Hi Blissers,
- Feb 05 Tue 2013 15:41
<Bliss Meeting Notice> No meeting from now on until Mar 9th
- Jan 30 Wed 2013 12:47
"After An Imagination of 1 "ping" by Sanli & Selina @2/2
http://www.urstaipei.net/ archives/tag/urs27
Earlier this year, we went to it participated in “An Imagination of 1 "ping" ” exhibitions.
http://www.urstaipei.net/ archives/6117
That is an interesting theme of people full of imagination.
Welcome this Saturday, with your happy mood and join us.
14:00~14:30 Self-introduction
14:30~15: 00 A spatial perspective from “Price” to “Value”
15:00~15:20 Looking the space –
How the visual effects influencing people to judge the size and feelings.
15:20~15:40 Thinking the space –
How the change of space determine people’s values and feelings.
15:40~16:00 Break time
16:00~16:30 Reading the space – case study 1.
Diversity of Commodities -Urban Remains (曾瑋)
16:30~17:00 Reading the space - case study 2.
Urban Space and hospitality -Tea Rooms in the City (Kyoko Matsuoka)
17:00~17:30 Group discussion and sharing
Sanli & Selina
Please read the attached files and bring print-outs Thanks!!
- Jan 23 Wed 2013 17:12
No meeting until 2/2; Updated 1/19 meeting "Movie talk" by Vicky
Here is the meeting picture:
https://picasaweb.google.com/101726755048448689917/MovieTalkByVickyOn19Jan2013
Host Vicky’s photo as below:
https://picasaweb.google.com/101726755048448689917/MovieTalkByVickyOn19Jan2013#5835827789960384418
New member:
Arrow
https://picasaweb.google.com/101726755048448689917/MovieTalkByVickyOn19Jan2013#5835827790339940402
Natasha (Natalia)
https://picasaweb.google.com/101726755048448689917/MovieTalkByVickyOn19Jan2013#5835828489723789170
- Jan 14 Mon 2013 23:06
"Parenting, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" by Jeff @Jan/19
What is working holiday Visa?
Which country could we go working holiday?
To become a backpacker, what should you do?
Before Backpacking
Australian Brief Introduction
Backpacking
Australia vsAmerica
Australian Famous…
True or false/ Yes or OK
Questions
New member: Jason, Patrick(Junior), Matt
Meeting attendance: Mengta, Jason, Patrick(Junior), Matt, Stanley, Judith, Jeff, Daniel, Vicky, Yvonne, Kevin, BK, Claire, Stephanie, Naihsin, Joe, Patrick(Chen), Serina, Millie, Sharon
Here is the meeting picture:
https://picasaweb.google.com/101726755048448689917/GoBackpackingInAustraliaByTomOn1122013#
Host Tom’s photo as below:
Children are our future and hope. How you prepare to raise your future ?
Please come to this meeting to share your experience and listen to others' advice
Meeting Agenda:
14:00 - 14:15 Warm up, self introduction, group formation
14:15 - 15:00 “Tiger Mother “
Break
15:10 - 15:30 Models of parenting
15:30 - 16:30 Case study… interpretation and scenario play
Break
16:40 - 17:00 Discussion
17:00- 17:30 share your advice , quotes
Please read the attached files and bring print-outs Thanks
President: Vicky
Education manager: Serina, Yvonne
Activity manager: Kevin, Millie
Meeting Place:(有時會變更場地,請以notice內文為主)
伯朗咖啡(南京一店 2F) 每人低消130元,無其他費用。
- Jan 14 Mon 2013 23:01
"Go backpacking in Australia " by Tom @Jan/12
Examples of Communication Problems in the Workplace: Language Barriers, Personal Issues, Lack of Feedback, New Hires
17 Best Practices of Top Performing Salespeople:
1. They set HIGH TARGETS and goals.
2. They carefully PLAN their quarter, month and week, as well as their daily schedule.
3. They set OBJECTIVES for every sales call.
4. They ASK high-value questions that probe to the heart of the issue.
5. They LISTEN carefully to what their prospects and customers say instead of waiting for their turn to speak to the customer.
6. They CLARIFY the issue when they are unclear what their prospect means.
7. They WAIT TO PRESENT their product, service, solution or idea until they know exactly what their prospect’s situation is.
8. They begin every sales presentation with a brief RECAP of their understanding of the prospect’s situation.
9. They know how to ADAPT their sales presentation if their prospect’s situation has changed.
10. They know how to properly and effectively POSITION their product, service or solution.
11. Their sales presentations FOCUS on the prospect.
12. They are PREPARED for potential objections.
13. They always establish the NEXT STEPS.
14. They FOLLOW-UP after the initial call or meeting.
15. They PROSPECT continually to keep their pipeline full.
16. They deal with the DECISION-MAKER whenever possible.
17. They look for ways to KEEP IN TOUCH with their customers.
12 Questions You Should Ask to Increase Sales
1.Ask for help.
2. Ask for the appointment.
3. Ask more high-value questions.
4. Ask for clarification.
5. Ask for commitment.
6. Ask them to schedule the call in their calendar.
7. Ask for the sale.
8. Ask for a referral.
9. Ask for a testimonial.
10. Ask why a prospect does not want to do business with you.
11. Ask what concerns they have.
12. Ask who else may be involved in the decision.
New member: Doris https://picasaweb.google.com/101726755048448689917/CommunicationAtWorkplaceByClarkOnJan052013#5830675252189824642,
Clare https://picasaweb.google.com/101726755048448689917/CommunicationAtWorkplaceByClarkOnJan052013#5830675229247448610
Meeting attendance: Ellen, Serina, Vicky, Daniel, Cherry, Yvonne, Angel, Clare, Grace, Angela, Doris, Millie, Joe, Kurt, Selina, Fox, Sanli, Sheena, Michael, Angela
Here is the meeting picture .https://picasaweb.google.com/101726755048448689917/CommunicationAtWorkplaceByClarkOnJan052013#5830675224309434722Coming soon~"Go backpacking in Australia " by Tom @Jan/7, 14.00, 伯朗咖啡(南京一店 3F)
Dear Blissers:
Good day! From 2007-2008, I went backpacking in Australia. It was really amazing experience. During that period of time, I met a lot of people, and had a lot of unforgettable stories.
This time, you don't need to travel that far, that long. Just come to this meeting, I will share my stories, and you could share yours.
I will tell you my backpacking life in Australia . Let's go backpacking, Let's have fun!
My topic will cover below items
1 What is working holiday
2 Australia brief introduction
3 American English VS Australian English
4 Tom's Backpacking life in Australia (photos and videos)
5 Group discussion
Agenda
1400~1510 Working holiday introduction and article discussion
1510~1530 break
1530~1610 Australian life : Photo and video
1610~1630 break
1630~1730 Group discussion
For any questions, please contact me! Looking forward to seeing you soon~
- Jan 03 Thu 2013 23:10
"Communication at Workplace" by Clark @Jan/5
Dear Blissers,
伯朗咖啡(南京一店) 每人低消130元,無其他費用。
- Dec 05 Wed 2012 21:37
No meeting from now on until Jan 5th, 2013
This Saturday (12/8) is our year end party, so no meeting this week.
From now on, we won't have meeting until Jan 5th, 2013. Please note.
For those who register to join the party, you should have received the party notification.
If no, please let me know.
This mail should be the last mail I send to blissers in this year.
May every blisser have a nice Christmas and Happy New Year.
Daniel
- Nov 28 Wed 2012 22:02
No meeting @ December 1st, 2012
Hi Blissers,
Last week, Judith introduced her trip to Tibet to us. Here is Tibet’s brief introduction.
Tibet is the roof of the world and its capital is Lhasa (3,650m, population 500,000)
The temperature during Oct ~ April is -5 ℃ and 18 ℃ during May to Sep.
The most important crop in Tibet is barley and Meat dishes are likely to be yak, goat, or mutton, often dried, or cooked into a spicy stew with potatoes.
Many people like me, think the Potala Palace (布達拉宮) is the most important place for Tibetan, but actually, it’s a popular tourist attraction. For most Tibetans, Jokhang Temple & Barkhor Square are the most sacred and important temple in Tibet – House of the Buddha. In addition to these places, Judith also visited Mount Everest North Base Camp in Tibet. Its altitude is 5200m.
I think you know Qinghai-Tibet railway (青藏鐵路) and here is its brief introduction.
Ø Length: 1,956 km
Ø 1st part: Xining ~ Golmud (815 km): 1979 ~ 1984.
Ø 2nd part: Golmud ~ Lhasa (1,142 km): 2000 ~ July 1 2006
It created some No 1 in the world.
Ø The longest plateau railway: 1,956 km
Ø The world's highest railway: Tanggula Pass at 5,068 m above sea level
Ø The world's highest railway station : Tanggula railway station at 5,068 m
Ø The highest railway tunnel on permafrost: Fenghuoshan tunnel at 4,905 m.
Ø The longest railway tunnel on permafrost: Kunlunshan Tunnel at 4,767 m, 1,686m long.
Ø Through longest permafrost: 550km
Every passenger train, it has a doctor and supplies oxygen. Passengers must read the health notice for high-elevation travel and sign the agreement on the card to take the train.
In the end, what should be noticed if you want to visit Tibet?
1. Good health (no hypertension, heart disease, asthma, pregnant, bad cold, and other chronic illness…)
2. Mountain sickness (NO Aspirin, sleeping pill, alcohol! These materials will consume more oxygen.) How to avoid? Have good mood!
3. What to bring with you? (medicine, clothes, cream….)
4. Respect (don’t talk about independence, the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet… etc.)
Judith, thanks for sharing your Tibet trip with us.
The participants are Serina, Ellen, Sophia, Vicky, Hank, Cherry, Joanna, Naihsin, Selina, Natalie, Joe Kao, Kevin Huang, Angela, Sanli and Daniel.
Here is the meeting picture.
Due to year end party rehearsal, there is no meeting in December 1th. Please notice.
Daniel
- Nov 21 Wed 2012 20:48
“Tibet – Not only a trip” by Judith @ November 24th, 2012 at Brown Café 2F
Hi Blissers,
Last week, Ellen shared an article “Asia’s Lonely Hearts” from the Economist magazine with us. The article is discussing why many Asian women don’t get hitched (married). You know, according to the article, in Bangkok, 20% of 40-44-year old women are not married; in Tokyo, 21%; among university graduates of that age in Singapore, 27%. What an amazing number! The conclusion from the Economist is that East Asia’s growing cohorts of unmarried reflect less the breakdown of marriage than the fact that they are avoiding it.
We separated into several groups and discussed why Asian women would rather stay single than get married. Basically, we agreed with the viewport of the Economist. In Asia, the responsibility for taking care of the family is women, not men, even though they have full-time job. So, their burden is very heavy. At the same time, more women are highly educated and financially independent, so more of them can pursue a single life that may appeal more than the drudgery of a traditional marriage. In addition, we think, nowadays, the working time is too long so that they don’t have time to make boyfriends. Also, they enjoy plenty of activities such as swimming, travel and so on. They are not lonely at all.
Ellen, thanks for sharing the article with us and we had a good time.
The participants are Karl, Sean (灌強), Selina, Kevin Chang, Vicky, Natalie, Jessica Yang, Kevin Huang, Yvonne, Jenny Shan, Sanli and Daniel.
The meeting picture is here.
Time flies. The meeting in November 24th is the last meeting this year. Please take the last chance to attend the meeting. The host is Judith and her meeting outline and agenda is below.
Notice: Anyone who joins the meeting must order minimum NT$130 drink or meal.
----------------------------
Hello ! Dear Blissers,
Pleasure to have the opportunity to host my first meeting with you on this Saturday. Taking this opportunity I would like to introduce you my favorite place - Tibet.
In many travel book or magazine you could see it is always included in the TOP 10 or 50 the places people must visit in your life. This is true ! Although I have visited many countries, but for the time being, Tibet is the place I love most and also the most unforgettable one !
In my meeting, I will tell you those things you have to notice before visiting Tibet and introduce you the famous spots you can't miss, such as :
- Potala Palace
- Jokhang Temple
- Drepung Monastery - The Lhasa Shoton Festival
- Mount Everest (Base Camp) - The summit of the Himalaya
- Namtso Lake and Yamdrok Lake
- Qinghai-Tibet Railway
In Tibet, you will have many special experience that you won't get when you visit other places. During the meeting, I'll take this chance to show you photos made there. Hope you also can feel what we feel ~
I like traveling, because it enriches my life ! I think it not only can let me have fun or relax with friends/ families, I also hope to use it to bring myself beautiful memory for my life. Do you like traveling, too ?
In the 2nd part of meeting, I will share with you my concept about travel and the useful ways I use. Also I'd like you to share us your beautiful/ special travel experience no matter it was in or outside Taiwan. If you could bring your photos to share with us, that will be great ! Besides, I'd like you to share with us whether there's any place you want to visit in your life ? with whom and why ?
Let's share our experience and dream together, to make our next trip not only a trip !
Judith
Daniel
- Nov 15 Thu 2012 21:01
11/17 “Asia’s Lonely hearts” by Ellen @ November 17th, 2012
Hi Blissers,
What do think of robot? A robot is like a mechanic arm works at car assembly factory? It’s more than that. Last Saturday, Angel introduced many robots to us. Some robots can dance, some can play violin and some can clean house. Due to advance technology, many robots can move fast and smoothly, but the cost is very terrible.
For instance, ASIMO, invented by HONDA, can dance and move fast (about 9Km/hour), but do you know the cost? $1,000,000. You can also rent it. The rent is $20,000 per day.
Also, some of them look like real man, for example, dental patient robot. It was invented by Japan. Its function is to simulate dental patient. When the dentist skill is not good enough and may hurt her. She will voice.
Angel, thanks for your effort to let us know more about robot.
A new member – Joanna Kao attended the meeting.
The other participants are Barkley, Vickey, Cherry, Joe Kao, Sanli, Selina, Vera, Serina, Mengta, Jeff, Michael Huang and Daniel
Here is the meeting picture.
At the coming Saturday, Ellen is the host and her meeting topic is “Asia’s Lonely Hearts”. Before I give you her meeting outline and agenda, one thing needs everyone’s help.
Notice: Anyone who joins the meeting must order minimum NT$130 drink or meal. Last week, Brown Café checked our invoice and we didn’t meet the requirement.
Here is Ellen’s meeting outline and agenda.
Dear Blissers J
This coming Sat. we’re going to read together an article I found from “The Economist” a British magazine, called – The Asia’s lonely hearts. You will find out surprisingly that Asians now are marrying latter, and less than in the west, and past .We will have some discussion or debate after we finishing up the article enclosed.
Please be reminded that this meeting won’t involve with personal or privacy discussion , we will only talk about our thoughts after reading the article ,and most importantly, before reading the article what’s your thoughts toward marriage .
Please come to join with the meeting with your open mind and broad view.
We are going to enhance not only our English but also our insight of reading between the lines of a great article.
1. Please “Print Out” this article and bring it with you to the meeting .
We will NOT provide any hard copies in this meeting for attendees.
2. Please read this article and look up all the vocabularies before you join our meeting , we will spend our time on article or phrases discussion rather than vocabularies look up .
Look forward to receiving you all this coming Sat. afternoon
Cheers
Ellen
Daniel
Here is the article.
The decline of Asian marriage
Asia's lonely hearts
Women are rejecting marriage in Asia. The social implications are serious
Aug 20th 2011 | from the print edition
TWENTY years ago a debate erupted about whether there were specific “Asian values”. Most attention focused on dubious claims by autocrats that democracy was not among them. But a more intriguing, if less noticed, argument was that traditional family values were stronger in Asia than in America and Europe, and that this partly accounted for Asia's economic success. In the words of Lee Kuan Yew, former prime minister of Singapore and a keen advocate of Asian values, the Chinese family encouraged “scholarship and hard work and thrift and deferment of present enjoyment for future gain”.
On the face of it his claim appears persuasive still. In most of Asia, marriage is widespread and illegitimacy almost unknown. In contrast, half of marriages in some Western countries end in divorce, and half of all children are born outside wedlock. The recent riots across Britain, whose origins many believe lie in an absence of either parental guidance or filial respect, seem to underline a profound difference between East and West.
· Asia
Yet marriage is changing fast in East, South-East and South Asia, even though each region has different traditions. The changes are different from those that took place in the West in the second half of the 20th century. Divorce, though rising in some countries, remains comparatively rare. What's happening in Asia is a flight from marriage .
Marriage rates are falling partly because people are postponing getting hitched. Marriage ages have risen all over the world, but the increase is particularly marked in Asia. People there now marry even later than they do in the West. The mean age of marriage in the richest places—Japan, Taiwan, South Korea and Hong Kong—has risen sharply in the past few decades, to reach 29-30 for women and 31-33 for men.
A lot of Asians are not marrying later. They are not marrying at all. Almost a third of Japanese women in their early 30s are unmarried; probably half of those will always be. Over one-fifth of Taiwanese women in their late 30s are single; most will never marry. In some places, rates of non-marriage are especially striking: in Bangkok, 20% of 40-44-year old women are not married; in Tokyo, 21%; among university graduates of that age in Singapore, 27%. So far, the trend has not affected Asia's two giants, China and India. But it is likely to, as the economic factors that have driven it elsewhere in Asia sweep through those two countries as well; and its consequences will be exacerbated by the sex-selective abortion practised for a generation there. By 2050, there will be 60m more men of marriageable age than women in China and India.
The Asian avoidance of marriage is new, and striking. Only 30 years ago, just 2% of women were single in most Asian countries. The share of unmarried women in their 30s in Japan, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong has risen 20 points or more (see chart below), “a very sharp change in a relatively short period”, says Gavin Jones of the National University of Singapore. In Thailand, the number of women entering their 40s without being married increased from 7% in 1980 to 12% in 2000. In some cities, rates of non-marriage are higher: 20% among women aged 40-44 in Bangkok; 27% among 30-34-year-olds in Hong Kong. In South Korea, young men complain that women are on “marriage strike”.
What is remarkable about the Asian experience is not that women are unmarried in their 30s—that happens in the West, too—but that they have never been married and have rarely cohabited. In Sweden, the proportion of women in their late 30s who are single is higher than in Asia, at 41%. But that is because marriage is disappearing as a norm. Swedish women are still setting up homes and having children, just outside wedlock. Not in Asia. Avoiding both illegitimacy and cohabitation, Asian women appear to be living a more celibate life than their Western sisters (admittedly, they could also be under-reporting rates of cohabitation and pre-marital sex). The conclusion is that East Asia's growing cohorts of unmarried women reflect less the breakdown of marriage than the fact that they are avoiding it.
The joy of staying single
Women are retreating from marriage as they go into the workplace. That's partly because, for a woman, being both employed and married is tough in Asia. Women there are the primary caregivers for husbands, children and, often, for ageing parents; and even when in full-time employment, they are expected to continue to play this role. This is true elsewhere in the world, but the burden that Asian women carry is particularly heavy. Japanese women, who typically work 40 hours a week in the office, then do, on average, another 30 hours of housework. Their husbands, on average, do three hours. And Asian women who give up work to look after children find it hard to return when the offspring are grown. Not surprisingly, Asian women have an unusually pessimistic view of marriage. According to a survey carried out this year, many fewer Japanese women felt positive about their marriage than did Japanese men, or American women or men.
At the same time as employment makes marriage tougher for women, it offers them an alternative. More women are financially independent, so more of them can pursue a single life that may appeal more than the drudgery of a traditional marriage. More education has also contributed to the decline of marriage, because Asian women with the most education have always been the most reluctant to wed—and there are now many more highly educated women.
No marriage, no babies
The flight from marriage in Asia is thus the result of the greater freedom that women enjoy these days, which is to be celebrated. But it is also creating social problems. Compared with the West, Asian countries have invested less in pensions and other forms of social protection, on the assumption that the family will look after ageing or ill relatives. That can no longer be taken for granted. The decline of marriage is also contributing to the collapse in the birth rate. Fertility in East Asia has fallen from 5.3 children per woman in the late 1960s to 1.6 now. In countries with the lowest marriage rates, the fertility rate is nearer 1.0. That is beginning to cause huge demographic problems, as populations age with startling speed. And there are other, less obvious issues. Marriage socialises men: it is associated with lower levels of testosterone and less criminal behaviour. Less marriage might mean more crime.
Can marriage be revived in Asia? Maybe, if expectations of those roles of both sexes change; but shifting traditional attitudes is hard. Governments cannot legislate away popular prejudices. They can, though, encourage change. Relaxing divorce laws might, paradoxically, boost marriage. Women who now steer clear of wedlock might be more willing to tie the knot if they know it can be untied—not just because they can get out of the marriage if it doesn't work, but also because their freedom to leave might keep their husbands on their toes. Family law should give divorced women a more generous share of the couple's assets. Governments should also legislate to get employers to offer both maternal and paternal leave, and provide or subsidise child care. If taking on such expenses helped promote family life, it might reduce the burden on the state of looking after the old.
Asian governments have long taken the view that the superiority of their family life was one of their big advantages over the West. That confidence is no longer warranted. They need to wake up to the huge social changes happening in their countries and think about how to cope with the consequences.