Case Teaching and Research Seminar by Prof Dr Jeffrey Shay

From 11 to 13 December 2012, I have attended the Case Teaching and Research Seminar taught by Prof Dr Jeff Shay. It was interesting to be able to discover new ways of teaching and learning through a case study method and new venues for publications. Although I have been involved with the writing of case studies for quite some time, being able to sit in a room full of people with the same interest was just exciting. And the knowledge shared by Jeff gained mostly by his years and years of experiences had made this training valuable at least to me.

Tuesdays with Morrie

Tuesdays with Morrie shares the final lesson between a college professor, Morrie, and one of his students and the author of the book, Mitch Albom. Having been busy with the demands in life, the author somehow lost contact with Morrie who used to be his most favorite professor during his college days. However, the relationship was reconnected when he accidently saw Morrie in an interview on the show "Nightline." Watching Morrie stricken with ALS disease, the author was suddenly reminded of his promise made sixteen years ago to keep in touch with his professor. That was the start of his last lessons of 14 consecutive Tuesdays with Morrie. Why Tuesday, you might wonder. It is because Morrie's classes were always on Tuesdays. As you read the book, you will become emotionally attached to Morrie and his determination to not surrender to his disease and die in vain. His expertise is on Human Relations and until the day he died, he continued to share his knowledge and aspirations with people around him. If you have the time, read the book. It will be worth your while.

“As you grow, you learn more. If you stayed as ignorant as you were at twenty-two, you'd always be twenty-two. Aging is not just decay, you know. It's growth. It's more than the negative that you're going to die, it's the positive that you understand you're going to die, and that you live a better life because of it. ” Mitch Albom, Tuesdays with Morrie

Piled Higher and Deeper

When I did my PhD, I was introduced to a website dedicated in producing comic strips on the life of a graduate student . The comic strips, although funny, closely resemble the situations commonly faced by most graduate students. Therefore, if you have the time, you might want to check it out.. http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/aboutcomics.html

Source: http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive.php?comicid=124

The Perfect Imperfections

As I was browsing and managing my emails this morning, I had come across this simple, but interesting quote.

" Aim for success, not perfection. Never give up your right to be wrong, because then you will lose the ability to learn new things and move forward with your life. Remember that fear always lurks behind perfectionism." by David M. Burns

I believe that this is very true. Life is not meant to be perfect. Life is just life...full of ups and downs, laughters and tears, successes and failures. And those are the very reasons why we so treasure it, the imperfections that make it so perfect.

A Round of Applause for FEMSA

On 22 September 2012, a number of students of Faculty of Economics and Management Student Association (FEMSA) embarked in a journey worth a lifetime. On that particular day, these students, regardless of their busy schedules, had volunteered to conduct a motivational session with the orphans and the less fortunate students ranged from Year 3 to Year 6 from Sekolah Kebangsaan Seri Sekamat (SKSS), Kajang. Throughout the session, I had witnessed a selfless act by these FEMSA facilitators. The shared laughter and even tears during that one-day session have indeed created a special bond between the younger ones and their big brothers and sisters. I hope there will be more of similar types of activities conducted by our students. To the committee member of FEMSA 2011/12, I would like to congratulate you for a job well done. Thank you for spending some time with these kids. And thank you for sharing your heart with them.