I am quite certain that new year resolutions don't really work, are more wishful thinking (gyms are full in January and empty in February), except when you are registered for a course, study hard and pass. New resolutions but old habits. The paradox of new years resolutions is that you get into the new year…
Thank You
As the year 2013 comes to an end, I would like to express my gratitude to the people who have contributed to my development and growth this year. As an entrepreneur, it was never an easy year both personally and business-wise, certain difficult decisions had to be made, some life changing decisions, some brave decisions…
Why watching and waiting is torture
In a penalty situation in soccer, the ball takes less than 0.3 seconds to travel from the player who kicks the ball to the goal. There is not enough time for the goalkeeper to watch the ball's direction. He must take a decision before the ball is kicked. Soccer players who take penalty kicks shoot…
Why you should set fire to your ships
Next to my bed, two dozens books are staked high. I have dipped in and out of all them, but am unable to part with even one. I know that sporadic reading won't help me achieve any real insights, despite the many hours I put in, and that I should really devote myself to one…
If you have nothing to say, say nothing
When asked why a fifth of Americans were unable to locate their country on a world map, Miss Teen Carolina in the USA, a high school graduate, gave this answer in front of rolling cameras: 'I personally believe that U.S. Americans are unable to do so because some people out there in our nation don't…
Build your own castle
Three scenarios - which would annoy you the most? A) Your friends salary increases. Yours stays the same B) Their salaries stay the same. Yours too. C) Their average salaries are cut. Your is too. If your answered A, don't worry, that's perfectly normal: you are just another victim of the green-eyed monster. Here is…
If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail (Part 2)
A man takes out a business loan, starts a company, and goes bankrupt shortly afterward. He falls into a depression and commits suicide. What do you make of this story? As a business analyst, you want to understand why the business idea did not work: was he a bad leader? Was the strategy wrong, the…
How to profit from the implausible
"All swans are white." (Swans are water-birds whose close relatives includes the geese and ducks). For centuries, this statement was watertight. Every snowy specimen corroborated this. A swan in a different colour? Unthinkable. That was until the year 1697, when a guy by the name of Willem de Vlamignh saw a black swan for the…
Its not what you say, but how you say it…
Consider these two statements: 'Hey, dont you see the rubbish bin is full!' Or 'It would be really great if you could empty the rubbish bin, honey' C'est le ton qui fait la musique: its not what you say, but how you say it. If a message is communicated in different ways, it will also…
You like me, you really really like me
Mpho (a friend) has just bought two bottles of expensive whiskey. He rarely drinks whiskey, but the sales assistant was so nice, not fake or pushy, just really likeable, so he bought two bottles. Did he buy the expensive whiskey because he wanted to or because the sales lady liked him, really really liked him.…
Leave your supermodel friends at home
A friend in trying to convince me to be a trader in the stock/securities exchange says to me he made R35,000 profit and that its a good return. If you make R35,000 profit over a period of a six months, that's a good return, but if you made a profit over a period of 5…
Why “No Pain, No Gain” Should Set Alarm Bells Ringing
A few years ago, I was on vacation in Nelspruit (Mpumalanga province, South Africa) and fell sick. The symptoms were new to me, and the pain was growing by the day. Eventually I decided to seek help at a local medical centre. A young doctor began to inspect me, poking and prodding my stomach, gripping…
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