i love sunday mornings...

...but not sunday nights. it is amazing how a day can set apart your moods in two. i like waking up on sunday mornings (even saturday mornings for that matter) because i know i don't have to go to work. it is sunday night that i dread. why? i have trouble falling asleep. and when i do sleep, i get all this dreams about work. i guess my sub-conscience is planning what i need to do at work tomorrow and i get all stressed out when i sleep. that horrible, innit? i get enough stress when i am awake, i don't need them when i am asleep. i may have a problem which needs a doctor's diagnosis or perhaps just a holiday. i think i'll opt for the holiday...hmmm... now, where can i go for a week of relaxing?

it was uneventful... NOT!!

it was 3 in the afternoon when i said to myself, "finally! a day with no phone calls to distract me from my paperwork which is overdue to be sorted out." i spoke too soon!

3.30pm
first call : "we have a problem. please help to sort it out quickly!"

4.30pm
second call : "i think we have a problem on this connection. can you assist to check what is going and sort it out?"

two calls that was enough to make me 'run' like a headless chicken. not that i was panicky but that two phonecalls led to a few more phonecalls.

left the office after getting some of the stuffs being taken care of by the appropriate parties. thought that the rush towards the end of the day would be over the moment i walked out the building. wrong!!!

6.15pm
third call. while on the phone, i was almost hit by a car when crossing the zebra crossing. i stared at the driver and he didn't even signalled that he was sorry. BASTARD!! don't you think that i, as the pedestrian, have the right of way since it is a zebra crossing? then, while still on the phone, some guy who was walking behind me was trying to over take me. he could have just quickly walked on my left and overtake me but noooooo.... he raised his voice and rudely said, "EXCUSE ME!!!" bloody hell... am i suppose to give way to him just because he said 'excuse me' rudely?? THAT BASTARD!!! i was so freaking upset over this. i don't see that i am wrong in any of this situation. what? just because i am on my mobile, i get to be treated that way?? and this is like the very few occasion that i was ever on a mobile while walking and i get punished??

after all that, i called liz, who happened to have a stressed day at work and we went for dinner to let off some steam. we spoilt ourselves with a nice dessert after that.

i feel better now after a few laughs with liz. but those bastards that ruin the end of my day will receive their retribution. yes! i am putting a curse on them. - evil laugh - no one messes with me.... EVER!!!

the price of quality customer service..

chocolate & sugar rolls : $21

corporate gifts : free but have beg & plead the sales dept to give you some

lunch at a posh restaurant : expensive but you make your account manager pay for it

customised reports : a lot of manual labour

the smile on your customer's face after receiving a good service : priceless..

everybody else's opinion who think that you pamper the customer too much : they can go to hell...

quote from bill rancic, the guy who won the first season of apprentice:
"take pride in your own work. own your efforts and your ideas. as much as anything else, they're the hard currency of the workplace. but even more important is the stamp you put on everything you do. in a service business, customers buy people. sell your enthusiasm, your dedication, and your willingness to make things right."

mister D the star!!

remember mister D from my 11 Dec 2004 post? well, i think he is a star in the making. he went for a photo shoot last December and now, his adorable little face is now on god-knows how many catalogue of a local bank's rewards program as well on the website of the bank. Click here to see him on the bank's website. he is the one the bottom right. isn't he cute?? i tell you, he is going to be a star - i have a good feeling about this. ;-)

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yes, it can be done....

the first two weeks of december has been crazy when it comes down to work. but the last two weeks of december, it was a breeze. then, 2005 came and it has only been 4 working days into the new year and i have been swamped!!!

today, i spent much of the time following up from a meeting i had yesterday with one of the customers in my portfolio. it was a crazy day yesterday. i was in a customer presentation/meeting for 5 hours - from 4pm to 9pm with only 5 minutes break in between. i booked tickets to see a movie with liz at 7pm but had to be cancelled - $15 down the drain. my other colleague who with the meeting with us missed his appointment too. all that better be worth it at the end day - hope we clinch the deal with this customer.

i feel rather motivated after the meeting, what with the team effort of the three of us against 5 of them at the customer's end. i don't know how long i can maintain this motivation and enthusiasm for my job... film at 11.

hi & lo lites..

the highlights of my 2004 would be:

1. trip to bangkok in June with my friend, Liz, where we were shopping like crazy because everything is so cheap. we also went for some sightseeings, mind you.

2. trip to hong kong in August to meet my friend, Kevin and his friend, Ger. both of them flew in from europe. Kevin has worked in Asia before but Ger was an Asia-virgin - so we showed him the town & had a blast. Ger was impressed.

The low lights of my 2004 would be:

the killer waves which hit several Asian nations and changed the shorelines on boxing day. looking at the pictures (WARNING: The photo gallery from the link contains graphic images that may be disturbing.) of families griveing and bodies of dead children makes me break into tears. I just could not control it sometimes.

happy new year..

a brand new year is here.