Magic to Success: Money, Love and Health » an Interactive, Theatrical Seminar

How happy are you in your life? How’s your financial state, relationship and health? If you don’t have a 100% YES answer, please attend: 

• Magic to Success (Money, Love and Health), an Interactive, Theatrical Seminar 
• Venue: Ortigas Foundation Library, 2nd Floor of Ortigas Building, Ortigas corner Meralco Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City [Please refer to location map below] 
• Date: October 22, Saturday
• Time: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Seminar Investment: 280.00 Php

To maintain high quality of training, D.E.P. will only accommodate 50 participants on this seminar. There are only a few seats left, so reserve your seat now!

This event is not your typical seminar. They’ll help you define life’s direction; reach for your dreams and use mind tools. You will be asked to put your learning into action within the seminar. They also have actors to play key parts to highlight learning!

I personally attended this seminar during its first run and I was really amazed by its positive impact, I even volunteered on its second run. I highly recommend it to all bloggers, corporate drones, students and anybody who needs a little motivational kick and a fresh dose of success insights.   

You may contact D.E.P. at the following numbers for your tickets: 

• 0922-7557575
• 02-3803180 
• email: dynamicempowermentphilippines@gmail.com
• you can also leave your questions at the comments section below. 

Testimonials:

"Magic to success is very entertaining, funny and educational. The discussion is easy to understand and practical. Keep it up!" – Cherry Arceo

"Dynamic Empowerment’s approach to conducting seminar is very different to other companies. Their technique is very effective specially in engaging their participants to putting their learning into action." - Care de Lusong

"The speaker knows the topic by heart, motivating and realistic in approach." –Nina Alay-ay

---

About Jordan Willy Patente 

Jordan is the President of Dynamic Empowerment Philippines Co. (DEP) and has been a life and success coach for five years. He conducts motivational talks and directs musical and theatrical productions for individuals, educational institutions and business sectors. Read his Manila Bulltein article compilation HERE  

---

Jordan is also a columnist at the Manila Bulletin Classifieds, Wednesday and Sunday.  Here's a copy of his latest article, if you missed Manila Bulletin last Wednesday [12 October 2011]

How to own a house

By Jordan Willy Patente

Have you recently thought of getting a new mobile phone? Holidays are coming and some people already have plans of getting new gadgets.

For a new phone, you should have the model name or number, features, benefits, budget and even the place where you’ll source it in mind. Did you know that the process of preparing and selecting a new phone is a simple form of goal setting? Yes, this topic might seem complicated to you but you already know it by heart. You just need to focus your attention to achieving more.

Goal setting is a powerful process of thinking about your ideal future and an effective tool for motivating yourself to turn your vision into reality. With goal setting, life is bountiful.

Begin with an end in mind

If you are excited about getting a new phone, you probably either have a brochure or photo of the model that you want. You can do the same when you want your own house. Once you have identified your working budget, location and house preferences (lot size, number of rooms etc.), have a picture of it (if not applicable draw it) in a place you always see. This way, you constantly remind yourself of what needs to be accomplished. Seeing the outcome will inspire you to focus more attention to your aspiration.

If I want something, I always expose myself to it. I have it beside my bed, on my computer monitor, as my mobile phone wall paper, and if I have a wallet, I’ll definitely carry around the photo with me. This process is an affirmation of me getting whatever is on the photo or something better.  

Follow your road

In goal setting, knowing your path is a MUST. Without a clear direction, you can be in undesired places. Some people still rent an apartment even if they are on their mid-forties because of lack of a goal. This is acceptable except that some people will complain about not having their own property even if it’s not set.

We take short and long roads depending on our destination. If you intend to go to Baguio, you will patiently wait six or more hours in the bus just to get there. Even when it’s exhausting, you bear with it because you know the destination is worth it.

Most of the employees who do not have plans for their future and have no goals for themselves will just spend their hard-earned money on night-outs and newly released gadgets. Only when they are no longer energetic and young will they start thinking of their future. By that time, they can only accomplish so much.
With goals, everything that you do in your life is in reference to your goal. If you want a house, will you be spending a lot on night-outs? Will you be investing so much on new gadgets and luxurious trips?

Write down your goal

A friend had a long and tiring day, but did not accomplish a lot. He was too busy chatting with his colleagues and attended several unnecessary meetings. He missed out one important meeting because he did not note it in his calendar. It is the same scenario that you will face in getting a house. If it’s not written and it’s not set you will end up spending your time and money on things that you do not even desire.

The power of written word is amazing: this will help you visualize where you are heading. If goals are written, it means you have to act upon it.

Owning your dream house would need to be included in your to-do list. At work, we usually write down things that you need to accomplish on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. Having check marks on the list are desired, check marks mean progress. Not accomplishing a lot would lead to frustration. To avoid this, we make sure to take necessary actions.

Getting a mobile phone and a house is parallel. Both are easy to accomplish, you just need to use a formula that we all know by heart. Organized planning for your future is 99 percent more effective than accidental success strategy. If you use the tips that are listed here, you will be proud of your accomplishments and even aim for more success. I, for one, still use the above tips and possibilities are endless.  

____________________________________

You may also want to check out previous articles by Jordan published in Manila Bulletin: 

» Success Wizard: Control Bad Spending Habits Now
» Success Wizard: Start Managing Your Money Now
» Success Wizard: Lessons in Money Management-Why Lotto Winners are Still Broke
» Success Wizard: Dealing with a Bully Boss
» Success Wizard: Manage Your Credit Cards Effectively

MAP TO THE SEMINAR VENUE [Ortigas Building]
View Larger Map

Guaranteed Life is Propaganda

Sometimes I find it hard translating my feelings into words and as far as my personal blogging experience is concerned, I find it impossible to completely convey exactly what I feel – I can’t totally overcome blogger’s-block I guess. And although my written expressions might be improving, the more I write the more I am discovering how difficult the task of laying down words really is. I’m writing a draft of a personal e-mail right now and I don’t know why I find it so hard.

Evidently, I’m having a hard time conveying the frustrations I’m feeling right now. Thinking about your career and what you really want in life is really a huge everyday burden – especially if you suddenly realize that somewhere along the way, you took a wrong turn.


Eventually, at some point, I feel the need to be on the right track. FEAR always keeps me from moving on and over time it disguise itself as HOPE.  

I accept that I'm not guaranteed anything in my life, but rather I am given the opportunity to go after what I believe to be a worthy pursuit. Because there is no guaranty of success I will appreciate it all the more when I've achieved what I have set out to accomplish.

Through hard work, keeping my end result in mind, and applying ample stick-to-it-ness I know I will achieve what I really want in life.

Am I making sense here?

Enough of my self-help rants! Back to my e-mail…

On To Better Things

Today is the day I am contemplating about what I’ve been thinking for roughly three months now – handing over my one-month notice. I’ve been with this company for six years, going seven this coming February.

I’ve been thinking of handing my one-month notice to my boss and put this experience behind me. I’ve left a company before for a better opportunity. In this case am just leaving.

Sure the uncertainty is troublesome. Like anyone, I have bills that need to be paid. However, the fear of the unknown is better than the reality of the known with this job.

On to better things… It’s time to move on to better things.  



I don’t think it matters what one does for work, but what does matter, for me, is that the work is able to sustain an ever-increasing interest; that the work leads in unexpected directions; that it unveils me unto myself. I can tell I am heading on the right path when my work brings me closer to a valuation of life in all its forms. When it happens, I feel accountable for the work I do. It becomes more than me and I feel responsible to it. When I feel responsible, I sense how much I’ve yet to learn. And I burn to continue.

In the end, I am like all the other individuals. I must find my own work, a work that is greater than myself. When I find it, I know I will suffer. When I suffer, I will seek for answers, and I will grow. When I grow, others will grow along with me.

Maybe I should leave the corporate world and pursue my dream of becoming a full-time teacher.

Follow your heart and the money will come. Do what you love. It’s all the great advice and I love hearing it. Everywhere I go, it seems like the conversations always turn to “What do I really want to do?”

The problem is, most of us never find the answer.

Pretending to Be Busy at Work Can Cause Diarrhea

Jim, my officemate was recently promoted to assistant manager but I guess he couldn't reconcile himself to his new office and position.

Before 5:00 p.m., Mr. Swabe (not his real name), our senior manager, used to drop by at every office on his way out for a little chit-chat. Yesterday, I saw him heading to Jim’s office, so I warned Jim in advance.

To show how important and busy he was, he picked up the phone and then asked Mr. Swabe to have a seat. Jim kept talking on the phone, nodding and saying, "No problem, I can handle that," “Yes,” “Yes, everything is being taken care of, don’t worry.”

After a few minutes he hung up and asked Mr. Swabe what he could do for him.
Before Mr. Swabe could reply, somebody from the building maintenance office suddenly came in and said,  "Sir, I'm here to connect your phone."

Jim suddenly excused himself and ran to the CR and stayed there for an hour.

Here and There - Sudden Wisdom on a Hell Day

While trying to finish my usual 2-page To-Do list today, I suddenly stopped, gave a deep frustrated sigh, stared at all the papers in front of me, and thought of quitting... yes, resigning from this job... I don't know but I'm contemplating on this idea for almost a week now.

Like a choreographed emo moment, the next song played by my player was "I Will Get There" by Boyz II Men...

I will get there, 
I will get there somehow, 
Cross that river, 
Nothing's stoppin' me now, 
I will get through the night, 
And make it through to the other side

But...

How can I be sure that "there" is a better place than "here." I know myself, when my "there" has become a "here", I will simply obtain another "there" that will again look better than "here."

Ahhhhh, hell day it is!

__________________
Image Source: Kamicarus by Egil Paulsen

Escaping the hullabaloo of my daily life

How does someone who is insanely busy manage to downsize stress? I tried doing it the man’s way – ending a toxic day with vodka and beer, late night gig, sleep-all-day-Saturday, coffee & peanuts, remote control & Sci-fi movies – but on the following day it was too hard to kick-start the whole brain again. Stress just pile up.

In my search to simplify life – and put an end to my fatal indecision – I realized that the perfect way to break the cycle of stress is to have a change of scenery – a day or two with nature best suits me.

Accordingly, I woke up at 6:00 am last Sunday, grabbed few stuff and headed to Subic Bay – Olongapo City with friends. The Master of our laid-up cargo ship, the “MV Pacific Islander II” invited us onboard.


I did hesitate going there a few days before, thinking that holidaying is a waste of time & money and that I should utilized that long weekend – Monday being holiday [National Heroes Day] – for completing my pending office work. It wasn’t until I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and I saw my image as “stuck” – it was like I was frozen, too absorbed in my work, I can’t imagine living any other way.

Then and there I decided I wanted an exciting existence – an uncomplicated, full of adventure, enriching and slow life. By giving myself permission to leave my “cubicled life” and temporarily forget my deliverables, the introspection opened up an exciting alternative to what’s really important.

How about you, how do you downsize stress?

___________________________
More Photos Here and Scandal Video

The Rise of the Mediocre - How I climbed the corporate ladder

While sipping a nice hot tea after lunch, hoping to calm down my angry stomach – which is planning a major revolution via a deadly gas attack after I stuff it with an unknown fish soup, banana cue, ampalaya and other for-the-glutton-like-me stuff during lunch, I suddenly notice our company bulletin board. Weird because nobody ever seems to notice it – one of the most ignored thing in our office. Posted on it are the smiling faces of all the employees, forming a pyramid – a typical hierarchical organization chart, telling all the visitors and reminding all the employees who are the gods and the slaves.

My mind, which hates doing mental calculation, tried to calculate how long I’ve been here in this company. Whoaaah! Six years. Double check… Double check.. Hmmm February 2003… Oh my gums! Six years and five months? That long? Whew!

I found this company in Jobstreet, a ship crewing, crew management and shipping agent here in the Philippines. I started as a recruitment & training assistant. After a few years, my boss noticed that I’m bored to death – always going to work with a terrible hang-over, always staring at my computer monitor doing nothing and always having the don’t-fucking-disturb-me look. The trick is, I make them rely to me in almost everything so that they can’t just fire me – from e-mail correspondence to file management to guest and trainee relations, hence instead of firing me they transferred me to the Training Division as a registrar and computer instructor.

I few years later I found myself fighting the Peter Principle, already reaching my level of incompetence. Fighting routine work, highly convinced that I’m underpaid and overloaded by tasks not listed in my job description. So I decided to quit. Hoping for a greener and fresher pasture in the academe.

When I’m about to submit my resignation letter, I was offered the rumored-to-be-challenging job as the Executive Assistant of the Chairman of the Board and President.

I accepted the challenge, therefore here I am – learning bits and pieces of business bureaucracy, learning the importance of business protocols as mundane as handing a business card to a Japanese, e-mail etiquette and various business correspondence and the most exciting – observing how managers perspire during the monthly committee meeting.

It’s already a year and a few months – time passes by, continuously learning a few tricks here and there, but the academe has that drawing power over me. I’ll have to wait I guess – hoping for another round of company reorganization.

Loving the Ropes

It was just a regular chat – nothing serious, nothing so important, just catching up with an old friend.

Then he casually said, “You know what, I can’t imagine myself doing other work other than what I’m doing right now. It is my life and I will be in this field for the rest of my life.” He uttered it with full conviction and enthusiasm.

I don’t know, but I suddenly feel a wave of envy and wish I could say that too. Like a terrible itch I cannot scratch, that feeling got stuck in me, making me feel uneasy for days.

Do I love my job? Am I happy doing this?

There are times when I hate every moment of it. I fill myself with dislike, wishing it was over. I want to be in any place but here. Doing other things but this. A feeling of being like a piece of a tangled yarn – always trying to untangle it, afraid that I will go on doing it for the rest of my life.

Then I end up miserable. Realizing that I waste part of my life to bad feelings.

I then realize that by hating my tasks, time slows to a crawl and I sentenced myself to prolonged suffering. I have to understand and accept the law of cause and effect which forces us take responsibility for our circumstances. I realize that I am where I am as the result of the choices I made, choices that maybe wrong or maybe right, but choices I made nonetheless.

I learned that I can make even a really boring job interesting, if I assert myself. And that I can build relationships & learn things at work that are as valuable as my paycheck, or more so.

I have to remember the Zen adage about “loving the ropes.”

Two people are tied up in chairs with ropes. One person struggles to get free, and ends up bruised, bleeding, and frustrated – and stays just as tightly tied as ever.

The other decides to love the ropes – and the ropes fall right off.

______________________________________
Photo Credit : Katelyn Alain, "Tied" 48x48, 2006