Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind

Have just finished a marketing book - Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind by Al Ries and Jack Trout. It brings a very precise message: in this overcommunicated society, the name of the new game is 'positioning'. This is not about what is the product, it is about how does it locate in the prospect's mind.

Positioning can sketch outside the economic regime. For example, a church, a politician, a country and even yourself need positioning.

What is the positioning of Hong Kong? Remember the slogan from Tourist Board? "Hong Kong - City of life"...

Well, if you ask me what is the first word come to my mind when I see this slogan, my answer is "doubt".

Isn't it? To get a good place in prospect's mind, the position should help you to differentiate from others. However, did Tourist Board assume that other cities are life-less and dumb?

Let me think about how to re-position the territory. Say, air pollution is something that tourists love (just an example, don't take it serious), and Hong Kong gets the pollution level that no other Asian cities can reach, we can promote the territory in this way: "Hong Kong - A Polluted Jungle!". Then the description could be: Wanna challenge your respiratory system? The visibility of Hong Kong can be less than 1m in almost 4 months a year, come and experience such special suffocated feeling....'

Well, I am just kidding. But I would recommend this book to you, especially for marketing people.

The Princess Diaries - Seventh Heaven

Oh great!!!!!!!!!!! The seventh The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot is released. I just couldn't wait and after I saw it in the first sight, I picked it up and paid it straight away.

However, it is too expensive actually. It costs $136.4 in Page Two bookstore, quite unreasonable, actually...... Grace, how much does it cost in Italy? People always say books in Hong Kong are expensive because here is a 'cultural desert'.

For those interested to know more about Princess Mia, recommend you to check www.megcabot.co.uk.

I will read this book during my maternity leave!

Prima Donna

Jelly told me that he lectured prima donna today.

Prima donna is the nick name of Jelly gave to that girl. He told me that she was disrepectful to him.

Well, human relationship and office politics are the most difficult subjects in the workplace. All those technical things and professional skills could be learnt through trainings and get the experience from time to time. How to manage a well-balanced relationshp with others could hardly be taught though.

I still believe if you have a good personality could overcome most of the difficulties, and not taking everything too serious will make yourself happier.

Book, I'm loving it!!

I do really love books, they provide me a much broader horizon to view the world. They nourish my soul and cultivate my wisdom.

I also like people who read books, usually they are less ego-centric and humble. Jeff is one of them.

If I haven't read any thing for several days, I will feel that I lose something.

I wsih Jeff and I can have a reading room one day!

Farewell

Last week we had a farewell party with Jimmy.

For me, I think this is a big loss of the company.

I don't spend much time with him before, but I think he is a very good teacher. Everytime when you talk with him, you could get some learning.

He knows I feel perplexing of my pregnancy and the parenthood, then he encouraged me to relax, have a baby, take care of the baby, and work as best as I can. Jimmy reminded me I am not working for others' comment on me, I am working for myself.

Right, I am living for myself.

Life Stage

I had read my great friend Billie's diary about her life in age 20-25.
At that time, she hanged around with friends every night and indulged in drinking and clubbing. For her, as described by her friends, 'those were the great days.'

I do believe your life will be more interesting if you have a period totally belonged to yourself and did whatever you want, no matter it is a good or bad experience. After all, this is a chance to experience your life in different way.

My 'great' (or messy is the much more appropriate adjective in my case) days were in age 19-20. I had a lousy freshman year in University. I skipped lessons and went discos every weekend (I won't mention much here as I worry my daddy will read this diary), I felt ecstatic sometimes and totally in depression in another moment. Technically speaking, I was losing in a maze. Then one day, I woke up, I didn't want to be lousy anymore, I wanted a new life, then I tried to work hard again and altered my life style totally.

I still believed that it is worth to be a naughty person in one point in your life, just don't go too far. As you are getting older, you have more responsibilities; you do not afford to be naughty anymore.

For me, I think my life won't be that completed if I did not go through that period. In my childhood, my parents set lot of strict rules for me; I try to be a nice girl simply because I should follow their instruction. After those great days, now I try to be a nice and stable person because this is what I myself aiming at!!

Happy Hour

Last Friday Samantha, Chrisse and I managed to sneak away from the office at 5:45pm, we then had a drink at the spaghatti factory nearby. Three of us had a chat about our future career path.

Seems that all of us got an intention to quit the current job, each of us got our own reasons. After the discussion, I had a thoughtful retrospect of my career development.

To be frank, I guess I like the job nature of market research more than I supposed to be. I told the girls that I didn't dislike the field, but it didn't mean I love this job so much. However, when I think about which industry I should dive into in my next job, I just discover that I don't want to give up what I had learnt in market research.

It is similar to the situation that you learn the fundmental courses 1001 and 1002 for certain subject, you want to complete the whole module because only 1003 and 1004 had left. You know that after that you could be a qualified researcher with a handful of experience.

Well, the point is, if I love this industry, should I stay in the current firm or jump to another company? I just don't know!! Job changing can be very perplexing for a pregnant woman. Anyway, let's the fortune guides me.