Cirque Du Soleil

November 26, 2010 8 Comments

Listen to this postI never been in a circus before but have seen many of them on TV. I finally got the chance to see one when I am at the age of 48! (it is never too late to go the circus.) Cirque Du Soleil is ranked between the top circuses in the world and they were performing in my hometown Kuwait. So, I booked the tickets one month ago and told the kids that we are going to the circus to make them ready for the excitement. The ticket cost KD 20 ($65) and I thought it will worth it. I was told to go early since there are no assigned seating for the tickets, so I was there with the eager family 90 minutes early. To my surprise, half of the parking lot was full and people are rushing in.

The first shock I got when I discover that the circus will be performed in open are theater without big tents. I always associated the circus with tents but it did not mater since the weather was nice. The second shock I got when I found out that the stage was at least 200 meters (218 yards) away form the first available seat and the seat were arranged on a flat ground. So all I could see is the back of the hundreds of people in front of me! There was big screens on the side but I did not pay that much of money to watch the circus on large screens. The seats were not comfortable, but the kid had cheep cotton-candy and cold pop corn. And we left the show after 30 minuets because we could not enjoy the show. The circus performers were excellent, the music was live and the light and sound effect were amazing. But we could not see most of it. I wonder if most of the circuses are arranged the same way?

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Live Without TV

November 21, 2010 4 Comments

Listen to this postMany people like TV and the entertainments it deliver to our homes, but recently, most of the entertainments are targeted to attract the audience attention than entertain them. The best entertainment for me is documentaries and scientific programs. By watching these program I would be educated if not entertained and I would not be stressed or sad like if I watched the drama or reality TV. The new shows are encouraging us to vote by sending an SMS message that cost the price of a good meal!?
Last week was a long holiday in Kuwait and most of the people either traveled out of Kuwait or stayed and enjoyed the nice weather in the outdoors. My relatives were in the chalet for most of the holiday. I noticed that most of the teenagers were spending their time in the outdoors. They enter the chalet only for the basic necessities. They had so much fun by socializing, walking and talking. They enjoyed relaxing peacefully and watch the sea and nobody was watching the TV? But before the long holidays they were addicted to the TV and were wasting most of their valuable time watching unimportant programs. I guess they are now back to watching the  TV although they discovered how unimportant it was!

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Sugar Coating

November 17, 2010 6 Comments


Listen to this postYesterday was my anniversary at work. I have been with the same employer for the past 30 years and I enjoyed most of the days I worked there. Now I am managing more that 700 employees and I have tried to be fair with them while meeting most of their needs, requests and demands. One of the best tactics the employees use for their complains is “Sugar Coating”. I am not saying that the complain is true or not, but the way it is presented to me is sometimes strange.

For example, an employee would take an appointment to see my Boss and then start his discussion by saying “This is not a complain, I just wanted to say…” and then he or she would exaggerate every negativity they experienced in the last 3 years! Another example is when the employee send an official complain to HR or my Boss, but then catch me walking by and start by saying “I wanted to talk with you about an issue I have … do you have a minute do discuss it?”

We all make mistakes and we should take our responsibilities to admit the mistakes and correct them. But using different ways to discuss the complain is not the best start to resolve any issue. Through my years at work I followed a good philosophy that goes something like this “Do not explain…and Do not complain” and it made my life very simple and peaceful. I am sure that my boss does not want me to explain to him why I made the mistake (or delay in an assignment). And I am very sure that nobody would like to set and listen to my complains. When I make a mistake I would admit it and do my best to correct it. If I have a complain or an issue with somebody, I would meet him or her and discus the issue face-to-face with them. Other than this … life is very simple.

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Let’s Talk About The Weather

November 16, 2010 4 Comments

The best conversation ice breaker is the weather. When you have nothing good to say, but you want to start a decent conversation, you can start by saying “We are having a nice weather today” or  “It is cold/hot today!” and that’s it. You just started a nice conversation with a friend, family member or a total stranger.

The weather in November in Kuwait is amazing. It is not cold, not hot or humid. It is just nice to be outside to talk, walk or enjoy you cup of tea. If you are now in Kuwait and happen to be near a tree called Sedra then I would recommend that you just stop by it and smell the nice scent from its beautiful white flowers. The smell is similar to the Jasmin scent but with a desert twist. The smell usually last of a month and after that a delicious fruit will replace the flowers. I took this picture with my phone and I was lucky to catch a busy bee selecting the best flowers for its honey.

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Geo-economics Theory

November 2, 2010 1 Comment

International and subcultures issues had remarkable effect on the international organizations. Comparison of the popular theories like institutional, agency and resource-based theories test the chinese culture and geographic differences (Tsui, 2006). The geo-economics theory integrates the effect of economics and management on the success of the organization which competes in the international market and its geographical differences.

Study by Schlevogt (2001) tackled the differences between 124 organizations in the North of China and South of China found that “government support, organizational structure and management expertise” were the most important reasons for the effectiveness in North of China (Schlevogt, 2001).

Geo-economics differences are obvious in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) area where the countries speak the same language, have same religion and similar heritage, but business and economic differences are obvious to the local and the international business community.

References:

Schlevogt, K.-A. (2001). Institutional and organizational factors affecting effectiveness: Geo-economics comparison between. Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 18(4), 519.

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