Saturday, November 26, 2011

Cracking the QR Codes: The Paper-Based Hyperlinks


My contact information in QR Code.
You’ve probably seen them in newspapers, magazines or other paper-based publications: two-dimensional bar codes, called quick response codes (QR codes). What are they? They have been described as paper-based hyperlinks, and this is a good description. You simply take a picture of a QR code with your smart phone, and you get redirected to a website using your cell phone’s browser. They can also be used digitally—you can append a QR code to a Tweet, or they can be displayed on a web page to transfer contact information directly to a cell phone, for example. This technology is blurring the distinction between smart phones, digital destination and content, and paper-based communication mediums.
QR technology provides cell phone users the ability to scan paper-based content using the cell phone’s camera to decode information on a menu, a magazine, a business card, a gift card, a coupon or a website. Once the QR code has been scanned and decoded, the user has access via their cell phone to the information or destinations that can be any or all of the following:
  • Personal or company contact information in a MeCard, BlackBerry PIN or BlackBerry vCard.
  • An embedded phone number which the phone can dial, or a company home page URL or a specific destination on a social network (i.e. company fan page).
  • An RSS feed, SMS or an arbitrary text message.
  • An email address or a calendar event with location, title, start and end time, alarm and zone.
  • A physical address with location coordinates information.

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Getting a Permanent Change with Neuro Associative Conditioning (NAC)


           There is a myth that any change takes a long time and it undergoes lots of struggle. WRONG! Change is in an instant and out of pain and you can change anything you wish at any moment. Let me be a little bit in face and tell you that every change that you have made in your life actually happened in a moment, didn’t it? If you are lighting a cigarette right now and I put the gun on your head and say “You have got to put off your cigarette right now or else I will fire off!” I am sure that you would throw off your cigarette, wouldn’t you? Therefore change is not the matter of capability; it is the matter of motivation and willingness! I am going to share with you a knowledge that I learned to create a consistent change. 

Before I share with you this invaluable knowledge, you must adopt these beliefs. The first belief to make a long lasting change is that you must know you can change anything right now, in an instant. In fact, it is the not change itself that takes time. So why not make it at this instant? Secondly, you must know that you are responsible for your own change, not anyone else. Whatever happens, takes responsibility. I am glad that since the day I learnt and applied this knowledge, my life has been a bed of roses as my perspective changed.  So would you.

Neuro Associative Conditioning (NAC) is a human behavioral science founded by Anthony Robbins on the basis of Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP). It is a step by step process that can help you to condition your nervous system to associate massive pleasure with the things you want so that you continuously do whatever it takes to achieve them and also show you all the things or pain that you need to avoid doing to succeed continuously throughout your entire life. NAC provides six master steps and specific syntax to provide consistent and lasting change. These six fundamental steps are the basis of NAC and psychologists found that every change that human made in their life inevitably fulfill these steps. And here I stress, the essence of NAC is your practice.  Knowledge is only potential power when it comes into the hand of someone who knows how to get himself to take effective action. So if you have any behavior that you wish to change now, I challenge you to use the following NAC steps.

The fist step of NAC is to decide what you really want and what is preventing you from having it now. Most people when they are upset, they tend to focus on what they don’t want, instead of what they want. I don’t want to be sad, I don’t want to be lonely, I don’t want to be fat, I don’t want this, I don’t want that…STOP!!! If you keep focusing on what you don’t want, you will definitely get more out of it. Your outer circumstances are a reflection of your inner thoughts. So change your focus to what you want, to what you desire. State your outcomes in positive term. Be as specific as possible. I want happiness, I want to have friends, I want to be slim. Clarity is power. Next you have to be aware of what is preventing you from having what you want so that you could overcome these obstacles. Ask yourself, what benefits would I get if I still uphold this behavior? These are your obstacles that you have to get through. Awareness is a powerful tool.

Friday, November 18, 2011

Mackay's 35 to Stay Alive

This is Harvey Mackay's 35 secrets to tweak your public speaking! It is specially dedicated to people who want to be a trainer!

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In the course of speaking to innumerable audiences all over the world, Harvey has gleaned invaluable tips and tricks for giving speeches in any setting. He shares them here in his “35 To Stay Alive.”

1.     Room size.
2.     Room size.
3.     Room size. If a hundred are going to attend, the room size should hold 75. If five hundred people are coming, the room should hold four hundred. You want the excitement of a standing room only bumper to bumper crowd.
4.     If there is extra space at the back of the room, put up screens or use plants to cut down the excess space. Also, try to avoid high ceiling rooms.
5.     Avoid stages that are so high you look like the Ayatollah glaring down at your subjects.
6.     Studies show that people remember more and laugh more in brightness. Turn the lights up full blast, unless you are showing slides. Then, dim the screen area but light up the audience. Now, you can still have excellent eye contact with your audience.
7.     Set the podium back a few feet so you can walk in front of it.
8.     If you are addressing a breakfast, lunch, or dinner audience, ask your introducer to request politely that the people with their backs to the stage turn their chairs forward so they don’t have to crane their necks.
9.     Request that the photographer not take pictures during the first 10-15 minutes of your speech. You want no distractions while you are in the process of feeling out the microphone, adjusting to the lights, and getting the pulse of the audience.
10.   Always carry a ruler and masking tape in case the lip of the podium is not high enough for your papers… then build your own lip.
11.   Use masking tape to strap down any cranking door latches that might shut with a bang while you are talking. (Hotel rooms are notorious for this!)
12.   You can also use masking tape to seal off the back rows in order to insure the audience will fill in the front rows first. Your audience will want to scatter… you want them compact.
13.   Always try to have a real pro introduce you… not someone who is a poor speaker being given the honor because of their status in the organization. Introducers are critical… the stage must be set.
14.   Have the first row set very close to the stage. Too much space between the speaker and the first row creates a lack of chemistry with the audience.
15.   Outside noise from the adjoining rooms and hallways is the #1 killer of meetings. In fact, if another event is being held in the rooms adjacent to my talk, I will make every effort to book another venue. If you can’t hear a pin drop, you’re in the wrong room. A quick phone call to the catering manager will insure total quiet.
16.   Never, never, never end your program with a question and answer session. You cannot control the agenda or the quality of the questions and the fireworks of your topic can end with a fizzle. Start the Q & A five minutes before the end of your talk, then transition from one of your answers to a real climax.
17.   Most people are shy about asking the first question; therefore, you may get stymied by an awkward silence. Break the ice by stating that problem and then saying… “Okay, we’ll start with the second question!”
18.   If you have a questionable story, try it out on the person who invited you to speak and at least two others before using it. Better yet, if in doubt, don’t tell it at all.
19.   Find out who the group’s last three to five speakers were and how they were accepted. Probe as to why they were successful or why they failed.
20.   Sometimes you may be wise to turn down a speech, no matter how badly you want the order. Do your homework before you say yes. If it’s not within your area of expertise or the sponsoring organization really should not have invited you, be candid and turn it down. Ultimately, the negative word of mouth will come back and cost you much more than the value of the honorarium.
21.   Allow every organization to audio or video tape you gratis. Put your bread on the water and don’t get too big headed for your own good.
22.   Always request that an engineer be in the room during your entire talk in case of microphone problems.
23.   Request verbatim copies of any or all rating surveys from your talks. There is no substitute for constant, immediate, unfiltered audience feedback.
24.   Ask for copies of any prepared remarks from any other speakers if available. This can dramatically help your research on the company or the industry.
25.   Constantly update your prepared introductions. And, be sure they are written to be read as is. Don’t risk an under-rehearsed introducer stumbling through your bio.
26.   Contact the Chamber of Commerce of any city you are to speak in. They will give you loads of information to familiarize you with the local surroundings and help you personalize your remarks.
27.   Never, never mispronounce a proper name – - if you’re not sure, check with the sponsor. Then double check.
28.   Send a creative gift to the key person who helped you with the logistics, set up, and preparation for your speech. They are often overworked and underappreciated. They will never forget you for it.
29.   Whether it’s ten minutes, or ten hours, do not go over your allotted time. This puts additional pressure on all concerned. Remember: Agreements prevent disagreements. Have a perfect understanding of your time frame and what is expected of you.
30.   In doing your homework for a presentation ask for:
§  Investor relations kit (if publicly held company)
§  Annual reports
§  New and old newspaper, magazine stories
§  Video/audio information on company or organization
§  Company house newsletter
§  Industry publications
§  Company web sites
31.   Station someone in the back of the room whose sole job is to put out fires for you. Let them search for extra chairs, adjust the lights, quell outside noise, welcome late arrivals, and catch slamming doors, so you don’t have to think about it.
32.   Never check a room out with any of the audience present. If the audience has already started to arrive, you’re already too late to make substantive changes. Furthermore, you want the first impression to be you, on stage and in control, not sweating over a malfunctioning mike.
33.   Make a special effort to contact the competitors of the company you are addressing. Nothing gets the audience’s attention like the mention of an arch-rival.
34.   If you don’t have a smashing “opener” and “closer,” go back to the drawing board. And, don’t step up to the microphone until you do.

Debrief yourself within twenty-four hours of a speech, and take ten minutes to write down what you could do better the next time. With so many unknowns, the amount to be learned is infinite. Try something new every time you speak and you’ll never become stale.


By: Harvey Mackay

Thursday, November 10, 2011

《那些年,我们一起追的女孩》 观后感


昨晚,被我的童年好友约了去看《那些年,我们一起追的女孩》。果然太棒,太感触了!

正好,约我去看的好友也是那些年和我一起追那位女孩的死党!

干,原来你也要和我一起回忆一下咱们的青春!

《那些年》的大纲有七分类似我的故事。只是我的故事里没有胖子;我的班里也没有女孩!是耶,没女孩耶!好惨哦~

那些年,我喜欢了一位女孩N 年,一位也是很多人追的女孩!最后,她当然也和我擦身而过了。

现在想想,如果再给我重来,我那时一定会把握住的!柯景腾,你真的很笨耶!

感谢九把刀给了我这么多回忆!好多画面不禁涌现!

机车。。伤疤。。夜空。。课室。。书轩。。温书。。下雨天。。火车站。。电梯前。。藤井树。。补习中心。。Monster House电影。。半夜的短讯。。还有妳甜美无邪的笑容。。

初恋,好美、好单纯。。。

老朋友,妳还好吗?


改日,我要带我的另一半一起去台湾!

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Global UGRAD Exchange 2012/2013 is OPEN!

Looking for an enriching undergraduate experience in an American college or university?

The Global UGRAD Malaysia 2012/2013 is now open! I have personally benefited from this program and I hope it will benefit you too!

The Global UGRAD Program provides scholarships for one semester or one academic year of U.S. study in a non-degree program. This program is funded by U.S. Department of State. The goal of the program is to provide a diverse group of emerging student leaders, from non-elite and under-represented groups with a substantive exchange experience at a U.S. College or University.

Please click here for the application form if you think that this is something for you.

Also, watch the video below for a better idea of what a life of an UGRADer looks like.



For more information about the program, you can visit our Malaysian UGRADer's website.
http://ugradmalaysia.weebly.com/

Also, please drop by our Facebook page for more quick up-to-date information.
http://www.facebook.com/ugradmalaysia