10 Things I Love About 2010

Before I sign off 2010, I'd like to share the things I love about 2010. Yes, I may not be able to post any entry after this because it's vacation mode already so I decided to write this article now, than never.

1. 1st Year of Married Life.
First year with my exciting and blessed marriage. My wife, Chona, has been both my encourager and prayer partner more than anything else.

2. 3 regional travels in a year.
Been in Hong Kong twice and Hanoi,Vietnam once.

3. Breakthroughs in professional career.
Worked with excellent people, met marketing gurus, inspired by entrepreneurs and expanded my network. Consulted for a music enterprise. I even hosted 3 wedding receptions! What a break!

4. Debt-free living.
No need to explain this one. :)Up next, abundant living!

5. Dad's recovery from illness.
Successful operation of my Dad and provisions for the bills.

6. The birth of Shining Light Generation Youth.
Experienced the revival of God's word in the life of the youth in our church.

7. The Accidental Musician blog came to life.
The next time a speaker ask who has a blog, I can raise my right hand and smile at my neighbor.

8. Opportunities to inspire others.
Limitless opportunities to inspire people to achieve their dreams and raise their standards. Some where applying my humble advice already. (I don't know with the others. haha!)

9. Overcame all struggles.
By the grace of God, the squeeze of 2010 failed to bury me underneath. Instead, my God raised me up and built my faith, confidence and patience.

10. Excited about new things in 2011.
As the year end, it's about time to expect greater things in the year to come.

With all these things, I thank God and I give back all the glory to Him. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Followers? Anyone???

I'm curious about people who wanted to be leaders but despise being the follower. And, I'm troubled with people who don't want to be a leader because they fear responsibilities and commitment. Have you ever met somebody who's telling you what you should do but didn't show you how? He's cool! Just imagine a ball coach who can't shoot while telling his guys not to miss a free throw? That's unbelievable. He must be the son of the team manager or owner.

We can't pass on to others what we don't have. It won't work that way. The moment we gain the experience, then we become credible to tell others the mess we did or the triumph we achieved. Great leaders emanate from their past victories over struggles. After all, they won't be great if they have surpassed easy jobs.

Those footmarks we leave become the trail of those who follow us. When we look behind and see there's none who wants to be like us, it could be a question to the quality of life we offer to this world. I mean, there's no room for hungry learners because they are always out to look for someone they wanted to be like. Just like me. I look for people who became successful not because they inherited the success but strove to meet the peak. Thankful that I am, I can't count them in my fingers. I'd like to listen to those who were once "the ordinary" with an extraordinary heart to serve men, not just to earn profits and recognitions.

It's so inspiring to meet people from all walks of life but let us examine those we follow. The two are both both accountable- the leader and the follower. Don't forget that. Leaders must produce alike. Followers must become leaders too. Followers will never come to extinction, only leaders.

Travel Time

I heard people who talked about how time flies. Ask a kid and an adult what do they want with their time.

For the kid, he wants to grow now so he can do what he wants. He looks forward to having a good job to buy simple things like cars, gadgets, laptops and more. Plus, the privilege of going home late without parent's consent. He dreams of wearing a necktie, traveling to places alone and buying those coffee. What a kid. He just didn't know how adults have thought about the time passed.

For the adult, or shall I say, the grown ups with family, with the things any kid would like to have: going home late (much of this), eating delicious food (bloated already), buying good clothes (really?) and 3 mobile phones (for work, personal and extra). On the other hand, men think of working hard to earn a living. Women think of what to cook, where to buy groceries and how to raise her children. Working women battle with deadlines and spending little time with family. How they wish they could ride a time machine and be a kid again so life could be much easier.

Different perspectives. Different expectations. Kids may see a lot of adventures, both painful and worth remembering throughout the journey. Older people wanted to turn back time to correct mistakes, forgive those who hurt them and make better decisions.

Dreaming is traveling from today to your good future. Let your life goal bring you to the fulfillment of your dreams.

Cheers!

Eraser

Wonder why eraser exists? It's a tool to correct our mistakes. This life never expect us to be perfect, not even God. So, that eraser is essential. It reminds us that along the way, we'll slip from the lines, cross some strokes and write the wrong word.

So, the next time you commit a mistake, think about the number of people who committed the same mistake, and even worse!

A lot of people I have observed mastered the fear of committing mistakes. As if the new technology is designed to blow things. There are user-friendly manuals to guide us so why fear?

Step on the things you messed up and carry your mats. Move on. No one becomes successful by giving up at the first try.

What???

The weather at Central, Hong Kong is 13 degrees and for me, a native of a tropical southeast country Philippines, this is too cold. I could feel the freeze penetrating inside my skin. So much different from my hometown where sun rays are injected inside my veins. A change of climate may mean a change of lifestyle. Let me stress my point.

- A change of boss means a change of leadership style.
- A change of glasses means your vision needs more aid for good eyesight.
- A change of hairdo MAY mean a different personality or mood.

Chameleons adopt the color of their surroundings. Parents change their baby's diapers when wet. Things of this world are susceptible to change. We change clothes everyday. We change cellphones after a year or so. We change car every 3 to 5 years.

There might be changes in life, for better or for worse. I find the reason why those things happen- CHARACTER EXTRACTION.

We'll know the real person when they face changes in life. At that moment, life principles are revealed, values become obvious, purpose is at stake and future would be undefined.

Don't let movements push you back. Aim acceleration rather than deceleration. Step on the changes, make them the stones to step on towards success.

Want to know who you really are? Move from where you are standing now and see a lot of differences in your words, thoughts and deeds.