eHomemakers Malaysia

I HAVE been giving talks on writing, working from home, and building home-based businesses for several years now. Often, I get e-mail from people who have attended the talks. Some are doing well after taking the plunge to try something new. They heeded the advice given them and kept improving their skills and knowledge until they knew how to handle new challenges. However, a large majority have not taken a single step towards what they had so wanted to do. A woman met me in a car park recently, and said: “Your talk was good but a home-based business is not for me. I am too old to try new things. “Also, I don’t want to work so hard when my kids are still young. I don’t have a tertiary education like you, so everything takes more time. I don’t have the business skills and I am scared to do anything new!” Just before she closed the door of her BMW, she threw in one last sentence, “And I don’t have money for the capital!” I was rooted to the ground after hearing so many...

Born and bred in Ipoh, the third largest town in Malaysia, Chong Sheau Ching attained her Bachelor's Degrees in Food Science and Nutrition in Canada and a Master's Degree in International Administration in the United States.           She spent ten years working in international organizations on community empowerment through health and informal education, poverty alleviation and sustainable development programs.        She returned to Kuala Lumpur for the birth of her daughter in 1994. From her home, she then began to write "stories for My Mother", a weekly column in Malaysia's most popular English-language newspaper, The Star, from where she soon gained a large following.         More recently, she established projects designed to open up new opportunities for mothers and homemakers. She edited and co-authored "Working @ Home - A Guidebook for Working W...

"Hi! How are you?” The woman smiled as she took the seat beside me. She had to lower herself slowly, squeezing her ample bottom into the seat, filling all available space. Positioning herself comfortably, she plopped her enormous arm on our common armrest. Her immensity saturated the space around us, shrinking me and my seat into insignificance. I cringed and reclined towards the window. She leaned towards me and repeated her greeting in an upbeat, friendly voice. Her face towered above my head, forcing me to turn to look at her. “Hi,” I replied with obvious loathing. I turned away to stare out the cabin window, sulking silently about the long hours of discomfort I was going to experience with this monster beside me. She nudged me with her meaty arm. “My name is Laura. I’m from Britain. How about you? Japan?” “Malaysia,” I barked. “I’m so sorry! Will you accept my heartfelt apology? Come, shake my hand. If we’re going to spend six hours side-by-side on this flight, ...

At 52, Marian Lough is too young to be stricken down by Parkinson's Disease, a condition which debilitates the person physically, making bodily movements difficult. Although she's still in the early stages of the degenerative disease, she talks to CHONG SHEAU CHING about how it has changed her life, and how she keeps her chin up. "I love Kuala Lumpur!" Marian Lough said excitedly, serving me a refreshing Marian's Cocktail - Ribena in tonic with a twist of lemon. "I love the smells and the wetness of the wet market, the side streets, finding things I've never seen before and talking to the locals. "I just wish I didn't have to leave, " she sighed. "I'll miss all my friends, and - this may sound strange - the mini buses!" "I was on one yesterday, and the bus driver, who was puffing while carrying on a shouting match with the conductor swerved the bus dangerously at high speed. My knuckles went white from gripping...

Me again :)  I have been reading a lot of self-help books. I never used to do it as I was always of the belief that I was too good/strong-minded to require self-help. I thought it was a sign of weakness.  However, after having read so many self-help books in 2011 and counting, my opinion has changed drastically.  I now realise that self-help books can help me vastly improve myself as a human being. For example, I have learnt many valuable tips on productivity, which has greatly improved my workflow allowing me to have a better work-life balance. If you wish to check out some self-help books, you may consider the popular resource of free ebooks at Project Gutenberg .   I also realise that I was just too stubborn to explore new ideas and thoughts in the past, which is a shame as I may have missed out on a lot of "could have been brilliant" experiences. These days, I keep an open mind on new ideas and thoughts and am eager to experiment with them. Of course, one of ...

Hiya all I am now back in Beijing in the cold. I was struggling to set up my internet and connect to blogger but phew just managed to do it a minute ago.  Anyway, as you may be aware, I am busy trying to set up an online business.  I am making up things and structures for the business as I go along. Sometimes, I don't really know where I am headed and I get quite dejected. Once, I have cried in frustration.  But I never give up. I have never given up in life, mostly anyway.  This is because I believe that I will become the person I think I will be. Since I think that I will become successful, I am working hard towards that.  Action + Belief = Success  I will hold on to this conviction till I succeed.  If you are dreaming of setting up a home-based business, stop dreaming. Take action now and act on your dream. And believe in yourself. This will lead you to the path of success.  If you have already taken action and you are in the process o...

“These fellahin (villagers) are stupid! If you want them to do something, you have to tell them over and over again! Even after you show them a million times what to do, they still forget everything. And when they do something wrong, they don’t tell you until it’s too late!” Dr. Mona pointed at Zaineb as she rattled off her frustrations to me. “Her sister has worked for me for a year and she still makes the stupidest mistakes. I have to scream at her every time she comes!” Dr, Mona then harshly scolded Zaineb, who stood there timidly with her head down, her two hands folded in front of her. She looked like a frightened cat. I had just arrived in Mansoura, a town by the Nile Delta in Egypt. Dr. Mona, the director of an organization, was my counterpart and local contact. She was doing her best to help me settle in, including bringing me Zaineb as my maid. For over an hour that day, she gave me a cultural run-down on how to treat maids. She also translated what I wanted Zain...