8 things we learned from CNN's 'Eye on the Philippines' by Don Jaucian

MANILA, Philippines - There is only so much a tourism campaign can do. With clichéd pictures of white sand beaches, smiling locals forced to look courteous and whirring bokeh shots of the city’s night life, an image of a country is only as good as its soft power import, or its next travel advisory. But as CNN’s Eye On the Philippines feature proved, there are many things that even us Filipinos don’t know about our country. It takes a World Bank and CIA World Factbook to pry our eyes open about certain realities that have been relegated to blind spots and commentary thread fodder.??“I think Economics is not really a mainstream thing yet for the average Filipino,” explains Kim Quilinguing, media production specialist II of the University of the Philippines System Information Office.”Unlike our neighbors and those in Europe and the US, we rarely talk about the economic standing of the country with our peers in coffee shops, offices, classrooms, and much more in the streets.” ??As the CNN feature showed, the challenge of changing perceptions about the Philippines still remains.“Maybe, as we were wallowing in the mud over the past few years, we failed to see that portions of it have dried up. And that we can stand on those portions to eventually rise out of the pit we have been in since the Marcos years. Maybe, it’s time we face up to the changes and move on,” Quilinguing adds.??With this, we hit on eight things that the CNN feature sprung up on the rest of the country, or at least the social media freaks and trendy kids.
1. Average age??
An average age of 22.9 says a lot about the country’s economic potential, labor force and even population control measures. As opposed to countries like Japan where the population is generally aging, the Philippines’s young population is a potential for the country’s income, leadership, and cultural revolution that can be ignited by the youth’s ideologies. So if today’s kids grow past their grammatical mangling and ADD-fuelled travails, maybe the future would look bright.??
2. Total GDP rank??
he country’s total GDP is an indicator of how much we earn collectively from our recognized goods and services. Considering we’re 33rd out of 226 countries, it doesn’t really look bad. But historical data shows that the our GDP has been continually lagging for the past few years. A study in 2011, conducted by the International Monetary Fund, showed our GDP sliding from 12th in the mid to late ’90s to its current rank in the Asia Pacific region. Political uncertainty, high government debt and low investments are some of the elements that affect our economic growth and if all these internal turmoils catch up on us, there’s a big chance we’ll be finishing behind our neighbors.??
3. The Pacquiao Effect??
Upheld as a hero and national treasure, Manny Pacquiao’s stature has been a high pedestal of inspiration and patriotism. But as Philippines Olympic Committee vice president Manuel Lopez said in an interview with CNN, most boxers in the country have hooked up on the sport looking at it like a gold mine. Pacquiao’s name in the news has always been associated with the wealth that the sport has brought him, something has given a new generation of boxers wrong ideas about life in the ring. Like every bandwagon the country has jumped in (like the nursing boom in the mid-2000s), each is treated like a magical closet into Narnia of greener pastures. ??
4. A country of science underachievers??
In a report from the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement, only one percent of high school seniors receive qualifying grades in math and sciences. We’re terrible underperfomers compared to other Asians, especially since we’re in a region known as a breeding ground of math and science nerds. It takes a lot of pageantry to dress up an intimidating subject and make it palatable to students and with a strong Catholic grip, it’s still a challenge to further scientific ideas in a country which prides itself as one of the most literate nations.
5. Transitioning from agricultural state??
??Don’t let the fancy premium outlets fool you. Despite the proliferation of Starbucks, sprawling malls and call centers around the country, the Philippines is still largely an agricultural state. As BPOs and other services and investments push the country into an industrial state, 12.3 percent of the GDP is still coming from the agricultural sector. Maybe that article on organic farming that you bookmarked may still come in handy after all.??
6. Government efficiency??
Buried under scandals and dragging impeachment trials is a smoother government operation that should take center stage instead of sensationalized news that pollute our social network feeds. Reports from the Bureau of Internal Revenue show that tax returns have increased in 20 years with almost 30 percent. The Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism also reported that the overhauled bidding systems for public works have cut down government project costs by up to 30 percent. Now that’s the road to reform.?? 7. OFW financial literacy courses??
This windfall of money is all too tempting for OFWs and their families, particularly those who want to swagger around with LV bags and Saudi gold dangling from their necks. The government has been giving financial literacy courses to OFWs on how to invest their money in a sustainable future. The sight of six-figure bank accounts can send some people into a frenzy but as the economic collapse of other countries has shown, it’s not an unlimited source of income.??
8. Tourism is still hard-sell
As the Tom Parker Bowles’s article on Philippine food (which appeared on Esquire UK last year) showed, the Philippines is still a dark blot for tourists. In 2010, international flights only attracted 1.7 percent of tourists among the Asia Pacific region, which goes to show that the image of the country as a sex den, terrorist training camp and country of corrupt bastards hasn’t changed a bit. The Department of Tourism’s new campaign slogan may evoke a sunshiner outlook for the country but it’s one hell of a lifeline for our tourism industry.
 

Good Communication

What can set you apart

Focusing managers and other employees on customer needs

Engaging employees in running the business

Helping managers effectively communicate key messages

Leveraging talents of internal communicators to manage change effectively

Measuring effect of employee communication

Brand employee experience or build employee loyalty

Is the customer always right? by Malu Dy Buncio

There is an adage that everyone knows and that is “THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT!”  Obviously the customer is ‘always right’ because the decision to hand over their hard earned money for your product or service lies with the customer.

Recently however, I encountered a prospective client that got me thinking about whether this adage is indeed always true.  As a consultant, I was being asked to submit a proposal for ananticipated strategic planning session for a company.  Actually I had submitted a proposal the previous year for the same company but the planning session did not push through.

Last year after several meetings with this client, it became clear to me that the head of the company had already decided what the course of action should be for the company.  I remember thinking to myself that in this case, a strategic planning process would not be effective.

This year I received an urgent call back from the same client.  When I met the client, I was pleasantly surprised that the head of the company seemed to be more open to strategic planning. However, as the meeting progressed, it became clear that the client wanted to design the planning session in a way that I knew would not give them their desired results.  In fact, the desired process would give them the same old strategies they were implementing year after year.  I explained why the proposed design was flawed but my explanation fell on deaf ears.  In fact, the atmosphere became quite hostile when I usedthe words “in my experience with other clients . . .“  The client’s response was “well I know my market.”

I realized then that this client and I were not a good fit, so I politely said  ‘then perhaps you would be better off working with another consultant.’  To which the client quickly replied ‘yes’.

I have no regrets letting this project go because I don’t believe we would have achieved fact based conclusions and strategies.  The management style of the client was quite autocratic and would have resulted in him overruling conclusions and strategies he did not agree with.

I did however, think about the concept of ‘fulfilling the needs and wants of clients’ after my meeting with this client.  In Interior Design School I was taught that if you have a client and if the design they desired did not match your vision or your idea of good taste, just follow the client’s desire.  The client is always right.  After all, they will be the one to live with the design.

Should I have taken the same attitude? Should I have just taken the client’s money and followed his process and let him live with flawed strategies?  Perhaps-  but my work ethic cannot take that attitude.  It is not a coat of paint or color scheme.  These strategies would have determined whether the company would survive and whether people who have invested the best years of their lives working for this company would still have a job in the future.

So is the customer always right?  Yes because they do have the final decision in whether to hand over their money for your product or service.  But manufacturers and service suppliers also have the right to design their product or service in a manner they believe is correct.  In addition, manufacturers and service suppliers also have the right to decide who they will sell their product or service to.

Malu DyBuncio is the Chief Business Development Strategist of Mansmith and Fielders, Inc., (www.mansmith.net). She was the former country head of Avon Philippines and Avon Indonesia.  She will be conducting the Dynamics of Direct Selling seminar-workshop on September 20-21, 2011.  For inquiries on our programs, please call (63-2) 584-5858/412-0034, text 0918-81-168-88 or email info@mansmith.net. Please also send your marketing and sales, strategy and innovation questions to mentors@mansmith.net.

SILENCE

Keep the plot of your life simple.  “Beauty when unadorned is adorned the most”.  (Athenaeus)  Simplicity makes things visible to everyone and thus enlightens all who are exposed to what is presented.  Be yourself.

Give what you wish to receive.  What you give back freely will come back to you.

Don’t feel bad when someone criticizes you; it’s one of the certainties of life. There are only three things that are certain death, taxes and criticism.

Always believe that patience is a virtue.  Patience allows you time to know more about yourself and the person you are dealing with.

Spend some time in the dark.  When facing emotional despair, hopelessness or physical anguish, going into the darkness helps you find yourself and renew your life.  The care you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.  (Joseph Campbell)

Have no regrets.  Regret for things you did can be tempered by time; it is regret for the things you did not do that is inconsolable  (Sydney Harris).  You  can do nothing to change the decisions you made in your past, but the future holds many possibilities.

 

Be a best friend forever.  That BFF is someone who can put up with your follies and shortfalls but still put up with you and be there for you.

Say the serenity prayer when feeling troubled, and remember its message. God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Fail successfully.  You can be discouraged by failure or you can learn from it.  Mistakes can be a valuable part of life’s curriculum.

See through the eyes of an optimist and observe what direction your life takes.  Attitudes are more important than facts. That life is 10 percent what happens to you and 90 percent how you react to it. (Charles Swindoll)

Cleanse yourself with a good cry. God washes the eyes by tears until they can behold the invisible land where tears shall come no more. (Henry Ward Beecher)

Be generous with praise.  It is the sweetest of all sounds. Listen to your guilt feelings and follow their guidance.  Do not avoid them.  They are markers of mental health.

Never lose hope.

Live in the moment.

Silence is one of the greatest gifts God has given you.  Silence is the most beautiful doorway into prayer, peace contemplation and true wisdom.  Silence is also a discipline that leads to humility and to a love that does not seek to possess.  Only the person who is truly silent can hear the whisperings of God’s love deep within his heart.  “Listen” has the same letters as “silent”.  Listen to the silence of your heart and you will know what to do.

Books recommended by National Book Store

The 7 Great Prayers: For a Lifetime of Hope and Blessings by Paul and Tracey McManus Paul and Tracey McManus lost everything in the wake of dot-com bust-- they have no jobs, their savings had evaporated, the bill collectors were banging on the door, and they were losing their home. Though scared and paralyzed with fear they began to thank God for what they have. This prayer of gratitude was life changing. These prayers give them hope and strength they needed to overcome life's challenges, financial worries, health concerns and also to find purpose in life. Eager to share their newfound hope they created a simple webpage about The 7 Great Prayers and they wrote a book about them. Heaven is for Real: a Little Boy's Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back by Todd Burpo When Colton Burpo made it through an emergency appendectomy, his family was overjoyed at his miraculous survival. What they weren't expecting, though, was the story that emerged in the months that followed--a story as beautiful as it was extraordinary, detailing the little boy's trip to heaven and back. Colton, not yet four years old, told his parent he left his body during the surgery, and authenticated that claim by describing exactly what his parents were doing in another part of the hospital while he was being operated on. He talked of visiting heaved and relayed stories told him by people he met there whom he had never met in life, sharing events that happened even before he was born. He also astonished his parents with descriptions and obscure details about heaven that matched the Bible exactly though he has not yet learned to read. He also tells of meeting long departed family members. He describes Jesus, the angels how "really, really big" God is and how much God loves us. It offers a glimpse of the world that awaits us.