In the nick of time

Finally..... Got enrolled into the 4 star kayaking course this month in the nick of time... in fact, am 2 days late for the enrolment. Will like to thank Uncle Liew from OBS for taking his precious time to get me enroll into the course and Jun Bin, my all time mentor and fellow coach, to vouch for me. Finally after 4 years of coaching and paddling, the time has came for me to upgrade myself in terms of personal paddling skills. Although the course burnt a big hole in my pocket (whopping 520 bucks!) and starvation is imminent, I guess the money spent is worth it. Waited for 4 years already. Wondering who will I be going up with….

‘Hello, may I enquiry about the 4 star kayaking course up in Ramunia this month’, I asked the OBS phone operator over at the other side of the phone.

‘Please hold on…. UNCLE LIEW…..!’

- Transferring to Mr Liew’s extension-

‘hello, this is Mr liew, how may I help you?’, a deep and firm voice followed after the melodious pause.

‘Hi Uncle Liew, I am yong kok here. Am enquiring about the 4 star course coming up this month. I know that the deadline is over and wondering if you can slot me into the course…..’

‘hmmm… you called me Uncle Liew, do I know you?’

‘Nope…… the rest is not important anymore’

This incident has made me wonder how important first impression and building rapport really is. Although some may argue that Uncle Liew may be a nice person to begin with and thus help me to get enrolled into the course, I still feel that building rapport with people is important, especially during the first contact. The brief and causal first contact has transformed the enquiry into somewhat like a conversation. It makes me reflect on how I used to think that I am the best and I want the whole world to know that. This, however does not allow me to build rapport with strangers/ acquaintances as I am introducing differences between us. I did not make the conscious effort to relate to the rest, especially those with no prior or minimal experience. It may make me look good on the outside but deep within, I am feeling lost. Fortunately, over the years of reading and mentoring from leaders, I am able to change my perspectives about such insensitivities. I am still learning and hope that one day I will be like John Maxwell =)

Went down to SCF and realized that it was closed for the day. Argh…. It’s 4:30pm and it was not even anywhere near to the closing time. Called up SCF office and Peter came to the line. He explained that April was sick and thus the office was closed for the day. Still feeling frustrated for making a wasted trip. The more I thought of it, the more frustrated I got. Just as my blood was boiling, I did an attitude check and started asking myself why did I feel that way. I began to shift my feelings of frustration to that of gratitude. This feeling of gratitude came from the appreciating the fact that I ‘met’ a kind soul like Uncle Liew earlier in the day. This 180 degree change had uplifted my mood at that point of time and allow me to dump away the frustration. It is amazing how the mind works. How you perceive things and events will affect how you feel and you can programme your mind to feel the way you want it to. In one of the Arbinger Institute literatures, the book titled Leadership and Self-Deception has explained how one perspective can be distorted by the way we perceive things. It talks about how we tend to play down our flaws and inflate others. Profound concepts and I am still trying to grasp it. My life has changed after reading the book and I have became a even more happier person than I used to be.

I guess that’s it for the day. 2 more weeks to school reopens! Mixed feeling..