Guy Kawaski posted very interesting information on The Art of Sucking Down. Most of us know how to “suck up” – how to kiss the ass of the Marketing Manager, the CEO, the main stakeholder of your project. But very few of us realize how to handle effective communication with the “high people in low places”-- the airline ticket agents, waiters, receptionists, and secretaries.

Here are some interesting points:

• If you want something, be nice to the person.
• Empathize with them, and understand their needs; after all, “they're not getting paid a lot of money to put up with your crap.”
• Be important. Be a suki. Returning customers are considered important.
• Don't underestimate the first 30 seconds of. If you can make him smile within this span of time, chances are, you’ll get what you want.
• Don’t buy your way in.
• Express your gratitude on your way out. “Be nice to people on the way up because you're going to see them again on the way down.”
• Humor, dedication, and empathy are more effective that going to the person’s manager to complain.
• Help others if you have the opportunity to do so.
• Accept what cannot be changed.

Links:

The Art of Sucking Down

Okay. Fine. I watch American Idol. Happy now?

No, I am not ashamed of it. Although I admit I was caught off guard with the shrieks of giggles when I revealed my obsession with the show. And no, I don’t agree that I am “too haughty” to watch American Idol. Not that there’s any connection. If I’m haughty, how would you describe Simon Cowell? And he’s the frickin’ judge, for goodness sake.

Kevin’s finally out!

Yey!

It sure took a long time to boot him out. Chicken Little’s parting words, while pointing to the finalists:  “America, be smart, and pick one of these amazing people.” Huwaat? You mean we can’t pick the winner from the audience? But … but … but …

My Loves & Hates

Not that the list is laminated or anything. My disgust and non-disgust vary almost every week, depending on what I had for dinner.

• Kellie Pickler. Neutral. I’m not sick of her dumb act yet, but I’m getting there. “What’s a Ballsy?” Seriously?
• Chris Daughtry. Love. He does seem to sing the same song every week, though.
• Katharine McPhee. Love. She can do better with song selection. She might also need to tone down her sweetie pie image just a bit, lest people think she's another Jasmine Trias.
• Bucky Covington. Neutral. Forgettable performances, but looks too cuddly to be in Hate.
• Elliot Yammin. Love. Great technique, and looks like an all-around-nice-guy. Needs to learn how to connect with his audience. Elliot, I swear they love your goatee.
• Lisa Tucker. Love. She makes the worst song choices in the history of mankind, but I still wanna squish her.
• Mandisa. Neutral. Powerful voice and all that crap. But her voice and all that screaming sounds a little bit too familiar. I am craving for more originality.
• Paris Bennett. Hate. Is it the squeaky voice? Or the fact that her smile makes her face look like a prune?
• Taylor Hicks. Neutral. Yeah, I know I’m supposed to love him. Although I think it's great that he's having a lot of fun, he's starting to look like a drunk ______.
• Ace Young. Neutral. Not really found of his falsettos, which Paula Abdul adores. Watch those eyelashes, Paula -- those fake ones can only take so much batting.

And speaking of which:

• Paula Abdul. Hate. "You're like a breath of fresh air." Gracious, dear Paula: The only ones who like hearing your comments are the contestants, the families of the contestants, and the friends of the contestants. Outside of that group, people just think you’re a load of crap, and someone who badly need a new set of adjectives.

Next week: Songs of the 21st century, and undoubtedly a new bunch of Loves & Hates. Stay tuned.

I’m VAT registered. This means I am required to add the 12% VAT on any service I offer. I am also required by the Bureau of Internal Revenue to declare my Output and Input VAT regularly.

But this is not the reason why I demand Official Receipts from establishments. Rather, it’s because I am actually a good tax payer. Give to Caesar what is to Caesar … you know what I mean.

It’s been a rough ride though trying to wring out official receipts from establishments – my co-businessmen. Some establishments, albeit not following the rules, are easier to deal with. For example, I am a suki at Marks and Spencer in Shangri-la. Unfortunately, they also a habit of issuing me sales invoices instead of official receipts. However, whenever I ask me to issue an OR instead, they unhesitatingly give me one.

Just recently, I had a very unusual problem in my (now ex-) favorite shop: PC Express in Shaw Boulevard. Since I am in an IT business, we spend a lot of money on PC Express. I cannot count the number of motherboards, processors, casings, RAMs, and hard drives that we have bought from them.

As most PC Express fanatics probably know, they are not the type to issue official receipts. They would rather give you their standard Order Slip which you hand to the guy in the claims area. But they never gave me a hard time whenever I request for an OR. Until recently.

Last March 11, I ordered a motherboard in PC Express, handed my money to the cashier, and requested an official receipt. The cashier nodded, got a booklet, and handed me a piece of paper. I looked at it, and saw the words Sales invoice stamped on top.

“Madam, hindi po OR ito. Sales invoice lang po,” I said.

The girl replied: “Ito talaga ang binibigay namin sa customers.” I later found out her name was Katherine.

“Bawal kasi sa min. Kailangan OR lang ang tanggapin namin,” I explained. “Pwede pong humingi ng OR?”

“Kasi po nag-iissue lang kami ng OR pag services ang kinuha nyo. Hindi sa products,” Katherine said.

“Pinayagan kayo ng BIR sa sistema nyo?” I asked incredulously.

“Basta po ganun yung sistema namin,” she said.

She was unwilling to budge. This conversation actually went on for 20 freaking minutes.

Finally, she crisply said: “Kung gusto nyo ng OR, kailangan kayo tumawag sa director ng Accounting namin sa Head Office.”

I nodded my agreement. She wrote the number down on a slip of paper, which she handed to me.

She probably thought I will call the guy when I get home, because she got startled when I asked to use her phone. I called the so-called person in charge, someone named Boots. When Boots answered the phone, I simply explained that their cashier refuses to give me an OR.

Boots said “Binago po talaga naming ang sistema namin. Di na kami nag-iissue ng OR.”

I was tired, and lost all the courtesies, “Requirement po ng BIR and mag-issue kayo ng OR. Period.”

He requested me to hand the phone over to the cashier, Katherine. After they talked for a few seconds, she put down the phone, got a booklet from her desk, and issued me an OR.

Ayus.

Last March 18, I went to CD-R King in Cybermall, Eastwood City. I was prepared. Before I purchased anything, I asked the girl if they issue official receipts. She proudly showed me her booklet with the words Cash Invoice.

“Ito lang po talaga ang pinagamit sa min dito sa CD-R King,” she said.

Talaga naman ...

Note: Posted in honor of my first A for the term :)

The Knee Jerk Reaction

Any discussion on Filipino vs. English as the national language has always struck a nerve, as I have been brought up using these two languages interchangeably, and have experienced being labeled “un-nationalistic” by some.

As with the other people of my generation, I, too, was brought up with the words: “Ang di marunong magmahal ng sariling wika ay higit pa sa amoy ng malansang isda.”

The education system and culture in Metro Manila reinforced this belief — that shame is the only natural reaction for not being able to speak the Filipino language as fluently as what is expected.

Flashbacks

In 1937, the Philippines declared Tagalog as the national language — this, despite the fact that there were 172 native languages and dialects in the Philippines, and the fact that more people spoke Cebuano at that time.

But the country was just enjoying the beginnings of independence, and there was a great need to rediscover the “real Filipino identity;” thus, enforcing and promoting one common language became a prime agenda. Tagalog was chosen, and it was a victory for the then Tagalog President, Manual Quezon.

And back again

The national language has undergone many transformations — from being renamed Pilipino in 1961, and later to Filipino in 1987. There were also at least two major changes in the alphabet alone.

Despite this rapid evolution, the banking, academe, and even government sectors in the Philippines still use English as the primary language, even if Filipino is the language (or lingua franca) of choice in the Metro Manila based broadcast stations. And yes, majority of the Cebuanos still consider English, over Filipino, as their 2nd language.

Strong Filipino language advocates abhor any non-use of the Filipino language, and pronounce the use of English as a primary evidence of neocolonialism and disregard for the Filipino identity.

A personal view

National language has always been closely associated with nationalism. It is, after all, one of the few things which we were taught as the unique representation of the identity nation. The valiant heroes and former Presidents of our country also have given documented importance on the use of the native tongue.

But the term national language is a misnomer. Being designated by the government, Filipino is actually more an official language than a national one. A national language cannot be forced to a nation. For a national language to be embraced, it must be the de facto, not the de jure. A national language should be what the people actually use to communicate.

Using neocolonialism as a reason not to use a language that is not considered “native” is like giving a total disregard to the history of the Philippines. Our country has been, since the beginning of time, a melting pot of diverse cultures. The Philippine tradition, language, and norms are the result of a colorful blend of the cultures of our visitors, inhabitants, and yes, even our colonizers. Embracing a culture and embedding it into an existing one is not a sign of disrespect to our country — it is a sign of sensitivity and understanding to other cultures, and the wisdom and prudence to adapt those we find suitable.

Language diversity is a key aspect of our heritage. It is one of our biggest strengths, and should not be stifled but rather developed. We are in the position to reap the economic and social benefits of who we actually are.

The sooner we accept the linguistic duality of our nation, the more we can concentrate on being real Filipinos. Because above all things — above language, physical appearances, attitude, norms, and even above citizenship — true nationalism does not lie on what our tongues speak, but what our hearts utter.

"The national language of the Philippines is Filipino. As it evolves, it shall be further developed and enriched on the basis of existing Philippine and other languages."
- The 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines

A favicon, shortcut for Favorites Icon, adds a subtle touch of individuality to a website. It is a graphic which is typically displayed next to the website’s name in a browser’s bookmarks or address bar.

Most favicons have a dimension of 16 x 16 pixels, and use the .ico file format. Some newer browsers, however, already support .gif and .png.

1. Download the ICO plugin for Adobe Photoshop at the Telegraphics website. To install, extract the file to your Photoshop's file format folder. This is typically located at C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CS2\Plug-Ins\File Formats

   Take note that you can use other tools to create favicons. I also use Microangelo and IrfanView. I have a personal preference in the Photoshop-plugin technique because of its flexibility.

2. Using your favorite graphics program (such as Adobe Photoshop or Macromedia Fireworks), create a new canvas. It is recommended that you use a canvas size with a multiple of 16, such as 64 x 64 pixels.
3. Create your graphic. Keep it simple, and don't apply too much anti-aliasing.
(Continued)
4. Resize your graphic to 16 x 16 pixels. If you are using Adobe Photoshop, navigate to Image > Image Size, and enter 16 pixels in Width and Height. Next, to minimize blurring, select Bicubic Sharper from the drop down. Click OK.

   If the graphic looks blurry, experiment with the aliasing and the sharpening filters.

   

5. It’s now time to convert your image to the .ico format. If you created your file in another graphics program, load it now in Photoshop. From the menu, go to File > Save As. The Save As dialog box will appear. Under Format, select ICO (Windows Icon) from the dropdown. In File name, enter favicon. Click Save.

   

6. Upload the favicon.ico file in your web directory.
7. In the web pages that you want your favicon to appear, include the following code between the <head> tags:

   <link rel="shortcut icon" href="/main/images/favicon.ico" />

   Make sure that you enter the correct path to your favicon in the code. For example, for this website, the following code was used:

   <link rel="shortcut icon" href="/main/images/favicon.ico" />