5.4e The organisation/company MUST offer formal working hour and office environment. Night working, teleworking, virtual office etc. are NOT allowed.

Apparently, this has became an issues who those who apply for internship training in our company. Yet, it is even more Complicated (if I am to borrow the word from Facebook) after they have consulted their lecturer…

“MUST” – It is just an office cubicle and it this really matter? Well, the most you can learn out of this limited space are: Bosses occupy the largest room doing the least work; Students sitting like Sardine with the oldest machines in the office.

“formal working hour and office environment” – Your colleague will show you what is so-called ‘formal’ by coming late and back home earlier. Your bosses? Hmm, you probably meet them once a while if you are lucky. The office environment? Make sure you have a office-politic survival kit with you all the time.

“Night working” – Smart you, lecturers. The Night working only sounds that your students are kind of working at those kinky night club. If not, what else?

“virtual office” – Ah Huat Restaurant needs an address because they have walk-in customers. For those without walk-in, is the office address really matters to your customers? I don’t print my address on my namecard because what my customers looking for are good services and support, they don’t care if I am operating from Pandora.

Working for others

Our graduates love this for sure, climbing corporate ladder. The higher you’re, the lower risk you can take. Is this comfort zone a permanent one, I doubt!

Yet, if not this, what else? It’s a highway. You are told it is fastest, closest and the most comfortable one. Except one thing, the high price to pay. Your parents, lecturers, buddies and our society shape this road and you are just following, what’s wrong with it?

Graduate, find a good job, get your first pay check, buy your first car and follow by a house. Pay your loans and when you’ve little money in your bank – almost the time to get married. Sounds familiar? Indeed, it is just another NKVE.

Start your own business – Type A

I always believe everyone has their own dream. I interviewed some, digging from their memory deep inside and yes – from cycling to setting up bakery. Many of these dreams are buried, less important than getting higher GPA and busy fighting to secure the best job in the most ‘well-known’ company with highest salary.

Only few of them, make the hard decision to roam the trunk road than going straight to the highway. It isn’t easy at all. You have spent your crucial 3 or 4 years in University, learning how to complete your final year project without a business model, without knowing how to market it, managing people, applying your MSC…

What’s Type A? Type A entrepreneurs, through not working for others, but decide to venture into business model that providing customized service, such as web design. They accumulate skills and experience, but sadly to say, this is a dead-end business model after 3 to 5 years. You find yourself getting busier, having lot of noise, probably a bigger team but also mean you have to make sure projects keep coming in every month, in time!

Start your own business – Type B

Type B entrepreneurs decide to start their own project. This can be, for example an online florist selling just roses. It starts small and no one sure how far this can go. This single project get 100% attention from the founder.

Put it this way, Type A’s business is to setup and take care of a garden for someone. It is an example of outsource. Type A, at the same time, taking care of more other gardens.

Type B, setup his own garden and plant just one tree in the garden. It is nothing but the tree. All focus, resources, time are investing into it.

Let’s fast forward to 5 years later. All trees in both garden yield fruits, but who owns it? In fact, the owner of the garden managed by Type A, are type B too. Type B has more time to think to grow his business while Type A busy managing garden after garden.

By the way, do you know who are those working in the garden, climbing up to the tree? You’re right, those in ‘Working-for-others’ with good climbing skills after years of training :)

If you are graduating soon, can I talk to you?

What is the most memorable experience?

A nice framed picture, from Henny, Jingkai and Alex!

Do you feel that you are sacrificing a lot when training the students?

We may be spending about couple hours for their training, but they are spending their eight hours here, finding a temporarily stay for just three months, get here by bus.. you realize it is unfair if they can’t learn anything here.