Leadership (Part I)

Thu, 8 Mar 2012
2 min read
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While the principles of leadership have interested me since I was young, I’ve been thinking more about these principles in recent months.

That plus this picture I recently saw floating around on Facebook comparing the difference between a boss and a leader inspired me to write about this topic.

The content of the visual is more or less spot on, but it’s also quite ugly. So I thought I’d create my own visual for posterity:

Difference between a boss and a leader.

For the less visually-inclined, the difference between a boss and a leader can be summarised as thus:

  1. A boss drives employees, whereas a leader coaches them.
  2. A boss depends on authority, whereas a leader utilises goodwill to get things done.
  3. A boss evokes fear, whereas a leader generates enthusiasm.
  4. A boss says “I”, whereas a leader says “We”.
  5. A boss merely places the blame on someone when there’s a breakdown; a leader fixes the breakdown to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
  6. A boss knows how it’s done but a leader shows how it’s done.
  7. A boss uses people but a leader develops people.
  8. A boss takes credit whereas a leader gives credit where it’s due.
  9. A boss commands; a leader asks (difference is in the tone of instruction).
  10. A boss says “Go” but a leader says “Let’s go”.

Is this true for you?

In any case, come back again tomorrow for part 2.

On the brink of thirtydom

Mon, 30 Jan 2012
1 min read
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Janet picks up her fortune cookie,
Then puts it down, turns to her friend:
“Don’t bank too much on youth. Your rookie
Season is drawing to an end.
John, things we would – when young – not think of,
Start to make sense when, on the brink of
Thirtydom, we pause to scan
What salves and salads cannot ban,
The earliest furrows on our faces,
The loneliness within our souls,
Our febrile clawing for mean goals,
Our programmed cockfights and rat races,
Our dreary dignity, false pride,
And hearts stored in formaldehyde

— Vikram Seth, The Golden Gate

No worries – no anxiety. Just reading a very good book and felt those were awesome lines.

13th month payment: Killing the beast.

Fri, 2 Dec 2011
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Killing the beast.

I wrote about this before when I received my first 13th month payment and I was confused about what it entailed exactly.

It’s time to kill this beast, as with other beasts that have stalked and skulked around our society menacingly and unnecessarily.

To help us in doing so, please read this post which clarifies the idea of the payment of salaries i.e. one is paid consistently for all days of work, so the 13th month payment is an entitlement and not a privilege.

For comparison, this is what the Ministry of Manpower has to say about it:

The Annual Wage Supplement (AWS) is commonly known as the 13th month payment. It is a single annual payment to employees that supplements the total amount of annual wage earned by them.

Payment of AWS depends on the contractual agreement between the employer and the employee i.e. whether it is provided for in the employment contract or collective agreement.

If it is not stipulated in the employment contract, AWS payment is subject to negotiation and mutual agreement between the employer and employee, or the trade union representing the employee.

That’s why some people have been short-changed by their employers or have been unfairly conditioned into believing the ’13th month payment’ is a bonus.