Hooray!!! It's the weekend!!!

It is interesting how some people will name the days of the week not by their proper names, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday etc. but by how many days to the weekend. For example, " only three days to the weekend."

Today is Saturday and after an interesting week of work I am enjoying a day off from work. It is so good that I have tomorrow off from work too. Lucky me!

I find that if I am busy I look to do other things as well, so after two 3am finishes in a row, I woke up at 6.30am to get in a car to travel to Paraparaumu and attend my first Toastmasters conference. As I write this my eyes are feeling a little heavy and I'm not sure how I'm going to get through the next part of the day but I should get into a state where I have an open mind and try and learn something.

This is an unusual weekend day for me so I thought that today I would discuss ten things that you can do that will make your weekend enjoyable, maybe even memorable. Lets go:

1. Improve yourself. As I said today I am at a Toastmasters conference. This is all part of my self improvement and a chance to meet lots of other people. Ordinarily I wouldn't do this and my first instinct would be to say no but I believe you have to to try these things before you say no, unless it involves a parachute or a bungee cord.

2. It is always nice to get away for a couple of days. Go away with someone special and just spend the time together. I like going to a lake or beach area. There are usually other people there but they are also away for the weekend so everyone is relaxed and it is a great chance to unwind.

3. Join a sports club. In Japan I played Touch on Saturday afternoons. These were largely pick up games and we had a big mailing list, so we would turn up at the ground and play and then sometimes afterwards we would have a beer or three. A great way to unwind and have some exercise. Of course Touch is just an example, I used to play cricket or hockey. My father plays golf. The possibilities are endless.

4. Call a friend you haven't seen for a long time and go and see them. Chances are they will be very pleased to hear from you and I can almost guarantee that they will say to you that they have been planning to contact you for quite some time but have never got around to it. Who knows, you may be able to reconnect and have another mate to add to your drinking buddies.

5. On the subject of drinking, is there nothing wrong about going out for a few? Maybe go to a couple of clubs and have a dance (although real men don't dance) and even brush up on your seduction technique. Sometimes people need blow off some steam and having a few pints is the perfect solution to that.

6. Test drive your dream car. My favourite car is a BMW so why don't you call up the local dealer and organize a test drive? You know that you have always wanted to get behind the wheel of that car so go do it. Of course the biggest problem is convincing the salesperson that you can afford it.

7. In Japan I used to like going to a hot springs place or one of those big spa places. Some of the big public bath houses are fantastic and you can easily spend all day in them and I did. Not sure what places near my current home that I can do that but it would fun trying to find one.

8. Why not go and see a show that you may not go and see normally. I'm suggesting something like the opera. I know I wouldn't go. Make a night of it. Put your finest clothes on, go to a fantastic restaurant and enjoy the opera. Even if you don't like opera I'm sure that you will remember the event and maybe repeat in the near future.

9. Go to the supermarket and/or the local market and buy your ingredients, take them home and cook like you have never cooked before. This is your time to be creative, try that thing that you have always wanted to try and be a world famous chef for one night.

10. If you are living in a big city, why don't you pick an area that you don't know very well and go explore it. I know I did that a few times in Tokyo and it is amazing the types of places, shops and restaurants that you can find.

Happy Weekend Everybody. Have a good one.

Is this working out for you?

Dear the manager of the Jetts gym in Palmerston North, New Zealand.

I have been a member of your gym for the past six months or more and because I didn't have to lock in to a contract or pay everything up front and because it is very cheap to use your facilities I have used the gym on a number of occasions and for what I wanted, it is fine.

However, no one or nothing is perfect so I would like to give you ten ideas in which I think that you can give users a better experience over all.

1. The showers need to be cleaned on a semi regular basis. I don't think they are disgusting they could just be that little bit cleaner. The shower curtain especially needs to be washed maybe every second or third day. It can get quite disgusting if people don't leave the door open or if it has high usage over the week.

2. I hate it when people use machines for seats. They do a set which lasts for ten seconds and then sit for three minutes. I know that I could just go up when I want to use the machine but you never know what reception you are going to get. Please police that better. I know that every gym in the world you will get people doing that so it's not a new problem but it would just be good if we can stop it.

3. The paper towels that you use for cleaning the machines are in my mind ridiculous. Is it not viable to provide towels at each station so that they can be cleaned down that way? Are you worried that they will be stolen by people? I suppose it is Palmerston North after all. We do have stupid people in this town.

4. The little cubby holes that you use for people putting their belongings in are not the best. These need to be lockers. I know that you have security cameras and things but one of these days, either something will be taken by mistake and that person may not bother returning it or something will be stolen. It is just a matter of numbers. Put in lockers in which you put your stuff in and get a key with a band around it so you can wrap it around your wrist.

5. Are steppers out of fashion? Have those cross trainers taken over? In the past I have, I wouldn't say enjoyed them but have always got a good workout on them. Why are there none in our gym? You have the rowing machines, which I quite like by the way. I can see the benefits of them but no steppers. that I don't understand.

6. How well patrolled are the car parks for our gym? I know that Jetts has six car parks dedicated for the gym but I have seen many times people parking there and going off into The Plaza for a spot of shopping. Is it possible to get them towed or fined on a more frequent basis? People in the service industry have to realise that the whole experience is important. Just by asking, "how's your day been?" is not a great example of customer service.

7. I don't know the role of the people who work at Jetts but it would be quite nice if they are surveying the work out room occasionally rather than standing with their backs to the room using the computers. If I am doing something wrong on a machine it would be nice to know especially from a safety standpoint.

8. Is it possible to have the windows in the corner by the traffic lights to be blacked out? It can quite disconcerting if you are in that area and people are staring at you through the windows while you are doing your sit ups. It is nice to look outside sometimes but every Tom, Dick and Susan doesn't need to know what you are doing.

9. This is not a new idea but something like the boot camp that you had starting June was a good idea but I think that the price was quite prohibitive for a lot of the gym's members. Please do have something like that but keep the costs down.

10. Could you put a seat in the shower rooms? I know that there is not a lot of room in there but having something like that would make it a little bit easier for everyone. I know for certain I would be one of the first people to thank you if you did that.

I know that Jetts is a franchise system and you are dictated by what you can and can't do by head office but maybe you can take some of these ideas to the suits in Auckland or Australia or whether the decisions are made.

Am I a Bookworm?

Books! We have all read one, haven't we? I know I have. So far this year I have read 49 books. I'm quite pleased with myself there. I'm sure that I will read a further half dozen or so before the end of the year.

I'm sure, like me, you may have a few books that you want to read and for whatever reason you haven't.  Today I would like to make a list of the ten books that I would like to read hopefully in the coming months.

1. Sweet Poison. I saw an article on the Sunday current events show. This piece was done by Peter Fitzsimmons and it talked about this book and how sugar is ruining our lives. I have an advanced sweet tooth and any sweet food that is in my vicinity will be consumed. I remember in 2002 I read Fast Food Nation and that put me off McDonalds for a long time and I must say that even now it isn't part of my diet. I have the odd lime shake from the place.

2. The Bible. I am not religious but I think that any good reader worth their salt should read this once in their lives. I'm put off by the length of it and all of the church stuff but I'm sure that there are a few good passages that are applicable to me.

3. Making a difference. This is a book written by New Zealand businessman, Owen Glenn. They say if you want to do things and be successful at it, you do what people before have done. So, I am interested to read how Owen Glenn got started in business and what are his secrets.

4. Jack Reacher. I have read a few Jack Reacher novels and have enjoyed all of them so far. I tend to get quite lazy when it comes to reading novels but with Jack Reacher books I should have no excuse. They are easy to read and they are written for people like me. On a slightly different topic, how did the people involved in the production of the Jack Reacher movie decide to cast Tom Cruise. Jack Reacher is just under 200cm tall. Tom Cruise is 170cm. Can you see why I am ranting?

5. Think and Grow Rich. This is a classic. I have read it a number of times and I have the electronic version. All of the get rich gurus that are out there today mention this book as something they read along the way or even an inspiration for them to do what they do. He talks about the secret in the book but when I read it I never found it. I think this time when I read it I will find it.

6. The Fan. I have seen this a couple of times on DVD and have enjoyed but like most book/movie productions I can imagine the book is better. This is book is set in the baseball world and is about the mad keen fans that follow the sport. Robert DeNiro plays the fan in the movie adaptation.

7. Fifty Shades of Grey. I have only just heard about this book. It sounds as though it is quite popular especially amongst women. So what better way to understand the mind of a woman by reading things that she will read too. I understand that there are another two books in the series.

8. The 4-Hour Chef. The new book by Tim Ferris will be out in November this year. I have read his second book but have started his first book but have not managed to finish it. I do enjoy his writing and I got some good ideas from his second book and I look forward to this one for getting good ideas for nutrition.

9. How I raised myself from failure to success in selling. I have attempted sales in the past and haven't done too well. It doesn't mean I want to give up on that career. This book is an oldie but a goodie and is packed with relevant information that will never go out of fashion.

10. Slim and healthy without dieting. This book is written for middle aged women who want to lose weight but in that book I hear that a lot of the tips the author gives are relevant for men as well. I look forward to reading this book and hopefully implementing some of the ideas.

There we have it 10 books. 3 fiction books, 6 non-fiction books and one book that I am not sure on. Lets just leave it at that. If anyone out there has any ideas I'm always open to them.

Putting the foot down.

We in New Zealand have just had a long weekend. Monday was a public holiday so many people celebrated Labour Day and Labour Weekend by going away for the weekend. Packing up the car and going to their baches, cribs or tents and caravans.

As with every holiday weekend the police keep statistics on how many people died in traffic accidents. Unfortunately 7 people died this past Labour Weekend. My thoughts are with families who lost family members this past weekend. I can't imagine what they went through when they heard the news of their loved one's death.

How can we prevent these accidents from occurring? What can we change to make it more difficult for these statistics to increase? Here are some of my ideas:

1. Lower the tolerance of drink driving to zero. It is amazing that some people will drive to a pub and then try to calculate how many beers in how many hours they can have like it is some kind of complicated mathematical problem. Sometimes I find it it ridiculous the lengths that people will go to. Make it zero and then all of the guessing will taken out of it. Of course in saying that transport to and from this kinds of establishments will need to be improved although that could be arranged by the establishment themselves.

2. The speed limit on the open road is 100km/h. I consistently drive between 96 to 100km/h. I am amazed how often I am passed on the open road. There seems to be a misconception that around town it is OK to drive at 60km/h and on the open road it is OK to drive at 110km/h. Where drivers got these arbitrary numbers from is anyones guess. If you think about, in built up areas it is 20% more than the limit while on the open road it is 10%. What should they so in 70km/h zones? Drive at 80.5km/h because that is 15% more? Slow down. Don't be in such a hurry to get anywhere. You are probably only arriving 5 minutes earlier anyway. This is another one that should be looked at closely. Have the speed limits and enforce them strongly.

3. I have talked about speed limits but it seems that people get even more irritated with people who drive too slowly. People get angry and do stupid things to get past the slow coach and accidents occur. Just on a side note I find it mildly amusing how people's personalities change when they get behind the steering wheel of a car. Talk about Dr. Jeykll and Mr.Hyde. So why don't we have a speed limit of 85km/h to 100km/h? This would keep the slow coaches off the roads and keep everything running smoothly.

4. Have prohibitive consequences for people who are not wearing seat belts in both the front seats and back seats of cars. This will make sure that people buckle up more readily. I'm sure every year people's lives could be saved if they wear seat belts.

5. A couple of weekends ago I drove to Whanganui which is about a 45 minute drive from Palmerston North. What I noticed about the road was that it has improved a great deal and there were many passing lanes what I didn't see were places where people can pull over. Some times for drivers it can be quite disconcerting with cars up your ass trying to get past. If possible I try to let them past and that would be easier if we had areas on the side of the road that we could pull into.

6. Make it a rule to have a rest after driving for a period of two hours. Cars will be fitted with a timer that can not be altered once started. If the police officer checks the timer and finds that it is gone over the time period then penalties could be enforced. Also the timer will also calculate how long the car has stopped for, so for example the minimum time is 5 minutes.

7. Because of the one lane each way concept that is most New Zealand open roads, a barrier between the lanes is not feasible but it could be done on the double yellow lanes. I wonder if a lot of head on collisions are at double yellow lines. So build barriers along those double yellow lines. The only problem I see with this is that there are a great deal of farm entrances and other smaller roads along these major highways and that may cause difficulty for people trying to off.

8. I said before that we need areas to the left of the road to be used so people can move over, do we also need more passing lanes? This will allow the traffic to flow more freely and hopefully bring down the road toll.

9. How much is a life worth? This question can not be answered. Can New Zealand improve it's public transport system so it is more worthwhile for people to travel by public transport to their holiday destinations? Less people are on the roads and people are using trains, planes and buses. I think the road toll would be lower if that was the case. This would be cost a great deal of money to implement but if it helps save one life, wouldn't it be worth it?

10. I said before that people following closely behind you can be disconcerting. I don't think there is any law that says how far you have to be behind a car. Should there be? I'm sure that this would be quite difficult to judge and it would be a subjective thing on the part of the police but if you start pulling people up for it then that could help. So, what I am saying is that we should standardize following distances.

Those are just some of my ideas. If you have any ideas, I would love to hear them.

I can do...

Do you know what a stock take is? Some people call it taking inventory. I work at a horse race course in the catering division. At the end of each month we have to count everything we have. In other words count all of our stock. We do a stock take. I tell you something, the first time I did this it took me forever as I didn't know what I was doing. Slowly it has become a little easier and it doesn't take me very long at all.

What's this got to do with anything, I hear you say. Sometimes when we are in the depths of despair and we think that things are going to get worse and worse, we should stop and think about what we are good at and basically the things in life that we are excel at. You should try this exercise too. It is quite difficult because for me some things I do naturally and without thinking, some people find that quite impressive because they don't have that skill or ability.

Today what are 10 things I am good at:

1. I wouldn't say that I am good at making friends but I seem to be able to make contacts quite easily. Some people don't like networking events and for straight business purposes I don't think that I was good at turning introductions into deals but what I did find that was useful was I had a big list of people I had meet and generally I could call them up, tell them where I had met them and organise things with them. For example I had a friend come and stay with me in Tokyo and I organised for him a chance to speak to a couple of groups that I had contacts with.

2. I'm quite good at remembering faces. Names, not so much unless they have given me a business card in which I can see how their name is written, then I will remember. I'm told that we learn differently and I am definitely a visual learner. I have to see it written for it to go into my brain. Sometimes my current boss will tell me what needs to be done but because he hasn't written it down it basically goes in one ear and out the other.

3. I have a good memory for certain things. My friend used to tease me about remembering what road signs said before we passed them and things of a similar nature. But I do remember things like that. I suppose it goes back to being a visual learner and also I like to look around as I travel in a car for instance. I remember I was in Shinjuku, Tokyo with a previous employer and he joked that I was always looking around streets, looking at shop signs and the like, seeing what was about. I thought it wasn't funny, I just thought of it as me getting to know my environment.

4. This is a bit of a negative one but I am very good at starting things and not seeing them through to completion. However, when I do put my mind to it I do come up with some very good results. I just wish that I put that kind of effort in everything as opposed to half-assed with what I have done with 98% of stuff up until now. Examples of successes would be I lost 17 kgs of weight in only 2 months in 2002. I really focused on that and had staggering results. I also was quite shy around women. So one day I decided to join an online dating site and I just got into that so much that I changed my life around in that area. I'm far from the finished article but I am far better than what I was.

5. I am a good teacher. In Japan I considered myself as an edutainer, in other words someone who entertained as well as educated. I try and make lessons interesting and a little bit different. Something that they may have not done before. Also I think that I am a good coach. I remember a few years ago taking eggs to a cricket practice. I used them for catching practice. Something a little bit different and something memorable. My goal was that I wanted them to come back next week.

6. I'm decent at public speaking. For many people the idea of getting up in front of people and talking is an idea that they don't want anything to do with but I do it and sometimes I do it quite well. Lets just say that it doesn't scare me.

7. I'm good at reading, writing and speaking Japanese. Japanese is quite a difficult language to learn but once you get the pattern it can be simple to remember. Unfortunately I find my spoken language has gone down over the last few years but I can still read a lot more than my peers so that is an advantage on my side I believe.

8. Some people may laugh at this but I consider myself quite creative. I think people get in a rut of how they do things so I try to do something a little bit different. Whether it is putting something unusual in the mashed potato or thinking of something to do that not many other people would think of. I'm your man for that.

9. I think compared to the average Joe Blogs, I am a good writer. I don't know what you think but some of these blogs are OK. I have written novel length pieces before and some passages in them are not too bad. I actually enjoy writing and when you get on a roll, lots of good stuff can come out.

10. I think I am quite good at accessing the situation that I am in and acting accordingly. Having lived overseas for a considerable length of time I have experienced a few different cultures and I haven't put my foot in it on too many occasions. I think the secret is to have a big smile on your face, be interested and don't try and take over and play the fool.

Cafe Culture

I live in a city of 85000 people. There are three McDonalds outlets. There are two KFC outlets. There are four Subway shops. Wendy's and Carl's Jr are currently in construction. Burger King is also here. What have I left out? There must be some kind of franchise or chain shop that we don't have. Oh yes, I remember now, there is no Starbucks.

Why is that? There seems to be a Starbucks in every other major provincial city in New Zealand. I believe that there was one in Palmerston North but it closed down a couple of years ago.

How can you run a successful cafe in Palmerston North? I must admit I am not an expert about cafes so my opinion just comes from my experience in being in a number of cafes and what I think people should do to run that cafe in the metropolis that is Palmerston North.

1. You have to charge provincial prices. I would hazard a guess that prices in the Starbucks around New Zealand are the same. This would fly in Auckland but in places like Palmerston North it just doesn't work. People may go there on a Sunday afternoon but would bypass it on Monday through Friday mornings on the way to work. New Zealanders generally don't like to give away their money easily especially people in the provinces and top dollar for a cup of coffee is not a done thing.

2. You have to decide what kind of market you are going to target and structure your menu and location for that market. For example if you are going to target a more older crowd you don't want to put exotic foods and things that people don't know what it is. You have to have more recognisable food, traditional if you like at a lower price.

3. You have to decide what kind of food is going on that menu. Are you going to have the traditional sausage rolls, mince pies, doughnuts and sally lunns on the menu or are you going to have wraps, quiches and slices. This would depend on where the cafe is located. Personally in this town I think you have to have a combination of them both. The market is too small to only cater to one section of the population. Some grumpy old man is not going to want to eat quiches.

4. I think for a cafe to be successful it needs to be open a great number of hours. I know that Cafe Cuba is open from early in the morning until late at night and that seems to be successful and so a cafe needs to be open from say 7am to 11pm, even 6am to 12am. That way you will get people who want that breakfast and people who want a coffee or dessert after seeing a movie late at night.

5. Location, location, location. A cafe in Palmerston North has to be in George Street. No argument. That's where it should be. It can't be open on the Square at midnight as you will get drunken louts coming in and that is not why people go to a cafe. They go there for quite conversation not abuse from drunken young people.

6. The marketing of your cafe in Palmerston North needs to be good. If you do a good show then the word of mouth will be excellent in this town. If you are crap that will get around twice as fast, so be careful. You need to use radio to get your message across. There are a plethora of radio stations in Palmerston North, use them. Make sure that you are the person on the ad or even better get a local celebrity to voice your ad. You will be surprised how many people listen to the radio so that medium is a must.

7. In 2012 this is a must, have a website with your menu on it. The number of establishments I look up on the internet that don't have their own specialised website is mind boggling and you may be losing customers to other places if you don't have one.

8. Nice friendly, well groomed and intelligent staff are a must. I think this is important and it should go without saying but sometimes the service in this country can leave a little to be desired. Some people believe by asking, "How's your day going?" they are showing good customer service. That is bullshit. You create good customer service by doing things correctly and politely. If you want to talk to the customer talk about something relevant to them, not something generic that they hear fifteen times a day and they don't know how to answer. I have two stories I remember a long time a go at Pak N' Save a check out assistant spoke with me about something I had in my trolley. it was relevant to me and I had a good experience. A few weeks a ago I was in a cafe in George STreet and ordered something and she got it wrong and then argued with me when I said that she got it wrong. Unfortunately for the owners I won't go in there again.

9. The decor of the cafe needs to be neutral. This is not a flashy town. If you decorate your cafe too flashy and gaudy it runs the risk of being known as somewhere where alternative people go to rather than who you want to attract, the mainstream.

10. I've said a few times in this post and I'm going to say it again, PRICE or as the say on The Apprentice PRICE POINT is important. Remember who your market is and price it accordingly. This is so important. I believe Starbucks priced itself out of the Palmerston North market.

At the end of the day if you are going to have a successful cafe in Palmerston North, you have to be conscious of price, location and just general awesomeness because if it is then the word of mouth, in other words the grapevine will run overtime and you will be working overtime to keep up with the demand of your cafe.

This weekend's sports action

I am an avid sports watcher and I would just like to comment on two incidents over the weekend that have caught my eye and made me think about what is going on.

First of all, on Friday night (UK time), Leeds were playing Sheffield Wednesday in a South Yorkshire derby. In other words a football game. After Leeds scored, a few Leeds supporters came on to the ground after their team had scored with one coming up to the goalkeeper and pushing him quite violently in the face. The shock value alone would have been enough to hurt him and he needed medical attention.

Here is my take on this, this kind of action is disgusting and is a disgrace for football in the United Kingdom. It is assault and the guy should be put in prison as far as I am concerned.

What can Leeds United and more specifically, English football do, so that this kind of incident never happens again.

1. Ban the guy for life and also ban some of his mates. Make an example of him and then show that that kind of abuse won't be tolerated and do it harshly. A pre-emptive strike so to speak. You would have to  be a complete moron not to take any notice of that.

2. Play in front of empty stadiums. Unfortunately this is punishing the 98% of the fans who are there for the football and will be a big hit in the accounts of the football clubs but drastic times require drastic measures.

3. I know that after the Hillsborough tragedy, fences are not allowed but if players are continuing to be under threat from spectators then they may not have a choice.

4. Hire the local rugby team to stand behind the goals and act as bouncers and give them permission to smash anyone who dares come on the field. The rugby players will be wearing boots so if a spectator does come on then they have an advantage. The boots can also be used for rucking the offender.

5. Rather than a fence, they could have a net in front of the spectators. This net can be lowered at the touch of a button. It is also build quite high so the ball doesn't get lost amongst the spectators.

I don't know whether these ideas will work because in the UK, it seems that football is not a matter of life or death, it is more important than that. Maybe the problem is not just a football one but a society one on a whole. Some of the people who watch the matches seem to have a couple of screws loose.


The next incident I want to comment on is from a rugby match on Saturday in the town of Pukekohe, just south of Auckland in New Zealand. Counties Manukau was playing Southland in the semi-final of the championship section of the National Provincial Rugby Competition. In the first half, one of the Southland players was shown to be lying on the ground, apparently injured. He was put on a stretcher and carried off the ground.

It come through after the game that the player has suffered a cardiac arrest and was in an induced coma in an Auckland hospital. I wish that he has a speedy recovery and even if he can't play rugby again I hope that he has a long life in the sport that he obviously loves.

The first thing I want to comment on is the comparison between what happened with Fabrice Muamba  earlier this year and this incident. After Fabrice Muamba was carried off the ground, the football game was stopped and his club, Bolton even postponed their following game. Yesterday's game continued as usual.

What I'm thinking about what does that say about the differences between football and rugby and even British society and New Zealand society? I can't work it out. I think the football game was right to be stopped, because at the end of the day human life is more important that anything else, while the rugby episode showed that life does go on. It is confusing.

Anyway, I'm glad to see that Fabrice Muamba has made a fantastic recovery. Lets hope that the Southland player can make a similar recovery and if he can't play again he can coach which he wants to do.

Rugby people in New Zealand are blaming the condensed nature of the competition and the fact that rugby is a physical game the stress on the body is quite high.

What can the rugby officials do to make the competition less stressful on the players:

1. Have a minimum of 6 days between games for teams.

2. Scrap mid-week games and only play Friday through Monday.

3. Increase the numbers in a team from 22 to 24.

4. Have 4 quarters of 20 minutes each instead of 2 halves of 40 minutes with ample drinks breaks. (The traditionalists are going to hate this.)

5. Play games earlier in the year.

For people who want to here are some videos of the two incidents.

Football: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9xElKblt5E

Rugby: http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/provincial/7844177/Southland-star-serious-after-collapsing-on-field