Same Blog, New Domain!

Thanks for visiting!  I have “moved,” and now have my own domain at www.shotofinspiration.com.  Check out more stories, ideas and tips at the new site.

Cat Lover’s Rules

I had such a good laugh over this “set of rules” from ajokeaday.com that I had to pass it on.  If you are a cat lover, or own a pet, you might just like this.  Enjoy!

Cat Lover’s Rules:

1. The cat is not allowed in the house.

2. OK, the cat is allowed in the house, but only in certain rooms.

3. Ok, the cat is allowed in all rooms, but must stay off the furniture.

4. The cat can get on the old furniture only.

5. Fine, the cat is allowed on all the furniture, but it is not allowed to sleep with the humans on the bed.

6. The cat can sleep on the bed, but not under the covers or on the pillow.

7. OK, The cat can sleep under the covers and on the pillow by invitation only.

8. Well, ok, the cat can sleep under the covers every night and on the pillow too.

9. Humans must ask permission to sleep under the cover with the cat; only the cat can sleep on the pillow.

5 Quick Pick-Me-Up Tips!

There are good days, there are bad.  And there are some days when we just need a little “pick-me-up.”  Here are five quick tips:

1. Get some ice cream, or food you love. Did someone say ice cream?  Yum.  What is your favorite?  Rocky road?  Cherry garcia?  Chocolate chip?  Well, go on out and treat yourself.  There’s something about holding an ice cream cone and savoring its flavor as you walk down the street on a sweltering summer day.  And yes, you could multiply your joy by  treating yourself to your favorite food as well!

2. Read “A joke a day.” Why did the elephant cross the road?  Because the chicken has its day off! Once a day, I get a joke in my inbox from ajokeaday.com.  I usually have a good chuckle, and sometimes share it with others, before moving on to “serious” work.

3. Play with your kids or pets. Kids, pets, they wait for you at the door when you come home.  They can’t wait for you to play with them, laugh with them, joke with them.  Throw a little ball, play a little fetch.  Even for 10, 15 minutes, you lift your spirits and theirs as well!

4. Call a friend. Friends offer their listening ears, fresh perspectives, new ideas, shoulders to cry 0n, and recharge your emotional tank.  Give your best friend a jingle and watch how you feel when you’re done with your call.

5. Exercise. I know, I know, sometimes going to the gym is the last thing you want to do.  But once you get on the treadmill and the first trickle of sweat starts rolling down your forehead, and the endorphins kick in, you’d have forgotten all your dread and be patting yourself on the back!

May your days be full, fun and joyful!  If you have more pick-me-up tips, be generous and share it with everyone here!  Thank you much.

Remembering a Mentor

I had a boss once.  His name was Fred Hoar.  He taught me in small spades, and made me laugh in  big spades. These were some of his famous lines on PR:

* “In advertising, you pay for play.  In public relations, you pray for play!”

* Public relations has seven times the reach of advertising.  Advertising costs seven times more than public relations.”

Even after I left my old company and started my own public relations firm, he stayed in my life as my mentor and my firm’s advisory board member.  We met for our mentoring sessions regularly, often over a meal.  One day, we were sitting at an Italian restaurant when the waiter handed us the menus.  Fred took out his glasses, placed them on his nose upside down, looked down at the menu, then looked at me through those goofy glasses and said, “Things are looking up!” I laughed, instantly forgetting my troubles of the moment.

Fred was a Silicon Valley legend, having played important roles at seminal companies like Fairchild Semiconductor, Raychem, Apple and more.  He was one of PR Week’s top 100 influential PR people of the 20th century.  He was also a coveted public speaker.  Once, he started a speech with the following line, “My name is Fred Hoar. I know I have a challenging last name.  Well, I have four daughters, and I call this “character development!” The audience cackled.

These memories are still fresh in my mind, even though it has been more than five years since he passed away.  When he died, a friend said to me, “Fred’s PR DNA has been passed on to you and his mentees.  Make him proud and pass it on.” I look back now and wonder how many times I have quoted him in new business meetings or staff training sessions to underscore the value of public relations.  I think back to how many times I have literally fiddled with glasses over a menu, flipped them upside down and said to family or friends over a meal that “Things are looking up!”

I thank my lucky stars that I once had a mentor in Fred Hoar.  He taught me more than public relations knowhow. He taught me the value of laughter no matter the circumstances, and the gift of time and advice to those younger and seeking.

Do you have deep knowledge and skills in your industry? Are you a mentor?  If yes, thank you for making a difference. If not, why not start today?  Or do you long to learn more from a seasoned veteran in your field?  Then be a mentee.

A mentor-mentee relationship could be a structured one, like the mentoring programs offered through various professional networking groups.  Or it could be an informal one, where two individuals at a workplace pair up, one to mentor, and one to be mentored.  Do you know of a good mentorship program?  Have your life changed after you became a mentor or mentee?  Do share!

Your Weakness is Your Strength

As an immigrant to the United States, I am not what one would consider part of the fabric of mainstream culture.  Of Asian descent, I belong to a group that makes up just 4.4 percent of the population.  I have dark hair, big eyes, a Singapore smile and an unique accent influenced by my British English education, American immersion and Chinese upbringing.

I realized I was “different” through occasional reminders such as this:  when walking to school in New York many years ago, someone yelled “Ni Hao Ma?” (i.e. How Are You?) from a block away.  I looked back and a fellow college student I didn’t recognize started waving frantically and flashing his electric smile and blazing white teeth at me.  I wondered what I’ve done to deserve such warmth and friendliness from someone I didn’t know.  Was it simply the color of my skin?

I learned in a flash that you could turn your “weaknesses” into your strengths.  In PR terms, you could brand yourself through your USP, your Unique Selling Proposition.  Instead of denying my background and experiences, I decided to embrace them.

• I would carve a career and eventually launch my own PR firm leveraging my understanding of Asia and Asian companies to support them in penetrating the American mainstream.
• I would pitch to reporters in my natural accent influenced by all the places I have lived.  And because it was slightly different from a pure American accent, the reporters seemed to remember my voice and my pitches, and soon became my friends and willing contemplators of story ideas.

Can you think of people you know who have turned their weaknesses into strengths?  Our current president Barack Obama did not have the pedigree of a Kennedy, but he leveraged his bi-racial background, his humble international upbringing to win hundreds of millions of supporters around the world.  Take a moment to contemplate your “weaknesses,”   perhaps they are really your strengths and can be turned into your USP (Unique Selling Proposition) with a little creativity and panache?

Moments of Courage

Have you had moments in life when you know you must act on something important, but seemed to have lost the courage to act ?  Did you mean to ask that special someone out?  Did you mean to apply for that job?  Did you want to conquer the fear of public speaking?  Did you mean to speak up for someone who was wronged?  Did you want to start your own business?

I have been through some of these “testing” moments.  One of my most vivid memories was that of a younger me in 1999.  I had a rare opportunity to start my own business.  But I was terrified.  I had too many fears and too many questions, like… What if can’t put food on the table?  Will I have clients? What is my niche?  Will I succeed?”

Thankfully, during that important juncture of my life, my spirit was lifted by the following quotes on courage:

• “Always do what you’re afraid to do.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

• “Courage is not the absence of fear.  Courage is the making of action in spite of fear.” ~ M. Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled.

I learned that I need not wait for all my fears to disappear before acting on something I want to do.  I learned that as long as I can acknowledge my fears and still move forward, I have developed courage, and matured as a person.

So, I finally took the plunge and started my own business, in spite of my fears.  And that has made all the difference.

Has there been a moment, or moments, in your life, when you decided to act, in spite of your fears?  What are these moments?  How did you feel?

Top 10 Inspirational Movies

Are you a movie buff?  Do you go to the theater, sit back, munch your pop corn as the drama unfolds?  Or do you  subscribe to Netflix, or movies on demand, and watch movies in the comfort of your home?  What, of the many movies you have seen, would you consider some of the most inspirational?

Below are A Shot of Inspiration‘s TOP 10 Inspirational Movies:

1. Gattaca
2. Yentl
3. Dead Poets’ Society
4. Good Will Hunting
5. Philadelphia
6. Malcolm X
7. Gandhi
8. The Peaceful Warrior
9. Schindler’s List
10. Coach Carter

What are some of your favorite movies?  How did the stories or characters touch and move you?  Do share!

Happy Birthday, America!

Wow!  The United States of America is 233 years old today.  The American colonies declared its independence from Great Britain that fateful year, and the rest as they say, is history.   But what incredible changes have swept the world since that fateful penning of the Declaration of Independence…

• The U.S. has grown from 13 states to 50 states, from former colonies to the world’s superpower.
• We have moved from an agricultural, horse-and-carriage culture to one that embraces incredible advances in technology – fast cars, jet-setting airplanes, instant connectedness with the Internet and more.
• We have grown from an era where slavery was widely accepted, to inaugurating our first Black president in 2009.

To think that much of our progress stems from our founding fathers’ belief in this idea:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

Every time I come across these words, I’m inspired and moved.  I feel lucky that this idea has seeped into our nation’s consciousness and shaped the constitution and supported legislations that have bettered the lives of generations of Americans since the ink dried on the Declaration in 1776.

Being of Chinese descent, I’m fortunate, that because I live in 2009, I have been spared the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882.  I’m fortunate that they lifted the ban on inter-racial marriages in 1967, or my husband and I, or several of our friends, would not be allowed to marry today.

To many of us, it is a tough year to celebrate.  After all, we are in a deep recession, with unemployment at 9.5%, and the yoyo-ing stock market hard on the faint of heart.

Then again, we pause on July 4th to look at the Declaration again, that no matter what happens, we have unalienable rights.  And no matter how big the challenges are, we have the freedom to pursue life, liberty and happiness.

Thank you, our founding fathers.  Happy Birthday, America!

Do You Have a “Pick-Me-Up” List?

We’re human.  We feel down sometimes, especially after a tiring, unproductive day. Sometimes, we’re hard on ourselves, and we speak harshly to ourselves.

“Oh, I’m stupid.  How did I make that mistake?”

But really, we’d much rather feel another way – happier, more positive about ourselves.  Should you have the blues, here’s an idea that might just give you a little lift:

Think back to a time, or times, when someone paid you a compliment.  It can come from a friend, a family member,  a teacher, your boss, your colleague or even a stranger.

“You’re a kind person, sir,” the old woman said to you when you offered up your seat on a crowded bus.

“It was your dedication that helped us meet the deadline,” your boss says as she pats your shoulder and smiles.

Oh, there’s more… “This outfit looks great on you!”

Now, are the memories coming back?  Are the kind words popping up in your mind?  It’s time to make a “pick-me-up” list! Hurry, take a piece of paper, or turn on your laptop, it is time to jot down these compliments! Keep adding to your list as you remember them, or as more compliments come your way.  And anytime you need a little pick-me-up, simply take this list out from your wallet/purse/journal/drawer, and read them to yourself.

Ahh, is that a smile I see on your face?  Thank you, your smile is contagious.  I’m smiling too.

Would love to hear you share below… What is the nicest compliment you have ever gotten?  Do you remember how it made you feel?

Wishing You… Time to Do The Things You Love

I’m writing my first blog on “A Shot of Inspiration.”  I hope to share beauty, inspiration, glimpses and reflections about the people, places, stories, books and the myriad of things I chance upon.

In a world of information overload and demands of modern living, may this blog serve as your respite, a “pick-me-up,” a mini re-charging zone as you go about doing what you need to do and have to do.

Today, my little wish for you is this, “May you have lots of time, to do the things you LOVE to do!” If this seems impossible,  start small.  Do you like to sing?  Well, sing in the shower!  Do you like connecting with friends and family?  Well, talk on the phone (with a headset of course) while on your commute home from work.

Incidentally, I recently discovered a new love in photography and spent an enjoyable few hours capturing the incredible beauty that exists in some incredible sea creatures at the California Academy of Sciences… enjoy!

Jellyfish