I know the title sounds a bit funny but when you really think about it, there’s really not much difference between how people treat life, and how big companies deal with piracy.

Every now and then, you will read news about this or that company filing a lawsuit against another party because of piracy (the latest target being China). I do agree to a certain extent that pirates should be destroyed because they take the works of other people and sell these works close to nothing. Minimal effort to generate tonnes of profit. But the problem here is, whether we like it or not, pirates are here to stay in this modern world. Yes, you can try your best to destroy them but each time you destroy an old one, a new one will appear. It is a reality that everyone needs to face, including the big companies.

In a way, it’s quite similar to how people deal with life’s problems and obstacles. Problems and obstacles will always occur in our life whether we like it or not. We can spend hours after hours on something, and then something else comes along and destroys everything within minutes. That’s life. But the decision we make after that is solely up to us, whether we whine and complain like a crybaby, and end up with no solution. Or we can learn from this bad experience, make sure we’re well-prepared for something like this in the future, and move on with life.

The difference? The former places you in a static and unchanged position. The latter helps you adapt to things that you can’t change or things that you can’t avoid completely. So which one do you prefer?

Coming back to the piracy issue, perhaps these companies which are busy burning their money away filing lawsuits should start looking at how they can adapt to this situation. Try to learn from companies like Apple (MP3s are available at such low prices that pirated copies are no longer that attractive) and Sony (Playstation 3 has been pirate-free so far because of the difficulty in cloning the blu-ray and also due to the attractions of online capabilities provided by the Playstation Network – free downloads, DLCs, community, online multiplayer, etc).

So at the end of the day, the decision is really up to you whether you prefer to be a crybaby and solve nothing, or learn how to adapt to something that is outside your control.

Good ideas are a subset of ideas. Maybe 3 out of 10 ideas are good ideas and the remaining 7 are bad ideas.

While most people love the 3 good ideas, there are a lot more people who are fearful of the 7 bad ideas. In the end, they feel hesitant to come out with any ideas. They are afraid of being looked down by others. They are afraid of being called “stupid”. They are afraid of bad ideas.

But if you don’t come out with any ideas at all, then the hope of getting a good idea is zero.

That’s why in my personal opinion, having bad ideas is way better than having no ideas at all. Generate more ideas, be it good or bad. Learn from the bad, and keep the good. That way, you will eventually come out with few good ideas.

Well, easier said than done. If you want to do this, I think you have to let go of your ego for a while…. and feel that it’s okay to look stupid with all the bad ideas you come out with. Hopefully in the long run, you will learn to understand that there’s no idea which is bad….and someone who is willing to contribute ideas is always smarter than someone who does not contribute ideas at all.

People always think that they do not need to make too much of an effort in order to maintain a relationship, be it with friends, colleagues, spouses or business partners. But the truth is, if you don’t make an effort to maintain or improve the relationship, then the relationship will become from bad to worse. As simple as that. Relationship, in any forms, should never ever be 1-sided.

Let me give you an example. I think I’ve read this story from gapnap’s blog. I’ll modify it slightly since I can’t really recall the exact storyline.

Once upon a time, there were 2 good friends living together in a small village – let’s call them E and F. E was a very smart and cunning person but he was a bit lazy. So for most part of his life, he needed F’s help to do everything ranging from work to studies. F on the other hand, was a true friend. He was honest and most importantly, he loved to help his friends in need especially E who also happened to be his childhood friend.

After graduating from their university, F went on to become a well-respected doctor. E, being his ambitious self, started a pharmacy on his own. But he did not have enough money and clients, so he requested F to help him. F helped, without much hesitation. Few months later, E decided to grow his business and opened another pharmacy….and he went to F for help again. This process repeated itself, all the while E has been draining F’s energy.

Then something happened, F was involved in a legal case filed by a former patient. He was innocent, but the legal case did ruin his reputation and caused him a lot of money. He was depressed. And at that time, E did not offer help but instead, he asked for help from F again for his 3rd pharmacy. F was beginning to feel tired and told E that he did not have enough money and energy to help anymore. E was furious and yelled back at F “but you are my best friend!! We’ve known each other for so long, and we’re real brothers! How could you abandon me like this?” And E stormed off. Since then, E has never contacted F. F was disappointed by E but could not do anything as he himself was too tired to do anything.

Sorry for the lengthy story. I believe that most of you have heard something like this before, where one friend tried to squeeze everything from the other friend without even contributing anything. And not just in terms of friendship, there are plenty of good examples where customers tried to squeeze everything from the suppliers or bosses trying to demand 200% commitment from their employees while only delivering 50% of their promises. Things like this do happen and most often than not, they don’t end up well.

So to stop things from ending badly, it’s best if people can start to contribute more to any relationship they’re in. Fulfill more promises, catch up with more friends, have lunch appointments with subordinates, etc. Try to bridge any gap which has been formed in the past. Make the relationship a 2-sided one.

But also remember that if you’ve done your best to bridge the gap, and still there’s no similar response from the other party, then it’s time to cut it loose. This particular relationship is going to be too expensive for you to maintain in the long run, just like any 1-sided relationship. So just cut it off and focus on others.

Warning: This is sort of like a rant post.

Thursday (the day I’m writing this) has not been very kind to me so far, thanks to my work (which is doing a year 2000 technology) and some inconsiderate drivers. So I was having this negative aura around me when I approached the Kelana Jaya Shell station to pump petrol.

Once I stopped the car, there was this bank employee who walked towards me with a big smile on his face. So I smiled back (pretty reluctantly). I proceeded with all those Bonuslink and credit card stuff while anticipating this guy to ask me if I would like to apply for a credit card from the bank he’s working for.

And I waited….and waited. Then I heard someone talking behind the pillar, right next to my car. And he was alone, the credit card salesman. Yes, he was using his mobile phone, right next to my car and I was pumping petrol.

I could feel the atomic bomb exploded within me. I called out to him:

“EXCUSE ME? hey you, can’t you read that simple sign that says NO MOBILE PHONE USAGE? Next time want to make a call, go further away la, there are so many empty spaces here”.

He smiled and walked off. His plan to get a new credit card customer, ruined, because of his own stupidity.

And we see this ALL THE TIME. People who want to get some deals or businesses from the potential customers, only to show the ugly side of them. For me, if you can’t even follow simple things like not using a mobile phone in a petrol station, how do you expect me to believe whatever you are going to say? I already have a negative impression of you without you even saying anything.

Sorry man, I’ll pass. No point buying from someone I dislike.

p/s….. and sometimes i really really wonder, why is it so hard for people to follow simple instructions like not using phone in the petrol station? i’ve seen so many people making phone calls while pumping petrol. If you want to risk your life, so be it. Why do you want to risk other people’s life…. and also their cars?

Most people do not want to work hard, and yet they want to achieve that big dreams of theirs – becoming a millionaire, running a successful business, achieving financial freedom, etc. To be honest, it’s close to impossible and they themselves know this. That’s why they resort to shortcuts. They want the easy way out.

Of course it would be ideal if we don’t need to work hard to achieve our dreams – minimal effort but tonnes of reward. Sounds cool huh? But sadly, the reality is that there’s no shortcut in this world. There’s no quick way of getting rich, no sure way to get 1st class honor, no easy way to win the girl’s heart, and no effortless way of starting a successful business.

Yes, you can argue there ARE shortcuts out there and some people have become successful due to these shortcuts. But how sure are you that’s really the case? Are you sure these people did nothing but using the shortcuts? No additional efforts at all? Most often than not, these success stories have been made up in order to make you believe in them. The truth is that these individuals did make a lot of additional efforts in order to be where they are now – and perhaps, making you believe them is one of the efforts.

And if there really are shortcuts, those shortcuts can be rather risky. For example, you can try to cheat in exam if you want to get first class honor. But you should also know that once you’ve been found out, you’re practically screwed and chances are, you will be left with nothing – not even your degree. So if you still think it’s worth taking the risk, then good luck.

Same thing goes for all the shortcuts that you wish to take. The risks are there and they can be quite big risks. Think about it and decide whether it is worth it to take such high risks, or just try your best and work for your dreams without taking any shortcuts. For me, working hard for my dreams sound like a more interesting and safer thing to do. Furthermore, I am not someone who believes in shortcuts. They just don’t seem to exist in my life (so far).