Ming and Aoki - should there be an age limit to entrepreneurship?

Unbelievable. What do you do when you have a multimillion dollar mom who has the fashion world on its knees? You come up with your own collection of course! I'm sure a lot of celeb kids are doing that but at the age of 7 and 4!? There are so many websites sprouting earnestly to get kids into business like teachingkidsbusiness.com, internetbasedkids.com, entrepreneurshipforkids.com, and franchild.com. Looks like mommies and daddies can't wait for their kids to grow up and bring some bread home too.

That reminds me of the online ethnography project that we've been working on lately, where Shaun found a lot of kids using their blogs to earn money and build their little business ventures, which was really interesting. It shows that the internet bunch is really different from their counterparts who did not grow up with the internet. The web is like a gold mine waiting to be discovered by opportunistic minds. I'm glad. Because this means we're bending rules which we were brought up to believe. Education = Degree = Career = Big money. It'd be interesting to note the social repercussions when education becomes active instead of passive. That would mean quaking the whole equation. Yes, I think we may be looking at a government change in a couple of years time if the status quo remains. Oh well, that's just my hypothesis but you can always beg to differ :)

By the way, my thoughts on the Ming and Aoki thing? Personally. I think it's quite disgusting after watching Kimora's reality show. I would applaud their creative participation of course, but geez, there's way too much attitude for those two little people. Wonder where they inherited that from...

Honda's all-new Accord launched yesterday, April 22nd.

It's finally here. So many sleepless nights, but if you ask me, I'm sure we'd choose to do it all over again ;) I didn't manage to take any photos of the launch because as you could have guessed, in any launch, time flies. Really flies. But anyway, in conjunction with this launch, the team (that includes everyone behind the scene) has decided that an original composition is much needed to celebrate this full model change of one of Honda's flagship babies. Hence, as I promised earlier, here are the lyrics:

Only with you
When I'm with u
It feels so true
It doesn’t matter where
Where I am going to
Only with you

Sometimes, you wake at night
Coz every single day (just) feels the
Same
Sometimes, you try so hard
But it becomes someone else’s
Game
You feel it's time to go
(Sometimes)
But still you miss it so
(It feels so true)

Only with you
When I'm with you
It feels so true
It doesn’t matter where
Where I am going to
Only with you

And you feel it burning deep in side
Like it's never burned before
you see it coming like a tide
still you keep on wanting more

This time I might have gone too far
But it feels so close
keep on reaching, reaching for the stars
And the star is yours...

Only with you
When I'm with u
It feels so true

It doesn’t matter where
where I am going to
Only with u

(Sorry. I wanted to upload the mp3 here for you guys to share but I simply couldn't give an extra hoot to figure out how. Blogspot is driving me nuts. So, I've decided to to take the easy way out this time and direct you to http://www.accord.com.my/ > click gallery > click The Accord Song > click Download Here on the top right hand corner of the pop-up. Enjoy :))

Only a week more to go.

Work's been crazy on this end due to the up-coming car launch which will be happening next week (plus many other crazy but exciting projects). We're still looking for help (scroll down to the post below) because we believe that excitement is contagious and we need to pass it on :) ha ha ha.

Anyway, after the 22nd, I'll share something really nice and personal about the all-new Accord with you guys here so please check back.

After next week, will be flying off to Tokyo again. One week work and the following to recharge. It feels strange. Like I'm going back to my hometown (which is not Tokyo, mind you). I'm planning a short trip down to Naoshima which is dubbed Japan's 'Art Island'. It's an island of all things art, even the hotels are supposed to be art museum inspired. So I reckon, it's gonna be pretty nice. A bit of time for me to straighten my mind and get things back on track. Coolness.

So my apologies if the posts are not up as often starting from next week because it's gonna be full throttle on the all-new Accord :) And I promise you, she will be SWEET.

Robert Solomon on how to be more than an account servicing person.

I think Client Servicing teams in agencies are the most underated bunch. But of course, occasionally you'd find one or two not-so-bright ones with an ego of 25,000 Watts, big enough to run a car engine.

Anyway, let there be light for others then. This book is highly recommended to anyone who's got the guts to truly stick his or her neck out but needs just a little extra nudge. If you've been in client servicing for some time now and wonder why no one listens to you or treats you with respect, then READ.

On the other hand, I think it has helped me immensely too. At least I know now it ain't easy being in account management and for those who do manage to come out of it unscathed, truly deserve a badge of honour. I think one of them, has to be Robert Solomon. I don't think this book is only meant for the accounts team. If by working in an agency, we are all expected to be creative, then we should all be expected to know how to manage the client (and each other) as well. Especially those who fantasize about being Creative Directors.

I think what truly inspired me was how Robert Solomon painted an almost perfect human being. Anymore perfect, than he had to be Jesus. For those who have all the guts in the world but need something extra:

1) Blame no one but yourself (I think this should be applicable to everyone. As long as you're breathing in the same sphere, remember these three words: Blame No One).

2) There's only one scapegoat in the company. And that's you. Be the bigger person and take the heat because that will (hopefully) melt the toughest creative guys.

3) Do what the client wants (which is most often than not, what all account servicing people are doing now). Then do what you think is right (this is the second part of the epic which we, so often, fail to see).

4) Romance the client (good job). And the creative, and the planners, and the suppliers (great job).

And the list goes on (anymore, and I'll be sued for plagiarism). So go on, enlighten yourself.

The all-new Altis.

Had some free time and went to Toyota showroom for a test drive on the all-new Altis. What struck me as odd initially was the endorsement by Orlando Bloom. I knew that the previous worldwide campaign endorser was Brad Pitt. Now it's Bloom. But why Bloom? Stylish?

The new model is definitely an M-size Camry. Even the salesperson comfirmed that, himself. I guess it's another case of instant gratification for those who aspire a Camry. They can now afford luxury on lesser investment. Honestly, the car did not create any deep impression on me, maybe it's because I've been seeing so many Camrys around already. So yes, in a way it was quite disappointing. And I'm not saying this simply because I work on Honda.

The interior cabin is nice though. The dashboard area and information display are both sleek and modern, far from the rubber dials you get from Vios (phew!). Unfortunately, these sophisticated looking buttons are only available for the 1.8s. It seems to have more thoughtfully design compartments compared to the previous model also. You'd probably spend the first month 'exploring' all these secret areas in your new car before really running it down.

Although it's now lenghtier and wider, it doesn't feel like I was drowning in all the extra space in the car. I'm not exactly tall so the power seat on the driver side for height adjustment is nice. Plus the four corner parking sensors since I'm quite blind. However, I don't like it when car manufacturer skim on things, because the power seat is only available on the driver side. It almost feels like it's modern but not quite there yet, you know?

The driving experience is really smooth due to the new power steering. The car literally glides on the road with seemingly very little effort. If you remember how Legolas is in Lord of the Rings, then you get the idea. It's... er, powerful, in its very own elf-ish sort of way. Whatever that means to you. Anyway, unfortunately when it comes to both real horsepower and produced torque, Civic still tops in terms of performance (comparing the 1.8s). So I'm thinking, this car will probably be sought after more by females? Because it's... 'gentler'? Hey that sounds just like Legolas! Now it's all beginning to make sense...

Overall, I think it is a pretty good car with a very comfortable and relaxed driving feel but for a segment of people who are seeking a totally different driving experience from a Civic. I guess it's really a question of whether you prefer to be the Elf. Or Aragorn :)

The future now.

During my recent trip to Tokyo, I was once again, bewildered with Japan's technology of tomorrow for today's people. As my comrade rightly put it, "Sh*t, this is the future. And it's not even supposed to be here yet!"

Right.

The future is here and now. Digital photoframes that can read memory cards, plug and play with your PC, digicam, whatever. Yes, plug it in and watch each of your captured memory slides in and out of the frame. Your album in one single frame. Your whole life in one single frame.

Now, that's putting a new meaning to: As I watch my life passes me by. How apt.