Wednesday, November 1, 2017

Sarawak Pay an e-wallet Sarawak Digital Economy

KUCHING: Sarawakians will soon be able to go cashless when they pay for their utility bills as Sarawak Pay is expected to be rolled out this month (November).
Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg is optimistic that the state’s digital payment system will be initiated from November onwards, making it convenient for citizens to settle transactions with the government.
“Going cashless or having an ‘e-wallet’ is the ‘in-thing’ for us to settle our transaction. God willing by next month (November), I will roll out the Sarawak Pay which also serves as an ‘e-wallet’,” he said at the grand launch of Saradise Kuching here on Monday night.
He pointed out that Sarawak Pay will serve as a channel for Kuching citizens to pay for their bills through their smartphones.
“If you want to pay your electricity bill or water bill, you can now just use your smartphone and pay them through our Sarawak Pay, which has already been approved by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM),” he said.
He also revealed plans to link Sarawak Pay with AliPay, the mobile payment system by Chinese internet titan Alibaba.
“If we can link Sarawak Pay with AliPay one day, then the people can start trading with Chinese merchants,” he said.
Having just returned from Estonia, he expressed his wish for Sarawak to be known as ‘s-Sarawak’ one day much like how Estonia has its go-to tag ‘e-Estonia’ to describe the Northern European country’s successful love affair with all things networked and digitised.
“I have a dream that Sarawak will one day be known as ‘s-Sarawak’ where the S stands for smart.
“However, in order for Sarawak to be smart, we must have the basic infrastructure that will transform the state into a smart Sarawak with digital connectivity,” he remarked.
He also aspired to see Kuching transform into a city which integrates the old and the new together.
“Kuching is still not that big and we still have land for us to plan properly. We can have the old Kuching, which is the centre of heritage in one part of the city whereas the new Kuching will be a smart and modern part of the city.”
Abang Johari thus commended property developer Saradise Sdn Bhd (Saradise) for developing Saradise Kuching, an integrated lifestyle township which also incorporates an innovation space to support the state’s digital economy transformation.
“Saradise has designed something for everyone and incorporated smart technology into Saradise Kuching as well. I believe this township will become a smart township and transform this part of the city into a smart and modern Kuching,” he said.
Also present during the launch were Deputy Chief Ministers Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas and Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Jemut Masing, Saradise Group chief executive officer Dato Chris Chung Soon Nam, Saradise director Datu Michael Ting and chief operating officer Dylan Yee Kar Sien.
Source: Borneo Post

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

IT Security - How to Spot a Phishing Email

Phishing a type of online scam used by fraudsters to access valuable online personal information, e.g. usernames and passwords. These can be of huge monetary value to criminals. 

Phishing can take the form of emails containing website links or malicious attachments. Cybercriminals send bogus emails, instant messages, text messages – even letters – to lure their victims in. These communications can often, at first glance, appear to be authentic communications from legitimate organisations. Links embedded within an email can take you to a spoof website where your login details may be requested, stored, and ultimately misused. You also run the risk of your computer or smartphone being infected by viruses.

Once these cybercriminals have access to your personal details, they use this information to commit fraudulent activity such as bank fraud and identity theft.

Spear phishing

Spear phishing takes a more sophisticated approach. It aims to win the trust of a victim through personalized messages which appear to come from a trusted source with the aim of eliciting sensitive information to derive some form of financial gain.

As with email communications used in regular phishing expeditions, spear phishing messages are designed to look like they come from a trusted source, such as a trusted website (classic examples being eBay or Paypal). In the case of spear-phishing, however, the fraudster is likely to be someone known to the recipient, or their company.

How to spot a phising email
















What can you do to protect yourself from a phishing scam?

There are a number of steps we recommend you adopt to protect yourself from this ever-growing form of cybercrime:

  • Be proactive. Where personal information is requested by email/phone, never give it. Where telephone numbers/links are provided in these communications, don’t use them. Contact the organisation through their official website (look out for the “https” prefix, indicating it is secure), or listed telephone number to verify the communication is legitimate.
  • Ensure your anti-virus software is up-to-date and enable your spam filter. If you are suspicious of an email, mark it as spam and delete it. This prevents future messages reaching your inbox.
  • Beware of unknown sources. Don’t click on links featured in emails sent to you by a source you don’t know (and even if they’re purported to be from one that you do, be on your guard).
  • Remember that your bank will never contact you via email asking for sensitive information such as passwords.


Recommended reading:
IT Security - Email Security Awareness

Monday, October 23, 2017

IT Security - Email Security Awareness

A colleague requested that we should have some form of IT security awareness program. So to kick start it, the first article of this topic will centered around Email Security.

Security Awareness

Security awareness is nothing but a knowledge of potential threats. Its an advantage of knowing what type of threats / security issues and number of incidents, our organization may face in day-to-day operation. It's not possible to ensure 100% security through technology, unless staffs are provided with adequate information security awareness. Personal responsibility are the key of success of any information security program.

Why Information Security

Information is a valuable asset for all kinds of business. More and more information related crimes happen. Information leakage, damage will impact business. With regards to online information, the Internet allows an attacker to attack from anywhere. Malicious code from an email, a web page or a file in USB, can infect the entire organization. A breach is often the result of a simple mistake (or lack of awareness).


Rules to Stay Safe Online


  • Rule #1. Stop, Look, Think!. Use that delete key.
  • Rule #2. Do I spot a Red Flag? Verify suspicious email with the sender via a different medium (e.g personal call, messaging).
  • Rule #3. When in doubt, throw it out.


End User Email Security Best Practices 

There are also some important best practices that end users should follow to ensure secure email usage. Arming your employees with the know-how to avoid risky behaviors can make a substantial impact on your company’s ability to reduce risks associated with email. Email security best practices for end users/employees include:


  • Never open attachments or click on links in email messages from unknown senders.
  • Change passwords often and use best practices for creating strong passwords.
  • Never share passwords with anyone, including co-workers.
  • Try to send as little sensitive information as possible via email, and send sensitive information only to recipients who require it.
  • Use spam filters and anti-virus software. We know that you're busy but if a technician from Pasti Nyala came over to perform routine maintenance, do allow them to do their job.
  • If you received some suspicious emails from your co-worker, do verify with them. This will alert they of possible breach of their email account. 
  • When working remotely or on a personal device, use VPN software to access corporate email.
  • Avoid accessing company email from public wi-fi connections.


Countermeasures

Countermeasures can take the form of software, hardware and modes of behavior. Behavioral countermeasures include:

  • frequent deletion of stored cookies and temporary files from Web browsers
  • regular scanning for viruses and other malware
  • regular installation of updates and patches for operating systems. Let Pasti Nyala technician handle this for you.
  • refusing to click on links that appear within e-mail messages
  • refraining from opening e-mail messages and attachments from unknown senders
  • staying away from questionable Web sites
  • regularly backing up data on external media.


Email Jargons

Spam email or Junk email is a form of commercial advertising which is economically viable because email is a very cost-effective medium for the sender. If just a fraction of the recipients of a spam message purchase the advertised product, the spammers are making money and the spam problem is perpetuated.

Phishing is when a scammer uses fraudulent emails or texts, or copycat websites to get you to share valuable personal information – such as bank account numbers, credit card numbers, or your login IDs and passwords. Scammers use your information to steal your money or your identity or both.

Scammers also use phishing emails to get access to your computer or network then they install programs like ransomware that can lock you out of important files on your computer.


Phishing scammers lure their targets into a false sense of security by spoofing the familiar, trusted logos of established, legitimate companies. Or they pretend to be a friend or family member.

















GMAIL - Last Account Activity

If you are a user of GMAIL, open your mail box and scroll to the bottom of your mail box. On the right side, there is an information on your Last Account Activity. Click Details to show your historical access to your mail box. Perform this task occasional and report an incident if you noticed something abnormal about your activities, as someone else might be trying to hijack your email account.





















Lastly, do report any abnormality or incident to our IT Support or email direct to RWS so we can investigate and perform corrective measure.




Sunday, October 8, 2017

10 Things that require ZERO talent

In most companies, staffs required some form of talent, usually technical talent to accomplish a task. Soft skill talents are also required to resolve certain issue for example, dealing with demanding customers, resolving complaints and so on.

However, no talent is required for staffs to comply or perform their duty as expected by the company or work policies. Below is a list of 10 things that required ZERO talent.

1. Being on time - being on time arriving at the office. being on time completing the assignment. don't give excuses of traffic jam. Wake up earlier or go to work earlier. Sleep early. Avoid mid-night lepaking. For timely assignment, don't delay.

2. Work Ethic - focus on your task and commit to complete it.

3. Effort - deliver a task with quality in mind. Sub-standard work equals partial effort.

4. Body Language - if you're genuine and honest, your body language won't lie.

5. Energy - stop wasting your energy on non-productive tasks, like mobile games, social networking, gossiping, surfing, etc.

6. Attitude - don't just promise that you are going to complete the assignment. Get it done.

7. Passion - been keen to learn and understand the business or operation. 

8. Being Coachable - be open to new ideas and better way of doing things. Keep note of important tips and how-to guides.

9. Doing Extra - whenever possible, volunteer to do extra.

10. Being Prepared - plan your work. Create and update your to-do list.

Thursday, August 24, 2017

Effective Habits that will help you to be become more successful

Success can mean different things to different people but one common thing is that Success starts with you. Everything you do today is a result of your personality, your motivations, and your habits.

So it follows that, if you adopt a certain set of habits in life, you can make yourself be successful. Getting into the right mind-frame and having the right attitude will help you get there.

1. PLAN while others are playing.

2. SMILE while others are frowning.

3. BEGIN while others are procrastinating.

4. COMMEND while others are criticizing.

5. SAVE while others are wasting.

6. STUDY while others are sleeping.

7. DECIDE while others are delaying.

8. LISTEN while others are talking.

9. PREPARE while others are daydreaming.

10. WORK while others are wishing.



Thursday, August 17, 2017

When you have passion, anything is possible

Anything is possible if you have the passion. Turn on your speaker please.

#gritpower


Source: internet

Tuesday, August 15, 2017

Growth mindset for building grit

In education, the one thing we know how to measure best is IQ. But what if doing well in school and in life (or work) depends on much more than your ability to learn quickly and easily?


A research team going around asking private companies, Who is successful here and why? Which of these salespeople is going to keep their jobs? And who's going to earn the most money? In all those very different contexts, one characteristic emerged as a significant predictor of success. It wasn't good looks, physical health, and it wasn't IQ. It was grit.

Grit is passion and perseverance for a very long-term goals. Grit is having stamina. Grit is sticking with your future day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years, and working really hard to make that future a reality.

Grit is living life like it's a marathon, not a sprint.

The most shock thing about grit is how little we know, how little science knows, about building it. "How do I build grit in my team members? What do I do to teach team members a solid work ethic? How do I keep them motivated for the long run?" The honest answer is, I don't know. What expert do know is that talent doesn't make you gritty. Their data show very clearly that there are many talented individuals who simply do not follow through on their commitments. Their data also revealed that grit is usually unrelated or even inversely related to measured of talent.

So for, the best idea about building grits in team members is something called "growth mindset". This is an idea developed at Standford University by Carol Dweck, and it is the belief that the ability to learn is not fixed, that is can change with your effort. Dr Dweck has shown that when people read and learn about the brain and how it changes and grows in response to challenge, they're much more likely to persevere when they failed, because they don't believe that failure is a permanent condition.

So growth mindset is a great idea for building grit. But we need more. And that's where I'm going to end my remarks because that's where we are. That's the work that stands before us. We need to take our best ideas, our strongest intuitions, and we need to test them. We need to measure whether we've been successful, and we have to be willing to fail, to be wrong, to start over again with lessons learned.

In other words, we need to be gritty about getting ourselves, our team members grittier.

Source: Angela L Duckworth


Here are 7 tips to foster grit for adults who aspire to grittiness, how to grow your own grit.

Tip #1: Encourage Practice

Even better, encourage challenging practice. Practice shouldn’t rehash a skill in which you’re already competent; aim for something one step above your current abilities. Practice makes perfect.

Tip #2: Praise Effort, Not Outcome

When we praise someone with, “Perfect!,” or “Great job,” their exertion dries up—there’s nowhere left to go. Instead, praise effort: “That must have taken a lot of work to be so great.” Or, “You worked really hard on that!”

Tip #3: Teach That Frustration and Confusion are Signs of Progress

The thoughts, “Frustration means it’s time to quit,” or “Since I’m confused, I probably can’t do it,” should be replaced with. “Getting frustrated is a normal part of learning something hard,” or “If I’m confused, that means I’m figuring it out.” Offer these re-frames when you hear those first exasperated sighs and grumbles of frustration.

Along the same lines, offer support, but don’t swoop in to rescue someone at the first sign of struggle. As long as eventual success is within reach, allow that person to labor over those stubborn logics or troublesome formula, and reinforce the struggle as a part of learning.

Tip #4: Teach Courage

Courage is closely aligned with grit. Courage isn’t merely doing challenging things--it’s being afraid, and then digging in your heels and trying anyway. In other words, fear is a prerequisite to courage. Right Cik Dayah?

To apply this, when your team member say they’re scared, tell them, “You can do scary things.” Then, the next time you need to submit that manuscript or get that mammogram, tell yourself the same.

Tip #5: Encourage Long-Term Commitment

The specific activity—accounting, bookkeeping, animation, JAVA coding —doesn’t matter as much as the effort. Let team member try out different activities until they find one they love and want to stick with. And by ‘try out,’ I don’t mean one lesson: ask them to hang in there for the season or the semester. If, after that, the activity really isn’t a match for them, don’t re-register--but do ask them to try something else. Right Mr Sim?

Tip #6: The Growth Mindset

This concept has been all over popular psychological science recently, but it bears repeating.

In short, in a fixed mindset, people believe that their intelligence or abilities are set traits that render them successes or failures, regardless of effort. However, in a growth mindset, adult learn that their intelligence or abilities can be developed through—you guessed it—gritty hard work and perseverance.

So, teach your team member that the brain is like a muscle: the more you use it, the stronger it gets. Initial failures and struggles are just the brains pumping iron on the way to success.

Tip #7:  Grit Won’t Apply to Every Situation

Adults won’t be particularly gritty at something they hate. So don’t overstate grit as the cure for hating English lesson or hating accounting —grit is about hanging in there for the passion, not about, “you’re going to do it no matter what, and you’re going to like it.” Passion increases grit, but grit allows adults to pursue their passion. What is your passion Pasti Nyalain?


Friday, August 11, 2017

Respond less to negative people

Difficult people are not aware of the negative impact that they have on those around them. To deal with difficult people effectively, you need an approach that enables you, across the board, to control what you can and eliminate what you can’t. The important thing to remember is that you are in control of far more than you realize.

THEY SET LIMITS:

Negative people face plenty of problems and fail to focus on solutions. They only want to seek people’s attention. Smart people should set limits. No need to give sympathy. If they’re smoking near you, no need to inhale it, just distance yourself. A great way to set limits is to ask the person how they intend to fix the problem. They will either quiet down or redirect the conversation in a productive direction.

THEY RISE ABOVE:

At times difficult people drive you crazy. They are so irritating, all you need to do is ignore their humor and behavior. Be more mature than the others, have the courage to achieve greater things and you will rise above. Distance yourself from such people. Sooner or later they’ll get away from you when they’ll see no response coming.

THEY STAY AWARE OF THEIR EMOTIONS:

Sometimes you’ll find yourself where you’ll need to choose the best way forward. You need to buy yourself some good time. Always be the stronger and bigger person in the work setting, always be the one that others can talk to within the work setting, without your own personal emotions being brought into the situation.

THEY USE THEIR SUPPORT SYSTEMS:

Always know who you have to lean on, whether it be a parent, friend, counselor, teacher, etc. Everyone needs to vent about things sometimes and you should feel comfortable with, whomever that may be.

THEY ESTABLISH BOUNDARIES:

This is the area where people set boundaries. Know what you are capable of, just because you are working on a project with others and they are at a lower level than you, do not stoop down to their level, make them work harder and work to your level.

THEY DON’T FOCUS ON PROBLEMS—ONLY SOLUTIONS:

Where you focus your attention determines your emotional state, you create a sense of personal efficacy that produces positive emotions and reduces stress. Always look ahead, know what the problem is but move right along to the solution to get the problem solved.

THEY DON’T FORGET:

Smart people are quick to forgive, but that doesn’t mean that they forget. They will always remember what you did to them, so be nice.

THEY SQUASH NEGATIVE SELF-TALK:

Negative talk won’t bother smart people. They have much more to worry about in life than what bad things you have to say about them. Negativity sends you into a downward emotional spiral that is difficult to pull out of. You should avoid negative self-talk at all costs.

THEY GET SOME SLEEP:

Don’t stress so much about something that you lose sleep. That is a problem within itself that people often deal with and it’s a bad problem to have.  You need rest and you must rest. A good night’s sleep makes you more positive and creative.

THEY DON’T DIE IN THE FIGHT:

Smart people know how important it is to live. When you read and respond to your emotions, you’re able to choose your battles wisely and only stand your ground when the time is right. They know how to deal with conflict and not let their emotions get to them.

Thursday, August 10, 2017

Building a More Profitable Construction Business

The objective of this article is to illustrate that the goal in a Construction Business is not to work more, but to work more effectively, and improve your company's bottom line as you go. There is also some points to learn and applied it to an IT company like ours.

Estimating Profit

Creating a detailed, accurate estimate for work you propose to do is the first step toward achieving real profitability.

Overhead. Understanding overhead is important. Think of overhead as costs that would remain even if your crew didn;t do any work for a week. you would still need to pay your Account staff, telephone, insurance, rental, and utilities - as an example.

Risk. It is important to include risk factors in each estimate - contingency line - rather than just a padding here and there.

Job Costs. Labour can be the riskiest and most difficult part of the estimating process. IIn order to prepare an accurate estimate, you must know how long each task will take and how much each task will cost - and that depends on the relative efficiency of your personnel. Without understanding the true productivity of your field staff, you cannot create accurate and reliable estimates.

Managing Job Production for Profit

Once you're awarded a job, it's crucial to perform the work in the most cost-effective way possible if you expect to make a profit. While that may be easy in theory, it can be another matter altogether in practice. To effectively manage a job, keep these important factors in mind;

Change Order. Too many contractors lose money on change orders because they don't systematically track costs and don't take the time to bill for the change work they perform. Ironically, change orders can be an excellent source of additional profit because you have no competition for the work. In order to better track and manage change orders, you must create procedures to record changes in the field, turn those changes into work orders, and obtain sign-off on approved work for billing purpose.

People productivity. As Ben Franklin said, "time is money", and it's especially true in construction. For example, if you run a job exactly as budgeted, but it took two weeks less to complete than expected, you have added profit directly to your bottom line.

Keep everyone informed. Both employees and subcontractors need to know the job schedule. Subcontractors appreciate early notice of schedule changes and will be more willing to help you out.

Accounting for Profit

True job cost accounting can increase your profitability by helping you understand the actual costs associated with each job. A proper accounting system needs to accomplish two things:

One, effectively meet your daily accounting and bookkeeping needs and two, meet your specific requirements as a contractor. That means streamlined processing and an effective way to manage workers’ compensation, liability insurance, bonding and other issues of concern to you.

Remember that an accurate construction accounting system must distinguish between overhead costs and direct job costs. You must also be able to systematically compare your budgeted costs to your actual job costs to measure estimating effectiveness, labor productivity and use of materials.

Assigning the right responsibilities to the right people will help make your accounting system work for you. To accurately assign costs to a job, your project manager needs to be the one who codes the bills. If left to your bookkeeping staff, they may assign costs incorrectly since they are not close to the actual construction work being done. The result is that any report that compares actual to budgeted costs by cost code will be inaccurate and therefore meaningless.

Purchase orders can also help keep your costs in order. Using purchase orders will ensure that the project manager codes expenses at the time of order, not the bookkeeper, when the bill is received.

And without using a PO, you could end up paying more than your supply house originally quoted if they make a billing mistake. This could happen because your bookkeeper can’t spot the overcharge without a PO showing what the correct price should have been.

Contractors spend too much time and energy on accounts payable—and without a workable system in place, the quantity of incoming invoices will overwhelm your office. Just as important, if you do not send receivable invoices in a timely fashion and fail to follow up on them, you’ll quickly
find you don’t have the cash to take care of the bills.

Analyze for Profit

Many contractors make the mistake of thinking of each job as an independent project—with a start and a stop. As a result, they rarely take the time to analyze each job and assess the overall success of the business. If you think of your projects as circular rather than linear, you will find effective ways
to reduce costs and increase profits.

Contractors often have trouble ending jobs because they are more focused on starting the next one.

Yet it’s important to remember that you won’t get paid until you successfully complete the project punch list—and the sooner you do, the sooner you’ll receive payment on the final invoice, as well as the retention.

A thorough review should be built into your closing process. Look for unbilled amounts still outstanding from vendors. Look for unbilled change orders.
Another important part of the review process is to compare your actual costs to your budget. Based upon what you learn, you can make needed adjustments, which will help you be more profitable on future jobs.

Understand the Profit cycle

Since we’re half-way through the “Steps” let’s review the construction business profit cycle again. Within the first 4  Steps, there are multiple strategies to pursue. Decide which of them would provide the most ROI (return on investment) for your company and implement these.


Define Goals and Set Expectations 

You may wish to take some time to seriously consider and define your goals for your business. This will be your roadmap to follow. Once you’ve defined your own goals, then you’re in a good position to guide your employees’ and clients’ expectations and behavior to serve your vision and theirs.

Define Goals. Really take some time to consider what you want to achieve in your business. Do you define success by your bottom line? By company growth? Spending more time with family?

Here are some important things to keep in mind as you define success.

Too many companies define success in the short-term—an error that may ultimately damage your business. An emphasis on long-term planning and relationships over short-term gains will help ensure the ongoing success of your company.

We recommend some practical ways to define your goals that include use of a mission statement and complete business plans. Crafting a mission statement will help you systematically identify your values, your focus and what you hope to achieve. Business plans, on the other hand, require you to set realistic, detailed long-term management, financial and marketing goals and enable you to measure your success against them.

Set Expectations. Setting expectations will influence the behavior of your clients and your employees and result in more productive, long-term relationships. Consequently, you will be in a better position to achieve your own goals.

Clients. Repeat clients and referrals not only reduce your marketing expenses, but can dramatically increase your business volume and profitability. That’s why it’s so important to set expectations to influence your customer’s view of your work.

Here are some important tips for setting expectations:
Your clients need to know in advance that it’s typical to have additional costs 10% to 25% more than the original contract from change orders. A client who has a realistic expectation of change orders and resulting costs will be far more willing to work with you during the job—and pay for the additional work you do.

Don’t forget to ask for referrals. Use your company signs at each job. Inform the neighbors that you’ll be working in the area. Use each contact as an opportunity to do direct marketing for your business.

Sometimes, as difficult as it is, you may need to fire a bad client. Miserable clients, who have unrealistic expectations, make for unsatisfactory and highly unprofitable jobs.

Employees. Your employees also need to know your goals and expectations. Employees who have shared goals will be more effective in performing their jobs. Sharing profits can go a long way toward creating shared vision and goals. Find out what makes each of your employees happy—better wages? increased responsibilities? fewer work hours?—and use that information
as you work with them. Some employees are content to do the same job year in and year out.

Others look for additional responsibility. Let your employees know what advancement path is available to them—and encourage them to succeed at it.
Employees are far more satisfied when they are held accountable for tasks they can control. Be clear about who is responsible for what, and then hold those individuals accountable. For example, it is difficult to make the bookkeeper responsible for coding invoices to the correct cost codes if he
or she is not the project manager.

Create Performance Rewards

Money isn’t the be-all and end-all of motivation…but it certainly helps!
Creating performance rewards for your employees will motivate them to watch out for the bottom line. Here are three good ways to get started:

Setting profit-sharing goals based upon job responsibilities will help your employees feel in control over their contribution. Field personnel, for example, could be measured on job costs against budget, while office staff could be rewarded for decreased overhead costs.

Establish a range for bonuses. Setting a pre-determined percentage for all employees does not allow you to reward exemplary behavior. Employees will then have pocketbook feedback on how their work is viewed and evaluated.
Just because someone works really hard doesn’t mean they are working well. We all know the person who stays late every night and works every weekend, yet never seems to get all the work done. Don’t be fooled by effort—instead, look at each employee’s results.

Train Good Staff

Good training can improve process and profitability, which is why it’s crucial to remember that the right training is an investment, not an expense.

Why? Because replacing employees is expensive. Studies show that the costs associated with advertising, interviewing time and training can add up to almost half of that employee’s annual wages. The bottom line? You want to keep good employees right where they are—working for you.

Education helps everyone. Encourage your employees to look for sources of training and learning opportunities.

Create Written Procedures

Written procedures within a company are key to business profitability. Typically, companies create written procedures only after they lose money because something wasn’t done right. The better way is to create written procedures ahead of time and avoid the failures altogether.

Written procedures will provide a roadmap to new employees on how and when to do their work.

Defined procedures will save you time and money and will increase your profitability—not to mention save you training dollars. Consider these examples:

It only takes one instance of an incomplete lien release to understand how much money you can lose. Each state has different laws, and you must know the laws that affect you so that you can pass the knowledge along to your employees.

“Internal controls” is an accounting practice that can limit the risk of embezzlement. The bank statement must be opened by the owner. And someone other than the bookkeeper should reconcile the statement each month.

Since so much money is at risk on change orders, it is essential to have a good change order management procedure to ensure change orders are as profitable as they should be. Have written procedures for how each change order is started, completed and billed. Collecting time cards daily is essential to measuring your employees’ productivity. Remember that a weekly time card due on Monday morning will typically be filled out all at once on Monday morning—and will probably not be accurate.

Create a system that tracks the expiration of your subcontractors’ workers’ compensation. Why? Because if you pay a sub without it, you will be held liable for those dollars. Consider the story of the contractor who verified liability coverage before the subcontractor started the job, but by the time it
came to paying the sub, the policy had expired. The result: the contractor had to pay large sums of money to cover the sub.

Communicate

On most projects, there are several groups with whom you need to maintain regular contact.

Depending upon which group you fall into, these might be clients, general contractors or builders, subcontractors, employees, bonding agents, architects, engineers and inspectors. When you make communication with the various groups involved with your projects your top priority, you greatly increase the likelihood of having successful and profitable projects.

Communication with your employees, for example, is both valuable and necessary. Having regular staff meetings and recognizing and rewarding good work will help keep the lines of communication open. But be careful—you must also value your employees’ time by making staff meetings both short and powerful. Remember, too, that employees will often assume the worst when they are not informed. Job security creates commitment among your employees, which in turn, can lead to greater profitability.

To improve communications with various parties outside of your company, you should develop a system for producing and documenting professional-looking reports and notices. Providing documented reports, including approved change orders, bonding reports, job cost summaries, subcontractor notices, and lien releases will provide clear communication and prevent against any misunderstandings long after the job is completed.

Source: L Shiner

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Wednesday, July 26, 2017

Most effective skills managers and supervisor should have

Being a good manager or supervisor isn't just about knowing the ins and outs of a specific business, or being in the same industry for a certain number of years. There are some innate skills that separate good managers from those who are simply mediocre.

If you're vying for a manager position, or looking to do better in your current supervisory role, here are a few skills to hone.

1. Honesty

It's hard for employees to respect a boss they don't trust. That's why it pays to be as transparent as possible with the people who report to you. This means giving straightforward feedback and addressing employee concerns head-on without beating around the bush.

Based on my personal experience, giving direct feedback may shock some employees because it is their human nature of refusing to accept an unfavourable answer. However, I do have my strong reasons for arriving at such feedback.

Say an employee comes to you wondering why he didn't get a raise as expected. If you feed him a line about budget cuts when, in fact, other workers have been getting pay increases, you'll come off as deceitful.

On the other hand, if you offer up a legitimate, candid reason behind the decision, that employee might still be a bit miffed, but at least he'll respect you for being honest. You'll also be giving him an opportunity to improve, which will benefit both him and the entire team.

2. Diplomacy

Workplace clashes are often inevitable. Whether it's two members of your team butting heads over how to handle a project or another manager infringing on your turf, avoiding on-the-job conflict is easier said than done.

But it's how you handle those scenarios that will set you apart as a strong manager.

If you address the parties involved with respect and help them come to a compromise, you're more likely to come out ahead in the long run than you are if you push your own agenda. Similarly, if you're dealing with a conflict between two direct reports, you're better off mediating without actively taking sides so that you don't anger either party. It's not always easy to be diplomatic in a tense situation, but the more level-headed and respectful you come off, the better you'll maintain your relationships with those around you.

3. Time management

Given that there are only so many hours in a workday, it's natural for certain tasks or obligations to fall by the wayside. This especially holds true for managers, who are the most apt to get sucked into productivity-zapping meetings. A good manager, however, will know how to maximize his or her time so that the things that should take priority ultimately get done on schedule. Along these lines, strong managers are those who know how to stay focused and organized, even when pulled in what seems like a dozen different directions.

This requires the ability to say "no" to tasks that will distract you from more important objectives. You might take a cue from Warren Buffett, one of the greatest corporate leaders of our time, and put all lower-priority tasks on an "avoid at all costs" list.

Reminder to all Pasti Nyala staffs, does our Work Priority Quadrant make more sense now?

4. Delegation

If you're a manager or a supervisor, there's a reason you have multiple employees reporting to you. Getting the job done is often a team effort, but if you're the type who needs to have a hand in every task that gets done or decision that gets made, you'll lose sight of the big picture -- and annoy your reports with your micromanaging. A good manager knows when to delegate and when to step in directly.

Remember, delegating responsibilities to other people doesn't make you lazy; it makes you efficient. As long as you know when it's appropriate to relinquish control, doing so could free up time in your schedule for more important responsibilities -- namely, things your direct reports may not be in a position to do themselves.

A word of caution here, with Delegation, comes responsibility. Just because you can delegate, doesn't mean you must delegate. Delegate the job to your member only if you know he or she has the capability to do it. Example, don't delegate a heart surgery job to an engineer.

5. Team-building

Nothing keeps employees going like working together toward a common goal. 

One final thing that distinguishes the best managers from lesser leaders is the ability to keep a team motivated -- not only to do the best possible job, but also to have each other's backs.

Of course, creating this sort of environment often boils down to hiring the right group of people in the first place, but even once you've developed a strong team, your work doesn't stop there. Team-building needs to be an evolving, perpetual process, and if you're good at it, you're more likely to retain strong employees and deliver better results on a whole.

Tuesday, July 18, 2017

What does a good team mean

Try to build a good team. What does a good team mean? Below is a quote from one of Jack Ma's speech:

A good team does not mean you hire excellent people from Harvard or from a multinational or from Fortune 500 companies.

Hire the right people, not necessarily the best people. The way to get the best people is always you train them. There's no 'best people' in the market, the best people for you are always the ones you trained yourself. So, I say if you hire the people who are very good but not suitable to you, it's just like you are putting a Boeing 747 engine into a poor tractor. Neither of them is happy. The engine's not happy, the poor tractor's not happy. So find the right people.

Source: Jack Ma, Tech in Asia

For the case of Pasti Nyala, if we cannot find the right people or right talent, we might as well train and develop them into the right people, provided they are willing to learn, contribute and be part of the team.

Creating a good team is just a start. I want to make a great team. For my fellow team members, please instill the following pointers:

What makes a good team GREAT?
1. There must be a strong desire to win.
2. A team wants to be the best in every situation.
3. Respect for the leader and each member.
4. Supporting and helping each member and avoid unhappy people.
5. Honesty is integral to any great team.
6. Great teams think out of the box strategy.
7. Remaining calm under pressure.
8. A team needs to take responsibility.
9. A team willing to take calculated risks.
10. ADAPTABILITY to learn and to change.



Suggested reading: Jack Ma's factor


Saturday, July 8, 2017

Innovation in the Workplace

There was a time when the concept of creativity was only associated with writers, painters, musicians and similar people in artistic professions. But with the ever-increasing necessity of cultivating a unique brand personality, the need for creative thinking has transitioned from the arts into everyday business.

In addition, the act of producing a product that distinguishes itself from competitors in a marketplace where differences are often hard to come by demands a high degree of creativity both in innovation and marketing.

As a result, it's now become commonplace for companies - both large and small - to adopt policies that foster creativity and thereby promote innovation.

But what is meant by creativity? And how can it be harnessed effectively?

Defining the Creative Environment

Creativity is the mental and social process used to generate ideas, concepts and associations that lead to the exploitation of new ideas. Or to put it simply: innovation. Through the creative process, employees are tasked with exploring the profitable outcome of an existing or potential endeavor, which typically involves generating and applying alternative options to a company's products, services and procedures through the use of conscious or unconscious insight. This creative insight is the direct result of the diversity of the team - specifically, individuals who possess different attributes and perspectives.

It's important to note that innovation is usually not a naturally-occurring phenomenon. Like a plant, it requires the proper nutrients to flourish, including effective strategies and frameworks that promote divergent levels of thinking. For example, by supporting an open exchange of ideas among employees at all levels, organizations are able to inspire personnel and maintain innovative workplaces.

Therefore supervisors must manage for the creative process and not attempt to manage the creativity itself, as creativity typically does not occur exclusively in an individual's head but is the result of interaction with a social context where it's codified, interpreted and assimilated into something new.

Within this system, incentives are paramount - ranging from tangible rewards such as monetary compensation to the intangible, including personal satisfaction and social entrepreneurship.

How to Set Up a Creative Work Space to Foster Innovation

Establishing a creative environment takes more than just turning your employees loose and giving them free reign in the hope they'll hit on something valuable. As with any other system, the process of creativity requires the proper framework to operate effectively, which also enables management to evaluate the profitability of the results.

Popular approaches to fostering innovation through creativity include:

Create a stimulating environment. Offices that include stimulating objects such as journals (Pasti Nyala has Knowledge-Based Board and Blog, but the response at the moment is rather lackluster), art, games (mostly played during our Team Outing) and other items - some of which may not even be directly related to your business - serve as sources of inspiration. In addition, structuring the work area by removing physical barriers between people will improve communication and promote creative interaction.

Reward efforts through positive psychological reinforcement. Encourage your employees to take risks, rewarding them for creative ideas and not penalizing them when they fail. In doing so, you'll enable people to more readily take on assignments that stretch their potential (and that of your organization), discussing in advance any foreseeable risks and creating the necessary contingency plan. Encourage employees at all levels to contribute suggestions for improving current business operations. Our in-house IMS is in placed ever ready for their submission.

Foster different points of view through outside perspectives. Innovation can often spring from a review of how your customers view and use your products and services. Soliciting their opinions can provide valuable insight into potential areas for improvement as well as areas where you're succeeding (essential knowledge for positioning against competitors). Other perspectives might include: vendors, speakers from other industries or consumers using a competitor's products or services.

Source: businessdictionary

Thursday, July 6, 2017

Creating Innovative Solution to a Problem

In today's marketplace, the practice of innovation isn't just about creating new products. It's about discovering completely new markets that meet previously unknown and therefore untapped customer needs. 

For example:
The drone was first developed for an aerial surveillance. Then it was redeveloped by the Military for tactical purpose. Then it was re-innovate for hobbyists for aerial photography.Read also Innovating Fireworks with Drone Show 

And in the age of Internet commerce, the act of innovation becomes an even greater challenge, awash in a sea of new ideas. Therefore the drive toward selecting and executing the right ideas and bringing them to market before your competitors take on an urgency that has been previously unknown, yet is sure to increase in the rapidity of its scale in the years ahead.

As a result, the driving forces behind innovation - previously technology and control of quality and cost - have shifted away from issues of efficiency and are now solely focused on the creativity and growth of the organization toward a future state of competitiveness.

A perfect example can be seen in the process of mobile payment via smartphone. Mobile payment has provided the ultimate convenience to shoppers by preventing them from having to carry around credit cards and other means of payment. Though it has yet to become the norm for many businesses, mobile payment's proliferation among startups is evidence of the desire to reach consumers through expediency and ease of use.

Five Steps to an Innovative Solution

Regardless of the size and scope of your organization, customer-centered companies looking to innovate for the modern consumer might consider the following approach:

1. Figure out the problem you're trying to solve

As with just about any first step, this one is crucial. Make sure you're trying to solve the right problem and don't try to provide a fix for something that isn't a priority in the eyes of your consumer. Do this by asking the right questions and observing, either in focus groups or by evaluating competitive companies, products and their customers. Asking simple questions like 'what does XYZ company do better than us?' or 'what's missing from our product or service that would make it better?' can go a long way towards defining your direction at this stage.

2. Analyze the problem

In this stage, you want to turn the problem upside down and inside out, extracting every variable and value that causes it (and remedies it). Focus on how often the problem occurs, how severe it is, potential causes, and what if any special circumstances impact it. Another primary focus should be on the timeframe of the problem. How long has it been occurring? Has it been getting worse with time and, if not, are there factors that could cause it to do so in the future?

3. Classify the decision criteria

Clearly defining the desires that lead to purchase intent, here you want to identify any and every decision that factors into the decision-making process. Which of these criteria is most important? Will the decision be based solely on existing standards or are there any unique values that can be used.

4. Come up with more than one solution

There is no substitute for variety and the goal at this stage is to not leave a more valuable solution on the table. Therefore, don't stop at the first solution you come up with. Instead, evaluate any alternative scenarios as objectively as possible, assessing the pros and cons of each to ensure that the solution you're pursuing is the most competitive and thereby profitable one.

5. Pick the best solution

After you've evaluated all the options and values gleaned from steps one through four, you have to choose the most customer-centric solution to move forward with, developing a base of support within your organization and preparing for any internal or external contingencies.

Of course for conceptualizing an entirely new innovative idea, the staffs of Pasti Nyala are encouraged to submit it to our in-house IMS.

Source: businessdictionary

Wednesday, July 5, 2017

123.47 Data Glitch

A system problem (excluding hardware related issues) typically confined to an Application problem (or Program Glitch or program bug) or Data Problem (in this case Data Glitch).

A stock market data error that occurred on Jul 02, 2017 set an undetermined number of companies listed on the US Nasdaq exchange to a share price of $123.47, sending some tech companies’ stock prices crashing and others’ soaring.

In a statement from Nasdaq said the culprit was “improper use of test data” that was picked up by third party financial data providers. The exchange said it was “working with third party vendors to resolve this matter.”


Improper use of test data could likely be:
1. a hard-coded value or parameters
2. a hard-coded business logic in the program
3. a hard-coded debugging logic set by the program developer
4. a test data or dummy data inserted manually by the developer into the production database. This act bypassed the expected data validation and doesn't ensure data integrity.

So to all Pasti Nyala developers, take note of the following:
1. avoid hard-coded values unless it is a preset lower limit or upper limit
2. debugging logic is meant for use during testing stage
3. above all, avoid back-door data manipulation (e.g using DB tools to insert rows, or update rows). Data must be created or maintained by a tested program.




Tuesday, June 27, 2017

Emerging Technologies

A study highlighted most relevant emerging technologies that will drive digital transformation are artificial intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT), next generation computing experiences, quantum computing and wearable technologies. Is Pasti Nyala ready? Are you ready?

We have been developing traditional information systems but these days due to the face paced digital transformation, there are disruptive systems being rolled out every day.

Digital transformation is actually about what kind of problems you are going to solve, how effective are your manufacturing lines or whether automation will be a better option for production or how to you capitalize your data not only for historical analysis but also for predictive analysis.

Organisations that do not evolve fast enough will be less competitive or even obsolete as they face disruptions in every industry. Among the barriers that are hindering digital transformation are the lack of digitally skilled workers and for the case of Pasti Nyala, having a workforce with the right talents. 

Wednesday, June 21, 2017

How to deal with a potential customer

There are no fast rules or slow rules when dealing with a potential customer. Sometimes, experience and situation played some parts as well.

First, I would like to share a few expectations:
1.  The first meet-up is the hardest, awkward and a total mystery. Sometimes you just don't know what to expect. Just be prepared and expect the unexpected.

2. Not all potential customers are going to convert into paying customer.  They could be not ready to buy or you are not convincing enough.

3. Don't get starstruck. A big corporation would be nice to have as a marquee client, but don't lose perspective. Those kinds of prospects often demand extensive proposals, they have high expectation, take longer to make decisions and expect highly competitive bids. 

Here some guides when dealing with a potential customer. Fine tuned them as you get more involved.

1.  Don’t Come on Too Strong – Respect Your Prospect

It’s very important to be respectful of a customer’s mood when trying to propose your products or services.  Keeping your patience is key to giving your prospect the time to air out their preferences or requirements.  The more comfortable the customer is the more likely they’ll share valuable feedback or info that can help you in a preparing a solid proposal.

2. Always Listen – Hear What Your Prospects are Saying

At a time when it’s easy to have a two-way dialogue with your prospects, it’s important to truly listen. Some people are reluctant to share or reveal their problem to a stranger. So whenever the prospects brought up his problem, do take note. It will be easier to come out with the solution if you know the problem.  

3. Continue to Satisfy – Offer Follow-up and Support  

The #1 reason for customer attrition is dissatisfaction with customer service. Do everything in your power to provide excellent service to your customers or prospects on an ongoing basis.  

There’s never any reason to slow down on satisfying your audience, especially when they’re chatting with you live over the phone or gave your their valuable time for a meeting. It’s important to note that 81% of companies with strong capabilities and competencies for delivering customer experience excellence are outperforming their competition. Take note, customer satisfaction is a key differentiator in a sea of other companies.

4. Treat a Prospect Like a Valued Partner – Communication is Two Way

As previously mentioned, take your prospect’s feedback seriously even though they are no yet your customer and act upon reasonable requests. What’s the point of listening if you’re not going to act on that feedback or request? Make sure it’s clear that you want your customer’s feedback and that your business truly values them as a partner.

If you’re looking for an example of how to show your customer that their opinion matters, look at what the Buffer app team is doing. Buffer app is a social media management tool that helps businesses and individuals schedule their content for the best times to share and get engagement. The Buffer blog features a variety of quality content focused on marketing, achieving happiness, and a monthly series known as the Happiness Report.

5. Follow Through on Your Word – Follow Up on Promises

Your word is your bond. Following up on your promises helps show the transparency of your business while helping to build a feeling of trust and dependability with your audience.

Manage the expectations of your customers to ensure realistic goals are set and can be met. By remaining consistent in your messaging, your customers will learn what they should expect from you in the future.
F.W. Nichol said it best, “When you get right down to the root of the meaning of the word “succeed,” you find that it simply means to follow through.” Or locally, there is a term called "Jangan cakap tak serupa bikin".

6. Impress when possible

Some prospects are very particular with your capabilities. They want to know if you know your stuff before they part with their money.  If they asked for an opinion, share with them your experience and track record and how do you solve a similar problem before. And when it comes to technology, let them know that we are also constantly learning and improving to catch up with technology advancement. That should give them some comfort that we want to maintain our competency.


7. Always Say “Thank You” – Kindness and Gratitude will Take You Far

Last, but certainly not least, always say “Thank you.” As many as 3 out of 4 customers say they have spent more with a company because of a history of positive experiences. Kindness and gratitude for a customer’s business is an undeniable way to further enchant them for the long term.

Thanks them for their time even if there are not buying your product.

8. Lastly, keep calm and be ohsome



Tuesday, June 6, 2017

Keep Calm and Be Ohsome

Every now and then, I get a message that my staff has an outburst with the client, supervisor and fellow colleagues. Yeah, sometimes I feel that I'm the Head Of Complaint Department in Pasti Nyala.

If you were at the receiving end, did you insist or demand? Are you being pushy in the first place? Being aggressive can create friction and trigger the other party outburst. Or you were reminded of certain tasks and you gave excuses of not delivering it on time or with the expected result. Did you know that every time you slack out, your supervisor get increasingly frustrated with your performance?

If you were the one that blows up, my advice is to recall what happened and how it could have been avoided, only if you were patience then. There's no point being stress out and blurted out bad words, cause human tend to remember negative things. It gives a bad impression. And from my past experience, NO PRESSURE NO DIAMOND.  Google that by the way. It wouldn't be work if there is no pressure. Pressure keep you on your toes and that's the best way to learn quickly.


I have been in so many stressful fire fighting (resolving crisis after crisis) situations. Have rescued a few bad projects. All due to people issue (like management issues, planning issue, incompetent team mates, etc). Don't let the pressure consume you, just deal the issues one at a time.

Below is an article that suggests some excellent ways to keep your composure at work.

Leaders need to show more composure than ever before in the workplace.   With the change management requirements, increased marketplace demands and intensifying competitive factors that surround us, leaders must have greater poise, agility and patience to minimize the impact of uncertainty.   How leaders respond to these and other growing pressures is an indicator of their leadership preparedness, maturity and acumen.

The composure of a leader is reflected in their attitude, body language and overall presence. In today’s evolving business environment, it is clear that leadership is not only about elevating the performance, aptitude and development of people – but more so about the ability to make people feel safe and secure. Employees have grown tired of working in survival mode and thus want to be part of a workplace culture where they can get back to doing their best work without the fear of losing their jobs.

I worked with a colleague that lacked composure and was always in a panic. Though he had tremendous credentials, he lacked the ability to remain calm and thus often made his employees feel uneasy. His leadership role was just too big for what he was capable of handling. He was often too dramatic and the smallest of problems launched him into crisis management mode.

Needless to say, his wasn’t an effective leadership that could deal with real crisis and change. Because he was unable to reinvent himself and adapt to the unexpected, his tenure was short-lived.

The 21st century leader sees adversity through the lens of opportunity.

Rather than panic, a leader with composure takes a step back and begins to connect the dots of opportunity within adverse circumstances. These types of leaders quickly detect the causes of adversity and solve for them immediately.

They then enable the opportunities previously unseen that could have avoided the adversity, to begin with. Many times crisis results when composure is missing.

The next time a problem arises, ask yourself if you or your leader could have shown a greater sense of composure and avoided the problem from surfacing.

When leading – especially during times of uncertainty and adversity, crisis and change – you must avoid showing any signs of leadership immaturity or lack of preparedness that will make your employees feel unsafe and insecure. Here are seven ways to maintain leadership composure during the most pressure-packed moments:

1.  Don’t Allow Your Emotions to Get in the Way

Seasoned leaders know not to wear their emotions on their sleeves. They don’t yell or get overly animated when times get tough.  These types of leaders have such emotional self-control that even their body language does not give them away.

When you allow your emotions to get in the way, employees interpret this as a sign you are not being objective enough and too passionate about the situation at hand.  Strong-willed leaders can maintain their composure and still express concern and care, but not to the point that their emotions become a distraction – or that they can’t responsibly handle the issues at hand.

2.  Don’t Take Things Personally

Leaders shouldn’t take things personally when things don’t go their way.   Business decisions and circumstances don’t always play out logically because office politics and other dynamics factor into the process.    As a leader, remain calm and don’t get defensive or think that you always must justify your thinking and actions.

When you begin to take things personally, it’s difficult to maintain your composure and make those around you believe that you have things under control.  In fact, when leaders take issues too close to heart, they allow the noise and politics around them to suffocate their thinking and decision-making capabilities.

3.  Keep a Positive Mental Attitude

Employees are always watching their leader’s actions, behavior, relationships and overall demeanor.   During the most difficult of times, leaders must maintain a positive mental attitude and manage a narrative that keeps their employees inspired and hopeful.  This is where your leadership experience and resolve  can really shine – by staying strong, smiling often and authentically exhibiting a sense of compassion.

Leaders set the tone for the organization they serve.   A positive attitude can neutralize chaos and allow a leader to course correct through any negativity.

Employees feed off the attitude of these leaders during times of uncertainty.   Keep a positive mental attitude and never stop moving forward.  Stay focused on building positive momentum for the betterment of the healthier whole.

4.  Remain Fearless

When leaders project confidence, they instill it in others.  During uncertain times, leaders must remain fearless and project a cool persona that communicates composure to those they lead.

I’ve been through ups and downs in my career and have learned that when you begin to fear adverse circumstances, you not only put yourself in a position of vulnerability, but it becomes extremely difficult to act rationally and objectively. When you panic, you mentally freeze and your mind loses focus.

When you begin to get fearful, ask yourself:  What is the worst possible thing that can happen?  If you are objective about it and have the will and confidence to face it, you will eventually realize that the situation is manageable and can be resolved.  Faced with adversity several times over, your fears will eventually vanish and uncertainty will become your best friend.

5.  Respond Decisively

Leaders who maintain their composure will never show any signs of doubt.  They speak with conviction, confidence and authority – whether they know the answer or not!  With their delivery alone,  they give their employees a sense that everything is under control.

Recently, Mack Brown, the former coach of the University of Texas (UT) football team, was put under a lot of pressure to resign as a result of his team underperforming in 2013.  Though the University handled his forced resignation poorly  – considering Mr. Brown had coached the team successfully for the past 16 years – his decisiveness the day he announced his resignation made you feel that his transition out of the job was a positive thing for the university.  Human nature will tell you that he must have been hurting inside, but his decisiveness and presence of mind made those that were watching him speak believe that the future looked bright for UT football.

6.  Take Accountability

Leaders are most composed during times of crisis and change when they are fully committed to resolving the issue at hand.   When you are accountable, this means that you have made the decision to assume responsibility and take the required steps to problem solve before the situation gets out of hand.

When leaders assume accountability, they begin to neutralize the problem and place the environment from which it sprung on pause – much like New Jersey Governor Chris Christie did when he announced that he did not have any prior knowledge of the decision his aides made to close down access lanes to the George Washington Bridge.  Though there may be legal woes to come, the manner in which he handled the initial news conference (temporarily) neutralized the crisis – as he answered all of the reporters’ questions and took full responsibility and accountability to punish the perpetrators and keep something like this from happening again.

7.  Act Like You Have Been There Before

Great leaders know that one of the most effective ways to maintain composure during difficult times is to act like you have been there before.   Leaders that act to show they have been through the problem solving process numerous times before are those with strong executive presence who approach the matter at hand with a sense of elegance and grace. They are patient, they are active listeners, and they will genuinely take a compassionate approach to ease the hardships that anyone else is experiencing.

Just ask any technical support representative.  When you are on the phone with them, their job is to make you feel that even your most difficult challenges can be easily resolved. They are there to calm you down and give you hope that your problem will soon be solved. Pay attention to their demeanor and how they are masters at soothing your frustrations.  They always act to show that they have been there before; their composure puts your mind at ease.

It’s easy to lose composure during times of crisis and change if you let concern turn into worry and worry turn into fear.  By maintaining composure, the best leaders remain calm, cool and in control – enabling them to step back, critically evaluate the cards that they have been dealt and face problems head-on.  A show of composure also puts those you lead at ease and creates a safe and secure workplace culture where no one need panic in the face of adversity.

As the saying goes, “Keep Calm and Be Ohsome!"

Source: Forbes

Recommend reading
- How MAS Steward’s Responses To Annoying Passengers -  a reminder for us all to reflect on ourselves, so we won’t become one of those annoying individuals. He also got admiration for his positive working attitude.