man came and saw the stone sparkling. He asked, "Is Hafiz back?" The new owner said, "No, why do you ask?" The wise man said, "Because that is a diamond. I recognize one when I see one." The man said, no, that's just a stone I picked up from the stream. Come, I'll show you. There are many more." They went and picked some samples and sent them for analysis. Sure enough, the stones were diamonds. They found that the farm was indeed covered with acres and acres of diamonds.*

What is the moral of this story?
There are five morals:
1. When our attitude is right, we realize that we are all walking on acres and acres of diamonds.

• Attributed to Dr Russel Conwell .
• Opportunity is always under our feet. We don't have to go anywhere. All we need to do is recognize it.

2. The grass on the other side always looks greener.
3. While we are dyeing the grass on the other side, there are others who are dyeing the grass on our side. They would be happy to trade places with us.
4. When people don't know how to recognize oppor¬tunity, they complain of noise when it knocks.
5. The same opportunity never knocks twice. The next one may be better or worse, but it is never the same one.

do it right the first time, every time

Michelangelo was working on a statue for several days and he was taking a long time to retouch every small detail which seemed rather insignificant to a bystander. When asked why he did it, Michelangelo replied, "Trifles make perfection and perfection is no trifle."
Most people forget how fast you did a job, but they remember how well it was done.

If a man is called to be street sweeper, he should sweep streets
even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music,
or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well
that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here
lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.

--Martin Luger King, Jr.

managing problems

People who have overcome obstacles are more secure than those who have never faced them . We all have problems and we feel discouraged some time. Most people get disappointed; but winners don't get disheartened. The answer is perseverance.
An English proverb says, "A smooth sea never made a skillful mariner." Everything is difficult before it becomes easy. We cannot run away from our problems. Only losers quit and give up.

Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.

--Abigail Van Buren

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