Sunday, June 29, 2008
BETWEEN THE PILOT AND THE TOWER!
Tower: "DELTA 351, you have traffic at 10 o'clock, 6 miles!"
Delta 351: Give us another hint - we have digital watches.
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Tower: TWA 2341, for noise abatement turn 45 degrees.
TWA 2341: Centre we are at 35,000ft. How much noise can we make up here.
Tower: Sir, have you ever heard the noise a 747 makes when it hits a 727?
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From an unknown aircraft in a very long take-off queue: "I am fucking bored!!!"
Ground Traffic Control: "Last aircraft transmitting identify yourself immediately!!!"
Unknown aircraft: "I said I was fucking bored not fucking stupid!!!"
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Approach Control to a 747: "United 329 heavy, your traffic is a Fokker, one o'clock, three miles, eastbound."
United 329: "Approach!!! I have always wanted to say this. I have the little Fokker in my sight!"
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A student became lost during a solo cross-country flight. While attempting to locate the aircraft on radar , ATC asked: "What was your last known position?"
Student: "When I was number One for take-off!!!"
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A DC-10 had come in a little hot, thus had exceedingly long roll out after touch down. Johannesburg International Tower: "American 751 make a hard turn right at end of runway if you are able. If not able take the Gillooly's off ramp exit then make it right back to Johannesburg International Airport."
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A Pan Am 727, waiting for start clearance in Munich, overheard the following: Lufthansa {in German} "Ground what is our start clearance time?"
Ground {in English} "If you want an answer you must speak in English." Lufthansa {in English} "I am German, flying a German Airplane in Germany. Why I must speak English?"
Unknown voice from another plane {in a beautiful British accent} "Because you lost the bloody war!!!"
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Tower: "QUANTAS 702 cleared for take-off contact departure. On Frequency 124.7."
QUANTAS 702: "Tower QUANTAS 702 switching to departure. By the way after we lifted off we saw Some kind of dead animal on the far end of the runway."
Tower: "S.A.A. 652, cleared for take off behind QUANTAS 702 contact departure on frequency 124.7.
Did you Copy report on QUANTAS 702?" S.A.A. 652: "Cleared for take off, Roger: Yes, we copied QUANTAS we have already notified our caterers!"
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While taxiing at London's Gatwick Airport, the crew of a US Air Flight departing for Ft. Lauderdale Made a wrong turn then came nose to nose with B.A. 727. An irate female ground controller lashed out at the US Air crew, screaming: "US Air 277, where the hell are you going? I told you to turn right onto Charlie Taxiway!!!You turned right onto Delta!! Stop right there! I know it is difficult for you to tell the difference between C & D, but get it right. Continuing her rage to the embarrassed crew, she was shouting hysterically: God now you have screwed everything up. It will take forever to sort this out!!! You stay right there & Do not move until I tell you!! You can expect progressive taxi instructions in about half an hour, I want you to go exactly where I tell you ,When I tell you & how I tell you. You got that US Air 277?"
"Yes Ma'am" the humbled crew responded. Naturally, the ground control communications frequency fell terribly silent after the verbal bashing Of US Air 277. Nobody wanted to chance engaging the irate ground controller in her current state of mind. Tension in every cockpit out around Gatwick was definitely running high. Just then an unknown pilot broke the silence & keyed in his microphone, asking: "Wasn't I married to you once???"
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VANISHING ICE SHELF REVEALS EXOTIC ANIMALS
How cool is this! No man, not about the global warming bit. About the exotic animals that have been revealed. That's so cool - it could also possibly tell us about previous 'global warmings' (although I am sure that they were not called that before) and/or ice ages and the like. Man this is exciting!
Vanishing ice shelf reveals exotic animals
February 26 2007 at 01:20AM
By Deborah ZabarenkoWashington -
WHAT TO DO WHEN . . . . YOU'RE NOT SURE ABOUT LEAV
WHAT TO DO WHEN . . . . YOU’RE NOT SURE ABOUT LEAVE
PART 3
By Nikki Viljoen – N Viljoen Consulting CC.
I promised that we would have a look at the subject of accumulation of leave.
This is not a good idea people – not good for the Business at all! Actually the Letters and/or Contracts of Appointment that I have deals very clearly with this point. Let’s examine why it is not a good idea and then I will let you know how I deal with it in the employee contracts.
So George has been working for Mike now for a period of 17 years. Both George and Mike are very ‘proud’ of the fact that George has not taken a single days worth of leave in that entire time. The perception of course is that George is so dedicated to his work that he will sacrifice himself in order to make sure that the business works . . . well! Seventeen years – that’s a long time not to take leave, in fact it is a whopping 255 days leave that is due to George – almost 9 months worth of leave due! Incredible wouldn’t you say? Well not for me, I would say EEEeeeeeeekkkkk! Houston we have a problem!
Let’s have a look at the real reason that George has not taken leave. You see, personally I don’t believe that anyone could be that dedicated! Even people who own their own Businesses or work for themselves take a break from time to time and there is anyone ‘dedicated’ to what they do, it’s them. Wouldn’t you agree?
One of the biggest frauds that I have come across in my career as Internal Auditor (a career that spans more than 30 years, I might add) ‘popped’ up when we put a stop to all overtime and insisted that people within the organization took their leave. You see, the people who are committing fraud, or who (as in this case) were ‘in charge’ of all the people that they had coerced into committing the fraud, had to be around in case a question or two was asked – so that they could cover their tracks, make the appropriate excuses or make a timeous exit, should the need arise.
That is one of the reasons that the Basic Conditions of Employment Act is quite specific about leave and how it should be taken. Taking a day here or there doesn’t cut it. Your staff need to take their leave in blocks/weeks/chunks or any other way you would like to describe it.
Let’s be reasonable, apart from anything else, everyone needs a break, everyone needs to rest and honestly speaking, you are not doing yourself and/or your business any favour by having people around that are dog tired. Contrary to popular belief, they do not work to their best capacity and neither do you. So let them take their time off and make sure that you do too.
So that’s the first reason that your staff MUST take leave – let’s have a look at some of the others.
Although George has been with Mike for seventeen years now, he has been headhunted by Mike’s rival company. Apart from anything else, they are prepared to give George, double the salary that he is earning right now and they are also going to throw in a car, a petrol allowance and a cell phone. George of course, being the loyal employee that he is turns down the offer! Yeah right! George hands his resignation in so quickly, it’s written and handed in before Mike can even blink!
Think about this one for a moment - Mike now has to “pay out” the 255 days leave that he owes George and get this – it’s not at 15 days at the rate that George was paid in the first year and then 15 days that George was paid in the 2nd year and so on. It is 255 days at George’s current rate of pay! What exactly do you think that this is going to do to Mike’s cash flow, presuming of course that he has one?
This is the kind of stuff that ‘closes’ businesses down – fast.
In the employment contracts that I use, it is stipulated that employees have to take a minimum of 80% of their leave as at 31 December of each year. The balance of 20% may be accumulated until 31 March of the following year and if not taken by then is forfeited by the employee.
As you can see, it is in your own best interests to ensure that your staff take their leave every year – all of it.
Next week, we will look at a whole new topic!
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
'RAPE COCKTAIL' WARNING ISSUED
All I can say here is that for me, on a logical level, doing alcohol with these energy drinks is a contradiction in terms.
Alcohol for me, is taken when I want to relax and calm down-usually at the end of a long hard day - these energy drinks are usually taken (and I say usually because I don't drink them - they taste disgusting in my opinion) when you are low on energy and need a boost of sorts.
So why you would take them together just doesn't make any kind of sense to me at all.
Think about it people! Think carefully about what it is that you put into your bodies!
'Rape cocktail' warning issued
November 25 2006 at 12:43PM
By Christina Gallagher
'Nightspots across the country are making millions of rands off these cocktails'
This article was originally published on page 1 of The Star on November 25, 2006
Thursday, June 26, 2008
THE POWER OF NETWORKING - PART 67
PART 67
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
Networking and your competition. Let’s take this discussion a bit further this week.
How do you Network effectively when you are competing with several other companies and businesses that offer the same product and/or services as you do and who operate out of the same area that you do? Clearly you need to stand out ‘head and shoulders’ above the crowd and you obviously should never, and I mean NEVER – put your competition down or malign them in any way. Concentrate rather on what you do and what you do that makes it different.
Let’s focus on what you do need to do – you need to work very carefully on every aspect of your Business, from your Business Presentation to your Business Card, your promotional/marketing items such as pens, to the way that you present yourself as an individual, to your elevator speech.
Your Business Presentation needs to be professional, but also memorable. Going on and on about statistics and the like is extremely boring for the person listening. So if you want to use some statistics, choose one – perhaps put some humour into it (to make it stand out and be memorable) and use it at the end of the presentation where it will make and have the most impact!
You need to know what you want to say to people when you introduce yourself. Fumbling and stammering with lots of ‘Um’s and er’s and, and, and, and’s’ is really not going to cut it for you. Let’s face it – if you don’t know who you are and what it is that you do, how can you expect anyone else to? So take the time and prepare what you want to say to people.
I have written so much about Elevator speeches it really feels like a deje vu moment for me, yet it is of critical importance, especially if you are confined to a limited amount of time in which to introduce yourself and make an impression!
Take the time, invest it in yourself and your business. Make sure that what you are saying is clear and also that it makes sense. Make your statement make people want to contact you and engage with you, even if it is only to ask you what you meant!
For example my elevator speech is “My name is Nikki Viljoen of Viljoen Consulting. I am an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and I prevent loss!” Many people come up to me afterwards and say ‘What do you mean you prevent loss – how do you prevent loss?’ A huge foot in the door for me wouldn’t you say?
The more you work on your Networking, the more your Networking will work for you!
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
NO MORE HI-JACKINGS?
No more hijackings?
March 24 2007 at 10:57AM
By Fiona Gounden
However, Harvey said he wanted to take the idea of the cellphone panic button further and link it to the vehicle because of the high rate of vehicle thefts and hijacking. "The cellphone panic button was launched three years ago and I decided to advance it and link it to the vehicle somehow. You can now have an immobiliser and the tracking device fitted to the vehicle linking it to your phone. It works across all cellular networks and phones.
Monday, June 23, 2008
MOTIVATION - I BELIEVE WE CHANGE
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
It is said that “we don’t have to change friends if we understand that friends change.”
Well in my book, so do we. We change! We grow and move forward. Sometimes we stop dead in or tracks and need to be kick started to get going again and sometimes something happens and we even go back wards.
Think about it for a moment. As children we learn and as we learn we grow – both physically and emotionally. What was really important to us as children growing up is usually nothing that we get up tight about as teenagers. Our understanding of our immediate environment and the people in it change as we grow.
Then as teenagers, the hormones kick in and we swing like a great big pendulum, going from ecstatic highs to dangerous lows, very seldom spending any length of time, balanced, somewhere in the middle.
Once the hormones settle down and we become more emotionally stable and enter young adulthood, what seemed like a ‘life and death’ situation as a teenager usually becomes nothing more than a slight embarrassment as we think back to what we were so ready to give our very lives for – presuming of course that we can actually remember the incident at all!
Then as adults we grow as we experience day to day life and the trials and tribulations that we set up for ourselves. From each experience we learn (hopefully) and we grow.
As we grow we change, hopefully for the better, and we morph into who and what it is that we want to become.
Friendships that were forged in our youth often do not survive to adulthood and this is because as individuals, we grow at different speeds, and often in different directions.
We expect others around us, our family, our friends and colleagues to accept us for what and whom we are, at any given moment in our lives and yet there appears to be this problem that we have in seeing and accepting the changes that our friends, family and colleagues have also gone through to become what they are.
We all change, whether it is for the better or for the worse – it is entirely up to us. Let us embrace that change both in ourselves and in our friends. Let us accept the changes in both ourselves and in our friends. Let us be all that we can be and accept our friends just as they are.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
THIRTY LINES TO MAKE YOU SMILE.
THIRTY LINES TO MAKE YOU SMILE
1. My husband and I divorced over religious differences. He thought he was God and I didn't.
2. I don't suffer from insanity; I enjoy every minute of it.
3. I Work Hard Because Millions On Welfare depend on me!
4. Some people are alive only because it's illegal to kill them.
5. I used to have a handle on life, but it broke.
6. Don't take life too seriously; no one gets out alive.
7. You're just jealous because the voices only talk to me
8. Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder.
9. Earth is the insane asylum for the universe.
10. I'm not a complete idiot -- Some parts are missing.
11. Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.
13. God must love stupid people; He made so many.
14. The gene pool could use a little chlorine.
15. Consciousness: That annoying time between naps.
16. Ever stop to think, and forget to start again?
17. Being "over the hill" is much better than being under it!
18. Wrinkled Was Not One of the Things I Wanted when I grew up.
19 Procrastinate Now!
21. A hangover is the wrath of grapes.
22. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a cash advance
23. Stupidity is not a handicap. Park elsewhere!
24.They call it PMS because Mad Cow Disease was already taken.
25. He who dies with the most toys is nonetheless dead.
26. A picture is worth a thousand words, but it uses up three thousand times the memory.
27. Ham and eggs. A day's work for a chicken, a lifetime commitment for a pig.
28. The trouble with life is there's no background music.
29. The original point and click interface was a Smith and Wesson.
30. I smile because I don't know what the hell is going on.
COUNCIL INSISTS ON 2c DEBT
This has got to be the funniest thing that I have heard in a very long time! I wonder if they are this strict on all of those fraudsters and thieves in their ranks that plunder the books and the funds and live off the rest of us?
I wonder how much it cost them to go after this 0.02c! Must be quite a fortune!
What a bunch of absolute idiots!
Council insists on 2c debt
Hanti Otto May 02 2008 at 07:32AM
Adendorff received another account in February, but ignored it, believing she had already paid. When the next account arrived, Adendorff realised she owed the council a whole R0,02. Thinking it would just be added to her next account, she again ignored it. But then she received two accounts threatening her with legal action. But her biggest problem was how to pay off her "enormous debt".
This article was originally published on page 1 of The Star on May 02, 2008
WHAT TO DO WHEN . . . . YOU'RE NOT SURE ABOUT LEAV
ARTICLE 6
WHAT TO DO WHEN . . . . YOU’RE NOT SURE ABOUT LEAVE
PART 2
By Nikki Viljoen – N Viljoen Consulting CC.
Ok, here we go – now we have exactly what the Act says, now let’s find out exactly what it means!
Let’s get my favorite protagonists back. George the employee and Mike the employer.
George has been working for Mike for almost a year now and it’s time for him to take some leave. George is reluctant to take leave as he is really in need of some additional finance. The roof of his house in Soweto has blown off and he needs the additional finance to do the repairs. Mike on the other hand, can’t really do without George because he has landed a deal that has stretched his resources really thin. So they come to a compromise – George has requested that Mike pay him out for his leave and since Mike has the new deal he is in a financial position to pay George for the leave that he does not take!
Sounds like a win, win situation doesn’t it? Look again!
Firstly the only person to really win out of this situation is SARS - you see the extra finance in George’s pay packet means that he has gone into the next tax bracket, so he is actually paying more tax out to SARS than the leave pay is actually worth.
Secondly although George now has the additional funds that he needs to repair his roof – the additional work, without him taking a rest, means that his body and his mind is tired and it will be a whole year before he can actually take some time out again. His judgment is slow, his reflexes are slow and he is not only putting himself at risk, but also his work mates because he could actually be the cause of an accident.
Thirdly, although Mike has been able to complete his project on time, George will probably only be half as productive as usual for the rest of the year because he has not had time to rest.
Finally, if the Department of Labour and/or the CCMA found out that Mike had paid George’s leave out – Mike could be in serious trouble and face a huge fine for not obeying the law.
The only time it is legal for Mike to pay George out his leave pay is if George resigns – then all of the leave pay would need to be paid out in full.
Next week let’s have a look at accumulation of leave.
Let’s have a look at what this all means next week.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
WHITE JOURNALISTS FUME OVER FORUM'S ZUMA MEET
This is absolutely disgusting! Here we are 14 years into our democracy, with the most democratic constitution in the world and yet here we have it - racisim! Full blown, disgusting rasism!
Clearly we need to sweep in front of our own door steps before we start telling everyone else how to do it!
White journalists fume over forum's Zuma meet
Natasha Marrian Johannesburg, South Africa
23 February 2008 07:55
White journalists expressed their dismay after they were denied access to the "hottest news ticket in town" when barred from listening to African National Congress (ANC) president Jacob Zuma at a forum exclusively for black journalists.
Friday, June 20, 2008
THE POWER OF NETWORKING - PART 66
THE POWER OF NETWORKING
PART 66
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
I left you last week saying that “Networking in it’s purest form and if done properly is so much more.” Let’s take it from there.
Networking, for me is not only a practice (you know the story about practice makes perfect), it is also about the process. Yes it does take practice and the more you practice the better you will become at it and the reason that you will become better at it is because you will have defined your process and what works best for you.
What will work for everyone however is if you understand that networking is something that must be done all the time – it take continuous effort and if you don’t regard it as an essential marketing tool you will be selling yourself very short. Networking done in this way means new business at very little or no cost what-so-ever.
We all see thousands upon thousands of adverts every week. Adverts on bill boards, in neon lights, on TV in the magazines and newspapers – hell you can’t even wait for the robot to change these days without someone shoving something in your face! Yet in all honesty, how many of these actually have any influence on our lives – personal or business for that matter? I know that I use the ad breaks on the telly to switch the kettle on or pour myself another drink!
So why on earth would I want to spend my hard earned cash on advertising? Well my answer of course, is I wouldn’t. Actually, I don’t advertise anywhere. I network! All of my business comes out of Networking!
Referrals from my clients and the people who I network with, have far more impact on prospective clients, than any kind of flyer or flashing neon lights or even a page in the newspaper.
What do you think would work best for you? Let’s have a look at networking and your competition next week.
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
OTHER'S HAVE DONE FAR WORSE
I don't think that the Statement "Others have done far worse" actually even gets to the tip of the ice berg. Surely it should be something like . . . and what are we going to do about it?
Why has the President got so much power? Where are the checks and balances that should be in place to prevent him from keeping those that should have left a long time ago and make him keep those that should be kept?
How can this be a truelly democratic society if he plays with a stacked deck and then does not give reasons for doing so? Perhaps these are the questions that need to be asked and answered!
Others have done far worse
Adriaan Basson and Fikile-Ntsikelelo Moya
10 August 2007 07:30
President Thabo Mbeki does not have to give reasons for firing his ministers, according to spokesperson Mukoni Ratitshanga. Presumably neither does he have to let the rest of the public in when wearing his ANC hat and getting rid of party officials. For if he was bound to explain himself, he would have to say why a senior minister such as Mosoiua Lekota continues to serve in his cabinet when he failed to declare his directorship of a winery and shares he had in a petroleum distribution company. For his omission, he was found guilty of contravening the Code of Conduct for MPs, given a written reprimand by the Parliamentary Ethics Committee and fined seven days’ pay.
MOTIVATION - FAILURE
MOTIVATION – FAILURE
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
Today’s quote comes from Gita Bellin, who says “People may fail many times, but they become failures only when they begin to blame someone else. Experience is determined be yourself – not the circumstances of your life.”
This for me, is like a kick up the backside! How many times do we not only say the words, but we also hear them – “it wasn’t my fault! It was because . . . .”
Well clearly it was my fault!
You see, I set it up that way and until I take responsibility for my own actions, I will never be able to correct the situation and move forward.
Let me give you an example. I know a lady, let’s call her Jane who is happily married. She has been married to the same man for the last 20 plus years and has had 4 children by this man. She owns her own business and he works in the hospitality industry. Jane is a bit of a control freak – actually she is a hell of a control freak!
When her and her husband first got married (let’s call him John), she set down the ground rules. She would control the finances, the household and everything that went with that. John is a pretty easy going guy and hell if she wanted the responsibility who was he to deny her.
So every month John’s salary got paid into the joint account and Jane paid all the bills – no problem. Then the kids arrived, one by one. Jane managed the children, the household and the finances. Still no problem.
Then some time down the line the children became extremely difficult – school became a huge problem and both the household and Jane’s business began to suffer. The children were all diagnosed with ADD and they were also all dyslexic. Jane really started to take strain.
Instead of Jane asking John for help, she started to pick arguments and fights. She started to nag and complain about everything in general and nothing in particular. The fights extended to the bedroom, where she now started denying John sex as a sort of a punishment. John had no clue what was going on so he did what he always did when there was strife in the home – he went to work, double shifts and on some occasions even triple shifts!
Clearly this situation could not continue and Jane ended up having an epileptic fit.
Jane blamed John for her health, the state of their marriage, the ADD and dyslexia that the children had and I guess even the weather!
Was John to blame? I personally don’t think so. John was doing what he had always done and in my opinion the only thing that he could be blamed for was ‘not noticing’ what was going on around him and then doing something about it!
It was at this point that she and John actually sat down and had a discussion about how to save their marriage, how Jane had to regulate what she did and the amount of stress that she could cope with and John committed to helping out at home more.
Jane had set her life up the way she wanted it to run and when the wheels came off, instead of recognizing that it was exactly as she wanted it, she blamed every thing on everybody else. Jane felt she had failed because John had not “been there” for her or ‘helped’ her in any way.
The moment that she was able to understand that she was the one who was responsible for the mess and that she needed to ask for assistance instead of just moaning and groaning and picking fights, they were able to deal with the problem as a unit.
Don’t get me wrong, the problem has not gone away – the children still all have ADD and dyslexia, but now both Jane and John pick up the strain and deal with it together supporting each other and backing each other.
Jane now feels that she has more control over her own life and John feels like he is more involved with his wife, his children and his family.
It’s like that old saying “be careful what you wish for . . .” Getting what you wish for or how you set something up, carries a responsibility and with that comes accountability.
Part of that responsibility means having to ‘step up to the plate’! Understanding that you have made a mistake and taking ownership of the mistake and the problem and then doing something about it!
Own your mistake, learn from it, do something about it and then move on!
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
LAWS OF ATTRACTION
Laws of attraction
ATTRACTION - the act of associating horniness with a particular person.
LOVE AT 1st SIGHT - what occurs when two extremely horny, but not entirely choosy people meet.
DATING - the process of spending enormous amounts of money, time, and energy to get better acquainted with a person whom you don't especially like in the present and will learn to like a lot less in the future.
BIRTH CONTROL - avoiding pregnancy through such tactics as swallowing special pills, inserting a diaphragm, using a condom, and dating repulsive men or spending time around children.
EASY - a term used to describe a woman who has the sexual morals of a man.
PRIG - a term used to describe a woman who wants to stay virgin until married.
EYE CONTACT - a method utilized by a single woman to communicate to a man that she is interested in him. Despite being advised to do so, many woman have difficulty looking a man directly in the eyes, not necessarily due to the shyness, but usually due to the fact that a woman's eyes are not located in her chest.
FRIEND - a member of the opposite sex in your acquaintance who has some flaw which makes sleeping with him/her totally unappealing.
INDIFFERENCE - a woman's feeling towards a man, which is interpreted by the man as "playing hard to get."
INTERESTING - a word a man uses to describe a woman who lets him do all the talking.
IRRITATING HABIT - what the endearing little qualities that initially attract two people to each other turn into after a few months together.
LAW OF RELATIVITY - how attractive a given person appears to be is directly proportional to how unattractive your date is.
NYMPHOMANIAC - a man's term for a woman who wants to have sex more often than he does.
FRIGID - a man's term for a woman who wants to have sex less often than he does, or who requires more foreplay than lifting her nightgown.
SOBER - condition in which it is almost impossible to fall in love.
NAG - a man's term for a woman who wants more to her life with him than just intercourse.
Monday, June 16, 2008
TALK TO THE NEWS AND YOU DIE
I am not really sure what to write here. Frankly I am disgusted! These women are treated badly enough by their client's and society itself and then to be turned on by the very people that are charged with protecting them is disgusting! What is even more disgusting is that it is clear that many know that it is happening and yet nothing is done - to them I say "Shame on you!"
'Talk to the news and you die'
January 18 2007 at 06:45AM
By Graeme Hosken and Janine du Plessis'
'He would bliksem' us'
WHAT TO DO WHEN . . . . YOU'RE NOT SURE ABOUT LEAVE - PART 1
WHAT TO DO WHEN . . . . YOU’RE NOT SURE ABOUT LEAVE
PART 1
By Nikki Viljoen – N Viljoen Consulting CC - March 2008.
Annual Leave and the various requirements, is something that we hear about time after time.
The Basic Conditions of Employment Act – Section 20, deals with some of the conditions that apply to annual leave.
The Act says:
(1) An employer must grant an employee: -
(a) at least three calendar weeks (15 days) annual leave on full pay in respect of each 12 months of employment (the ‘annual leave cycle’)
(b) by agreement, at lease one day of annual leave on full pay for every 17 days on which the employee worked or was entitled to be paid, or
(c) by agreement, at least one hour of annual leave on full pay for every 17 hours on which the employee worked or was entitled to be paid.
(2) An employer must grant an employee an additional day of paid leave if a public holiday falls on a day during an employee’s annual leave on which the employee would otherwise have worked.
(3) An employer may reduce an employee’s entitlement to annual leave by the number of days occasional leave on full pay granted to the employee at the employee’s request in that annual leave cycle.
(4) An employer must grant at least three calendar weeks annual leave on full pay in respect of each 12 months of employment (the annual leave cycle) not later than six months after the end of the annual leave cycle or the year in which the leave was earned.
(5) Annual leave must be taken: -
(a) in accordance with an agreement between the employer and the employee; or
(b) if there is no agreement in terms of paragraph (a), at a time determined by the employer in accordance with this clause.
(6) An employer may not require or permit an employee to take leave during: -
(a) any other period of leave to which the employee is entitled in terms of this part of the Sectoral determination; or
(b) any period of notice of termination of employment.
(7) An employer may not require or permit an employee to work for the employer during any period of annual leave.
(8) An employer may not pay an employee instead of granting paid leave in terms of this clause except on termination of employment.
(9) An employer must pay an employee leave pay at least equivalent to the remuneration that the employee would have received for working for a period equal to the period of annual leave, calculated on the basis of the employee’s rate of remuneration immediately before the period of leave.
(10) An employer must pay an employee leave pay: -
(a) before the beginning of the period of leave; or
(b) by agreement, on the employee’s normal payday.
Let’s have a look at what this all means next week.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
Thursday, June 12, 2008
PUPILS CELL-MESSAGING CRAZE WORRYING
If your children don't do what they are supposed to because they are chatting on phones then take the phones away, until they can behave more appropriately. Having a cell phone should also mean having a responsibility!
Who are the parents (and therefore supposed to be in charge) and who are the children? Parents should do the parenting and not allow children to dictate the rules!
Pupil cell-messaging craze worrying
August 24 2006 at 10:00AM
By Se-Anne Rall
This article was originally published on page 3 of The Mercury on August 24, 2006
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
THE POWER OF NETWORKING - PART 65
PART 65
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
This is what I left you with at the end of the Networking tip last week and it is something that I want to re-iterate again!
“Networking is about building relationships. Relationships that are mutually beneficial, that are sustained and worked at. Relationships that will, over time give you returns on your investment (which is the time that you have spent working on those relationships).
Attending a few networking meetings and handing your card out to a few dozen people is not going to do it. You have to meet up with those people, have a discussion, get to know them and what it is that they do – start a business relationship and then work at maintaining that relationship.
Networking for me is a foot in the door – it’s a fast way to meet people, especially like minded people who are as passionate about their business as I am about mine.”
So if attending a few networking meetings and handing your card out to a few dozen people is not going to do it – what will? As a natural networker, for me this is quite simple – I Network where-ever I am.
You see, you are never going to know where your next big deal is going to come from. It might be someone that you have met at a networking meeting, it might be someone that you have met through your social network and more importantly, it might be someone that you have never laid eyes on before, but who has been referred by someone that you have met while watching your son’s soccer match that you very nearly missed because you were ‘too busy’!
Networking is something that must become second nature to you. It must be something that you do without thinking. It must be an automatic response. It must be something that has access to every conceivable part of your life.
Many people who realise the importance of networking, and who actually ‘get it’ come adrift on this point. They see networking as something that only needs to be done at networking meetings, or in a business environment. To them networking is something that they do when they attend a local business event – where they hand out their 30+ business cards and then leave the function thinking that they have done the job well. They could not be more wrong if they tried!
Networking in it’s purest form and if done properly is so much more – stick around for next weeks tip to find out more.
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
PORN SCANDAL HITS JOBURG COUNCIL
Porn and music downloads are common occurances in most of the workplaces and if you as the Business Owner or the Department head don't control it - it will control you. That's the reality of the situation!
Porn scandal hits Joburg council
November 06 2006 at 06:53AM
By Alex Eliseev
'80 percent of computers had pornography on them'
In one case, fed-up advocate Karen McKenzie, executive director of the Independent Complaints Directorate, wrote to the city manager (then Pascal Moloi) asking him to take urgent action. "Kindly advise on your commitment in requesting your employees to desist from sending hard-core pornography, child pornography, bestiality, gross violence, chain letters and jokes into my department through the email facility," she wrote.
This article was originally published on page 1 of The Star on November 06, 2006
Monday, June 09, 2008
MOTIVATION - CHANGES
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
Today’s quote comes from our very own Nelson Mandela who says “There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find ways in which you yourself have changed.”
I can only imagine how he must have felt as he returned to Robin Island as a free man, and saw again the harsh reality of his prison, still exactly the same as it had always been.
I can only imagine the hurt, the pain, the injustice and the anger that he must have felt all the years that he was a prisoner there.
Yet this man, for me – and I am sure for millions of people around the world, is a living example of what can be achieved, not only on the outside, but also on the inside.
It is within each and every one of us, to grow, to change, to evolve – yet many choose to live their lives in anger and in pain or as victims inside walls that they have put up.
I have made a conscious decision to put the past behind me, where it belongs and live my life in the present. I have made a conscious decision to be all that I can and the best that I can. I have made a conscious decision to make a difference every single day of my life, whether that difference is in my own life, or in the lives of those that touch my life – I will make a difference.
I am growing as an individual because I have chosen to – what about you? Have you changed?
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
ABSENTEE NOTES FROM SOUTH AFRICAN PARENTS
These are absentee notes from parents (including original spelling) collected by schools all over South Africa .
1. My son is under a doctor's care and should not take P.E. today. Please execute him.
2. Please excuse Lisa for being absent. She was sick and I had her shot.
3. Dear School : Please ekscuse Shadrak being absent on Jan. 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, and also 33.
4. Please excuse Gloria from Jim today. She is administrating.
5. Please excuse Blessing from P.E. for a few days. Yesterday he fell out of a tree and misplaced his hip.
6. John has been absent because he had two teeth taken out of his face..
7. Moses was absent yesterday because he was playing football. He was hurt in the growing part. 8. Megan could not come to school today because she has been bothered by very close veins.
9. Chris will not be in school cus he has an acre in his side
10. Please excuse Justice Friday from school. He has very loose vowels.
11. Please excuse Pedro from being absent yesterday. He had (diahre) (dyrea) (direathe) the sh i ts. [Words in ()'s were crossed out.]
12. Please excuse Tommy for being absent yesterday. He had diarrhea and his boots leak.
13. Petros was absent yesterday because he missed his bust .
14. Please excuse Jimmy for being. It was his father's fault.
15. I kept Beauty home because she was to go Christmas shopping because I don't know what size she wear.
16. Please ekxcuse Wiseman for missing school yesterday. We forgot to get the Sunday paper off verunda, and when we found it Monday, we thought it was Sunday.
17. Sally won't be in school a week from Friday. We have to attend her funeral.
18. My daughter was absent yesterday because she was tired. She spent a weekend with the Marines.
19. Please excuse Jason for being absent yesterday. He had a cold and could not breed well. 20.Please excuse Mary for being absent yesterday. She was in bed with gramps.
21. Gloria was absent yesterday as she was having a gangover.
22. Please excuse Burma , she has been sick and under the doctor.
23. Maryann was absent December 11-16, because she had a fever, sore throat, headache and upset stomach. Her sister was also sick, fever and sore throat, her brother had a low grade fever and ached all over. I wasn't the best either, sore throat and fever. There must be something going around, her father even got hot last night.
24. Please excuse little Jimmy for not being in school yesterday. His father is gone and I could not get him ready because I was in bed with the doctor.__________________
Sunday, June 08, 2008
MBEKI: NO SPECIAL TREATMENT FOR AIDS ORPHANS
Whilst I hear what Mbeki is saying and on some level I agree with him, the fact of the matter is that there should be NO orphans - AIDs or otherwise, that should be going hungry!
South African's pay enough taxes to ensure that all of these children are fed and clothed sufficiently.
I would like to challenge Government to stop corruption and theft from our TAX coffers and there will be more than enough to feed the masses!
Mbeki: no special treatment for Aids orphans
April 04 2007 at 12:15PM
He was at a debate of traditional leaders in Pretoria. Kunene said there were drop-in centres in villages, specifically to feed Aids orphans. He told a story of five children living in the same house. two of them are Aids orphans who are fed at these centres but the other three go hungry. - Daily News Correspondent
This article was originally published on page 1 of Daily News on April 04, 2007
WHAT TO DO WHEN .... THERE'S A DISCREPANCY ON THE JOB DESCRIPTION - PART 4
WHAT TO DO WHEN . . . . There’s a discrepancy on the Job Description
PART 4
By Nikki Viljoen – N Viljoen Consulting CC - March 2008.
Here we have Mike the owner of the Business with a problem on his hands as George the ‘Horse and Carriage’ driver has refused to do any convoy work, on the grounds that it was not in his job description.
The matter has gone to the Arbitrator at the CMMA and we are about to find out how the story ends.
The bottom line is that Mike had instituted a clear procedure on what was to happen in the event that there was a dispute. George and the Union had failed to adhere to this procedure. There was also a clear history, where previous drivers had done ‘convoy’ work and the Arbitrator could not find any evidence to show that the instruction was unreasonable in any way.
The Arbitrator also found that Mike was entitled to instruct the ‘Horse & Carriage’ drivers to work in the new vehicles (or convoys as they are known), when they were unable to perform their normal duties and/or when there was insufficient work for their ‘Horse & Carriage’ duties, and that the ‘Horse & Carriage’ drivers were not entitled to refuse to carry out such an instruction on the grounds that it was not in their job descriptions.
Although in this particular instance, Mike won his case, it would be advisable to ensure that you have proper job descriptions in place. Since it was the ‘clause’ that won the day, it would also be a good idea to include the clause “should a grievance be felt with regard to any instruction issued, representation may be made to supervision or higher authority by means of the grievance procedure, but in the first instance the instruction shall be obeyed.” Obviously then, you would also need to have a ‘Grievance Procedure’ in place too.
It must also be evident that Job Descriptions are not written in blood or cast in stone, as situations change all the time – so it would also be a good idea to have something like “the functions and responsibilities listed in the job description may be changed at any time, depending upon the operational requirements of the employer, and within the parameters of the post held by the employee.”
As usual though, all procedures, policies and controls and the changes that are made to them, must be made readily available to the staff.
The lesson to be learnt from this case though, is that you must have policies and procedures in place.
Next week we will start on a new case study.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
IT'S USELESS TO BLACKLIST YOUR CELLPHONE
I recently was stuck in traffic (what' new in Johannesburg). There had been an accident involving a truck and several cars and the police were directing traffic, from both directions - using a single lane. Being 'rush hour' traffic, there was no alternative, but to turn the music up and relax until it was my turn to go through the lane.
A car was parked on the opposite side of the road, in full view of the police who were attending to the accident. It was a faded yellow banged up, old Nissan Sentra - dating back to the 1980's. What made me notice it though was that the windows were a very dark black and that every time a pedestrian walked past they were enticed to the car and then spent several minutes in discussion with the occupants. Every now and then something was passed through the window to the pedestrian and then after some more discussion passed back.
Closer inspection, by yours truelly evidenced that it was different cells phones that were being passed around. It was then obvious that the occupants of the car were selling 'stolen' cell phones out of their car, in full view of the police!
I took down their registration number and reported it to the "Highveld's crime hotline" on my return home, but I must admit, I was gobsmacked at the audacity - there they were openly selling stolen phones from their car not mo[re than 100 meters from a huge number of police - not that the police saw anything though!
'It's useless to blacklist your cellphone'
October 28 2006 at 09:07AM
By Sheree Russouw
But South Africa's three cell networks, which rake in billions of rands in income from the country's estimated 30-million legal and illegal cellphone owners every year, refuse to discuss the matter. Instead, they referred Pretoria News Weekend to a representative of an industry-wide blacklisting initiative introduced last year to deal the illegal cellphone industry a fatal blow. But she demanded the paper write a "positive" story on the issue, and did not provide any further information.
Saturday, June 07, 2008
THE POWER OF NETWORKING - PART 64
PART 64
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
Now I am sure that you all know that you need to network. It is vital to ourselves as individuals and it is vital to our businesses to network. So why is it that so few of us network successfully?
One of the biggest challenges in my opinion, is that not everybody understands the most basic but vital rules about networking. Knowing these could help you to unlock a huge amount of opportunities, give you new ideas and help you to nurture new business friendships and relationships.
Many people feel that they invest a great deal of time, effort and even money to network. That said they don’t see any results and are left frustrated and annoyed at what their perception of no end results. To them I say, you are not networking correctly! Change your tactics, change your mindset and you will see a huge improvement in your leads and your business will grow.
Networking is not about giving out your business card to all and sundry. What does that mean? Look at what you do with business cards – chances are that if you have gone to a meeting or even out for an evening with a whole bunch of people and several have just given you their cards (often without you even asking for one), you will turf that card as soon as you get home. Well they are probably doing the same thing!
Networking is about building relationships. Relationships that are mutually beneficial, that are sustained and worked at. Relationships that will, over time will give you returns on your investment (which is the time that you have spent working on those relationships).
Attending a few networking meetings and handing your card out to a few dozen people is not going to do it. You have to meet up with those people, have a discussion, get to know them and what it is that they do – start a business relationship and then work at maintaining that relationship.
Networking for me is a foot in the door – it’s a fast way to meet people, especially like minded people who are as passionate about their business as I am about mine.
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
HOW TO ACE ANY MEETING - Location, Location
I am told that a survey shows that sitting in the correct location, when attending a meeting - particularly if that meeting is going expect me to answer questions or even ask them, will assist with alleviating stress.
Apparently a survey that was taken shows that about 65% of us sit next to our closet allies, in a meeting and/or any other type of stressful situations. Whilst this makes sense to most of us, I am assured that sitting opposite them is much better. You see, if you are looking at a friendly face - you will be encouraged and will become more confident and therefore be able to perform at your best ability.
Another tip is to direct at least half of your attention to your immediate supervisor (or whomever it is that you would report into and who is at the meeting) and always sit up straight. You slope backwards or lounge about - the perception is that you have a lack of conviction about what it is that you are saying. Sloping forward, on the other hand indicates aggressivenesss.
Be properly prepared and have your notes in front of you in case you should 'freeze' and or lose your thread.
Good luck on your meetings!
HE IS BETTER OFF AT HOME THAN IN THE CLASSROOM
Nothing has changed since this article was penned over a year ago - in fact, if anything - the level of violence and lawlessness has all but increased. The recent incidents of Xenophobia has contributed to the problem and the children, our children, our hopes for the future are in serious trouble!
The Government says it is not only their problem, it's everybodys. Whilst I agree with that on some levels I am also forced to ask the question? Why? We, here in South Africa are amongst the most highly taxed people in the world - why is that money not being used effectively to combat crime, to improve the lot of the education for our children and to help alleviate poverty? Is it because our leaders are so busy doing the politicing, and lining their pockets with the fruits of our labour that these things just continue on their downward spiral?
Isn't it time that we, as the individuals who pay the taxes start demanding the services for which we pay so dearly? Isn't it time that we start holding them accountable? Isn't it time for us to stand up and be counted?
'He is better off at home than in the classroom'
Sarah McGregor Johannesburg, South Africa
02 April 2007 11:59
For 16 years, Themba was proud to be a teacher in South Africa, but a wave of violence at her school has proven so nerve-racking that she may leave the profession.