Yahoo Changes

We all remember back in the days when Yahoo! was the tech giant and most people that I know had yahoo mail. But as Google slowly made it's way to the consumers, and yahoo slowly deteriorated, a lot started moving to Google's services, in particular - gmail. I was one of those. I signed up for a new personal gmail account and although I still have my decades old yahoo mail account, I decided that I will use gmail as my primary account, and ymail as my, secondary email account.

Over the years, while Google, Facebook, Apple thrived, Yahoo declined. According to this source, its share prices went as high as 118.75 back in 2000. And went down to as low as 8.11. Now it's hovering around 30, which is already a big improvement from two years ago before Marissa Mayer stepped in.

I've been fascinated by Yahoo recently because we've been seeing a lot of changes. Just earlier I saw the gui for their ymail changed again! And if you haven't noticed, they did change their logo recently as well. Another recent headliner was when CEO Marissa Mayer banned work from home for its employees! So that got me wondering who is this CEO?

And here I found a wonderful article about: Marissa Mayer

I have to admit, she's now one of my most admired women.

Article: The Line Between Giving Up and Acceptance

Here's an interesting article I chanced upon early this morning. The title pretty much says it all: The Line Between Giving Up and Acceptance

Here's a two paragraph excerpt that pretty much sums up the whole article.

It became clear to me when I was recently talking with a friend who was agonizing over what to do about a two-year relationship she was in that was laced with conflict and overall pain. She voiced the elevated mantra that so many of us live by as she was debating on what to do next. She said, “I just think that this is worth fighting for, and that if we really love each other it will all work out in the end.” It kind of sounds like those Idol wannabes who think their singing careers are warpaths to be fought rather than elegance to be revealed. It sounds so noble; how can you argue with that kind of fierce desire and commitment?

Well never fear, I found a way. I looked at her with total clarity in my eyes and said, “There comes a point in life when what we are pursuing stops becoming an investment of our time and instead becomes a waste of our time. And it is our responsibility to figure out where that point is and do what needs to be done to change courses.” She looked at me kind of like someone who just saw a possum in the middle of the road with it’s big pink eyes staring in their headlights. You may not know what look I’m talking about, but it’s not a good one.

One may agree or disagree with the author's point. Me, coming from a somewhat similar situation, I can relate to it and I do slightly agree with it. But I think as women though, we are more inclined to be emotionally attached to the whole relationship. We are stronger, thus we attempt to make it work more so, than men. When a man says no, that's probably the end of it. When a woman says no, you can still work your way around to changing her mind. I may be wrong though.

Ultimately in the end, these things, it's always easier said than done. And if getting out of a stagnant and unhealthy relationship means getting hurt, maybe that's what we really have to experience first hand, head on. I did.

Stop fighting for them when all you’re doing is fighting. And start fighting for them when all you’re doing is waiting for the life you long for to magically land in your lap.

To be honest, I do miss being in a relationship at times. But I don't really see the need to get into one now. I meet new people. I can work on myself, prepare myself so that when the right one comes passing by, I will be ready this time around.

In the meantime, I can live my jetsetter life without having to worry about leaving someone behind over and over again. :) Planning to do some nice trips this year - East Coast Canada, Australia are my targets.

Looking forward to a good and fruitful 2011! Cheers!

Anyone agree?

Guys, Are You About to Be Dumped?

I agree on #4, 8, 9 and 10.

Geeky article

Here's an article from Coding Horror that talks about the greatest invention (according to the author) about computer science (aside from the computer itself). Check the site here.

Adidas and Puma's relationship.

Turns out, Adidas and Puma, two world famous brands of shoes, actually spawned from two brothers' feud! Who knew?

For more details, check out article.

Interesting Article

Here's an interesting article from Cracked.com aptly titled:
5 Famous Inventors (Who Stole Their Big Idea). It's a very nice read.

Lifehack's 10 Ways We Hurt Our Romantic Relationships

Here's an interesting article published in Lifehack entitled 10 Ways We Hurt Our Romantic Relationships.

This article is for everyone, particularly for those in relationships.

Sun Microsystems buys MySQL

More about the acquisition here.

Lifehack's article on Lead, Follow, and Get Out of the Way

Here's an article from Lifehack that talks about leadership: Lead, Follow, and Get Out of the Way

The excerpt below from the said article will definitely make you want to read it. It did something to me anyway.

"Leadership is about bringing out and mobilizing the best in the people around you. It’s about helping a group of people work
together towards a shared goal or set of goals. When leadership works, it creates leaders, not followers."

Ramon Tulfo's "Here We Go Again" Article

I was at CDO and Camiguin last thursday when the Manila Penn standoff occurred. We only got a hold of the news when one of my companions received a text message that something was happening in Metro Manila. And when we went out for lunch in Camiguin, we were able to catch the news on TV and finally knew what was really going on. Going back in Manila, I tried to catch up on news and stumbled upon Ramon Tulfo's reaction to the coup attempt.

Ramon Tulfo said it best:

I hate to say this to the 11 million voters who installed Antonio Trillanes IV in the Senate: I told you so!

Read the rest of the article by Ramon Tulfo: Here we go again

Opportunity to Achieve Greatness

Out of boredom in the office, I was surfing through the web and found a pretty interesting article about George W. Bush. Seems that this guy's approval rating is dropping by the minute. I am no particular fan of American Politics, especially since our local politics is still much more disturbing. However, given than I am a fan of the financial market, and is keeping up with US market news, I just can't help but feel that the president has got some hand on the negative sentiments that is spreading through the market.

Random concerns aside, I found this article well written. Below is probably one of the best thoughts we, as Filipinos and human beings, can ponder on:

Here's an excerpt taken from
Rolling Stone's article: "The Worst President in History?
One of America's leading historians assesses George W. Bush"

Bush has more in common with post-1945 Democratic presidents Truman and Johnson, who both became bogged down in overseas military conflicts with no end, let alone victory, in sight. But Bush has become bogged down in a singularly crippling way. On September 10th, 2001, he held among the lowest ratings of any modern president for that point in a first term. (Only Gerald Ford, his popularity reeling after his pardon of Nixon, had comparable numbers.) The attacks the following day transformed Bush's presidency, giving him an extraordinary
opportunity to achieve greatness.

Isn't it a shame that George W. Bush was not able to utilize this opportunity for him to achieve greatness? Back here in the Philippines, throughout its history, were we able to have a leader who was able to bring us up when there was turmoil and depression? In terms of the Philippine politics arena, either my history there is rusty or it's just that I can't think of one person right now while writing this entry.

On the other hand, on the business sector, I would probably mention PLDT's rise. I remember before, that PLDT had their fare share of losses, regular employee strikes, etc. But someone did make the turnaround (do we attribute this to MVP?), and look where it is now, PLDT's the most profitable company in Philippines to date.

I guess in reality, we all have our opportunities to shine. Troubled times does not mean that we do not have a choice. We have a choice whether to allow ourselves to be remembered with that dismal failure, or to allow ourselves to be remembered by how we overcame that obstacle.

Be a winner in your own country.

It is true that career professionals move for better pay. But it should not be the monetary consideration all the time if you really want a high-flying career. Don't move just because the work is near the place where you live. Don't move because you just want to move. Pay an expert the way you pay for a nice-looking Louis Vuitton purse or a top-of-the-line mobile phone.

The best career is in the Philippines nowadays. Blue-chip companies are coming our way. This is the place to become successful. The most comfortable life is here. You leave the country because you feel you cannot make it here. If you cannot make it here, you cannot make it anywhere.

Be a winner in your own country.

Read the rest of the entry: By the time you're 30, your salary should be P120,000 by Dan Magallanes

Do You Have What it Takes to be a Great Leader?

Here's a short article featured in Yahoo! Finance:

Do You Have What it Takes to be a Great Leader?