Due to insistent public pressure -- Time out! Blog muna, yay finally!! Hehehe... Yeah, you got it right, let me spell "busy" for you. Pero keri lang. I like my job. It's just that some people think that just because we do not have classes, we're not doing anything. Hah! Sila na ang maging "cheacher" noh. Let's see how well they adjust to crazy schedules within a week - something I've mastered. And why do we have to change schedules while we're not teaching? It's because we're also being heavily trained for professional development dummy! Duuuuh!!! Hehe, angst daw? :op

Okay, let's see what's been up with me aside from work...

Last Sunday, we celebrated one of my team's first anniversary at Joey's place. See, we're all happy people here. There were lots of revelations, mostly funny ones. And of course, whenever there's Zeps (guy in red), I'm always put into a hot seat.

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But this was one really happy party at Joey's that we left at around quarter before 3am. I brought my Bailey's (na ngayon lang naubos, the bottle that they gave me for my birthday last year), some whipped cream and cherry, for Aries' White Russian mix (yup, with Vodka) yum yum!!! Kaso ang tapang grabe! Hehehe... Everyone got drunk except for me, Aries and Joey. Hehe... I can't afford another Galera incident hehe, kakahiya, walang poise! :op

The weekend before the anniversary, our training department went to PonteFino, Batangas City for our team building. It was absolutely fun. We had a cheering competition, amazing race, badminton games and KTV! And I think pagasgasan na naman ng lalamunan ito hehe. And as usual, just like in Galera, I was the one who went to sleep first while the others party the whole night. Ah eh, I'm sorry, I came from the GY shift. I am entitled to a good sleep!

Then August 6, I watched Martin's concert at SM City North. They renovated cinema 1 and turned it into like that of Onstage at Greenbelt, and he's the first one to sing there. It was a great concert. But the crowd's better in Makati. Hehe... Luv' this guy!!

Finally, my latest LSS...

EVER AFTER

Three years ago our journey began
Chasing down this cure, no plan in hand
Just your pulse, my racing guide in the dark
Just knowing with conviction from the start
The moment your eyes made an introduction
I felt my second violent breath of life
Flawless to the point of being godly
Yet I fell hard for your imperfections

And now we're slightly weathered, we're slightly worn
Our hands gripped together
Eye to eye through the storm
Yet I still believe in ever after with you
Coz' life is a pleasure with you by my side
And there ain't no current in this river we can't ride
I still believe in ever after with you

Nothing compares to the good times
Feels like we're floating when the rest have to climb
You made me believe in love and not the perfect kind
A real messy beautiful twisted sunshine
Emotions volcanic eruptions
We both still care so we're still alive
Tunnel vision, determination
I want you I want to make it right

You are my twisted sunshine

The John Maxwell Experience

After successfully convincing my boss to go, we were able to attend John Maxwell's seminar entitled "Your Roadmap For Success." I've never attended any of his seminars but I know that he's very good. I've read many of his writings through the weekly takeaway that's being sent to the team. I do have one of his books, which I got from church as a graduation gift when I finished College, and it's The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership -- which the author says, is the mother of all his books. But thanks to my busy schedule and my not-much-of-a-reader nature, I never got to finish reading it. But after hearing him speak, I felt like I want to finish it and even read some more. It was a very enlightening 90-minute teaching and here's what he's got to say, and what I have learned.

Learning Success from John Maxwell

I have learned that...

1. "Success is three things: (a) Knowing your purpose in life; (b) Growing to your maximum potential; and (c) Sowing seeds that benefit others."

2. "Success is knowing your purpose in life." To know your purpose in life, ask yourself two things. First, ask yourself "What am I passionate about?" This is almost always your purpose.

Second, ask yourself "What am I good at?" or "What do I do well?" or "Where is my strength zone?" Your strength zone is most probably your purpose.

3. Passion and energy always go together. You can never be passionate about something without energy and you can never have energy to do something you're not passionate about.

4. Stop working on your weeknesses - because you're weak on your weaknesses. If you're not gifted to do something, don't do it anymore. If you are at a certain level, you can only go up atmost 2 more levels.

Sure, there could be a lot of arguments on this one but the bottomline is to focus on your strengths.

5. Successful people have found their strength zone. Successful leaders help people find their strength zone.

6. "Success is growing to your maximum potential." Growth is not an automatic process. If you are going to grow, it has to be on purpose. Ask yourself, (a) "What is my personal plan for growth?" and (b) "What am I doing to grow the people around me?"

7. Law of the Inner Circle: Those who are closest to you determine the growth of your success.

8. "Success is sowing seeds that benefit others." Success is never self-contained. People who are successful add value to other people and therefore, crossing the line between success and significance.

9. Leadership is all about influence. You can increase your influence with others by intentionally adding value to others everyday.

"How can I add value to the people around me everyday?"
a. Value people.
b. Make yourself more valuable. There is a choice you have to make in everything you do. If you make that choice, be sure that it makes you.
c. You have to know and relate to what they value. Leaders are listeners. They disconnect from their people if they stop listening and just stop at assumption.
d. I need to do things that God values.

10. The secret of your succes is determined by your daily agenda. What you do today matters.

11. Most people don't lead their life. Most people accept their life and asks their selves why they are not successful.

12. Make everyday your masterpiece. You can't make up tomorrow what you didn't do today.

13. Successful people make important decisions early in their life and then they manage those decisions the rest of their life.

14. To be successful, put more emphasis on managing the decisions you've made.

15. Your success is not in your decision making but decision managing.

Amen!