Who wants to be a Millionaire??

The word 'millionaire' is the most over-used word in our vocabulary these days. Each and every person from all walks of life has fantasized about becoming a millionaire some time or the other.For this very reason, the shows like 'Who wants to be a Millionaire?' and movies like 'Slumdog Millionaire' are extremely popular among the masses. We admire those who have jet setting ultra luxury lifestyles, but in many cases these guys are just simple people who just happen to own a million (well at least in Asia).. I found an inspirational blog posted by Singapore's youngest millionaire. It showcases the fact that being grounded is the best way to handle success in life...

A Blog Posted by Singapore 's Youngest Millionaire

By Adam Khoo

Some of you may already know that I travel around the region pretty frequently, having to visit and conduct seminars at my offices in Malaysia , Indonesia , Thailand and Suzhou ( China ). I am in the airport almost every other week so I get to bump into many people who have attended my seminars or have read my books.

Recently, someone came up to me on a plane to KL and looked rather shocked.. He asked, 'How come a millionaire like you is travelling economy?' My reply was, 'That's why I am a millionaire. ' He still looked pretty confused. This again confirms that greatest lie ever told about wealth (which I wrote about in my latest book 'Secrets of Self Made Millionaires' ). Many people have been brainwashed to think that millionaires have to wear Gucci, Hugo Boss, Rolex, and sit on first class in air travel. This is why so many people never become rich because the moment that earn more money, they think that it is only natural that they spend more, putting them back to square one .

The truth is that most self-made millionaires are frugal and only spend on what is necessary and of value . That is why they are able to accumulate and multiply their wealth so much faster. Over the last 7 years, I have saved about 80% of my income while today I save only about 60% (because I have my wife, mother in law, 2 maids, 2 kids, etc. to support). Still, it is way above most people who save 10% of their income (if they are lucky). I refuse to buy a first class ticket or to buy a $300 shirt because I think that it is a complete waste of money. However, I happily pay $1,300 to send my 2-year old daughter to Julia Gabriel Speech and Drama without thinking twice.

When I joined the YEO (Young Entrepreneur' s Organization) a few years back (YEO is an exclusive club open to those who are under 40 and make over $1m a year in their own business) I discovered that those who were self-made thought like me. Many of them with net worths well over $5m, travelled economy class and some even drove Toyota 's and Nissans (not Audis, Mercs, BMWs).

I noticed that it was only those who never had to work hard to build their own wealth (there were also a few ministers' and tycoons' sons in the club) who spent like there was no tomorrow . Somehow, when you did not have to build everything from scratch, you do not really value money. This is precisely the reason why a family's wealth (no matter how much) rarely lasts past the third generation . Thank God my rich dad (oh no! I sound like Kiyosaki) foresaw this terrible possibility and refused to give me a cent to start my business.

Then some people ask me, 'What is the point in making so much money if you don't enjoy it?' The thing is that I don't really find happiness in buying branded clothes, jewellery or sitting first class. Even if buying something makes me happy it is only for a while, it does not last. Material happiness never lasts, it just give you a quick fix . After a while you feel lousy again and have to buy the next thing which you think will make you happy. I always think that if you need material things to make you happy, then you live a pretty sad and unfulfilled life.

Instead, what make ME happy is when I see my children laughing and playing and learning so fast. What makes me happy is when I see by companies and trainers reaching more and more people every year in so many more countries. What makes me really happy is when I read all the emails about how my books and seminars have touched and inspired some one's life. What makes me really happy is reading all your wonderful posts about how this BLOG is inspiring you. This happiness makes me feel really good for a long time, much much more than what a Rolex would do for me.

I think the point I want to put across is that happiness must come from doing your life's work (be in teaching, building homes, designing, trading, winning tournaments etc.) and the money that comes is only a by-product .

If you hate what you are doing and rely on the money you earn to make you happy by buying stuff, then I think that you are living a life of meaningless.

--

Regards,

rk.

You know you are from Mumbai (Bombay) when:

You know you are from Mumbai (Bombay) when:


1. You say "town " and expect everyone to know that*this means south towards Churchgate.


2 You speak in a dialect of Hindi called 'Bambaiya Hindi', which only Bombayites can understand.


3. Your door has more than three locks.


4. Rs 500 worth of groceries fit in one paper bag.


5. Train timings (9.27, 10.49 etc) are really important events of life.


6. You spend more time each month traveling than you spend at home.

7. You call an 8' x 10' clustered room a Hall.8. You're paying Rs 10,000 for a 1 room flat, the size of walk-in closet and you think it's a "steal."


8. You have the following sets of friend: school friends, college friends, neighborhood friends, office friends and yes, train friends, a species unique only in Bombay.




9. Cabbies and bus conductors think you are from Mars if you call the roads by their Indian name, they are more familiar with Warden Road, Peddar Road, Altamount Road.


10. Stock market quotes are the only other thing besides cricket which you follow passionately.


11. The first thing that you read in the Times of India is the "Bombay Times" supplement.


12. You're suspicious of strangers who are actually nice to you.


13. Hookers, beggars and the homeless are invisible.


14. You compare Bombay to New York's Manhattan instead of any other cities of India.


15. The most frequently used part of your car is the horn.


16. You insist on calling CST as VT, and Sahar and Santacruz airports instead of Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport.


17. You consider eye contact an act of overt aggression.


18. Your idea of personal space is no one actually standing on your toes.


19. Being truly alone makes you nervous.


20. You love wading through knee deep mucky water in the monsoons, and actually call it ''romantic'.


21. Only in Bombay , you would get Chinese Dosa and Jain Chicken.


22. You always argue with Delhites than Mumbai is way better than Delhi


23. You still refer to the city as Bombay not Mumbai.


24. When you love bragging about the filmstars and cricketers you've seen.


25. Every three months you look at your street and say "Why're the digging the road again?".


26. "Change" is "Chillar", "Ditching" is a "Kalti" and "Trouble" is "Jhol".


27. "Gheun Tak" is your life ideology.


28. You have been shoo'd away from Marine Drive at 3am by the cops because of an "Unlawful gathering of persons"


29. You actually pay for your rickshaws by the meter.


30. You actually think 30Rs for a Sada Dosa is pretty reasonable.


31. When u call cops ;kaka' and they let you go if you show of your marathi speaking.


32. Amitabh bachchans house is a landmark.


33. You have been to matheran or mahabaleshwar during the summer vacations.


34. You see men (not gay apparently) holding hands and walkin the street.


35. The note to coin changing machine at Churchgate station is idolized.


36. During cricket season all the roads are blocked because people in the streets are looking at television screens in display windows.


37. Automatic vending machines have a sales person sitting next to it just to help you.


38. There are more movie tickets being sold in black than at the ticket office.


39. It takes longer to get off from your house to the station than from one end of Mumbai to another by train.


40. Every cab and rickshaw driver makes small talk with you


41. You see Herd of people walking at four in the morning to Siddhi Vinayak temple.


42. ‘Bun Maska’ and ‘vada pav’ is the staple diet of most collegians.


43. HORN OK PLEASE is written on every truck, tempo and heavy motor vehicle.


44. You cant drive for more than 10 mins without abusing someone


45. "Townies" think they need a visa to go past worli to the suburbs


46. When u use the word "yaar" in almost every sentence u speak.




47. You call onion as "kandha" and potato as "batata"




48. You think of a spicy tangy snack whenever you hear the work chat .




49.You are back to work next day after the city is bombed - Truly the spirit of Bombay.




50. You call the cabbies & waiters BOSS .


51. You prefer wada pav by jumbo king anyday on comparision wid Mc donalds burger.


52. Your pricipal form of entertainment are all the aunties who scream obscenities at each other at the drop of a hat and threaten to pull the others hair/ push out of the train at 11 in the night!


53. Your idea of a full body massage is wat u get while trying to get off/ board a train at dadar!!!


54. At 3am in morning you can still get wadapav or butter pav bhaji.


55. When there's no place to breathe in the trains but there's place to play cards and sing bhajans!


56. When the traffic almost makes good friends with the person in the car next to you.


57. You know what the term "video coach" stands for in the local trains...


58. Random strangers butt in wen you are discussing cricket or politics to give their personal (unwanted) opinion.


59. You say that Pani Puri is waayy better than Gol Gappa's even when they're the same thing.


60. There is always one 'pan-waala' on the corner of street


61. You aren't surprised when somebody throws a water balloon at you while you're walking on the streets during March.


62. Seeing "Mein Kampf" being sold openly on the streets in abundance seems like a perfectly normal thing to you.


63. You consider the local train "empty" when you find a spot for your two feet to stand on.


64. When someone asks u "east" or "west" side of a particular station.


65. When "chalta hai" is the most commonly used word.


66. When you find cars on the Road even at 4 in the morning.


67. You have hung on to dear life at the local door.


68. You take the "Weight and Your Future for Rs.1 only" machines at the stations seriously. ... At least the Future bit, it always exaggerates about the weight.


69. When you think everyone who lives to the south of you is a snob and to the north of you sucks.


70. You behave like a foreigner in any other part of the country.


71. You see couples cosying up in rickshaws in almost every small lane.


72. You want to get into the train already that is already in motion & you have 5 hands taking you in..


73. When you instinctively say "pudhey challa" instead of saying agey badho or move ahead.


74. Chal, paka mat!" is an overused part of your vocabulary.


75. Crorepati, Lakhpati, Hazarpati, Chillarpati all travel in local Trains daily.

76. You treat mumbai as a country itself.


77. You drink 2 sips of tea called 'cutting' more than thrice a day.

77. When you see the dabbawallas on the station and fishwali kolis in .

78. When you call the BEST bus, BST, even though BEST is painted on every single public transport bus operational in Bombay.

79. You know 'bhai' means a guy who has no brotherly feelings.

80. Making a loud kissing noise is how you tease girls in Delhi, but making that same noise is how you hail an autorickshaw in Bombay

81. You don't differentiate between U.P. and Bihar. All you know is that's where the 'bhaiyas' come from .

82. If someone calls u "aap"-- u start laughing on their faces...

83. When your lunch is delivered hot in a tiffin at exactly 1pm from home every working day.

84. When you are stuck in traffic even at 1:30 a.m

85. You see two office-goers play a game of cards in your evening local train.

86.When ... you have argued with the TC that traveling first class after pass expires is legitimate since you havent processed the railway concession yet!

87. When you use the phrases, 'Chillum-Chili' and 'Chili-Mili' and are not talking about a spicy dish.

Hail Slumdog

‘ Slumdog Millionaire’ , you may love it or hate it ,but one thing for sure, you can’t ignore it. I went to see it purely out of curiosity. Just wanted to know of the ways in which India is projected as an intensely poverty stricken third world country. I just can’t help it. There is enough proof that the only art of India the ‘goras’ appreciate is the art of degrading India. The enormous appreciation earned by Aravind Adiga for his book ‘White Tiger’ is the best example. I would rate it as the most disgusting book I have ever read. I could feel my blood boil reading his mortifying portrayal of India as a massive garbage dump. I felt that ‘Slumdog’ would provoke the same reaction from me. Surprisingly, I liked it.

‘Slumdog’ has come across a lot of criticism in India. But I felt that the movie was well made & the focus was more on the ‘rags to riches’ story of the protagonist than the Indian poverty. The harsh realities are depicted in a more subtle manner. The high point of the film is the excellent work done by the child actors’ .They bring about an innocence in whichever sequence they are a part of, which might be otherwise disgusting. I firmly feel that our Bollywood filmwallas must learn a lesson or two in editing from their Hollywood counterparts. The film is crisp and maintains its pace till the end and that made it thoroughly enjoyable, well at least for me.

All said and done, I feel that the only reason it garnered so much publicity and awards is because of the colour of the director’s skin. If the same movie would have been made by an Indian it would have not been acknowledged. Indian film industry is one of the biggest film industries in the world. I fail to understand why Indians are so crazy about Oscars. Our films cater to a large population & are made according to their taste. So why do we need the Oscar Jury to judge us? ‘Slumdog’ was made by a foreigner for a foreign audience & incidentally the story was based in India. So, I don’t get the reason why we are so excited about the 10 Oscar nominations it received.

It is nice to hear that A.R Rahman’s work was appreciated by them. A.R Rahman is one of the best music composers of all time and he does not require an Oscar or a Golden Globe to certify that. In the words of Salim, in ‘Slumdog Millionaire’, ‘India is in the centre of the world’. I know that a time will come when the biggest Hollywood stars will vie for an Indian award.

Architecture Jury Critique..

Here are some of the best comments by lecturers and professors I’ve come across, most of these quotes are from online blogs reading (archinet), some are from words of mouth while others are first hand experience, here goes:
“Why are you here? Don’t come back next semester.”
“Here’s a Rupee. go call your mom and tell her you’re not going to be an architect.”
What is that boxy thing (model)? A coffin?
Your design sucks!
Your design is very tasteful… … for the tasteless.
“Is this a … structural… glob of glue?”
“When I went to school, at a different school than this one, there were students who would present projects like this one.And they would fail.”
“Your project looks like something that’s been through a trash compactor”
“This space that you’ve designed is the type place where beggars and dogs go to die”
“Are you in interior design?”
“Why are you studying architecture if you’re producing things like that?”
“Hey, everyone, gather round this project, come in close…because this is a great example for everyone of exactly what NOT to do..”
“This drawing isn’t worth the paper it is printed on.”
“This (model) is great…..just don’t let your dog play with it next time.”
If you build this and after 10000 years the aliens see it, they would understand why humans extinguish
“Have you ever considered a career in accounting?”
“So your parents are pay Rs55,000 a year for this.”
“Your theory is bullshit. You don’t need that”
Prof pointing to part of a model, “Did you chew this?”

And some more...

“You don’t care about this project, do you? So I won’t say anything about it”
“You have good sense of humor but architects don’t…”
“Anyone got any matches… so I can burn this”
“Architecture? I think you should just go straight to becoming a demolition man because you just created a mess”
“My dog would not even live in this”
“I like where u put that balcony, looks like a good place to jump from after setting eyes on this horrible building”
“Do u draw with you mothers eyeliner”
“Were you on drugs when you did this (model)?”
“Where did you shove your colour pencils when you draw that”?
This girl presented her project, and at the end of it the tutor asks her how long she spent on it, she explains that she spent all night and worked really hard on it… He tells her that she’s lying because she’s wearing make-up, and if you have time to do your make-up, you have time to work more on a project… He then proceeded to fail her
Tutor - “Can i use your model as an example for the other first years?”Student - “Yeah of course you can!”Tutor - “Don’t get excited, i want to use it as an example of what not to do”Student - “Oh…”
A Girl brought in a model she had finished with plaster. When she entered the room, students and crits thought it was a cake and started singing happy birthday. Needless to say she was devastated.

This is our India..

1. Do not worry about those who have come thru boats... Our forces can easily defeat them. WORRY about those who have come thru votes.... Those are our REAL ENEMIES….

2. What a shame and disgrace to every citizen of India that the elite NSG Force was transported into ordinary BEST buses, whereas our cricketers are transported into state of the art luxury buses, these Jawan s lay down their lives to protect every Indian and these cricketers get paid even if they lose a match, we worship these cricketers and forget the martyrdom of these brave Jawan s. The Jawan s should be paid the salaries of the cricketers and the cricketers should be paid the salaries of the Jawan s.

3. An ace shooter shoots and gets gold medal, govt gives 1cr, another shooter dies while shooting terrorist, govt gives 5 lakh. WHO DESERVES MORE?

Huh... This is our India ....

LIGHT AT THE END OF A DARK TUNNEL

What saved The Taj Mahal Palace and Tower from turning to ashes in last week's terror attack, was its architecture. A significant portion of the hotel's sixth floor caught fire late on Wednesday night after terrorists set one room on fire. Had any other structure suffered a similar attack it would have been reduced to ashes. The building is still standing today because of its marvellous architecture, complete with a huge atrium, proper ventilation, large windows.

ATRIUM

The building has a large atrium, or open space, in its centre, which prevented the fire raging on the sixth floor from lapping up the entire building. Had there been lesser space, the fire would have spread to the floors below. However, because of the large atrium, the fire could only rise. Hence, while the sixth floor has been destroyed, there has been little damage to the fifth floor. The floors below are nearly intact, except for the mess created on the ground floor.


WINDOW

The large windows in the lobbies and galleries facilitated the fire from getting out. .


GIRDERS

Another factor that has managed to keep the building standing tall are its girders - supporting beams - which have stood the test of time and fire. The fire officer said that those prevented the roof from caving in. Considering that the building was built at a time when wood was the predominant material used for the basic framework and decoration, most of the balustrades are still standing erect, and are only charred a bit.


FIRE RESISTANT DOORS

Fire Resistant Doors (FRDs) are thick wooden doors which are layered by fire-resistant materials. These doors are so powerful that not only did they not crumble down, but also prevented the fire, raging in the corridors, from entering the rooms.
The Sea Gull Lounge on the sixth floor which was shut, for instance, hasn't suffered any damage. One of the rooms near the dome was saved because of the hotel's marvellous FRDs, and around 40 people were rescued from that room.


MATTRESSES

The mattresses in the rooms of the hotel are also made of special fibre and foam that prevent fire from spreading. Hence, the charring was restricted, rather than a fire spreading from the bed to the rest of the room.

Mumbai Burning

It was Thursday night , as I finished my dinner and settled in front of TV, I saw myself staring into the TV screen seeing the most elegant and majestic building in Mumbai bursting into flames. It took me a moment to digest that scene. Mumbai has witnessed a multitude of terrorist attacks in the past years..Right from the 1993 bomb blasts. Every time it happens the media again tries to brainwash the public into thinking about the ‘Spirit Of Mumbai’ ,and the common man continues to be resilient going about his business putting all that happened behind him. But how long can we Mumbaites allow ourselves to be trampled upon. Don’t we deserve freedom??-The freedom from the fear of being attacked the very next second.

We consider living each day a challenge , unaware of the fate that beholds us .. We never know when and where we might meet out fate..Could be in the train we catch daily to go to work , Could be the in the theater where we go to catch our weekly flicks. Till recently the so called elite society never imagined itself to bear the brunt of these attacks, as the rarely use public transport , go to the places which have the best security in the country . This attack on the Taj hotel made everyone realize that there is only so much you can do to protect yourself from highly motivated and remorseless terrorists.

The manner and the location of their attack seem to be different each time, thus taking our authorities by surprise each time. The Taj Mahal Hotel is not just any hotel but the symbol of Indian prestige. An architectural marvel of its time and still remains so. It is a monument erected in testimony of the start of industrialization in India. In spite of the repeated grenade attacks the external façade of the hotel is still intact . This shows that the grand old structure is as graceful as a palace and as sturdy as a fort.

There are many factors which cause India to be such a weak target.

· The Politicians

The ruling government is learning nothing whatsoever from the repeated terrorist strikes this country is facing. In spite of the recurrence of such incidents they have not yet enforced any strict law which deals with terrorism. The earlier law POTA which could have been effective had also been repealed.
It is in the country’s best interest to remain united. Yet many politicians continue to play divisive politics. Certain politicians propagate regionalism. Such actions distract the nation from the core issues plaguing us i.e.- terrorism, infiltration ,etc. There are also many who are involved with minority appeasement. Politicians are now never ‘for’ the people. It has become politicians’ v/s citizens.

The Police Forces

The police forces try to do their best for the cities, but it is now time to face the bitter truth – the force is neither trained nor equipped enough to handle such terrorists. You have these terrorists carrying the latest ammunition pitted against our cops who carry around rifles which look about a century old. Its just not fair to these cops.. For the sake of their security and ours the government should spend a little more of our tax money & provide them with better weapons atleast.

· Crisis Management

I honestly don’t know if the government has a plan for crisis management. But it sure doesn’t look like it. I just saw only one fire engine used to put out an inferno with a defunct hose pipe which could not even reach the fifth floor of the building. Such is the condition!

Indian Media

Whenever a crisis strikes India, the numerous TV News channels try to be one up on the other in televising not only the gory details of death but also compromising tbe identity of eye witnesses and the persons caught in the cross fire.If the media continues to report on this situation without any discretion ,they will continue to endanger the lives of the hostages and put the rescue operation of the armed forces in jeopardy...

· India’s Policy

India’s take on terrorism has always been defensive. Why should we always wait for something to happen & then react. Our only chance to save ourselves is to declare a war on terrorism and attack all the terrorist training camps in & around India, improve our intelligence services and stop infiltration. Only if we stop this at the source, we have a chance of resisting it.


I thus conclude by saluting all those brave jawans who have lost their lives trying to save our countrymen. We are proud of you! My sincere condolences to the families of all those people who have lost their lives. May their souls rest in peace.