Welcome To Wendy Kwek’s Blog

Recently, I attended Dr John D Martini’s 2-day Breakthrough Experience program.
He is profound and shared generously his wisdom after spending most of his years of research into about 272 disciplines governing life’s philosophy.

Here are some pointers that I would like to summarised as lessons.

Our values shape our destiny. Each of us are driven by our values in the seven areas of life.
1) Spiritual
2) Mental Development
3) Vocation/ Career
4) Finance
5) Familial /Relationships
6) Social
7) Physical/ Wellbeing

The most important question is what is your area in your life that you tend to value most.

For example, if I value Financial Success, I will likely spend time reading, researching, studying, interviewing and taking action in the area that will likely get us ahead financially. Of course, the more time and energy you invest in each of these areas, the more learnings, growth and insights you have in these areas.

Question : Which are the top three areas that you value most. Which means you tend to spend most time and energy on. Please do not say that family is the most important if you feel that it is important but has not put in the time and energy to nurture the bonds.

Do most of us have certain areas in our life that we value most? Yes, and we tend to see the area that we value most as our spiritual quest. You tend to accept people who share similar mindset as you and may even judge people who don’t.

Ultimately, it is not about who is right or wrong, we just live our lives according to our values. To expect people to live according to your values is to have unrealistic expectations. Similarly, it is also unrealistic for people to expect us to live according to their values.

This is interesting as this have an impact on our relationships as well. Dr D Martini shared that we tend to attract people whom are opposite in us in our relationships! Is that true in your case? In fact, if two people are exactly alike, one of them is redundant! We learn the most and grow the most by being with people and loving people whom are least like us.

Also, in case you are feeling a certain void in your life, that void can automatically becomes your top value! For example, if you are financially broke, now your top value is to turn your financial results around. If you are feeling empty as you do not have the soul mate to share it with, you are likely going to find a way to fill that void. Similarly, if your health is suffering now, you will now put your wellbeing as your top priority. Whatever is your void is now your top value.

Having shared this, is it possible for us to have a balanced life in each of these area. The good news is yes! We will still have certain areas of our life that is more important, but if we should set meaningful goals in each of the area, we can develop ourselves as a multidimensional being.

I wish you luck and hope you find fulfillment in all areas of life!

Hi,

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As you may be aware, YOUTUBE is where you can upload and view videos and this is a platform that is a free site. So even if you have a winning clip that you want to upload, you cannot collect any money.

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Check out this link https://www.youpublish.com/referredby/publications

I would like to share with you a revolutionary platform for publishing your own articles or sell any books, audio, music in any downloadable format. You get paid 50% for any downloadable products you sell and not only that, you can refer others and override 7.5% from all sales through your direct link!

YOUPUBLISH is going to be the next storm… be one of the first to register yourself!!

You can also download free articles and publications in the site if you do not wish to make any purchase.
At least, that’s what I did initially!

So, who created this! The key partners of this site are Mark Victor Hansen (Author of One Minute Millionaire), (Co-Creator of Chicken Soup for the Soul), James Skinner (Entrepreneur and Author of 9 Steps to Success) and Roice Krueger (Co-founder of Frankin Covey Training). All absolutely brilliant people…

Do browse and study more into this site for more information.

https://www.youpublish.com/referredby/publications

Wishing you all the best and I look forward to sharing more interesting developments soon!

I would like to express my gratitude to Channel NewsAsia and ScreenBox for giving me a 30minute feature in ‘The Million Makers’ series.

I have received numerous calls, smses, emails from supporters and viewers. The response has been encouraging and I feel blessed. Thank you for your love and support.

Looking back when I started my journey of self-discovery and entrepreneurship, seven years ago, it is like at dream come true.

One of my life mission was to be able to inspire at least one million people’s lives and through the work we do and with The Million Makers reaching out to South East Asia and Middle East viewers. I know that mission has been achieved. Now I will up my mission being able to inspire at least 10 million people’s lives and I look forward to each and every one of your support in doing so.

My next mission is to build a real estate empire and also to be able to donate at least S$1million to charity.

We currently have stake in 18 properties…this is just the beginning…

As for charity, we currently sponsor children in 10 countries through World Vision and we are currently accumulating funds to build shelter homes in KL for less privileged children.

I know without a shadow of doubt that I would be immensely wealthy after discovering the success formula. I also know that I will ultimately give all my wealth and assets away…

The journey of wealth accumulation and leading a wealthy life is definitely fun…and giving away just makes it even more meaningful.

People ask me what I learn in the entrepreneurial process.

1) all businesses and all entrepreneurs start with no track record.
2) the more you develop your skills, knowledge and experience, the ‘luckier’ you get
3) credibility takes years to build - build a reputation of reliability and trust and you will go far
4) it is all about building relationship and network - things get done easily when you start to be involved in a community of like-minded people
5) you will never know if your first business is the right business. Start somewhere and you will be led to more opportunities
6) learn from highly successful people and mentors. They are the shortcut to our success journey.

Good luck and wish you great success!

Love,
Wendy

Is it possible to buy a property with none of your own money down in Singapore?? Yes, Recently I invested in two units at Tradehub21, a commercial/industrial office units each selling for only $300K. The per sq feet is only at S$290 granted it is a 60 year leasehold property. I pre-booked the units before the price was revised upwards and I have just been confirmed to have alloted the two units. Meantime, I looked for investors to pay the 20% downpayment. The current price of both properties are about 10% higher than my booking price and the current booking price is still another 10% lower than the original price which will be revised close to TOP 3rd quarter of this year.

So, in view of this senario, I managed to get two investors to join me in the investment where they put in the 20% deposit and I take up the mortgage. During this time, I will be sourcing for tenants that will start once the project TOP. The monthly rental is projected to be at least 40%-50% higher than the month mortgage loans, so there should be positive cashflow!

So, effectively, I now co-own the property with none of my own money down! Not bad right?

I thought this is a good time to pick up undervalued properties and not chase up the ‘hot’ properties around the Integrated Resorts. Since Singapore has targeted to increase its population by another 2,000,000 within the next two to three years, I see there will be a real shortage of good office, commercial spaces. So, good luck in your search for opportunites that are coming up. Opportunities are everywhere…

If you are growing your business for sale or if you are looking at buying into a business, the info below would be a good guide. There are really no hard and fast rules in valuing a business.

When thinking about selling their company, usually the first question a businessperson asks is “How much is it worth?” Unfortunately there is no cut-and-dried answer to the question. Entire books have been written about valuation, and there are so many variables involved (and many of them are very subjective) that different experts looking at the same company could end up with different selling prices. There are some commonly accepted techniques and rules of thumb used, which are presented here.

Basically, there are two major ways to figure the price of a small business. One is the company’s ability to generate sales, cash flow and/or profits. The second method is to value the company based on its assets. Which method is used depends on the condition of the business and the industry it is in.

Valuing a business based on sales

In some industries, the norm is to determine value by using a multiplier times the firm’s annual sales. Consulting firms, radio stations, temp agencies, PR or ad agencies, professional practices, retailers and insurance brokers are often valued using a multiplier of annual sales. The multiplier depends on the exact type of business, the predictability of sales from year to year and many other factors. Generally, the industry multiplier is the starting point and is then adjusted based on specifics of the company. For example, the industry’s multiplier may be two times sales, but the firm has experienced strong, consistent growth in the past three years – that may boost the multiplier to 2.5 or higher. Or perhaps the firm has one client that makes up one-half of its billings – the higher perceived risk may drive the multiplier down to 1.5 or lower. If your business has low fixed costs, few assets and little retained earnings, the sales multiplier technique may be appropriate.

Valuing a company using cash flow or profits

We won’t split hairs here, even though there are some differences between cash flow and earnings the philosophy is the same. The price is based on the company’s ability to generate a stream of profit (which can be defined in different ways) or cash flow (sales less expenses). The seller then projects this stream of cash over five or more years to calculate the worth of the business. Often, discounted future earnings are used which takes into account the time value of money – cash received in year five is discounted based on projected interest rates.

In this method, disagreements can occur regarding calculation of cash flow and estimated sales projections. Many cash flow and EBITA (earnings before interest, taxes and amortization) projections use “recast” numbers to reflect the effect on profits of perks that a business owner takes from the business. This recasting is extremely important, and is discussed in a separate article directly below this one.

What factors affect the multiplier?

As you read this, you’re probably commenting to yourself that the multiplier is a subjective number that the buyer or seller pulls out of the air. There is plenty of room for judgment, but by and large, a profitable, reasonably healthy, small business will sell in the 2.0 to 6.0 times EBIT range, with most of those in the 2.5 to 4.5 range. So, if annual cash flow is $200,000, the selling price will likely be between $500,000 and $900,000. But there are many factors that affect the multiplier.

Examples of Positive factors (that raise multipliers) include:

• Proprietary products, with strong brand and/or patent or trademark
• Diversified customer base – no one customer more than 10% of sales
• Strong management team with few key personnel
• Weak competitors and a healthy market share for your company
• Products that are early in the Product Life Cycle
• Diversified products – no one product more than 15-20% of sales
• Ability of the company to meet some growth with current plant and equipment
• No pending legal or government action
• Financial ratios that are near or above industry averages

Examples of Negative factors (that lower multipliers) include:

• “Me-too” products that are just like competitors
• One or a few customers make up more than 25-30% of sales
• Strong competitors and a weak or declining market share for your company
• Products that are near the end of the Product Life Cycle
• One product makes up more than 20% of sales
• Major investment needed soon in plant and equipment
• Pending legal or government action
• Financial ratios that are below industry averages

Here is a very important point about the factors just listed: If your company has one, or even a few, of the negative factors, you are typical! There is no perfect business, but buyers will use these factors to negotiate the price down. You should make a mental note to work up a plan to convince buyers that the negatives can be overcome.

Valuing a company based on assets

Many businesses are sold under less-than-ideal conditions. What if there are no profits or cash flow? What if the owner passed away suddenly, and there is high financial risk for a new owner taking over? In these cases assets may be used to value the business. The value of the tangible assets usually sets a rock-bottom selling price for the business. Intangible assets may be worth money too – goodwill, customer lists, trademarks, patents, leases, permits and contracts are all intangible assets that can be factored into the price. Many buyers balk at paying a lot for intangibles, but for the seller it pays to evaluate each one for its worth. Hiring an appraiser is often a good idea when the price of a business will be based largely on assets rather than cash flow.

About the author: James Laabs is an experienced business seller and author of the book The Business Sale System: Insider Secrets To Selling Any Small Business (First American Publishing)

I often get this question ‘Wendy, what does it take be succeed as an entrepreneur?’ This is a simple question with complex answers. It will take more than just an article to cover it all. I have met up with many entrepreneurs in various industries and I realise that successful entrepreneurs come in all shapes and sizes, diverse cultural, spiritual beliefs and different educational backgrounds. Despite the diversity, there are commonalities and I would like to share .

1) YOU NEED P.H.D.!!
I believe that everyone can be successful in business if you set your heart, mind and soul to becoming an accomplished entrepreneur. It takes PHD to succeed in business. That is Passion, Hunger and Drive! (sorry, I do not mean the academic PHD “doctorate”). So, ask yourself this question, do you have the passion to lead an exciting and rewarding life, do you have the hunger for success and do you have the drive and determination to conquer obstables that may come your way. Every time I look for business partners for the various businesses I am in, I look at the PHD level they have.

2) GAIN MASTERY IN BUSINESS
To me, business is like a sport. You can choose to pick up any sport and with practise and guidance from coaches, you can become an expert at what you do. Once you pick business as your sport, ask yourself if you are willing to achieve mastery in business. For sports professionals to win the Olympic or S.E.A games, they have to be willing to learn from their coach and put what they learn into practise. They have to practise, make corrections, practise again and make corrections until they achieve mastery. You can get an MBA in Entrepreneurship and yet not know how to run a business. The key is to learn from existing entrepreneurs and be willing to be an apprentice to perfect the game of business.

3) RESULTS-FOCUSED
In business, you and your team get paid through profits (not sales) that your business generate. It is important to be results-focused and to keep an eye on the performance of the business. Be prepared to let good performers lead the business and also be prepared to fire poor performers. You cannot let emotions run your business. If a team member is negative, possess poor attitude or consistently could not produce results, you will be killing your business if you are not willing let the person go. This is something that I found that many entrepreneurs lack as they have a soft spot and ultimately sink the business together with the ’sinkers’.

4) POSSESS GOOD PEOPLE SKILLS
You should also possess good people skills. There is a saying that your network is your networth. How much is your networth? It is likely to be the average of the six closest people whom you network with. Be willing to meet up with diverse group of people in business as you can learn from every interaction opportunities. I found friends, investors, business partners, alliances, customers and suppliers through networking. Business is all about
getting things done through people. So, you can ask yourself, are you good at getting things done through people? Please do not go to someone and say ‘I want to tap your brains’, ‘I need your help’. But always ask about how you can create win win relationships or support them. Example, ‘I would like to see how we can work together’, ‘I would like to see how I can support you in your business.’

5) STEP UP AND BE A LEADER
Are you generally a leader or a follower? If you are more of a follower by nature, how do you rip the rewards that only leaders have access to? Everyone of us are a leader in our own ways, we lead our own lives for one! So, make a choice and say ‘I am a leader’. Leaders have the great advantage of leveraging resources. Leaders are generally willing to influence, persuade, motivate, inspire, train, develop people. This, in turn, allow the leader to leverage on other peoples’ skills, knowledge, experience, time and expertise to achieve extraordinary results. Of course sometimes it is ok to be a follower. I believe that to lead, first I must be willing to follow others who are more successful and I must be willing to be of service to others.

6) BECOME A GREAT SALES AND MARKETING EXPERT
The reason why most business fail is because they do not have enough revenue, cashflow and profits!! If you start to learn more about sales and marketing, you can effectively multiply your revenue, your profits and create healthy cash flow for your business. How would you grade yourself in this category? I can share honestly that my expertise is in this area. Without ability to sell and market the services or products, my business would be stagnant. The good thing is that these are skills that you can learn and improve on. To me, sales and marketing is one of the highest form of leverage. You can even generate infinite returns of investment with these skills!! Yes, we have done it. We have created many projects and businesses with no money down and generate profits by apply sales and marketing skills. Once you gain expertise in this area, you are ready to write your own paycheck. You can create whatever you desire.

7) CREATE SYSTEMS
For business to run smoothly, systems has to be created and maintained to ensure that whoever is tasked to take charge of a particular function knows what to do. Even though I have seven businesses, I have plenty of time to network and expand businesses to other markets because of systems. There are businesses where I only meet the team once a week, once a month as there is a systems for them to follow or abide. Run your business, don’t let the business run you. Be working ‘on’ the business and not ‘in’ the business. That should be the ultimate aim of entrepreneurs. It is easier for you to sell part or whole of business if you have created systems.

All the best in your endeavors and know that Entrepreneurship is a Sport that you can choose to be an expert in…

By : Wendy Kwek, Master Trainer of Entrepreneur Action Program
and co-founder of 7 businesses.

Please feel free to leave your comment.

My new year resolution for 2007 is easy : .

1) Eat healthy
2) Live simply
3) Give generously
4) Love deeply
5) Get wealthy
6) Expand globally
7) Invest wisely

It is amazing that even though it is simply stated, I felt that I can achieve the above with great clarity.

“Be patient with yourself. Self-growth is tender; it’s holy ground. There’s no greater investment.” –Stephen Covey

Wish you all the best in 2007! You have absolutely the power to create your destiny.

love,
Wendy

Hi, This is hot from the oven, I have been featured in Her World Magazine in Jan issue.

It is important that in any business, we work closely with publications to get publicity. Her World found me through the website and interviewed me. Within a month, Female magazine also interviewed me. I have made a commitment to contribute more articles for submission to various magazines and newspaper. Of course, the more that you contribute, the more coverage you are going to get. Remember that editors are always on a lookout for a story to cover or value add that they can provide to their readers.

Look out for Female Magazine Feb issue as I will also be credited in Female magazine. Last week, I have also contribute an article to Bold Leaps (a specialised magazines for SMEs), it would be out in Jan issue. So, no matter where you are at in business, start writing articles for submission, write your website, write your blog and you will start to see your profile and credibility increasing. I have attended a ‘book camp’ conducted by Dan Poynter, organised by Patrick Ang. He has also encouraged us to start writing no matter where you are at right now. You will improve your writing along the way. I had to remind myself that I should not be a perfectionist and seek to write perfect articles in perfect English… It would be tough for me because I got a C6 at GCE ‘O’ level and C6 at GCE ‘A’ level. Am I consistent or what?

Do not let your weakness be an obstacle. We are greater than any obstacle if we put our heart to it.

So, I do encourage you to start writing. You will increase your profile. To avoid feeling overwhelmed, start with your first sentence, your first paragraph, your first article or chapter and soon…you will complete a book and you will appear in many publications too!!

(You may click on the images below to read the full-sized article)

Love,
Wendy

In October 06, Wendy’s Bistro, a fine dining concept restaurant was officially opened. So far, the feedback of the food in Wendy’s Bistro has been fabulous!! Even though we are two months old, we are already having regular customers from all walks of life. We are positioning ourselves with the USPs of serving the yummiest portabello mushroom, juiciest grilled steaks, heavenly red wine and the famous Mango Lassi (my favorite) at a fraction of fine dining price.

Even though Jerome and myself are considered the majority shareholders of the business, the working team behind the restaurant are the TRUE HEROS…. I have absolutely no experience in running a restaurant but with a DREAM TEAM, everything is possible!! The HEROS are primarily Jeffri (our celebrity chef who cook with great passion) and David Gan (operations / franchise expert with KFC) and we are blessed to have very supportive shareholders like Mr Wong, Mr Tham, Michael Ram and Johnson. I must admit to you that it was not easy starting up and running a restaurant business. It takes a lot more resources and on-going commitment to make the business work. It is our plan to franchise out this business after the first year of running this business.

Wendy’s Bistro is located at No.20 Jalan PJS 8/18, Dataran Sunway Mentari, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia (just 5 minutes from Sunway Pyramid, Subang Jaya). Honestly, I was not around throughout the setup process, except viewing and confirming the location of the restaurant. After confirming the location, which was totally vacant and unfinished, the next time I went there was two months later, when the whole setup of the restaurant was completed. I was totally pleased with the outcome! I know that in the process the team has put in their blood, sweat and tears. It was truly a manifestation. Turning ideas into a reality.

There were quite a lot of challenges that the team has faced.
1) The team had limited funds to work with and they had to be so resourceful that everything gets done with tip top quality at a fraction of the price. If you see the decor you would agree everything was tastefully done.
2) Other challenges include signage not done up according to specs, aircon not sufficient due to open kitchen concept, disageements on pricing strategies, staff leaving without notice, things gotten stolen, sales volume was very low…and there were just so many internal and external challenges.

However, with perserverance, there is indeed the light at the end of the tunnel!! Last week end, just after two months from the opening of the restaurant, we have to turn away customers!!

Over the last weekend we had to turn away quite a number of guests due to great PR stint in Star newspaper. (Thanks to Su Ying for her getting in the press like the Star and Sun papers.) It was a great feeling having to turn away customers. That gave us so much more confidence. So what did we do when the restaurant is facing full-house situation? Instead of turning away the guests and leave them disappointed, we offered the guests $20 in restaurant voucher as a goodwill of dropping by our restaurant and they leave feeling happy instead of feeling disappointed. The restaurant generated over RM10,000 in two days. Thanks to Jerome, Su Ying, Jefri, David, Stanley and the rest of the dedicated team of people for making it happen. Honestly, I did not do much at all since I am based more in Singapore.

What I learn from Wendy’s Bistro is that :

1) It is important to have the right team. Once you have a good team, you should entrust the team and give the team the space to function and to support when they needed help.

2) It is important to continously align expectations as any unhappiness is normally because of expectations. Be willing to share what you feel in a constructive and supportive way.

3) We have to be versatile in situations. Turn adversity into opportunity. The people who received the RM20 vouchers were grateful and instead of feeling upset for not experiencing the yummy food, they are going to come back with their friends and families!”

4) Marketing can work effectively once you learn how to do so and it is possible to leverage on media to multiply your results no money down!

5) Most importantly, I have confirmed that believing is seeing. Jerome has proven once again that with faith and massive action, the results will come to pass!! There is nothing that is impossible. The team was intially very doubtful that the business would even be able to surpass RM2000 per day. However, most people look at the current results and say, “see, it is impossible to succeed.”

Lastly, I would like to leave my team with this. “I am truly proud of you team for holding the fort, you are all winners!” TEAM stands for Together Everyone Achieves Miracles.

Now,if you happen to go to Malaysia, KL, Petaling Jaya, you may want to pop by Wendy’s Bistro. Get a feel of Wendy’s Bistro at www.wendysbistro.com. Ask for a discount from Jeffri or David and I am sure they will work out something from you. Cheers!!

Some of us would have remembered the 1997 crisis; where there were nightmare stories of life time savings being wiped out overnight with the devaluation of currencies. There were people who got seriously burnt with the plummeting stock market, falling property prices, large-scale retrenchment and so on…

What worries me is that people do not learn the lesson! We are now moving on towards the end of 2006, and the economy sentiments seems very bouyant. There are news that our stock market STI index is breaking 3000 points, with the mid and high end properties getting snapped up quickly. If we were to look into all the sectors of growth, isn’t it scary that fundamentally the economy is far from fully recovered?

The hype comes about with the announcements of the Integrated Resorts. Study into the US economy and you know that it is not all that rosy. Maybe I am just skeptical. I have met up with so many people who not just got into the rat race but was nailed down by the rat trap, bleeding badly and hardly recovered yet because they were chasing the market.

I am not against stock investing nor investment in properties, do not get me wrong. But I do believe that if you spend some time with accomplished stock investors and property investors, they will tell you not to go with the herd instinct.

Never enter the market when it is ballooning, especially when the economy indicators does not support those numbers. Your patience will pay off. There are many people who made a rash decision and paid the debt for the rest of your life..

I would like to recommend you to read about value investing (as Ken Chee has recommended in his blog - www.ken-chee.com) and ‘How you can become a multi-millionaire real estate investor’ by Milan Doshi.

Pls feel free to drop in your own comments and feedback.