Category: Cool People

Creating That Lasting Impression (Edumacation on Job Hunting & Blind Dating)

On my radio show, “The G-Spot” with DJ Vince G, I have a segment I call “Edumacate Me!” where my listeners and I try to learn something new from a guest I bring on. This week’s guests were some TV show hosts and executives at an online job portal who were here to teach us how succeed at finding a job and going on a blind date…. AT THE SAME TIME!

My guests, Marybeth Nave and Fritz Capulong, said that finding a job and going on a blind date are pretty much the same as you don’t know what to expect for both of them, but also, because the way to succeed for both is to “Create That Lasting Impression” that will make your potential employer, or potential mate, remember you.

We had way too many callers with questions and inquiries, but fortunately, our friends gave me more info for you to use before you go out on that blind date, or before you go out for your next job interview.

Hope you learn a lot and get a good “edumacation” from this!

Edumacate-Me-The-G-Spot-with-DJ-Vince-G-Mellow-947-guests-Marybeth-Fritz Edumacate-Me-The-G-Spot-with-DJ-Vince-G-Mellow-947-guests-Marybeth-Nave

Creating That Lasting Impression

Looking for a job is like going out on a blind date; to get that job or get another date with your dream girl, you must be able to create a positive and lasting impression.

Most of the executives and HR personnel I’ve talked with said, as much as they want to get the possible candidates among all the applicants it is the one whom they remember that they eventually hire. I can same the same thing with dating. Friends and acquaintances that I’ve spoken with said that they go out with the most interesting person they know.

The questions, now, is how can you make a very good lasting impression?

  1. Know your strengths – there are many people who can do the same things you are doing. At the same time, there are so many people who are more qualified than you on certain things. But what can help you stand-out?

It is your strengths? Each of us are unique. We have different gifts to offer. Knowing your talents and strengths will make you stand-out. A common example is when we see a bombshell that is holding hands and walking with an average Joe. We often see comedians going out with models who are young enough to be their daughters. Why do these comedians stand-out? What makes these bombshells go out with these average Joes?

Comedians know how to play on their strengths. They know how to maximize it for a lasting impression. They make these beautiful women laugh and have a good time. They make people feel good about themselves.

How can you find your strengths? What do you like doing without someone telling you about it? What can you do for hours and not get bored? How can you make a difference with what you like doing?

  1. Highlight your strengths – the only way to get noticed by people is when you tell them how good you are. You must be your own cheering squad!

How do you tell people about your strengths without sounding too proud? Tooting your own horn too loud will cause some people to tune you out or be turned-of. You must be able to do it with such grace that it is almost a soft sell.

When you are applying for a job, use the power of the internet. Blogging is very easy. Creating your own home page is now very affordable. You can ask your prospective employers to look at your site or for artists or creative designers, your portfolio. You can use Multiply or Facebook.

When going out on a blind date, ask your friends to build you up! You can treat this friend afterwards. There is nothing like a testimonial from other people; whom your date trusts, to build up your reputation. The key here, make your date excited to see you.

The key here is to make yourself stand-out.

  1. Impression – how do you want to be remembered is one things you should think about. You have been invited by your dream company for an interview or your blind date to eagerly meet you… what can you do to make them remember you and ask you to come back?

People create an impression of us from the moment we enter the door to the moment we leave the place. To be able to create a very good impression, we must able to conduct ourselves in a very professional but friendly manner. If you are a casual, people may see that you’re not respecting them.

By being professional and friendly you must have these:

  • Confidence – knowing that you have something to offer
  • Communication skills – making them understand that you have something that they need or want
  • Appearance – looking the part of what or who you say you are

When taken all these three points together, you will be able to sell yourself to your prospective company or your dream girl.

If you want more advice from my guest, you can email  fritz.capulong@gmail.com or check out his blogs at www.findurniche.blogspot.com or you can also contact MarybethNave@gmail.com.

You can tune in to “The G-Spot” with DJ Vince G every weekend morning (Saturdays 6am-9am & Sundays 6am-10am) on Mellow 94.7 where we have our “Edumacate Me!” segment every other Sunday.

You can also listen from anywhere around the world on Mellow947.fm

Edumacate-Me-The-G-Spot-with-DJ-Vince-G-Mellow-947-guests-Fritz-Capulong


Getting “Edumacated” on the G-Spot! Getting a Job is like going on a Blind Date

You’ve found “The G-Spot” with DJ Vince G.

A radio show on Mellow 94.7 FM every every Saturday from 6-9am and Sundays 6-10am.

Listing down all the stuff I talked about On Air in case you wanted to check it out.

Listen online – http://Mellow947.fm

Connect with me on Facebook.com/djVinceG or on Twitter.com/VinceGolangco

WOW! Lots of cool stuff on my show today! First of all, thanks to my guests on my segment “Edumacate Me!” – Marybeth Nave and Fritz Capulong!

Thanks for giving me and my listeners an “Edumacation” today. In case you missed it, they are both TV show hosts who work at an online job portal, Marybeth being the Vice President of Human Resources for that said job portal. They talked about how to succeed at getting a job as well as how to succeed at dating! They compare getting a job to going on a blind date as you don’t know what to expect for both of them and also because for both, in order to succeed, you need to leave a positive lasting impression that makes you stand out.

Fritz and Marybeth promised to send me a summary of things they talked about, so will have that by early next week. Also, you can contact them at MarybethNave@gmail.com and Fritz.Capulong@gmail.com if you have more questions.

MaryBeth-Nave-radio-guest-mellow947-how-to-get-a-job-like-blind-date2

On This Day – May 23

1568 – The Netherlands declare their independence from Spain.

1805 – Napoleon Bonaparte is crowned King of Italy with the Iron Crown of Lombardy in the Cathedral of Milan.

1853 – Buenos Aires gains independence from Argentina (reunited 1859)

1903 – 1st automobile trip across US from SF to NY, ended April 1

2005 – The fastest roller coaster in the world, Kingda Ka opens at Six Flags Great Adventure.

Mitch Albom, 52, journalist, author (Tuesdays with Morrie, The Five People You Meet in Heaven), born Passaic, NJ, May 23, 1958.

Drew Carey, 49, actor (“The Drew Carey Show”), host (“The Price Is Right”) born Cleveland, OH, May 23, 1961 (some sources say 1958).

Jewel, 36, singer, born Jewel Kilcher at Payson, UT, May 23, 1974.

#1 Song Today, May 23th in the 80s:

THE 1980s

1989 Forever Your Girl Paula Abdul
1988 One More Try George Michael
1987 With or Without You U2
1986 Greatest Love of All Whitney Houston
1985 Everything She Wants Wham!
1984 Let’s Hear It for the Boy Deniece Williams
1983 Flashdance … What a Feeling Irene Cara
1982 Ebony and Ivory Paul McCartney & Stevie Wonder
1981 Bette Davis Eyes Kim Carnes
1980 Call Me Blondie

Fact or Fiction

You can recover data from a failing hard drive by putting it in the freezer for a few hours and then reinstalling it in the computer.

FACT

While this method won’t magically fix whatever is wrong with your computer, it can get your hard drive working long enough for you to recover important data before it gives up the ghost for good. This generally works best when the drive is making a tell-tale clicking sound caused by overheated metal parts that have expanded. Freezing the hard drive cools and shrinks the metal so the drive will mount properly and run long enough (hopefully) for you to copy your files to another source.

DISCLAIMER – I have no clue if this works or for what type of problems this can really work on. Just found this online.

Reason to party today – coz it’s happy hour somewhere in the world.

World Turtle Day

May 23. An observance sponsored by American Tortoise Rescue to help people celebrate and protect turtles and tortoises, as well as their habitats around the world. For info: Susan Tellem, American Tortoise Rescue, 23852 Pacific Coast Hwy, Malibu, CA 90265. E-mail: info@tortoise.com. Web: www.tortoise.com.

Quote of the Day

“The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.” ~Mitch Albom

Thanks for listening to “The G-Spot”

Hope it was good for you too…

Backstage at the “Then & Now” Massive Music Festival

So these are just the pics I tool with the stars that came for the Then & Now Massive Music Festival. It was, in two words, A – MAZING!!!

Thanks to everyone who joined my contest at WhenInManila.com and FlairCandy.com as well as with Mellow947.fm. Please do share your pics and let me know what you thought of the concert! To stay up to date on future contests, follow us on Twitter – @VinceGolangco or @WhenInManila or on Facebook.com/WhenInManila

Thanks to my friend from Devan Media and the ThenAndNowConcert.com for putting this together!

Pretty much, it was a night among nights! Will tell more stories on a separate post probably on my other site – WhenInManila.com

For now, here are the pics. In the order you see them, it’s me hanging out back stage with TQ, SWV, Frankie J, Baby Bash, PM Dawn, Dianna King, All 4 One, V Factory and with Jojo.

Oh and thanks to Dani of Digitalpepspace.com for my pics with TQ and SWV!

DJ-Vince-G-with-TQ-at-Then-and-Now-Massive-Music-Festival Vince-Hannah-with-SWV-Sistas-With-Voices-ThenandNow-Music-Concert-Manila

djVinceG-with-Frankie-J-Massive-Music-Concert-Manila-WhenInManila Vince-with-Baby-Bash-Then-and-Now-Concert-Manila-MOA-Mall-of-Asia-Concert-Grounds HardRock-Then-and-Now-Concert 066

Shy-Guy-Vince-with-Dianna-King-Then-N-Now-Massive-Music-Concert-Manila-Philippines Vince-All-4-One-I-Swear-Then-and-Now-Concert-Manila

DJ-VinceG-V-Factory-Then-and-Now-Concert-MNL Vince-Interview-Jojo-Hotel-Room-Then-And-Now-Massive-Manila-Concert

Vince-at-the-Then-and-Now-Concert-Manila-Philippines

Dating and Lifestyle Coaching / Pick-Up Artists in Manila Philippines giving us an “Edumacation”

You’ve found “The G-Spot” with DJ Vince G.

A radio show on Mellow 94.7 FM every every Saturday from 6-9am and Sundays 6-10am.

Listing down all the stuff I talked about on air in case you wanted to check it out.

Listen online – http://Mellow947.fm

Connect with me on Facebook.com/djVinceG or on Twitter.com/VinceGolangco

“EDUMACATE ME!”

Guest on Mellow 94.7

“Edumacate Me” is a segment where I interview interesting people with even more interesting jobs who come with something to teach and “edumate” me and the listeners with.

Today, our guest was Nash Casten and his crew from TroyDizonDating.com.

They talked about the art of “Pick-Up” but more on the dating and lifestyle aspects of it. It was a very fun and cool conversation and I totally didn’t have enough time to ask them all the questions I had.

So to summarize all that, the main thing I got was that to be able to start “picking-up” girls, meeting girls, getting their numbers and even sleeping with them, you first have to love yourself. Girls won’t be able to love you if you don’t even love yourself.

So with loving yourself comes the confidence that will start to attract everyone else to you.

To get started in getting this “confidence,” you need to find out about yourself and be comfortable with yourself. To find yourself, you just need to start doing things you love.

Let me break that down even more for you….

Do things you love = Love yourself = Others love you = Confidence = PIMP!

Yeah… I think that the E=MC2 of dating. Lol. But don’t take my word for it contact the experts, at TroyDizonDating.com, for more info.

(do let me know if you’re going to take a class with them as I’d love to have a follow up on our show with you talking about your experience.)

How-to-Pick-Up-Girls-Pickup-tips-with-DJ-Vince-G-on-Mellow947

On This Day – May 9

1785 – British inventor Joseph Bramah patents beer-pump handle

1899 – Lawn mower patented

1914 – Pres Wilson proclaims Mother’s Day

1946 – 1st hour long entertainment TV show, “NBC’s Hour Glass” premieres

1960 – US is 1st country to use the birth control pill legally

1962 – Laser beam successfully bounced off Moon for 1st time

#1 Song Today, May 9th in the 80s:

1989 I’ll Be There for You Bon Jovi
1988 Anything for You Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine
1987 (I Just) Died in Your Arms Cutting Crew
1986 West End Girls The Pet Shop Boys
1985 Crazy for You Madonna
1984 Hello Lionel Richie
1983 Beat It Michael Jackson
1982 Ebony and Ivory Paul McCartney & Stevie Wonder
1981 Morning Train (9 to 5) Sheena Easton
1980 Call Me Blondie

Fact or Fiction

For the 2010 Philippine Elections:

Each person only gets ONE ballot to vote. No one will be given a second ballot even if they made mistakes. – FACT

You need to know how to use computers to vote. – FICTION

A voter doesn’t need to touch anything on the PCOS Machine, the Board of Elections Inspector will do it for you! Don’t worry! The BEI’s know how to use them, they have been properly trained by the government. That means that people who don’t know anything about computers can still vote! The only thing you should care about is that you should shade the ovals in the ballots and make sure you insert it to the PCOS Machine correctly.

Do not tear the ballot nor but unnecessary marks on it! This will either not be counted or will be marked as invallid. There is only one ballot per person so use it wisely!

Reason to party today – coz it’s happy hour somewhere in the world.

Mother’s Day
Victory Day (Russia)

In Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and other countries of former Soviet Union, the day of Victory over Nazi Germany was celebrated on May 9, because when the German Instrument of Surrender actually entered into force (May 8, 1945 at 23:01), it was already May 9 by Moscow Time. Some post-Soviet countries, most notably The Russian Federation, have continued the tradition.

Quote of the Day

“Bad officials are elected by good citizens who do not vote.” ~George Jean Nathan

“Politicians are like diapers.  They both need changing regularly and for the same reason.”

Thanks for listening to “The G-Spot”

Hope it was good for you too…

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Tim Tayag and more on “The G-Spot” only on Mellow 94.7

You’ve found “The G-Spot” with Vince G.

A radio show on Mellow 94.7 FM every every Saturday from 6-9am and Sundays 6-10am.

Listing down all the stuff I talked about on air in case you wanted to check it out and edumacate yourself with the info. =)

Find “The G-Spot” with me, Vince G on Mellow 94.7

Or listen online – http://Mellow947.fm

Find me on Facebook.com/djVinceG

or on Twitter.com/VinceGolangco

teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-stab-learn-use-weapons

My Video pick of the week –

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles finally learn to use their weapons!

I never noticed that they never used their weapons – until now!
MIND = BLOWN
CHILDHOOD = DESTROYED

Embedding for this video was disabled, so check out the link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZKXt4_3MRg&feature=popt00us07


Video pick of the day # 2 – Had to have two coz I found this creepy one too where a mechanical mouth can make sounds now. So they’re sort of emulating the throught and making this piece of plastic make sounds. Although, I know some friends who would prefer to do other things with this mechanical mouth, it’s still a cool new piece of science that is slowly helping march us to the eve of our destruction as we are overtaken by machines. Oh and giant turtles.


On This Day – April 25

1898 – US declares war on Spain over Cuba

1901 – New York becomes 1st state requiring auto license plates ($1 fee)

1928 – Buddy, a German Shepherd, becomes 1st guide dog for the blind. 1st use of seeing eye dog

1952 – 6th NBA Championship: Minneapolis Lakers beat NY Knicks, 4 games to 3

1956 – Elvis Presley’s “Heartbreak Hotel” goes #1

1965 – 19th NBA Championship: Boston Celtics beat LA Lakers, 4 games to 1

1990 – Hubble space telescope is placed into orbit by shuttle Discovery

#1 Song Today, April 25, in the 80s

THE 1980s

1989 Like a Prayer Madonna
1988 Where Do Broken Hearts Go Whitney Houston
1987 I Knew You Were Waiting (for Me) Aretha Franklin & George Michael
1986 Kiss Prince & the Revolution
1985 We Are the World USA for Africa
1984 Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now) Phil Collins
1983 Beat It Michael Jackson
1982 I Love Rock ‘n Roll Joan Jett & the Blackhearts
1981 Kiss on My List Daryl Hall & John Oates
1980 Call Me Blondie

Fact or Fiction

It’s hotter in the summertime because the Earth is closer to the sun.

FICTION

The Earth is actually closer to the sun in January, and farthest from the sun in July.  It’s not the distance from the sun that causes the change in seasons, but our position relative to the sun.  The Earth is tilted at a 23.5-degree angle to its orbit around the sun.  In the summer, even though it’s slightly further from the sun, the northern hemisphere is tilted so the sun’s rays hit it more directly than they do in the wintertime, which is what makes it hotter.  Because the days are longer in the summertime, the sun also has more time to heat up the Earth.

The Earth’s tilt is also why the seasons are reversed in the southern hemisphere.

Reason to party today – coz it’s happy hour somewhere in the world.

Malaria Awareness Day
National Pet Parent’s Day
20-Something Service Day
World Malaria Day
ANZAC Day (Australia)
National Flag Day (Swaziland)
Liberation Day (Italy)
Liberty Day (Portugal)
Sinai Day (Egypt)

Quote of the Day

“You must do the things you think you cannot do.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

Thanks for listening to “The G-Spot”

Hope it was good for you too…

Invitation to Concert For A Cause

Dear Friends,

Our NGO, Ex Libris Philippines, a SEC-certified, nonstock, nonprofit organization of book enthusiasts, is raising funds in order to help send deserving but financially challenged UP students to school. Our last two fundraising projects held March 2007 and April 2008 have funded the education of seven poor but deserving students at the University of the Philippines, Diliman.

We are now holding our third fundraising project for our NGO’s Scholarship Project. This year’s fundraising project is a Concert for a Cause, with performances by Gabriela Francisco, Franco Maigue, Raymond Sanga, and other alumni and teachers of the UP College of Music. All funds to be raised will go to the Scholarship Project. The concert will be on May 21, 2010, Friday, 6 p.m. at the UP College of Music, Abelardo Auditorium.

We REALLY hope that you can come! And please help spread the word to your friends and family, and invite them to come as well! It will be a night of music and magic, and for a good cause, too! You’ll be helping send students to school. Tickets are at Php 300.00 each. For tickets, please contact Tata Francisco at 0920-947-08-61, or Gabi Francisco at 0920-947-08-35. You can also email us at teachertata@gmail.com, or gabitwin@gmail.com.

Please help us spread the word about this Concert For A Cause! By simply forwarding this email to your friends, you’ll be helping us A LOT already. Thank you so much. Hope you can join us on the 21st of May!

For more info on our NGO and our Scholarship Project, please visit: http://exlibrisphilippines.multiply.com. We’re also on FACEBOOK!

ExL concert twins 2

ExL concert mirror 2

Invitation to Concert For A Cause

Human Cannonballs, Sunscreen SPF Myths, Your Reason to Party and MORE

“The G-Spot” with Vince G ! On Air Mellow 94.7 – Saturday April 10, 2010

You’ve found “The G-Spot” with Vince G.

Listing down all the stuff I talked about on air in case you wanted to check it out and edumacate yourself with the info. =)

Today, April 10, 2010. You’ve found “The G-Spot” with me, Vince G!

Tune in on Mellow 94.7 every Saturday from 6-9am and Sundays 6-10am to find “The G-Spot!”

Or listen online – http://bit.ly/Mellow947 or Mellow Interactive

Find me on Facebook.com/djVinceG

or on Twitter.com/djVinceG

————–

My AWESOME YouTube Video Clip of the Week

Pixels

http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/04/09/fashion.shoes.heels/index.html?hpt=C2

———

Human-Cannonball

On This Day – April 10

1849 – Safety pin patented by Walter Hunt (NYC); sold rights for $100

1877 – 1st human cannonball act performed in London

1914 – 1st full color film shown “World, Flesh & Devil” (London)

1916 – 1st professional golf tournament held

1953 – “House of Wax,” 1st 3-D movie, released (NYC)

1953 – 7th NBA Championship: Minneapolis Lakers beat NY Knicks, 4 games to 1

And these were the top songs on this day in the 90s

1999 No Scrubs TLC
1998 All My Life K-Ci & JoJo
1997 Can’t Nobody Hold Me Down Puff Daddy featuring Ma$e
1996 Because You Loved Me Celine Dion
1995 This Is How We Do It Montell Jordan
1994 Bump N’ Grind R. Kelly
1993 Informer Snow
1992 Save the Best for Last Vanessa Williams
1991 I’ve Been Thinking About You Londonbeat
1990 I’ll Be Your Everything Tommy Page

—————–

Fact or Fiction

Sunscreens with an SPF of 40 or 50 provide significantly more protection against UV rays than SPF 30 sunscreens.

FICTION

Tests have shown than sunscreens with an SPF of 15 block 93 percent of UV rays, while SPF 30 sunscreens block about 97 percent. Anything higher than 30 still hovers around 97 percent. The Food and Drug Administration has recommended limiting SPF values on sunscreen labels to SPF 30 to prevent consumers from spending more time in the sun than they should

————–

Reason to PARTY today – coz it’s happy hour somewhere in the world.

TV Guide Anniversary

—————-

Quote of the Day

The man that says “I CAN” and the man that says “I CAN’T” are both right, which one are you?

————-

Some songs played:

Every Morning – Sugar Ray

Montel Jordan – This is how we do it

Mo money mo problems – Notorious BIG & Puff Daddy

Love Roller Coaster – Red Hot Chilli Peppers

Falling in Love Again – Eagle Eye

You Get what you give – new radicals

Wild World – Mr Big

Sunny Came home – Shawn Colvin

32 Flavors – Alana Davis

214 – RiverMaya

Smile- Vit C

Fixing a Broken Heart – Indescent Obsession

Adam Carolla vs Manny Pacquiao & the Philippines

Here we go again, anther comedian says something about the Philippines and everyone and their mom thinks it’s the end of the world.

If you haven’t heard, talk show host and American comedian Adam Carolla went on a pretty funny (in my opinion) rant about the holy saint / prodigal son / chosen one / prophet almighty of the Philippines, Manny Pacman Pacquiao.

Examiner.com reports:

Adam Carolla starts off his vulgar tirade by bashing Manny for not giving blood before a fight. He then proceeds to say that Manny is off “praying to chicken bones” and that you don’t have to respect him because he’s a “fu**ing idiot”. “Someone has to tell him that it doesn’t make a difference.”

“Here’s how you know when your country doesn’t have a lot going for it: When everything is about Manny Pacquiao.”

“Get a fu**in life as a country”

“All you fu**in got is just an illiterate guy who happens to smash other guys in the head better than other people”

“Really, you want some guy with brain damage running your country? Why don’t you get your sh*t together?”

“All they have over there is Manny Pacquiao and sex stores.”

“What happens when Floyd Mayweather beats him? Does your country go into depression?”

I laughed a bit when I read that. Especially about the part where he questions the aftermath of a Pacman loss. Which does have it’s credits. I’m not quite sure how fans will react to a Manny Pacquiao loss at this stage of his career. Especially considering many people take many things, like this meaningless rant of Carolla’s, too seriously.

I’ve had my share of saying some things that I thought were absolutely harmless, yet got hate comments talking about how I’ve offended people by joking about locals re-using Christmas gift-wrappers. These people I’ve offended of course also add an encore by sending death threats and saying that I should die (Lol – click ignore).

In my opinion, it’s more of a personal matter where insecurity usually leads people to get defensive. People, who know who they are and are confident in who they are, do not easily get offended by others who call them out.

If you told Michael Jordan that he was a bad basketball player, instead of threatening you back or complaining, he would use that doubt you have and push himself to do better on the court. He’s confident in himself, he knows what he can do and that he doesn’t take everything everyone says too personally. If you however tell a struggling basketball player that he sucks, well then, you’ll get lots of hate mail, anger, frustration and more negative reactions.  It’s because the struggling basketball player is insecure about himself and thus, every little thing you say just makes things worse.

ou think Adam Carolla does not know what he’s talking about in this matter? Well, duh. Doesn’t really take a rocket scientist to figure that out. I know for a fact that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Which is exactly why I don’t bother lowering myself to even bother being offended by what he has to say.
Why waste any of my time or energy feeding off negative emotions towards an idiot? Why lower myself to that?
And that my friend is what is annoying about “people like you.” You waste time with negative energy towards an idiot like Adam Carolla and his pointless rant that had no justification.

You think Adam Carolla knows what he’s talking about in this matter? Well, duh. Doesn’t really take a rocket scientist to figure that out. I know for a fact that he DOESN’T know what he’s talking about. Which is exactly why I don’t waste my time lowering myself to even bother being offended by what he has to say.

Why waste any of my time or energy feeding off negative emotions towards an idiot? Why lower myself to that?

Don’t waste time with negative energy towards an idiot like Adam Carolla and his pointless rant that has no justification.

That’s my two cents. Love it or hate it. Hopefully people can realize that words are just words and that they should instead work to prove these words wrong, rather than go on a fruitless rampage.

Please direct all hate mail to my cat, Snug, who was the main influence that trained me to be a blunt, idiotic, country hater.

=)

Adam-Carolla-The-Man-Show-Girls-Hot-Surrounded-Philippines-Pacquiao

Speaking at the Junior Achievement of the Philippines Inc. (JAPI) Awards Night

I just found out about this organization,  the Junior Achievement of the Philippines Inc. (JAPI), as I was asked by my friends, at Ex-Link Events to speak and host their awards night.

It’s a cool organization that helps college kids to get  a feel for the corporate business world. I was thoroughly impressed by the level of professionalism and drive that the college students had.

See each college / university has it’s own chapter of the Junior Achievement of the Philippines Inc. (JAPI). Each chapter represents a company that the students need to run and manages just like a regular corporation. They have products to sell, campaigns to market, customers to satisfy and deadlines to meet. At the end of every year, they all come together for an annual toast and awards ceremony to honor the stand-outs of each university.

JAPI IN A NUTSHELL

Junior Achievement is a singular achievement of a unique youth development program for tomorrow’s entrepreneurs and business leaders.
In JA, you “learn business by doing business”.

JA is a practical economic education program
Organized and manage your own small scale business
Guided by adult advisers/consultants from the business community

You can find out more about JAPI on their website http://japionline.org

It sort of reminds me of my business organization from my own alma mater San Diego State University (SDSU). I was the President of the premier international co-ed business fraternity – Alpha Kappa Psi. This decision of mine to join an organization that promoted growth, professionalism and leadership was probably one of the best decisions I’ve made in my life. Not just because of all that professional mumbo jumbo, but also because I met like minded individuals whom I know now as my best friends.

Just thought I’d share some thoughts on this in case anyone still in school is reading. I HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend that you find and join an organization that is in tune with your own personal ideals. Whatever it may be, just get involved. Join an glee club if you like singing, join a cosplay club if you like anime, join a dance club if you like dancing, join a drama club if you like acting. Whatever it is you like, find others who enjoy it to and surround yourself with people who will accept you for who you are and push you to greater heights within that realm.

Just my two cents. AKPsi for life!

Vince-Golangco-speaking-at-JAPI-Junior-Achievement-Philippines-Inc-Awards-Night (2) Vince-Golangco-speaking-at-JAPI-Junior-Achievement-Philippines-Inc-Awards-Night (1)

Vince-Golangco-speaking-at-JAPI-Junior-Achievement-Philippines-Inc-Awards-Night (3) Vince-Golangco-speaking-at-JAPI-Junior-Achievement-Philippines-Inc-Awards-Night (4)

And here are some pics from my college organization. The premier international co-ed business fraternity from San Diego State University (SDSU) the Mu Sigma (MS) chapter of – Alpha Kappa Psi (AKPsi)

Vince-Professional-Organization-AKPsi-Alpha-Kappa-Psi-SDSU-San-Diego-State-University Vince-College-Organization-Alpha-Kappa-Psi

Vince-College-Organization-Leadership-Traning-Committee Vince-International-Co-Ed-Business-Fraternity-AKPsi-AlphaKappaPsi

Vince-College-Organization-AKPsi-Sweatshirts Vince-College-Org

Vince-College-Organization Vince-College-Organization-SDSU-Mu-Sigma-AKPsi

Vince-College-Organization-AKPsi Vince-at-Padre-Game-San-Diego

Vince-with-Brothers Vince-BroomBall-With-AKPsizzle

Speaking at the Junior Achievement of the Philippines Inc. (JAPI) Awards Night

“Niche Dominators: Success Secrets Exposed” book launch & preview

Entrepreneur of the Year Awardee and Chairman & CEO of PestBusters, Thomas Fernandez, and Profit Strategist of Maneuver Marketing, Sant Qiu will be sharing their business strategies and success secrets at the Niche Dominators Book Launch in Philippines on 27th Feb.

Book launch for “Niche Dominators: Success Secrets Exposedwill the on Feb 27 (Sat), 2pm at National Book Store, Glorietta 5. This is a follow-up on the authors’ National Bestseller “Secrets to Dominate Your Niche“. Both authors are Singaporean. They are Entrepreneur of the Year awardees – Thomas Fernandez and Profit Strategist – Sant Qiu.

Millionaire Entrepreneurs Share Some Never Before Revealed Business Secrets In Business Book To Help Businesses Through The Crisis

– Niche Dominators: Success Secrets Exposed

Manila, Philippines – Niche Dominators: Success Secrets Exposed is the follow-up book to one of the region’s bestselling business books, Secrets To Dominate Your Niche, which was also a bestseller in the Philippines and featured in the Entrepreneur (Philippines) magazine and The Philippine Star. Singaporean co-authors Thomas Fernandez, Chairman and CEO of PestBusters and Sant Qiu, Profit Strategist of Maneuver Marketing, share more of their real-life business strategies on how to create a niche, differentiate a business and dominate the industry in their usual no-nonsense, no-holds-barred writing style. This time, they have also gotten 10 highly successful millionaire entrepreneurs to share their business secrets as well.

In this follow-up book, the co-authors provide readers with specific and highly actionable differentiation strategies to show how one can dominate the market even if one is a latecomer in an industry, create strategic differentiations to stand out from the overcrowded marketplace, hit the hot buttons of their target market to motivate them to buy, and even how to gain market share by using the seemingly counterintuitive strategy of admitting a flaw in one’s product or service. They also include various interesting real-world examples of how companies, big and small; local and international, have successfully applied these strategies to become market leaders in their industries.

Readers will find it easy to implement these strategies in their own businesses as the authors have broken down complex concepts into simple, executable action steps that they can follow in a step-by-step manner. There are also detailed templates like an actual sales pitch letter and a customer relationship building process that one can adopt and adapt accordingly. At the end of each chapter, there is an Action Steps section guide that reads like a to-do list on what readers need to do to apply their newly learnt knowledge in their business.

In his Foreword for the book, Brian Tracy, an internationally renowned bestselling author, speaker and business consultant, wrote that Niche Dominators: Success Secrets Exposed“is not one of those ‘superficial, theoretical, positive-thinking’ kinds of books. Instead, you’ll find hard-earned insights and real-world business strategies that will give you a rare and intimate look into the closely guarded success secrets of top entrepreneurs.”

Jack Trout, recognised as the world’s foremost marketing strategist and author of iconic marketing books like Positioning, also Differentiate Or Die and his latest, Repositioning, wrote in his review of Niche Dominators: Success Secrets Exposed, “I’ve always advised companies that want to be more than they should be that, ‘It is better to be niched than to be dead.’ This book tells how to go about being niched.”

Niche-Dominator-Book-Launch-Secrets to Dominate Your Niche

Book Highlights

Chapter: Seas Of Opportunities

Be The Man With The Plan—Using the light-hearted example of the movie Ocean’s Eleven, the authors show how having a good plan can help one gain access to critical resources like money, expert manpower, etc, that can turn their business idea / plan into action.

Know Your Target Market Intimately—Citing the disconnect between what businesses offer and what the market actually wants as one of the reasons for the lack of sales, the authors show how businesses can improve results immediately by having better understanding of what their target market really want and position their products or services to match that.

Chapter: Grow Your Market Share With Credibility

Demonstrate The Difference—One of the ways to differentiate one’s products from the competitors is to do a visual comparison, like for example, the famous Dove “Litmus Campaign” that is still being used today to demonstrate the mildness of its soap.

Admit Your Flaw And Gain Market Share—To counteract the prevalent scepticism of a cynical marketplace, the authors propose admitting to a product or service flaw but with the twist of turning it into something that is positive for one’s prospects. It is like how popular furniture company IKEA explains the lack of assistance because customers can find the information they need on the price tag, which means that they don’t need to pay for help they don’t need. This was the same strategy that made the “Think small” campaign for the VW Beetle such a huge success.


Niche Dominators: Success Secrets Exposed also features in-depth case studies of 10 successful millionaire entrepreneurs in their own individual 14-page chapters:

  • Goh Kai Kui of Goh Joo Hin (owner of the New Moon Abalone brand)

He reveals how he focused on a specific target market to penetrate an established industry and grab a sizeable market share in a short period of time.

  • Dr David Tan of David Tan Medical Aesthetics

He reveals how he creates a strong competitive advantage and become the go-to aesthetic doctor for well-known local and international celebrities in just a year.

  • Ivan Lee of ThaiExpress Holdings

He reveals how he branded and differentiated his F&B business to build a $100 million empire in just 7 years.

  • Leonard Tan of PurpleClick Media

He reveals how he leveraged on a growing market trend and his expertise to build a million-dollar business in just 1 year.

  • Lynn Tan of Fusion Cosmetics

She reveals how she took over a non-performing brand and created the right positioning to make it into a leading hair care brand.

  • Michael Tien of Atlas Sound & Vision (distributor of the Bose brand)

He reveals how he used warfare strategies to rebuild a failed family business into the market leader for high-end audio and visual products.

  • Dr T. Chandroo of Modern Montessori International

He reveals his strategies for branding and growing one of the largest pre-school organisations in the world.

  • Merry Riana of Merry Riana Organization

She reveals how she used word-of-mouth marketing and social networks to build a strong personal brand.

  • Chan Chong Beng of Goodrich Global

He reveals how he turned the tables on an entrenched industry practice to become the dominant market leader.

  • Angelo Augustus of Pertama Holdings (Harvey Norman Singapore)

He reveals what are some of the selling and retailing strategies that helped increase his company’s revenue during a global recession.

Established and highly respected Singaporean entrepreneurs like Charles Wong, Managing Director of Charles & Keith International, Elim Chew, Founder and President of 77thStreet and Kenny Yap, CEO and Chairman of Qian Hu Corporation have also endorsed Niche Dominators: Success Secrets Exposed.

As Mr Yap said in his review of the book, “If you apply just one of the practical and rarely shared strategies and tools you discovered in this book, you can expect to see your sales skyrocket. I personally know some of the feature entrepreneurs and even I’m surprised to read about some of the secret strategies they used to dominate their industries.”

Inline with its concept of revealing success secrets from top entrepreneurs, Niche Dominators: Success Secrets Exposed’s book cover is designed like an open book. It has become a bestseller in Singapore and just recently started retailing in the Philippines through National Book Store chain. This 304-page book is retailing at P885.00 at all major National Book Store outlets from February 1 2010.

Thomas-Fernandez-Sant-Qiu-Niche-Domination-Begins
secrets-to-dominate-your-niche-book-sypnosis

Sun Life Financial’s “IT’S TIME!” – Financial Literacy talk with Pia Magalona & Bam Aquino

Sun Life Financial has an advocacy called “It’s Time!

They will be having a blogger event on February 27, with their advocates Pia Magalona and Bam Aquino.

It’s Time! is Sun Life Financial’s advocacy on financial literacy, helping out to educate Filipinos on ways to make their money work for them and having it to beat inflation. Pia, Bam and other bloggers will be sharing their personal finance tips. Also, there will be nice freebies for the guests and we also have a raffle for a trip for two to Switzerland.

The event will be happening at Buenissimo at Eastwood Mall at 5 PM of the 27th.

Feel free to bring along other bloggers you know who would be interested in this event.

Sign up here if you want to come – BLOG TIME SIGN UP

Blogger-event-manila-philippines

Sun Life Financial’s “IT’S TIME!” – Financial Literacy talk with Pia Magalona & Bam Aquino

Importance of New Media Marketing TODAY

If’ you’re not starting your online marketing then you are seriously hurting yourself. It doesn’t have to be anything too complicated or strategic, but simply maintaining a Facebook or Twitter account may be enough to keep you in the loop.

Have a blog? Even better! The digital age is upon us and getting familiar with it is a necessity for you and your business to survive.

It’s quite a different market here in the Philippines where the internet is just now emerging as a platform for advertising and marketing. Even now, in 2010, it still has yet to reach it’s full potential. It may actually be a few more years before we actually see what the internet is fully capable of doing. That’s why the internet bloggers, marketers, twitters and SEOers of TODAY will be the sought after leaders and experts when that time comes for Asia, and the Philippines in particular, to use the full potential of the internet.

Want to learn more about the net? Well I recommend starting a blog, getting a Twitter account and maintaining your Facebook account on a regular basis. Just start with that. On Twitter, follow the experts I mentioned in an earlier post (Top Twitters to Follow on Twitter) and you should start getting info on how to go about with online marketing and branding.

Some interesting facts and statistics from the video:

  • 1.7 billion internet users worldwide
  • Philippines ranks #18 in top users
  • 14 million Filipinos online in 2008
  • 28 million Filipinos online in 2010 (equal to entire population of Malaysia)
  • 83% are on social networking sites
  • 90% read blogs (of over 300,000 Pinoy bloggers)
  • 6 out of 10 Filipino kids are online
  • Asked if you were stuck on an island, “What would you bring?”
    • 4% TV
    • 20% cellphone
    • 32% laptop computer
  • 25,200,000 Filipinos watch videos online
  • 5.5 million Pinoys browse the web on their mobile phones
  • In 2014 there will be 41 million Filipinos online (if the world doesn’t end in 2012)

Very interesting numbers to think about. So, how are you going to communicate to your audience TODAY????

Thanks to my friend, and new media marketing guru, Carlo Ople of CarloOple.com and NewMedia.ph for sharing this very insightful video with me.

New-Media-Marketing-Philippines

So what do you think is the Importance of New Media Marketing TODAY?

George Carlin’s Views on Aging

George Carlin on age.
(Absolutely Brilliant)
IF YOU DON’T READ THIS TO THE VERY END, YOU HAVE LOST A DAY IN YOUR LIFE. AND WHEN YOU HAVE FINISHED, DO AS I AM DOING AND SEND IT ON.
George Carlin’s Views on Aging
Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we’re kids? If you’re less than 10 years old, you’re so excited about aging that you think in fractions.
‘How old are you?’ ‘I’m four and a half!’ You’re never thirty-six and a half. You’re four and a half, going on five! That’s the key .
You get into your teens, now they can’t hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead.
‘How old are you?’ ‘I’m gonna be 16!’ You could be 13, but hey, you’re gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life . . You become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony . YOU BECOME 21. YESSSS!!!
But then you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There’s no fun now, you’re Just a sour-dumpling. What’s wrong? What’s changed?
You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you’re PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it’s all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50 and your dreams are gone.
But wait!!! You < SPAN style=”FONT-WEIGHT: bold”>MAKE it to 60. You didn’t think you would!
So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60.
You’ve built up so much speed that you HIT 70! After that it’s a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday!
You get into your 80’s and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30 ; you REACH bedtime. And it doesn’t end there. Into the 90s, you start going backw ards; ‘I Was JUST 92.’
Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. ‘I’m 100 and a half!’
May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!
HOW TO STAY YOUNG
1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay ‘them.’
2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.
3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. ‘An idle mind is the devil’s workshop.’ And the devil’s name is Alzheimer’s.
4. Enjoy the simple things.
5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.
6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.
7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it’s family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.
8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.
9. Don’t take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.
10.Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.
AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take,but by the moments that take our breath away.
And if you don’t send this to at least 8 people – who cares? But do share this with someone. We all need to live life to its fullest each day!!
**********************************************************************
Gas prices getting you down? Search AOL Autos for fuel-efficient used cars.
Live your life, with nothing to lose
Whatever you want, whenever you choose
Make a difference, help out
Give some time to those without
Take risks, love, dance and thrive
Enjoy this time we are alive!.

Thoughts from the late, great, absolutely brilliant,George Carlin.

George Carlin on age.

Obit-George-Carlin-on-aging-age-funny

George Carlin’s Views on Aging

Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we’re kids? If you’re less than 10 years old, you’re so excited about aging that you think in fractions.

‘How old are you?’ ‘I’m four and a half!’ You’re never thirty-six and a half. You’re four and a half, going on five! That’s the key .

You get into your teens, now they can’t hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead.

‘How old are you?’ ‘I’m gonna be 16!’ You could be 13, but hey, you’re gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life . . You become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony . YOU BECOME 21. YESSSS!!!

But then you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There’s no fun now, you’re Just a sour-dumpling. What’s wrong? What’s changed?

You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you’re PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it’s all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50 and your dreams are gone.

But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn’t think you would!

So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60.

You’ve built up so much speed that you HIT 70! After that it’s a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday!

You get into your 80’s and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30 ; you REACH bedtime. And it doesn’t end there. Into the 90s, you start going backw ards; ‘I Was JUST 92.’

Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. ‘I’m 100 and a half!’

May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!

Aging_and_Belt_Height

And for more tips on staying young – How To Stay Forever Young

There is No Plan Baby, Thats the Fun in Life!

“There is no plan baby, thats the fun in life!”

Chatting with one of my best friends from San Diego, Gloria Tan, who moved to Australia and I asked her what her plan is? She responded with the quote above and it just really made my day.

It’s nice to know that I’ve surrounded myself with people who have the same values as me. People who enjoy life for what it is and who appreciate the uncertainty and irregularities of existence.

Smile Dance Sing Love Care Dream Swing Run Hear See Smell Feel Taste Touch Experience Breathe

So next time someone asks you what the plan is…

“There is no plan baby, thats the fun in life!”

-Gloria Tan

Life-is-Wonderful Living-Life

Life-is-Good Gloria-Vince-and-the-gang-enjoying-life-in-Cabo-San-Lucas

How To Start Your Personal Blog

Here’s a video of Hannah Villasis, author of the blog FlairCandy.com. Hannah won the 2009 award for “Best Personal Blog” at the Digital Filipino E-Commerce summit (DigitalFilipino.com) held at the Intercontinental Hotel. FlairCandy gives us a brief talk on how to successfully start your own personal blog

Some highlights from Hannah’s talk:

  • Put yourself into the blog
  • Be just who you are
  • You are your own personal brand
  • Your own personal brand will connect with others like you and that will be your niche
  • You can be funny, crazy, goofy, sexy or whatever, your readers will relate to you if its you
  • If you want to communicate to your audience, it’s no longer about the super models, it’s about just you and me, the personal bloggers

Check out more of Hannah at her site FlairCandy.com or I recommend you follow her on Twitter at Twitter.com/FlairCandy.

DigitalFilipino-web-awards-e-commerce-marketing-online-summit-blogger-event-digital-filipino-digitalfilipino.com-show DigitalFilipino-web-awards-blog-personal-flair-candy-flaircandy-flaircandy.com-Hannah-Villasis

hannah-villasis-digital-filipino-internet-award-best-personal-blog-flaircandy.com-philippines hannah-villasis-find-your-niche

Hannah-Villasis-FlairCandy-Flair-Candy-FlairCandy.com-on-Twitter-FlairCandy Hannah-Villasis-DigitalFilipino.com-Ecommerce-Web-Summit-Best-Blog-Award-FlairCandy

Hannah-Villasis-wins-best-personal-blog-award-digital-filipino-summit-flaircandy.com-website

Check out more of Hannah at her site FlairCandy.com or I recommend you follow her on Twitter atTwitter.com/FlairCandy.

Connect the Dots Backwards: Steve Jobs Best Speech at Stanford

This is one of the MOST INSPIRING speeches I’ve ever heard! I always think back to this speech whenever I’m in doubt. Steve Jobs gave this commencement speech at Stanford in 2005.

My favorite part of Steve’s keynote address is when he says “You can never connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards.”

Let me explain…

snowman-connect-the-dots-source-backwards-steve-jobs-snow-man

When Apple wasn’t doing too well, the board kinda fired Steve Jobs. If you don’t know, Steve was sorta the guy who founded Apple, so getting fried from your own company that you started doesn’t always give you the best feeling in your tummy. So naturally Steve was totally disheartened and devastated because of this.  But instead of sulking, being depressed and throwing the rest of his life away, Steve thrived.

Using the situation and channeling his energy into something positive, Steve ended up founding two more companies. One of which is the animations studio Pixar. While the other company, called NeXT, was eventually bought out by Apple. So with this remarkable turn of events, Steve started working for Apple again…. and the rest…. as they say… is iPod History!

Without knowing it, getting fired from Apple was actually one of the best things that happened to Mr. Jobs. So again, “You can never connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards.” You just gotta have faith and determination in what you’re doing and it will all somehow connect in the end.

So do check out the full video!

Oh and one more thing I love is how Steve Jobs signs off by saying: “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.”


 

Full text of Steve Job’s commencement speech / Keynote Address at 2005 Stanford Graduation Ceremony

I am honored to be with you today at your commencement from one of the finest universities in the world. I never graduated from college. Truth be told, this is the closest I’ve ever gotten to a college graduation. Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That’s it. No big deal. Just three stories.

The first story is about connecting the dots.

I dropped out of Reed College after the first 6 months, but then stayed around as a drop-in for another 18 months or so before I really quit. So why did I drop out?

It started before I was born. My biological mother was a young, unwed college graduate student, and she decided to put me up for adoption. She felt very strongly that I should be adopted by college graduates, so everything was all set for me to be adopted at birth by a lawyer and his wife. Except that when I popped out they decided at the last minute that they really wanted a girl. So my parents, who were on a waiting list, got a call in the middle of the night asking: “We have an unexpected baby boy; do you want him?” They said: “Of course.” My biological mother later found out that my mother had never graduated from college and that my father had never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised that I would someday go to college.

And 17 years later I did go to college. But I naively chose a college that was almost as expensive as Stanford, and all of my working-class parents’ savings were being spent on my college tuition. After six months, I couldn’t see the value in it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life and no idea how college was going to help me figure it out. And here I was spending all of the money my parents had saved their entire life. So I decided to drop out and trust that it would all work out OK. It was pretty scary at the time, but looking back it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The minute I dropped out I could stop taking the required classes that didn’t interest me, and begin dropping in on the ones that looked interesting.

It wasn’t all romantic. I didn’t have a dorm room, so I slept on the floor in friends’ rooms, I returned coke bottles for the 5¢ deposits to buy food with, and I would walk the 7 miles across town every Sunday night to get one good meal a week at the Hare Krishna temple. I loved it. And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on. Let me give you one example:

Reed College at that time offered perhaps the best calligraphy instruction in the country. Throughout the campus every poster, every label on every drawer, was beautifully hand calligraphed. Because I had dropped out and didn’t have to take the normal classes, I decided to take a calligraphy class to learn how to do this. I learned about serif and san serif typefaces, about varying the amount of space between different letter combinations, about what makes great typography great. It was beautiful, historical, artistically subtle in a way that science can’t capture, and I found it fascinating.

None of this had even a hope of any practical application in my life. But ten years later, when we were designing the first Macintosh computer, it all came back to me. And we designed it all into the Mac. It was the first computer with beautiful typography. If I had never dropped in on that single course in college, the Mac would have never had multiple typefaces or proportionally spaced fonts. And since Windows just copied the Mac, its likely that no personal computer would have them. If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards ten years later.

Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

My second story is about love and loss.

I was lucky — I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple in my parents garage when I was 20. We worked hard, and in 10 years Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over 4000 employees. We had just released our finest creation — the Macintosh — a year earlier, and I had just turned 30. And then I got fired. How can you get fired from a company you started? Well, as Apple grew we hired someone who I thought was very talented to run the company with me, and for the first year or so things went well. But then our visions of the future began to diverge and eventually we had a falling out. When we did, our Board of Directors sided with him. So at 30 I was out. And very publicly out. What had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating.

I really didn’t know what to do for a few months. I felt that I had let the previous generation of entrepreneurs down – that I had dropped the baton as it was being passed to me. I met with David Packard and Bob Noyce and tried to apologize for screwing up so badly. I was a very public failure, and I even thought about running away from the valley. But something slowly began to dawn on me — I still loved what I did. The turn of events at Apple had not changed that one bit. I had been rejected, but I was still in love. And so I decided to start over.

I didn’t see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.

During the next five years, I started a company named NeXT, another company named Pixar, and fell in love with an amazing woman who would become my wife. Pixar went on to create the worlds first computer animated feature film, Toy Story, and is now the most successful animation studio in the world. In a remarkable turn of events, Apple bought NeXT, I returned to Apple, and the technology we developed at NeXT is at the heart of Apple’s current renaissance. And Laurene and I have a wonderful family together.

I’m pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn’t been fired from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith. I’m convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You’ve got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle.

My third story is about death.

When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: “If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.” It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?” And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.

Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure – these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.

About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas. I didn’t even know what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctor’s code for prepare to die. It means to try to tell your kids everything you thought you’d have the next 10 years to tell them in just a few months. It means to make sure everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It means to say your goodbyes.

I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy, where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach and into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few cells from the tumor. I was sedated, but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and I’m fine now.

This was the closest I’ve been to facing death, and I hope its the closest I get for a few more decades. Having lived through it, I can now say this to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but purely intellectual concept:

No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole Earth Catalog, which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was created by a fellow named Stewart Brand not far from here in Menlo Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in the late 1960’s, before personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with typewriters, scissors, and polaroid cameras. It was sort of like Google in paperback form, 35 years before Google came along: it was idealistic, and overflowing with neat tools and great notions.

Stewart and his team put out several issues of The Whole Earth Catalog, and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-1970s, and I was your age. On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might find yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath it were the words: “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.” It was their farewell message as they signed off. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you.

Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

Thank you all very much.


macworld-mac-world-steve-jobs-connect-the-dots-backwards-stay-hungry-foolish-stevejobs-apple-ipod

steve-jobs-stanford-commencement-graduation-2005-keynote-speaker-stay-foolish-hungry-apple-ipod-iphone

Connect the Dots Backwards: Steve Jobs Best Speech at Stanford


Top Filipino / Pinoy Twitters to Follow on Twitter

OK, so if you’re living in the Philippines and hanging out in the Twittersphere, then you know that Twitter was the number 11 overall site that Filipinos were hanging out at for 2009. Personally, I get so much news, cool links, funny videos and just plain awesome tweets from here, all condensed into 140 nifty characters.

Though, I must admit, it took a while for me to find out which Filipinos / Pinoys from the Philippines are cool or fun to follow. So here’s my favorite Filipino Tweeple that you definitely need to be following on Twitter!

funny-twitter-birds-philippines-top-tweets-people-follow@mistygirlph – I already talked about Misty on my previous post, but really quick, if you aren’t already one of the 18,000 people following her, then you need to start. She’s one of the co-founders of the “2009 Best New Blog” award recipient BitRebels.com that boasts viewers from 189 different countries and authors from all over the world as well. She’s a techie, a graphic artist, a “twitterholic” and just an overall nice person.  (Oh and you should follow @bitrebels too)

@ninaterol – Nina is the author of the blog ChangeMakersPhilippines.com. I know…!!! Don’t you hate people who want positive change and empowerment of the powerless through social entrepreneurship and affirmative action! So yeah…. anyway, when this change maker isn’t doing all that change making, she’s tweeting about advocating causes, evangelizing ideas, working with civic groups, or blogging and social networking.

@jimparedes – one of the members of the legendary Philippine music trio – “The Apo Hiking Society,” Jim is one of the most fun and creative Tweeple to follow on Twitter. He’s a singer, songwriter, author, photographer, teacher, writer and more. Best of all, you can sense all his creativity and talents within his 140 character Tweets. You need to follow this creative guru!

@jasonqua Jason is one of the founders of Fantastik!Manila, an integrated marketing communications agency. He’s a genius at helping clients properly communicate with their audiences to ensure a direct link between the brand and its consumers. His experience with events marketing and internet / social network marketing is highlighted in his tweets. He’s very selective with his Twitter links as well and only tweets the most informative, insightful and/or funniest links. He’s a future marketing and social network superstar. Start following him now.

@flaircandy – FlairCandy, or Hannah as some non-netizens may call her,  is one of the top bloggers in the Philippines and Asia with her blog FlairCandy.com. She’s got a good following from Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and a lot of other countries other than the Philippines. Though a self proclaimed geek and Certified Public Accountant, she often manipulates time and space to fit in crazy escapades like surfing, skating, cheerleading, karting and eating cow testicles. With so many new experiences and discoveries, it’s no wonder people love following her candy sweet Tweets.

Twitter-Logo-top-people-to-follow-on-twitter-filipinos-pinoy-philippines@cocoy – not really sure where Cocoy is from or what exactly he does, but one thing I do know is that when he Tweets, he’s right on the money! He’ll usually tweet links to the best articles available for the top trending issue at hand in the Philippines or even around the world. Many times, the article will be one he wrote himself. Furthermore, these articles he writes always leave me impressed and wanting to read more. He contributes to filipinovoices.com, which is sorta like a justice league of Filipino writers, and blogwatch.ph which is comprised of the top Filipino bloggers banding together to blog and watch the 2010 Philippine elections in hopes of keeping it clean, fair and legal.

@momblogger – the editor-in-cheif for that said BlogWatch.ph site, momblogger is also one of the top bloggers in the Philippines who was dubbed a “Tribal Elder” because of her knowledge with social media and her undying support to the many beginners at blogging and online media. Momblogger, or Noemi, is often sought after for advice from the blogosphere all the way to top politicians.

There are many more AWESOME Tweeple out there in the Twittersphere, these are some of the top Tweeters and some of my personal favorites. I’m sure I missed out on many more but will definitely write more about that on part 2 of this list of Top Filipino / Pinoy Twitters you need to follow on Twitter!

Oh and if you want to follow me, I’m @VinceGolangco or I also manage the @WhenInManila Twitter account. I usually tweet about the funniest stuff I find online as well as useful links for social media, marketing, writing, trends and life-in-general. Happy Tweeting!

Carpe Twiem! ~ Seize the Tweet!

Who do you recommend following? #FFF #FollowFilipinoFriday

How to Win Followers and Influence Tweeple

Every now and then, you’ll come across some really remarkable, cool and inspiring people who have wonderful stories to tell. I figured why not start talking about those truly amazing people that I meet. I have the great fortune of being part of different industries that allow me to meet some pretty fascinating individuals. From the artistic entrepreneurs of Team Manila, to the nitrogen cooking creative chefs of Zenses Neo-Shanghai Cuisine, even the crazy free runners of Parkour Philippines all the way to the coolest bartenders like Hank at the secret bar known as Big Sky Mind! I meet quite a diverse group of individuals who each have a different, yet equally inspiring story.

MistyBelardo-mistygirlph-twitter-Filipino-writer-for-BitRebelFor one of my many jobs, I am a co-host of the first Technology Podcast from the Philippines called Tek Tok (Tech Talk) Podcast, where my co-host, Angel, and I try to learn the newest and latest information from the world of geeks. Yesterday, we were very happy to have our first in-house guest. With a Twitter following of over 18,000 (and counting) and also being one of the founders of a blog that gets over 4 million views per month (while only on it’s 7th month),  BitRebels.com, we were more than excited to meet the self-proclaimed “Twitterholic,” – Misty Belardo.

We were chatting non-stop with Misty about different ways and tips to gain an online following and the powerful marketing tool that this can be. Not only can you promote your personal brand, but you can also make lots of connections and friends. Misty told us stories of how President Obama sent her a thank you tweet (which totally left her frazzled), how they helped Alyssa Milano raise Millions for her water charity project and even her cool Twitter conversations with Mashable.com founder, Pete Cashmore.

bitrebels.com-bit-rebels-bitrebels-best-new-blog-2009

But other than all that fluff, I was really impressed and inspired when Misty talked about the road she took to build their blog, BitRebels.com. In the beginning, she said that there were only two authors and that she had to come up with over 20 articles per week. I think it really tests one’s dedication and perseverance to push through with a commitment you make, without being guaranteed a positive outcome. I’m sure Misty didn’t know that BitRebels would reach over 189 countries and get over 4 million views per month in just seven months, but she made a commitment to herself and stuck with it! Moreover, BitRebels also won the 2009 award for Best New Blog from Go Gladiator Media. Again, all that in just seven short months.

Even with all that, Misty was still so down-to-earth girl and has offered her help to me multiple times. She promoted some of my videos from WhenInManila.com without hesitation and even recommended her Twitter followers (of over 18,000) to follow @VinceGolangco and @WhenInManila without expecting anything in return. In the end, she mentioned her belief that the more she gives, the more she gets back.

Misty-Belardo-of-BitRebels.com-BitRebels-Twitterholic

So this is why Misty Belardo, of BitRebels.com, is definitely going into my book of Cool People!

I highly recommend following her on Twitter @mistygirlph and checking out her very informative articles on BitRebels.com as well. Get some good advice from her on How to Win Followers and Influence Tweeple (get it?! Like the Dale Canegie book “How to Win Friends and Influence People” ….. Yeah?… Yeah??? No….?…. Nevermind!)

Oh and if you want to check out our audio interview with Misty, you can find it here – Tek Tok (Tech Talk) Podcast.

So what did I learn from Misty?

  • Give more
  • Use Twitter to connect with people
  • Write a lot! And don’t stop writing. Be consistent.
  • You can accomplish a lot in 7 months!