Tan Sri Hassan Marican (Part 3)

S: Tan Sri ada jet Petronas, tapi jika menggunakan penerbangan komersial, adakah Tan Sri turun gred ke kelas perniagaan?

HASSAN: Saya tidak turun gred ke kelas perniagaan, saya kekal di kelas pertama kerana dua sebab. Pertama, saya boleh sampai ke London dan terus bekerja, jadi saya nak ambil peluang untuk tidur dalam pesawat, kedua, kedudukan yang saya bawa. Kalau tidak naik kelas pertama dan naik kelas perniagaan orang akan perhati dan you adalah CEO Petronas, ini soal imej dan persepsi orang, itu kena jaga juga.

Tapi jika saya pergi London atas urusan peribadi dan bersama keluarga, mungkin saya pergi ekonomilah.

S: Tan Sri ini betul-betul kedekutlah?

HASSAN: Kalau nak kata kedekut, kedekutlah. Kita kena bagi tahu anak-anak kita benda ini susah, bukan dapat mudah, dapat pi London dan naik kapal terbang itu sudah cukup baik. Ia adalah bagaimana kita membentuk minda mereka, kalau tidak depa ingat kita dapat senang-senang saja. Anak saya ada empat orang, dua masih kecil darjah enam dan tingkatan tiga, seorang di universiti habis tahun depan dan seorang lagi dah kahwin.

S : Kita pernah nampak, Tan Sri bawa bungkusan dalam plastik ulam dari rumah ke meja makan semasa berbuka puasa dengan para wartawan. Nampaknya Tan Sri adalah peminat ulam?

HASSAN: Betul, saya suka makan ulam. Ulam raja, pucuk janggus (gajus), pucuk putat. Saya tanam sendiri, pokok munggai pun ada di rumah. Di pejabat setiap hari, saya makan nasi bekal. Isteri saya masak dan dihantar ke pejabat. Kalau saya keluar makan tengah hari, habis banyak masa. Puas makan makanan dari rumah, ada gulai ikan ka, dan macam-macam lagi, puaslah. Kerana kadang-kadang kita pun ada macam-macam majlis dan makan malam yang perlu hadir, jadi tengah hari kita ambil kesempatan makan lauk dari rumahlah, sambal ikan kering mesti kena ada (ketawa).

S: Bolehkah Petronas menyedut lebih minyak bagi menambah pendapatan kerajaan?

HASSAN: Dalam usaha melanjutkan hayat simpanan minyak kita dan berdasarkan polisi syarikat, kita hanya hasilkan 650,000 tong sehari. Dari segi teknikal, pelantar dan keupayaan simpanan kita, ia direka untuk mengeluarkan 650,000 ke 700,000 tong sehari.

Kita tidak boleh sewenang-wenang sedut keluar macam buka pancur air, kerana ia akan memusnahkan telaga simpanan minyak kita. Jika kita paksa, telaga itu akan musnah. Macam paru-paru, jika ia tembus, anginnya akan keluar perlahan-lahan, jika kita tekan kuat, ia akan kecut terus. Macam itu juga telaga minyak di dasar laut.

Maknanya, walaupun ada permintaan supaya disedut lebih, kita tak boleh buat kerana ia akan memusnahkan telaga minyak itu.

Lebih penting lagi, kita memegang amanah, untuk generasi akan datang, anak cucu kita boleh tumpang sama.

Nota: Selepas mengundurkan diri dari Petronas kira-kira tujuh tahun lalu, anak jati Sungai Petani, Kedah itu kini dilantik sebagai Pengerusi Singapore Power, Pavilion Energy, Pavilion Gas dan Lan Ting Holdings dan ahli lembaga pengarah Regional Economic Development Authority of Sarawak, Sarawak Energy, Lambert Energy Advisory dan MH Marican Advisory. Beliau juga adalah penasihat kanan antarabangsa Temasek.

Tan Sri Hassan Marican (Part 2)

S:Tan Sri buat macam itu di Petronas?

HASSAN: Falsafahnya sama. Kalau kita nak buat apa-apa sama ada RM1 atau RM10 atau RM1 juta atau RM10 juta itu bukan relevannya, pertamanya anda perlu justify (membuktikan) perbelanjaan itu adalah wajar dan membawa faedah.

Saya mengaku saya kedekut, lagipun ia bukan duit saya, duit rakyat. Saya di sini hanya sebagai pemegang amanah.

S: Di luar, Tan Sri seorang yang cukup sederhana. Walaupun antara CEO bergaji paling tinggi di Malaysia, Tan Sri masih tinggal di rumah biasa berkembar dua, mengapa?

HASSAN: Saya selesa, lagipun ia hanyalah sebuah rumah. Saya tinggal di Ampang Jaya. Bagi saya ini semua sementara sahaja. Saya beli rumah itu 20 tahun lalu dengan harga RM240,000, tanah dia besarlah juga. Masa itu saya di HRM. Arwah bapa saya dan arwah tok wan (datuk) saya selalu mengajar saya jangan membazir dan jangan hidup menunjuk-nunjuk. Kita hidup sederhana saja. Ini semua cara saya dibesarkan. Tok wan saya kastam dan bapa saya polis, bapa saya pun beli rumah teres di Ampang Jaya sebelum dia bersara sebagai pegawai polis.

S : Betul ke semasa Tan Sri berjawatan ini, Tan Sri pernah balik kampung di Kedah naik bas?

HASSAN: Ya, saya pernah naik bas balik kampung. Apa salahnya. Isteri saya pun naik bas ke Singapura. Ini semua atas diri kita. Kadang-kadang ada orang tegur kerana kita makan di gerai, tapi bagi saya apa salahnya, bukan kita buat perkara-perkara yang tidak bermoral. Tidak bolehkah kita jadi orang biasa? Di kampung kalau balik, saya naik Honda Cup pak menakan (bapa saudara) saya punya, pakai kain dan kemeja-T keliling sampai Semeling (dekat Merbok, Kedah) (ketawa).

S: Jadi inilah siapa Tan Sri sebenarnya. Kalau macam itu duit Tan Sri yang banyak itu buat apa?

HASSAN: Apa sahaja kemewahan yang ada, saya letak tepi untuk pendidikan anak-anak saya. Itu sahajalah yang akan mereka ada, pendidikan. Sama seperti bapa saya buat, tak ada harta benda apa pun, pelajaran sahaja.

S: Tapi jika mengambil kira itu pun, duit Tan Sri masih banyak?

HASSAN: Yalah, kita laburlah sikit sana sikit sini (ketawa).

S: Benarkah Tan Sri adalah CEO yang paling tinggi dibayar di Malaysia?

HASSAN: Persepsi kata Petronas bayar gaji tinggi sebenarnya tidak benar. Jika dibandingkan dengan kakitangan kerajaan lain, tinggilah sikit. Malah jika dibandingkan dengan naib-naib presiden saya gaji mereka tidak ke mana berbanding pegawai-pegawai kanan di bank-bank tempatan.

Kalau ahli lembaga pengarah, dapat RM3,000 sahaja sebulan, itu pun saya baru naikkan, sebelum ini hanya RM1,000 sebulan sahaja.

Pengerusi Petronas (yang dipegang oleh Allahyarham Tan Sri Azizan Zainol Abidin) hanya RM5,000 sahaja sebulan.

Saya pernah katakan kepada kakitangan saya, siapa yang sanggup berkhidmat dengan Petronas ialah jenis orang yang luar biasa. Mereka ini, terutamanya di peringkat senior mempunyai semangat nasionalisme dalam darah mereka. Berkhidmat untuk negara. Saya datang dari sektor swasta, ada orang kata apa sangat masuk kerajaan. Tapi saya kata ini adalah untuk negara dan saya mendapat kepuasan kerana saya dapat bagi balik kepada negara. Cabaran hari ini ialah untuk mendapatkan anak-anak muda dalam organisasi ini, untuk berkongsi dengan jenis orang yang luar biasa itu. Kerana generasi muda ini, dia semua nak cepat, nak tengok material.

Jika sekarang kita kakitangan dan dinaikkan pangkat sebagai naib presiden, dia kena berhenti sebagai kakitangan Petronas dan masuk dalam skim kontrak selama tiga tahun. Apa yang dia nikmati sebagai kakitangan dulu termasuk faedah-faedah persaraan dalam KWSP dipindahkan ke skim kontrak.

Jumlah kakitangan Petronas, termasuk anak syarikat Malaysia International Shipping Corporation Berhad (MISC) sekarang 20,000 termasuk luar negara semua sekali 25,000.

Pada masa yang sama, saya juga ingin menafikan bahawa Petronas tidak pernah menyiarkan penyata kewangannya. Walaupun, kami bukan syarikat senaraian awam tetapi kami mengeluarkannya dan menyiarkan dalam laman web, bahan bercetak yang kemudiannya diagih-agihkan. Petronas diberikan penarafan kerana ia memudahkan kami membuat pinjaman untuk operasi.

Tan Sri Hassan Marican (Part 1)

Dilatih sebagai seorang akauntan, Tan Sri Hassan Marican menyertai Petronas pada Februari 1989 sebagai naib presiden kanan kewangan.  Beliau pernah bekerja sebagai pengurus audit di Touche Ross & Company di London (1972–1980) sebelum pulang ke Malaysia dan bekerja di firma Hanafiah Raslan & Mohamed /  Touche Ross & Co (1980–1989).

Beliau adalah fellow di Institute of Chartered Accountants di England dan Wales serta ahli Institut Akauntan Malaysia.

Ketika di Petronas, beliau berada di bawah bimbingan seorang lagi tokoh yang begitu disegani Allahyarham Tan Sri Azizan Zainul Abidin. Azizan dan Hassan menerajui pasukan pengurusan yang mantap dan komited yang bertanggungjawab ke atas banyak kejayaan Petronas hari ini.

Petronas, yang ditubuhkan pada 1974 untuk menjaga sumber petroleum negara membuat penerokaan antarabangsa pertamanya pada permulaan era 1990-an, sejajar dengan strategi integrasi perniagaan, tokokan nilai dan globalisasinya dan sejak itu ia tidak lagi menoleh ke belakang.

Hassan dilantik sebagai presiden dan CEO pada 1995 dan menyandang jawatan sebagai pemangku pengerusi selepas Azizan meninggal dunia pada 2004 pada usia 69 tahun. Hassan dikatakan begitu sedih dengan pemergian Azizan.

Dibantu dengan barisan pengurusan yang mantap, Mohd Hassan memacu Petronas yang bermula sebagai sebuah syarikat kecil pada tahun 1974 dengan modal RM10 juta untuk memiliki modal pemegang sahamnya berjumlah RM232.1 bilion pada Mac 2009 dan aset bernilai RM388.1 bilion!

Syarikat minyak tempatan itu melalui operasi di seluruh dunia menjadikannya mampu untuk ‘berdiri sama tinggi dan duduk sama rendah’ dengan syarikat-syarikat gergasi minyak asing.

Konsortium yang disertai Petronas juga terpilih untuk memajukan dua blok medan minyak terbesar Venezuela selepas baru-baru ini turut bersama-sama Shell untuk menerokai medan minyak di Iraq diberi nama Majnoon, sebuah kawasan yang terbesar di dunia yang belum diterokai.

Beliau sememangnya dikagumi. Bukan mudah untuk mengerakkan Petronas yang mempunyai lebih 30,000 kakitangan kesemuanya bukan hanya di Malaysia tetapi juga di 30 buah negara dunia. Kejayaan yang dikecapi telah meletakkan Petronas jauh ke hadapan sekali gus menyerlah kemampuan negara di mata dunia.

Kekukuhan Petronas kini boleh dilihat seperti teguhnya berdiri Menara Kembar di ibu kota yang masih mengekalkan gelarannya sebagai menara kembar tertinggi di dunia.

Berikut adalah petikan temubual dengan Tan Sri ...

S: Tan Sri dikatakan seorang yang kedekut dalam soal perbelanjaan Petronas. Betul ke?

HASSAN: Ya, saya kedekut. Tapi bukanlah dalam erti kata kedekut sebenar. Cuma saya tidak suka melihat pembaziran. Kalau nak kena belanja, walaupun RM10 juta, kalau kita kena belanja dan belanja betul, kita belanja. Tapi kalau kita nak belanja RM10 tapi tak berfaedah, saya kata tak perlu. Saya datang dari satu tempat dulu (semasa menjadi rakan firma audit HRM) kita bagi pen dan pensel free kepada kakitangan buat kerja. Tapi kalau depa mai nak ambil yang baru, dia kena bawa balik yang sudah habis dipakai. Kalau dia tak bagi, saya bagi tahu kepada penjaga stor, jangan bagi. Kalau tidak dia akan membazir. Saya guna amalan ini di Petronas.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) - A Perspective

We're seeing artificial intelligence grow in the workplace and take over a variety of responsibilities, from data entry to customer service, with great success, but could management positions ever be replaced by AI?

It may seem like a far-fetched idea, but the growth of AI has already crossed borders into areas many people previously didn't think technology could go, like robots completely running retail stores or AI being used to manage hedge funds. Artificial intelligence is getting increasingly smarter and becoming more humanlike, meaning its capacity to make decisions and take on larger roles is increasing.

The main role of management has always been to enforce protocol and make decisions for others in the organization. AI is already being used to make decisions in the workplace on things like who to hire or how to assemble the most effective teams, so what happens when we get to the point when AI can make all decisions typically made by mangers? Would we ever get to a point where the role of managers is obsolete?

The answer to the question isn't totally black and white. While it seems likely that technology will increase and eventually get to the point where all business decisions could likely be made my AI, computers will never be able to match the emotion and human aspects of real managers. 

This is both good and bad--machines are capable of making decisions without emotions, meaning everything would be fueled by an algorithm, eliminating the need for guesswork and gut reactions that could prove false. For less-effective managers whose main purpose is just to make decisions and sign timecards, AI could be a realistic replacement because they already aren't doing anything that a computer can't do.

However, replacing all managers with AI takes out another vital part of a manager's role--the human aspect. Good managers do more than just make decisions for their organization; they also lead the company, build relationships with employees, and connect on an emotional level. The best companies around the world are led by enthusiastic and charismatic managers who could never be replaced by computers. 

These are the leaders who inspire, engage, and empower their employees to drive the company forward and meet strategic goals. A real threat to AI managers would be a loss of employee engagement and morale, especially because most humans likely wouldn't want to work for a machine and would miss out on the important relationships and emotional connections with a human manager.

In the future, we may see some lower-level managers be replaced or consolidated in the name of AI. More than that, the growth of AI in the workplace will make it even more important for managers to interact with and engage with employees to ensure their job security. The good news is that as AI potentially takes over some decision-making aspects of the job, managers will have more time to work on the human side of their positions and be able to interact with and mentor employees.

Managers play an increasing important role in the future of work as they set the stage for transparency, employee experience, corporate culture, and more. With these human-driven principles playing such an important role in an organization's success, managers will stand out even more from AI.

Be Replaceable

I might shock you when I say the following: Be replaceable (at work). Think about it, but don’t take it so literally. What kind of person do you want to be at work? I have worked with many types of personalities. The one that I found to be the most frustrating to work with are the ones that don’t share information.

These are the people that are afraid that if they tell someone how they accomplish their job, that they will be replaced. To them, it’s job security that no one else knows how to do what they do. To me, that’s the worst kind of person for any organization.

I walk into work everyday telling myself, “be replaceable.” What does that mean? It means I work to improve processes every single day and make those around me smarter. These processes when put in place will automate tasks (and I don’t mean electronically).

I give my team the tools they need in order to do their job more efficiently. My hope is that as I fix and implement certain processes, that function/task will no longer require my “managing” and attention; the team will be on autopilot once everyone is equipped to successfully execute it.

Work should never be a secret. What people work on; how they accomplish their task; best practices.   None of it should be a secret. I am 100% transparent and that is the expectation I have of everyone at work.

When I learn something new, I share it. When I solve a problem, I share the situation and how I resolved it. Being replaceable means you are arming those around you with the knowledge you have. You are helping people work smarter and be more efficient by being an open book.

Be replaceable. There should always be someone on your “bench” that can do your job if and when you leave the organization. I measure my success by one rule: If I leave an organization, they will be able to continue right where I left off. If a company can continue marching on after my departure without skipping a beat, that means I have succeeded.  It's when things go bad and a company takes three steps back that I know I failed and didn't do my job prior to leaving.

Be replaceable. Put systems into place and share your knowledge so that everyone learns from it. Being replaceable means you have the confidence that you will not lose your job because you are sharing your knowledge and creating a succession plan. Being replaceable is the most selfless act one can do for any organization. By being replaceable, it means you are putting the company above your own agenda and needs.

Be replaceable.

An Interview with MD of Daimler Benz (Part 2)

With cheap electricity comes cheap and abundant water. Desalination of salt water now only needs 2kWh per cubic meter (@ 0.25 cents). We don't have  scarce water in most places, we only have scarce drinking water. Imagine what will be possible if anyone can have as much clean water as he wants, for nearly no cost.  

Health:    The Tricorder X price will be announced this year. There are companies who will build a medical device (called the "Tricorder" from Star Trek)  that works with your phone, which takes your retina scan, your blood sample and you breath into it.

It then analyses 54 biomarkers that will identify nearly any disease. It will be cheap, so in a few years everyone on this planet will have access to world class medical analysis, nearly for free. Goodbye, medical establishment.

3D printing: The price of the cheapest 3D printer came down from $18,000 to $400 within 10 years. In the same time, it became 100 times faster. All  major shoe companies have already started 3D printing shoes.

Some spare airplane parts are already 3D printed in remote airports. The space station now has a printer that eliminates the need for the large amount of spare parts they used to have in the past.

At the end of this year, new smart phones will have 3D scanning possibilities.    You can then 3D scan your feet and print your perfect shoe at home.  

In China, they already 3D printed and built a complete 6-storey office building.    By 2027, 10% of everything that's being produced will be 3D printed.

Business opportunities: If you think of a niche you want to go in, ask yourself: "in the future, do you think we will have that?" and if the answer  is yes, how can you make that happen sooner?

If it doesn't work with your phone, forget the idea. And any idea designed for success in the 20th century is doomed to failure in the 21st century.

Work:  70-80% of jobs will disappear in the next 20 years. There will be a lot of new jobs, but it is not clear if there will be enough new jobs in such a small time.

Agriculture:   There will be a $100 agricultural robot in the future. Farmers in 3rd world countries can then become managers of their field instead of working all day on their fields.

Aeroponics will need much less water. The first Petri dish produced veal, is now available and will be cheaper than cow produced veal in 2018. Right now, 30% of all agricultural surfaces is used for cows. Imagine if we don't need that space anymore. There are several startups who will bring insect protein to the market shortly. It contains more protein than meat. It will be labelled as "alternative protein source" (because most people still reject the idea of eating insects).

There is an app called "moodies" which can already tell in which mood you're in.  By 2020 there will be apps that can tell by your facial expressions, if you are lying. Imagine a political debate where it's being displayed when they're telling the truth and when they're not.

Bitcoin may even become the default reserve currency ... Of the world!

Longevity:  Right now, the average life span increases by 3 months per year. Four years ago, the life span used to be 79 years, now it's 80 years. The increase itself is increasing and by 2036, there will be more than one year increase per year. So we all might live for a long long time, probably way more than 100.

Education:  The cheapest smart phones are already at $10 in Africa and Asia. By 2020, 70% of all humans will own a smart phone. That means, everyone  has the same access to world class education.

Every child can use Khan academy for everything a child needs to learn at school in First World countries. There have already been releases of software in Indonesia and soon there will be releases in Arabic, Suaheli and Chinese this summer. I can see enormous potential if we give the English app for free, so that children in Africa and everywhere else can become fluent in English and that could happen within half a year.

An Interview with MD of Daimler Benz (Part 1)

In a recent interview the MD of Daimler Benz (Mercedes Benz) said their competitors are no longer other car companies but Tesla (obvious), Google, Apple, Amazon 'et al'. There have always been the 3 constants. Death, Taxes and CHANGE!

Software will disrupt most traditional industries in the next 5-10 years.  

Uber is just a software tool, they don't own any cars, and are now the biggest taxi company in the world

Airbnb is now the biggest hotel company in the world, although they don't own any properties.  

Artificial Intelligence: Computers become exponentially better in understanding the world. This year, a computer beat the best Go player in the world,  10 years earlier than expected.

In the US, young lawyers already don't get jobs. Because of IBM Watson, you can get legal advice (so far for more or less basic stuff) within seconds, with 90% accuracy compared with 70% accuracy when done by humans.

So if you study law, stop immediately. There will be 90% less lawyers in the future, only specialists will remain. 

Watson already helps nurses diagnosing cancer, 4 times more accurate than human nurses. Facebook now has a pattern recognition software that can recognize faces better than humans. In 2030, computers will become more intelligent than humans.

Autonomous cars: In 2018 the first self driving cars will appear for the public. Around 2020, the complete industry will start to be disrupted. You  don't want to own a car anymore. You will call a car with your phone, it will show up at your location and drive you to your destination. You will not need to park it, you only pay for the driven distance and can be productive while driving. Our kids will  never get a driver's licence and will never own a car.

It will change the cities, because we will need 90-95% less cars for that. We can transform former parking spaces into parks. 1.2 million people die  each year in car accidents worldwide. We now have one accident every 60,000 miles (100,000 km), with autonomous driving that will drop to one accident in 6 million miles (10 million km). That will save a million lives each year.

Most car companies will probably become bankrupt. Traditional car companies try the evolutionary approach and just build a better car, while tech companies (Tesla, Apple, Google) will do the revolutionary approach and build a computer on wheels.

Many engineers from Volkswagen and Audi; are completely terrified of Tesla.

Insurance companies will have massive trouble because without accidents, the insurance will become 100x cheaper. Their car insurance business model  will disappear.

Real estate will change. Because if you can work while you commute, people will move further away to live in a more beautiful neighborhood.

Electric cars will become mainstream about 2020. Cities will be less noisy because all new cars will run on electricity. Electricity will become incredibly cheap and clean: Solar production has been on an exponential curve for 30 years, but you can now see the burgeoning impact. 

Last year, more solar energy was installed worldwide than fossil. Energy companies are desperately trying to limit access to the grid to prevent competition from home solar installations, but that can't last. Technology will take care of that strategy. 

To be continued ...

Renungan Ibu untuk Anak Gadisnya

Aku: "Mak, saya dah umur 31 tahun ni. Tak kahwin2 lagi."

Mak: "Rilek."

Aku: "Nak rilek camana lagi. Dah lebih usia. Dah expired."

Mak: "Rilek."

Aku: "Dulu masa saya umur lepas SPM sampailah 31, orang asyik tanya, 'BILA NAK KAHWIN?'

Sekarang, orang duk tanya

'PASAL APA TAK KAHWIN LAGI? BILA NAK KAHWIN?'

Sedih."

Mak: "Kamu dah usaha sedaya upaya kan? Bukan tak pernah approach, bukan tak pernah menerima, bukannya tak pernah ada orang suka dan tolak, kan?"

Aku: "Ya, mak."

Mak: "Boleh tak kita paksa biji durian yang kita baru tanam hari ini, terus berbuah hari ini?"

Aku: "Tak boleh."

Mak: "Jodoh pun macam tu lah. Kita memang nak cepat. Tapi, takdir Allah dan sunnatullah itu kita tak mampu paksa. Kita siapa nak paksa Allah? Kita cuma ada kudrat doa dan minta dengan baik dari-Nya."

menitis air mata aku... Sedih. Dah lama sebak terpendam dalam hati. Orang sekeliling yang bertanya tak pernah faham, betapa pilunya hati orang yang ditanya. Orang tak mengerti, bukan tak mahu. Tapi, dah tersurat begitu.

Mak mencapai tangan aku..

Mak: "Andai tiada jodoh di dunia sekalipun, jangan bersedih. Di akhirat pasti ada."

Aku: "Mana mak tahu ada? Yang saya tahu, orang yang dah kahwin saja dapat bersama pasangan di Syurga."

Mak: "Siapa yang ciptakan suami di dunia?"

Aku: "Allah."

Mak: "Siapa yang mampu ciptakan suami di akhirat?"

Aku: "Allah."

Mak: "Diedarkan kepada mereka piring-piring dari emas, dan piala-piala dan di dalam syurga itu terdapat segala apa yang diingini oleh hati dan sedap dipandang mata dan kamu kekal di dalamnya."

Aku: "Kata-kata siapa itu, mak?"

Mak: "Allah yang berfirman dalam Surah al-Zukhruf ayat 71. Ada lagi yang Allah janjikan sebagaimana dalam Surah Fussilat ayat 31,

'..Kamilah Pelindung-pelindungmu dalam kehidupan dunia dan di akhirat; di dalamnya kamu memperoleh apa yang kamu inginkan dan memperoleh (pula) di dalamnya apa yang kamu minta..”

Maksudnya, kalau kamu inginkan suami, insya-Allah kamu dapat suami di Syurga.

Apa yang mustahil bagi Allah? Tidak ada!"

Aku mengelap air mata yang mengalir..

Aku: "Tapi, orang duk kata kat saya tak laku. Buruk. Hodoh. Memilih. Demand."

Mak: "Biaq pi. Biarlah tak laku di dunia, tapi laris di akhirat.

Ingat apa Allah kata,

“Janganlah kamu merasa hina dan janganlah kamu merasa sedih kerana sesungguhnya kedudukan kamu lebih tinggi (mulia) jika kamu beriman” (Ali-Imran : 139).

Single ke, kahwin ke, tapi kalau taqwa dan iman tak berubah duk takuk lama tu jugak, tak guna gak.

Jadilah full-time muslimah.

'Fasobrun Jamiiil'. Sabarlah dengan seindah-indah kesabaran. Jodoh yang indah datang dari kesabaran yang indah.

Jangan bersedih. Wat lek wat biskut.

Aku tersengih-sengih dan happy balik dengar kata-kata mak..

Minum Kopi dengan Ayah

Ayah : Tolong buatkan kopi dua gelas untuk kita berdua nak, tapi gulanya jangan engkau tuang dulu, bawa saja ke mari beserta wadahnya.

Anak : Baik, ayah

Tidak berapa lama, anaknya sudah membawa dua gelas kopi yang masih hangat dan gula di dalam wadahnya beserta sendok kecil.

Ayah : Cobalah kamu rasakan kopimu nak , bagaimana rasa kopimu?

Anak : rasanya sangat pahit sekali ayah

Ayah : Tuangkanlah sesendok gula, aduklah, bagaimana rasanya?

Anak : Rasa pahitnya sudah mulai berkurang, ayah

Ayah : Tuangkanlah sesendok gula lagi, aduklah, bagaimana rasanya?

Anak : Rasa pahitnya sudah berkurang banyak, ayah

Ayah : Tuangkanlah sesendok gula lagi, aduklah, bagaimana rasanya?

Anak : Rasa manis mulai terasa tapi rasa pahit juga masih sedikit terasa, ayah

Ayah : Tuangkanlah sesendok gula lagi, aduklah, bagaimana rasanya?

Anak : Rasa pahit kopi sudah tidak terasa, yang ada rasa manis, ayah

Ayah : Tuangkanlah sesendok gula lagi, aduklah, bagaimana rasanya?

Anak : sangat manis sekali, ayah.

Ayah : Tuangkanlah sesendok gula lagi, aduklah, bagaimana rasanya?

Anak : Terlalu manis. Malah tidak enak, ayah

Ayah : Tuangkanlah sesendok gula lagi, aduklah, bagaimana rasanya?

Anak : rasa kopinya jadi tidak enak, lebih enak saat ada rasa pahit kopi dan manis gulanya sama-sama terasa, ayah.

Ayah : Ketahuilah nak.. pelajaran yg dapat kita ambil dari contoh ini adalah.. jika rasa pahit kopi ibarat kemiskinan hidup kita, dan rasa manis gula ibarat kekayaan harta, lalu menurutmu kenikmatan hidup itu sebaiknya seperti apa nak?

Sejenak sang anak termenung, lalu menjawab.

Anak : Ya ayah, sekarang saya mulai mengerti, bahwa kenikmatan hidup dapat kita rasakan, jika kita dapat merasakan hidup secukupnya, tidak melampaui batas. Terimakasih atas pelajaran ini, ayah

Ayah : Ayo anakku, kopi yg sudah kamu beri gula tadi, campurkan dengan kopi yang belum kamu beri gula, aduklah, lalu tuangkan dalam kedua gelas ini, lalu kita nikmati segelas kopi ini.

Sang anak lalu mengerjakan perintah ayahnya

Ayah : Bagaimana rasanya?

Anak : rasanya nikmat, ayah.

Ayah : Begitu pula jika engkau memiliki kelebihan harta, akan terasa nikmat bila engkau mau membaginya dengan org2 yang kekurangan.

Anak : Terima kasih atas ilustrasinya, ayah

A Success Story of 99 Speedmart Owner

His handicap becomes his forte. A star is born.

Some people blame their circumstances as why they are not successful. But not Lee Thiam Wah.

Unknown to most people, the owner of 99 SpeedMart, dubbed 'The King of MiniMarts' was struck with polio at an early age, and it bound him to the wheelchair for the rest of his life.

Being born into a lower income family, Lee did not enjoy the support and helot that kids with his affliction should have been given. His father was a construction worker, and his mother was a hawker, so he did not lead a luxurious life.

But it was what Lee despite of his circumstances that got the international business community to take notice, earning him an exclusive profile in Forbes magazine.

His parents had to provide for 11 children, so it comes as no surprise that Lee only finished 6 years of school, as they could not afford to send him to school anymore.

But Lee did not use this as a reason for him to be lazy, and just accept his circumstances. After he finished school prematurely, he read books borrowed from neighbors, and sold snacks in a roadside stall to occupy his time.

Lee said that he had to do all this, as a way to help himself.

“I have to help myself. Nobody would hire me due to my physical limitation,” he says.

His never say die attitude was forged by his grandmother, who used to tell him "If you dont work hard, what will you amount to?"

By the time he was 23, he saved RM 5000, which was just enough to start a grocery stall. So he began his retail education.

He said that he learned through experience, more than anything.

“I learned what customers buy. I know all the suppliers and their pricing. And I studied my competitors thoroughly," says Lee.

In 1992, Lee sold the business for RM 88,000. Armed with the money and the know how, he opened a mini mart.

Lee said that he came to this decision because he wants a challenge.

“I wanted the challenge of running a bigger business. If you don’t have scale you can’t compete with Chinese medicine halls on pricing, and you can’t compete with hypermarkets in terms of range.”

In 1999, he changed the mini mart's name to 99 Speedmart.

Initially building his empire in Klang with 175 stores, Lee soon took his business nationwide, even extending his empire to East Malaysia.

By June 2016, 99 Speedmart had launched its 800th outlet in Taman Pahlawan, Melaka.

During the Forbes interview in 2010, it was reported that Lee's business was already rakingi n RM 150 million annually and employs 2000 people in Malaysia.

Recent media reports cite that 99Speedmart now employs over 6000 workers, a fleet of 100 lorries and 6 distribution centers.

Lee Thiam Wah is a real success story, and he has shown to everyone that even physical disability cannot stop pure passion, grit, and perseverance.