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WhenInManila.com launched!

Saturday, September 26, 2009 / Vince Golangco

Dear friends,

My newest project, a site called WhenInManila.com just launched!

If you are wondering why it’s called “When In Manila” The line was referenced from the old saying: “When In Rome, Do As The Romans Do.” So, “When in Manila….” It is our way of saying that if you want to fully enjoy the Philippines and all its wonders, the best way is to immerse yourself into the culture of the Filipinos. From the food, the music, the culture & lifestyle, as well as all the quirks!

When In Manila began as a fun thing for us (It still is!). Our host, Vince Golangco, came back from the US for a visit and started writing about his misadventures here in the Philippines. We thought it would be fun to shoot and follow him around while he gets in trouble, all while re-discovering the Philippines.

Aside from that, we also saw an opportunity to showcase the Philippines, from crazy personalities to mouth-watering restaurants, adrenalin-filled adventures to beautiful sceneries, cool hole-in-the-wall bars to the best dance clubs and so much more! We decided on showing all these through videos because there’s just so much more awesomeness here that can’t be captured with mere words or pictures.

In 2008, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and other Asian countries around this region reported over 15 million visitors each! The Philippines on the other hand, barely had 3 million. What tourists, and the world, may not know is that the Philippines is just as beautiful as Indonesia, just as friendly as Malaysia and just as affordable as Thailand. Though the best part of it for tourists is that most everyone in the Philippines speaks English! Here, getting lost in translation is just one less thing travelers will have to worry about. So we’re a firm believer that the Philippines is still a hidden gem that many jet setters have yet to discover. We’re hoping to change all that.

When In Manila is the first and only online travel / lifestyle video blog from the Philippines. It hopes to highlight the wonderful people, places and events in Manila and around the entire archipelago. We plan to feature the best of the best from all 7,107 islands. This travel show promises to indulge and immerse you into a culture of smiles, a country of fun and a crazy host who can’t seem to keep himself out of trouble.

What started out as a fun weekend project quickly ignited a whole new platform for creativity; our other show, WIM News, presented itself as an outlet for both raising awareness and humor. The alternative news reports were created as a means of shedding light onto controversial topics, with a little spice to it. It was a way to laugh about the serious issues, just enough to educate more people about current events while bringing a smile to our audiences as well.

We hope you would enjoy the show and have as much fun as we had while shooting it!

Got a place you want WhenInManila.com to visit? Want to join the WIM Newscast as a “political correspondent” or as a writer? Email us at talk@wheninmanila.com

Don’t forget to leave your comments about show! Please share this with your friends and ask your friends to pass it on!
Thank you for your support!

A Gift to Yourself… the Secret to Life

Wednesday, September 16, 2009 / Vince Golangco

A Gift to Yourself… the Secret to Life

Say it with me now!

Today is the beginning of my new life

I am starting over today

All good things are coming to me today

I am grateful to be alive

I see beauty all around me

I live with passion and purpose

I take time to laugh and play everyday

I am awake, energized and alive

I focus on all the good things in life

And give thanks for them

I am at peace and one with everything

I feel the love, the joy, the abundance

I am free to be myself

I am magnificence in human form

I am the perfection of life

I am grateful to be…

ME.

Today is the best day of my life!

–

To all of you who feel like giving up – Nick Vujacic

Monday, September 14, 2009 / Vince Golangco

Nick Vujacic puts a smile on my face and tears in my eyes! He is such an inspiration to me!

The way speaks and relates to his audiance is amazing and his teachings are from the heart and that is important! He is real and there is no body that can deny that! So to Nick, I just wanna say that you have inspired me and that fire inside of you is seen and from you I have learned that anything is possible, and you can’t lose faith in yourself. Thank you!! Your story really speaks to me!!

–

Creativity

Monday, August 24, 2009 / Vince Golangco

–

The Five Stages of Innovation

Saturday, August 22, 2009 / Vince Golangco

–

The Five Stages of Innovation

1. People deny that the innovation is required.

2. People deny that the innovation is effective.

3. People deny that the innovation is important.

4. People deny that the innovation will justify the effort required to adopt it.

5. People accept and adopt the innovation, enjoy its benefits, attribute it to people other than the innovator, and deny the existence of stages 1 to 4.

Do You Understand the Realities of a Start Up? by Guy Kawasaki

Saturday, July 25, 2009 / Vince Golangco

Do You Understand the Realities of a Start Up?
Guy Kawasaki (How to Change the World)

Jun 15, 2009 – By the time we hear about a startup, it’s usually successful: thousands of customers and venture capitalists throwing money at it plus free food, foosball tables, and company-sponsored back rubs. You can get the impression that startups work like this: (1) you come up with a clever idea, (2) you work on it for a few months with your buddies, (3) customers love it, and (4) it’s off to “infinity and beyond.”

The reason that journalists and bloggers write about startups that fit this stereotype is that they are so rare. If most of them worked out like this, the rare success story wouldn’t be news because it’s so common. If you’re considering a startup, review this checklist of the realities that you’ll face:

1. Average people want to make money. Good people want to do something cool. Great people want to change the world. Therefore, if you want to attract great people, your goal should be to change the world.

2. Great people are often freaky and different from “normal.” If you restrict your hiring to people have the perfect, relevant, blemish-free background, you’ll miss out on some of the best catches. You need to hire to gain strengths not to avoid weaknesses.

3. Great products take time and adding more people to a project doesn’t reduce the time. If you succeed, you won’t even remember when you first shipped a product. If you fail, it won’t matter when you shipped.

4. Everybody has to fix version 1. There’s no such thing as a perfect first version of a product—the best case is you ship a very good first attempt that the market adopts despite its flaws. Actually, there is more danger that the market will pass you by as you “perfect” your product than you ship something that permanently tarnishes your image.

5. Every good CEO is scared stiff. If you or your CEO isn’t worried, you’ve got a bozo in charge. Besides not knowing if the product is good, if customers will like it enough to pay for it, if the competition isn’t going to slay you, and if you’ll run out of money before you generate sales, there’s no reason to worry about anything.

6. Ideas are easy; implementation is hard. The “Eureka!” moment of a startup is vastly over-rated if not downright imagined. The hard part isn’t coming up with the idea—it’s implementing the idea and making money doing it.

7. “Hard” is not the opposite of “fun.” Many people think that startups are fun: sitting around inventing the future with cool, beautiful people. The reality is that startups are brutally hard because there’s cushion in case you fail. However, “hard” is “fun” for the right people. Indeed, “easy” is only “fun” for a short while.

8. The future doesn’t get better—it only gets different. The future is seldom what it’s cracked up to be—yes, you look forward to that day when you’re shipping, revenue is rolling in, and you’re finally “done.” The truth is that when that “better” day arrives, the challenges simply change, not go away, because that’s when you start dealing with angry customers, returns, copycats, and impatient investors.

9. Competition starts at $50 million. The startup game gets truly interesting when you reach the $50 million in annual sales milestone. That’s when you’re too big to be small, and too small to be big. That’s when you’re worth competing with and when people start expecting a lot from you.

10. The truth will set you free. The most valuable commodity in a startup is the truth—the truth about what your product can and cannot do, what its shortcomings and strengths are, and what you do and do not know. Telling the truth takes a lot less energy too because there is only one truth whereas there are many lies to keep straight.

A startup is a beautiful thing, but as with many beautiful things, you need to know what you’re getting into. These ten realities will help you truly understand, and appreciate, what you’re getting into.

Original article – https://www.openforum.com/idea-hub/topics/the-world/article?postguid=98eeac05-28d8-4742-875a-01987cbc50eb

– WOW! Guy Kawasaki is a great guy to get advice from! #1 is definitely my favorite!!!

Morgan Stanley’s most popular research report by Matthew Robson

Tuesday, July 21, 2009 / Vince Golangco

Morgan Stanley releases research paper titled “Media & Internet: How Teenagers Consume Media” that talks about why teens snub twitter, how they enjoy viral marketing and how they won’t spend for anything other than movie and concert tickets as entertainment. This could well be one of Morgan Stanley’s most popular and publicized papers of recent times.

Oh…. and did I mention that it was written by a 15-YEAR-OLD!!!!!!

Well, at least we know that this one 15 year old kid, Matthew Robson, probably won’t have problems finding a job when he needs one…

Morgan Stanley Research Paper by Matthew Robson here

One Small Step for Man, One Happy Ending for Mr. Gorsky…

Monday, July 20, 2009 / Vince Golangco

40 years after man’s historic landing on the moon… and here’s one of the coolest stories I read outside of all the other historical achievements.

On July 20, 1969, commander of the Apollo 11 Lunar Module, Neil Armstrong was the first person to set foot on the moon. His first words after stepping on the moon, “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind”, were televised to Earth and heard by millions. But just before he re-entered the lander, he made the enigmatic remark:

“Good luck, Mr. Gorsky.” Many people at NASA thought it was a casual remark concerning some rival Soviet Cosmonaut. However, upon checking, there was no Gorsky in either the Russian or American space programs. Over the years many people questioned Armstrong as to what the “Good luck Mr. Gorsky” statement meant, but Armstrong always just smiled. On July 5, 1995, in Tampa Bay, Florida, while answering questions following a speech, a reporter brought up the 26 year old question to Armstrong. This time he finally responded. Mr. Gorsky had died and so Neil Armstrong felt he could answer the question.

In 1938 when he was a kid in a small Midwest town, he was playing baseball with a friend in the backyard. His friend hit a fly ball, which landed in his neighbor’s yard by the bedroom windows. His neighbors were Mr. and Mrs. Gorsky.

As he leaned down to pick up the ball, young Armstrong heard Mrs. Gorsky shouting at Mr. Gorsky. “A bj! You want a bj?! You’ll get a damn bjwhen the kid next door walks on the moon!”

Upon further research, I unfortunately found out that this story is mere fiction. But still a very fun and inspiring read! What impossible feat will you accomplish in your lifetime??!!?!? =)

The Invitation

Thursday, July 16, 2009 / Vince Golangco

The Invitation

It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for,
and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.It doesn’t interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool
for love, for your dreams,
for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn’t interest me what planets are squaring your moon.
I want to know if you have touched
the centre of your own sorrow,
if you have been opened by life’s betrayals
or have become shrivelled and closed from fear of further pain.

I want to know if you can sit with pain,
mine or your own, without moving to hide it
or fade it or fix it.

I want to know if you can be with joy mine or your own.
if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy
fill you to the tips of your fingers
and toes without cautioning us
to be careful, be realistic,
remember the limitations of being human.

It doesn’t interest me if the story you are telling me is true.
I want to know if you can disappoint another
to be true to yourself.
If you can bear the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless and therefore trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not pretty every day,
and if you can source your own life from its presence.

I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine,
and still stand at the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,“Yes.”

It doesn’t interest me to know where you live,
or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up after the night of grief and despair,
weary and bruised to the bone,
and do what needs to be done to feed the children.

It doesn’t interest me who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the centre of the fire with me and not shrink back.

It doesn’t interest me where or what
or with whom you have studied.
I want to know what sustains you from the inside
when all else falls away.

I want to know if you can be alone with yourself,
and if you truly like the company
you keepin the empty moments.

– Oriah

Optimist Creed

Wednesday, July 8, 2009 / Vince Golangco

Promise Yourself:

To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.

To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet.

To make all your friends feel that there is something worthwhile in them.

To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.

To think only of the best, to work only for the best and to expect only the best.

To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.

To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.

To wear a cheerful expression at all times and give a smile to every living creature you meet.

To give so much time to improving yourself that you have no time to criticize others.

To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.

To think well of yourself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud word, but in great deeds.

To live in the faith that the whole world is on your side, so long as you are true to the best that is in you.

The Rules of Being Human

Thursday, July 2, 2009 / Vince Golangco

I got this AMAZING quote from a site, www.CreativeGrowth.com

So here it is, without delaying any further …

You will receive a body. You may like it or hate it, but it will be yours for the entire period this time around.

You will learn lessons. You are enrolled in a fulltime informal school called life. Each day in this school you will have the opportunity to learn lessons. You may like the lessons or think them irrelevant and stupid.

There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of trial and error, experimentation. The “failed” experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiment that ultimately “works.”

A lesson is repeated until learned. A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you have learned it, you can go on to the next lesson.

Learning lessons does not end. There is no part of life that does not contain its lessons. If you are alive there are lessons to be learned.

“There” is no better than “here.” When your “there” has become a “here” you will simply obtain another “there” that will again look better than “here.”

Others are merely mirrors of you. You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects to you something you love or hate about yourself.

What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. The choice is yours.

Your answers lie inside you. The answer to life’s questions lie inside you. All you need to do is look, listen, and trust.

This will often be forgotten, only to be remembered again.

(Cherie Carter-Scott)

I am NOT my Job

Sunday, June 21, 2009 / Vince Golangco

The world we live in has a very bad habit.

It tends to judge each one of us by the jobs we hold.

We are today critiqued by the titles on our business cards.

Well I’d like to make one thing clear… I AM NOT MY JOB!!!

I am a human being with many other aspirations, ideals, passions and values.

Please do not think that my most important quality is is that I am a vice president, a manager, a director, an assistant or an intern.

I am not bound to the constraints of my livelihood.

I am more than just a janitor, a cashier, a salesman, a secretary, an architect, a teacher, a journalist, an actor, a marketer, a waiter, a writer or any other caption you may tag me as.

My value is not in my job.

My value is not my job.

My value is in my heart and in my mind.

I’d love to share it with you, if you could look beyond my business card.

Sunday Bloody Book Review 6 – “THE ONE MINUTE MANAGER” by Ken Blanchard, Ph.D & Spencer Johnson

Sunday, May 17, 2009 / Vince Golangco

Sunday Bloody Book Review 6 –

“The One Minute Manager” by Ken Blanchard, Ph.D & Spencer Johnson

This book is not about becoming a leader or a manager in one minute; instead, it is about how a manager can achieve big results in very little time.

The authors, Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson talk about the three basic secrets that a one minute manager should follow: One minute Goals, Praising and Reprimand. The authors also stresses on the fact that ‘people’ are the most important resource in any industry.

Written in the form of a story, the book meets its purpose of putting across the basic motives of a manager in very simple but powerful words. What Kenneth Blanchard and Spencer Johnson has written has already become a management masterpiece with the book being made a compulsory reading in many industries in the US and Japan.

This book is your magic mantra to what can be achieved in ONE MINUTE !

Excerpts from the book The One Minute Manager:

People who feel good about themselves produce good results. But let me frame it another way, Ignite your positives of today making them your everyday display, don’t allow negatives to decoy.
A winner is not one who never fails, but one who never quits! Winner never quit, quitters never win.
Help people attain their goal, get them accomplish the right thing.
Praise people immediately, help them reach their full potential. Catch them doing something right.

I only have three rating scales for my book reviews-

1. Must read
2. OK read but you’ll live without it
3. Don’t bother

This book, The One Minute Manager is a MUST READ! The power of the minute is evident and more important than ever! Time is gold and being able to be an efficient and effective leader is more important than ever!

Sunday Bloody Book Review 5 – “THE 4-HOUR WORKWEEK” by Timothy Ferriss

Sunday, May 10, 2009 / Vince Golangco

Sunday Bloody Book Review 5 –

“The 4-Hour Workweek (Escape 9 – 5, Live Anywhere and Join the New Rich)” by Timothy Ferriss

One of the most forward-thinking books I have read. It discusses, what author Timothy Ferriss calls, the “New Rich” and what is important to this new generation.

The New Rich values time instead of money, so we do what we can to automate our lives in order to spend our time doing things we actually enjoy. We can spend our valuable time with family instead of being at pointless meetings. We can be learning how to dance the tango instead of sitting in a cubicle from 9 – 5. We can be traveling for months or even years instead of only taking a few weeks of “vacation time” from your company.

This book will set you free and will help your entrepreneurial spirits flourish. With very practical sections after each chapter on exactly what resources are available, you are sure to find new ways of automating your life while earning residual income to live the lifestyle you’ve always wanted to. Imagine just working four hours a week… =)

Excerpts from the The Four-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss:

Parkinson’s Law dictates that a task will swell in (perceived) importance and complexity in relation to the time allotted for its completion. It is the magic of the imminent deadline. If I give you 24 hours to complete a project, the time pressure forces you to focus on execution, and you have no choice but to do only the bare essentials.
Pareto created a formula demonstrating that 80 percent of the income in society is produced and owned by 20 percent of the population. This highly debated principle, known as Pareto’s law, also applies in other situations. For instance, 80 percent of company profits typically come from 20 percent of the products and customers.

I only have three rating scales for my book review-

1. Must read
2. OK read but you’ll live without it
3. Don’t bother

The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss is a MUST READ MUST READ MUST READ!!! Sorry… but I love this book. It’s a very different approach to life and living. Make the most out of your life and escape that cubicle you’re stuck in! Read the 4-Hour Workweek now!

the-4-hour-workweek-by-timothy-ferriss

Sunday Bloody Book Review 4 – “SECRETS OF POWER NEGOTIATING” by Roger Dawson

Sunday, May 3, 2009 / Vince Golangco

Sunday Bloody Book Review 4 –

“Secrets of Power Negotiating (Inside Secrets from a Master Negotiator)” by Roger Dawson

You will never realize how important negotiation skills are until you read this book. The author, Roger Dawson, is one of the country’s top negotiating experts and a leading speaker on sales and management.

Everyday, you are constantly negotiating. You negotiate with your friends on where to go eat dinner, you negotiate with your professors for your class grades, you negotiate any time you need to reach an agreement with another person, and you negotiate every time you want something to be done your way.

This book bears with it essential tools needed to be a better at making all parties happy; whether choosing to watch the movie Iron Man over some chick flick your girlfriend wants to watch or choosing to go party Downtown at Stingaree instead of going to the Typhoon Saloon in PB. This book will make life easier for you.

Excerpts from the Secrets of Power Negotiating :

Devalue the importance of the bargaining chip–don’t let them know how important it is to you.
If you reach an impasse, set aside the key issue, and create momentum by reaching agreement on little points.
Never jump at the first offer, however good it looks.
At the end, nibble for something extra, or something they wouldn’t agree to earlier. However, look out for people nibbling on you. You’re most vulnerable when you think the negotiations are all over.
Flinch at the other side’s proposal. They may not think for a moment that you’ll agree to it, and flinching will get you a concession.
When asked for a small concession, ask for something in return–it stops the grinding-away process.
Position the other side for easy acceptance with a small concession made just at the last moment.

I only have three rating scales –

Must read
OK read but you’ll live without it
Don’t bother

“Secrets of Power Negotiating” by Roger Dawson is a MUST READ! It gives you so many insights that have proven vital for me personally. I’m a firm believer that everyone needs to have a sales job at least once in their lives. I’m also a firm believer that you need to know how to negotiate with that job…

secrets-of-power-negotiating-inside-secrets-from-a-power-negotiator-by-roger-dawson

Top 50 Most Motivational Blogs

Friday, May 1, 2009 / Vince Golangco

Thanks to Presistence Unlimited, you can now enjoy the power of motivation without having to crawl your way around the web.

Here are the top 50 motivational blogs that will unleash your inner drive, in no particular order –

Zen Habits
Make It Great! with Phil Gerbyshak
Today is that day
Dumb Little Man
Achieve IT!
Success Begins Today
LifeDev
David Seah
Productivity501
Your Life. Organized.
The Cranking Widgets Blog
Pick the Brain
OkDork
Lifehacker
43 Folders
Lifehack.org
Steve Pavlina

Slacker Manager
GTD Wannabe
Organize IT
Matt’s Idea Blog
Ian’s Messy Desk
Personal Development For A Greater Life
The Positivity Blog
Change your thoughts
Legal Andrew
ProductivityGoal
Zoli’s Blog
the simple dollar
Steve-Olson.com
Thriftymommy – good for Dads too!
Ricky Spears’ Blog
My Money Blog
Get Rich Slowly
Web Worker Daily
Life Tips Daily
Career Ramblings
Wise Bread
Life Learning Today
Diet Hack
Diet Blog
Change Your Thoughts
Duct Tape Marketing
Scott H. Young
Penelope Trunk’s Brazen Careerist
Instigator Blog
Ririan Project
D*I*Y Planner
LifeSpy
Management Craft
Life Optimizer
Genius Types

Share and Enjoy

No Means Yes… (well at least that’s what it should mean…)

Tuesday, April 28, 2009 / Vince Golangco

If you haven’t already, please do yourself a favor and see the movie “Yes Man” with Jim Carey. It quickly became one of my favorite movies of all time for it’s amazingly inspiring story, great cast and a very humorous script.

For those of you who haven’t seen it, a quick recap is that the main character makes a promise to himself and everyone, that he will say “YES” to anything and everything that comes his way. What started out as a complete disaster slowly turned into blessings-in-disguise as the detours he took, from saying “YES” to everyone, leads him to better things he would have never expected, had he said no.

I’ve always seen myself as a Yes Man and was really able to relate to this story. I say yes to almost anything that’s thrown at me. I love trying anything at least once.

This philosophy I apply to my life has taken me into some really funny situations (I post these stories on www.MotivatedMonkey.com ) and some really inspiring and life changing ones as well (posted here on www.VinceGolangco.com).

I just thought of this movie as today as I said yes to a friend who invited me to try Poi Dancing. I actually didn’t even know what Poi Dancing is but said “Yes” nevertheless.

It turns out, that Poi Dancing is the cool dance with the fire nun-chucks that you will usually see at night on beaches.

It was so much fun and a great work-out as well. It’s a lot trickier than you may think. In fact, the group teaching us made it look REALLY easy… but we were fumbling around with the basic moves. Apparently, the trick to learning this is just practice… I could imagine missing out on this fun day had I said “no” to my invite from my friend….

So even when you say “no”…. make it mean “YES!” You’ll never know what crazy adventure you may be missing out on…

Sunday Bloody Book Review 3 – “WHO MOVED MY CHEESE” by Dr. Spencer Johnson

Sunday, April 26, 2009 / Vince Golangco

Sunday Bloody Book Review 3 –

“Who Moved My Cheese” by Dr. Spencer Johnson

The only constant in life is that everything changes. Change is such a powerful force in one’s life and knowing how to deal with it is crucial in both the business world and in our personal lives.

“Who Moved My Cheese” is an amazing guide that teaches us how to embrace and adapt to change. The concepts in this very short book live with me and constantly replay in my head whenever I face new and different events in my life. It is a very short read and one could very easily read this book in 45 minutes.

This book has changed my life in such a positive way. Every time I go through a new and unfamiliar situation, I think back to this book and ask myself, “What would you do if you weren’t afraid?”

Summary of book Who Moved My Cheese:

“Who Moved My Cheese” is the story of mice and men. The compare men to mice in a maze where there is a constant supply of cheese for all. Suddenly, the “cheese” runs out and the mice and men are left to figure things out on their own. “Cheese” here is a metaphor for whatever you may hold dear in your life. It could be your dream job, your car, your house, your girlfriend or whatever. Now the question is, when your “cheese” gets moved, what do you do?

The story teaches us that we can sometimes dwell, pout, cry or be angry when our “cheese” gets moved. We have a tendency to think that we “deserve” that “cheese” and we worked hard for it so we shouldn’t do anything else. On the other hand, the simple minded mice simply move on and look for new cheese. They don’t whine, throw tantrums or get caught up in nasty emotions. They just continue with life.

Excerpts from the book Who Moved My Cheese:

Change happens; they keep moving the cheese.

Anticipate change; get ready for the cheese to move.

Monitor change; smell the cheese often so you know when it is getting old.

Adapt to change quickly; the quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you can enjoy new cheese.

Move with the cheese.

Enjoy change; savor the adventure and enjoy the taste of new cheese.

Be ready to change quickly and enjoy it again and again (and again).

They keep moving the cheese!

I only have three rating scales –

1. Must read
2. OK read but you’ll live without it
3. Don’t bother

This book, “Who Moved My Cheese” by Dr. Spencer Johnson, is a MUST READ. It will change your life in a positive way! Change is a part of everyone’s life. Mastering it with this book will be an important part for our personal growth.

who-move-my-cheese-by-dr-spencer-johnson-book-cover

Sunday Bloody Book Review 2 – “SURREALITY” by Carissa Villacorta

Sunday, April 19, 2009 / Vince Golangco

Sunday Bloody Book Review 2 –

“Surreality” by Carissa Villacorta

Surreality is a wonderful book about a girl who humbly finds her place in the world.

It’s a story about opening your eyes and allowing yourself to see the wonders all around you.

Carissa Villacorta has an AMAZING way of taking her readers on a “roller coaster” ride with her while she slowly realizes that being a pea in the pond just means that you have a bigger pond to love and explore.

A must read for anyone searching for their own place in this crazy big world.

My favorite quote from the author is that “Time is gold, money is paper.”

I only have three rating scales for my book reviews-

1. Must read
2. OK read but you’ll live without it
3. Don’t bother

This book, Surreality by Carissa Villacorta, is a MUST READ! It’s a lot of fun to read and will give you some inspirational insights on the world we live in today.

Surreality Summary

Contemporary life — in all its shapes, sizes and imperfections –is the subject of Surreality, Carissa Villacorta’s acclaimed collection of essays. As a young Filipina surrounded by people, events and experiences in New York City, she ponders on life’s mysteries: its joys, conflicts, and compromises. A big theme to take on, but she writes with specificity and simplicity; her heart is for the taking as she turns glib notions into impassioned dissertations for us, the living wounded. It’s old-fashioned wisdom mingled with new-age wonder: a singular mix that Surreality brims with and basks in.

Carissa’s sense of empathy is charming, natural and bountiful – the extraordinary gift that she shares with her readers. If her fan base is huge, it is no accident (see the quotes below). The effusiveness of people’s responses is matched only by Carissa’s commitment to inspire her readers in rich, incandescent ways. As you will discover by embracing this book, her words are the kind that we need to read in today’s postmodern world. The only way to get a clearer, sharper view of life would be a visit to an eye doctor: no fun compared to the wit and vitality that Ms. Villacorta brings to each of her delightfully entertaining pieces.

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No Excuses

Friday, September 19, 2008 / Vince Golangco

“Excuses are like assholes, we all have one, and they all stink!”

“I’m too weak

Too slow

Too big

I ate too much for breakfast

Got a headache

It’s rainin’

My dog is sick

I can’t right now

I’m not inspired

Makes me smell bad

I’m allergic to stuff

I’m fat

I’m thin

It’s too hot

I’m not right

I’ve got shin splints

Headache

I’m distracted

I’m exerting myself too much

I’d love to really but I can’t

Just can’t

My favorite show is on

I got a case of the Mondays

The Tuesdays

The Wednesdays

I don’t wanna do this

I want to do something else

After new years

Next week

Might make a mistake

I got homework

I feel bloated

I have gas

I got a hot date

My coach hates me

My mom won’t let me

I bruise easily

It’s too dark

It’s too cold

My blisters hurt

This is dangerous

Ughhhh

Sorry, I don’t have a bike

I didn’t get enough sleep

My tummy hurts

It’s not in my genes

I don’t want to look all tired now

I need a better coach

I don’t like getting tackled

I have a stomach ache

I’m not the athletic type

I don’t want to get sweaty

I have better things to do

I don’t wanna slow you down

Do I have to do this?

Soon as I get a promotion

I think I’ll sit this one out

AND MY FEET HURT!”

– Says Mike ‘Warhawk’ Scott as he slams two basketballs on the ground simultaneously revealing his prosthetic legs. Scott is a wheelchair basketball player, a NWBA star, a national champion, a tournament MVP and is currently playing for the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing. He was born with spina bifida.

And he doesn’t make excuses.

Now that we’ve stopped procrastinating (right?) and figured out what direction we want to head towards, we need to eliminate one vital element in order for us to reach nirvana – Excuses!

“Ninety-nine percent of the failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses” – George Washington Carver

There are only two things that will happen when you have a task at hand. You either deliver, or you make excuses on why you can’t do it.

“Nothing is impossible; there are ways that lead to everything, and if we had sufficient will, we should always have sufficient means. It is often merely for an excuse that we say things are impossible” – Francois La Rochefoucauld

Kerri Strug did not make excuses when she broke her ankle during her the Olympic Gymnastics competition. The US women were on the verge of an historic win in the team competition in Atlanta. Then the unthinkable happened: Dominique Moceanu, the youngest member of the team, fell on both of her vaults in the last event of the day.

With just a slim lead over the Russian team, it was essential that Kerri Strug, the final American gymnast to perform, nail her vault. But Strug fell too, injuring her ankle in the process. With just one more shot, Strug ignored her injury and ran down for another attempt, sticking her vault before crumpling to the floor in pain.

In doing so, she assured the American team its first Olympic team gold, and instantly became one of the most recognizable faces of the 1996 Games.

“There’s a difference between interest and commitment. When you’re interested in doing something, you do it only when circumstance permit. When you’re committed to something, you accept no excuses, only results” -Art Turock

So what’s your excuse?