Cherry Cherry Boom Boom! =D

Finally! The result is out! My 1st semester's result as a postgraduate student in UTM is on board! Huuuu... I woke up early in the morning just to check my result and...

I have passed with flying colours! Alhamdulillah! I am happy, truly happy! Special thanks to my beloved family for their support all this while, my dedicated lecturers for their guidance and for my Darling Fiance for being my greatest motivator! Love you la! Wheee! =D

Thank you, Allah for your blessing!

The end. Thank you! =)

The Power Of Social Skills

Yesterday, one of our local radio stations had voiced out an issue related to the unemployment of graduates. The main problem with today's graduates is the inability to fulfill the expected requirements of the employers. What kind of expectations that they are referring to? Education background? Working experience? Social skills? Personality? Or physical appearance? For employers, there are certain aspects that they might focus more on the graduates based on the demand of the job. But how far education can guarantee a job? I have heard many cases of unemployment among graduates who scored excellently with CGPA : 4 flat! Where do they go wrong? They had performed very well academically but why can't they secure a job? 

In my point of view, being academically excellent per se is not enough as current situation is quite demanding. Everybody has to be equipped with proper education, pleasant personality and good social skills in order to survive in this challenging world. So, when it comes to employment, which is the main criteria that employers will look at? Among all, I personally think that social skill is the primary concern.

Social skills???

Social skills can be defined as a group of skills which people need to interact and communicate with others *click here*. Social skills focus more on how you treat other people and how you react to them. It is a matter of dealing with people around you. Generally, communication is considered as one of the important social skills which has greater impact on a person’s self-development. Carolyn Hong has come out with a good piece of article entitled "Retraining Lifeline for Jobless Grads" which highlighted the importance of communication skill for graduates.

In her article, she stated that several feedback had been received from employers who complained that graduates often lack of soft skills such as communication, teamwork and leadership skills which lead to unemployment. Being knowledgeable only does not guarantee a high rate of being employed unless it comes with the right mix of skills especially in communication and computer skills.

Why does social skill play a vital benchmark for job employment nowadays?

The answer is very simple yet precise. In order to become a successful person, individuals need to have good social skills to make it easier for them to interact with others in various situations. They must not only know how to interact or communicate with others but they also need to understand how to react to different environment appropriately. For example; an employer must possess an excellent leadership skill whereas an employee must develop an outstanding teamwork in order to contribute to the company’s success. With an excellent command of social skills, Insya Allah graduates can survive in the working field!

Malaysia has a large number of universities, colleges and training centers. In each institution, there must be compulsory subjects that need to be taken before the students completed their program such as English language, Leadership skill, Parenting skill and etc. The subjects recommended might be different from one institution to another but the objective is the same whereby to prepare the students with proper skills in order to survive once they have graduated. There is no doubt that universities, colleges, or training centers provide a platform for enhancing social skills among graduates. But to what extent it can be a source of help is questionable if nothing is done by the parents to brush up the skills at early age and zero effort towards self-improvement from the graduates themselves. As this matter has created numerous attention of many people all around the world, it can be concluded that teaching and learning social skills is a lifelong process in which individuals have to continuously develop the skills needed throughout their stages of development. 

Let's say YES to employment rise!

The end. Thank you! =)

A Song For My Soulmate =)

Dear my Darling Fiance,

I am not a poet, I am not a song writer, I am not even a sweet talker, but I am just a person who loves you with all my heart. I may not always be there when you need me the most, I may not be able to accompany you all day long, but one thing for sure, you are always in my heart. Loving you is a precious gift from Allah and I am thankful for that. Hmmm, what else should I say? I am lost in my own words, I guess. Sorry, dear... Whatever it is, I believe that words ain't enough to express my feelings on you. So, enjoy this song which I dedicated especially for you, sayang! =)

Cintamu yang kurasa
Walau tak terucap semakin dalam
Cintamu telah terukir
Di batas cintaku selamanya


Tak pernah ku mencoba
Lepaskan cintamu walau sesaat
Sejujurnya diriku terlalu sayang padamu
Kuingin selalu dalam cintamu


Dan tiada
Yang akan memisahkan selamanya
Cintamu yang terlintas
Terbias matamu selama ini


Adakah di hatimu
Terbesit satu harapan untukku
Untuk berjanji selamanya kau selalu milikku
Satu cinta

Dia la CINTA saya!

DIA yang sering ku rindu...

DIA juga yang selalu ku sayang...

Dan hanya DIA yang pasti ku cinta...

p/s: I miss you so much!

The end. Thank you! =)

Rukun Cinta 'Aku & Dia'

Okay, according to Daisypath, it has been 6 months, 3 weeks and 1 day since I got engaged to my Darling Fiance. We have been through lots of beautiful and painful moments together. Adat orang bercinta, pasti ada pasang surutnya. Honestly, falling in love is easy as it takes you a second to fall for someone. But to keep our love from falling apart is difficult. If not, why do we come across certain issues such as break ups, kisah cinta tiga segi, kes kecurangan, skandal sana sini and many more. If we think about it, love is a wonderful feeling but why lovers choose to jump into separation in their relationships? Something is wrong, something is missing but what is it? We can not tell exactly what is the reason behind the issue but we can try to eliminate the potential reasons that might affect the relationships. As for me, my Darling Fiance and I had come out with a guideline or so-called Rukun Cinta that might be a help for lovers out there. 

RUKUN CINTA 'AKU & DIA'

IKHLAS

Ikhlas bersifat individu. Hanya Tuan Empunya diri sahaja yang tahu sama ada dia ikhlas atau tidak ikhlas dalam hubungan. Apa implikasi ikhlas dalam sesebuah hubungan? Bila kita ikhlas, apa yang kita lakukan dan katakan terhadap pasangan semua datang dari hati, jadi ia bukan sekadar kata-kata biasa. Selalunya, apabila kita ikhlas, pasangan mudah menerima perlakuan atau kata-kata yang disampaikan oleh kita.

JUJUR & TELUS

Bila kita sudah ikhlas, secara automatiknya kita akan berkelakuan jujur dengan pasangan kita. Kejujuran sangat penting untuk melenyapkan keraguan atau kecurigaan pasangan. Tetapi, kadang-kadang tidak semua pasangan merasakan berlaku jujur itu perlu dalam hubungan. Bagi sesetengah orang, mereka berpendapat bahawa privacy itu perlu. Betul, privacy itu perlu ada, akan tetapi jikalau perkara yang nak di'privacy'kan itu berkaitan dengan hubungan, eloklah jika kita berterus terang. 'Katakan yang benar meskipun ia pahit'. Bukan apa, takut perkara yang kita nk 'privacy'kan sangat itu kelak diketahui oleh pasangan, maka boleh timbul perselisihan faham. Sebagai contoh:

Situasi A

Lelaki : Sayang, tadi you keluar dengan siapa?

Perempuan : Dengan kawan-kawan.

Lelaki : Siapa?

Perempuan : Alahaii, kawan-kawan kelas laaa. You bukan kenal pun..
Lelaki : Mesti keluar dengan lelaki kan? Sebab tu tak nak beritahu siapa kan?
Perempuan : Eh! You jangan nak tuduh-tuduh I bla bla bla...

Dalam situasi di atas, memang betul si perempuan berlaku jujur, beritahu dia keluar dengan kawan-kawan kelas. Tetapi, jawapan dia yang ringkas dan macam malas-malas nak jawab itu mungkin menyebabkan keraguan bagi si lelaki. Adakah si perempuan tidak cukup jujur? Mari kita lihat contoh seterusnya:

Situasi B

Lelaki : Sayang, tadi you keluar dengan siapa?

Perempuan : Dengan kawan-kawan.

Lelaki : Siapa?

Perempuan : Alahaii, kawan-kawan kelas laaa. Si A, B, C, D dengan E sekali. We all pergi makan kat Nando's, then jalan-jalan, then balik rumah. Ahaaa, I balik dengan si D tadi, naik teksi.

Haaaa... jawapan yang menyebabkan si lelaki tak tersoal lagi... 

Okay, mengikut senario di atas, si perempuan sudah cukup jujur menjawab pertanyaan si lelaki. Kalau kita ikut secara rasionalnya, jujur sudah kira molek sangat dari tipu-menipu, betul tak? Tetapi, ada satu lagi aspek penting dalam kejujuran iaitu ketelusan. So, apa salahnya kita beritahu terus secara telus, so that isu keraguan dapat dielakkan.

FAHAM

Proses faham-memahami lebih mudah kalau kita mula-mula lagi sudah ikhlas, jujur dan telus dengan pasangan. Bayangkan kalau apa yang kita lakukan, kita cerita betul-betul dekat pasangan tanpa nak selindung-selindung? Baru pasangan kita faham apa yang kita sampaikan, faham apa yang kita rasakan, faham apa yang kita katakan, pendek kata everything is well explained and crystal clear. Bila kita faham pasangan, kita tahu apa yang dia suka, apa yang dia tak suka. Jadi, kita pun usaha untuk buat perkara yang dia suka, elakkan buat perkara yang dia tak suka. Tapi perlu pastikan juga apa yang dia suka atau tak suka itu tidak bertentangan dengan ajaran Islam. Jadi, akan mudahlah bagi pasangan untuk mencapai tahap kefahaman yang diinginkan itu.

PERCAYA

Percaya pula agak susah untuk diaplikasikan dalam hubungan sebab manusia sering berubah-ubah. Hati manusia mudah goyah dan boleh berubah dalam sekelip mata sahaja. Sebab apa? Sebab syaitan itu sentiasa berusaha untuk menanam sifat prasangka dalam hati manusia. Tapi, jika kita benar-benar ikhlas, jujur malah telus dan faham pasangan, potensi untuk kita percayakan pasangan mungkin akan meningkat. Walau apa sekalipun, kita kena juga tinggalkan sedikit rasa curiga, dalam 5% or 10%, takut pasangan kita ada mendatangkan masalah satu hari nanti seperti curang dan skandal sana sini, at least kita tak akan merana seumur hidup, kita tak akan menyalahkan pasangan 100% dalam kegagalan sesebuah hubungan.

TERIMA SEADANYA & SETIA

Obviously, we are not perfect and will never be perfect coz we are humans. Oleh itu, kalau kita dah ikhlas, jujur, telus, faham dan percaya pasangan, maknanya kita sudah sanggup terima buruk baik pasangan. Awal-awal hubungan, memang akan ada banyak percanggahan pendapat, sebab masing-masing baru hendak mengenali hati budi, kan? So, lama-lama kalau kita amalkan rukun-rukun ini, Insya Allah perkara-perkara yang tak diingini dapat dielakkan. Last but not least is loyalty. Kesetiaan adalah yang paling optimum dalam hubungan. Kalau kita dapat pasangan yang turut mengamalkan rukun-rukun cinta ini, apa lagi sebab untuk kita menduakan pasangan? Apa lagi sebab untuk kita tidak dapat beri layanan yang baik terhadap pasangan kita? Wallahualam...

Semoga rukun-rukun ini dapat membantu memastikan hubungan kita dalam keadaan terkawal, penuh dengan kegembiraan, kesabaran, ketenangan dan keberkatan. Insya Allah... 

The end. Thank you! =)

Is Life A Fairy Tale?

My Mini Library of Fairy Tales

Rapunzel is on show! Yesterday I asked my sister to accompany me watching Rapunzel but she refused, she wanted to watch that hantu-apa-entah movie. I could not watch horror movies, coz later I would not have the guts to stay asleep at night. Therefore, I love fairy tales kind of story. Maybe it sounds childish or immature, but honestly said, life starts when we start dreaming. So, life starts with fairy tales! (?)

" And so the prince and princess found true love, and lived happily ever after "

Yes, it sounds cliché to have those words at the ending of the stories but hey that is what fairy tale is all about! A charming prince with a pretty princess who are deeply in love + a villain who is trying to tear them apart + magical fairies with magical powers to break the evil spells. Everything seems so perfect in fairy tales. But does life look like a fairy tale? As for me, life is NOT a fairy tale. Life is so REAL. In fairy tales, both prince and princess fell in love at first sight + get married + lived happily ever after. But not in our real life. In REAL life, we have got the chance to experience puppy love at least once in our lifetime before we get married. Do fairy tales have puppy love? No! In REAL life, we might be suffering from broken marriage. Do fairy tales have divorce cases in it? No! In REAL life, couples argue due to financial instability. Does economic crisis occur in fairy tales? No! But fairy tales remind me of what true love means.

I still remember when I was a kid, I always wanted to marry a guy PRINCE charming! And of course the guy PRINCE has to be good looking + rich, super duper rich + kind-hearted + gentleman and so onnn... But as time goes by, none of the guys that I have met fit all of the criteria of my PRINCE charming. Why can not I find a PRINCE guy with each criteria? Does he exist in this REAL world actually? As I think about it, in REAL life, nobody is perfect, so do I. And life is NOT exactly like a fairy tale. But there is one thing that is REAL about fairy tales. Fairy tales taught me that true love exists! The existence of true love does not involve a prince charming and a beautiful princess only, true love is for everyone! As in my case, true love involves ME & HIM. =) In my REAL life, I do not have to be a princess to fall in love with my prince charming. I just have to be MYSELF and be thankful to Allah for giving me the chance to love and to be loved by HIM in this REAL life. 

Thank you for being my true love, sayang!

True love doesn't come twice! 

The end. Thank you! =)

'Ain Lam Mim Wau

Today, I wanna share some information which I have got recently from Ustaz Fairuz.

 " Dalam dunia ini, terdapat 4 golongan manusia... "

1.     Mereka yang berilmu dan berharta

Ini golongan manusia yang 1st Class. Mereka dikurniakan rezeki ilmu dan harta yang banyak oleh Allah. Ilmu itu sangat meluas bidangnya. Apa sahaja yang kita pelajari dan fahami merupakan ilmu, tetapi bukan semua orang dikurniakan rezeki ilmu yang meluas. Oleh sebab itu, Islam sangat menggalakkan umatnya untuk menuntut ilmu. Menuntut ilmu itu tiada batasannya, tidak kira muda atau tua, miskin atau kaya, masing-masing berhak untuk menuntut ilmu. Walau apa pun, ILMU AGAMA itu yang terpenting! Sebab kalau ada banyak ilmu duniawi sekali pun, tetapi ilmu agama tidak ada, tiada gunanya. Dan golongan ini juga dikurniakan rezeki harta yang banyak oleh Allah. Dengan ilmu di dada (especially ilmu agama), mereka ini tidak akan teragak-agak untuk membelanjakan harta mereka ke jalan Allah. 

2.     Mereka yang berilmu tetapi tak berharta

Ini pula golongan manusia yang 2nd Class. Mereka dikurniakan rezeki ilmu tetapi mereka tidak dikurniakan rezeki harta yang melimpah ruah. Kadang-kadang kita lihat ada orang yang berpelajaran tinggi, mempunyai pengetahuan yang mendalam tetapi hidup dalam kesederhanaan. Golongan ini mungkin tidak dapat membelanjakan jumlah harta yang banyak ke jalan Allah tetapi kerana ilmu yang ada, mereka ini tetap bersyukur di atas rezeki ilmu yang diberi. Oleh kerana mereka ini ada ilmu, mereka tahu menggunakan ilmu yang diberi dan berusaha untuk ke arah kebaikan. Mungkin lama-kelamaan, mereka ini dikurniakan harta yang melimpah ruah, jadi mereka tahu bagaimana hendak membelanjakan harta itu sebaik mungkin sebab mereka pernah tidak berharta. "Bersusah-susah dahulu, bersenang-senang kemudian". Pepatah ini memang selalu kita dengar, tetapi adakah ramai yang sanggup bersusah-susah dahulu sebelum senang? Tepuk dada, tanya selera. Pendek kata, usaha dan kesabaran amat penting kerana percayalah bahawa duit tidak akan turun dari langit begitu sahaja! Perlulah SABAR dan lebih BERUSAHA.

3.     Mereka yang tidak berilmu tetapi berharta

Yang ini golongan 3rd Class; tak ada ilmu, ada harta. Kebiasaannya, golongan ini meletakkan harta sebagai perkara terpenting dalam hidup mereka. Ada harta sudah cukup untuk menampung kehidupan. Tapi, betul ke harta sahaja sudah mencukupi? Mestilah tidak cukup sebab mereka ini hanya tahu membelanjakan harta yang diberi sewenang-wenangnya tanpa pertimbangan akal fikiran yang waras kerana mereka tidak berilmu. Harta setinggi gunung pasti akan berkurangan satu hari nanti. Kalau kita tengok golongan 2nd Class, mereka harus bersabar dalam mencari harta tetapi untuk golongan 3rd Class ini, mereka sudah tidak perlu bersabar kerana mereka sudah diberikan harta yang banyak. Apa kekurangan mereka? ILMU! Mereka tiada ilmu, bukan sahaja ilmu duniawi tiada, malah ilmu akhirat juga tiada. Golongan ini bukan tidak boleh mencari ilmu, cuma setakat mana usaha mereka untuk menuntut ilmu, itu yang menjadi penentunya.

4.     Mereka yang tidak berilmu dan tidak berharta

Golongan 4th Class ini adalah yang paling last sekali dalam golongan-golongan manusia di muka bumi ini. Sudahlah tidak berilmu, berharta pun tidak. Alangkah ruginya diri hidup di dunia tanpa mendapat rezeki ilmu dan harta dari Allah. Moga-moga kita tidak tergolong dalam golongan ini. 

Overall, apakah perkara yang paling penting dan utama dalam entry kali ini? It is...

 'Ain Lam Mim Wau = ILMU

So, antara keempat-empat golongan ini, kita di mana? Renung-renungkanlah...

The end. Thank you! =)

Prioritize Your Priority

Generally, humans are born with needs. We need protection, food, education, money, love and many more. But to fulfill each and single aspect of needs is not as easy as ABC. Theoretically, as what had been proposed by Abraham Maslow in his Hierarchy of Needs, humans need to fulfill 5 different stages of needs in which illustrated below:

Maslow stated that each of the level must be met before individuals can progress to the next level of the need hierarchy. If we look at the hierarchy above, we can see how Maslow prioritize the needs according to its practicality. I suppose Maslow had his own reasons to come out with this theory of humans' needs and I would say that his theory is widely used by many researchers, educators or even psychologists up until today. It is proven that his theory is beneficial especially for future reference but for us to follow exactly like what had been proposed by Maslow is still debatable. 

Nowadays, we face a lot of transformation as we are moving to the era of globalization in which advanced technology and luxurious lifestyles become our topmost priorities. People are striving hard for material needs until they don't realize the importance of fulfilling their emotional and spiritual needs at the first place. Many issues can be brought up when it comes to the needs at this particular time. Thus, it makes me critically think of what I need the most in my life actually. I have to prioritize my needs according to my priority. This is what I can say about my needs:

In my life, the very first aspects that I have to fulfill is my physiological needs. Obviously it involves the very basic needs of humans such as food, clothes, shelter and money. Being healthy is important as I have mentioned in my previous entry, I am happy if I am healthy. To be healthy, I need to get adequate sleep (6 hours per day at least), eat healthy food (according to the food pyramid BUT less sugar, please) and exercise regularly. How about the needs of clothes and shelter? Well, they serve as my protection; I feel safe if I have a place to stay (house) and clothes to wear. I have added up money in my physiological needs because it is a crucial need as it keeps me secure whenever and wherever I go.

The second stage of my needs will be based on love needs. Emotionally, I need love and the sense of belongingness is found when I have my beloved family, my Darling Fiance & my cheerful kids (in the future) by my side. I need them to motivate me because they are my biggest supporters. I know I can rely on them and they will never let me down. They guide me when I am lost; they advise me when I am wrong; they trust me and believe in my dreams; they accept me and love me as who I am.

A glimpse of my kesayangans!

My Beloved Parents!

My Adorable Sisters =D

My Only Brother =)

My Darling Fiance =p

Okay, enough of the pics...

Now let us moving on to the next stage in which I put esteem as my need. What is my definition of esteem needs? CONFIDENCE & POSITIVITY are the key words. In order to achieve the level of confidence is quite difficult and breathing positivity is a bit challenging for me. Some of us might feel confident enough while talking in front of public due to the positive thoughts that "Everything will go smoothly", "Relax, everything will be just fine"; whereas some might always be confident with their physical appearances and hold to the positive beliefs that "I am well-dressed today", "This is my best shoes ever". As for me, when I think positively, it will boost up my confidence level. No matter how tough the challenges might be, I always remind myself to be confident and always practice positive thoughts towards any situations. All of these two elements can lead to my self-satisfaction.

Self-fulfillment needs and esteem needs have one thing in common. SATISFACTION! But esteem adalah bersifat luaran while self-fulfillment lebih bersifat dalaman. As for me, self-fulfillment melibatkan pengisian rohani yang berteraskan muhasabah diri. Whatever needs that we want to achieve, spiritual needs should be our main concern. What does it mean by spiritual needs? In my point of view, tuntutan agama Islam merupakan pengisian rohani (spiritual need) yang melengkapkan kehidupan seseorang. 

Well, we might not have similar needs but Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs can be our guideline in prioritizing our needs. As humans, we can only plan what we want in life. Like myself, I can come out with my own hierarchy of needs, I can create my own dreams, I can tell what had happened to me yesterday BUT I can not predict what will happen tomorrow. Therefore, I should bear in mind that to make all plans work, to ensure all dreams come true, it depends on Allah's will. Oleh itu, jalan yang sebaik-baiknya adalah sentiasa berdoa dan memohon keberkatan Allah, tingkatkan ibadah supaya permintaan kita dimakbulkan Allah. Cepat atau lambat, dapat atau tidak dapat, semua itu atas ketentuan Allah. Setiap apa yang kita mahu lakukan, amalkanlah ajaran Islam sebagai panduan asas dalam kehidupan seharian.

Muhasabah diri setiap kali diuji Allah adalah jalan terbaik untuk mencapai keinginan dalam kehidupan. 

The end. Thank you! =)