Investment Experience

From: http://www.wordle.net/

I assessed my modest investments in stocks, Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) and unit trusts today. Mainly to see if I have enough to pay for my kids college education. The results are mixed; roughly break-even considering those that increased and those that decreased at this nascent phase of the market recovery. It’s roughly an even performance because of the diversification from unit trust to stocks. But I am slightly positive mainly because of the company stock that I bought at an employee discount. This meager investment kept me positive considering all the losses. Only my Malaysia country fund is doing well compared to my other investments.



On the other hand, my real estate investments have done well. My small property in the Philippines is being rented and I was able to pay my loan about 3 years ago. I sold my tiny Singapore flat last August and gained about 67%. Of course, after paying off the loan and returning the money I borrowed from the provident fund, I gained about 25% in my investment. So compared to my investments in the stock market, my property venture was the more rewarding encounter. But I am still keen in investing in the US stock market because of all the books that I have read. Of course I had one significant success way back in the Philippines when I bought Ayala corporation stock. It was my first investment success, my first stock market venture which earned more than 100%.

Of course, the market is still down from its heights although it’s on the road to recovery. But with the last economic crisis, will the market still rise in the way it did in the past? Past performance is never an indication of the future so one wonders if it will recover. If one decides to proceed, the best instrument is index funds or ETFs invested for the long term. I just finished listening to John Bogle’s book ‘The Common Sense Investing Guide’ which I should have read long ago. It will reduce all the time I wasted reading all those investment guides from different authors. I guess the best way is to invest in ETFs or index funds (preferably Vanguard) with the lowest expense ratio and lowest P/E ratio.

Even at today’s levels, some stock prices may still be overvalued although some have good prices. I have always read that the stock market is the best way to grow wealth following Warren Buffet’s example. But real estate has done me well so I guess I need to find a balance for both. Perhaps renting out my present townhouse and investing in another home with the current low prices maybe a good way. I think it will be a buyers market until the end of next year or possibly into 2011 even. This feels like a good investment strategy to have both modest property investments plus ETFs invested in the US market. I think I would like to invest as well my provident fund in the Singapore stock market to get the benefit of an improving economy by 2010.

The key to this success is to have enough cash to handle any problem. For instance, failure to rent the townhouse will require me to have funds to pay the monthly mortgage until someone can rent it. This maybe risky considering my father’s experience when his tenant declared bankruptcy. But I can mitigate this risk by working with rental specialists. Nevertheless, I should have access to another source of income other than my monthly salary. The strategy here is to have a separate career as a writer or speaker. Hopefully this will be a success or otherwise my wife and kids can look for work or I can have another job during the weekend. All these plans are possible I think only here in this country and no where else.

Sometimes I envy people like Warren Buffet or John Bogle or even Frank Frazetta, the artist. I envy them not because of their wealth or their talent but their ability to focus only on the one thing that gives them their bliss. They have devoted their lives on a singular pursuit and have achieved enormous success. On the other hand, I have a lot of interests that I am cultivating. I don’t have any focus except working here as an employee in the same company for nearly 15 years, my journal writing for about 15 to 20 years (though sporadically) and my constant reading. I am familiar with a lot of things but I am a master of none. As an investor, perhaps I have had modest success but not really enough to satisfy me or be proud of.

But what is good for me is that I have kept at it for so long that I have achieved a modest level of expertise. As an investor, I have had actual experience and have kept up my readings and studies on stocks as well as real estate. As a writer, I have had my journal writings and book readings as well. As an employee working as a project manager or functional analyst, I also have significant experience. Hence, I am neither a novice nor an expert but I am well-above average perhaps a so-called talented veteran. I guess keeping at it for more years will actually make me better. It’s just staying the course will achieve dreams. Perhaps if I had focused on one area, without distractions, I would have reached my goal much faster. But I guess I wanted to experience everything.

Asian Angst

At my age one can’t avoid worrying about the future, about life, about family and about one’s kids. Anxiety and dread fills you that one has an urge to compensate by the easiest thing possible. Often times this means spending money, to buy better things for one’s family. Perhaps it is a larger home, an exotic vacation, a new car and other trapping of the material middle class existence. What is lost is something more meaningful, to be able to feel a sort of substantive spiritual worth. Is that what most American authors write about? The spiritual decay in the modern affluent suburbia?


Perhaps that is why some people look to the East such as India, searching for answers to spiritual needs. I guess for an Asian to move to an affluent society, one cannot help but be seduced by the material life. With money and shopping opportunities abounding, that spending one’s way out of anxiety and fear is perhaps the easiest temptation. I had always wondered about the angst of wealthy people and it’s only now that I realized what it means. It means seeing your friends or co-workers in bigger homes or better cars that one is tempted to follow their lead. It is the slow insidious rise of envy or jealousy.


It’s easy to borrow money and the whole economic infrastructure is geared to have a lot of dough floating around and encourage spending. Spending after all brings up the economy in a virtuous cycle until the society achieves material progress and rises out of the recession. It’s therapy for the moneyed class. The situation in the East is different although it is changing as well. I grew up in a society of scarcity where people try to preserve what they have instead of buying the latest model or fashion. It’s the virtue of living frugally and simply. Can this value still exist in a world of constant media bombardment and advertising? In fact is living a simple life considered a virtue today?


There are a lot of Asians living here in this country. A lot of Indians especially who have embraced this culture which is an irony since coming from a country of religion, mysticism and spiritualism. But it’s the way of the world now to buy a bigger house or a better car. Previously, one’s anxious thoughts are about survival or keeping one’s job or looking for work. In an affluent society, one’s anxiety is focused on where to spend one’s money, where is the better deal, what should one do in a country of ultimate possibilities, i.e. driving, fishing, skiing, etc. It’s a strange sort of reversal from one extreme to another.

Of course, it s pleasant form of anxiety wherein one does not lose sleep due to the worry of losing one’s job. But that’s not quite true. In fact one does lose sleep while being wealthy because one is always busy. Or more accurately one is distracted with constant television and Internet surfing that one sleeps late. I guess it’s the comparison of a poor man’s anxiety as against a rich man’s anxiety. Perhaps the true fear of the rich is boredom and the rich man’s mind keeps constantly churning into anxious thoughts. So one can’t really compare on who is the most virtuous. Perhaps the secret is balance, maintaining one’s Asian values by living simply despite being in a society of affluence and without succumbing to the material life.

Perhaps the secret is to focus on work. To devote one’s energy towards an endeavor that can transcend any feeling of trivial anxiety. Focusing on work I guess is a good remedy for both the poor man and rich man’s anxiety. Idleness and distraction is prevented and avoid corrupting the soul. Too much books, movies or activities are enough to tire oneself and moves one away from one’s spirituality. Quiet moments and rest, meditation and fulfilling work are the age-old remedies for society’s ills. Finally, the classics are still relevant and there is no such thing as the modern life because the age-old truths still apply.

Weekend Flow

During the weekend I watched most of the DVDs I borrowed from the library as well as finished reading overdue books by Rummler-Brache and an excellent tome on old houses. I watched a documentary on the Khumb Mela festival in India, inspirational videos from Dr. Wayne Dyer, Paul Newman’s movie ‘Hud’, Robert Altman’s ‘The Prairie Home Companion’ and an excellent Mira Nair film, ‘The Namesake’ adapted from the book by Jhumpa Lahiri. I have read Lahiri’s previous book, ‘The Interpreter of Maladies.’ I liked her work initially to learn about India and its people. But I now read her to understand the life of immigrants adapting to their new country. A lot of spiritual truths in the weekend ranging from the exotic spiritualism of Khumb Mela to insights from Dr. Dyer and home truths from ‘The Namesake’ and ‘Hud’.


‘The Namesake’ movie portrays both India and the immigrant life in America. Lahiri is a good writer and I think she just wanted to express her daily reality but critics now talk about her vision. I am not sure if writers intentional come and have a vision before starting their work. But it’s a good work and helpful for me and my family having moved here recently. I think she is a rare Indian writer who writes with sensitivity and skill. She is authentic and refreshingly lacks the fireworks and brilliance of Salman Rushdie. The last book that remains in my mind is ‘The White Tiger’ – an original work about life in India. The book was entertaining, structured around a letter written by a Bangalore entrepreneur to a visiting Chinese premier.


‘The White Tiger’ provides a subtle comparison between India and China by telling the story of a rag to riches tale of a criminal. The book tells of an honest worker who finally kills his master and steals his money to start a business and new life in Bagalore. I wonder if such crimes still exists in China where there is less distinction between rich and poor when compared to the huge disparities in India. One wonders if the writer is proud of Indian democracy or China’s socialist experiments with capitalism. The book remains in mind although I finished reading it a long time ago. Perhaps its the performance of the reader – John Lee. The Indian Diaspora is widespread in the Americas and seemed to be centered on technical white collar jobs. The Chinese Diaspora on the other hand seemed to be centered on wealthy merchant entrepreneurs.


I think India is starting to get accepted culturally because of the outsourcing. Success of popular films like ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ and ‘The Namesake’ plus the rise of Indian writers indicate this acceptance. It’s the ancient traditions, food and lifestyle that intrigue people. I guess the British colonial experience has also advanced their internationalization. But the Chinese experience is quite different as internally focused and it’s boldly embracing the new, quite like the Meiji Restoration in Japan. In my mind, China seems to provide a more collective hero tradition with Mao Tse Tung, Deng Xiopeng and Chao En Lai. A lot of terrible mistakes where made but one wonders if events like the Cultural Revolution had a subtle purpose like to eradicate ancient superstitions in an ancient land in order to boot strap their rise to superpower status.

India had a more restrained history with the great example of Mahatma Gandhi. He had reacted to the colonial powers in a uniquely Indian manner such as Satyagraha and non-violence and his example paved the way for the country’s next generation of leaders. But the colonial powers did succeed in partitioning India, creating Pakistan and Bangladesh. Can we say this historical mistake of the English eventually led to the Taliban and Osama Bin Ladin and the rise Muslim extremism of today? Fortunately, the communist under Mao prevented any partition of China although wisely settling on a peaceful coexistence with Taiwan under the Nationalist. Nevertheless, with the return of Hong Kong and Macao, I think Taiwan is not far behind in returning to the motherland.

Green Card

We got our permanent resident cards today. It’s the final step in settling here. I expressed my thanks to the lawyers and staff that made it possible. For most people, this would be the happiest moment imaginable to legally live here. The ease to which the cards where given shows that proper connection counts in achieving seemingly difficult goals. Some people I heard have resorted to things like fixed marriages, forged documents or just extending their visas to live here. But strangely I don’t feel any elation as it came without any contrived plans or seeming difficulty. It’s as if fortune has finally smiled at me after all my tribulations at work in Asia.


Recently, I have been receiving emails or notices from social networking sites from friends in my past. A lot of my former friends have settled here and it’s good to hear from them after all these years. From their pictures, they seemed to have reached the local proportions, i.e. close to obesity. Reading their mails in Yahoo Groups is like going back to college. There are a lot of accounts of drinking sessions, golf games and get together sessions. The brothers’ reminiscence about the good old days in college and relive old jokes and memories. Mails from the current members also keep the connection to the university alive. Traditional events are discussed and advise given to the neophytes. I recognize a lot of names but I forget their faces except for my old group at UP Manila.


Through the Internet, we re-establish connections. I talked to old friends over the phone having not met each other for more than 10-15 years. It’s like the past coming alive but with the breathlessness of the present. It’s a bitter sweet feeling where one feels the urges to meet and drink and relive the past but unable to due to present obligations, family and work. A call to youth and relive the care free days at the university. But money, health problems, family concerns all weigh in and one can only drink silently with memories in the mind. But sometime the memories themselves are also fading, replaced by the urgency of new dreams and adventures.


I was evaluated by my boss yesterday and I got a good review. My adherence to the policy and my experience and steadfastness has distinguished me. I guess I need to stay the course, advancing slowly without any ripples. I have carved out a role in less than a year and I need to see the project completed to the end. A major milestone is coming soon and likely the project will pass. Everything seems to be working well and the plans and efforts are moving forward with out obstacles. I guess this is the greatness of this nation where everything is designed to make the common man succeed. The way of life is organized in a way that allows the best to come out if one consciously strives for it. The bureaucracy, old ideas, superstition and indolence of old Asia is nowhere here.

My thoughts these days are about the time in Singapore. Old friends write and send pictures and I see their old joys and remember the great times we had. This is the recent past when our last contact is less than a year ago, where memories are still fresh. I guess the thing I missed most is the Asian food, freedom of public transportation, local delights and friends companionship. But company and the climate are changing. Some old friends are moving home or transferring to a new job or location. Still it’s the country to be in South East Asia in the near future and I hope to return someday.

Rummler – Brache and Visual Thinking

I am amazed that I missed reading the works on process and performance improvement during the 1980’s and 90’s. During that time I was interested in subjects like Alvin Toffler’s ‘Future Shock’. But I guess the popular phrase at that time is‘re-engineering’ or ‘comparative advantage’ which can be linked to process or performance improvement. I find interesting is the use of visual tools in the methodology. Of course, I was familiar with early visual tools such as flow charting used at that time which eventually evolved into ‘swim lanes’. I think the rise of visual thinking can also be traced to the rise of process improvement concepts led by Rummler andBrache.

But I think their methodology is well known by management specialists during the period as it’s theories are taught in business schools to high level leaders and officers. This was not well known to the public perhaps because the theory was just starting out. Now that visual tools have reached a level of popularity, for example mind mapping or Dan Roam’s visual methods in ‘Back of the Napkin’ have made the process improvement concepts now seem dated. But the process concept has triumphed and well accepted management methodology. It’s no longer the preserve of the business elite but of every knowledge workers such as business analysts and project managers. It has become so prevalent because of the rise of visual thinking tools as well.

Now that both trends are well accepted methods, namely, process improvement and visual thinking, Rummler-Brache has achieved a certain acceptance and near mythical status. Of course, they do not rank high in the ladder with people like Michael Porter or Mike Hammer but more in the modern day consultants, business analyst or project mangers that rely on their tools and techniques in their every day work. I think their work is indispensable in today knowledge culture and information age. It’s a new world out there with baby boomers growing old and so-called echo-boomers coming of age like my kids. I think they need to understand these tools to be successful in the modern work place. It increases understanding and solve problems faster and comprehensively.

I think the immediate skill that I will teach my kids is to be a blogger or at least to learn how to maintain a website. This is a foundation skill in the age of the Internet. I am finishing Richard Reich’s ‘The Future of Success’ and he talks about the lack of time for modern professionals. So a good business is to help the harassed modern person with things like a call center based concierge or butler. The company has a similar life service where we can call and ask about things like the location of the best Chinese restaurant, or the closest book store that carries a book I want to buy and all that, including legal and financial services. All these services are for free as the company is paying for it. Recently I attended a road show about such services and I attended free seminars like ‘Integrating Work and Home Life’, ‘Thinking Positively’ and ‘Treating Mental Illness’.

I guess this is the image of the future. In fact we are living in the future. It is no more the stuff of books or concepts or theories. It’s a world where everyone is adept at visual thinking, creating process and relationship diagrams, creating and maintaining blogs or other web sites, calling life service concierges to get information and assistance, using social networking to keep in touch and having a digital life to get connected and achieve meaning in life. It’s a world that allows everyone to be what ever he wants to be. I feel like I have achieved an epiphany of sorts of the future or the life that I am living right now. It’s a way of life that can only exist perhaps in this country. It’s fitting that I should have these thoughts today being just informed that my permanent resident application has been approved. It’s as if the foundation of modern life has been laid after years of learning and experience and now is the time to live one’s dreams.

Improving Performance

I am again bored at work with nothing to do but procrastinate. I attended a training session this morning on wireless communication. It was informative. The speaker is an interesting geek who uses Latin phrases as his password and watches ‘Dr. Who’ – the quirky science fiction television show from England. He was an interesting speaker who I often see around the hallways looking at me. I realized he seems to be a good technical guru who could speak well in front of audiences. Earlier in the morning I listened to the meeting on the project though I did not participate too much. I am focused on a certain aspect only and not involved in the other parts.

Yesterday we had a meeting on the deliverable to be submitted to a contributor. It was a good meeting that proved my point. I don’t know why meeting like these are still held which is a waste of time. I tried to explain that the process is already clearly defined but I guess people are entitled to their opinions. This seems to be a sacred rule that must be respected. So I respectfully attended, listening to the people discussing and explaining their points and occasionally I contributed my views. It was a good session where everyone could explain their points but a total waste of time because the answer is already known. The main opposition is coming from the contributor who is key person in the project.

I surprised that an external contributor could question the internal processes of the company. But I am somehow glad he did because it only proves my assertions. I hope that people would listen to me more now that I have been proven right a few times. I noticed that I talk excitedly and quietly that seems to reduce my integrity. I am easily excitable and sometimes I may seem to be emotional during discussions that people treat me as second stringer. I guess I should pause more and think deeply before speaking. But this is the test for new people like me. I guess I have to prepare and appear to be more knowledgeable. Most of the people don’t know much around here or don’t cultivate a learning and eager attitude. Most seem to be old and tired and just willing to procrastinate.

Our domain manager sent a note about reducing the fore casted completion time as the estimated time exceeded the budget by nearly 50%. I am surprised and my boss - the project manager is no help. He seems to be punch drunk a lot of times and I am surprised that he has lasted long here. His son is a rocket scientist and sometime everything seems to be rocket science over here. It’s a funny contradiction where everything seems to be clear and straight forward but at times it’s more confusing and messy in other times. The quality of thinking is sometimes poor I feel although there are a lot of training sessions. Perhaps there is a lack of reflections and introspection. One thing for sure is that the people here are practical and experienced with little tolerance for intellectuals.

The company was voted recently as one of the top 100 places to work in America for computer systems. It’s only the second company in the state to receive this honor. I think the main reason is due to the transformation program that took place. By applying best practices like process improvement via Rummler-Brache methods, Balanced Scorecard, Portfolio Management, Project Management, internal training and certification, increasing communication and heavy use of web-based tools like websites have made this company a great place to work. But nevertheless, there are still people like me who procrastinate and don’t have a clue at times on how and where to begin. I guess I have to perform my own performance improvement analysis by looking into my personal idiosyncrasies so I can tailor a more efficient working life.

I am listening to Robert Reich’s audio book ‘The Future of Success’. He divides the successful worker of tomorrow into the ‘geek’ – familiar with modern technology, and the ‘shrink’ – analyzer of current trends. An interesting book although I initially thought it was dated and obsolete. But I wanted to listen to the thoughts of Bill Clinton’s labor secretary on his take on the future. At least it’s coming from a professor who was a cabinet secretary to one of the best presidents America ever had in the greatest country on earth. Not a bad resume for a writer. One of his main points is the lack of time in the future due to the increasing information and I agree with his statement.

It’s the month of Nanowrimo and I wanted to use this opportunity to finish a first draft. But I find myself unprepared again. Maybe I will just ‘free write’ and see what will come out of it. I have downloaded a few writing tools and the tools out there are very sophisticated. I think I am getting to understand more the ‘craft’ of writing than just the act of writing itself. In some ways, it is managing one’s creative mind that is the challenge. Sometimes too much creativity and imagination results in self-abuse and distractions. For instance, I borrowed too many DVDs and books again and went on a road trip in the weekend to Chimney Rock and Lake Lurie instead of preparing for Nanowrimo.

Process Improvement

I have been pondering about the many changes happening in the company in recent years. I had always thought that the changes were influenced by recent trends in information technology. For example, the transformation of IBM from hardware company to a services company, outsourcing trend to India and so on. But after reading Rummler and Brache’s book ‘Improving Performance’, I understood what was going on (but proves their point also that the company is an adaptive organism). In fact, Rummler and Brache, I believed provided the intellectual foundation or framework to go about transforming the company. It was as if I have read the bible on this subject with the philosophical underpinnings of the massive changes being wrought.


The company in fact is moving towards a business process orientation. The main goal is to improve internal processes. The book is an eye opener into the trends sweeping the business world. I believe that Rummler and Brache’s books are indispensable in understanding today’s world. I witnessed first hand the revolution that their work has on today’s project managers. For instance, we are always requested to do process maps or the so-called swim lane diagrams. I have even created a few in the past months for my current projects. Little did I know that these are exactly the tools and the framework and the philosophy espoused by Rummler and Brache.


‘Improving Performance’ provides a comprehensive framework to analyze and improve any workplace. I have gone over a lot of process maps in our work and was astounded by the comprehensiveness of the effort. It was truly a transforming exercise and I am glad I am able to experience it first hand. But it was only now that I understood the concepts and theory behind it. I think this philosophy or concept is one of the most important tools that one should have handy when one changes jobs or moves to a different function or work atmosphere. I am only surprised that I missed their work and instead focused on the more popular ideas like ‘re-engineering’ or ‘comparative advantage’ by notables like Mike Hammer and Michael Porter.


Both these established writers are quite good but lack the nuts and bolts, down to earth quality of Rummler and Brache’s work. To sound good and intelligent, one should quote Hammer and Porter but to get things done one really needs Rummler and Brache. I think understanding their work as a tool box is a good addition to one’s resume in addition to having PMP and Toastmaster certifications. The course rounds up one’s knowledge and helps one be effective in the workplace. I guess my company utilized their concepts a lot and looking at their documentation is a testament to its effectiveness and usability. Experiencing the business transformation by attending the training, using the tools and working in the new environment convinced me that it works.

Visual tools play a big role in the new orientation. The book ‘Improving Performance’ has a lot of visual tools like process maps, ‘swim lane’ diagrams, relationship maps, matrices and so on. So one needs to develop a facility in visual thinking and the ability to draw and express oneself visually. Hence, all the trends seem to come together now with emphasis on process improvement, visual thinking, mind-mapping, project management and Toastmasters (i.e. using traditional modes of communicating). Some sites mention that visual thinking is a problem solving technique and used extensively in process improvement and re-engineering.

In my current work, I used a lot of ‘swim lane’ diagrams, visual maps and other such diagrams to get the message across and communicate to the many contributors engaged in the project. Without realizing it, the emphasis was on process improvement than in any other aspect. The fact that it was successful in moving the project forward is a testament that the process revolution is underway. The book was written in 1990 and it was only now, 19 years later that I got a chance to read it and understand the changes happening in my company. An indispensable work for any one who wishes to improve his work or life in today’s world. Or at least to make sense of the changes and its rationale and be sane.