3 Motivations to Work Hard Everyday

Autonomy: Our desire to direct our own lives. In short: "You probably want to do something interesting, let me get out of your way!"

Mastery: Our urge to get better at stuff.

Purpose: The feeling and intention that we can make a difference in the world.

read more here :)

Hati yang teguh

Ada 5 karakter untuk hati yang teguh kata sang penulis, yakni:


Confidence
Courage
Commitment
Control
Purpose


No matter the circumstances around us, we will need to rely upon the mental toughness we normally look look for in our heroes, not in ourselves.We admire heroes like Robin Hood and James Bond because they embody the characteristics that we’ve valued throughout the ages. Heroes let us feel what it’s like to have the mental toughness to break out of our boring little existence and enter into a much bigger world—one that is full of possibility.

I define a strong mind as having a great capacity to face challenges. Being strong means having the resources, the mental skills, and the physical capabilities to confront difficulties of all kinds. When a person is strong-minded, they have the energy and stamina to face a challenge without being robbed of inner strength.

Mental toughness gives us the courage to grow from the stress we experience in life. It is a mindset comprised of several qualities and attitudes.


BTW, si penulis adalah agen FBI selama 25 tahun. Baca selengkapnya di sini :)

Not Wanting Kids Is Entirely Normal

Fenomena yang ... yang apa ya. Yang pasti terjadi di US dan tidak banyak orang tahu.

Not Wanting Kids Is Entirely Normal


In 2008, Nebraska decriminalized child abandonment. The move was part of a "safe haven" law designed to address increased rates of infanticide in the state. Like other safe haven laws, parents in Nebraska who felt unprepared to care for their babies could drop them off at a designated location without fear of arrest and prosecution. But legislators made a major logistical error: They failed to implement an age limitation for dropped-off children.

Within just weeks of the law passing, parents started dropping off their kids. But here's the rub: None of them were infants. A couple of months in, 36 children had been left in state hospitals and police stations. Twenty-two of the children were over 13 years old. A 51-year-old grandmother dropped off a 12-year-old boy. One father dropped off his entire family -- nine children from ages one to 17. Others drove from neighboring states to drop off their children once they heard that they could abandon them without repercussion.

The Nebraska state government, realizing the tremendous mistake it had made, held a special session of the legislature to rewrite the law in order to add an age limitation. Governor Dave Heineman said the change would "put the focus back on the original intent of these laws, which is saving newborn babies and exempting a parent from prosecution for child abandonment. It should also prevent those outside the state from bringing their children to Nebraska in an attempt to secure services."

baca selengkapnya di sini

Boring is productive?

Good note from Havard Business Review ... Boring is productive.

Why do President Obama and I subject ourselves to such boring routines? Because both of us (especially President Obama!) make many decisions each day — decisions that are far more important to us than what we wear or what we eat for breakfast.

The point is that you should decide what you don't care about and that you should learn how to run those parts of your life "on autopilot." Instead of wasting your mental energy on things that you consider unimportant, save it for those decisions, activities, and people that matter most to you.

Why Google Shouldn’t Have Censored The Anti-Islamic Video

Menarik. Seperti biasa pro kontra .... rasanya ini salah satu contoh jika tonggak-tonggak hidup itu tidak ada (atau dibuat oleh manusia), kita akan selalu berada dalam kebimbangan, keraguan ...

On Wednesday, YouTube announced that it had blocked access to a video showing clips from “The Innocence of the Muslims,” an anti-Islamic film that depicts prophet Mohammed as a philanderer who approves of child abuse, after the film sparked violent protests in Libya and Egypt. It was an extremely unusual move for Google-owned YouTube, which normally adheres to Google’s policy of only censoring content if it violates their Terms of Service or in response to a valid court order.

As Google admitted Friday, despite deciding to block the video in the Middle East, the controversial video was still “clearly within [its] guidelines.” While their goal of trying to tamp down violence may have been sincere, the decision was misguided and opens the door for more censorship in the future.

Thanks to its pro-free speech policy, YouTube and other Google products have become vital platforms for free expression all over the world. When a YouTube user uploads her movie, she can expect that so long as it does not violate the Terms of Service or the law, it will stay up. Because Google has chosen not to mediate content, there is room for all kinds of speech on YouTube — for unpopular speech, for voices of dissent, for speaking truth to power, for ugly and disturbing speech, and for cute cat videos. When Google turns its back on those policies, however temporarily, it is up to civil society to take notice and hold them accountable.

Berita selengkapnya ...

Why are Muslims so Serious About Their Prophet?

Tulisan bagus ... dan bahasa Inggris. Cuocok dikasih ke bule kalau mau mengerti perspektif kita sebagai muslim.

One of the most bewildering things for non-Muslims, especially in the West, is the utter less than zero tolerance of Muslims for anything that could be deemed as disrespectful towards the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him. What makes it more puzzling is the generally somber reaction a non-Muslim would receive if they made fun of a Muslim’s background or heritage when it’s taken in relation to the reaction received when it’s about the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him. In a culture where nothing is sacred, and everything is open game to be ridiculed, the permissibility of all of which falls under the banner of freedom of expression, the “extreme” Muslim reaction to any derogatory remarks about the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him is difficult to comprehend.

Selengkapnya ...

5 Everyday Habits That Are Bad For Your Health

1. Lying
2. Eating at your desk
3. Housework
4. Using cash machines 
5. Canceling plans

Simple ... tapi masuk akal. Selengkapnya di sini :)

Six Powerful and Wise Quotes from Theodore Roosevelt

1. “The most important single ingredient in the formula of success is knowing how to get along with people.”
2. “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”
3. “Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.”
4. “Believe you can and you're halfway there.”
5. “If you could kick the person in the pants responsible for most of your trouble, you wouldn't sit for a month.”
6. “Old age is like everything else. To make a success of it, you've got to start young.”

Selengkapnya di sini ....

Ragukan keraguan itu ...

Selalu menarik menyaksikan pertandingan olahraga. Permainan, keseriusan, perjuangan, daya tahan, determinasi ....

Buat kita, yang berbeda adalah kita tidak semata mengandalkan otak yang terbatas ini. Ada dJJ SWT tempat kita bertanya untuk semua hal. Tempat meminta, tempat mohon perlindungan.

Eniwei ... selamat membaca :)

What Andy Murray Teaches Us About Self-Doubt and Its Role in Our Success or Failure

Dr Raj Persaud - Huffingtonpost UK

Andy Murray's historic victory appears founded on a mental rather than a physical transformation. Commentators, plus the tennis star himself, have been discussing how his previously hindering self-doubt appears to have been finally conquered.

Many attribute this new self-confidence to his recent Olympic gold medal victory over Roger Federer. It was positive feedback: confirmation of the ability we all knew he had, but did he?

Yet this just deepens the psychological enigma at the heart of this result. The cure for self-doubt appears a confidence-enhancing triumph - but you can't win until you overcome your self-doubt.

Given chronic self-doubt is a common cause of anxiety and depression (women seem to suffer more from it than men); this catch 22 seriously impedes the well-being of millions. It might be the key psychological factor which explains why so many are frustrated in their attempts to achieve relationship, work, career, friends or family goals.

Serious self-doubt predicts failure in life because even when upset or fearful, the confident persist. Doggedness is at the heart of all successful performance - as Andy Murray's own personal journey exemplifies. He kept going despite what was close to becoming a world record for number of appearances in Grand Slam finals without victory.

Self-doubters, in contrast, are quicker to disengage from any task. Elenor Rooseveldt said, "Whether you believe you can or cannot: you are right". Confidence, matched by ability is what works.

One reason for this is self-doubters see upset in the face of difficulty as early signs another failure is inevitable. If feeling stressed is a sign you aren't good enough, then you anxiously turn your attention away from the task at hand, towards the symptoms of upset. You wallow in your despair, rendering it worse because of this focus.

It was intriguing to notice how quickly Andy Murray put behind him various frustrations during the course of the final, as opposed to a previous tendency for grimacing and scowling longer following an upset. He seemed to have learnt what psychologists have long been shouting at the TV during his matches; reframe and move on. Learn from experiences: keep focused.

Those with higher self-confidence as opposed to self-doubters experience less distress when frustrated by an obstacle, because their focus is back on their goal more quickly, and away from any disappointment.

At its very worse, some sufferers from self-doubt begin to doubt their ability to form any judgement about anything. Every thought becomes a circle of obsession over what anything could mean, or what you can ever be certain about.

Charles Carver and Michael Scheier, psychologists based at the University of Miami and Carnegi-Mellon University in the USA, and world authorities on confidence, in an article in the 'International Journal of Educational Research', conclude doubt, 'is a cloud that can hamper the full expression of even the greatest natural ability'.

But now a team of psychologists lead by Aaron Wichman and Gifford Weary from Western Kentucky and Stanford Universities, as well as other institutions, have recently published an intriguing psychological solution to the problem of self-doubt. This is part of a new movement in therapy which is not about simple and quick reassurance that self-doubt is unrealistic and should be abandoned, but instead goes into the specifics of the doubt in more detail.

Their research paper entitled 'Doubting one's doubt: A formula for confidence?' suggested that actively inducing people to doubt, could be better than simple reassurance. Published in the 'Journal of Experimental Social Psychology', the study found that doubters could be encouraged to 'doubt their doubt', which paradoxically made them more confident.

Self-doubters could benefit in some sense from healthy doubt. The psychologists argue the difference between certainty that one is going to fail and concern that one might fail, could be the contrast between hopelessness, and careful preparation for success. They go on to contend that the difference between being certain of one's agonizing insecurity and lack of worth, and being merely uncertain about it, could mean the crucial difference between despair and seeking therapy.

These psychologists conclude sometimes, doubt reduction is best achieved by instilling doubt in one's doubt. In a similar vein Tim Woodman, Sally Akehurst, Lew Hardy and Stuart Beattie from Bangor and Aberystwyth Universities, United Kingdom, have recently published a study on the benefits of doubt entitled, 'Self-confidence and performance: A little self-doubt helps'. The study was inspired by previous research in sports performance, for example studies of pistol shooters and golfers found greater self-confidence was linked with poorer performance.

Published in the academic journal, 'Psychology of Sport and Exercise', the study found inducing a bit of self-doubt produced better performance. The authors conclude high self-confidence is not always the boon it's marketed as. It can lead to risk-taking, complacency, reduced preparation and practice time, producing poorer results.

Women are generally found to suffer more self-doubt than men, despite no difference in ability; precisely why they are often more conscientious and reliable work colleagues. Yet their self-doubt also sometimes inhibits them from taking risks in demonstrating flair, which is unfortunately what often gets noticed and promotion.

It would appear there's a delicate balance over doubt, and that some self-doubt motivates the exertion needed to master challenges. Andy Murray may have been deservedly celebrating his historic success last night, but it didn't seem in danger of turning him into the kind of fist-pumping, high self confidence athlete of an Usain Bolt.

Given we now know there is healthy, as opposed to unhealthy, self-doubt, this is reassuring.

Although his self-doubt prevents him conceding this, it's the strongest possible psychological sign that this Grand Slam win, might, just might, not be Andy Murray's last.

Rindu

ku rindu saat berdesakan untuk mengambil wudhu, sandal
berhimpitan dengan wajah-wajah ikhlas bersih rajin sholat
ramadhan usai, tak perlu lagi berdesakan, antri
ku rindu saat-saat itu, bersama-sama, mencari ridhoNya

Komik Lat

Pagi ini ketemu komik Lat lama, terselip di belantara buku-buku di rumah. Belantara? Iya hehehe ....

Baca-baca ... yang menakjubkan adalah banyaknya detil di buku ini yang rupanya saya belum pernah lihat. Ternyata belajar fotografi membuka banyak hal. Jadi semua detil ditelusuri, dinikmati, diresapi. Sementara rupanya dulu baca komik ya baca tulisannya, lucu .. ketawa .. that's it.

Cuma timbul masalah baru. Satu buku jadi ga kelar-kelar bacanya. Terkagum-kagum sendiri menikmati setiap halaman Lat. Betapa dia ternyata sangat detil, goresannya, ceritanya, penguasaan kertasnya ... bahkan rasanya kita bisa mengenal dia dari coretannya ... tanpa harus membaca tulisan/cerita di komik itu sendiri.

Luar biasa ...

No Name

Ryan O'Shaughnessy - Britain Got Talent 2012

Every now and then I see I part of you I haven’t seen
Birds can swim and fish can fly the road is long I wonder way
One of these days you’ll realize what you mean to me ohhh

Every now and then I see a part of you I’ve never seen
Well I try to talk but I can’t
My soul has turned to steel
This happens every now and then when I try to tell you just how I feel

So if you ever love somebody
You gotta keep them close
When you lose grip of their body
You’ll be falling
Because I’m falling

Deeper in love
In love
Deeper in love
In love
Deeper in love
In love

entertaining ... :)

He sang it with his heart ...

sweet, sincere ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KdviedF9iM

The heart is a lonely hunter

Listening on how Dave Grusin interpret the novel and put it into notes ...

BJ Habibie

Inspiring ... saya sempat baca buku beliau Detik-Detik Yang Menentukan: Jalan Panjang Indonesia Menuju Demokrasi. Jadi pingin cari buku beliau, Ainun ...

=====
Pada usianya 74 tahun, mantan Presiden RI, BJ Habibie secara mendadak mengunjungi fasilitas Garuda Indonesia didampingi oleh putra sulung, Ilham Habibie dan keponakannya(?), Adri Subono, juragan Java Musikindo.


Kunjungan beliau dan rombongan disambut oleh President & CEO, Bapak Emirsyah Satar disertai seluruh Direksi dan para VP serta Area Manager yang sedang berada di Jakarta.

Dalam kunjungan ini, diputar video mengenai Garuda Indonesia Experience dan presentasi perjalanan kinerja Garuda Indonesia sejak tahun 2005 hingga tahun 2015 menuju Quantum Leap.

Sebagai “balasan” pak Habibie memutarkan video tentang penerbangan perdana N250 di landasan bandara Husein Sastranegara, IPTN Bandung tahun 1995 (tujuh belas tahun yang lalu!).

Entah, apa pasalnya dengan memutar video ini?

Video N250 bernama Gatotkaca terlihat roll-out kemudian tinggal landas secara mulus di-escort oleh satu pesawat latih dan sebuah pesawat N235. Pesawat N250 jenis Turboprop dan teknologi glass cockpit dengan kapasitas 50 penumpang terus mengudara di angkasa Bandung.

Dalam video tsb, tampak hadirin yang menyaksikan di pelataran parkir, antara lain Presiden RI Bapak Soeharto dan ibu, Wapres RI bapak Soedarmono, para Menteri dan para pejabat teras Indonesia serta para teknisi IPTN. Semua bertepuk tangan dan mengumbar senyum kebanggaan atas keberhasilan kinerja N250. Bapak Presiden kemudian berbincang melalui radio komunikasi dengan pilot N250 yang di udara, terlihat pak Habibie mencoba mendekatkan telinganya di headset yang dipergunakan oleh Presiden Soeharto karena ingin ikut mendengar dengan pilot N250.

N250 sang Gatotkaca kembali pangkalan setelah melakukan pendaratan mulus di landasan………………

Di hadapan kami, BJ Habibie yang berusia 74 tahun menyampaikan cerita yang lebih kurang sbb:

“Dik, anda tahu…………..saya ini lulus SMA tahun 1954!” beliau membuka pembicaraan dengan gayanya yang khas penuh semangat dan memanggil semua hadirin dengan kata “Dik” kemudian secara lancar beliau melanjutkan……………..“Presiden Soekarno, Bapak Proklamator RI, orator paling unggul, …….itu sebenarnya memiliki visi yang luar biasa cemerlang! Ia adalah Penyambung Lidah Rakyat! Ia tahu persis sebagai Insinyur………Indonesia dengan geografis ribuan pulau, memerlukan penguasaan Teknologi yang berwawasan nasional yakni Teknologi Maritim dan Teknologi Dirgantara. Kala itu, tak ada ITB dan tak ada UI. Para pelajar SMA unggulan berbondong-bondong disekolahkan oleh Presiden Soekarno ke luar negeri untuk menimba ilmu teknologi Maritim dan teknologi dirgantara. Saya adalah rombongan kedua diantara ratusan pelajar SMA yang secara khusus dikirim ke berbagai negara. Pendidikan kami di luar negeri itu bukan pendidikan kursus kilat tapi sekolah bertahun-tahun sambil bekerja praktek. Sejak awal saya hanya tertarik dengan ‘how to build commercial aircraft’ bagi Indonesia. Jadi sebenarnya Pak Soeharto, Presiden RI kedua hanya melanjutkan saja program itu, beliau juga bukan pencetus ide penerapan ‘teknologi’ berwawasan nasional di Indonesia. Lantas kita bangun perusahaan-perusahaan strategis, ada PT PAL dan salah satunya adalah IPTN.

Sekarang Dik,…………anda semua lihat sendiri…………..N250 itu bukan pesawat asal-asalan dibikin! Pesawat itu sudah terbang tanpa mengalami ‘Dutch Roll’ (istilah penerbangan untuk pesawat yang ‘oleng’) berlebihan, tenologi pesawat itu sangat canggih dan dipersiapkan untuk 30 tahun kedepan, diperlukan waktu 5 tahun untuk melengkapi desain awal, satu-satunya pesawat turboprop di dunia yang mempergunakan teknologi ‘Fly by Wire’ bahkan sampai hari ini. Rakyat dan negara kita ini membutuhkan itu! Pesawat itu sudah terbang 900 jam (saya lupa persisnya 900 atau 1900 jam) dan selangkah lagi masuk program sertifikasi FAA. IPTN membangun khusus pabrik pesawat N250 di Amerika dan Eropa untuk pasar negara-negara itu.Namun, orang Indonesia selalu saja gemar bersikap sinis dan mengejek diri sendiri ‘apa mungkin orang Indonesia bikin pesawat terbang?’

Tiba-tiba, Presiden memutuskan agar IPTN ditutup dan begitu pula dengan industri strategis lainnya.

Dik tahu…………….di dunia ini hanya 3 negara yang menutup industri strategisnya, satu Jerman karena trauma dengan Nazi, lalu Cina (?) dan Indonesia………….

Sekarang, semua tenaga ahli teknologi Indonesia terpaksa diusir dari negeri sendiri dan mereka bertebaran di berbagai negara, khususnya pabrik pesawat di Bazil, Canada, Amerika dan Eropa…………….

Hati siapa yang tidak sakit menyaksikan itu semua…………………?

Saya bilang ke Presiden, kasih saya uang 500 juta Dollar dan N250 akan menjadi pesawat yang terhebat yang mengalahkan ATR, Bombardier, Dornier, Embraer dll dan kita tak perlu tergantung dengan negara manapun.

Tapi keputusan telah diambil dan para karyawan IPTN yang berjumlah 16 ribu harus mengais rejeki di negeri orang dan gilanya lagi kita yang beli pesawat negara mereka!”

Pak Habibie menghela nafas…………………..

Ini pandangan saya mengenai cerita pak Habibie di atas;

Sekitar tahun 1995, saya ditugaskan oleh Manager Operasi (JKTOF) kala itu, Capt. Susatyawanto untuk masuk sebagai salah satu anggota tim Airline Working Group di IPTN dalam kaitan produksi pesawat jet sekelas B737 yang dikenal sebagai N2130 (kapasitas 130 penumpang). Saya bersyukur, akhirnya ditunjuk sebagai Co-Chairman Preliminary Flight Deck Design N2130 yang langsung bekerja dibawah kepala proyek N2130 adalah Ilham Habibie. Kala itu N250 sedang uji coba terus-menerus oleh penerbang test pilot (almarhum) Erwin. Saya turut mendesain rancang-bangun kokpit N2130 yang serba canggih berdasarkan pengetahuan teknis saat menerbangkan McDonnel Douglas MD11. Kokpit N2130 akan menjadi mirip MD11 dan merupakan kokpit pesawat pertama di dunia yang mempergunakan LCD pada panel instrumen (bukan CRT sebagaimana kita lihat sekarang yang ada di pesawat B737NG). Sebagian besar fungsi tampilan layar di kokpit juga mempergunakan “track ball atau touch pad” sebagaimana kita lihat di laptop. N2130 juga merupakan pesawat jet single aisle dengan head room yang sangat besar yang memungkinkan penumpang memasuki tempat duduk tanpa perlu membungkukkan badan. Selain high speed sub-sonic, N2130 juga sangat efisien bahan bakar karena mempergunakan winglet, jauh sebelum winglet dipergunakan di beberapa pesawat generasi masa kini.

Saya juga pernah menguji coba simulator N250 yang masih prototipe pertama……………..

N2130 narrow body jet engine dan N250 twin turboprop, keduanya sangat handal dan canggih kala itu………bahkan hingga kini.

Lamunan saya ini, berkecamuk di dalam kepala manakala pak Habibie bercerita soal N250, saya memiliki kekecewaan yang yang sama dengan beliau, seandainya N2130 benar-benar lahir………….kita tak perlu susah-susah membeli B737 atau Airbus 320.

Pak Habibie melanjutkan pembicaraannya………………..

“Hal yang sama terjadi pada prototipe pesawat jet twin engines narrow body, itu saya tunjuk Ilham sebagai Kepala Proyek N2130. Ia bukan karena anak Habibie, tapi Ilham ini memang sekolah khusus mengenai manufakturing pesawat terbang, kalau saya sebenarnya hanya ahli dalam bidang metalurgi pesawat terbang. Kalau saja N2130 diteruskan, kita semua tak perlu tergantung dari Boeing dan Airbus untuk membangun jembatan udara di Indonesia”.

“Dik, dalam industri apapun kuncinya itu hanya satu QCD,? Q itu Quality, Dik, anda harus buat segala sesuatunya berkualitas tinggi dan konsisten? C itu Cost, Dik, tekan harga serendah mungkin agar mampu bersaing dengan produsen sejenis? D itu Delivery, biasakan semua produksi dan outcome berkualitas tinggi dengan biaya paling efisien dan disampaikan tepat waktu!Itu saja!”

Pak Habibie melanjutkan penjelasan tentang QCD sbb:
“Kalau saya upamakan, Q itu nilainya 1, C nilainya juga 1 lantas D nilainya 1 pula, jika dijumlah maka menjadi 3. Tapi cara kerja QCD tidak begitu Dik………….organisasi itu bekerja saling sinergi sehingga yang namanya QCD itu bisa menjadi 300 atau 3000 atau bahkan 30.000 sangat tergantung bagaimana anda semua mengerjakannya, bekerjanya harus pakai hati Dik………………”

Tiba-tiba, pak Habibie seperti merenung sejenak mengingat-ingat sesuatu ………………………

“Dik, ……….saya ini memulai segala sesuatunya dari bawah, sampai saya ditunjuk menjadi Wakil Dirut perusahaan terkemuka di Jerman dan akhirnya menjadi Presiden RI, itu semua bukan kejadian tiba-tiba. Selama 48 tahun saya tidak pernah dipisahkan dengan Ainun, ………..ibu Ainun istri saya. Ia ikuti kemana saja saya pergi dengan penuh kasih sayang dan rasa sabar. Dik, kalian barangkali sudah biasa hidup terpisah dengan istri, you pergi dinas dan istri di rumah, tapi tidak dengan saya. Gini ya…………saya mau kasih informasi……….. Saya ini baru tahu bahwa ibu Ainun mengidap kanker hanya 3 hari sebelumnya, tak pernah ada tanda-tanda dan tak pernah ada keluhan keluar dari ibu……………………”

Pak Habibie menghela nafas panjang dan tampak sekali ia sangat emosional serta mengalami luka hati yang mendalam………………………..seisi ruangan hening dan turut serta larut dalam emosi kepedihan pak Habibie, apalagi aku tanpa terasa air mata mulai menggenang.

Dengan suara bergetar dan setengah terisak pak Habibie melanjutkan……………………

“Dik, kalian tau……………..2 minggu setelah ditinggalkan ibu…………suatu hari, saya pakai piyama tanpa alas kaki dan berjalan mondar-mandir di ruang keluarga sendirian sambil memanggil-manggil nama ibu……… Ainun……… Ainun …………….. Ainun …………..saya mencari ibu di semua sudut rumah.

Para dokter yang melihat perkembangan saya sepeninggal ibu berpendapat ‘Habibie bisa mati dalam waktu 3 bulan jika terus begini…………..’ mereka bilang ‘Kita (para dokter) harus tolong Habibie’.

Para Dokter dari Jerman dan Indonesia berkumpul lalu saya diberinya 3 pilihan;

1. Pertama, saya harus dirawat, diberi obat khusus sampai saya dapat mandiri meneruskan hidup. Artinya saya ini gila dan harus dirawat di Rumah Sakit Jiwa!

2. Opsi kedua, para dokter akan mengunjungi saya di rumah, saya harus berkonsultasi terus-menerus dengan mereka dan saya harus mengkonsumsi obat khusus. Sama saja, artinya saya sudah gila dan harus diawasi terus……………

3. Opsi ketiga, saya disuruh mereka untuk menuliskan apa saja mengenai Ainun, anggaplah saya bercerita dengan Ainun seolah ibu masih hidup.

Saya pilih opsi yang ketiga……………………….”

Tiba-tiba, pak Habibie seperti teringat sesuatu (kita yang biasa mendengarkan beliau juga pasti maklum bahwa gaya bicara pak Habibie seperti meloncat kesana-kemari dan kadang terputus karena proses berpikir beliau sepertinya lebih cepat dibandingkan kecepatan berbicara dalam menyampaikan sesuatu) …………………. ia melanjutkan pembicaraannya;

“Dik, hari ini persis 600 hari saya ditinggal Ainun…………..dan hari ini persis 597 hari Garuda Indonesia menjemput dan memulangkan ibu Ainun dari Jerman ke tanah air Indonesia………….

Saya tidak mau menyampaikan ucapan terima kasih melalui surat…………. saya menunggu hari baik, berminggu-minggu dan berbulan-bulan untuk mencari momen yang tepat guna menyampaikan isi hati saya. Hari ini didampingi anak saya Ilham dan keponakan saya, Adri maka saya, Habibie atas nama seluruh keluarga besar Habibie mengucapkan terima kasih sebesar-besarnya, kalian, Garuda Indonesia telah mengirimkan sebuah Boeing B747-400 untuk menjemput kami di Jerman dan memulangkan ibu Ainun ke tanah air bahkan memakamkannya di Taman Makam Pahlawan. Sungguh suatu kehormatan besar bagi kami sekeluarga. Sekali lagi, saya mengucapkan terima kasih atas bantuan Garuda Indonesia”

Seluruh hadirin terhenyak dan saya tak kuasa lagi membendung air mata…………………………

Setelah jeda beberapa waktu, pak Habibie melanjutkan pembicaraannya;

“Dik, sebegitu banyak ungkapan isi hati kepada Ainun, lalu beberapa kerabat menyarankan agar semua tulisan saya dibukukan saja, dan saya menyetujui…………………

Buku itu sebenarnya bercerita tentang jalinan kasih antara dua anak manusia. Tak ada unsur kesukuan, agama, atau ras tertentu. Isi buku ini sangat universal, dengan muatan budaya nasional Indonesia. Sekarang buku ini atas permintaan banyak orang telah diterjemahkan ke beberapa bahasa, antara lain Inggris, Arab, Jepang….. (saya lupa persisnya, namun pak Habibie menyebut 4 atau 5 bahasa asing).Sayangnya buku ini hanya dijual di satu toko buku (pak Habibie menyebut nama satu toko buku besar), sudah dicetak 75.000 eksemplar dan langsung habis. Banyak orang yang ingin membaca buku ini tapi tak tahu dimana belinya. Beberapa orang di daerah di luar kota besar di Indonesia juga mengeluhkan dimana bisa beli buku ini di kota mereka.

Dik, asal you tahu…………semua uang hasil penjualan buku ini tak satu rupiahpun untuk memperkaya Habibie atau keluarga Habibie. Semua uang hasil penjualan buku ini dimasukkan ke rekening Yayasan yang dibentuk oleh saya dan ibu Ainun untuk menyantuni orang cacat, salah satunya adalah para penyandang tuna netra. Kasihan mereka ini sesungguhnya bisa bekerja dengan nyaman jika bisa melihat.

Saya berikan diskon 30% bagi pembeli buku yang jumlah besar bahkan saya tambahkan lagi diskon 10% bagi mereka karena saya tahu, mereka membeli banyak buku pasti untuk dijual kembali ke yang lain.

Sekali lagi, buku ini kisah kasih universal anak manusia dari sejak tidak punya apa-apa sampai menjadi Presiden Republik Indonesia dan Ibu Negara. Isinya sangat inspiratif……………….”

(pada kesempatan ini pak Habibie meminta sesuatu dari Garuda Indonesia namun tidak saya tuliskan di sini mengingat hal ini masalah kedinasan).

Saya menuliskan kembali pertemuan pak BJ Habibie dengan jajaran Garuda Indonesia karena banyak kisah inspiratif dari obrolan tersebut yang barangkali berguna bagi siapapun yang tidak sempat menghadiri pertemuan tsb. Sekaligus mohon maaf jika ada kekurangan penulisan disana-sini karena tulisan ini disusun berdasarkan ingatan tanpa catatan maupun rekaman apapun.

Jakarta, 12 Januari 2012

Salam,
Capt. Novianto Herupratomo

Remembering Why We Travel

Remembering Why We Travel
By Jo Fitzsimons

….
To make sure this doesn’t happen on your trip, it’s important to spend time as you go reminding yourself why you wanted to travel in the first place. Beyond seeing a country’s most iconic sights, here are some of the most common reasons.

To explore new cultures

After Jonathan sauntered off, it didn’t take me long to find my hostel, which was run by an English man and came equipped with an English price-tag, a minimum 5-night stay (common in the run up to the full moon), and sheets stained with the same day-glow paint that I had already determined was as mandatory as the bucket drinking.

In the town, the bars were crammed with backpackers and vacationers alike chomping through calorie rich, hangover disabling burgers, fries, and pizzas while their brains were fed a staple diet of re-runs of Friends. The brave took their first few sips of Chang, the local Thai beer. The even braver tried to reconstruct their memories of the night before, which may or may not have been enhanced with a trip to the moon, thanks to the purple-grey fungus based drinks that were more readily available than Thailand’s harsh ban on drugs might otherwise imply.

To explore a new culture requires getting out of your comfort zone, away from the hoards of other travelers and into the lives of the locals.

It felt like a different world for sure, but a different culture? A Thai culture? I would say not.

Travel from your hometown to a neighboring state, region, or country, and things can seem different, whether it is a change in daily routines, fashion styles, or architecture, it can be fascinating to see how others live. Add more mileage to your travels and often the differences increase exponentially. Understanding alternative ways of living, seeing how other cultures find meaning in their lives, and discovering new languages are all part of the fabric that makes travel so interesting.

However, in well trodden places where the indigenous culture has been softly but surely blended and slowly adapted to cater for tourism, the richness that initially prompted an interest to visit a distant land can disappear, leaving you with nothing more substantive to show for all your airmiles than a change of scenery.

To explore a new culture requires getting out of your comfort zone, away from the hoards of other travelers and into the lives of the locals, whether it is eating their food, talking their talk, or generally engaging in the lives they lead when the last whisky bucket is sold and the last plate of fries is served.
To better understand the reality of the world

“How you doin?’ Joey’s famous line rung out from so many bars during the daytime hours of life on Koh Phangan. I have the DVDs at home, I know the series well, and it makes me laugh. Often out loud. But for a large portion of the world, daily reality doesn’t include a constant source of drinkable tap water, let alone cable TV and endless hours of broadcast laughter, and while sitting on a comfy sofa, sipping banana smoothies with familiar shows playing on a loop may be a pleasant way to lose a day, it will supply no greater understanding of the world than doing likewise in your own town.

To experience how other communities live, survive, and achieve happiness without the luxuries (and necessities) we take for granted can be a humbling experience, and in order to gain that experience it is necessary to walk away from the trappings that define our everyday lives, even if only for a while. I always try to pause when something goes wrong in my western world and think about the people I saw living on the ever ebbing and flowing banks of the the Tonle Sap in Cambodia, where resourcefulness is high and happiness blossoms from even the most basic existence.

To meet local people

I can’t remember how may times I’ve conversed with a fellow traveler about their intended route or life back home, but none of those thousands of conversations stick in my mind as much as those I’ve had with local people who can add color, context, and depth to the sights that surround you in a new country. I can’t remember where Jonathan intended to travel after Thailand, but I recall with detail the evening I spent eating pigs feet in China, having a furtive conversation with a local guy about the one-child policy. I don’t remember exactly where in England Jonathan was from, but I can recount in detail the afternoon I sat with a Mexican politics student understanding the complexities of the elections and the war on drugs. I’m no longer in regular contact with many of the other backpackers I met, but I often turn to the old family recipe for chai tea I was gifted by a lady in India.

Speaking with the natives makes traveling thousands of miles worthwhile. If you’ve asked the question “Where are you from?” more than once a day, you’re probably spending too much time with other backpackers, and while it is nice to engage with other travelers, to get their recommendations and make new friends, the native people are much better placed to introduce you to their town and way of life than any well-heeled traveler will ever be.

To do new things

“This is my second Full Moon Party!” It was a proud claim I overheard from a girl in one of Koh Phangan’s bars. I later found out that, like many people on the island, she was on a gap year and was enjoying the “culture” so much she already had her visa extended once. The island was the perfect place to be. There was familiar food (spaghetti Bolognese), a familiar language (the local people spoke exceptional English), familiar people (European, American, Canadian, and Australian travelers make up a substantive proportion of the party goers), familiar music (techno), and, best of all, a beach to work on that all important tan to take home as evidence of the success of a trip to the far off Asia.

The world is vast and promises plenty of fresh experiences across a diverse range of landscapes. Do you really want to spend your time away dancing to the same old tunes?

Of course, howling at the moon over techno beats on Haad Rin beach with a stomach full of whisky is another addition to the rich tapestry of experiences that make traveling exciting, and like most revelers I created a memory that can bring a smile to even the dullest European winter nights, but it’s important not to get stuck in a travel rut. The world is vast and promises plenty of fresh experiences across a diverse range of landscapes. Do you really want to spend your time away dancing to the same old tunes?

I once found a beautiful part of the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica that tricked me into drifting longer than I’d intended, but by the time I had made the same notes in my travel diary for the umpteenth time (lay on beach, attempted the surf, watched the sunset, ate avocado, drank rum, built a beach bonfire, partied, slept), I knew it was time to move on. Travel is about new experiences, and if your days (and nights) are all the same, you’re probably missing out.

To acquire independence

Missing your night train during India’s monsoon and not being able to get a refund of your last handful of rupees can be challenging, but it is only when we’re challenged that we truly grow. Whether it is facing your fears (hitting the summit of a mountain when you have a fear of heights) or simply fending for yourself (cooking something more complicated than toast), a great sense of achievement can come from removing yourself from your comfort zone. And this requires stepping outside of areas that provide all of the familiarity and safety of home…like the cable TV supplying bars in Koh Phangan. Sometimes acquiring life skills on the road can be tough but returning home with a sense of independence is something you’re highly unlikely to regret, and one of the unique opportunities that indie travel can offer.

To Let Loose
The full moon parties of this world do have their place on the indie travel itinerary. I personally never feel more alive than when I see the dawn break knowing that I haven’t yet slept. And going a little crazy and letting loose is good for the soul…at least for a while. But think about the consequences if this becomes your travel lifestyle. By all means, party hard but be mindful. How would you feel if Koh Phangan were your town? Not only does someone have to clean up the post party mess each month, but some things that are harder to wipe clean, like the indelible memory that you leave behind as representative of your country.
And then there are the opportunities lost. Wavering between nights fueled with drink (and drugs) and days hung-over (and on a downer) can fast consume your precious time away. Each day idling is a day lost. Sights not seen, people not met, cultures not understood.
Do you really want to run the risk of returning home with nothing deeper than a suntan?
Think about it and think about Jonathan. Is that why you went travelling?

The Power of Subtraction

The Power of Subtraction
by Anthony K. Tjan

"Less is more," the architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe liked to say. You may or may not agree with this as a philosophy of architecture and design. But in the world of business it can be a remarkably effective approach. I owe this insight to my friend Richard Saul Wurman, the founder of the TED conferences. In a recent conversation, we discussed the power of subtraction as it applies to innovation. By removing things one creates self-imposed constraints, but also clarity and a cleaner context for inspired innovation.

What sticks with me most about the conversation is the simple pragmatism and prescriptive nature of the word itself — subtraction. How much more direct can you get than to say you need to subtract something? In business, we often dance around the subject by using MBA-speak like "focus," "alignment," or "prioritization." These words imply the need to edit, clarify, and rethink, but aren't as direct as asking someone to subtract.

Here are five "laws of subtraction" for business leaders to consider:

1. Subtract Your Priorities. In an earlier post I described the critical CEO best practice of writing an annual letter to the board outlining one's top priorities. When CEO priorities are codified, it provides a recurring reference source for the board and employees. Intellectual honesty around such a document enhances self-awareness and avoids priority drift and the "shiny ball syndrome" from which many of us as founders or CEOs suffer. For this practice to be effective, there can be no more than five priorities at any point in time. Most CEOs, though, gravitate toward ten top priorities, maybe even more. Subtract your way down to the top five — or, even better, the top three. And avoid cheating by "bucketing" ten things into five categories! Each priority needs to be distinct and mutually exclusive.

2. Subtract Your Pitch Points. Countless sales pitches get ruined because a prospective buyer is overwhelmed by the choices presented, by sellers creating multiple choice. That's why you should subtract your three (or more) pitch points down to one core idea. Great pitches are "do it for me" stories rather than "do it yourself' or "choose your own adventure." Conviction comes from subtracting the peripheral and focusing on the most salient story. While I have always been taught to pitch or do presentations around three key points, it is easy to slip into focusing on three supporting points and lose the overarching big idea. Even worse than getting lost in three supporting points is trying to pitch three distinct ideas. Subtract down to one. On a related note, be cautious of the amount of material (PowerPoint slides, documents, etc.) you use. There's a propensity to add materials rather than subtract. One of the most successful meetings I have had came after I recast a 35-page deck to a one pager during an overseas flight to share with the client upon landing. A simple story that repeats a consistent theme is better than a truckload of documents and demos. Subtract and seduce around a single idea.

3. Subtract Your People. Jack Welch had it right: you should continually subtract out the bottom 10% of your team. Subpar performers drag down an organization. As the saying goes — A's attracts A's while B's attract C's. Not everyone can be an A player, and you owe it to those who are to regularly prune out the bottom. Setting the expectation with your employee base that you will be regularly evaluating and taking out weaker folks and promoting stronger ones is the foundation for a performance-driven organization and strong people culture. As long as there is a good review and development process (e.g. objective and regular), people will respect and embrace what may at first feel a little cold and Darwinian.

4. Subtract Your Customers. It is not only employees that need regular evaluation and subtraction, but also your customers. Be willing to fire the laggards, regularly subtracting out the least valuable 5% of your customers. It is a fallacy that you need to keep all your customers because many of the small customers will become large ones. Look at your data to see if that has really occurred. What you are more likely to find is a stubbornly consistent 5% of your customers who buy in small volumes and require higher maintenance as a cohort than other groups. You want to give the most time, energy, and service to those who will provide the greatest long-term reward and loyalty. This means realizing that just because you can sell something to someone today does not mean that you should.

5. Subtract Your Baggage. Finally, on a lighter note (literally), subtract one-third of the stuff you think you need to pack for any given trip. I once read that you should pack in the following way: lay out everything you need on a bed and take half of it. I have never been able to quite manage that, but subtracting out a third works for me. Business travel is strenuous, so travel light, and efficiently. Further, being forced to edit in advance has helped me make better choices on what pieces of clothing work best for a meeting or event. Who knew that subtraction could help so much with your sartorial suaveness?

Through the power of subtraction, the above five "laws" can drive more focused effectiveness and success. And if it is too hard to remember the specific examples above, just remember this: when in doubt, subtract.

Kertas putih

Terbuka, baru, setiap pagi
Saat nafas menyongsong hari
Isi dengan ketekunan, kesabaran, keuletan, kemarahan, dendam, benci, amarah, ikhlas, harap padaNya, doa, keinginan, silaturahmi, senda gurau, mencari nafkah, bersedekah, olahraga, sholat, makan, tidur, belajar, melamun
Tergantung pada kita

Terbuka, baru, setiap pagi
Saat nafas menyongsong hari

Learn with every goodbye

Found this poem on zite ... it's kind of ....


Learn With Every Goodbye
Jorge Luis Borges

After a while, you learn the subtle difference
and between holding a hand and chaining a soul,
And you learn that love doesn’t mean leaning
And company doesn’t mean security,

And you begin to learn that kisses aren’t contracts
And presents aren’t promises,
And you begin to accept your defeats
With the grace of a woman,
not the grief of a child,

And learn to build all your roads on today
Because tomorrow’s ground is too uncertain for plans,

And futures have a way of falling down in mid-flight
And after a while, you learn That even sunshine burns if you get too much.

So you plant your own garden
and decorate your own soul,
Instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.
And you learn that you really can endure…

That you really are strong
And you really do have worth

And you learn
and learn…
With every goodbye, you learn.

Jadikan sabar dan sholat sebagai penolongmu

“Jadikanlah sabar dan shalat sebagai penolongmu. Dan sesungguhnya yang demikian itu sungguh berat kecuali bagi orang-orang yang khusyu’, (yaitu) orang-orang yang meyakini bahwa mereka akan menemui Tuhannya dan bahwa mereka akan kembali kepada-Nya”. (Al-Baqarah: 45-46)

Subhanalloh, beberapa hari ini ayat-ayat ini terus berulang-ulang muncul. Bacaan sholat berjaamah, ceramah ba'da subuh, tilawah di radio, tulisan di internet, sampai ceramah di radio dalam perjalanan ke kantor ...

Walmart Is Testing A Scan-And-Go iPhone App That Could One Day Replace Cashiers

Keren juga ... kapan ya bisa diimplementasikan di sini? :)

In Rogers Arkansas, Walmart recently asked employees and their friends with iPhones to test out a new self scan-and-go app. It's one of a few mobile initiatives Walmart is working on that could one day replace or aid its many cashiers.

The test was put together by Walmart Labs. The app let employees scan items on their phones but not pay on the devices. Instead the app transferred all scanned items to a self-checkout kiosk.

But Walmart has said it's working on a mobile payment network with other retailers that could rival current solutions like Google Wallet.

Walmart spokesman David Tovar tells Reuters the company is "continually testing new and innovative ways to serve customers and enhance the shopping experience in our stores."

Walmart's US stores spend about $12 millions on cashier wages per second, so an app like this could save the company a lot of money.

http://www.businessinsider.com/walmart-is-testing-a-scan-and-go-iphone-app-that-could-replace-cashiers-2012-9

California passes bills to create open-source digital library for college textbook

The state of California is on the verge of enacting legislation that would make college educations a bit more affordable for students and their parents.

The California State Senate today passed two bills, SB 1052 and SB 1053, designed to provide students at public postsecondary institutions with access to free digital textbooks for popular lower-division courses and to open source the curriculum to facility members.

The bills are said to create the nation’s first free open source digital library for college students and faculty. California Governor Jerry Brown’s signature is required before the bills are enacted into law.

“This is the first time government has come in with substantial dollars that match philanthropic efforts to create a library where students can access free textbooks and faculty can utilize their skills to remix, revise and repurpose these textbooks for their students,” said Dean Florez in astatement. Florez is president of the 20 Million Minds foundation, a nonprofit that works to reduce textbook costs for students.

Digital textbooks have been around for years, with companies ranging from Apple to Chegg providing students with digital alternatives to their hard-bound books. Under SB 1052, California, however, would establish a faculty-run council called the California Open Education Resources Council (COERC) to select and develop the free digital textbooks for students at state universities and community colleges. Companion bill SB 1053 would create an open source library to house the digital textbooks.

The 1052 bill passed the California Senate with 32-3, according to the state legislator’s website. The 1053 companion bill passed by the same margin.

http://venturebeat.com/2012/08/31/california-college-textbooks/

Fight with piracy or go with Open Source?

This sounds like Open Source thing ... :)

Piracy Is A Cultural Opportunity; Embrace It

from the sharing-is-fun dept

Piracy has become a force of nature in the entertainment world. No matter what you make or how you release it, there are pirates waiting around the corner to try to get it for free. No matter what you try to stop this from happening, you just can't -- much like a storm, you have no control over its movements and power. All that is left is to embrace it and hope to harness the storm's power for your own benefit.

This is what Daniel Cook from Spry Fox has decided is best. In a reprint of his comments at Gamasutra, Daniel explains that piracy is a fun activity that can be harnessed for good.

Being a 'pirate' was being part of a community. You and your friends shared games like social gaming gifts on Facebook. It didn't cost you anything to copy a game and give it to someone. A game was a social token to chat about, a gesture of kindness to reciprocate. A key takeaway from that time is that copying and sharing vast quantities of digital goods is a deeply fun, social and highly useful activity. This is a new thing, a new behavior in a post-scarcity world.

Selengkapnya  ...

The Best Video Cat on internet

Tragis hehehe ...

Story komplit ... http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/08/its-official-this-is-the-best-cat-video-on-the-internet/261826/

Atau kalau mau langsung ke youtubenya http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q34z5dCmC4M keywordnya: Henri 2, Paw de Deux
Enjoy ....