No. 1 Tip in exam

I am not in any ways a good scholar. Nor am the mother of exemplary students.

But so far, at P4 and P1,they are stress-free and, thank God, achieved band 1 in all subjects so far.

For me, a very simple rule of thumb is to sleep early the night before exam.

Enough sleep helps the brain to process information (I.e., the questions) clearer. It also reduces panic, and therefore the hazard of panic induced answers.

The night before exam, it's too late to cram in whatever things that's not understood yet. Instead, parents of young children are challenged to pace their daily study, so that the progress is gradual. Understanding the subject well (vs memorizing it) helps to build up the foundation necessary for the next level.

Two pages a day for 30 days is better than 40 pages a night before.

Hope it helps. And hope I can be committed to perform my parental duty above. Should the tip cease to work in the future, I'll revise this post :P

Painting a Presentation

Just want to make a quick note to remind myself that indeed working the corporate life is an art.

Presenting in the title also covers reporting.

Presenting skill is one key component in higher level work. To convince others of an idea, the presentation must also be backed up with confident communication skill. Pretty much a good salesman skill.

Most juniors give facts. If we're lucky, the facts will be organized in some sort of manner. Reader (audience) needs to digest, separating the important information, making the head and the tail of it.

However, from the seniors we can expect a performance. Sit back, listen and see. You will know the essence precisely how s/he wants it. If the presenter communicate well, there's even a chance that you'll believe the content, and act on the message. A good presentation is halfway done.

Below are a few pointers that I've gathered over the years:

1. Understand what you need to present. This is absolutely necessary. By knowing your content well, not only you'll gain the confidence to talk about it, but most importantly you will be able to do the below next steps well.

2. Confirm what is the aim. Consider your audience. Be as specific and you can. For example, to highlight point x, downplay point y, so that they will decide towards point z, ....

3. Sketch the big picture. Device a strategy of the presentation flow. Jot down the important point of every slide or section.

4. Develop each slide, choose your content carefully. The more is not the merrier. Not all little details need to be in. Put what's necessary. For this I like to use graphical rather than points. Takes a long time to do up, but it can be easily understood, even across culture/language. This is to ensure decision is made based on correct facts. You don't want people to come back thinking you have twisted the facts.

5. From each slide, highlight a few points that are the key. This can be done by many ways: bold bigger text, boxed up, utilize the space, etc.

6. Beautify the package. As much as we value products that are packaged beautifully, a good looking presentation will appeal more. Audience tends to be happier in listening/reading. It's not a waste of time when done cleverly. Some basic:

* Use a professional font throughout. Most of the time, you have many source. By copying from left to right, it'll looks messy and doesn't reflect well on you.

* Pay attention to font/figure size and spacing. Important content should be easier to spot. When space is limited, do not size the font such that it becomes very small and illegible. People feels uneasy with fine prints.

* Choose a color theme and stick to it. Manage the colors to emphasize, downplay, or to guide the attention in the flow.

* Outlines are not necessarily be black. Black, dark outline for many figures cramped into a slide will make the slide looks tangled. Try using a more subtle color, trying out the line weights.

* Choose a gender neutral color scheme. Equality aside, you want to attract everyone.

7. Review, and review, and review, ... 

Well, this is a skill that gets honed with experience. Practice makes perfect. I myself am newbie here. Drop any comments if you have tips to share.

Happy painting :)

[Good books] Chicken Soup for the Soul series

I find that people opinion on the Chicken Soup for the Soul series tends to differ in extremities. Some love it, the other half sneer at it. Gimmicky? Commercialized heart warming stories?

Well, taking a step back, I can see the gimmicks. With more than 250 titles and counting, sure  the series has approached some very specific souls which make the spectators shake their heads in disbelieve. And, tone of the book depends on who co-edit/write it.

For me, I've been reading Chicken Soup series for almost 20 years, on and off. And at the very least, it reminds me every now and then to count my blessings. Secondly, some of the short stories has cheered and encouraged me along the way. Now in the 30s, I can appreciate its title. Well... It feeds and warms your soul!

Below are three titles that are my personal favorites:

Chicken Soup for the Expectant Mother's Soul

Read this during one of my all time low after my first pregnancy ended in a miscarriage at almost 20 weeks. I couldn't help to wonder what went wrong, how about the next ones, ... whether there'll be a next one since the grief was so hard to bear. Fortunately I bumped into this book in the library. Unexpectedly, the stories inspired me that everything is possible.

Life Lessons for Loving the way You Live

This book is like a crash course on serenity prayer. If you want to change it, go and change. Otherwise, be at peace. I think, this book helped me to at least save many years of wondering and wandering. After reading it, I know what I want is to mommy the children. Working is just to support this goal. It matters less where or what I work on.

Chicken Soup for the Preteen Soul

My 10 years old daughter found this book in a bargain section and she bought it. After reading it, she has some sense of acceptance of her life. Come to think of it, surely it's tough to be a child. Almost everyday, your world is changing. New abilities, new teacher, new friends, ... So, back to my preteen. I think there are some situation or problem that she doesn't even know how to phrase it, or whether to share it with us her parents. The book affirms that what she's facing is normal, happens to other preteens as well. And of course, not coming from her naggy parents, she is more readily receptive of the message (I could've said some of the advices myself, but it won't sink in as well).

So that's my top three titles. What are yours?

PS: To those new to Chicken Soup series, if you want to start, start from the original first book. The sequels tend to be less exciting.

Much Ado About Feeling Beautiful

Recently I had a major change happening. To cope with it, I am making sure that I'm 'uncluttered'. Uncluttered, to me, means that I am not distracted by the smallies, and that I feel comfortable to face come-what-may.

Unexpectedly, one of the small thing that works for me is taking care of myself. Hence the post title. It's not about looking beautiful. Wanting to look beautiful brings round the challenge to please others' eyes. But in wanting to feel beautiful, you have only yourself to answer to.

Without the burden of others' perception, we can truly design and enjoy the process. Everyone can do it. It does not depend on the $$$ sign. For me, for example, instead of going to the expensive spa, I had a good scented scrub and did it myself while watching a funny TV episode. Afterwards, with a nice moisturizer, definitely the feeling is good.

Another example, tried out new shampoo or conditioner. And took time to blow dry my hair instead of wash and dash to go. Haha I know it's normal for most ladies. But for me, with two little ones tugging and pulling, I need to make a conscious effort to steal the time.

In short, when we feel beautiful, your confiden is boosted multi folds. With the newfound level, you're good to go wherever life takes you.