Saturday, 14 March 2015

Speak-less



This experience of being an acting Project Manager in my current job, had a lot of pros and cons.

I still had an engineer's salary, only the workload and responsibility quadrupled.

But it changes my behavior and mindset. A lot.

One of it is that I no longer tend to share a lot of things. Like those Kungfu Martial Art Teachers you seen in movies.

The idea behind Kungfu Martial Art Teacher is that you don’t teach others all your moves.

You shall keep to your self certain secret moves which is could be used against your fellow students should they fight against you later.




For Chinese/Korean/Japan people, their culture is already engrained with lots of “war” philosophies, etc. 33 Strategies, Sunzi Art Of War, which gives them competitive edge in managing business and teamwork effort.

Malaysian Malays do not learn this “competitive” philosophies, it’s not deeply cultivated in our culture.

And for a coordinated effort in construction, sometimes you had to push your team to meet deadlines. You had to deal with your workers, your team, your Company, the Client, the Main-Con, and other Sub-Con as well.

And so, you need to be speak-less, to use words only to create the result that you plan.
This involved in sharing only necessary information, or should I say, you only share what is necessary for that person to attain the planned objective.

You do not "over-share" the information, lest the subordinates conceive it differently and screwed up your plan.

If that person is clever, that person will find out the additional information by themselves, and so you do not have to spoon-feed.

If the person is not, he/she will still be able to achieve the result with whatever information you supply.

Then, reward and punishment can be meted out at the correct circumstances based on the results alone.
No excuses tolerated. Just the results.
Prussians Army General Of Staff (later called German Army after Bismarck's unification) conduct this philosophy by implementing Auftragstaktik. (Mission-type tactic)




The army is just being given simplified description of the small missions required.

How to achieve objective, it is left to the army themselves, as per site/situation conditions.

Achieving each small missions will in the end results in winning the overall Campaign.

It is efficient and effective, therefore it is silently implemented in In the construction business, or even in corporate world

Hell, as humans, we do despise people who talk too much, and we respect those who silently work and produce results.

It is because, to be on top, I realised, is to be speak-less.


Wir waren namenlos / We were nameless

Und ohne Lieder / and without songs

Recht wortlos / really wordless

Waren wir nie wieder / We were never again

Etwas sanglos / a little songless

Sind wir immer noch / Still we are

Dafür nicht klanglos / Yet we're not toneless

Man hört uns doch / You can hear us

Nach einem Windstoß / After a gust of wind

Ging ein Sturm los / began a storm

Einfach beispiellos / Simply matchless

Es wurde Zeit / It was time

Los / -less 




Sie waren sprachlos / They were speechless

So sehr schockiert / So totally shocked

Und sehr ratlos / And totally powerless

Was war passiert / What had happened

Etwas fassungslos / It was composureless

Und garantiert / and guaranteed

Verständnislos / understandingless

Das wird zensiert / That will be censored

Sie sagten grundlos / They said groundless

Schade um die Noten / Too bad about the music

So schamlos / So shameless

Das gehört verboten / That should be forbidden

Es ist geistlos / It is witless

Was sie da probieren / what they're trying there

So geschmacklos / So tasteless

Wie sie musizieren / how they're making music

Ist es hoffnungslos / Is it hopeless

Sinnlos / Senseless

Hilflos / Helpless

Sie sind gott - los / They are god - less




Wir waren namenlos / We were nameless

Wir haben einen Namen / We have a name

Waren wortlos / We were wordless

Die Worte kamen / The words came

Etwas sanglos / it was songless

Sind wir immer noch / Still we are

Dafür nicht klanglos / Yet we're not toneless

Das hört man doch / You do hear it

Wir sind nicht fehlerlos / We aren't flawless

Nur etwas haltlos / Nor it was anchorless

Ihr werdet lautlos / You will become soundless

Uns nie los / You'll never get rid of us

Wir waren los / We were "-less"