Identifying and getting your dream job

For most of us as employee, it is undoubtedbly we have to spend at least 1/3 of our time in a working day for our job, and it is estimated that most people work for a total of 60,000 hours over a period of about 30 years in their lifetime. Remember our "HISC₅"? Career definitely forms one of those important elements that make up our life.

Are you happy with your job? Have you identified your career goal and found your dream job? Would you rather be doing something other than what you are doing now?

Loving what you do, having interest, being passionate and always be motivated are some of the key success factor to us to excel in our career. Being on the right track of career is in turn a key success factor for our life value, social status and financial rewards.

Noelle Lim has featured an interesting and excellent 12-pages article in the July 2008 edition (Issue #83) of Personal Money magazine which I find is pretty inspiring. In the article, she elaborated on the 4 steps to land your dream job, namely:

• Define your dream career
• Find out more
• Network and gain experiences
• How to nail that job

Along with the article, there are touching stories of 6 people who are bold and determined to leave their comfort zone and pursuit for their dream job, and they succeed. Featured on the cover page of the magazine, they are:

• Claire Kwok - from finance associate to fashion buyer
• Nazrin Hassan - from managing a busines in CIMB to giving entrepreneurs a helping hand in Cradle fund
• Alexandra Wong - from sales manager to writer
• Fiona Lim - from SAP team lead to photographer
• Toh Kong Eu - from chemical engineer to tap dancer and destiny consultant
• Rosie Hong - from marketing manager to MD of marketing agency

If you are interested in this topic, I encourage you to read the full article in the July 2008 edition (Issue #83) of Personal Money magazine.

The 2 strollers in my home - why their price are so much different

There are 2 strollers in my home. The left-hand-side one is a Sweet Cherry, cost RM150 (after 50% discount), and the right-hand-side one is Combi Super Mechacal DX, cost RM7xx (after 35% discount).



They have similar parts and functionalities, such as:

• Reversible handle
• Foldable
• Double wheel with suspension on each side
• Front swivel wheels with lock
• 3-points seat belt
• With canopy
• Removable front guard
• With storage basket
• 3 levels of reclination
• Footrest for toddler

But the Combi stroller is about 5 times the price of the Sweet Cherry. What make the different then? Here are the features of the Combi stroller that justify its higher price:

• It is very light weight. The metal material is different.
• The fabric material is different too. The baby can stay in it for hours without feeling hot or unconfortable. My son used to sleep in it during daytime.
• The seat cushion is more soft and comfortable.
• The seat cushion is fully removeable and washable.
• The suspension is pretty good. It is not so bumpy when going through uneven lands.
• It is more compact when folded.
• Its seat belt can hold the baby better and more comfortable.
• Its front guard is soft. Not made by hard plastic.
• It comes with shoulder strap for convenient carrying when folded.
• Its canopy has sufficient ventilation windows, and can fully cover until the front guard.

All in all, I find the Combi Super Mechacal DX well worth for its price. If you plan to buy a stroller for your baby/toddler, although price is a major consideration, convenience (to you) and comfortability (to the baby/toddler) are also important considerations that should not be neglected.

How to choose a stroller for your baby/toddler

Basically, there are 4 major kinds of strollers available - made locally, made in Japan, made in China, made in Western countries. I found their differences, in general, are as follow:

• Locally made and China made stollers are generally much cheaper than other imported one. They might have similar parts and functions with their counterparts, but the quality might be different.
• Japan made strollers are generally smaller in size than Western made. This might probably because the body size of Asian people is smaller. They are also easier and simpler to operate, practical in functionalities.
• Western made strollers are generally bigger in size, and more complicated to operate. I remembered the shopkeeper shown me a few times how to open and fold the McLaren, Peg Perego, Graco, etc. but I still can't figure out the way. Same to reclining the seat. Basically, more steps are involved, not as straightforward as the Combi.

The following are some considerations when choosing for stroller:

• Light weight - convenient to carry.
• Foldable - so that you can put in your car and bring it to shopping complex and other places. It should be compact when folded so that not taking too much space in your car.
• Durability and maximum weight support - you might want to choose one that can be used from new born until 3-4 years old.
• Quality of fabric material - your baby should feel comfortable, feel cool, not easily sweating within short period of time.
• Seat cushion fully removeable and washable - the stroller can gets dirty and need frequent clean up, especially if you seat your baby in it while feeding food.
• With canopy - to protect your baby from sun and sudden rain.
• Reversible handle - so that your baby can face forward (to enjoy the scene) or backward (to get your attention).
• Multilevel reclination - to adjust the position accordingly. Infant cannot sit too upright.
• Wheels with suspension - so that it won't be too bumpy.
• Easy to operate - especially when your baby is taken care by older people such as your mother.
• Availability of spare parts - especially the rubber-made wheels which are subjected to wear and tear.
• Basket - for your convenience to carry along some diapers, baby wipe, baby food, etc.
• Safety design - the stroller should not be easily overturned. It should have emergency brakes and other safety features too.

Last but not least, your baby must like it. It is advisible for your baby to actually sit in it and "test drive" for a while, make sure he/she like it before bringing it home from the store.