Live Life Happy.. Die with no regrets :)

Hi Friends

The article below, sent to me by a friend, has been going around the Internet, and a similar article was published in the New Paper recently.

It's about 5 top regrets that people have on their deathbeds.

To all of us in The Happy Life Project, if we'd choose to believe and take seriously what we have in our hands, and work on the project till it is complete, we will not be among those with such regrets in life.

Please read on.

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"5 top regrets people have on their deathbeds"
by Ms Bronnie Ware, who has worked with the dying for many years

While we are all bound to have some regrets in life, here are the top 5.

1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

Ware said that this was the most common regret of all. It’s easy to let our dreams slip by due to circumstances or decisions that we’ve made. These choices mark the divide between living a fulfilled life or one that is full of regrets. It’s important that we aim to achieve at least some of our dreams along the way. We often put off trying for our dreams due to a myriad of reasons. Before we know it, we would have lost our health and therefore, our chance to attain them.

If your dream is to start a business, get to it. If it’s to learn how to dance or try skydiving, book a class. If you want to make music, pick up a guitar.

Don’t put it off any longer.

2. I wish I didn’t work so hard.

In between having to make ends meet and aiming for a luxurious lifestyle, it’s easy to see why we get caught up with our work.

Ware said that this was a common regret of male patients who didn’t manage to spend enough time with their family.

It’s easy to get caught up in the rat race, but remember to set aside some time for the important things in life. Most importantly, you will have to understand why you do what you do. Is it for your own personal achievement, for family, or for a higher calling?

3. I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.

Hands up anyone who has suppressed their feelings in order to avoid potential embarrassment or argument.

Avoiding arguments is good for a harmonious life, but the problem comes when we take it too far. When we blindly follow the opinions of someone more assertive just to avoid arguments, we’re short-changing ourselves.

While it’s understandable that we use Twitter and blogging to rant about things we are unhappy with, do remember that talking about it face-to-face is always a more sincere option.

So if an issue is major enough, try approaching the person for an honest and frank chat. We’re not saying that the talk will be smooth sailing, but your relationships will emerge stronger and healthier.

4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.

It’s easy to lose touch with good friends. A busy lifestyle can take away time from the ones you love. This is where technology comes in.

With services like Facebook, WhatsApp and Yahoo! Messenger, it’s easy to keep tabs on old friends. Talking to friends is so effortless today that we have no reason to let staying in touch with friends take a backseat.

At the end of the day though, nothing beats chatting over a cup of coffee. So always remember to occasionally take things offline and catch up with your friends the old fashioned way.

5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.


'Many don't realize until the end that happiness is a choice’, said Ware in her blog post.

This is very true. Happiness is something that we choose for ourselves. Many get upset over the circumstances in their lives. What they do not realize is that they can choose to face difficulties with a smile.

Take a moment and enjoy life. If difficulties come your way, remember that pain is inevitable but wallowing in misery is always optional.

Choose to be happy.


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And I should add, don't just choose to be happy (for without a vehicle and the supportive structure, it will be difficult to keep at being happy).

Choose the Happy Life Project!

Why? Because ...

1) You will be challenged to live the life of your dreams, and encouraged to stay focused on what matters to you;

2) You will work hard, and work smart, using leverage power, for only a short time, only 3-5 years - not the rest of your able-bodied life;

3) You will have ample opportunities to get in touch with your deeper-most heart-felt feelings and be encouraged to share them with people who matter;

4) You will be very in touch with family and friends, day to day, for ours is the business of life and living life well everyday even as we journey to our prize;

5) You will not only be happier, you will be 100% Happy - Healthy, Wealthy, Free of the usual universal concerns over money, time and health.

We are blessed to know and to have the Happy Life Project. Let's keep sharing!

Eng Hai
www.happylifeproject.info

The Business of Uplifting People

Many people out there have bad things to say about network marketing, based either on hearsay or their own unfortunate experiences. However, I believe that if only they knew what we, the professionals of the industry, know, they'd start thinking, speaking and feeling differently.

In addition, in the words of a very successful leader, who achieved a 6-figure monthly income within 3-4 years, they might discover in network marketing what they've always been seeking all these years. He said: "Don't say 'No' to something you don't know much about, yet. How do you know it's not what you've been looking for all these years?"

Here, I'd like to share an article I contributed to the industry-defining book, "It's Time .. For Network Marketing". The book, published in 2007, was edited by John Milton Fogg, author of another, earlier network marketing classic, The Greatest Networker In The World. I'm proud to be one of the book's 52 contributors.

To get to the article, 'Celebrating Network Marketing: The Business of Uplifting People', you can copy the link below and paste it to your Internet browser, or maybe even just click through:

http://thegreatestnetworker.org/Library/Articles/ItsTime/CelebratingNetworkMarketing-TheBusinessofUpliftingPeople-LimEngHai.pdf

Happy Reading! Contact me if you'd like me to help you with any question or concerns.

How many sides does a coin have?

I'd like to share with you one of my favourite "paradigm shift" games. It starts with the above question. I repeat..

HOW MANY SIDES DOES A COIN HAVE?

If you are like most people I've played this game with, you'd say, "Two". Some would say the same with emphasis, "Two, of course!". Some might even think, what a dumb question, and please be assured, I wouldn't be bothered whatever it is you might be thinking ;)

If "two" is your answer, then, I'd like to invite you to pick up a coin, feel it, and examine it closely.

Again, if you are like most people I've played this game with, you'd have that "Aha" look, and then, you'd say, probably tentatively, "Three?"

Now, think about this. Where did the third side suddenly spring out from when all of our life, we've been taught and conditioned to think that the coin has only two sides? It's that little-noticed, often-overlooked edge of the coin that goes around the coin, right?

That tells us a lot about life.

Most people go through life with the conventional wisdom, thinking "there are two sides to the coin". When confronted with a negative situation, quite a number of us would have the presence of mind to pause, and think, "Hey there's always a positive side to every negative situation." That'd be what is normally referred to as a case of Thinking Positive.

Lots of books and chapters in books have been written about thinking positive. Ever wndered why? Would you agree that's because too many people tend to look too much at only one side of the coin - the negative side?

How far away is the positive side of things? It's only on the other side - a flip of the coin away, isn't it? So easy to do (yet so easy not to do).

Now, if we were to train ourselves to think positive, where and how far could we go with Positive Thinking? By and large, it'd help us smile our way through adversities, and even be able to see the lighter side of a bad situation. Or, we'd learn to philosophically accept things that we think or tell ourselves we cannot change. (Desiderata?)

This is where I'd like to introduce the 3rd side of the coin.

Side 1 - Negative
Side 2 - Positive
Side 3 - ??????

What would you call the 3rd side?

I'd call it, Creative. Yes, the Creative "Make Things Happen" Side, my favourite side of the coin of life.

To think positive is to simply try to look at things from the other side, and attempt to be less unhappy about an unhappy situation. To think creative is to look for a way or for ways to make a difference to the situation, and turn it arund to advantage.

Being Creative involves a lot more work than just passively thinking positive. Being Creative is Being Proactive.

Let's go back to the coin. In a way, being positive is no different from being negative. Doing either leaves us lying flat on the other side! Nothing else happens.

Try standing the coin on the 3rd side. Unless you lock the coin into a dent or a groove, the coin wouldn't stand still. It would be dynamic, tending to be in motion, moving forward (or backward), rolling away from its starting position. Yes?

Now think further. With the 3rd side, we can do some fun things. We can make the coin dance! Give it a firm twist at the top (and I'm sure you've done this before) and the coin will spin around like a ballerina. It'd then make some whirring noise while in motion, and as it slows down, it will make even more noise, until it comes to a complete stop. What can you get from this picture?

I invite you to stretch your mind's eyes. Feel for, and look out for, the 3rd side of the coin of life. That's the side where we get dynamic, get into motion. That's the side where we get the chance to dance ... the Dance of Life.

Let's go beyond just Thinking Positive; let's Think Creative. Let's Make Things Happen!

If you want to be happy, and make your life better, don't just think positive. Go do something about it, get dynamic, and stay in motion.

A creative thought by Lim Eng Hai :)

Dream, Choose, Commit, Begin ... Now!

Sage advice for all of us who have chance upon a great idea ....

“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. WHATEVER YOU CAN DO, OR DREAM YOU CAN DO, BEGIN IT. BOLDNESS HAS GENIUS, POWER AND MAGIC IN IT, BEGIN IT NOW."

- By William Hutchinson Murray (1913-1996), writing in his 1951 book The Scottish Himalayan Expedition, quoting the famous Johann Wolfgang von Goethe couplet at the end

The Happy Life Project

Welcome to a discourse on The Happy Life Project, a life-work which I am proud of and happy to share freely and openly.

Here's a preview of what the project is all about.

Ever heard the oft-quoted conventional wisdom, "Money Isn't Everything"? We agree. It isn't.

If we were to ask you, between Money, Time and Health, which of these is the No 1 priority in your life right now? Would it be Money? Or Time? Or Health? Which is it?

From numerous conversations with people from all walks of life, 8 out of 10 will pick Health. It doesn't necessarily mean they have a present health crisis. Of the rest, most will choose Money and some will choose Time.

However, has it ever occurred to you that most people do live their life like "Money Is Everything", despite what the conventional wisdom says?

Well, did you notice most people give up a lot of their time, including precious time with children and loved ones, for many years, even decades, trying to make money and then, more money? They work so hard that they compromise on their health and well-being, taking on more stress than is good for the human body. In the process, they lose their health. Then, after many years of making and saving money, they'd have to spend all of their hard-earned money to buy back the health that they lost. No wonder people say "Money Isn't Everything"!

Nobody likes to live their life like that, but many don’t know how else to live. In many cases, people end up resigned and cynical, sighing and saying, "Oh well, life's like that".

Well, life need not be like that at all. The Happy Life Project offers a complete solution to this near-universal dilemma.

What if we can show you how you can have more money? Make it "a lot more money" because if it is not a lot more, why waste each other's time talking? What if in the process of making a lot more money, you get to free up your time to do the things you love to do with your time? And, what if in the process of achieving that higher level of Wealth and Freedom, you get better health immediately, and in time, you get to free yourself from niggling worries about health, and how you'd look and feel and be at 65?

Wouldn't all that be great? Imagine! No more living a life of compromises. No more having to make the tough choice between more money or more time, and neglect your health for the sake of money? What if life is not about Money OR Time OR Health, but instead, Money + Time + Health?

Wouldn't you be very much happier?

Think about this. Money isn't, and wasn't ever, everything. Money is but a tool of life. So is Time and so is Health.

We want more money, more time and more health so that we can live out our life happy.

By now, you must have got the idea why we call our project THE HAPPY LIFE PROJECT.

Someone said, everybody has his or her own happy life project. Yes. However, if you don't know how, you can take the rest of your life and never get there. They call that "the rat race".

The Happy Life Project is a 3-5 year project. In 3-5 years, we can achieve passive income. Not just passive, but also massive, and also growing. Imagine, retiring in 3-5 years with Passive, Massive and Growing Income - and enjoying it long after you have stopped working.

Many people go into business for themselves in pursuit of this ideal only to find that the journey from active income to passive income takes 20-30 years. Sometimes, even 40-50 years; sometimes, never.(For the sake of clarity, active income is like this: You work, you get paid; you don't work, you don't get paid. Passive income? You work, and work and work, then you get paid and paid and paid, and the money continues even after you have stopped working.)

What do you think of working all your life till you are 80 or 90 years old, to create a passive income source for your next generation? Know of anyone who thinks (and works) like that?

Why not create that passive income for yourself to enjoy, by achieving it within 5 years, by when you'd still be young and healthy enough to enjoy the wealth?

The Happy Life Project is a powerful program, or shall I say empowering program open to all. It can deliver ..

Financial Freedom (meaning, you'd be free from financial constraints and worries)

Time Freedom (you own your time, and can do whatever you like, whenever you like with whoever you like, without asking someone else for approval), and

Health Freedom (you're free from worrying about how you'd be when you're 65).

We are talking not about a sometimes-freedom, but an all-the-time freedom; not 30% free, or 40% free, but instead 100% free.

Now, picture this: If you can achieve 100% Financial Freedom, 100% Time Freedom and 100% Health Freedom, and get it all within 3-5 years, wouldn't that be great? In The Happy Life Project, we call that The 100% Happy Life.

If you're open to finding out how this is possible for you, and checking out hard evidence that this great life has been gotten by others before you, get back to the person who told you about the project in the first place, and make an appointment for him or her to tell you more.

Come explore exciting new possibilities for yourself, working on a project where you won't have to do everything by yourself. Instead, you get to leverage on:

1) a time-tested corporate vehicle, with powerful products that many people don't know about yet but need badly and urgently;

2) a proven system for building a huge personal franchise; and

3) a professional, highly-celebrated, world-class team who will walk, run or fly with you in your journey towards success and freedom.

We are excited for you that you're even reading this preview right now. We strongly encourage you to take that first step to find out more.

Let's meet, and begin the conversation.


Yours truly in The Happy Life Project

Learning from the successful; developing ourselves

What a blast of a time we had at the Unicity convention in Bangkok on 8th Jan 2011. To make sure everyone got full value from the outing, the Unipower team lined up 12 of its most successful leaders the next day to share the keys to success.

"As with all new businesses, start by learning the tricks of the trade", says Presidential Ruby Khun Nagorn Kraironnapoom (a.k.a. Khun A).

Thereafter, "to develop your income, develop yourself".

In our business today, where we are provided with a proven System that provides guaranteed results, guided by a professional world-class Team, working in the context of a time-tested Company with great products and a lucrative compensation plan, all we ever need to do is work on ourselves. As we grow, our business will grow.

We just have to make a choice, and then follow through.

As Presidential Double Diamond Khun Phawadon Nasareerat says it, "Choose, Change, Action".

Now, why might anyone not follow through?

Possibly because life is good already. "A life that is good already is the obstacle to a better life," says Khun Phawadon.

The only reason why we would step out of our comfort zone of the "good already" life is that we were shown a vision of exciting new possibilities, and we pick out something that is real and meaningful enough for us to want to strive for it. So, what is it? What is the possibility that we see for ourselves, and the possibility that would be worth working hard on ourselves for?

In The Happy Life Project, we show people the possibility for ordinary people to achieve the extraordinary result of retiring young and retiring early, in 3-5 years, with passive, massive, growing income. As Presidential Triple Diamond Khun Rasa Comeban, our "zero to hero" model for extraordinary success, puts it, our "success is not reserved for only certain types of people. Our opportunity to Make Life Better is open to all, whatever your background."

The question is, having seen the possibilities, will you let it go or will you stay focused on it till you realize it?

Consider this statement from Presidential Double Diamond Khun Phartchai Rueansit: "If you didn't know about the possibilities for passive income on the right side of the cashflow quadrant, no one can fault you. But if you knew about it and you stay poor, then you are really silly."

Khu Chairat (Mr Mam), the farmer's boy who graduated from tertiary education to get a high-status but low-paying job in a hospital, posed this question: "Why take 40 years to go from 10,000 baht a month to 50,000 baht a month, or even 7 years, when you can do it in 3-7 months?" 10,000 baht (just over S$400) is the kind of income he earned in his job as a male nurse in a hospital. And 50,000 baht (over S$2,000) is the highest potential he could have achieved if he had stuck to his job, for 40 years.

He achieved the 50,000 baht within months with The Happy Life Project. Today, just 3-5 years after he had to struggle to raise the small amount of money needed to buy a Unicity franchise (just over 30,000 baht, or about S$1,300), Khun Chairat is a Presidential Ruby with a minimum income of S$60,000, a month. He is only in his late 20s.

People with no income and little social capital can succeed in our business.

People with high income or coming from big business background would do our business, and succeed too.

Why would someone like Khun A, a third generation business owner whose family has interests in 6 different businesses, join Unicity?

"Because someone talked to me and asked me in my traditional businesses, when can I finish my work? The answer is, I cannot."

Presidential Ruby Khun Ning (Jansakorn) who used to run beauty salons and whose husband ran an aluminium products business, had this to say: "In the old business model, every time we expand, we have to put in more money. And there is no guarantee of success. In the new model, there is no need to put in more money."

So, what to do?

"Change sides. Move your ideas to those of the right side. Get serious. Take real action. Work whole-heartedly." exhorts Khun Phartchai Rueansit.

In addition, "Exercise self-management; manage your time wisely."

"Don't set conditions on your success," advise Presidential Sapphire Khun Pepsi.

She also said: "Do whatever works. Think Workability - what works and what doesn't, and you can tell that from the results. Don't think in terms of what's right and what's wrong."

Well, X = Y works, again and again. Do 10 points of the Unipower system KPI and you will earn S$4,000 a month, guaranteed. We have a growing number of success stories in Singapore and Malaysia that are validating that what has worked so well in Thailand works in Singapore and Malaysia too.

The question that we will need to ask ourselves is whether we have taken ownership and responsibility for our possibilities.

Khun Peerawat Rattanapattakul, a Presidential Sapphire in his 20s, asks: "Are you a business owner? If so, what type? A sleeping owner? After you have chosen, take ownership. Then, do the work consistently."

As a good measure of his great success, Khun Peerawat has freed his parents from the long and hard work of their autoparts business and put them in charge of a Unicity distributor service centre.

I hope this great gems of wisdom from the most successful of Unipower leaders will lift you and help you keep going, keep moving, until you too succeed like them.

I'm sharing this with you because I heed Khun Phawadon's great advice. In our business, he said: "Focus first on building people before building on your profit".

Let's all continue to develop ourselves. That's all the work that we ever need to do with the 4 Great Partners concept. That's why we go for one training after another, and several levels of training. That's why we read the recommended books, view and listen to the CDs, attend the seminars. And we keep doing that until we finish our work, and achieve the 100% Happy Life.

Remember this Jim Rohn gem? "Don't wish it were easier; wish you were better. Don't wish for less problems; wish for more skills. Don't wish for less challenges; wish for more wisdom."

“Living the life I love and living it powerfully”

I was invited to address a women's event, and speak on "Being Inspired". I accepted the invitation and then was asked for my "credentials". So, I put something together and like it enough to want to share it openly on my blog. Here's you getting to know me :)


LIM ENG HAI
“Living the life I love and living it powerfully”


Eng Hai, 49, is in “the business of inspiration”, which is to be distinguished from the traditional "business of perspiration”. (No sweat & tears; only big vision & inspired action.) He is living what he calls “the inspired life”, driven by vision and belief, which is nothing like “the contented life”, which is rooted in past disappointments and lowered expectations.

He graduated from National University of Singapore with a Bachelor of Social Sciences with a good Honours in Political Science, after reading Politics, Economics and Sociology.

He started working life as a journalist with The Straits Times. He distinguished himself in his work on the financial pages and achieved what was regarded for more than 10 years thereafter as the biggest salary increment ever awarded to a rookie of 2 years' standing, both in terms of quantum as well as percentage.

Three years on, when he was dissatisfied (and lost his inspiration to excel), he readily took up an offer to join a stockbroking company. He worked at JM Sassoon & Co for 13 years, rising from a sales representative, to the position of a head of research for one market and finally, the director of research overseeing all the economic and investment research of the company.

During those 13 years, he became the public face of the company, taking on media interviews – both print and television media, in a calibrated manner, periodically. Amazingly, he remains recognizable till today although his last TV appearance was in 2003.

Two years before his company shut down, due to a massive industry shakeout, Eng Hai – who was present to the challenges of the industry, discreetly found an exit plan. He went into business for himself.

He has been his own boss ever since, taking on appointments only if they fit his own terms. These flexi-time appointments include a stint as Founding CEO of SIAS Research, a subscriber service created for retail investors who would pay for research. He is currently the CEO of the Securities (Stockbrokers) Association of Singapore.

But his preferred economic identity is as a successful network marketing professional, a long-standing leader and proven coach who inspires thousands of people in the region and beyond to live life of their dreams and to stand for exciting possibilities in their lives. (Ask him about X = Y.)

Mastering the Art of Living

"A person who is a master in the art of living makes little distinction between their work and their play, their labour and their leisure, their mind and their body, their education and their recreation, their love and religion. They hardly know which is which and simply pursue their vision of excellence and grace. Whatever they do, leaving others to decide whether they are working or playing, to them, they are always doing both." - Landmark Education

The above, a priceless insight on how to live a life we love and how to live it powerfully, reminds me of one of the Secrets of the Millionaire Mind, where it is said poor or unsuccessful people think in terms of either/or whereas rich and successful people think in terms of both. Hey, how about ALL?

Your Stepping Stones to Success: Walk on them

Ever so often in our business of sharing a great idea and many great possibilities for people, we get a "No" for a response. Recently, I received a SMS from a long-time business associate, who said: "I just got 2 No's today. Disappointed. Sigh."

My immediate response was to reply: "Congratulations".

Lest she think I am cavalier about her feelings, I later explained by email, "Why sigh with disappointment (when you get a few No's) when you can smile with anticipation?" Surely, we got to work through the No's to get to the "Yes". And if we don't get enough No's, we won't get to the "Yes"!

Experience confirms that we will get more No's than we will get "Yes". Why is that so? Well, that's life! Isn't that our growing up experience? Isn't that our children's growing up experience? I say, it's easier for us to just accept it, and work with it, than to ask, Why Why Why.

Let's not get emotional with every "No" that we get. A No is just that - a No. It's not even what many tend to call a "rejection" - an emotionally-laden interpretation of a simple two-letter word.

OK OK, if you must have any emotion, try being excited! Why? Because every "No" does indeed bring us closer to the "Yes".

So, come on, straighten up your back and shoulders. Steady yourself. Put that beautiful (or handsome) smile back on your face. Go all out again and again to get as many No's as you can get because you know, that simply brings you the next Yes and another Yes and another Yes ..

Hey, the No's are but the Stepping Stones to Success. See that photo at the top, of a favourite poster of mine that I stick behind the door of a wardrobe in my son's bedroom. I want him to grow up knowing that.

"Don't Quit", it says. "Every obstacle is a stepping to success."

So, if success in life and whatever you do is what you want, do yourself this favour: Walk boldly .. on the stepping stones to your success!

I wish you every success that you deserve.

"Tiap-tiap orang buat sedikit, sama sama kita sampai puncak bukit"

Fresh from the recent recognition rallies, where we recognized new Managers, Senior Managers and Executive Managers in Unicity in Singapore (July 24th) and Malaysia (July 29th), I am very happy to report that we have another wave of rank advancements.

We have a new Director in our midst. She is our beauty queen, Mrs Singapore Universe 2009, Shalina Ismail (3rd from right)!

Sha achieved this rank advancement within 6 months of making the decision to take the Unicity business seriously, and to work with the Team, instead of working alone.

Sha had led a hyper-busy life of a beauty queen with endless social obligations and engagements, a mother of two adorable kids, a working woman with 3 jobs - a senior executive in an events & marketing company, a freelance tour guide and freelance teacher of business to secondary school students, and a highly sociable person with an active facebook presence who is a friend with listening ears and caring heart to many.

It took Vision and Belief to squeeze Unicity into Shalina's already-busy life, and then make it a top priority. A trip to Thailand in February to attend Unicity's Global Convention helped Shalina envision exciting new possibilities for herself and her children. It led her to reset her priorities. She spent more time talking to people about The Happy Life Project, bringing people to the Unicity office and Unipower functions. Sha made time to attend the UPS in Bangkok too. Six months after her decision, Shalina became a Director in Unicity.

Faizal (2nd from left), congratulations to you too, on your advance to Executive Manager. Faizal epitomizes the Power of Being the 1st Follower - the subject of an interesting new video on Youtube/Facebook. Every leader who dared to be different starts with at least one follower, and Faizal is that One. I remember Shalina attending her first Super OPP in August 2009, a meeting which had the privilege of the powerful presence of CEO Stewart Hughes and Presidential Triple Diamond Khun Joe. Sha had two tickets - her first two tickets to a ticketed Unipower function. Her guest was Faizal. After the Super OPP, he followed Sha to the office a few times, and before too long, he too made a decision. Faizal has since transformed from being a quiet, private person, whose character was hardened by many faceless years in government service, into an outspoken, public personality, quick to bring people together, not shy to share his views. Well done, Faizal.

We are also very proud of the achievement of Nurashikin Abu Bakar (3rd from left), a working mother of three. She achieved a triple promotion to Executive Manager in her first full month in the business. Nura joined Unicity with Shalina as her recruiter in late June. Nura became an Executive Manager in July! Nura enjoys the enthusiastic and whole-hearted support of her husband, Muhammad Murtadha Maricar (the chap with the "Diamond Kungfu" pose in front of everyone). He was at first a reluctant user of the products which Nura brought back home from her shopping at Unicity. She shrewdly fed him with Nature's Tea and Bios Life Slim, during the World Cup, when his defences were down and resistance was low, with his body mass plonked in front of the TV, nights!

Muhammad had a moving experience the very next day. Two weeks later, he shed 5kg. Three weeks later, he was 7kg lighter, and wearing his belt three holes tighter. The experience woke him up to the power of Unicity's products. His visit to the office woke him up to the power and camaraderie of the Team. Nura and Muhammad decided quickly they wanted to succeed, big time and fast. They want to qualify for a free trip to Japan in November. The decision, and the quick action that followed, led to their impressive result. Congratulations to our power couple, Nura and Muhammad.

Shalina, Faizal, Nura and Muhammad, we all in the Unipower team are very proud of your achievements. This is an important breakthrough for all of us in Unicity Singapore and Malaysia. Your result validates the Unipower formula for success, X = Y. Your success affirms the 4 Partners concept, where we do not work alone, but instead work with a world-class team, a time-tested company with great products that people want and need, Unicity, and a proven system with guaranteed results, Unipower. I believe your results will inspire may others.

Traditionally, the thinking is "Sedikit sedikit, lama lama menjadi bukit". This Malay idiom, which refers to the labour of the hardworking ants, means "Bit by bit, over a long period of time, we get to create a hill. With our 4 Partners Concept, we have humanize the concept and created something more empowering:

"TIAP-TIAP ORANG BUAT SEDIKIT, SAMA SAMA KITA SAMPAI PUNCAK BUKIT."

The meaning: Everyone do their little bit, together we will get to the peak.

My Acres of Diamonds

My Acres of Diamonds, they are all around me.. they cover a pretty big regional footprint ... Singapore, Malaysia, Hongkong, Thailand, Indonesia ... Now, what (or who) do you think "diamonds" look like? ;)

Diamonds!!!! Don't miss those right under your feet!

In the course of building my Network and coaching new people in setting up their own global distribution franchise, specialising in products that address everybody's everyday health concerns, I often come across new distributors who get very excited about the potential of opening up exciting new markets. Like Thailand? Indonesia? India? China? Europe?

Whenever I have the chance, I'd advise these new apprentices against flying here, flying there and flying everywhere. Usually, the price of doing all that is disappoinment - massive costly disappointment. We're all familiar with the saying, "Rolling stones gather no moss". It is true. I've been there, done that. It's confirmed, as if I needed to :)

Besides, how can we build in other people's country if we don't first build well in our own? Furthermore, it takes a Turk, not a German, to build the Turkey market. I am quoting Gursel Ayikbaba, a handsome, battle-hardened Turkish leader sponsored into the business in Germany by the Diamond from Nurenberg, Gerhard Reuhausser, both of whom I had the privilege of meeting in Bangkok recently.

The story that captures and conveys, tells and retells, this advice best is the story about The Acres of Diamonds. Here, I quote a recent re-telling of the story in an email from Bob Proctor's Insight of the Day based on excerpts from a radio show, Our Changing World,
by Earl Nightingale, 1921-1989, author of The Strangest Secret.

"Acres of Diamonds

One of the most interesting Americans who lived in the 19th century was a man by the name of Russell Herman Conwell. He was born in 1843 and lived until 1925. He was a lawyer for about 15 years until he became a clergyman.

One day, a young man went to him and told him he wanted a college education but couldn't swing it financially. Dr Conwell decided, at that moment, what his aim in life was, besides being a man of the cloth - that is. He decided to build a university for unfortunate, but deserving, students. He did have a challenge however. He would need a few million dollars to build the university. For Dr Conwell, and anyone with real purpose in life, nothing could stand in the way of his goal.

Several years before this incident, Dr Conwell was tremendously intrigued by a true story - with its ageless moral. The story was about a farmer who lived in Africa and through a visitor became tremendusly excited about looking for diamonds. Diamonds were already discovered in abundance on the African continent and the farmer got so excited about the idea of millions of dollars worth of diamonds that he sold his farm to head out to the diamond line. He wandered all over the continent, as the years slipped by, constantly searching for diamonds, wealth he never found. Eventualy, he went completely broke and threw himself into a river and drowned.

Meanwhile, the new owner of his farm picked up an unusual looking rock about the size of a country egg and put it on his mantle as a sort of curiosity. A visitor stopped by and in viewing the rock practically went into terminal convulsions. He told the new owner of the farm that the funny looking rock on his mantle was about the biggest diamond that had ever been found. The new owner of the farm said, "Heck, the whole farm is covered with them" - and sure enough it was.

The farm turned out to be Kimberley Diamond Mine .. the richest the world has ever know. The original farmer was literally standing on "Acres of Diamonds" until he sold his farm.

Dr Conwell learned from the story of the farmer and continued to teach its moral. Each of us is right in the middle of our own "Acres of Diamonds", if only we would realize it and develop the ground we are standing on before charging off in search of greener pastures. Dr Conwell told this story many times and attracted enormous audiences. He told the story long enough to have raised the money to start the college for underprivileged deserving students. In fact, he raised 6 million dollars and the university he founded, Temple University in Philadelphia, has at least ten degree-granting colleges and six other schools.

When Dr Russel H Conwell talked about each of us being right on our own "Acres of Diamonds", he meant it. This story does not get old .. it will be true forever.

Opportunity does not just come along - it is there all the time - we just have to see it."

The Greatest of All Life Skills

If you were asked to identify the Greatest of All Life Skills, the one thing that will help get you whatever you want in life, and give you happiness in your interactions with family, friends and other people, what would you pick?

Imagination? Visualization? Learning? Teaching & Coaching? Parenting? Making Things? Selling? Communication? Public Speaking? Having Empathy (EQ) for people? Caring & Sharing?

What's your pick? Is it something else? If so, what is it?

I pick Listening, which is to be distinguished from Communication. Aren't they the same thing, some may ask. No, because communication involves not just listening but speaking too. Listening is only a part of communication, though a very important part, without which there can be no meaningful communication. Without listening, I'd suggest, we also cannot do well many of the other things listed above e.g. parenting, caring & sharing, teaching & coaching, selling.

I sat in a workshop recently where some very wise and successful people shared this simple idea that all communication must have 3 components: the transmitter, the message and the receiver.

We need the transmitter to send out the message and the receiver to get it. There's never a lack of messages to send or receive in our information-rich world. Of the other two components, guess which one is under-developed or under-used: Transmitter? Or receiver? (Answer: Receiver!)

When thinking of the receiver, let's think of how the dial of a receiver is often not turned on full, or perhaps sometimes, not turned on at all, whereas the transmitter is often at work all the time, seemingly over-time. I often think about why we are created with one mouth and two ears but too often act like we were created otherwise? ;)

When I pick Listening, I don't mean listening as we habitually and carelessly practise it, but really listening i.e. listening with our heart, listening without jumping to conclusions, listening without passing judgment, listening without subjecting the message to personal processing and interpretation. Look at listening with heart this way: We let the message we receive enter our ears, go through our brains, and then sink into our heart and let it stay there. You can call that, taking the message to heart.

But how do we normally listen? The message enters one ear and we let it slip out of the other. Or we let the message enter one ear, subject it to a screening or interpretive process, and then register a message quite different from the original message!

If we could listen better, we would understand each other better. If we could understand better, we can relate to people better and connect more effectively.

In any session on life skills, how much of the time do you think we should train and workshop on the art of listening and how much time on public speaking? (I'd love to know what you think.)

By my reckoning, and you may or may not agree, the Art of Public Speaking is passe and over-rated. In contrast, the Art & Science of Listening is little appreciated, often neglected, yet holds the more important key to effective relationships at work and at home and happier, more productive communications and conversations in forums big and small, from the coffee shops to the United Nations.

If we would just learn to listen better, I believe, we can conceivably eliminate petty fights, socially costly misunderstandings, and big, destructive wars. If we'd just listen well, we'll inevitably learn to appreciate each other better, realize how similar people are, regardless of ethnic, religious, intellectual or socio-economic backgrounds, and then learn to accept and even love each other. What do you think?

One of Stephen Covey's 7 Habits of Highly Effective People exhorts us to "Seek first to understand, then only to be understood". How are we to understand, and then be understood, if we do not first listen well?

Motivational guru Zig Ziglar says help people get whatever they want and you will get whatever you want. But how would we know what people want, let alone help them get it, if we do not first listen and find out?

Can someone think of another life skill more powerful than Listening? This is not a rhetorical question that seeks to hammer home a point, caring not for an answer. It is a listening question that seeks out a considered response. Why? Because, I think, that whatever stands above or close to Listening as the Ultimate Living Skill, we better get really good at that one too.

Happy Listening - everyday, everywhere!

Dubai Inspiration: Imagination + Resources can break all barriers

Unicity, Thank You! Thanks for the best holiday I’ve ever had. I love holidays and have enjoyed many so far in my life. However, I’ve never had a 7-star holiday, in a posh resort hotel (Atlantis Paradise), in a dream city (which aptly describes Dubai, a majestic city created out sand and sea) - all fully paid for.

What a generous bonus for our business-building efforts. What a great fore-taste of the concern-free Happy Life we are working for and racing towards. What an apt and meaningful choice for big dreamers like us.

Dubai was born out of the fertile imagination of a few rich sheikhs. From the tallest buildings to the grandest shopping malls, Dubai challenges all notions of size, scale, as well as what’s thinkable and what’s doable.

Where there was only desert, they created snow. Where there was only vast expanse of sea, they created islands – on one of which the Atlantis stands. Wherever there was lack (e.g. the lack of a domestic population), they created abundance (allow the entry of large numbers of foreign workers who outnumber the locals 4:1).

Dubai proved that with imagination and resources, nothing can hold us back, and anything is possible.

Now, isn’t that what the Unicity “Make Life Better” Opportunity is all about? Awesome!

{I was in Dubai for a 5D4N incentive trip with over 600 other members of the Unipower team in Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia in March 2010. The next free trip is to the Club Med in Maldives. In our business, we work from holiday to holiday - every 3-4 months ;) Wouldn't you like to come along?}

3 Things That Make A Leader Great

On April 4th 2010, I had the privilege of sitting in a hotel ballroom with thousands of others to listen to and learn from some of the greatest leaders in the Unipower Team. Here, I'd like to share what I picked up from one of them - Khun Phawadon Nasareerat, a Presidential Double Diamond and the youngest ever Unicity Diamond at 33. What was extra remarkable about his achievement was that this former public health ministry officer who was part-timing as an aerobics instructor achieved it in 3 years.

The photo shows some of us who went to Bangkok for the UPS weekend with Khun Phawadon and his new, free company-sponsored Porsche - his reward for building up a Double Diamond rank organization!

We were on our way out to get a cab after the all-day UPS Advanced Leadership Training at Rama Garden Resort on April 4th when we heard someone call out my name from the dark. It was Khun Phawadon, all dressed in black, standing in the dark under a tree (which explains why we didn't spot him before he spotted us) - next to his brand new black Porsche.

It was so nice of him to call out to us, and then, to patiently take many photos with us, individually and as a group.

Earlier in the day, Khun Phawadon spoke on the three qualities of "a legendary leader", in the league of CEO Stewart Hughes and Triple Diamond Khun Rasa. If you want to be a geat leader, have a heart for others, he said. "Having a position or the rank won't get you there; having a heart for others would."

The three things that make a legendary leader, according to Khun Phawadon, and which we created the opportunity to revisit, review, contemplate and internalize in Singapore yesterday, are:

1) Give - Be a Giver: Have the spirit, the heart and the mindset of a Giver, giving and contributing unconditionally without expecting something in return. Having the heart of a Giver helps when we go out prospecting, sharing with people the Happy Life Project, and also, when we work as a Team to make a success out of every event created to support the success of our people. A Giver doesn't stop nor get discouraged when people say "No" to our opportunity, or seem to fail to notice our contributions. A Giver contributes freely anyway, without calculating or holding back for a direct benefit.

2) Stand - Be a standpoint for your people. Stand up for your people. Stand up for what is right and what is good for them. Our people may not always agree with what we advise or advocate, but we, as the standard setter, must keep doing, sharing and promoting what is right to do, not just what we or they like to do. Set the standard that our people will look up to and that would lift them up in their lives and in their business. Let's be there for others - be other-centred; not self-centred.

3) Change - Be prepared, be willing and be ready to change. Start by changing our dressing, our attitude, our mindset, our being. Change the way we talk and the way we lead. Do not resist change. Go for all the functions or events recommended for people and leaders to achieve personal breakthroughs and transformation. Dare to change, whether or not you like it, for the sake of others. Again, let's do what is right, not just what we like.

So, let's Give, let's Stand and let's Change! A huge thanks to K. Phawadon for sharing his wisdom - a wisdom well beyond his youth, and which must have come from working the ground, building his now-gushing pipeline.

The Happy People

Having fun, feeling happy and at home in Khun Joe's home in the Masterpiece Village, Bangkok

She, the Cause of the Happiness of Hundreds

Just back from another Unipower Seminar in Bangkok on 3rd April, I cannot help but marvel at how our amazing business can truly Make Life Better for people from all walks of life, so thoroughly, so completely.

At the latest UPS weekend, on April 3rd-4th, 10,000 people were inspired by the brand new success stories of four guest speakers - a high-profile business owner Khun Kiin, a little-educated seashell vendor Khun Tik, a young career police officer Khun Neh, and a playful, "good for nothing" dish-washing son of a hawker who is now a young Presidential Director, Khun Nikhom Jaima.

Here, let me introduce you to just one of them - Khun Tik (see photo), the little-educated woman who sold seashells (clams, cockles, mussels and the like, I presume) in the market.

Khun Tik, who is in her 40s, is a mother of 2 with little education, a 4th Grader. Her education was disrupted when her school closed down when she was only in the 4th grade. She started working at the age of 12, selling things in the market. That's the only way she knew how to make money.

From young, she recognized the importance of money. "Money is needed to make life better". How to make more money? Work harder. So, for 20 years, she would work very hard, setting up stall in the morning market and then, in the afternoon, setting up stall in the afternoon market so as to make more money. She'd do this every day for 10 years, then 20 years.

"I am my own boss. I got money but I am not rich," she said. "I also had no time for my children." During the festivals, the kids would ask for her time. But those would be the best time to do more business. She felt bad, but she couldn't help but continue to make the same trade-off - time (from the kids) for money (to feed the children, and also her mother, who became her responsibility after her father died). Over time, her health suffered.

When introduced to the Unicity Happy Life Project, Khun Tik realized that it offered just what she needed - money, time and health.

"I cannot read, I cannot write, but I know what's in the Unipower system - the KPI, the passport to success. Whatever I didn't understand, I'd just ask my upline. I only needed to follow."

"I remember one situation when I felt fear. I was doubtful. So, I called my upline who was elsewhere. He encouraged me, telling me that I am good enough, that I can do what I had to do, and that it's OK, I should just go do it." As a result of following that advice, Khun Tik got to recruit and build a Cambodian team. They were in the hall on April 3rd, waving the Cambodian flag in grattitude and admiration for her, their leader.

Khun Tik made a hard decision early on in in her Unicity business. "I learnt that I cannot ride on two horses at one time. So I made the decision early in my business to close my stall. I became a Director in 4 months."

Now, she is a Senior Director. "What does that mean? I don't know. All I know is that I make THB100,000 a month! Also, now, I have time to see my kids. I have better health." (THB100,00 works out to over S$4,000 - a big sum of money in Thailand).

Khun Tik remembers well and takes to heart the advice that she received from everyone of her big leaders. She remembered being touched by the the kind first words of Presidential Triple Diamond Khun Rasa to her: "Do you know that you can be the cause of success and happiness for hundreds of people?"

She remembered being encouraged by another advice: "We don't need smart people. We just need people with strong hearts."

In closing, Khun Tik wisely said, life is about choices, and encouraged everyone to make the right choice. Choice #1, Do the work first then play. Choice #2, Play first then do the work. Choice #3, Play Play and Play and don't work. "I chose the first one," she said.

One of the most powerful thoughts that Khun Tik shared was the significance of a butterfly. "The butterfly in flapping its little wings sends out waves across the universe." We can make a big difference in the life of others.

Now, if Khun Tik can do it, why not you? Be inspired, to do something about your life, and the lives of those dear to you.

Fisher Boy: From abject poverty to a life of luxuries in 6 months

Please meet Khun Num, a 21-year-old, whose personal success story kills all the excuses that people can possibly make for not making a success of their lives. You know, one of the choices in life, to make money or make excuses? Khun Num's story helps us make the right choice.

Khun Num hails from the southern Thai province of Surat Thani. His father, the breadwinner of his family, died when he was still very young, of pre-school age. To help his family out, and to see himself through school, he had to start working from the young age of 10. Khun Num would work by night, going out to sea with the fishermen, and in the day, he would go to school like all the other kids.

However, he'd have to walk miles to school for that was the only "transport" he could afford. On the way, he would look longingly, and often hungrily, at the food plied along the way, but he would have to settle for the only staple his family could afford - instant noodles, which he got to eat only when he reached home.

To people who heard his story, he came to be known as Noodle Boy and to me, the Fisher Boy.

When he reached high school age, Khun Num wanted to secure for himself a brighter future. He wanted to enroll himself into a technical school. But the school fees were too high. That didn't stop him from opening his mouth or what some people would say, "trying his luck". Well, he got lucky! He approached the school, declared his interest but pleaded that he had only a little money to afford a portion of the fees. The school, moved by his plea, and probably his quiet but steely determination (which remains evident today), agreed to take him in, letting him pay only what he could afford!

Some 6 months ago, in mid-2009, someone from the Unipower team in Unicity Thailand approached him, asking, "Do you want to be rich?". Sure, he does. But how? He was advised, he'd not be given the fish, that means no financial help. But he'd be taught how to catch the fish, by the best teachers. Khun Num was game, and willing to learn.

Given his meagre resources, he had to struggle every step of the way, but the difficulties never stop him. Money was needed at every step of the way - opening an account with Unicity with 500 baht, buying his first two products to try - Nature's Tea and Super Chlorophyll, collecting enough orders (equivalent to over S$1,000) to upgrade his account to a Fast Start account earning higher commission of up to 20-30%, purchasing the Business Owner's Pack, enrolling for the 3-day Eagle Camp, visiting Bangkok to behold his new future in the UPS.

He epitomises the Friedrich Nietzche wisdom, "He who has a why to live for can bear almost 'any how'".

Just half a year later, on 16 January 2010, Khun Num was to stand on the UPS (Unipower Seminar) Stage, in front of more than 10,000 people. That's when I first heard his amazing story. He shared his success and how he had achieved a high income of 50,000 baht (over S$2,000) a month. He was a picture of confidence and grattitude to the many great teachers who showed him the way, and the Unipower system.

On March 20th 2010, I met Khun Num in person, face to face, in Dubai, during our all expenses paid Unicity reward holiday. I learnt from his upline and leader, Presidential Ruby Khun Nagorn (first right in the photo), that the stay at the Atlantis Paradise Hotel was another of Khun Num's personal vision realized.

As he was building up his vision of the future, he came across a video of the Atlantis Paradise of Dubai. He then said to himself, he'd certainly like to go there for a holiday one day. That dream, which predated Unicity's Dubai trip announcement, has so very quickly become reality for Khun Num.

Other dreams will be realized as this very pleasant fellow, who walks ramrod straight with quiet confidence and a ready smile, continues to walk steadily and consistently towards his new life.

Everytime I think or talk about Khun Num, I can't help feeling that that his personal triumph over adversities - his quick rise from poverty to a life of riches and exciting new possibilities, with the help of Unicity the company and Unipower the people-enabling business-building system - simply empowers others to succeed. His story takes away all the excuses from our doing whatever we have to, to get the life that we want.

Be Inspired. Be Blessed!

You Can Do It: Be the Success that You Dream of

We don't have to be clever and figure everything out by ourselves. The greatest wisdoms have been retold and retold for generations. Pick and choose something that makes you better, happier.

Pick a favourite or two or more from the following "Bob Proctor's Insights of the Day" which I have selected from my collection for you to consider and internalize (i.e. to make a part of you)...

"If I accept you as you are, I will make you worse; however, if I treat you as though you are what you are capable of becoming, I help you become that." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1749-1832, Author and Philosopher

"Perhaps the most valuable result of all education is the ability to make yourself do the thing you have to do, when it ought to be done, whether you like it or not; it is the first lesson that ought to be learned; and however early a man's training begins, it is probably the last lesson that he learns thoroughly." - Thomas H. Huxley
1825-1895, Biologist

"There comes a moment when you have to stop revving up the car and shove it into gear." - David Mahoney, Executive and Philanthropist

"Don't waste your life in doubts and fears: spend yourself on the work before you, well assured that the right performance of this hour's duties will be the best preparation for the hours or ages that follow it." - Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1803-1882, Poet and Essayist

"Those with goals tend to succeed because they are focused and know where they are going, while those without goals do not." - Ted Karam, Author

"You don't get to choose how you're going to die. Or when. You can only decide how you're going to live. Now." - Joan Baez, Singer, Songwriter and Activist

"The big secret in life is that there is no secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you are willing to work. It is called massive action. Action is the gas in the tank. Without it, the car will not run." - Marcy Blochowiak, Author of No Glass Ceiling

So, choose. Choose whoever, whatever you have always wanted to be and to do. Then, just Be, just Do.

You Can Do It!

Life After Politics: An Even Higher Calling

Please meet Khun Witthaya, an independent politician who served as a Senator for 7 years in Thailand's Upper House, representing a constituency near the Thai town of Khon Kaen.

He is now a Senior Director in Unicity, with big dreams of becoming a Presidential Diamond so that he can go back to his people as a politician again, serving the people regardless of their political affiliations or colours, be it "red" or "yellow", as he had done before as an independent. This time, with Unicity, he will have more power to help make life better for his people!

Khun Witthaya's entry and early success in Unicity represents a new breakthrough for Unipower. Having broken into many corporate boardrooms and upper echelons of Thai society, Unipower is now breaking into the corridors of political power.

This seasoned politician, a naturally powerful speaker on the Unipower Stage in Bangkok on Saturday, 16th January 2010 given his 7 years experience in the cut-and-thrust of Thai politics, enrolled into Unicity as a result of a dare!

His son sought to enrol dad, then out of the Thai Senate but still fraternising in political and high society. But dad feared a loss of face from associating with Network Marketing. He didn't want to be seen too near or inside a Unicity DSC (Distributor Service Centre). He'd rather wait in the car for the son to finish up for up to 2 hours.

When son persisted, Khun Witthaya challenged the son to produce the 100,000 baht monthly income he talked about being able to get before he would consider. The son produced the result, and father had to keep his word.

Khun Witthaya took the UPS stage as a new Senior Director in Unicity, after being in the business for just under one year. Based on the translation of what he said, and a brief chat I had with him at Rama Garden Resort the next day, I gathered that Khun Witthaya was fully attuned to all that happens in the Unipower system. He had humbled himself to go through all the training available - from the 8 Steps Basic Training to the Eagle Camp and others. He was there at the all-day training by the two Presidential Triple Diamonds Khun Joe and Khun Rasa on Sunday, 17th Jan 2010.

On the stage, Khun Witthaya spoke of how he learnt and mastered the 8 Steps, committed to being a Core Leader, worked the 10pts a day Passport of Success programme. As a result, he produced the success that qualified him to take the UPS Stage, and wowed the crowd like no other speaker did.

From the stage, he vowed to work his way up to Presidential Diamond, inspired by the empowering leadership and fine examples of Khun Joe and Khun Rasa. His ultimate dream? "After I have succeeded as a Presidential Diamond, I will go back to my people. I will serve my people again, regardless of political colours. This time, I will be able to do more for them as I can offer them an opportunity to make life better."

That is life after politics, and then, before too long, for Khun Witthaya, a 2nd lease of political life on completing the The Happy Life Project.

What great possibilities. Awesome.