blogging is fun. i know.
i have so many interesting thoughts and moments that i want to share (which i suppose at least half of you will be interested in it) -- but here, in my current life, there are so much exciting activities to do, that i just can't afford my time to do blogging anymore. blogging is also exciting, but currently it is not on my top priority.

along with my activities regarding to my vision, i suppose this brand new year, will be an interesting year. there are 3 main things that i'm very passionate about in 2007, they are harta tahta cinta. harta is my work, tahta is God & my spiritual life, and cinta is my beloved. of course, i love my family and best friends though, but maybe since i've been through with them for a long time .... jk :p

ah, the good food. the good job. the good girlfriend. the good friends. the good church. the good home. the good pet? the good life. the good dream. and o my good God. everything is good. i'm loving life lovefuly. yay

there are maybe about 10 or 20 new contact invitations since my last blog post. thanks for adding me as your contact.
i will update my blog rarely. and no, this is not a goodbye. i'm just being passive from updating my site. but i will post stuffs if i shall have any. and i will still come to your site often and drop some lines -- if you have interesting content.
for those who interested knowing me more, you can add me on my yahoo messenger (for those who haven't done so)

so, may you have a good yearrr, and a lot of dreams you can achive this year!!!
GBUJLUKOFBBQ

The Wealth Definition
This guide is about creating wealth. Having a clear definition of wealth is not just useful but necessary if that is our focus. Wealth is not how much money you have. Wealth is what you’re left with when you lose all your money.” Growing wealth enables you to continuously attract money and opportunities in the same way that growing a garden enables you to continuously attract the birds and butterflies.



Wealth Equation
Wealth creation is not about making money. It’s about creating flow.
The Wealth Equation explains the plumbing:
WEALTH = VALUE x LEVERAGE

VALUE
Water will always flow from high ground to low ground and always in that direction. The height differential will determine the speed of water flow at any one time. If you double the height of the river, you double the speed of water flow. Double the value, and you double the money flow.

LEVERAGE
Value on its own does not make the river. A river also needs width. Whereas value gives the river a gradient, leverage gives the river width. Whereas value determines the speed of money flow, leverage determines the volume of flow at that speed.



The Opposite Pole of Value
1. INNOVATION
All value is created from the way we think. Some of us are born with what we call high-frequency thinking, which is often called intuitive thinking. Intuitive thinkers love coming up with new ideas and putting them into action. Bill Gates, Michael Dell and Walt Disney have all mentioned their natural creativity when they were younger. We all have some element of intuitive thinking, but some of us have it more than others. They can see the big picture, but often miss the detail. They are not as focused at what is there, but at what could be. Innovation means creating something new of value.

2. TIMING
Low-frequency is sensory thinking whom create value by having their ear to the ground. Sensory thinkers do not need to create anything new because they have an innate sense of timing. Some of us have a more natural tendency towards sensory thinking than intuitive thinking. Why create anything if you know when to sell high and buy low? Warren Buffet, George Soros and Rupert Murdoch are all individuals who are known for seeking out paterns and opportunities that others miss. Sensory thinkers are alert to their surroundings and pick up signals that intuitive thinkers miss.

Whereas intuitive thinkers always feel the need to push forward, sensory thinkers know that sometimes the best thing to do is to do nothing. Timing means creating value by acting at the right time. Some people believe that creativity and timing can be taught. There is no doubt that you can work at improving both, but if it is not your natural frequency to begin with, in the heat of the moment you will fall back on your old habits.



The Opposite Pole of Leverage
1. MULTIPLY
Introverts leverage by multiplying. The way to multiply is to ask the question “How can this happen without me?” Multiplying is about making things as simple as possible and then making many. Wealth Creators such as Henry Ford, Warren Buffett, John D Rockefeller and Ray Kroc have leveraged through multiplying, whether through their systems, investments or franchises.

2. MAGNIFY
Extrovert are more likely to be found out socializing than studying a spreadsheetExtroverts are not process-oriented. They are people-oriented. The way to magnify is to ask the question “How can this only happen with me?” Magnifying is about making things as complex or unique as possible so that you become indispensable. Wealth Creators such as Martha Stewart, Oprah Winfrey, Jack Welch and Donald Trump leverage by magnifying, whether through their unique brand, leadership or deal making niche.



Wealthy by Making Other Wealthy
Every great river is surrounded by tributaries. When a new source of value or a new form of leverage is found, it soon becomes clear that the wealthy do not become wealthy by making others poor. They become wealthy by making others wealthy. This is possible because one person’s value becomes another person’s leverage. Bill Gates sells more software by leveraging on Michael Dell’s PC’s and Michael Dell sells more PC’s by leveraging on Bill Gates’ software. For each of us, our greatest value is someone else’s greatest leverage.



The Eight Wealth Profiles
If any of these wealth creators had not followed their path of least resistance to wealth, we would not have heard of them today. Each of us has a path of least resistance that is based on our natural habits and talents – the ones we were born with. If we are not on our path, life can be a struggle. When we follow our path – and begin to play the game that we most naturally play, we begin to excel. The longer we play, the more distinctions we see, the better we get and the more we attract. We also find we are doing what we love. These are the eight wealth profiles.


1. THE CREATOR: Creating a better product
Creators can’t resist creating. They have their greatest creative breakthroughs after most others would have given up. The world is also full of frustrated creators who have started a business and are now stuck running it. They did a great job creating it, but now do a mediocre job trying to manage others.

Many creators fail because of their over-optimism of what their business and their team can achieve. This optimism has led many to take on far too much, leaving them little time to do what they do best. Successful creators have delegated everything except the creative process itself – and they focus on creating new products, or new companies, while others take care of the day-to-day business.

The successful creators we will look at, who share a common strategy to achieve their successes, include Walt Disney, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Richard Branson, JK Rowlings and Thailand’s richest man, Thaksin Shinawatra.


2. THE MECHANIC: Creating a better system
Mechanics are tinkerers. While Creators are great at starting things, Mechanics are great at finishing things. They are perfectionists, which is why they cannot resist finding ways to do things better. Mechanics get hands-on with their systems and prefer to study how to improve things with their hands dirty. As a result, they have little interest in impressing with, or indulging in their appearance. Many mechanics have companies with better systems than their competitors, but they have not leveraged this system with stronger products produced by others, or their business is limited by their autocratic management style and high staff turnover.

Successful mechanics remain hands-on in fine-tuning their systems, long after they have become hands-off with many other areas of their business. This is where they see the greatest results, and where they gain the most satisfaction. The successful mechanics include Henry Ford, Ray Kroc, Sam Walton, Michael Dell, Jeff Bezos and the founder of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew.


3. THE STAR: Creating a unique identity
Stars, naturally, are the easiest of the profiles to spot. After all, the value is in the person. Obvious stars can be found in the sports, music, film and entertainment industries. However, the highest profile CEOs, salespeople and trainers also achieved their wealth by following their natural path as a star.

Those stars who have ignored their path have often done so because of the bad experiences they have had being in the limelight, and the responsibility that goes with it. Others have been trained not to draw attention to their natural talents, much as they secretly enjoy it. And others simply lack confidence and knowledge, so tread a careful path incognito, blissfully unaware of the simple steps they could be taking to claim their wealth.


4. THE SUPPORTER: Adding Value to a Wealth Creator in Time & Resources
The Supporter is outgoing, loyal, reliable and a fantastic networker. Their value is in the heat of the moment – the relationships they create and the wealth of energy, enthusiasm and time they can offer. By linking this resource to a wealth creator, supporters can create much greater wealth than they could on their own.

Successful supporters can be found around every very successful wealth creator, whether that profile is a creator, star, mechanic or deal maker. However, many supporters have found success without aligning solely with one wealth creator. As a result, there are many CEOs of well known, listed companies who are supporters. You can also find supporters successfully running businesses in support industries such as PR, recruitment and marketing. High profile supporters include Steve Ballmer and Michael Eisner.

Most failed supporters mistake their profile as an employee doomed to a life of salaried income, often having tried to start a business or investment with limited success. For nearly all supporters who are not on their path to success, what is missing is the understanding of how their role as a supporter can unlock great wealth.


5. THE DEALMAKER: Connecting the right people at the right time
Successful Deal Makers tend to catch the imagination of the business world, with their sweeping gestures that make millions in a moment. Of all the profiles, the deal maker relies most on the relationships around them, as their wealth is created by the connections they make. With a sensory dynamic, deal makers are reactive, acting on the right opportunities as they happen.

Deal Makers can also be found wherever there exist assets with significant value differentials, such as in property, corporate mergers & acquisitions, and in the entertainment business brokering multi-million dollar brands. The highest profile deal makers include Robert Kravis, Li Ka Shing, Donald Trump, David Geffen and more notoriously, Don King.

Most failed deal makers are really deal-makers-in-waiting. They have never seen this as a credible way to create wealth and have never pursued this path. Or they have just never been aware that this was their main talent and would never do so unless they stumbled into it by chance. However, of all the profiles, when a deal maker finds his path, his wealth is one of the first to arrive!


6. THE TRADER: Buying low and selling high at the right time
A real trader is someone who naturally looks for bargains for the fun of it. They love haggling or seeking out the lowest price with the satisfaction that they found it first, and then they are equally good at seeking out the buyer who will pay a higher price. As with the Creator, the trader can be both introverted and extroverted.

Extrovert traders will do this where they can influence the price through hard bargaining and can be found in import/export businesses, and the retail industry. Introvert traders are happy to trade through analysis rather than face-to-face bidding, and include all successful market traders.

Many failed traders have never traded. As reliable and hard-working employees, they may see either the buy side or the sell side of a transaction within the company they work for, but often never the two together. Only when they are in control of both sides will a trader become aware of the natural talent that they have.


7. THE ACCUMULATOR: Buying & Building Appreciating Assets
The accumulator is the safest of the profiles, relying on a system of incremental growth to achieve wealth. The book “The Millionaire Next Door” is based on the accumulator profile, as it is one of the most fool-proof to follow. Many wealth seekers adopt the accumulator strategy but either lose patience or get itchy feet and move on. The real, successful accumulator is patient enough to stick with it, and disciplined enough to keep to their system.

Accumulators are patient, systematic, considered and prefer to play safe. However, others sometimes mistake this for indecision and procrastination. While others may be ostentatious with their wealth, accumulators rarely are, which is why they often go unnoticed.


8. THE LORD: Controlling Cash Generating Assets
The lord is the epitome of Stealth Wealth. Rarely seen but rolling in cash, the lords of the World control everything! They control the land, they control all the natural resources, they control all the man-made structures. They may not own them, but they don’t have to. They are too busy counting their money! Lords can be found wherever there is a fixed asset that is generating cash, whether it is a rented property or a leased vehicle, whether it is a gold mine or an oil field.

If you are a Lord, yet have not yet become a successful one, make it your priority to find a mentor who has made it. You will be amazed at how simple the process can be and how fast wealth was created. Lords look at the entrepreneurs and stars of the world and in most cases believe they could never do what they do, and would never want to either.


WEALTH DYNAMICS by Roger Hamilton. as taken from Rita Sharon's blog, with permission
just in case you want to take the test, wealthdynamics.org will cost you 100 USD

prolog
beberapa waktu yang lalu saya sempat diajak bercakap-cakap oleh seorang sahabat, mengenai kantor temannya yang dikabarkan diperiksa oleh pihak yang berwajib sehubungan dengan software di kantornya yang tidak menggunakan software orisinal. ingatan saya sudah agak-agak kabur, tapi biarlah saya mencoba mengemukakan pemikiran dan apa yang masih bisa saya ingat mengenai hal ini (mohon pembenarannya bila ada hal yang salah)

cara kerja pembasmian software bajakan
belakangan di indonesia dilakukan pembersihan software bajakan. terdapat sebuah organisasi yang bernama BSA, Business Software Alliance. jadi misalnya, kantor dari pengusaha A menggunakan software bajakan, dan B tahu mengenai hal itu (mungkin B bekerja di perusahaan A), maka B dapat melaporkan ke BSA, dan A akan dituntut sejumlah nilai yang cukup besar, katakanlah 50jt, lalu B mendapatkan komisi mungkin sekitar 10% dari tuntutan A, yaitu 5jt -- nilai yang cukup besar untuk B sebagai seorang pekerja. dengan menggunakan cara ini, maka seakan-akan banyak anggota masyarakat yang dapat menjadi bounty hunter dadakan.

lebih menguntungkan dengan software asli?
BSA mewakili vendor-vendor software kelas dunia, mulai dari microsoft, adobe dan macromedia, norton, mcaffee, dan lain-lain, dimana kebanyakan adalah perusahaan di negara barat. menurut pandangan saya, terlepas dari sudut pandang etika, dengan membeli product dari vendor software di negara lain, berarti artinya sama dengan devisa negara indonesia mengalir keluar. bukan nilai yang kecil kalau dilihat dari harga satu software bisa mencapai ribuan dollar.

sedangkan bila -- bukan saya berarti menyetujui pembajakan -- ada developer software indonesia yang dapat menjual software-nya ke negara barat, itu berarti devisa mengalir masuk. jadi benarkah indonesia lebih diuntungkan dengan software-software asli? silahkan direnungkan :D

pembasmian korupsi, dan kendalanya
sejak saya tahu cara kerja BSA, saya menjadi kagum dengan konsep yang digunakan mereka untuk membasmi hal yang mereka kehendaki. saya saat itu langsung terpikir, mengapa cara ini tidak digunakan untuk melakukan pembasmian terhadap korupsi di indonesia juga? bukankah hal itu akan menjadi efektif. lebih baik memberi komisi pada sang pelapor, dan korupsi yang dilakukan waktu demi waktu dapat dihentikan, daripada hanya diselesaikan di pengadilan, yang bersalah dihukum, tetapi (sepertinya) kurang ada penanganan yang baik mengenai uangnya -- atau setidaknya itu menurut pemikiran saya. win-win solution kan?

tentu tidak dapat langsung diterapkan semudah itu, mengingat kondisi saat ini, bisa jadi malah nantinya ada orang yang tak bersalah yang dijadikan sebagai kambing hitam. tetapi dengan pembuatan peraturan yang baik, dan persiapan yang matang, saya percaya hal itu masih dapat dijalankan dengan baik.

bagaimana pendapat anda?

there are two main philosophy that i always follow when i am into a discussion. they are:


1. always focus on the solution, not the problem.
i learnt this from a good friend, named Yoga.

Case 1
When NASA began the launch of astronauts into space, they found out that the pens wouldn't work at zero gravity (ink won't flow down to the writing surface). To solve this problem, it took them one decade and $12 million. They developed a pen that worked at zero gravity, upside down, underwater,in practically any surface including crystal and in a temperature range from below freezing to over 300 degrees C.
And what did the Russians do? They used a pencil!

Case 2
One of the most memorable case studies on Japanese management was the Case of the empty soap box, which happened in one of Japan's biggest Cosmetics companies. The company received a complaint that a consumer had bought a soap box that was empty. Immediately the authorities isolated the problemto the assembly line, which transported all the packaged boxes of soap to the delivery department. For some reason, one soap box went through the assembly line empty. Management asked its engineers to solve the problem. Post-haste, the engineers worked hard to devise an X-ray machine with high-resolution monitors manned by two people to watch all the soap boxes that passed through the line to make sure they were not empty. No doubt, they worked hard and they worked fast but they spent a whopping amount to do so.

But when a rank-and-file employee in a small company was posed with the same problem, he did not get into complications of X-rays, etc., but instead came out with another solution. He bought a strong industrial electric fan and pointed it at the assembly line. He switched the fan on, and as each soap box passed the fan, it simply blew the empty boxes out of the line.

Case 3
A Lift manufacturing Giant had a complain from the customer that their lifts were very very slow, and that it took a long time to go up 60 stories. Otis Engineers were fired and asked to solve the problem at the earliest and replace all the liftss accordingly. Engineers started working on the chain mechanism, the puuley systems, the power drives, the weight to speed ratio, and other such hi tech parts. The problem had no solution, as in increasing speed, weight had to be reduced, or the safety was an issue, or other such thing. But, one newly appointed engineer solved the problem in 2 days. He fitted the mirror in the lifts. Suddenly the Complaints reduced drastically to 10%.

The director asked for he young engineer, and asked him about this solution. The young man said, The problem is not that the lifts are slow,but that People feel that our Lifts are slow.

2. you can attack the case, but don't attack your discucssion partner personally
mostly when people disagree for quite a long time and they reach their frustration level, they will begin to attack their discussion partner personally, which, in most of cases, is just wrong. because mostly their personal life has nothing to do with the problem.
it's just like the "The Aprrentice" tv serial slogan, "it's just business. nothing personal"



of course there are also several minor discussion philosophy that i also follow, like:
1. listen to what they are going to say first
2. keep it simple
3. etc
but i think the first two are the most important factor for me.

how about you? :)

this is my scrambled notes and knowledge about what i think about spirit. this could be boring for you. don't read, if you feel you don't want to.

i used to think that, as long as i do not make other suffer, or i do not commit sins, i am ok. but recently i've been thinking a lot. i've been thinking that we live in a spiritual world. since it's my point of view, i think i will wrote half of this post from my religion point of view :) i write this post without any references, it only based on what is on my mind.

i think, if we drove a car, soul can be defined as the driver who pick the direction, body can be defined as the car, and spirit can be defined as the fuel. we need all three of them. and without a good spirit, i doubt we can reach the destination.

in my religion, we believe for the existence of the Holy Spirit. so there must be other spirits exists. there is good spirit, and there is bad spirit. spirit in bahasa indonesia can be translated as "roh", and also "semangat". i think it's pretty much the same. there is building spirit (semangat membangun) and devastating spirit (semangat merusak). what can't be considered as good spirit, should be considered as bad (evil) spirit.

for an example, there's a thing called the seven deadly sins. they are sloth (kemalasan), gluttony (kerakusan), envy (iri hati), wrath (amarah), lust (nafsu), pride (kesombongan), and greed (ketamakan). in my opinion, even if we did not do the seven deadly sins, by only having the spirit in ourselves (like to think to commit them, eventough we haven't done them), is already not a good thing. well maybe it's not a sin yet, but it is surely not a good thing.

in the last several days, i tried myself to eliminate the bad spirit within me. and it's very hard. the first evil spirit that i want to eliminate is pride. i just got a warning from God, through a friend of mine. it warned me to be humble, and hand in my life to God wholly (berserah sepenuhnya). i wish i could have a humble spirit within me.

it is said that God look through our heart to see whether we could go to heaven or hell. it is not written in the bible, but i think, maybe God will also look into our spirit, are we still keep the bad/evil spirit in us?

i believe spirit does exist, spirit does have form (though we cannot see it). my pastor said that one's spirit is coming out from the mouth when we died. and from my exorcism experiences, i know that my belief is the one (truth).

more about spirit, maybe one of the reason that i like my gf most is because she have so little bad spirit i found in her. and maybe you guys are also the same, you like the people around you because you like the spirit inside them.

i'm actually a little confuse about what to write in this post. i realize i still need to learn a lot about spirit -- but at least i've post what's on my mind now. maybe you can share what's on your mind about spirit? :)

A Father, His Son, and A Donkey

A father and his son once went to the market with a donkey. The father sat on the donkey and the boy walked. Onlookers said, "What a terrible thing, a big strong man sitting on the donkey's back, and the poor boy has to walk."

So the father got off the donkey, and the boy got on. People said, "How terrible, this poor man walking and the boy sitting on the donkey."

So both the father and son got on the donkey's back, but people said, "The poor donkey! Two people sitting on his back--that's terrible."

Then the father and son got off the donkey. People said, "How crazy, the donkey has nothing on his back, and two people are walking."

Sometime later, people at the market were astonished at what they saw as the father and son approached.

What did they see? The father and son were both carrying the donkey!




this story is one of those classic stories. i always like this story because it emphasize how to be firm with your own belief and your own will. two people can say two different things about something, and somehow, they both can be correct at the same time. be confident with the decision you pick, just don't be stupid.

you can’t please everyone. and mostly, ignorance is a bliss

Prologue
this is my story about my trip to Pati, my girlfriend's residence, with its fascinating experiences (as always) on my gf's father funeral. i shall write it in bahasa indonesia, because i feel more familiar with it.

mungkin agak sedikit bertele2 sih, dan mungkin agak membosankan bagi beberapa orang (apalagi yang tidak mengenalku dengan dekat), tapi yah, toh tujuan blogku ini adalah sebagai personal blogku, bukan untuk entertain orang :)

nama papinya ima adalah Sutikno, dan biasanya dipanggil Pak Tik (tapi tik dilafalkan tek seperti "mesin ketik" lafal jawa), dan maminya dipanggil Bu Tik, dan maminya ima biasa manggil papinya dengan panggilan Ko Tik. maminya ima namanya adalah Lisa Sulistyawati, dan biasa dipanggil papinya ima dengan sebutan "Lis".



Monday, July 17 2006: Pagi yang Cerah
masih lagi lelap2nya tidur, malam sebelumnya aku tidur jam 10, tapi karena ACnya dingin biasa baru bangun jam 8. pagi2 jam 630 telpon rumahku berdering. aku malas bergerak dari tempat tidur. mamaku yang angkat. mamaku memanggilku, "telpon dari ima". dengan malas dan mata setengah tertutup aku bergerak dari tempat tidur. aku agak setengah ga sadar juga ima koq nangis sesengukan, tapi karena baru bangun tidur aku belum sempat berpikir lebih jauh.

"ndri", ima mulai pembicaraan sambil tersedu2
"ha?", aku menjawab ngantuk
"papiku sudah ngga ada", ima mencoba menghentikan tangisnya, tetapi tidak bisa
"HAH?", aku kaget dan mulai tersadar
"papiku sudah ngga ada...", ima mengulangi kata2nya dengan lambat karena bercampur dengan tangisnya
"koq bisa??"
"ga tau... tadi pagi kokoku yang nerima telpon dari mamiku... trus tiba2 kokoku menjerit... serumah langsung tau ada yang ga beres"
"oh iya ta? trus ya apa? kamu gpp?"
"gpp... aku mau ke bungurasih... kalo nunggu travel kesiangan"
"oh ya. hmmm aku anter ke bungurasih ta?"
"koko, sousou, cicikku juga ikut ke pati"
(ima tinggal di rumah kokonya bersama dengan cece dan keluarga kokonya. sousou = istri dari kokonya. bungurasih = terminal bis di surabaya)
"oh ok, aku jemput aja ta?"
"ok"

pagi yg sibuk. aku kelabakan. aku bingung apa harus ikut apa ngga ya. pikirku kalau udah jadi mantu yah harus ikut. tapi aku masih ada kerjaan yg benernya udah ada janji dan ga bisa ditinggal. tapi kalau aku ga ikut, gimana ntar kesan2nya sama keluarganya ima ya, kan ga karuan juga. akhirnya aku memutuskan ikut, dengan membawa sejumlah uang untuk sumbangan kematian dan hidup di pati selama beberapa hari. aku sempat masang status bentar di yahoo messenger ku "ke Pati 3 hari [papanya Ima meninggal] (AWAY)", supaya teman2ku di ym tahu kalo aku bakal ga ol seminggu



Monday, July 17 2006: Perjalanan ke Pati
jam 7 aku diantar mamaku berangkat ke ima dengan perasaan campur aduk, untuk kemudian berangkat ke bungurasih. setelah sampai di rumah kokonya ima, dan semua sudah turut serta dalam mobil, akhirnya berangkat ke bungurasih. semua pada diam di mobil. mamaku mencoba berbasa basi dengan menanyakan ceritanya. kokonya ima mencoba menanggapi juga. perjalanannya sempat muter-muter sedikit sih, soalnya ke bungurasih lewat tol, dan salah ambil belokan. gara2 salah ambil belokan yang pertama, sampai di jalan yang asing, dan sempat salah lagi ambil arah. alhasil kita baru sampai di bungurasih sekitar jam 8 lebih. setelah itu mamaku pulang dan meninggalkanku dan keluarga ima di terminal.

setelah pipis sebentar, kami menaiki bis dengan tiket seharga 40rb. kalau ima bilang yang 50rb lebih nyaman sih, tapi bagiku yang sudah lama ga naik bis yah bis yah seperti gini ini, aku ga terlalu perduli. dalam perjalanan ima menerima cukup banyak sms dan telpon dari teman2nya, sebagian tahu dari status ym ku. sebagian lagi ada temen gereja, entah bagaimana, bisa tahu dengan cepat, bahkan sampai jakarta juga, yang entah seharusnya tidak kenal sama teman2 ima di surabaya tapi bisa tahu juga. sedangkan ima sendiri, sepanjang perjalanan, masih berharap bahwa semoga papinya itu cuma pingsan, trus maminya ima salah ngasih kabar. dan sepanjang perjalanan ima terus menangis, sampai akhirnya ketiduran.

akhirnya sampai di pati, setelah turun dari bis kami naek becak ke rumah ima yang ada di dalam gang. ima tambah dag dig dug melihat ada terpal di depan rumahnya, dan penuh dengan kursi2 merah (yang biasanya ada di adijasa itu), dan sekumpulan orang2. bahkan bunga ucapan dukacita dari perusahaan tempat kokonya ima bekerja malah sudah sampai lebih dahulu. sambil pasang tampang kasih senyum kecut (karena ga ada yg kenal tapi at least setidaknya harus berbasa basi) kami masuk ke ruang tamu.

di situ ada maminya ima duduk di depan peti mati yang terbuka, yang berisi papinya ima yang sudah terbujur kaku (benar-benar kaku), dengan ditemani beberapa orang nangis sesengukan dengan wajah yang ga karuan dan rambut yang terlihat acak-acakan. melihat kami dateng nangisnya jadi tambah keras. mamanya ima ngomel2 sama papanya ima, mau mati koq ga ngasih pertanda dulu, kok mati secepat itu. memang sih mamanya ima pernah minta sama Tuhan kalo ntar biar papinya ima yang meninggal dulu, soalnya kasian kalo maminya meninggal dulu ntar ga ada yg ngurus papinya yg udah ga seberapa bisa melihat dan lebih sakit-sakitan daripada maminya. setelah nangisnya agak reda, barulah mamanya ima mulai bercerita tentang kejadiannya.



Flashback: Before the Death, Ima's Mother Version
hari jumat papinya ima bilang ke maminya ima, "Lis, habis gini tiap hari aku tolong bacakan alkitab tiap jam 6 sore ya. bacakan yang keras biar aku bisa mendengarkan". ini katanya merupakan suatu pertanda, tetapi waktu itu maminya ima belum sadar.

hari minggu. papinya ima biasanya bawa radio kalau tidur, lalu nyetel siaran rohani sambil tidur. sedangkan maminya ima ga bisa tidur kalau ada radio, sehingga mereka selalu tidur di ruangan yang berbeda. tetapi waktu mau tidur malam itu, ia tidak mau membawa radio. katanya mau berdoa. selain itu, biasanya papinya ima kalau malam kadang2 juga terbangun buat pipis. tapi malam itu ia bilang mau pipis dan buang air besar, biar tidurnya lancar. bila sebelumnya papanya ima masih ada sakit kecil-kecil, hari itu ia sedang dalam keadaan sehat-sehatnya.

senin, jam 6 pagi, mamanya ima bermaksud membangunkan papinya ima. dikirain masih tertidur pulas. posisi tidurnya bagus, berbaring lurus dengan tangan dalam sikap berdoa diatas perut. tubuhnya masih hangat. tapi mamanya ima mulai curiga setelah agak lama. mamanya ima mengecek apakah papanya ima masih bernafas dengan menaruh jari di hidung papanya ima, ternyata sudah tidak bernafas. mamanya ima langsung kalut.

mamanya ima menggoyang2 tubuh papanya ima sambil menjerit-jerit memanggil namanya dengan harapan supaya bangun. dengan air mata mulai mengalir deras, akhirnya ia mencoba untuk menelpon orang lain. biasanya yang hafal nomor orang lain adalah papanya ima, papanya ima sekali dikasih tau nomor orang bisa langsung ingat terus, sehingga mamanya ima kalau butuh apa2 biasanya tanya ke papanya ima. tetapi kali ini ga bisa tanya papanya ima. akhirnya setelah mencari-cari di buku telpon, ketemu nomor-nomor keluarga dan temen komsel (persekutuan doa) nya, dan akhirnya semua bisa dikontak.

belakangan baru diketahui, bahwa kematian papanya ima itu dalam kondisi amat bagus. karena selain ia tidak mati karena sakit, juga karena biasanya kalo orang meninggal itu carian di tubuhnya akan keluar, yaitu kotoran tubuhnya, sehingga mayat tersebut menjadi bau. tetapi karena hari sebelumnya papinya ima sudah buang air, maka ketika orang yang mendandani mayat dengan pakaian formal sebelum dimasukkan peti mati sudah tidak perlu membersihkan mayat tersebut. sehingga menjadi tidak repot.



Monday, July 17 2006: di Pati
kembali ke scene di ruang tamu. suasana heboh sudah mulai mereda. aku mulai dikenal2kan ke saudara-saudara keluarga ima dan tamu-tamu yang hadir pada waktu itu. kokonya ima sekarang yang menjadi tulang punggung keluarga, dia yang mengurus segala sesuatu yang berkaitan dengan pemakaman, karena ia sekarang menjadi lelaki tertua di keluarga.

ada beberapa orang yang memegang peranan penting. diantaranya adalah pasangan suami istri pak hadi dan bu yuli, kemudian pasangan suami istri pak ketut dan bu ketut (semuanya ini merupakan teman komsel ortunya ima). kemudian ada pula pasangan pak matias dan bu matias yang merupakan teman gereja. ada beberapa orang lagi yang kalau menurutku memiliki peranan cukup penting tetapi sebenarnya mereka punya karakter yang kurang baik di proses penguburan ini, tetapi lebih baik tidak aku sebutkan.

pak hadi orangnya tinggi besar, chinese tetapi rada coklat, tipe plegmatis, pandai menilai orang dan menganala dengan baik. ia tak banyak bicara, kata2nya kalem tapi punya kekuatan, dan kalau ada yang dinilai kurang ia langsung bertindak untuk membantu. bu yuli orangnya lebih sanguin dan bertampang concern. mereka punya toko dan usaha sarang burung, kedua anaknya ada di amerika, dan hidup tenang di pati dan cukup aktif mengikuti kegiatan gereja. mereka termasuk yang paling banyak membantu selama proses penguburan, termasuk menyumbang lebih dari 200 roti dengan kualitas yang cukup bagus untuk para tamu. mereka jugalah yang banyak membantu waktu orang tua ima terkena banjir lumpur dulu.

pak ketut adalah ketua komsel dari komsel yang diikuti oleh ortunya ima. pak ketut adalah seorang polisi, dari caranya ngomong masih ada logat bali-balinya. dan bu ketut adalah seorang guru. pak ketut orangnya jujur dan juga suka membantu sesama dengan sebisanya. meskipun secara materiil mungkin aku rasa ia masih kalah dengan pak hadi, tetapi ia tidak kalah berjasa dibandingkan dengan pak hadi. pak ketut sampai cuti 3 hari demi membantu penguburan ini. ialah juga yang membantu mendapatkan peti mati dan tanah makam yang seharusnya bisa bernilai sekian juta menjadi tinggal setengahnya. ia pula yang dulu membantu keluarga ima waktu banjir lumpur, mendatangkan truk tangki air untuk menyirami lumpur dengan biaya yang sangat murah, mungkin bisa 10 kali lebih murah. pak ketut punya banyak kenalan, dan ia baik dan jujur.

sementara diriku berkenalan dengan para tamu, mamanya ima sudah dipapah ke ruang dalam, dan ima yang cuek dengan keadaan sekitar, menatap wajah papanya di peti mati dengan pandangan penuh kasih sayang. ima mulai menangis, diantara sedih dan terharu meskipun di dalam hatinya ia merasa damai. ima seharusnya mau pulang pati bulan agustus. ima belum sempat cerita tentang hal-hal yang bisa membuat papanya tertawa terkekeh-kekeh. ima belum sempat membelikan papanya beberapa kebutuhan papanya, yang seharusnya ia bisa berikan lebih awal. banyak penyesalan karena papanya ima pergi begitu cepat. kalau aku lihat mungkin ima yang paling dekat sama papanya, karena ia anak yg paling kecil. dulu ima jugalah yg mengenalkan papanya ke kristen sehingga papanya bisa berubah menjadi orang yang sama sekali baru.

peti matinya ditutup 1 selambu (lapisan kain tipis transparan). dan wajah papanya juga ditutup 1 selambu kecil. warna kulit dari papanya waktu itu masih kuning (pada waktu malamnya sudah mulai berubah menjadi keungu-unguan). ima membuka selambu-selambu itu, kemudian mengelus-elus dan menjiwiti (mencubit) pipi papanya dengan pelan. sewaktu masih hidup ima biasa menggodai papanya dengan menjiwiti dengan gemas badannya. sekarang aku lihat ima berlinang air mata menjiwiti papanya lembut dengan penuh kasih sayang seakan-akan mengenang masa lalu dan berharap kalau papanya masih hidup. aku yang ga tahan melihat pemandangan itu juga ikut menitikkan air mata.

hal yang agak menyeramkan, aku seakan-akan sungguh pernah ingat mengalami ini sebelumnya di mimpi, mungkin waktu aku masih seumur SMA, jauh sebelum kejadian ini. settingnya sama, dalam ruangan seperti ruang tamunya ima, model jendelanya juga sama, dan posisi peti mati dan warnanya juga sama, orang-orang juga berdiri mengelilingi peti mati itu, juga dalam suasana duka. cuma di mimpiku aku ga melihat ima (atau mungkin melihat tapi waktu itu belum kenal kalau itu ima ya) uh, seram.

sore hari sekitar jam 6 sore barulah cecenya ima yang dari jakarta sampai di pati, bersama dengan suami dan anaknya. setelah itu malamnya baru petinya ditutup. sebelum peti ditutup, sepatu dari ayah ima yang terbuat dari kulit sempat ditukar dengan sepatu kets, karena katanya sepatu bisa kulit lebih cepat busuk. aku juga melihat bahwa pada malam harinya kulit dari papi ima menjadi agak lebih keungu-unguan.




Tuesday, July 18 2006: Tutup Peti
hari ini masih ada tamu-tamu seperti hari sebelumnya, namun acaranya sudah lebih terstruktur karena orang-orang sudah lebih tenang. aku juga sempat ngatur kursi-kursi dan bantu orang-orang yang lainnya. mulai pagi ini di ruang tamu disetel lagu-lagu rohani dari Jeffry S Tjandra. lagu kesukaan ayah ima adalah "Kumau Cinta Yesus" (benar-benar favorit sampai bila beliau kalau di komsel ditanya mau nyanyi lagu apa jawabannya selalu sama)

malam harinya jam 7 sore ada acara kebaktian penghiburan. selama ini kalau di gereja aku kadang bisa merasa seperti ada jamahan Tuhan secara lembut, berupa denyutan-denyutan lembut di sisi samping kepalaku, dan kepalaku menjadi agak terasa berat/kaku (agak susah mendeskripsikannya), denyutan ini begitu lembutnya sampai aku ga yakin apa ini sungguhan atau hanya perasaanku saja. malam itu aku merasakan hal yang sama, dan aku tetap ga berani bilang hal itu benar-benar ada, atau hanya sugesti perasaanku saja. tetapi berikutnya setelah kembali ke surabaya, aku baru tahu dari ima bahwa pada hari selasa malam ini, kokonya ima juga merasakan hal yang sama (dia orangnya memang cenderung lebih peka, karena waktu kecil sebelum ia bertobat ia pernah mengikuti semacam ilmu kebatinan)

ketika malam sudah agak larut aku baru diberitahu bahwa pada waktu sebelum ayah ima meninggal, pak matias dan bu matias mendapat penglihatan.



Flashback: The Vision
pada hari rabu pagi, bu matias yang beda komsel dengan papinya ima, dia dapat penglihatan bahwa papinya ima melambai-lambaikan tangan ke dia seperti mau pergi. lalu bu matias berdoa. pak matias dan bu matias merasa bahwa mereka disuruh Tuhan untuk mendoakan papinya ima. tetapi karena waktu rabu malam mereka berdua ada komsel (dan komselnya berbeda dengan komsel ortu ima), maka mereka baru bisa datang ke rumah ortu ima hari kamis. mereka bersepakat untuk tidak memberitahukan penglihatan ini ke orang tua ima, karena takutnya bila ternyata salah menafsirkan, orang tua ima malah jadi takut. pak dan bu matias hanya memberitahukan hal ini pada pak ketut dan bu ketut (karena pak ketut merupakan ketua komsel orang tua ima)

pada hari kamis malam itu, pak dan bu matias, pak dan bu ketut, bu prapto datang ke rumah orang tua ima, untuk mendoakan. mama ima sebenarnya sudah curiga, koq tumben pak dan bu matias datang, karena mereka beda sel. setelah itu mereka mulai berdoa, lalu memberi pengarahan pada papi ima. kemudian pak matias mengajar orang tua ima tentang sorga, lalu mereka kembali mendoakan kembali. di dalam doa waktu itu, bu ketut melihat malaikat-malaikat turun dari sorga membentuk lingkaran membentengi mereka yang sedang berdoa membentuk lingkaran.

sedangkan bu matias melihat penglihatan ada rumah besar bertingkat (mansion) memiliki 3 pilar besar berwarna kuning keemasan. bu matias melihat papinya ima mau masuk ke dalam rumah itu, tetapi tidak bisa. di halaman rumah itu terlihat ada bunga-bunga berwarna merah, dan ada kesan bahwa bunga itu seperti geram atau mengandung kemarahan.

bu prapto dapat penglihatan bahwa papinya ima duduk di pelaminan (seperti waktu orang mau married) dengan baju berjas lengkap, tiba-tiba dari dada papinya ima keluar burung hitam (mungkin gagak) berwarna hitam. penglihatan-penglihatan ini tidak berlangsung secara serentak, namun berseling-seling diantara sesi pengajaran dan doa.

setelah itu mereka berdoa lagi, dan (kalau bukan pak matias ya bu matias, entah siapa) mendapat penglihatan yang terakhir. terlihat papinya ima memasuki rumah, dan bunga-bunga di taman yang sebelumnya berwarna merah, berubah menjadi berwarna ungu dan putih (ungu artinya mulia), kemudian mereka menundukkan diri ke arah papinya ima seakan-akan memberi hormat.

semua penglihatan tersebut tidak diceritakan kepada orang tua ima, tapi mereka yang datang merasa sudah waktunya Tuhan bahwa papinya ima untuk dipanggil oleh Bapa di sorga, karena mereka melihat papinya ima sudah masuk ke rumah besar dan indah yang sudah disediakan Tuhan untuk papinya ima. sejak malam itu papinya ima merasa hatinya lebih pasrah kepada Tuhan (sebelumnya sudah berserah namun ini menjadi lebih berserah.

semua hal tentang penglihatan ini baru diceritakan ke ima waktu hari selasa malam itu, dan kemudian ima menceritakannya kepadaku. ima merasa damai dan sukacita, meskipun ada kesedihan karena masih akan lama untuk bertemu papinya kembali. ima juga terharu karena Tuhan begitu buaekkkk, ima bilang kepadaku "kematian orang yang percaya itu indah karena itu bukanlah akhir tetapi awal hidup bersama Bapa"



Flashback: Short Biography
ima belajar satu hal dari papinya ima, bahwa sejak papinya ima menerima Yesus, hatinya berubah 180 derajat, benar-benar dipenuhi kasih -- karena dulu ia sering menyakiti dan disakiti orang tetapi sekarang ia menjadi pemaaf dan tidak menyimpan kesalahan orang lain -- dan meskipun kaki papinya ima masih lemah karena sisa stroke, dan ga bisa pelayanan, tetapi ima belajar bahwa yang dilihat Tuhan adalah hati. hati yang polos, hati yang tulus, hati yang seperti anak kecil. karena itu jagalah hatimu dengan penuh kewaspadaan, karena di situlah terpancar kehidupan.

papinya ima dalam waktu 3 tahun sejak ia bertobat sampai ia meninggal merupakan orang yang benar-benar bisa menjadi teladan (aku bisa jadi 25%nya saja sudah bersyukur sekali). ia berdoa sebelum makan, sesudah makan, sebelum mandi, sesudah mandi, selalu mengucap syukur, walaupun doanya sebentar. tetapi aku berpikir dengan gaya hidup papinya (yang aku percaya hatinya juga murni), di akhir hidupnya masih bisa keluar burung hitam (yang melambangkan dicabutnya akar-akar si jahat atau ikatan-ikatan yang lain). seperti ada hal-hal dimana kita merasa kita baik-baik saja, tetapi Tuhan melihatnya itu masih belum berkenan, karena Tuhan melihat lebih dalam lagi, ada sesuatu yang perlu dibereskan. karena itu di hidup kita adalah sangat penting untuk membiarkan Tuhan mengkoreksi hidup kita setiap hari dan meresponinya dengan taat.

ima berkata Tuhan itu begitu baik karena papinya meninggal setelah 3 tahun sejak pertobatan papinya itu, karena 3 tahun itu menghapus semua kenangan buruk tentang papinya yang dahulu hidupnya masih kurang benar. coba kalau meninggalnya sebelum papinya ima bertobat, kan pasti ingetnya yang buruk-buruk. Tuhan juga memberikan masa 3 tahun untuk masa pemulihan keluarga.

(bagian ini sebagian dari wawancara ke ima, karena aku ga mungkin bisa nulis kata-kata yang bagus gitu :p)



Wednesday, July 19 2006: Penguburan
hari ini aku bangun jam 630 dengan setengah ngelilir (tersadar), karena acara penguburan dimulai jam 10. jam 9 sudah harus siap karena ada kebaktian singkat di ruang tamu. aku ke lokasi penguburan dengan naik mobil mayat, persis di sebelah peti matinya. di pemakaman ada kotbah sebentar, lalu peti diturunkan ke dalam tanah, lalu ada acara foto-foto berdasarkan kelompok. setelah itu acara tabur bunga ke atas peti yang sudah masuk di dalam lubang tanah, maminya ima sempat menangis sejenak dan ia tidak kuat untuk melakukan tabur bunga karena emosional melihat proses tersebut.

setelah proses penguburan selesai, kami kembali pulang ke rumah. maminya ima sudah menjadi lebih tenang, bahkan ceria karena kembali bersama keluarga ditambah dengan cucu tercinta. aku juga jadi lebih sempat bersantai setelah 2 hari yang melelahkan, kalau ga salah banyak tidurnya, dan omong-omong dengan anggota keluarga yang lain.

aku lihat di rumahnya ima banyak terdapat gambar-gambar (lukisan?) kristen, dan adanya salib dipajang di dinding di setiap ruangan. sedangkan di rumahku mungkin cuma di kamar adikku yang seperti itu. aku merasa mungkin ada bagusnya bila kelak aku tinggal sendiri melakukan hal yang sama, karena adanya benda-benda semacam itu mau tidak mau akan mengingatkan kita untuk berpikir dari sudut rohani bila sedang menghadapi masalah.



Thursday, July 20 2006: Relaxing n Pulang
hari ini juga lebih relaks. aku pulang naik travel sendiri jam 11 malam, sementara ima baru kembali ke surabaya hari senin karena ia mau menemani mamanya supaya ga terlalu shock karena tiba-tiba sendirian di rumah dan tidak ada yang diajak bicara -- setelah sebelumnya puluhan tahun bersama dengan suaminya.

maminya ima saat ini berumur 61 tahun, dan papinya waktu meninggal berumur 65 tahun. maminya ima lebih memilih untuk tinggal di pati dan tidak mau dibawa ke surabaya karena di pati terdapat banyak teman-teman gerejanya, dan tetangga-tetangga juga sudah kenal. kalau keluar rumah pasti udah saling sapa-menyapa dengan tetangga, sedangkan di surabaya kehidupan begitu individualis, keluar rumah ya kosong, sehingga bisa-bisa tambah kesepian. saat ini seorang pelayan gereja full timer beserta istri dan anaknya juga tinggal di rumah maminya ima, untuk menemani dan membantu berjaga-jaga kalau terjadi apa-apa.

- the end -

yesterday i just made a group for the indo-christian community, it's located in akucintayesus.multiply.com
currently it has 104 members
i have no intention to create the group, actually i want to join one, because these days i need a spiritual refreshment, but i found none, so i created it.

* while i want to post a content for the group, i accidently pushed the publish button on this compose-blog-page-of-mine several minutes ago, so i posted this short content for exchange instead -- so it will not be empty. yeah accident happens :)

lately, i need a good quote about "action" to motivate me. i think the title has represent what i want in a quote. "bitching" means complaining (which i, and most people do, often), and the meaning of "revolution" is something radical (no, not that kind of revolution stuffs against the government)

these few days i have lost my focus. i've realized that recently, and even worse, one week ago ima has realized that before myself did. i need to re-focus myself. i need to (re-) define what i want. i need some time to be alone. i want to be closer with God. i am nothing without Him. i need to stay away from this glowing big box for awhile, and read that untouched bible which i should have read months ago. that is, what i should do in the first place.

and beside of that, i also need some encouraging words. thus i post some of them here, for me. (i blog mostly for helping myself, so maybe it won't be very useful for you, though you can find several interesting article here). decision and knowledge is power. but they are nothing without action. action is currently what i need. ok that's enough. i should stop bitching now, and start a revolution!

several other good "action" quotes:

As I grow older I pay less attention to what men say. I just watch what they do. ~Andrew Carnegie

The best way out of a problem is through it. ~Author Unknown

We cannot do everything at once, but we can do something at once. ~Calvin Coolidge

The shortest answer is doing. ~Lord Herbert

Well done is better than well said. ~Benjamin Franklin

Small deeds done are better than great deeds planned. ~Peter Marshall

Never mistake motion for action. ~Ernest Hemingway

In skating over thin ice, our safety is in our speed. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Talk doesn't cook rice. ~Chinese Proverb

In ancient Greece (469 - 399 BC), Socrates was widely lauded for his wisdom. One day the great philosopher came upon an acquaintance who ran up to him excitedly and said, " Socrates , do you know what I just heard about one of your students?"

"Wait a moment," Socrates replied. "Before you tell me I'd like you to pass a little test. It's called the Triple Filter Test."
"Triplefilter?"

"That's right," Socrates continued. "Before you talk to me about my student let's take a moment to filter what you're going to say. The first filter is Truth.
Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?"
"No," the man said, "actually I just heard about it."

"All right," said Socrates . "So you don't really know if it's true or not. Now let's try the second filter, the filter of Goodness. Is what you are about to tell me about my student something good?"
"No, on the contrary ..."

"So," Socrates continued, "you want to tell me something bad about him,even though you're not certain it's true?" The man shrugged, a little embarrassed.

Socrates continued." You may still pass the test though, because there is a third filter - the filter of Usefulness. Is what you want to tell me about my student going to be useful to me?"
"No, not really ..."

"Well," concluded Socrates , "if what you want to tell me is neither True nor Good nor even Useful, why tell it to me at all?" The man was defeated and ashamed.

This is the reason Socrates was a great philosopher and held in such high esteem. It also explains why he never found out that Plato was making love to his wife.

Keep this philosophy in mind the next time you either hear or are about to repeat a rumour.


note
i'm sure you've heard about this story a thousand time. but let me just say that i want to put this story here -- in my blog -- as it is a good one, and it is good to be here to keep remind and guide me about what should be written and what should not.

beside of my jokes and blog (thoughts) post, you can give critics to me if you found my post somehow is neither not true, not good, or not useful. thanks!

and just kidding about that last Plato line :p

image: the death of socrates

Stanley and Danko identified seven common denominators of real millionaires:

• they live well below their means.
sacrifice high consumption today, for financial freedom tomorrow.

• they pursue wealth very efficiently.
they allocate their time, energy, and money efficently, in ways conducive to building wealth. they pay well for training and advice. do investment planning. go to seminars. hire good attorneys, tax accountants, mentors and coaches. learn to identify and invest in assets that produce income. the wealthy spend money when the investment will protect and grow their assets. millionaires also know the details

• they have little interest in social status.
they believe that financial independence is more important than displaying social status. most live in average neighborhoods, and drive average cars.

• they got no financial help from their parents.
the parents did not provide substantial cash gifts to their children. 80% of millionaires are first generation millionaires; they have made their money on their own, in their lifetime.

• their adult children pay their own way.
their adult children are economically self-sufficient.

• they identify profitable markets.
they are proficient in targeting market opportunities. they pay well for products and services that protect and grow their assets

• they choose occupations wisely.
they choose the right occupation. entrepreneurs are 4 times more likely to become millionaires than those who work for others


another interesting thing i found from TMND, is the Martin Method.

the Martin Method is for selecting financal advisors. when a stock broker or other financial salesperson telephones Mr. Martin with an investment idea. he tells them to send a copy of their personal income tax return along with a list of what they had in their portfolio for the past three years. if stock broker has made more money from his investments than Mr. Martin, he'll invest with them.

Mr. Martin reports that so far none of the cold calling salespeople have submitted their income and capital appreciation data. wonder why?


About the book
since i can't find the Millionaire Next Door ebook, i just read the reviews, and put some interesting things i like here.


"a penny saved is a penny earned." – Benjamin Franklin

Your Net Worth
"Multiply your age times your realized pretax annual household income from all sources except inheritances. Divide by ten. This, less any inherited wealth, is what your net worth should be."

For example, if Mr. Liem is forty-one years old, makes $143,000 a year, and has investments that return another $12,000, he would multiply $155,000 by forty-one. That equals $6,355,000. Dividing by ten, his net worth should be $635,500.

Given your age and income, how does your net worth match up? Where do you stand along the wealth continuum? If you are in the top quartile for wealth accumulation, you are a PAW,or prodigious accumulator of wealth. If you are in the bottom quartile, you are a UAW, or under accumulator of wealth." Mr. Liem in the example above is an AAW, or average accumulator of wealth

The simple rule of thumb: if your net worth equals the average calculated by the formula above, you are an AAW, if your net worth is twice the average, you are a PAW, if your net worth is half the average, you are a UAW. Whatever your income, if you want to Retire Early you must be a PAW.


Example of Net Worth Statement

Are you a happy investor? Most of us are happy for the few seconds when we see what we have bought has increased in value. At other times, what do we do? Check the stock prices every day. Worry about our investment when the stock price drops. When the price is going up substantially, we hesitate to step into the market, fearing that the upward trend is near its end. When the price is dropping, we hesitate to step into the market again, fearing that the downward trend is far from its end. On average, we may not be as a happy investor as we think of.

So how to be a happy investor? Buffett told us to buy Good Business Franchises at Very Low Valuations and Hold Forever. It seems that the rule is very simple. But it already contains 3 fundamental concepts in investment.

1. GOOD BUSINESS FRANCHISES

I have to put it in a simple way. First of all, what is GOOD BUSINESS. Good business means there's a good return on capital. Say there are two companies A & B. Both of them are running fast food shops. For company A, the capital cost for each shop is $200k. The earning from each shop is $50k. For company B, the capital cost for each shop is $250k. The earning from each shop is $60k. Hence, for each $200k spent on shop, company A gets $50k earning while company B gets $60k for each $250k spent. In other words, the returns on capital for company A & B are 25% and 24% respectively. Therefore, company A's business is better than company B's.

We have the following conclusion: GOOD BUSINESS means high return on capital. Warren Buffett does not just buy good business, he prefers buying FRANCHISES, i.e. a strong franchise and a freedom to price. Take a look at Gillette, the world's largest razor producer. It has a market share of 60%. Buffett once explained his decision to buy Gillette in a jokingly manner, "there are 3 billion people who shave every morning. It must be a very big business."

2. VERY LOW VALUATIONS

Again we have two companies A & B. Company A makes $50k earnings while company B makes $60k earnings. The value of company A is $1M while that of company B is $1.5M. That means we can get $50k earning if we pay $1M to company A while we get $60k if we pay $1.5M to company B. Or the price to earning (commonly known as PE ratio) is 20 for company A and 25 for company B. Obviously, we will buy company A instead of company B. Company A has a LOWER VALUATION than company B.

3. HOLD FOREVER

I think all investors (whether they are in the beginner or advanced level) understand the said basic financial concepts clearly. But why there are always losers in investment? The key is "HOLD FOREVER". Buffett doesn't suggest that we should hold what we have bought forever. Actually he doesn't. The point is to have PATIENCE. He once said, "I will be happy with my holdings if the stock exchange closed down for the next 10 years."

Let's say that we have on average 4 transactions every year and it worths $10000 in each transaction. The stamp duty (say) is 0.01%, i.e. we pay $1 extra in each transaction. For a period of 10 years, we have 40 transactions. So the transaction cost is $40 or 0.4% of our capital. Not a small amount in the long run. Time is a test to differentiate the winners (those who have patience) from losers. For the case of Gillette, Buffett first bought in its share in 1984 and is still holding it.

Why is he considered to be a happy investor? B'coz it doesn't matter him whether the stocks go up or down as long as he believes that he has bought a good business at a very low valuation. Do you have that patience to become the winner in investment?

note:
i am not the writer of this article
this article was taken from Ken Lui's blog (thanks), with permission

The difference between the poor countries and the rich ones is not the age of the country. This can be shown by countries like India and Egypt that are more than 2000 years and are poor. On the other hand, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, that 150 years ago were inexpressive, today are developed countries and are rich.

The difference between poor and rich countries does not reside in the available natural resources. Japan has limited territory, 80% mountainous, inadequate for agriculture and cattle raising, but it is the second leading world economy. The country is like an immense floating factory, importing raw materials from the whole world and exporting manufactured products.

Another example is Switzerland which does not plant cocoa but has the best chocolate of the world. In its little territory they raised animals and plant the soil during 4 months per year. Not enough, they produce dairy products of the best quality. It is a small country that transmits an image of security, order and labor, which made it the world’s strong safe.

Executives from rich countries who communicate with their counterparts in poor countries show that there is no significant intellectual difference.

Race or skin color is also not important; immigrants labeled lazy in their countries of origin are the productive power in rich European countries.


What is the difference then?
The difference is the attitude of the people, framed along the years by education and culture. On analyzing the behavior of the people in rich and developed countries, we find that the great majority follow the following principles in their lives:
1. Ethics, as a basic principle
2. Integrity
3. Responsibility
4. Respect for the laws and rules
5. Respect for the rights of other citizens
6. Work on loving others
7. Strive for saving and investment
8. Will of super action, and
9. Punctuality

In poor countries, only a minority follow the basic principle in daily life. We are not poor because we lack natural resources or because nature was cruel to us.
We are poor because we lack attitude. We lack the will to comply with and teach the functional principle of rich and developed societies.

from: various sources

nama lengkapnya adalah Elita Jules Quiterie von Micheline. saya bertemu dengannya hari ini pada jam 3 sore di jalan Bratang

setelah menimbang2 beberapa lama dan saya merasa cocok dengannya, lalu ia pulang bersama saya. sebenarnya Micheline ini juga ga terlalu tua. agak kurus juga malahan. tapi it's ok lah. saya percaya kedepannya ia akan bisa jadi lebih baik dari yg saat ini. toh saya berusaha untuk berkomitmen juga dengannya.

berdasarkan namanya, Elita artinya The Special One
Jules artinya Youthful
Quiterie artinya Tranquil
dan Micheline, artinya 'Who is like God?'

untuk mendapatkan dirinya saya juga tidaklah terlalu kesusahan, cukup mengeluarkan duit 40rb. yah sebenarnya 50rb sih, tapi setelah ditawar2 akhirnya jatuh dengan harga 35rb, tetapi saya kasih tips 5rb lagi lah. bagusnya lagi saya rasa michel juga bukan tipe yang high maintenance.

saya cukup optimis dengan kehadiran michel akan membuat hidup saya dapat bergairah kembali. alasan dibalik mengapa saya membutuhkan michel ialah karena saya sudah tidak bisa menahannya lebih lama lagi. mungkin michel tidak akan bisa memberikan keamanan tetapi setidaknya saya membutuhkan kenyamanan.

saya menempatkan michel tepat di luar jendela kamar saya supaya ia bisa mendapatkan apa yang ia inginkan, yaitu sinar matahari. dan saya akan terlindung pula dari teriknya sinar matahari di kamar saya. memang sih daun-daunnya masih jarang, tapi katanya 1 bulan lagi ia akan tumbuh lebih lebat. akarnya akar serabut sehingga saya harap tidak akan merusak lantai -- tidak seperti akar tunggang. kalo ga salah michel ini termasuk jenis kolbandang/kulbanda... saya kurang jelas juga jenisnya pokoknya kira2 ngomongnya seperti itu lah

saya menyebutnya kekasih karena memang saya mengasihinya -- atau setidaknya saya akan berusaha mengasihinya. dan nama dan artinya saya dapatkan dari babynamesworld.com

mari kita tunggu beberapa bulan lagi untuk melihat pertumbuhan michel
sementara itu,
welcome to my world, michel

1. Decide to be rich
it's not only hoping to be rich. it's not only wanting to be rich. it's not only wishing to be rich. it's not only desiring to be rich. it is deciding to be rich. make a commitment. don't broke it.

2. Set a goal and a plan to reach it, the specific ones
you set a goal. a specific value. in a specific timeline. set a date. a dream without a deadline is dreaming. set a date to reach more money. in specific value. and make sure you have a way to get there. make a plan. a good plan. be realistic, but flexible. goal can change.

3. Learn how the money works
most of us is an expert in our own field. but our knowledge in finance/making money is not that good. we have IQ. we have EQ. now it's time to improve your FQ (financial quotient). learn more financial vocabulary. learn from books. money articles from the internet. get yourself a mentor.

4. Develop a budget and live by it
a budget should allows you to: understand where your money goes, ensure you don't spend more than you make, find uses for your money that will increase your wealth. to develop a budget, you have to: calculate your monthly income, track your daily expenses, determine how much you spend on monthly bills.

5. Reduce spending
most of self-made millionaires live a frugal live. they live bellow their means. making more money will not make you rich. spending less will. many people get in serious debt because they cannot control spending. assets - liabilities = net worth. net worth is your wealth. so increase your assets and reduce your liabilities.

6. Begin Investing
don't speculate nor gambling. invest in things you understand, wisely. make the money work for you. time can be your friend, or enemy. learn about the eighth wonder of the world, interest compounding.

7. Increase Assets
making more money means paying more taxes. it takes time, hardwork and pressure. and when you have cash, it is easier to spend. millionaires buy stocks and building, investing in asset that make they rich. learn the difference between asset and liability.

8. Reduce Taxes/Bad Debts
learn the tax laws. at least learn the basics. it will help your accountant a lot (and help you too). use them for your benefit. most low and middle classes in america spend more money for tax than for food, clothing, and shelter combined. but they don't realize it how much it cost because it is deducted from their paycheck. but the wealthy know how to reduce the tax, legally. reduce bad debt. reduce your credit card usage.

9. Use your fortune, wisely
being greedy and selfish will not make you rich. investing in your community will. help the poor. help others. the richest man in the world, is also the man who gives the biggest charity.

10. Review, and set a better solution. Then repeat them over time.
overlook your steps. replace them with the more efficient or more effective solution, if you found any. a repetition, when done in its maximum performance, will give you an amazing result.


"If you make a good income each year and spend it all, you are not getting wealthier.
You are just living high."
Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko, The Millionaire Next Door

I *want* to be a venture capitalist
that's my new long-term target, and new goal.

Paul Allen, a venture capitalist, said on his post, 7 reasons google will rule the world, that:

"Once again Google surprised the street with much higher than expected earnings. The stock price has jumped $20 today to more than $210 per share and the market cap is almost $58 billion.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I’ve sold my Google stock and invested the profits in Infobase Ventures’ own startup companies. Even if Google increases in value over the next few years and passes Microsoft in market, the return on equity for a good startup company should be much higher than the 5-6 fold returns that Google might provide, the way I see things."

Ivana, from The Apprentice session 2, is also a Venture Capitalist.

i think venture capitalist is promising, and based on the world competitiveness from forbes, i am already in the right place.
i suppose there will be a lot of new things to be learn, and it will be interesting.

wikipedia resources

the beautiful seasons of human life
when i see her, i felt beauty. not a beauty that i adore and i used to see in girls of my age; not the high spiritful things that i see; but somehow, i can feel something nice, something soft, yet beautiful; like i could feel there's heaven in her heart. she never mentioned her age but i suppose from her pic she's around 50 now. i think she's in the fall season now. and i bet she is such a lovely woman when she were at her spring and summer.

my preacher used to say, there are seasons in every human life, to be specific, in every girl's life. every season has it's beauty.

there is the spring when you're teenager; the misty morning has broken, the tranquilizing flowers begins to blossom, young, fresh, and bright, and the earthy smell air clears the sky.

there is summer when you're an early adult; the earth rejoices as the oil-painting coloured flowers appears as their best, lying in a soft and warm grass pillow, as the hummingbird sing and the morning dew accompanying them cherishly, and everywhere is colourful.

there is fall when you're a late adult; the summer just aren't being there to stay, it has fades and now the shade begins to appear to those golden leaves, the flowers begins to withers at the north-wind's breath upon the cirrus sky, but hey! it is the crowning glory of the year, bring us the fruition of months of thought and care and toil.

and there is winter when you're old; there is a time to be born, and there's time to die. the grass has stops to grow, the crickets die, the stream near you has frozen, and few are living, but as pure as snow in the milky haze, keep your faith in beautiful things, in the sun when it is hidden. in a way winter is the real spring, it is the time when the inner things happen, the resurgence of the nature.

some also say, old age is winter. but for the learned, it is a harvest.

Spring passes and one remembers one's innocence
Summer passes and one remembers one's exuberance
Autumn passes and one remembers one's reverence
Winter passes and one remembers one's perseverance.
- Yoko Ono, Season of Glass


Kemewahan Sementara
makanan adalah kemewahan sementara. lezat. nikmat. tetapi hanya tidak abadi. membuat kita selalu ingin kembali merasakannya, dan kembali merasakanya. food, is opium for the masses.


My Dog and I
belakangan ini aku selalu mengajak anjingku jalan-jalan jam 4, 5 atau 6 pagi. seperti yg mungkin sudah beberapa dari kalian tahu, aku setiap hari harus selalu mengajak anjingku jalan2 for a poo and a pee. dia ga mau poo n pee kecuali diajak jalan-jalan keluar. jadi ya begitulah. dan waktu paling enak itu harusnya antara jam 12 malam s/d jam 6 pagi. karena tetangga2 masih tidur (karena yah dia maunya selalu di pekarangan luar tetangga sih, mau gimana lagee). kalo udah jam 6 lewat tetangga2 udah pada bangun, jadi ya rada2 sungkan. untungnya beberapa tetanggaku pake tembok yang tinggi, dan ada 2 rumah kosong di gang ku. jadi lumayan jg, kalo pas siang2 masih bisa ^__^


apprentice 4
beberapa waktu yg lalu aku liat iklannya apprentice 4 di tv kabel (star world). serial apprentice yg aku ikutin ini yg terakhir aku liat adalah season 3. aku tau kalo apprentice 4 bakal maen, tapi aku ga tau kapan tanggal start nya :(
ternyata kemaren rabu malam udah mulai, itupun udah episode 2 dan aku liatnya 1/2 jam terakhir doank. yah gpp lah. jadi sampai session 4 apprentice berakhir, i'll be away every wednesday @ 10 pm


kecoa dan belalang
kadang aku berpikir, kenapa ya, kecoa dan belalang itu sama2 serangga, seperti halnya kepik, dan kupu2. tetapi koq kebanyakan orang cuma jijik sama kecoa? gimana asal usulnya ya... kenapa koq orang ga jijik sama belalang? kenapa harus kecoa? nasibmu kec...


da vinci code
pengen nonton ini... tapi kata cannes ga sesuai harapan. memang sih adaptasi cerita ke film biasanya ga sebagus aslinya. tapi aku suka tom hanks. cast away, the terminal, catch me if you can, green mile, forrest gump, dan ga tau apa lagi itu semuanya bagus2. jadi gimana yah.... hmmm...


mind mapping u/ kotbah
aku punya prinsip kalo mau berbicara di depan umum atau kotbah, harus menyiapkan bahan at least 2-5x dari bahan yg mau dibicarakan, biar waktu bicara bisa lancar ga keputus2, karena persediaan resource nya bagus. hal ini aku lihat pada pendeta2 yang berkotbah di gerejaku, mungkin mereka menerapkan sistem gitu juga. belakangan aku berpikir, mungkin kalo mind mapping bisa menjadi salah satu tool yang menarik untuk kotbah, karena sifatnya yg sederhana. kapan2 aku bahas mind mapping deh, kalo ga males :)


rambut dah panjang
rambutku dah panjang. pengen potong. gerah. tapi lagi malas bergerak :D gimana yah enaknya...


- end of random thoughts -

instead of asking,
"is this the right answer?"
ask yourself,
"is this the right question?"

think out of the box
reframe your problem
reframe your question

if you are in a selling business,
what if your business became buying?
if you are a producer,
what if you became consumer?
if you are looking for success,
how can you get the success to come looking for you?

prehistoric man used to hunt to get food
instead of asking,
"how can we get close to them"
they ask
"how can they get close to us"
and then, the traps created

instead of asking,
"where can i find a place with fresh water"
ask yourself,
"how can i move the fresh water to my place"

instead of asking,
"how can i find customer?"
ask yourself,
"how can customer find me?"

instead of asking,
"how can i find distributor of my product?"
ask yourself,
"how can the distributor find me?"


think creatively
think.

there were 4P of the Marketing Mix, they are, Price Product Promotion and Place (Placement, distribution). they are always correlated for each other.
but for me, i always add one more P to the past 4P. some people says that it's People. but for me, i'd say it is Partner.

ps: if you are new to this subject, you can learn from wikipedia about Marketing or the Marketing Mix, or even for the Marketing Plan. i also found an interesting subject there, named Porter 5 forces analysis :)

why Partner? because no man is an island. they need some one else. the more friends we have, the bigger our chance to success. it's just the same in business. if you do business on your own -- without partner(s) -- i'm pretty sure that it will be difficult to grow. partners can help us a lot. we need partner in placement, and maybe we need partner in the making of the product, and it will be a great advantage, if we can have partner in promotion.

even the employees is also a partner, it's an internal partner, but it's still a partner (i'd prefer to view employee as a partner rather than top-down structure). so, we definitely can't live without partner :)


i used to think too, and i always say, that every business could always be divided into 2 main parts: the production and the marketing. every business consist of those 2 parts. after i read wikipedia, it seems my opinion is quite similar to Albert Frey. i quote:
"Another set of marketing mix variables were developed by Albert Frey. He (Frey, A. 1961) classified the marketing variables into two categories: the offering, and process variables. The "offering" consists of the product, service, packaging, brand, and price. The "process" or "method" variables included advertising, promotion, sales promotion, personal selling, publicity, distribution channels, marketing research, strategy formation, and new product development."

Marketing... what an interesting subject :)