A Few New Year’s Resolutions for 2012

Posted on January 9, 2012 by Kenway Du

Every new year that rolls around, you probably spend ten minutes writing up a list of resolutions that is comprised mostly of stuff you wrote down last year.

Which is normal. You get that surge of motivation that this year is going to be different. You’ll be more productive, try new things, and step on the stair-master.

If that hasn’t worked before, try this: think about all the lessons you’ve learned in 2011 and make a point to apply them for the next 365 days. Here are some of my lessons that can use to give yourself a head start:

1) What’s done is done. Focus on next steps.

It’s easy to dwell on your mistakes. It’s better to focus on fixing it or learning from it. You can’t be perfect, so stop killing yourself over it and move forward. Don’t miss out on opportunities because you’re regretting your mistakes.

2) Stay calm.

My manager frequently reminds me that “It’s only toilet paper, nobody’s gonna die over it.” Needless to say, I work in then pulp and paper industry. Anyway, his point was quite clear. Unless somebody’s life is on the line, you have the capacity to stay calm. Trust me.

3) Be nice, just because.

There is a lot of contradictory advice on how to be successful. Most people, especially in the corporate world, will tell you that being nice won’t get you anywhere. But that’s not quite true. What they mean to say is that you have to be assertive, be ruthless in your pursuit, and do what it takes to get things done. Don’t mix the two ideas up. I know plenty of successful people who are not assholes, and I’m sure you know some too if you think about it.

Use my 3 resolutions to give you a head start on your list. I’ll post my entire list once I figure it out (I know, delayed as always).

Happy new year and all the best. Remember, this is your year.

Embrace What You Like

Posted on November 23, 2011 by Kenway Du

When you truly like something, it’s hard to ignore no matter how hard you try.
So stop trying to ignore it.

In the meager beginnings of my career (I’m talking early, like when I had acne), I tried to hide the fact that I like rap music.
When you work in a corporate setting, you get caught up in trying to impress your colleagues by how professional you are. You understand.

The most impressive people, however, embrace what (and/or who) they like and carry on with their day despite criticism.

Embrace what you like. I promise you’ll be happier and more confident.

What have you been hiding? Are you ready to embrace it?

Limitless: Are You Your Own Motivation?

Posted on November 15, 2011 by Kenway Du

Over the past weekend, I was finally able to watch the film Limitless, starring Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, and Abbie Cornish.

I won’t spoil the movie, but to give you a synopsis, the title character Eddie Morra is a writer who struggles to motivate himself to make anything in his life happen.
He runs into his successful ex brother in-law and is given the secret to that success – a new chemical drug. As the old saying goes, “We only use 20% of our brains at any given time.” This drug allows you to access the other 80%, and having this access results in monumental success. The rest of the movie gets very clever that even if I give a spoiler, it won’t be spoiled.

This film unexpectedly motivated me more than anything else has within the last year. How do I access my 80%? What is my metaphorical drug?

This week has been a productive week. I’ve been thinking more clearly, more calmly, and more focused.
When I’m confronted with a task, my attitude is not tired and bitter, but energetic and inquisitive.

My drug, quite simply, is me. It is the possibility of being able to break that 20% brain-usage ceiling and acknowledging that I have the capability to push those limits.
Corny, but just believing that you can break those boundaries allows you to break those boundaries.

Give it a try. Push through that 20%. Find your drug. You might see that you already have it.

Relationship Success Tip: Talk with Her

Posted on October 16, 2011 by Kenway Du

This one is pretty much a no-brainer, but communication is obviously one of the most important factors to breed a successful relationship.

I’ve dated my girlfriend for almost four years now, and after all this time, we sometimes forget to have conversations about us.
It’s important to have these dialogues, however, to make sure both of you are on the same page with how things are going. Because after such a long time together, couples can tend to travel in different directions with each other without even knowing. Not to say that it always happens and that it’s detrimental to your relationship, but it can be a threat and is something you want to address.

Just make sure it doesn’t turn into an argument.

Talk with her.

Learning to Trust Your Gut

Posted on October 9, 2011 by Kenway Du

My educational background is in Business Management. As a result of learning management principles in university and learning on the job, you build up a habit of justifying all your decisions. For example, using blue as the dominant colour in a company logo because blue represents the limitlessness of the sky. At least that’s what we tell our clients right? Because at the end of the day, some of you just think it looks cool. Am I right?

There’s a certain art to trusting your gut. I couldn’t give you intellectual political reasons why I voted for NDP during the last Canadian federal election. All I knew was that the late Jack Layton was an inspirational speaker and seemed like a great guy. That was enough for me, to know that the leader of the NDP inspired me through his words. I trusted my gut, and I have no doubt in my mind that that’s what a lot of people did too.

Why do I like Apple products? Yes, it has great functionality, but that’s not the reason. At the end of the day, it just looks cooler. So I trust my gut.

If it’s cool, people will probably like it. There shouldn’t be a need to justify that.

Why TTC Should Never Be Able to Strike

Posted on June 30, 2011 by Kenway Du

Because they don’t do their job.

Glad it’s declared an essential service.
If in the future the ban is ever lifted and they plan to strike again, fire them all and replace them with the needy.
I’m sure they will appreciate the job more and arrive on time.

P.S. I don’t hate TTC workers. I actually like some of you. Your customer service just needs a lot of work.

Misunderstanding and Hatred

Posted on June 29, 2011 by Kenway Du

In World War II, everything was going wrong for Germany. They needed a way out.
So Hitler told them who to blame – the Jews. Now that they had someone to blame, they took it upon themselves to solve the problem through genocide.

Misunderstanding and hatred = Over 6 million Jews murdered

Now consider the situation for Muslims. Yes, some extremist groups have deployed some of the worst tragedies this world has ever seen.
But that was a small percentage of the total Muslim population. And yet many people blame Muslims in general for American issues, at times when they have no relation to Muslims.
What happens if one day, a leader rises up who is capable of convincing one person to murder another.

Please think carefully before you generalize. Misunderstanding and hatred is a dangerous combination.
But understanding and kindness is a part of growing up.

On Conan O’Brien’s Dartmouth Commencement Speech

Posted on June 17, 2011 by Kenway Du

Most people think of Conan O’Brien as a comedian who was shafted from his spot on NBC. Well – he’s still that. But if you’ve been following him over the past year, Conan has overcome great adversity to come out on top. He imparts the wisdom that he learned to the Dartmouth graduating class of 2011. Here are some of his notable words:

“Work hard, be kind, and amazing things will happen.”

Sometimes we get caught up in being assholes just for the hell of it. Maybe we want to get ahead in the corporate world. Maybe we want to get on the subway first. And although an asshole can be more intimidating and seem more powerful, nobody wants to help him. So above all, be kind. Pair kindness together with hard and honest work and be ready to draw in opportunities as well as people you want to be around.

“Disappointment will come. The beauty is that through disappointment, you can gain clarity. And with clarity comes conviction and true originality.”

Disappointment sucks, but it forces you to assess your situation. In the face of disappointment, we end up standing still and thinking “what the hell went wrong?”. Clarity. And after enough disappointment, you shake your head and tell yourself that you’re never going to let this happen again. Conviction. Then you take matters into your own hands and you mold solutions based on who you are as a person. True Originality.

“Whatever you think your dream is now, it will probably change. And that’s okay.”

This line spoken so matter-of-factly hits home hard for me, as I’m sure it does many of you. When I was young I wanted to be a scientist. One year I dared to dream that I would be a basketball player. Then highschool came and I wanted to be a computer programmer, but instead I went to UofT for Marketing, followed by a year of crafting myself to be a videographer. And now, I’m not sure what I want to be. And that’s okay. Because you will never know what you were meant to be until you become it.

“It is our failure to become our perceived ideal that ultimately defines us and makes us unique. It’s not easy but if you accept your misfortunate and handle it right, your perceived failure can become a catalyst for profound reinvention.”

We’re obsessed about chasing perfection, the ultimate unattanaible ghost. What is your perceived ideal? The pinnacle of rich, sexy, successful, hated by many but loved by more, kind but powerful, considerate yet untouchable. Whatever your perfect self is, you’ll never reach it no matter how close you get. You’ll fall somewhere in between, and even though you may think this is not supposed to be who you are – and here’s the kicker – this is who you are. The beauty is that once you accept it, doors of opportunity for personal growth open up and who knows, you may become someone better than your previously percevied ideal.

Coco, you’re a smart guy. I appreciate the way you delivered the message without bullshit. To me, the message is loud and clear: stick to your guns and be yourself.

Things will happen once you accept your situation and once you accept who you are.

Not Easy to Blog

Posted on June 14, 2011 by Kenway Du

Actually, let me correct that: It is easy.
Write one sentence everyday and post it – that’s not the hard part.
Hard part is keeping up the motivation to do it.

I’ve been keeping busy being a Renaissance Man.
But I promise I’m going to get back to writing.

Ant

Posted on February 6, 2011 by Kenway Du

Meet Ant.

THE RENAISSANCE MAN

Doing everything I can