Posts

Showing posts from 2010

Review of Rich Dad's Conspiracy of the Rich, The Eight New Rules of Money by Robert Kiyosaki

This book is the result of the author, Robert Kiyosaki 's life time research. He believes that the US government is controlled by the multinational corporations, which is controlled by the rich people. The rich want us to “Go to school, study hard, get a degree and find a good job.”- the Poor Dad's philosophy. The rich want us to become good employees, so we can work hard for them. Then the government can get paid in the form of tax and our pensions are invested in the stock markets by purchasing the shares of multinational corporations, which makes the rich becoming even richer. Robert Kiyosaki emphasize that financial education is more than important ever in this information age and he states that the rules of money has been changed. New Rule of Money #1: Money is knowledge Today, you do not need money to make money, all you need is good knowledge. The information age has created many young billionaires more than ever before. This includes the founder of Microsoft, Bi

Review of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey

I read The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People in March 2007, however I loved it so much that I decided to write a review about it this year. This wonderful book is very inspirational and summarises the 7 habits you need as follows: Habit 1: Be Proactive. The difference between people who exercise initiative and those who don't is a 5000-plus percent difference in effectiveness. It takes initiative to develop the Seven Habits and each depends on the development of a person's proactive muscles. Habit 2: Begin With the End in Mind. Imagine that you are attending your own funeral, you saw your family, friends and colleagues were there. What would you like them to say about you? What character, contributions and achievements would you want people to remember about you? This habit has reminded me the of story of how the Nobel Prize was founded. Alfred Nobel was a chemist, engineer and inventor. He amassed a fortune during his lifetime mostly through his 355 inventions in

The Adventurous Journey of Climbing the Famous, Dangerous and Precipitous Phoenix Mountain in China Part1 of 3

Image
There are over 30 mountains that are called Phoenix Mountain (Feng Huang Shan) in China. The one that I climbed is one of the most famous Phoenix Mountains and is named as one of the important national tourist attractions in China. It is also one of the four most famous mountains in Liaoning province, China, which is situated in the north-east of the country. The dragon and the phoenix are two of the most auspicious animals or birds in China, however they only exist in legends. The dragon is the symbol for men and the phoenix is the symbol for women. During ancient times, the emperors wore robes decorated with dragons to symbolise the ultimate power. The Chinese regard themselves as the offspring of dragons (Long De Chuan Ren). The Chinese stick pictures of a dragon and a phoenix together w ith Xi (happiness) on a red background on walls and windows during their wedding to show the perfect match and symbolise an auspicious start to their lives together. As you

The Adventurous Journey of Climbing the Famous, Dangerous and Precipitous Phoenix Mountain in China Part2 of 3

Image
The phoenix mountain's sights are divided into four major areas; the most famous site is the west side where the most famous sites such as Lao Niu Bei. (Old Cow's Back) are concentrated. We decided to climb the mountain along this route. The climbing base has vendors and small shops that you can buy special gifts for your families and friends. You can also buy some snacks, water, food, and gloves to prepare for your mountain climbing. Along the way to the climbing journey there are also small Buddhist and Dao temples and pavilions that you can visit. For example Zi Yang Guan (for good fortune), Bi Xia Gong (for parents and grand parents to pray or make wishes for their children and grand children) or Guan Yin Ge (for safety and happiness and other wishes), Dou Mu Gong. These temples were built in Ming and Qing Dynasty with more than 300 - 400 years of history. There are bigger temples in a different route , but we did not have enough time to visit everyth

The Adventurous Journey of Climbing the Famous, Dangerous and Precipitous Phoenix Mountain in China Part3 of 3

Image
I completely understand why there are so many of the people who wish to climb this Phoenix Mountain, especially this Old Cow's Back, have changed their minds when they saw what it involved . I am also very surprised no pamphlets or that staff do not warned tourists of the level of risks and dangers involved in climbing this mountain. You definitely need some courage and braveness to climb this mountain, and I do not recommend it for someone who has a fear of heights. Climbing this mountain is definitely not for everyone. The daytime was short and it was getting dark, we did not have much time to have a break. We almost drank up all of our two bottles of water and all the food and fruit. It would be a big problem if we got stuck there; it was in the middle of nowhere, and there was nobody around to ask for help. It will take too long and be too dangerous for us to go back the way we climbed, so the only option was to get to Arrow's Eye as soon as possible.

Review of The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas Stanley and William Danko

The book “Millionaire Next Door” was published in 1996, since then it has surprised many of the people who have read it, and I was certainly not an exception. Just like you , I was surprised to read that in the USA, many millionaire-like people, who live in big houses in posh areas, drive luxury European or sports cars, wear very expensive suits and clothes, go on luxury foreign holidays and send their children to private schools are not necessarily multi-millionaires. These people may be affluent, but they tend to have lower net worth and their lifestyles are based on hyper-consumption. This book revealed that most millionaires are ordinary looking people who could be living next door to you and they are frugal, frugal, frugal. Most of these types of millionaires are self employed business owners, who started their businesses with nothing. You would not easily recognise these people as multi-millionaires as they dress just like you, shop in the same st

Happy Valentine's Day and Happy Chinese New Year! It's a Double Celebration for Love and the Year of Tiger 2010

Image
Today is 14 February 2010, a Valentines day and also the Chinese New Year, another way to say is Spring Festival (春节).  A bunch of beautiful red roses is the perfect gift for a woman on Valentines day. Red roses are a symbol of love and that's why receiving these roses on this special day makes a woman feel so special. Love is the most powerful and positive human emotion and it deserves to have a special day for celebration. Roses and peonies are my favourite flowers and I have plenty of them in my back garden. During the summer time, it's absolutely beautiful. They are various in colours, styles fragrances and I just love them so much. It's winter time now and I have no flowers blossoming in my back garden so these gorgeous roses make me feel even more loved, happy and cheerful. Today is also the Chinese New Year, the most important festival to Chinese and Koreans. According to the Chinese lunar horoscope, this year is the year of the tiger. People bor