Do what you like to do … not what you think people will “like 👍” to see you do.

Some people like to run … I mean they really like to run … you see them participating in many running events, be it a local marathon or community fund raising sports or enrolling in virtual running events which are quite popular during these lockdown periods.

I admire these people … they share photos of their passion for running and maybe they get a lot of “likes 👍” encouraging them but these people run because they really LIKE running not because they want people to “like 👍” their running.

As a matter of fact, many of them cannot run far or long … many cannot even complete a marathon so they will participate in 5km or 10km categories so they can enjoy the camaraderie of the participating runners and more importantly, the running.

My point is … if you like to do something, just do it ... even if you can’t do it well. You do it because you like to do it … it does not matter whether people will “like 👍” it or not.

Don’t worry about what people will “like 👍” … if you are only telling stories or experiences that you hoped that people will “like 👍” … then you are not living the way you truly are … you are just living how you think people “like 👍” you to be.

We all have different thoughts and ideas to share or experiences and stories to tell … just share and tell it the way you like. It is OK if your jokes are not funny to others, they may not be able to relate to what you want to express. So what if your home cooking photo is not appetising to other people … they are not the one tasting it.

Never mind if your bicycle is not as “canggih’ as those of your cycling friends … they may not understand the sentimental value of it and maybe people may not like the stories you tell … well, it did not happened to them.

So, live your life the way you like, tell the stories that you like, share your experiences that you like, do what you like to do … not what you think people will “like 👍” to see you do.

 

The threat is near ... very near!

Now let me just bring forward to your attention that some points written here may not be of your liking … especially about the taboo subject of death. Please read with an open mind.

OK, the Covid situation in our country (and in many parts of the world) is still running wild … as of yesterday we already have more than a million infected since the start of the pandemic in Wuhan and infection is still counting in the thousands every day.

At the beginning of the year … many were still not too serious about the Cov19 threat … they only hear or see “others” getting infected. Sadly, this is how most people think … when they hear something bad or unfortunate … it always happen to “others” … they don’t think it can happen to them. That is the main reason for the lackaisaidal “tidak apa’ attitude towards the SOPs, safety and protection enforced by the authorities.

There were so many interstate travels, mass gatherings, private parties, house visits, meetings and other SOP breaches that resulted in the large nationwide infection spread and the sharp increase of daily infection cases that we have today.

If one could just do simple arithmetic … take Selangor state for example … the infection rate versus the population of the state. Now, just work out the ratio and think a bit … if you go to the market you are bound to get close to 30 people or more … how many of those are carrying the virus? Scary isn’t it?

Now, suddenly everyone realized that the threat is near … really near! It is inevitable with such high infection rate … there is going to be someone close, someone related, someone in the family, someone near, someone dearly loved who will be infected and who will succumb to the deadly virus.

Now we see or hear … a neighbor died, a close friend perished, a close relative in serious situation, a sister in ICU, a colleague experiencing serious symptom, the aunty selling your favorite noodle succumbed to the virus … suddenly, many people around you and close to you are now affected by the worsening situation.

Here is something you may not like to hear … death caused by Cov19 virus is a horrible death … testimonies I heard from many that I know who have seen close ones suffered due to the deadly Cov19 infection.

For some who recovered from the infection … the damage caused to their lungs can affect them seriously in their everyday lives post infection. I have heard of people who recovered from the infection but their lungs were so badly damaged that they were unable to survive after discharging from the hospital. Someone told me about a 32 years old marathon runner … both his lungs were destroyed by the infection that now he has difficulties just getting up from the bed and walk.

Even with the strict SOPs adherence … there is absolutely no guarantee for anyone of us. We will never be sure that we can avoid infected by the Cov19 virus totally. There are so many unforeseen circumstances that we can be infected but with strict adherence of SOPs, the chance of avoiding infection is very high.

But there are still many stubborn ones who flout the SOPs … well, there is a Chinese saying … ”上得山多终遇虎” … translated it says … if you make too many trips into the mountains, one day you will come across a tiger. Hope these stubborn ones can see the danger they are in.

The authorities is speeding up the vaccination for the whole country … the good news is we see the rate of vaccination is increasing rapidly … more and more are being vaccinated every day. At this rate … those registered under the National Imnunisation Programme will soon be vaccinated but there are still quite a large amount of the population that has not registered. The authorities are getting to these people via various efforts and hopefully these unregistered people will also get their vaccination soon.

But even for those vaccinated … of course it is an additional layer of protection against the virus but it is NOT A CURE. The vaccine is to reduce the severity of the infection and enable those infected to recover fast and maybe they don’t need to be hopitalised. Those vaccinated can still carry the virus and spread it … so, even after with vaccination, strict SOPs must be practiced.

From the various news media, from the social chat groups and platforms, from what we read and heard and from personal experience of people we know … what did we get out of it?

We now know that death by Cov19 is cruel … surviving for some is not so good either. So, more importantly is that we MUST NOT TO GET INFECTED.

YES, the threat is very near … the possibility of getting infected is very real and is high … so the SOPs must be strictly followed.

What MUST we do now?

We must LEARN TO LIVE and ADAPT to the Cov19 situation … it is going to be within our daily lives and routines … it will be for a long while … until we find a total cure or immune medicine to take it out completely.

So what is the first thing to do?

Stay@home … CUT DOWN YOUR EXPOSURE OUTDOOR … that is the very first thing that we need to learn and adapt. Of course we can’t be staying indoors all the time … we need to go out every now and then … then we only go out on a need to basis.

Learn how to get things done online. I am sure by now we have relied on online platforms for many of our daily needs and transactions … we have make it the norm in living and adapting to the Cov19 situation.

Cook@home … for those who can afford time to cook at home … have more home cooked meals … learn recipes from many internet sources. If you don’t cook, try to get food it delivered to you … it will cost you a bit more but you can cut down your outdoor exposure. At times you may need to go out to buy your groceries or other necessities … well, if you cannot avoid it, go out in full protection … mask, shield, disinfection, distancing and short exposure … all these must be practiced when outside.

Study@home … most (if not all) universities are already conducting online classes … it all boils down to self-discipline for students on this platform. Students sitting through online classes can stray easily … so have to be very strict with themselves to sit through these classes. For parents of younger students, they may need to monitor them and lay down strict disciplinary rules to ensure their kids do not stray during classes at home. It may take quite a bit of discipline and monitoring but it is possible and students can continue to advance their academics from home.

Exercise@home … this will have to be more frequent while living with Cov19. Learn to do some sort of exercise at home. There are many cheap equipment and gadgets that can help us do that. This is important … as we spent more time indoors, exercise and keeping ourselves active is crucial in maintaining a healthy body. It does not need to be a super “canggih” looking home gym set … it can just be a piece of exercise rubber band that can let you do all the stretches that you need or some simple weights or maybe just regular stretches and sit ups at your garden in the morning. A vaccinated and healthy person has the highest chance of beating the Cov19 virus if/when infected.

Not just our physical well-being but also our mental ability must be active. Indoor games, online games, reading, writing, researching, online learning … there are many ways to keep our mind busy and active. We must learn to add these in our daily routines to keep our mind sound and sane while staying safe indoors.

Entertainments@home … have more family activities at home. Movie nights, home karaoke sessions, old fashion board games, card games, music and even dancing at home … I saw a video of an old couple doing line dancing at home … absolutely fantastic to see them having fun while lockdown at home.

Learn to share these activities with friends or even do it live on social media … all these can be fun while staying at home avoiding the deadly virus. Talk with friends via video group chats … there are plenty of online platforms that can facilitate this … learn to use them.

Active@home … yes, learn to be active at home … use whatever available resources to keep yourself busy at home. For the time being … going out should be STRICTLY on a “really need to” basis. Maybe start learning new things … learn music from the internet, research on interesting subjects like history, archaeology, mysteries, space or even UFOs and aliens if you like.

Maybe learn a new language, learn sign language, join online forums, start a blog, participate in online music/singing groups, draw, sketch, paint … there are so many things to do indoors … that is if you are willing to learn.

Really, cut down your outdoor exposure and learn to keep yourself active indoors … at least for the time being.

As for business and work … I am sure there will also be many areas to learn and adapt … ways of doing business and working without exposing too much to the threat of Cov19. This I will let the various captains and experts of the relevant industries to lay out the new norms in conducting businesses and work related areas. I am sure they already have procedures and processes in place to make sure that the economic situation will improve and all can make a good living while safely protected.

So, for now … “duduk diam diam di rumah” … stay SAFE and PROTECTED from the Cov19 virus.

 

What is living life to the fullest?

We all heard of the phrase “live life to the fullest” right? In fact some are already doing it right now … in the ways they think they are living their lives to the fullest.

The question is … what is living life to the fullest? Or how do you live life to the fullest?

Live life to the fullest?

The common understanding is … enjoy the very best that life can offer. Like own the best brands, visit the most exotic or most popular places, savour the best cuisines of the world and be part of the higher echelon in the social circle. Live with the best that money can buy.

Yes, that is a way of living life to the fullest but that needs a fortune … meaning one must achieve a huge financial success to do it.

Then the next question is … if those who are unable to have such financial success, does that mean they cannot live life to the fullest?

Now, my take is … living life to the fullest does not only mean getting the best that money can buy. The word “fullest” encapsulates many things … some may not need a lot of money to do and some are even free.

I think a person can live life to the fullest, FIRST, by simply being healthy and be able to enjoy an active life doing what he or she likes to do every day.

Living life to the fullest, in my context means keeping yourself active and busy … it does not mean that you have to do or acquire the best that money can buy … it just means do whatever that makes you happy. It can be as simple as reading a new book and that does not need a lot of money to do … it just needs you to have an active mind and interest in wanting to acquire and learn more.

Living life to the fullest does not mean that you have to taste the best cuisines in the world … it can be just learning to bake a simple delicious butter cake with the joy and sense of accomplishment watching people enjoy the fruits of what you have learned to make.

Living life to the fullest does not mean you have to travel to the most exotic places for holidays … really, not many can afford that. It can just be a few good friends hopping into a van on a daytrip to the countryside looking for durians, river fishes and other village produces. I think this is what many people are already doing … filling their lives full with simple adventures, camaraderie, fun and laughters.

Living life to the fullest does not mean that you have to wear the best brands and to be among the higher social echelons at premier events. Maybe others don't agree but for me, I am living my life to the fullest when I am stripped down to my underwear, splashing on the cool waters in waterfalls at some orang asli settlements somewhere in the middle of the jungle.

You want to live life to the fullest? Simple … just stay healthy, stay active and stay busy … do things that you REALLY like to do, not doing things that you think people like to see.

It can be just very simple things … whimsical at times or even foolish … it is OK, as long as it makes you happy and it fills up your life with joy and delights. It does not have to be the best or the exotics or the popular or the spectacular. Maybe it is not something for you to “show’ but you can always “share” the things that bring joy to your life.

Perhaps there are things that you may like to do but you hesitated because you cannot do it well … don’t worry, just do it if it makes you happy.

Let me say a few words I saw from an FB posting … “I can’t sing … it does not mean I won’t sing” … I absolutely agree with that !!!

So, live your life to the fullest … sing!

 

What's in your basket of happiness?

I have never been to Bhutan but I know it is a great country. I read a lot about this country … though it is considered an under developed country, it has its riches in many aspects. One of the many aspects that I admire about this country is its Gross National Happiness (GNH) or the way they measure the GNH index.

The term was coined by the 4^th King of Bhutan in 1972 and he declared that this GNH is more important than the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of his country. This GNH concept is an approach to sustainable progress BUT it also gives EQUAL importance to NON-ECONOMIC aspects of wellbeing.

I agree totally with this concept … I can relate it to my own personal wellbeing.

Maybe we can also create a happiness index for ourselves … call it Gross Personal Happiness or GPH or maybe Gross Family Happiness or GFH to include the family as well … or any abbreviation you may come up with. The question is … how do you measure it? What are the things to put in the basket of measurement?

I am sure there are many ideas on how to measure your happiness.

The one very common thinking is … I am happy if I am rich. Yes, the fact is, many people believe that and there is nothing wrong ya … it is absolutely alright to live with that idea. So, their index for happiness is directly related to how much they have. The more they have … the happier they will be.

Others may focus more on the religious aspect ... they are very happy to be able to live the way their faiths have taught them. So their happiness is mainly related to their religions and beliefs.

Then there are the spiritual ones … how are they happy, when are they happy and how do they measure their happiness? Or maybe they even don’t believe in the idea of a happiness index. Again, that is up to them.

And what about those happy-go-lucky ones … I believe they are always happy. They are a bunch of carefree people with nothing to worry about. The way I see it … they don’t need anything to measure their happiness … they are just happy in whatever they do.

Like I said, different people have different ideas of measurement for their happiness … how do you measure yours?

For me, my idea or concept of measurement for my happiness is similar to the way Bhutan measure its GNH. That is … I give EQUAL importance to NON-ECONOMIC or NON- MATERIALISTIC aspects of my wellbeing.

Let me say this … money is just a small part in my happiness measurement basket. But having said that, let me emphasize its importance also … it is important to have money … don’t fool yourself that you can just live with air and water.

My opinion, strictly my own opinion is … that one’s happiness is not just measured by the financial progress or success. Look at the various non-materialistic aspects of your life … there are many things in those aspects that you may have neglected to put into your basket of measurement for happiness.

Many will agree that there must be a balance … what to balance and how to balance it? Yes, it is easier said than done. But if you put a bit of effort and work towards it … I am very sure you will be able to find a way to a good happiness index … maybe start by filling out what to put into your basket of happiness.

I am not trying to live longer

As of last month, I have retired 13 years already. Since I stopped working, I have been trying to stay active and with a lot of time in hand, I try to do quite a few things that I like.

People said to me … “wah, you so active physically and staying healthy … you will live longer”.

Now, let me make it clear ... I do things that can make me LIVE BETTER not make me live longer.

There is a saying in Chinese ... 活得好不要活得老 … translated it simply means “live better, not longer”. Not everyone can agree to this but for me, I can accept this idea.

You see … I picked up trekking years ago. I trek into the forest simply because I like to bask in the beautiful nature. I like the jungle atmosphere, the sound, the smell, the penetrating sunrays, the flora and fauna, the cool rushing rivers, the splashes of the waterfalls and sightings of beautiful animals and creatures in the forest.

To some, trekking is an exercise … yes, trekking does give me a good exercise but will it make me live longer?

NO … I don’t think so. I don’t feel that I am going to live longer when I trek. But I certainly feel that I am living better embracing the beautiful nature as much as possible.

I go the gymnasium … no, I am not trying to be like Schwarzenegger … I cannot be and I don’t want to be. At my age, the muscles and tendons tend to get lethargic easily. To keep the muscles and tendons from getting fatigue … need to grease and stretch them from time to time.

And I love food … hey, who can resist good food? Someone told me once that calories are meant to be burnt, not keep … so I go burn the calories. I don’t want to carry the extra weight on my loose joints and already rusty structure. The fatty layers have to go … some sweats and workouts at the gym will do just that.

Will that make me live longer? NO … highly unlikely. But I feel better when the old muscles and tendons can still work painlessly … I feel better with less weight hanging on my body structure ... hence, I live better.

I took up taichi lessons and it took me a year to learn the beginner’s “short form” of the Huang style taichi and maybe another year to complete the “long form”.

Now, will learning taichi make me live longer?

NO ... if people tell you that … don’t believe it. See, from the various taichi principles, I learned about proper lifting, standing, balancing, sitting, correcting my postures and how not to put unnecessary weights on the various joints. With this, I can avoid or minimize the damages on my aged structure … I live better with less pain and less discomfort.

Like I said … I try to do things that I like … some are physical, some are mental, some maybe emotional and sometimes even whimsical. Though I don’t do all them very well, I do it because I can and I like to … Jack of all trades, master of none, they said.

At this point of time, I just want to live actively and effectively with less pain, aches and discomforts. I want to live peacefully and safely with fewer risks, damages and injuries and I want to live happily and joyfully without hassles, stress and worries.

Really, I am not trying to live longer … I am just trying to live better.

 

At my best in my simplest form

Recently I added a tattoo in the form of a quote I wrote (quite some time ago) and used as tagline in my social media accounts and my blog. 

The quote … “i am at my best in my simplest form” … the words are all in lower case letters of a simple font. Well, it is all about simplicity … isn’t it?

I got a lot of people asking me about these words, the first being the tattoo master who asked … “Mr Shiek … what is the message here?”

Now, there are two parts to this quote … “at my best” and “in my simplest form”.

First, what exactly is “at my best”?

Let me explain … I am not talking about my skills or abilities. When I say I am “at my best” … it refers to the state, the situation, the setting or the condition that I am in.

Whether it is the company of people I am with, whether it is the environment that I am living in, whether it is the things that I do or whether it is the conditions that I want … I want to be most comfortable, most enjoyable, most peaceful, most relaxed and most happy. That is what I mean by “at my best”.

“At my best” is not reflected by how big a house I have … no, it is about the warm comfortable home I live in.

“At my best” does not mean that I have to be in the higher echelon of the social circle … no, I am most happy when I am with good friends at a mamak shop.

“At my best” does not mean that I have to travel to see the world’s most exotic places … no, it can be just me in the peaceful natural surroundings of the forest reserve.

“At my best” does not mean photos of expensive dining in fancy restaurants … no, it is the joy of a family getting together over simple meals cooked with 💓💖 … lots of 💕💗💖.

That is my idea of “at my best”

And what is “in my simplest form”?

When I say “in my simplest form” … it means JUST ME. Not my titles or recognitions (anyway, I don’t have any), not my qualifications, not my status and not the materials that I have because what is mine, IS NOT ME.

“In my simplest form” it means I own nothing and nothing owns me.

“In my simplest form” means I don’t have to walk as if I own the world … I walk as if I don’t care who owns the world.

“In my simplest” form means WYSIWYG … what you see is what you get.

So, when I say … “I am at my best in my simplest form” … it simply means I just want to be comfortable being who I really am … yes, it is that simple. 

 

Express or impress?

Many of us like to express ourselves … there are many ways to do it or you can also say there are many forms of expressions.

 A lot of people express themselves via writing or speech ... some use body language, others use photos or drawings and there are those who use music or art or painting. For example … Vincent Van Gogh expressed himself mainly with his paintings and Chopin wrote his stories exclusively on piano.

Like me, some people sing and use songs to tell their stories or their experiences.

Then there are others who express themselves silently … maybe they are just telling people they are minding their own business. Maybe they are those who don’t like to tell their stories.

Expressing is good … in whatever form. It is a very common communication process. With very large and far reach of the social media platforms and other communication tools … we all can now express ourselves conveniently by posting a photo or sharing a video or writing an article or sharing a link.

Even with a simple “👍”, you can express your thoughts or feeling on certain things. And with many different emoticons … one can choose to express the degree or level of their likes or dislikes.

But then there is a difference … many of us can identify that difference. What difference?

The difference between expressing and impressing.

There are those who like to impress with the postings or comments they made … we can all see whether a person is trying to share or that person is really trying to show.

I give you an example … many years ago a friend of mine successfully made it to one of the popular base camps in the Himalayas … she posted some pictures to share her experience and her joy of completing the challenge. 

Of course many of us posted comments on her photos … all the comments were congratulatory messages … except one. I can remember (though not every word) this particular message and it went something like this … “Hey, on your left, about 5 meters away there should be a big white boulder. Is it still there? I was at the same spot where you are standing two years ago”.

See what I mean?

Having said this … let me cover my backside a bit (or not I am sure to receive some very nasty emails and comments) … so, let me use my usual “cover backside” line … THERE IS NOTHING WRONG if people want to impress or want to show ya. Maybe that is their way of telling people that they have better stories to tell or maybe they have something better to show. That is absolutely OK.

Now, whether to express or to impress … it is entirely up to you. All I can say is … if you want to impress, you want to influence how people think of you. Well, it is a lot easier to express because you don’t have to worry about how people think of you.

 

Be yourself

 People say … “be yourself”… it is a very common phrase and I am sure you have heard it many times.

So what is “be yourself”?

There are many ideas on how to “be yourself" and we all have a different approaches. I am not sure about how others do it … as long as they are happy being “themselves” and not breaking the laws, I am happy for them.

For me, one very important aspect of “be yourself” is … be who you REALLY are.

What do I mean?

OK, whether you are a CEO or MD or FD or some big corporate shots … whether you are a Datuk Seri or Tan Sri or BOSS or whatever … that is NOT you!

So, DROP your crown, your titles, your recognitions and whatever … don’t let yourself be carried away. Be the father or mother … be the husband or wife … be the son or daughter … be the brother or sister or just be the friend ... be who you really are.

You may be a CEO but when the sink is leaking … no worries, out comes the toolbox and you are happy to get your hands dirty. Why? Because you are just being father or a husband.

Maybe you are a hot shot sexy lawyer … ran out of salt at home? No problem at all … hop into the car and head straight to the grocery store. Why you do it? Because you like being who you really are … a mother or a wife.

YES, it is that simple … just be yourself. 

If you like to dance, dance ... or if you want to sing, sing … you may not be good at it but you do it because you like it. People may even laugh at you ... even talk about you at your back. Well, you know what … those who talk about you at your back, that is where they will always be … at your back!

It is perfectly OK to be foolish every now and then … that is the fun part in life. What you do is NOT TO SHOW … it is more TO SHARE. It might be something small, something simple or something foolish even, but you do it because you are just being yourself.

You don’t have to SHOW people that you know every damn thing and walk like you own the world … you walk like you DON’T CARE who owns the world … that, is really being yourself. Be the real you … do what you like and say what you feel. Don’t worry about what others think … those who mind, don’t matter and those who matter, don’t mind.

But the sad fact is … many don’t realize that they are doing things while wearing a mask to SHOW what they think others like to see … masks that are made of titles, recognitions, status and standings.

The danger is … when they wear that mask too often and too long … one day when they remove that mask and look into the mirror … they will not be able to recognize who they really are.