eHomemakers Malaysia

I'm always cross-stitching something or other. And I have a few finished unframed pieces in my collection. Today, I decided to photograph them and post them online for sale! This is my new business venture! Check it out here!   http://eowynincross-stitch.blogspot.com/ I hope you will like my work and order something! I will be posting new pieces as I complete them! Hope to see you there! Hugs, eowyn

Following on my post below "Ready Aim Fire", I would like to discuss the above categories of approaches towards acting on one's project.        Sam (below) has now started researching ideas for his cooking school project. Yaye! He is really excited and looks forward to the launch of his cooking school.        Fast forward another 10 years. Sam is still planning his cooking school project! Sam has so unfortunately fallen into the category of people who think that they are taking the Ready Aim Fire approach but instead are really taking the Ready Aim Ready Aim approach. Let's discuss the differences.          Ready Aim Fire: this means that you are quick to seize on the opportunities that come your way. But you don't just seize them blindly.        Once you see an opportunity, you get ready by doing market...

Hi guys         How's everybody? Hope you guys are busying pursuing your dreams :)        Anyway, following up on the thread below "The Key To Success", I would just like to add that I fully agree with Sheau Ching in that Action Speaks Louder than words.         Let's take Sam (fictitious and for purpose of this example) for example. Sam has been talking about his Project A (he dreams of starting a cooking school as he is passionate about cooking) for 10 years. He doesn't take action to pursue his Project A.        Instead, he just talks about it and whines that he can't pursue it because he has no money. Can Sam succeed? Of course not! Not even on his passion when passion is just mixed with a dream. He needs to take action and start work on his Project A. He needs to start taking steps no matter how small to work towards fulfilling this dream ...

Photo by Tzer Haw I was visiting a poor village near Manila in the Philippines with Mrs Amelia and Gina.  The village was inhabited by several hundred families, all cramped into small, dilapidated, wooden houses.  The local men were mostly labourers and petty traders while the women took care of household chores or helped their hus­bands in odd jobs.             Mrs Amelia was the head of an organization called Giving Hope, which had com­munity projects in the area, and Gina was one of the social workers.  Giving Hope was conducting health and sanitary education for the people.  After a few years, however, they realized that improving the health and sanitary conditions meant helping people out of poverty first.  To do this, Giving Hope Board of Management started income-generation projects.  They decided to help the poorest of the poor women first. The d...

I attended eHomemakers’ Work-Life Balance Conference last week and listened to speakers from around the world discuss the tenets of work-life balance.  In general, participants looked to European countries as models for the work-life balance they would hope to implement in Malaysia.  They argued this is the future.  This choice of an idol, however, made an easy target for critics, who claimed the European system was unproductive and inefficient.  As evidence, they pointed to the crises facing the European economies and threatening these half-century old social democracies.   Both proponents and opponents were making a fundamental mistake, however, in equating the European-style social system with the fundamental changes that are occurring in the way people work.   Both of these subjects certainly affect work-life balance and alter people’s work environments.  The European social system subject pertains to politics and decisions on...

I'm a little embarrassed that until this past weekend, I hadn't read Muhammad Yunus' Banker to the Poor . It was one of those glaring gaps into my personal and professional development that, looking back, is completely inexplicable. I probably shouldn't even be admitting this in public but I suppose it's never too late to get with the program. When I have a few moments to myself these days, I often find myself thinking about current aid structures and imagining how things might be different with the introduction of microfinance. Just this morning on my run, I was listening to a This American Life collaboration with Planet Money about NGOs in Haiti. They tell the story of a local mango farmer who has the land and the water for one hundred mango trees but needs a small canal to expand her business and the mango exporter who wants to distribute plastic crates to mango farmers because better packing methods would double his and the farmers' income. The canal-b...

Just 5 minutes to improve Tips for improving your level of English. That’s what today’s piece is about. It all came about during a session with an inspiring group of working adults in, what I would call a "prestigious" body in KL. I shared some of the tips that I had successfully used over the years with students. At the end of it all, there was one request to have them written out. It shows how serious he is in improving himself, and I do admire him for it. The better your level of English when you communicate with customers, the better the impression you leave on them. So, here are five simple tips that just needs an investment of five minutes per activity. Good luck! 1. Write for five minutes each day Write on any topic that you like. It could be about what you did yesterday, your plans for the weekend, the colour blue, your ambitions, etc. The sentences do not have to be perfect. The whole paragraph does not have to flow well. This is just a practice sessio...

We have finally decided to let go of our love for fakes. But what do we do about those fakes being disguised as the real thing? I have a friend who bid for a Prada clutch on eBay just to find out upon arrival that it was actually a ‘replica’. Yes, they use word like ‘replica’ these days. Maybe to make it sounds less obvious. But not to worry because there are methods which can be used to spot the fakes. 1. The outrageously low prices. Like, hello?! You don’t get an original Fendi or D&G for 150 bucks for sure. The best thing to do is always check the price of the item from the official website of the brand. If the price offered to you is ridiculously low or lower than 30% of the original, it’s a surefire sign that you were about to add a counterfeit to your shopping cart. 2. Check the material and craftsmanship. If the leather feels like PVC instead of lambskin, then it’s not the real thing. Look closely at the stitching as well as the lining. Brands like Coach for instanc...

Fake, knock-off, imitation, counterfeit… whatever you want to call it. I am the kinda person who would rather tot around an inexpensive bag and shoes from the high-street brands than wear something fake. Regardless of the price, at least I know for sure that they are originals. It’s just sad to see how people would buy something that they call ‘high-quality fakes’ when they can get items from Guess, Aldo, Topshop, Promod etc for similar price. Does it feel good to have fake stuff on your body? And is there really such a thing as ‘high-quality fakes’? Do you have any idea where those fake Fendi, Gucci and LV came from? Most counterfeit merchandise is linked closely to crime rings, child labor, and human trafficking. These handbags and shoes are made in secluded sweatshops by workers who are working long hours in poor conditions. And the most upsetting part is these workers are young children who are being forced to work hours after hours on the old, rusty sewing machine just to pro...

My friend Zhu Jun and I have spent the past few weeks exploring his experiences as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Chad and I wanted to share the final post with the eHomemakers community. (If you'd like to read the full series, you can check it out on my blog .) While there are few business opportunities traditionally open to women in Chad, many have managed to carve out a niche for themselves selling food and drink. Here's Zhu Jun's take on things: The vast majority of women in Léré and rural Chad are bound by unspoken gender rules that limit the types of entrepreneurship women can engage in. This generally means entrepreneurship for women in Chad is limited to serving food and drink. In streets near transportation centers and well-traveled roads throughout the country, women and girls hawk snacks including fried bean fritters, Chadian doughnuts or beignets , beans and rice, seasonal fruits, palm nuts, grilled chicken, grilled or fried fish, and packs of water. Grown men ...

Or perhaps the other way around.... Before I get started, I'd like to introduce myself. My name is Alexis and I'll be writing occasionally on social enterprise issues for the eHomemakers blog. I've been working/volunteering in digital media and marketing for the past five years and I also have experience in harm reduction health outreach. I'm looking forward to sharing my perspective from the United States while learning more about the challenges and joys of doing business in Southeast Asia. I've recently been exploring the eHomemakers website and corresponding with its founder. In case you're not familiar with eHomemakers (although considering you're reading this blog, you must be somewhat familiar), they are based out of Kuala Lumpur and they provide networking, support, and an online community to women who work from home. What I love about their philosophy is their focus on empowering women economically while understanding the cultural and personal oblig...