How important is specialization?

Everybody likes to do a lot of things. But people are having the scarcity of time. I myself interested in a lot of studies, medicine, business, management, psychology etc. but i realized that I cannot study all of that because of the scarcity of time. There are 3 main reasons of why people cannot do all the works by himself (self-sufficient)

First of all, there are down-times whenever a person is changing a job to another job in a day. Let say when you study history, and you are really into it, then, you changed to biology. At the beginning of you biology study, you may experience the down time when you cannot focus much on you biology. after some times, then you can accept the nature of that subject.

The second reason is that specialization will bring much more benefit than you yourself do all the jobs. how could this happen? this is explained in economics books.

The last reason is that you will not be able to become expert in any work. let say if you have 5 digrees and then, what can you do with that 5 digrees? people won't hire you because you are not a specialist in any field. you will not contribute to that organization, whenever you try to give an opinion, there are people who are more specialized than you who could even give a better suggestion..

It is different if you specialize. you become more focus on that thing you specialize. you might even create new invention for the community. create new drugs, new surgical procedure, create new technology etc. If you specialize in economics or in management, you can contribute with your sevice as a consultant in managing the nation.

Imagine in your town there live 10 people, only ten people. then each of them is self-sufficient. Everybody makes their own window, their own bricks, their own tiles, roofs, cement the wall, install the roof, make drainage etc. The result is the houses your people would have are bad. everybody do the same works with little experience.

Now, think if everybody has their own specialization. you made the window, only the window, he make the roof, the other make tiles, doors, ceiling, pipes, drain, etc. The result is each product built is excelent because the person who create that product is now focused on doing only that thing. He might learn and improve his product 10 times more than he can before. the result is your town can improve its production quality and quantity much better.

However, it should be emphasised that even we are focusing on our profession, we must spare some time to read the books from social science. This is to make sure you can manage at least your home, your family, yourself and people around you. We dont want to have a doctor who have disasterous family, bad relationship with other people, greedy etc. The social science guide people how to use their expertise for the best benefit of all people.

It is a broad game or a narrow game are you playing?

Most of people find job satisfaction as the job they did provide them with self-satisfaction, esteem, and self-actualization, which is the similarity of playing a video games. Both real and unreal game we are playing requires our creativity, our focus, our interest to get it done. The more the job is game-like to you, the more you will motivated to do it.

Being a professional means that you will do a job which requires an in-depth study and skills about that particular job. If you are a doctor, means that you have to study all about the human body and deseases before you are graduated as a doctor. There are a lot of other 'games' out there that requires in-depth study such as teacher/lecturer, engineer, accountant etc. Now, those kind of job I could classify them as 'narrow games' because they are only focusing to the specific parts of the human life. Means that, a doctor will only deal with human deseases, an engineer will only deal with his engine and turbine, a teacher will only deal with his students. No more than that.

Some professionals even too much focusing into their field until their career has made them isolated to the real world. They deal with specific parts of nature (natural science) like biology, physics etc too much that they don't spare any time dealing with real humanbeing.

The people who play this 'narrow games' could be considered as 'slaves' in community. They often manipulated by the 'broader games player' like the politicians, businessman and psychologist for their benefits (politician, business' benefits). These could be seen in the war era where the scientists are used by the politicians to create aircrafts, bombs and tanks. The rebelious are even killed.

So, what's the role of these big gamers in our society? Who are they?

They are as I said before the people who study about people (social science). This kind of study is less popular in our community but it plays really big roles. They PLAN, IMPLEMENT, MONITOR, and ANALYZE the human activities and manipulate them according to their desires. In my country, most top students plan to take medicine and engineering. The government sends a lot of students studying engineering and medicine overseas. The less popular course like politics and business are less interested by most students and their parents.

However, the social science subjects are the courses that will guide a person to control people. We can see today, most of the company that sells products around the world are owned by the jewish people. The jewish people have business power that allows them to control the world. Products like Google, become more popular and used by everybody, eventually makes everybody depends on it to do business activities, daily plan, emailing etc (even this blog provider maybe). As the Google company gets bigger, it will dominate and eventually monopoly the web market. If this occur, it can anytime manipulate the data it receives from google search engines for the benefit of their own. The power they have make the global community paralyzed when it comes to deal with their terrorism in west bank, Palestine. They really are 'big game players', and play the world's game.

Doctors and other professionals are too busy dealing with very narrow scope of human life. Some of these professionals didn't even care about what's happening around them because they are busy persuing their nobel prizes, until the impact of big gammers hit on them, then they realized.

Realizing this fact, made me eager to continue my studies in few fields of science not only the medical studies, but also in management and psychology as to prevent myself being a blind slave.

You should also not only focusing too much on your medical or anything studies that you forget to take time reading about the other field of knowledge like history. Make sure you got the right textbook and sources.

Have you heard about International Baccalaureatte (IB) world school ?

According to my opinion, he IB world school provide students with the best, most complete syllabus of studies which not only emphasise on natural science but also the social science, mathematics, ethics, physical activities and involvement in community. These syllabus of education is the least we have to study if we want to be a complete and understanding person in our later life.

The best of IB program is its Theory of Knowledge, which is the philosophy of learning. This kind of subject leads the learner how to deal with information, to verify its sources, to understand decision making process. The leaders nowadays are lacking this kind of philosophy that causes war and international crisis.

There are lot more I would like to share about the beauty and completeness of IB syllabus. Maybe I can tell you more in other blogs. But for this time, grab the fact that we should not be a blind individual who sit and play in our small room (career). Go outside and see the real world. If we play only the small games, other people will play us.

Do not simply apologize!

Hafizmuar's theory of bad relationship

I had been thinking about how conflicts between people begins and how people's thinking might cause conflict. If you notice, sometimes, the first time you saw a person, you might feel uncomfortable with him. Otherwise, you might also feel pleased when you saw some other people for the first time. The first impression might lead you to judge a person. If you are a white, and he's a black people, then you will bear in mind that he is rough, bad etc, and if you see a smiling beautiful women, you feel so pleased. All this external expression which you detect with your senses are then judged by your heart..

People tend to judge other people by guessing what is in the other's heart. Our heart try to speculate wether the heart's of others are good, bad, sincere or not.

Human's heart are all blind, it leaves in a very dark space which it can't see other hearts and others can't see it as well. Living in the blindness, it can only receive message from our senses, which will then interpreted.

Because human's heart are blind, they always made wrong interpretation about the hearts of others. A conflict will begin if a person think that his oponent's heart is thinking negatively about him (his heart) even this is not true.. This will then cause him (his heart) to develop hatress and feel of disgust every time he meet or see that person. He will eventually express his feeling of uncomfortable (externalization) which then seen by his oponent. His externalization eventually causes his oponent to undergo the same chain of reaction, which end up with bad relationship. I summarized this chain of reactions in the following pictures I made:

As I studied medicine, my scheme is very similar to cellular structure, and it function a little bit. And supprisingly, the cellular behavior really fit the theory of bad relation.

The central portion is the nucleus which represent the human's heart (feeling)

The lateral border is the membrane which represent the human's senses (eyes, ears, smell etc)

This picture shows two kind of people, a sensitive one, and insensitive person. These sensitivity is represented by the smooth edge plasma membrane, while the insensitive people have the rough plasma membrane. The first time these two people meet, the relationship is neutral, there is no bad or good thaught inside hearts of each person. They still don't speak and talk and walk and live together. No much communication, no conflict.

As they talk, walk, and do a lot of activity together, the less sensitive one might usually do actions that the more sensitive one don't like. The bad actions (rough edge of plasma membrane) will come into contact with the smooth plasma membrane of the more sensitive person. This resembling the phenomenon where that sensitive person starts to detect the badness of the other one.. This bad behavior perceived by the senses of the sensitive people is then transmitted to his blind heart (blind means that his heart cannot see the other hearts).

because his heart are blind. that heart try to make assumption that the other's heart might think he is a negative people. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO BE UNDERSTOOD, even it looks funny to read this kind of sentence. That person thinks that his friend hates him, feeling disgust with him, even this is not true. The black nucleus represents heart which having bad perception TOWARDS OTHER HEART. the black heart (let say in person A) will feel that he's not appreciated, useless, and no meaning to the person B (insensitive one). However, the truth is that B isn;t like that, B still think A is his friend.

The wrong interpretation towards other's heart seen in person A might cause him to express his feeling of uncomfort toward person B. person A will now do something that might hurt person B, either by words, by actions, or by body language. This is represented by the spike of plasma membrane in cell A.

As the person B is treated badly, B start to notice and feel the change in person A by his senses (eyes, hearing etc), and the bad signal is transmitted to his heart, allowing the heart to assume that person A don't like him for some reasons he don't know. As the B's heart think that A's heart is negative (thinking negative about him), he then develop negativity towards person A (represented by the black heart/nucleus).. he might think person A is not a sincere person in relationship, he might think person A is racist, he might think person A is bias to other friends.

The result of both thinking negatively about others (where they shoudn't so) is both people express the feeling of disgust towards each other, and series of bad relationship continues, until they realize about this article maybe =) Both people now are so confident that the other person is having negative thaught about him, thus verify their previous judgement.. Each of them did not realize that the problem actually is caused by themselves, their blindness of heart, who judge people mistakenly..

However, there is one way to stop the conflict between this two people.

The people who read this article should have realized that the problem is really caused by our own blind heart (perception), weakness of our heart in determining the status of other hearts. The people who have conflict, and have already read this article should understand that your oponent is not bad as you thaught he was. It was you and your act who induce him behaving that way. His bad behavior gave you bad signal, causing your heart to say that you heart is negative to you. You then act badly to him, causing his heart to think your heart is negative to him. both person act badly to others, comforming the assumption. then, conflicts occured.

Now what you have to do is to fix your perception (your heart) towars him. You have to believe that he dont think you are a negative person. You must think that he really appreciate you as a friend before you create the conflict. His heart is white as shown in the picture no 1. It was you who caused his white heart to turned into black.. You understand what I say?

Now, after you realize your mistakes, you will have good perception towards his early thaught about you (even now he's not anymore, but that's because of you!) Now act gently to him and treat him as your good friend. You might change your behavior to less sensitive to fit with his behavior (as shown in the picture). You have to represent your white heart (good, pleasure feeling about him) by the good and appropriate signalling (expressions)

The good signalling will cause him to assume that he might also misjudge your heart. Now that he believe that your heart is white (positive to him). He will start to slow down his temper, he'll avoid fighting, he'll feel more comfortable when both you met togetherr.

The result is, both of you will be back as good friends which now adapt to eaach other. The more sensitive one will know that he have to be less sensitive, and the sensitive one know that he have to be more carefull to take care of your heart. He would avoid any bad expressions.

There is also a faster way to recover the bad relationship. This can be done by sending positive signals to the doubt heart (the grey nucleus). [The grey heart means that he's confuse if your heart is positive to him or negative]. Positive signals include wishing happy birthday, take him for luch/dinner, and the bes way is to ask him if he happened to have any bad feeling/thaught towards you.

Wishing you GOOD LUCK IN SAVING THE RELATIONSHIPS AND AVOIDING CONFLICTS!!

This life of the world is but.. a game (29:64)

This is what I really shocked on. The first time I read this quotation I really felt it's a magic. The description of the life is so exact.

But why?

Human really motivated to do anything that is game-like. See around you, and you can find almost everything that people do is because they like to do something challenging, to test their power in handling things, to compete with each other to show who is better, or at least if you are alone, you might do something that can reward yourself. All of this behavior is best represented by playing games.

Why do people play games? This is because they want to feel self appreciation, esteem, they want something challenging, they want name and prides. That's what really motivating people. I could say that almost all people are playing games, either they play 'reality games' or 'fantasy games'.

What is reality games?

Reality games are anything that is challenging your skill, your knowledge, your creativity and your patience which if you succeed can bring self satisfaction, and to some people pride. This real games include setting up businesses, doing research in labs to get the nobel prizes and article published in high impact magazines, doing world records, etc.

what is fantasy games?

Fantasy games are simply the games that people play on computers or x-box. It too can give self satisfaction and esteem.

Theoretically, why people play these games?

simply because playing games for self actualization and esteem are human behaviors. They were described in the Human Resources Theory, the theory of Maslow Hierachy of Needs. This self esteem and self actualization are two factors that really keep human motivated in doing works given that the physiological (survival needs), security and social needs (sex, love etc) were provided without any shortage.. The job enrichment in offices/any organization also emphasize on this idea.

Now, what advantage you can get by knowing this fact?

If you want to ask somebody to do something, make sure you put the element games in it. Instead of asking your son to cut the grass in lawn every month just like that, you can put the element of game in it by asking your son to build his own small garden site, and don't forget to praise him whenever he made a new plants arrangements. Automatically, in making his small garden site looks gorgeous, he will cut the grass in the lawn without needing people to command him.

So, now, look at yourself and ask, are you also the people who play games in your daily life?

Competing with your neighbour who has the most expensive car, who have a bigger business, who have more beautiful wife, feeling self satisfaction with your belonging, feeling proud of the things you have?

You might not realize that you already play those games for 40 years! 40 years you struggled to compete with people on the SAME LEVEL. I really mean same level. A poor fisherman might not compete with a successful businessman as he is not motivated to do so because the element game is unfair to him. A rich businessman will compete with his rivals from another big company, and the poor fisherman compete and show of to the other fisherman who can catch the biggest fish. Everybody is 'lost' in their own worlds of games. Some people even too 'lost' until they might play dirty. A play-dirty business man might sabotage his rival company, a play-dirty fisherman might cut his competitor's net.

Now, I really want to invite everybody to rethink about our works and lives, what does it mean if we 'lost' in our games that we don't know what really our real purpose of life? What does it mean if you want to success but by doing sabotage to other people? What does it mean if you only know to collect the beautiful girls and money until the end of your life? And then you'll die certainly, and then what?

Think about that.

Money recording system between housemates or partner

Sharing home with friends are so interesting. However it could be a little complicated when it turns to claiming money on purchase we did for the house. The products we might purchase for the house include rice, flour, butter, toilet tissues, drinking water, etc..

Now is the time for us to be more organized about our money transaction. I had seen many people who are very organised in money management success in their lives. Yes, even our friends are our friends, it doesn't mean that we don't care what they buy, how much they buy for the house, and we just believe in them without doing any proper recording.

The money recording system is very important that it allows us to:

1. see how much we have spent for the house
2. we can budget for the next month's expenses
3. we can track down what's important and what's unimportant, so that next time we can reduce purchase of unimportant things
4. we can discuss with our house mates which products cost less and allow us to choose a cheaper products
5. we might know who always buy things at the market, and next time, we might ask another person to do that job more intensely.

Now I found a simple but very helpful and efficient technique to keep record of purchase of different individuals.

What you must have are just:

1. An exercise book (plain book)
2. A glue
3. pen
4. highlighter

Let's say, I live in a house with another partner.

1. Each time I or she buy something for the house, the buyer must keep the receipt in their wallet. Don't forget to get receipt each time you buy something for the house.
2. then, when you or she come home, either immediately or later on the day, paste the receipt you got from the shop into the exercise book according to right way of recording (as I will show you later)
3. then don't forget to write your name ON THE DATE
4. calculate how much YOU buy for the house on that day
5. then write the cumulated amount you had buy before (amount carried forward [c/f])
6. add the amount you buy today
7. total up those 2 amounts (carried forward + amount you buy that day) as Bring Forward (b/f)
8. do the same procedure next time you buy things.
9. Remember that one page is only for one day. You only buy things few times a month, so don't worry the page will be used up so fast. You don't have to leave any blank pages, just paste to a new page when you buy.

The highlighted is the date, and above it is the name of purchaser. The upper box on the right side is the box for me, while the lower box is for my partner. the c/f is the accumulated amount of previous purchase, while the b/f is the amount you will bring forward to the next page.

By this way, your house not necessarily create a fund which obligate each person who wants to buy thing to get money from this fund. If you do the central fund system (which usually don't emphasize the importance of recording system), it could be difficult for all of you to manage the money, or even if you ask a person to control the money, it might be a difficulty to contact the person whenever you want to buy something for the house any time you pass by the market.

Claiming the money

then, we understand that CEKMEK already spent EUR 723 at the end of month and I spent EUR 0. So, now, at the end of month, she can claim for her money. Just 723 divide by 2 = 361,50. while I claim her 0/2 = 0. Thus, how much do I have to pay? It is 361,50-0 = 361,50. It is easy..

The next recording period starts and you will start back at c/f = 0 and do the same procedure, and claim at the end of month.

Happy trying =)

How should we utilize our lecture classes to the fullest

Dear my friends,

some students do say that the lecture is not so important in their study in university. Some found the lecture is just secondary to their self-study in home. During my secondary school, I found difficulties in my study because I don’t fully utilize my lecture time. It is a kind of wasting time that I don’t utilize my lecture time and take extra hours for self-study.

Puan Salma Ahmad, a lecturer in Mara College Banting, Malaysia told me many times that I have to straight away learn those things teachers taught in the class without any need to take extra hours to revise them because I am not going to have time to do the revisions later on. I didn’t believe what she said during that time. My mind keep on telling me that I can’t do such things. How can people absorb what teacher said immediately, 100% during the lecture? Imagine that the lecturer explain about the one table as below, then, how am I going to memorize those things immediately at the time the lecturer is explaining about them? I thought it was impossible. .

I THOUGHT IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE THAT WE ABSORB THE KNOWLEDGE 100% DURING THE LECTURE/LESSON..

It was until the time I have no choice but to try to focus the 100% lecture concentration theory by Puan Salma during my 2^nd semester for my Undergraduate Medical studies. During that time, there was a lot of subjects and tests that I have to go through that I didn’t have much time to do many things. Imagine that I had 3 to 4 tests every week and I always sacrifice my lecture time for the test.

From that time on, I try to concentrate on the lecture of anatomy which I take for granted before. As a result, eventhough my result didn’t increase much, but my interest in the subject increased so much that I became extremely motivated to learn more and listen lecture with greater focus.

I BECAME EXTREMELY MOTIVATED TO LEARN MORE AND LISTEN LECTURE WITH GREATER FOCUS.

This motivation I gained was actually caused by the feeling of belonged to the lecturehall organization (teachers, friends). I felt like belonged to my lecturer and my classmates because I get involved in all class activities. I felt like the student-teacher relation between me and the professor is getting stronger that not even a second I want to close my ear from listening his/her lecture as not to disappoint him/her. This good ‘student-teacher’ relation is one of the factors that keep me motivated to listen to the lecture given by my professor.

How I build this student-teacher relation? Each time my lecturer ask me question, I answer those questions, if the lecturer ask anybody to draw anything on whiteboard, I always volunteer myself for the sake of utilizing my time to the fullest. I they want any volunteer for the experiment, I will not be shy to try them first.

BUILD OUR STUDENT-TEACHER RELATION SO THAT THIS CAN KEEP US MOTIVATED THROUGH THE WHOLE COURSE.

According to the Mayo theory, human is the 'social animal'. Human is motivated when they feel that they are appreciated by the organization. In the class room, the most powerful authority is held by the teacher and the positive feedback from the teacher to us will increase our feeling of belonged to the class organization.

The oposite of this 'belonged to the organization' is 'feeling of isolation'. This feeling of isolation is appearing as a result of being 'lost'. If you skip a lecture, you might feel lost in the next lecture, and this will prevent you to involve that next lecture to the maximum because, whenever lecturer ask any question, you might probably have no idea, when you have practical classes, you don't know what are you doing and why, and later on, you will feel demotivated.

The other theory that fit this involvement in class is that human will feel motivated by esteem (prize). The more teacher give positive feedback to you (reward you), the more you want to involve with the lecture as this positive feedback will physiologically stimulate you reward center in the nucleus accumbens and ventral hypothalamus. In other word, it is badly called as pride. The feeling of pride and respect by organization is one of motivating factor suggested by Maslo in his theory of hierarchy of needs.

One day, I said to myself, that, to have great interest in listening the lecture is not enough, I must increase brain work during the lecture so that I could immediately memorize those new facts that the lecturer told. No need self-revising, or at least minimize self revision as I dont have much time to do so.

I began with imagine the words (explanation) and picture presented by the lecturer. Every words said by the lecturer is then translated into the brain and picture and motion is generated inside the brain.

WORDS BY WORDS IS TRANSLATED INTO THE BRAIN, DON'T EVEN MISS A WORD TO BE TRANSLATED AND UNDERSTOOD. THIS WAY YOU WILL GET 100% INFORMATION AND WILL AVOID YOU FEELING TIRED OR SLEEPY. TRUST ME.

Now you'll go to the highest stage of full lecture utilization. what is that? That is, you memorize those facts given in the lecture straight away. How to know if you already do that? Come out from lecture and ask yourself what you learned, if you can list all what you had learned, means that mission accomplished. If people ask you questions and you can answer half of it then, your memorization techniques are not so well developed.

The fullest memorization will complete you Full classroom utilization program. To understand and catch all lecturer says is not enough when you can't tell the exact name of things he/she told you, tables he/she shows you, picture and position he/she told taught you.

The problem is how are we going to memorize the facts on the spot during the lecture?

The answer is using those memorization techniques. I had many examples of memorization techniques which you can see in my site http://sites.google.com/site/mymedicalnotessite which you can see in the side bar link ------------------------------------------>

Those techniques can be summarised as:

1. Fully understand the concept of particular new knowledge
2. grouping/organize that understood information
3. relate (hook) the information with our own PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE or NEWLY CREATED EXPERIENCE

The third one 'relate (hook) the information with the PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE or NEWLY CREATED EXPERIENCE' is the most creative form in memorization and plays the most important role in recalling memorized facts. It involves our creativity and this is what you can see in My Medical Notes Site linked at the side bar --->

Why do I always emphasize relate new knowledge with PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE, or if you cant relate to previous knowledge relate to your creatively NEW EXPERIENCE?

This is because, that's how our brain works to memorize things. Brain works effectively in memorization if we relate new information with our previous EXPERIENCE.

Now, let us see the example from My Medical Notes Site:

Plasma volume measurement

- Measured by using dyes that binds to plasma proteins because wherever plasma exist, it must have plasma protein, if it don’t have plasma protein, it’s not plasma, it could be csf etc.

- Evans blue is often used

- Serum albumin labeled with radioactive iodine can also be used

- Average volume is 3,5 L (5% of body weight)

KEY: RELATE WITH AMBIGUITY SITUATION

Evans blue used as dye for plasma protein in plasma because it ispotein-philic

Eva is a women who like to drink fluid protein like egg white to build up muscle.

In this case, you can see how I relate the fact of using Evans blue dye to color the plasma protein, which is then allow people to calculate the water in blood vessels (usually 5 liter). I already knew somebody named Eva, and I knew she like to eat egg protein, so this Eva and protein has relationship to the facts, as mention above. Even if I don't know Eva and she like to eat egg yolks, I can CREATE MY OWN EVA AND CREATE A NEW STORY ABOUT EVA THAT SHE LIKES TO EAT EGG YOLKS AND IMMEDIATELY RELATE THIS NEWLY CREATED EXPERIENCE WITH MY NEW INFORMATION.

Remember, all this is done immediately at the time you get the information during the lecture. I really mean IMMEDIATELY. Immediately means that your brain will go very fast and indirectly prevent you being sleepy in class.. What an advantage you will have trying to develop your keywords during classes..

The detail Memorizing techniques based on these three steps of memorization will be discussed in 'My Memorizing Techniques'. For me that techniques are working enough and I tried them so many times and they are excelently helpful.