Good Will Report

Vacationing in Taiwan

Fall has arrived very quickly in Vancouver, signified by the leaves changing colour and the rain that is so characteristic of the city. The game that I have been working so hard on this summer, Need for Speed ProStreet, made it on the shelves of retailers worldwide on November 16. The car customization area, which is the area I work on, received some positive review from IGN, and many of the gamers around the world are excited about this game.

As one of my teacher said to me: we work in a job for challenge and fulfillment, and work in a business to make money. I enjoy my work as a programmer very much -- solving difficult problems and facing logical challenges every day is very fulfilling indeed! Meanwhile, my real estate business earns me much of the money. How does your job work for you? Are you fulfilled in what you do? Do you have a business?

After a summer of hard work, I was on vacation for two weeks to my home country, Taiwan, which is a little island off the coast of Mainland China. I'll have more on that in the next issue of Good Will Report!

TNBT 6^th Place in Bellevue

As I mentioned last month, I was down in Bellevue with my quartet to compete in the District Competition. It was great to spend time with people who are excited about the same hobby -- a theatre full of them!

After two days of intense competition, my quartet, TNBT, came in sixth place overall in the Evergreen District, which encompasses Alaska, BC, Alberta, Washington, Idaho and Oregon. That was an encouraging result after only one year! We are very excited about our accomplishment and look forward to our next competition in March.

Real Estate Investing in Regina

I first learned of the Regina market in April, 2007, through some conversations with my mentor, Selena Cheung, and my MasterMind Group. Much research was done and then I decided to take a trip out with one of the members of MasterMind Group, Toshi Shirane.

What's in Regina, you may ask. There are many reasons to take a look at the city:

• Saskatchewan is the second largest oiler producer in Canada, and the oil industry has been one of the driving forces of the recent Canadian economic boom.
• The oil industry is quite active in Regina, with Consumers' Co-operative Refineries Limited (CCRL) in the north end of town, as well as Enbridge pipelines all over the city.
• The airport has recently become international.
• IPSCO is the largest steel company in western Canada founded and operating in Regina.
• The business-friendly Saskatchewan Party was voted into office in November, which is expected to create an in-flow of businesses and investments.

During our trip in May, we had a chance to visit the city and see the different areas, as well as to meet with the power team, including the Realtor, mortgage broker, property manager and inspector. It's a great little city with very friendly people and I am happy to have bought three properties so far in Regina, and look forward to buying more!

Next month I will talk about the soil in Regina, which is quite unique and every homeowner should know about it.

Wisdom from Seminar of the Century Part 4 -- Alan Cohen

The first speaker to make an appearance at the Seminar of the Century this July was Alan Cohen, who is an author and contributing writing to New York Times bestselling series Chicken Soup for the Soul. He titled his presentation The Guru in You.

Cohen started by offering the thought that Everyone has something. What are you a guru off? Complete the following sentence:

I am brillant at ________________.

Then confirm the thought -- suspend not knowing and act as if you already know -- using one of the following affirmations:

I am stepping into my magnitude.
I am my magnitude.
I AM MAGNIFICENT!

Cohen then outlined some ways of accessing your inner guru. Trust your gut because you already know; put passion before pension; be authentic, stay focussed, trust the big picture, and most importantly, enjoy the ride!

I really enjoyed Cohen's piece on the fact that everyone is a guru at something. I remember that he brought up a few people and helped them realize that they are absolutely brilliant at at least one thing in their life, even though they did not believe it before they went on stage. Each one of us can benefit from realizing what we are good at, and play to our strength.

I'll end with Alan Cohen's quote on passion: "I set myself on fire and let people watch me burn!" The passion and joy with which you live and do things will lift up people in that space.