The Importance of Innovation

Innovate or die. I’m sure you’ve heard this phrase. It’s advice I agree wholeheartedly with. Why is it so important though?

The market now is constantly evolving. Not only do businesses need to survive and thrive with advanced technology, they need to ensure they are always ahead of the pack.

An example of a good innovator is Steve Jobs. He did not invent the computer or the mobile phone but he definitely revolutionised technology. It’s almost like being a chef. You mix and match raw ingredients and invent a brand new dish. That’s my mantra in business. I don’t think it’s necessary to create something new, but rather reinvent something that is unique and fresh.

When we founded QNET, there were similar companies around. However we took on the very powerful concept of Network Marketing and adapted it. QNET’s offering initially was just a few simple products. We increased and refined our product range every year, adding one or two products each time. Every six years, we conduct a thorough market analysis and trend forecast to ensure QNET remains ahead of the curve. Before we take one product off the market, we produce new and innovative products as new offerings. In terms of marketing, our team is proactively seeking ways to engage with our customers.

An example of that is V-Con. Would you believe that our first V-Con had only 98 participants? Compare that with V-Indonesia this year which attracted 10,000 of our distributors. Throughout the years, V-Con has gone through many changes. It has grown to become an all-encompassing entertainment extravaganza with an adjoining product exhibition area and musical performances. In 2010, we decided to leverage on social media and technology, and bring the V-Con action to all our customers who couldn’t attend. Anyone from the furthest ends of the world can keep abreast with the goings-on at V-Con as long as they have access to the Internet through the QNET blog and social media sites. I see this development as part of innovating.

No one knows what the future holds but we keep looking for things that would excite our customers. Most times, it’s based on a gut feel. There are no experts in business, in this day and age. There are products that did not do as well as expected. On the other end of the spectrum, there have also been products that I didn’t like, that ended up being really successful. Hence, I’ve learned the key is to have an open mind. It’s all about trial and error.

Isn’t that the way most things in life are?

Yours sincerely,

Joseph Bismark
Group Managing Director
QI Group

The Mark of a Leader

What makes a good leader? Are leaders born or made?

I get asked these questions often.

My reply is, “Everyone has the potential to be a leader.”

There are many opportunities to lead. It’s all about taking responsibility.

These opportunities are not only found at work, but also at home. As a spouse, we lead our significant other. As parents, we lead our children. If you’re a stay-at-home mother, your children look to you for guidance. You would also be responsible for leading your domestic helper.

The question really to ponder is, “Are you taking on the responsibility to lead?”

To be a good leader, there are two things you need to know and understand.

1.      Know your end destination

The first rule of leadership is to know where you’re heading, and ensure that is the right path. The right path would be the path of goodness, morality, kindness and compassion. A good leader would not lead people to danger.

2.     Walk the talk

Secondly, good leaders practise what they preach. For example, we would advise our children not to pick up smoking because we know it’s harmful. For them to take us seriously, we shouldn’t be smokers ourselves.

True leaders don’t contradict themselves. People choose to follow a leader if they trust and believe in that person’s mission.

A modern example of a common leader is Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft. He has always espoused the importance of hard work and passion in achieving success. Gates is one of the richest men in the world but has donated a significant amount of his wealth to charitable causes. Who can forget his pledge to donate all of his fortune to charity? His passion in contributing positively to the world led him to start the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which is the world’s largest private foundation.

“If you want to become a leader that people admire and respect, you must become a person of significance. People don’t follow you because you take from them; they follow you because you give to them,” he says.

His passion in giving back to society compels people to respect his leadership.

Let’s ask ourselves if we are that kind of leader. Would we want to follow our own leadership? If the honest answer is no, let’s change that. If we do not have faith in ourselves as leaders, others would find it hard to have faith in us.

Leadership is about doing what needs to be done. Responsibility comes when you truly care about something. That sense of ownership and responsibility is the mark of a true leader.

Yours sincerely,

Joseph Bismark
Group Managing Director
QI Group

 

Criticism

“Let the dogs bark, but the caravan moves on.”

This phrase is one that I heard often during my childhood.

Criticism is part and parcel of life. There will always be dogs barking at us but we shouldn’t let them affect us. Like the caravan, we should move on, instead of trying to stop them. Continue reading

Simplicity in Change

Things were simpler in the past. Global warming wasn’t as pressing an issue as now, the air wasn’t as polluted and life wasn’t as hectic.

It’s no doubt that creature comforts like modern technology and cars have made life more comfortable. It’s very easy now to keep in touch with loved ones, or drive anywhere you fancy.

However, to every positive, there has to be a negative. Modernisation and industrialisation has brought about adverse change to the environment. The more modern the world becomes, the more polluted it also becomes. Continue reading

Self-esteem

It’s often said that self-esteem is the key to happiness and success. In fact, so much has been said about the importance of building self-worth. However, how does one do that?

Why do people have low self-esteem? It stems from a lack of self-awareness – not knowing who they really are. Continue reading

Journey to Happiness Starts from Understanding the Truth

This world is temporary – a place of misery.

There seems to be tragedy everywhere we look. Sometimes, it hits close to home when a loved one gets ill and eventually passes away. On a larger scale, war, pestilence, drought, famine or a disaster of some kind can also cause suffering. Sadly, tragedies come despite us not wanting them. But this is the very nature of this world.

As spirit-souls, we are perfect by nature, so it’s natural for us to seek perfection. However, the material world is full of imperfections and these imperfections are very frustrating for the perfect soul. It’s in this conflict that we remain always unhappy. Trying to find happiness in the temporary world is a futile attempt for the soul who thinks that he is the material body.

There is a greater need for us to understand our true identities as spirit soul and not the material body. This understanding will free us from the anxieties and miseries that our bodies are subjected to. Birth, disease, old age and death are all stages of suffering that the soul goes through while inside a temporary body. The body is bound to get sick and old. The mind, the subtle body of the soul, is also not free from anxieties.

Miseries can also be caused by other living entities. For example, a sting from a tiny insect such as the mosquito can cause illness. Then, like I mentioned earlier, Mother Nature can wreak havoc on our lives. We just have to look at the recent typhoon in the Philippines that has taken so many lives and destroyed homes.

Is there a way to prevent such miseries? Sadly, there isn’t. Misery is part and parcel of this material world. Living in an imperfect world, we can’t expect to have perfect lives.

There is one thing we can control though, and that is the way we deal with these miseries – by first acknowledging the reality of the situation, that you cannot change the nature of this world.

Take prison as an analogy. Prisons are depressing places, and they are that way to rehabilitate criminals. After all, you should not expect 5-star lodgings in a prison as they are meant for those who have broken the law. I’m sure no one dreams of being imprisoned but if you’ve done wrong and have been jailed, what would you rather do? Sit in your cell and complain all day, or focus your energy on getting out of there?

I don’t know about you but I would choose the latter.

It is the same in life. It’s important that we take a good look at the nature of this world; it is like a prison house, not really our home. The soul’s real home is in the spiritual world, a place where there is no birth, disease, old age and death. A perfect place that is full of bliss, knowledge and eternity. Life inside these material bodies may be full of miseries, but the understanding of the truth about our real identity is what will set us free.

If we understand that simple truth about the soul, then this is the beginning of a journey towards real happiness.