MUST READ: US Default, Islamic Thingy

US Default:

1) on August 2, the White House will decide either to increase its debt's ceiling or not

2) if they do, the US deficit will expand. If not, the US debt will be default.

3) the US default would trigger another financial collapse as seen in 2008 - we're yet to fully recover from the 2008 recession, and thus, facing another collapse will make things even worse

4) if the White House decided not to increase the debt ceiling, there are still few options left:

   i) the Federal Reserve will print "more" money, and thus increasing the inflation (goods prices will increase)

   ii) raising funds through delaying salaries of public servants (power of purchase will decrease), or even   

      delaying payment to defense contractors

5) let's assume that the State failed to raise those funds (or printing more money). as a results, the State will go default. it's credit rating will be downgraded - hence, the borrowing activity would cost a lot more that it is today. companies would stall their growth, and thus won't hire new employees..the unemployment rate would be higher, and the economy would be in stake since people don't have money to spend..plus, the mortgage cost would also increase dramatically (note: this is called as "ripple" effect)

6) at worst, the credit markets all over the world would be frozen since US treasury has been used as collateral in most transactions.

7) you can read more on the following links: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/8659658/What-happens-if-the-US-defaults.html

Islamic Thingy:

1) Kismis ( or Zabib in arabic, grape seed in English) is known for its multi-benefits, such as delaying aging process, quick 'energy' resource, and etc..

2) so, we are encouraged to include kismis into our daily diet.

3) but, what surprise me that there are many types of "kismis doa" in the market. and i bet, they're priced higher than the regular one

4) yet, i doubt these "kismis doa" are much better than the regular one, and thus don't have any added value

5) still, many Malaysian Muslims assume these kismis doa as prime products

6) well, initally, i don't have any problems with these "doa-thingy" products. but, aren't we told to make request directly to Allah, w/o going through "middle men!" what makes doa from Ustaz better than ours? nothing, right?

7) as far as business is concerned, i think this is a good marketing strategy. yet, things must be clarified especially to kids so that they may not be misunderstood (i.e. tell them every person's doa is worthy)

8) besides, recently i read about this so-called "halal" handbag..what happens to other handbags that don't carry such label. are we not permitted to wear those?

9) for me, Islam is very simple and easy to be practiced. for example, in daily affairs, everything is permitted except for those mentioned in the Holy Koran. if someone told you that you're not permitted to wear a tee because of bla bla bla, (s)he must be able to provide you proofs from Koran and Sunnah..you, otherwise, don't have the burden of proofs..see, how easy Islam is!

10) so, i'd suggest that we should start introducing "haram" label instead of the "halal" one since in Islam, there are much more halal thingy than the haram one! so, the task is much easier..ain't it?

11) yet, from different perspective, i think Halal Industry is very promising. creating Halal segment in the world market is pretty genius..yet, as we're making profits (that is good), don't make other people living in confusing state! 

12) for further readings: http://khasiat-kismis-grape.blogspot.com/, http://coklatkismisdoa.com/?page_id=11, http://www.dinemalaysia.com/foods_detail/35

ADT/ADD

while i was in MV yesterday, i stopped by at MPH (oh yeah, my first place to go while in shopping mall)..well, it was like a "heaven" to me, seeing thousands of books properly arranged on racks..and as usual, i directed myself to my favorite reading section, which is business & entrepreneurship..while browsing to find good books to read while waiting for my friends, i noticed that there were too many books on "how-to-become-good-entrepreneur," and it brought me to this one conclusion - if it was this easy to become entrepreneur, everybody would be one! but, the reality is different..a successful entrepreneur has to do a lot more than the ones stated on these books..well, but that's fine! for a beginner like me, these books seem appropriate..but, my only concern was that they might give wrong perspective, that becoming an entrepreneur is easy, to the newbies..

anyway, i chose not to read entrepreneurial books for i had read them a lot enough lately (tired of seeing numbers and projection as well)..so, i picked a book on self-managements from HBR (Harvard Business Review), one of my favorite online journals..but, this time these journals are grouped and piled into a book..and guess what the price for each books is rm88..it may sound too pricey, but the content worth your every penny..and out of 8 or 10 articles (or case study) on this "self-management" book, i found a very interesting post in regards to ADT (Attention-Deficit-Trait) & ADD (Attention-Deficit-Disorder)..and of its most obvious symptom is lacking of attention..and believe it or not, many CEO's (e.g. JetBlue CEO) are having this disorder..and few tips to treat ADT/ADD are as follows:

1) get enough sleep - to know you've enough sleep is when you can wake-up without your alarm clock..

2) get good diet - we should take more complex carbohydrate from vegetables and fruits, as well as whole-grain.

3) plan sufficient exercise - while doing exercise, our body will release essential chemical substances (e.g. endorphin, endocrine, etc) needed for our brain

4) take supplemental vitamins (e.g. B, E, etc) and omega-3 products..

insha-Allah, if we practice all these steps, we can improve our brain performance, and thus will increase our productivity..in today's world, only productive people will be favored! 

No Pain, No Gain

Muslims are bestowed with so many privileges, and one of them is the Holy Koran..Allah says in the Holy Koran that:

"He has revealed to you the Book with truth, verifying that which is before it, and He revealed the Taurat  and the Injeel aforetime, a guidance for the people, and He sent the Furqan"                                    (3:3)

Allah has said many times in the Holy Koran that the Book is full of wisdom for those who think..Alas, many of us, the Muslims, have taken the Koran for granted - in fact, The Koran is typically be chanted by few during a Musabaqah, or even used to protect oneself from hantu jembalang..while it was not wrong to do that, but the Koran must be used as a guidance in our lives, as mentioned by Allah in the above verse..so, for today's entry, i'll share with you one verse that i found it very amazing.

"and when Abraham said: My Lord! show me how Thou gives life to the dead, He said: What! and do you not believe? He (Abraham) said: Yes, but that my heart may be at ease. He said: Then take four of the birds, then train them to follow you, then place on every mountain a part of them, then call them, they will come to you flying; and know that Allah is Mighty and Wise."                                                                 (2:260)

this verse, for me, is very powerful..While Allah mentions his Mighty to give life to the deads (indeed, He is the All-Mighty), He also orders Abraham (peace be upon him) to train the birds by himself..i believe the message is clear that every thing in this world is in according to Sunnatu-Allah (Nature Law), in which NO PAIN, NO GAIN! nothing would come to us easily.."sikap sentiasa mengharapkan bantuan" is thus against the basic teaching of Islam..

Melayu & Perniagaan

Kira-kira 2 tahun lalu, saya berkesempatan menghadiri upacara penyerahan bantuan TEKUN kepada pengusaha-pengusaha kecil bumiputera yang disampaikan sendiri  oleh YB Rembau. Saya mengenali beberapa orang daripada penerima-penerima insentif tersebut. Malahan, saya sendiri 'pernah' menjadi antara pelanggan tetap salah seorang daripada mereka..Secara peribadi, saya bersyukur kerana kerajaan masih memberi peluang kepada kaum bumiputera untuk menceburkan diri dalam dunia perniagaan, walaupun statistik menunjukkan ramai yang kurang berjaya daripada yang berjaya.

Berdasarkan pengalaman saya sendiri berurusan dengan salah seorang peniaga ini, lelaki X ini adalah seorang yang sangat tekun. Siang dan malam dia sentiasa berada di kedai jahitnya bagi menyiapkan tempahan. Kualiti jahitannya agak memuaskan berdasarkan harga yang ditawarkan. Jadi anggapan yang menyatakan bahawa peniaga Melayu gagal kerana sifat malas mungkin boleh "dibakul-sampahkan" sahaja kerana realiti menunjukkan sebaliknya. Jadi apakah punca sebenar kegagalan peniaga Melayu?

Berbalik pada kisah lelaki X ini, walaupun usaha kerasnya siang dan malam, saya dapati perniagaannya pada hari ini sama seperti 2 tahun yang lalu..Tiada unsur2 atau petanda2 yang menunjukkan perniagaannya berkembang. Mungkin apa yang boleh dibanggakan lelaki X ini sekarang sudah mampu memiliki kenderaan yang baik berbanding 2 tahun yang lalu..Ini menimbulkan persoalan kepada saya..Lelaki X ini begitu rajin, jadi masalah sikap bukanlah punca kegagalan..Modal juga sudah disediakan olen pihak TEKUN..jadi, apakah masalah sebenarnya?

Ketika berfikir, saya teringat perbincangan saya dengan Dr. Bakri Musa sewaktu program "Alif Ba Ta" awal tahun ini. Perbincangan ini agak eksklusif kerana hanya melibatkan beberapa orang peserta di bilik hotel beliau..Dalam perbincangan tersebut, Dr. Bakri menyatakan kerajaan harus melengkapkan bakal-bakal peniaga Melayu ini dengan ilmu perniagaan, dan bukan sekadar insentif dana semata2..Peniaga2 ini, khususnya di kawasan kampung amat terhad ilmu pengetahuannya..Bahkan, ada diantara mereka tidak tahu menggunakan komputer, yang merupakan "basic survival kit," pada zaman ini. Jadi tidak hairanlah kebanyakan mereka hanya menggunakan kaedah tradisional yang dipelajari daripada nenek-moyang mereka. Bahkan bagi mereka, tahap ukur kemajuan perniagaan mereka bergantung kepada jenis kenderaan yang dimiliki..Tidak hairanlah, keuntungana yang diperolehi bukan digunakan untuk menambah-baik/membesarkan perniagaan, sebaliknya digunakan untuk keperluan peribadi. Konsep "Asset and Liabiliti" yang menjadi asas dalam sesuatu perniagaan masih kurang difahami. Jadi, jika perkara asas perniagaan seperti ini masih tidak difahami, tidak kira sebaik mana produk yang dihasilkan, ia tidak mampu ke mana-mana..Akhirnya mereka dipersalahkan! 

Jadi, saya berharap agar pihak bertanggungjawab dapat menyediakan kursus asas yang komprehensif kepada peniaga2 kecil ini. Mereka berhak untuk maju terus ke-hadapan, dan saya begitu yakin dengan sikap yang ditunjukkan, contohnya Lelaki X, mereka mampu pergi ke peringkat nasional, and tidak mustahil ke peringkat global..Syaratnya, mereka perlu dilengkapi dengan ilmu pengetahuan yang mencukupi..

*Tulisan ini hanyalah berdasarkan pengalaman penulis bersama masyarakat setempat..Mungkin terdapat khilaf dalam pemerhatian dan analisis di atas. Penulis yakin generasi Melayu sekarang mampu merubah diri daripada menjadi golongan kelas menengah kepada kelas korporat jika sikap dan ilmu yang betul mampu disemai dalam diri setiap individu

note: Penulis akan menyentuh mengenai sikap peniaga2 Cina yang penulis kenali dalam entri berikutnya sebagai pengajaran kepada semua.