Entrepreneurs Can Change the World

With a long business night ahead of me, this was probably one of the best things to have seen before stepping out of the office.




Too good not to share.

TED Talk: Seth Godin on the Tribes We Lead

I just realized (sadly) that my last post (so far back last year) was about TED.



This video is by Seth Godin, him talking about the tribes we lead. "Inspiring" and "leadership' are the first words to come to mind.

To quote him, "You don't need permission from people to lead them. But in case you do, here it is. They're waiting, we're waiting for you to show us where to go next."

A good way to start the month, I must say.

Too good not to share.

Thinking Big

I suppose that each one of us has had, at one point or another, the seeds of what potentially could have been a life-changing idea. I also suppose that what differentiates the ones that fly from the ones that forever remain on the drawing board is how long we hold on to these ideas, how far we run with them, for it is just as easy to dismiss all these table napkin sketches we come up with.

I believe that it’s in the spirit of nurturing these seeds that avenues like TED Talks or Why Not Forum were born from. TED, which stands for “Technology, Entertainment, Design” started out as a conference bringing together people of different backgrounds to share diverse ideas ranging from A-Z. Their website, TED.com allows users to free access to this knowledge. The organization even offers a $100,000 grant for selected projects with the potential of being “One Wish to Change the World”.

Why Not Forum (http://www.whynotforum.com/) , on the other hand is a TED-inspired Filipino version, with just as much desire to nurture our own ingenuity.

I don’t think we all will have the chance to participate in TED or Why Not as speakers or contributors. But the very act of attending a talk or plugging in the website, the act of listening in itself can do wonders for our own creative engines. Immersing one’s self in such an environment can increase one’s confidence & belief that his own seemingly trivial idea can be grown and is worth sharing. One may not necessarily have to buy into everything he hears, but one’s horizon still expands through the tension of evaluating an opposing thesis statement.

Think big. Think different. Why not, right?

Words I Wish I Wrote

Before giving the book, Words I Wish I Wrote by Robert Fulghum, to a friend, I had read parts of it and realized that I had loved it. The book is actually a collection of works of fellow writers, from Camus to Kafka, which have inspired him.

In the spirit of Fulghum's book, here's a list of some blogs I try to regularly catch up on -- words that I almost always wish that I wrote:

http://milemarkers.runnersworld.com/ -- Blog of Kristin Armstrong, ex-wife of Lance Armstrong. Runner. Writer. Mother. More than the actual running (esp since I'm more of a non-runner), I love this blog for her insights on the discipline & freedom that running brings, on writing, on womanhood and on relationships.

http://www.warriorofthelight.com/engl/index.html -- Blog of Paulo Coehlo, famous author of The Alchemist, among others. This blog, I read slowly, so that I savor the richness of his analogies and their profound meaning.

http://loislowry.typepad.com/lowry_updates/ -- Blog of Lois Lowry, author of books like The Giver, Gathering Blue, and Messenger, to name a few. I like her blog because aside from giving you a peek at a writer's thinking, it's so "everyday" (i.e real and honest).

http://www.robertfulghum.com/ - Blog of Robert Fulghum. If you follow his works, I'm sure you'd love this blog. And if you haven't started, reading this will make you want to get any of his available books (normally out of stock!) in the next bookstore you see. Enough said.

Voyage of the Balangay

Call it my love of being near the water & anything related to it, or that desire to be part of our nation's history, but I just had to see the Balangay last June, before it sailed off on its grand journey.

The Balangay is known to be the oldest Pre-Hispanic watercraft in the Philippines. With the tapestry of early Filipino culture being intricately woven with living near and by the water, the Balangay was essential in our ancestors' livelihood, travel and community-building.

It was with this high regard for the Balangay, that Kaya ng Pinoy Inc, the group behind the Filipino Mt. Everest expedition, decided to recreate its voyage.

According to Mssrs. Art Valdez and Fred Jamili, to maintain the Balangay's authenticity, they invited Badjao boat-builders, who worked with native carpentry tools, like the patok and katam. With DENR's permission, they harvested wood from as far as Tawi-Tawi for the boat's shell.


The expedition has 3 major legs from 2009 to 2011. This year, the team will sail through around the Philippines, reaching parts of Southeast Asia in 2010. By 2011, the expedition will have reached Madagascar.

This voyage is quite historic for several reasons. It is the first of its kind in the Philippines. It also has a lofty vision of bringing back a deeper appreciation of the nation's traditions and of maritime consciousness.

Aside from these, the trip also intends to be a means of reaching out to the Filipino seaside communities, as the Kaya ng Pinoy team seeks to address the different social and economic issues they'd encounter along the way. And the best part is, they won't be doing it alone. They're giving other Filipinos a chance both to see the rest of the country and to volunteer, by joining the different legs of the trip.

If you'd like to follow the voyage, check out www.balangay-voyage.com.

Lullaby for a Stormy Night

Lullaby For A Stormy Night from http://yupkigirl.vox.com/

The nice thing about a new job is that it sometimes affords you some breathing room, just enough time to say "hi" to old friends. It's with that breathing room that I got the chance to talk to my friend, Marie. And in the course of our conversation, she passed on the link to this song to me. (love you for that Marie!)

The song's by Vienna Teng, a Taiwanese American singer and pianist. This is my first time to hear of her, or her works, but I am definitely looking her up already.

I've spent the last few hours at the office listening to the song on repeat.

Lullaby for a Stormy Night

little child, be not afraid
though rain pounds harshly against the glass
like an unwanted stranger, there is no danger
I am here tonight

little child, be not afraid
though thunder explodes and lightning flash
illuminates your tear-stained face
I am here tonight

and someday you'll know
that nature is so
the same rain that draws you near me
falls on rivers and land
on forests and sand
makes the beautiful world that you'll see
in the morning

little child, be not afraid
though storm clouds mask your beloved moon
and its candlelight beams, still keep pleasant dreams
I am here tonight

little child, be not afraid
though wind makes creatures of our trees
and their branches to hands, they're not real, understand
and I am here tonight

for you know, once even I was a
little child, and I was afraid
but a gentle someone always came
to dry all my tears, trade sweet sleep for fears
and to give a kiss goodnight

well now I am grown
and these years have shown
that rain's a part of how life goes
but it's dark and it's late
so I'll hold you and wait
'til your frightened eyes do close

and I hope that you'll know...

everything's fine in the morning
the rain'll be gone in the morning
but I'll still be here in the morning

Somehow, the melody and the lyrics give that warm, comforting feeling of being under a blankie, or of being held tight. (Better yet, of both.)

and I am here tonight

I sing it for the little ones, and the little-big ones, with a prayer that I take care of them well. And with a little kindess, I sing it to myself.

everything's fine in the morning
the rain'll be gone in the morning
but I'll still be here in the morning

Mini Me!

I haven't been around Glorietta for the longest time, so this stall caught my attention as something new.

Mini-Me comes up with interesting hand-made caricature dolls, using clay and resin. You only have to provide pictures of your subject, and they can have it ready for you in 10 days!

Price ranges from Php 2,000 - Php 3,000 depending on the size of the doll and how much customization you prefer. It's a little pricey, but the doll makes for a pretty unique gift, I think.

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Mini-Me
Glorietta 3, near Activity Center
minime_isthatu@yahoo.com
www.minimeisthatyou.com