“If a boss ordered everyone to come to work in a pink tutu and bunny slippers and someone started praising the order as if it were the greatest thing since sliced bread, that would be ass kissing.”

The other kind of so-called ass-kissing is often wrongly described as such. It is my opinion that genuinely nice people get along easily with others, no matter if it is people you can get something from or not. Inevitably, people will notice at some point that you are nice and they will also want to give some of that back to you. Why would you condemn somebody, who benefits from that? Would you condemn a person for being randomly and generally nice at work, school, uni, private life or any other environment. I would not. Others, as a matter of fact, many do. They speak of these people as ruthless ass-kissers whereas in reality they are only envious.
Thinking of some who are wrongly accused of being ass-kissers, we can ask ourselves the question, why is there this second type of ass-kissers, who does not do it for a particular reason. Is this person simply nuts, stupid or irrational? Moreover, why does not everyone act that way just for friendliness’s sake?

Being actively nice to others requires you to be happy. Getting something back eventually for being nice is a logical consequence. People are nice to others for many reasons, I suppose that the following are some:

1. They value other people and want to be valued likewise
2. They enjoy human contact more rather than loneliness
3. They are genuinely interested in others and also express this openly

Analysing the mentioned reasons a friend, colleague or stranger is likely to develop a sympathy, rather than without conversation or openness. Genuinety of those creates a situation of comfort which evens the way for a less superficial relationship. The same phenomenon we can observe when with a not to well-acquainted friend a special moment is shared or something special is being discussed. Something that you would not tell anybody just as if it was the weather forecast. If you tell this person you actually value him/her a lot for his loyality and honesty. If the other person is surprised because he/she would have never expected that because you just don’t speak about this usually, then this phenomenon just happened. And what you feel afterwards is a somewhat deeper relationship that connects you more than it did before. Comfort. Intimacy. However, maybe I’m wrong but maybe not.

People with the ability to be truly interested in others and who are nice, simply enjoy speaking with people, those have definitely freed themselves from the chains of the imaginary and yet strange pressure of today’s society. Today, as soon as you are nice to a person of whom you could benefit in some way from you will be condemn as a ass-kissers. A liar, a ruthless bastard. Not always but more often than not.

If you are one of those type two ass-kissers, let me tell you, it is just about right what you do. From politeness and friendliness only more of that can grow. Whether it is your boss at work, teacher, lecturer, coach, friend or uncle it can only be the right. It resembles Karma, what goes around comes around. It is not ass-kissing, it is, in fact, not being a complete idiot, hiding yourself and hope something good will come falling from the sky. If you think so I hope something hard will hit you from the sky that makes you realise that.

Don’t kiss asses but enjoy human contact with all your conversations, calls, emails. Let curiosity guide you. One way or another, it will get you further and you will feel happy with yourself.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mh9cG5dzs-U

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zwv1Geaqroc

Nonetheless, only a couple of days back I was struck by a fault in my way of thinking or more clearly another angle from which one could look at the industry. Marketing is key for progress. Marketing is challenge to sell your product best which results in improving technologies due to more investment into research and development. Take for example TVs, there are dozens of brands for TVs, Sony, Samsung, LG, Philips and the list could go on. In the 60s when they first became popular they broadcast in black and white, were big, unhandy and somewhat uncanny too. Now, they are only as thick as thumb and do more than all computers did altogether back in the day. This only happened with extensive research, development, innovation, reinvention of technologies and most importantly through demand. This is only possible if a company has money, which it receives from customers who buy the products and only buy them if they know that it exists. With enough cash a company will create demand by all means of marketing, radio, TV, newspapers and internet. Therefore you need advertising, mind-blowing advertising. Subsequently, having solely R&D in a company will not be sufficient any more these days. Fierce competition in the market is ubiquitous. Few are driving invention, many copy-cats exist. And still, nobody will notice your product no matter how good it is unless you advertise it. This also applies to washing machines which revolutionized households enormously, food production and many other areas.

Basically, what I am saying is that such essential industries which depend on marketing drive invention largely in many areas. Marketing is necessary to create “want”, generate revenue and followingly subsidise innovation. It is not only an evil industry that has caused a consumer society that is to be blamed for everything bad in this world. Marketing is as important an industry as technology, engineering and manufacturing. It is a catalyst for innovation and indispensable.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2bLNkCqpuY

The first day at work, I arrived with Converse shoes, a t-shirt and some casual jeans. That had to change, it was one of many things to come, I still own my Converse shoes but also a heap of shirts, some suits, shoes, cuff links and a tie. I adapted. My internship ended last Friday, nine months with an overload of the world’s beauty. Parties, people, exhibitions, concerts, food, extraordinary! I came to the best city of the world with the innocent age of 19 so that for the rest of my life everything would be compared to this Petri dish of great people, their dreams and their lives. A DJ, journalist, banker or bar tender you name it. A place that makes travelling obsolete because people escape to London to discover and fulfil themselves.

This city also bears some rather fascinating facets that statistically speaking cannot happen that easily. Coming from a village with only 3000 living souls I found that it is indeed sometimes easier to run into people you know in London than anywhere else. I met a Spanish friend who was on her way home waiting for the coach at Liverpool St station on my way home. Amongst hundreds I spotted her. Another case, I was in Bank station, left a pub and ran into a Russian guy who was on his way back to Malta, this man was a participant of the same debating course I went to, I saw him in the middle of London’s underground, what are the odds? 7 million people, yet such things happen. Magical.

The magic changed me, if it hadn’t I would be disappointed, I learnt a lot about other people’s cultures, South America, Korea, France, Australia, Ireland, I made good friends with all of them. The Swiss people I met here were great too, the so-called Röstigraben does not exist for me. It should never, anywhere. Speaking to people is a gift. It is free and can be illuminating, just overcome your unjustified fear and start randomly speaking with strangers in pubs, clubs, parks. I love pubs, not for the drinks (not only) but because it is the place where people of all ages celebrate, discuss and spend time beyond the grey, monotonous, pile of papers at work to find out what really matters. It should be people after all, not your telly that shape your leisure time. I am happy I experienced London as I did, challenges were there and I mastered them as well as I could, if I failed I just as well learnt a lesson which might be worth even more.

Tonight, however, I have arrived at a point that I knew would come but I never would have wanted to come during my time here earlier. This point is when I start to miss home and want to go back to say hello, hug my family and laugh again with them. I am happy to go back. There are things I will most certainly miss but for now I am eager to deeply breath in the fresh air of Switzerland, put my feet back on Swiss soil, commute on reliable public transport, enjoy pressure-rich showers, quality super-market food and many other treasures of this little country in the heart of Europe.

This has been the first of many great times to come, I am hungry, hungry for more, I tasted the tempting sweet of multiculturalism and the joy of exploring the unknown in the ununravellable streets of big cities and the rest of the world. I need a break, though, focus on studies, enjoy life, recharge and then I will strive for more adventures. Carpe diem is written all over my smiling face, the world is there and it is treasure chest. It is a great time to be alive. Things only a realistic optimist could say.

I will fly back tomorrow, sleep, relax, unwind, rest, find my routine. I urge, however, everyone who reads this blog, his and her friends and all the people they know to endeavour to see what the world has to offer. A gap year, exchange term abroad, au-pair or an internship are worthwhile opportunities to broaden your horizon. Sometimes people think they are happy with what they have without having the faintest idea of how much happier they could be. Do not be lazy! You will never find out how happy you can be, unless you make the effort to find out. Go out, have a look at the rest of the world to find out and become who you are.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DJblHzEdLw

Once, in the fishbar at the end of Brick Lane with my two Swiss friends we sat there and sipped our bowl of Moijto. One of my friends enjoys the series, the other hates it, because he is usually the guy who gets excluded when we talk about it. There we were, high fived at some point and said that their visit to London will be legendary. A girl opposite noticed us doing that and asked if we were fans of the TV-series. We talked with that girl and her friend and spent the rest of the night having great fun.

Another time, in Starbucks, Charing Cross. I was sitting there at the window watching the people and writing in my little black book when suddenly a girl next to me started talking to me and we speak about London, its greatness, its diversity, its party-life. We also spoke about how we learned English so well, because we both spoke it rather well. I explained that by watching TV-series which I loved I improved tremendously and BAM, HIMYM! There it is again! We spoke for half an hour or so about how cool it is. As my girlfriend arrived to meet me for dinner we said good-bye, she was one of many strangers who I met and had a great chat with just by having this series in common. My girlfriend too, she likes the series and everyone I recommended it as well. It’s ubiquitous, people love it and people like to talk about things they love. It’s simply connecting people!

HIMYM is just legend….wait for it…….dary!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbAgmD3Mo90

I motion sleepy out of bed my big, cosy bed and leave it empty behind me, even without girlfriend these days. Then, I force my body in a tiny shower which has no water pressure whatoever, I lean towards the wall that at least some drops of water reach my head. It’s typical for England. Things don’t need to work the way their supposed to be working. Anyways, I survive and slightly enjoy the awakening impact of the water and continue my morning routine. I grab my Gillette Super Blade Ultimate to make the guy in the mirror look like he does some serious grown-up work. Shaving, up, down, up, down, below the nose and that’s it. With a monstrous effort I succeed to wash my hands and my face with the extremely short water taps. At least they separate cold from warm water, so that you don’t need to adjust anything but just burn your hands or freeze them. It’s 8:06, I already burnt my hand and ricked my neck. Back in my by-the-heater-dried-out room I slip in my bankster-uniform, make the bunny ears tight so they don’t fall of…, done, shoelaces tied up properly and there we go down the stairs to the kitchen. I head straight for my Swiss muesli, proper milk not that skimmed shit, pour some in a bowl and eat it spoonful after spoonful. Delicious. Four elements which can make any morning a good morning. I like my muesli with loads of milk, I seem to be weird but I like it. Back in the bathroom, my clock says it’s already 08:25. I brush my teeth, grab my stuff, and pack a book. Always have an interesting book with you I say. You never know when you have to wait unexpectedly.

After a nice and relaxing five-minute walk through the run-down East Londoner part called Leyton, I find myself in front of a completely packed Tube station. It’s 8:30 and I would have made it to work on time. If-cases are well-represented in London. As I should find out later, an incident caused some troube at 7:15 and the knock-on effect played his part until now. What the fuck?! Well, I take the bus. I squeeze myself as friendly as I can into a over-crowded bus. Apparently, I wasn’t the only genius thinking of taking the bus instead. It takes quite some time to get to Stratford by bus, I even have some time to read a bit in my book. That is why you should always have a book with you. 9:00 A.M. sharp, and I’m in Stratford. I swipe my Oyster card, pass through the gate and make my way to the Overground towards Liverpool Street. From there I can easily walk to work. No sooner said than done and only 15 minutes later I find myself in the midst of the “City”.
Everyone dressed in the corporate uniform is marching with expressionless faces to a heap of paper at the office. Women in clinging office suits, on high heels and too much make-up lolling through the rough, uneven streets of London. Others, on the other hand, look happy and satisfied with what they do and with life in general. I turn left to go to Leadenhall Market, it’s 9:22 now, I’m not as late as I thought I’d be. I ring the bell, it answers, I respond and it starts buzzing. Upstairs in the office I greet my colleague. I tell her what happened this morning and why I’m late. She then explained that an incident this morning at around 7:15 has caused all the trouble on the Central line. Once more I was late and once more I have a story to write about. Who knows, maybe I will make it to the office on time another day. But no one blames me if I don’t. As I said, it’s England and things don’t need to work the way their supposed to be working.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPWhK6P79Tc

We were in Ten Bells pub on Thursday evening drinking and enjoying ourselves. Nothing special really, except that the notorious Jack the Ripper has found his last victim in this place over 100 years ago. It was the very first time all of us went out together. We all lived in the same house for more than half a year and yet the whole of our flat never went out together. It was the 3rd February. Two days to go until I actually got 20 but such an auspicious moment with my flatmates couldn’t be missed. In the mood to party, we made our way to the Big Chill Bar in Brick Lane and met some Swedish people. Both studied art and were exploring London, later we met some French people who were kind of weird because everyone was everyone else’s girl-/boyfriend. At around midnight, however, we were in the mood to have some food and went to the best bagel place in London. A salt beef bagel for 3.40£ made me happy instantly. Beigle Bake is the place to go to if you think you don’t like bagels because you will be astonished about the fact that you actually  love it. Stuffed and back home we had some cans and deep, profound discussions about the meaning of life. And other things.

February 4th, I had the morning off because I knew I’d need it and it was wonderful to wake up at almost noon, fully recovered for another day of celebration. The first thing I needed to do to go to a lunch meeting with my company. Excellent Thai food near Aldgate made the afternoon quite short and the whole office went partying to Agenda. The popular bar in Mincing Lane, has long happy hours, live music on Fridays and friendly, attractive staff. The birthday of my colleague and me plus the leaving of another colleague were more than enough reasons to knock back half a dozen bottles of champagne and rock the place. It sounds as if we drank a lot. There is no objection to that to be honest. Dancing with random nine-to-fivers from the City was great fun and many at some point knew that it was my birthday. The only money I spent that night was one pound. Only one pound. I spent this very coin on a Chupa Chups Lollipop in the toilet.

5th February, the big day finally arrived. My birthday. I’m officially 20. I did not feel more mature, intelligent or wise but I realised that it is a big step in life. My Facebook wall was flooded with congratulations that I almost drowned in notifications. Some by people I don’t know that well who probably have just too much time but mostly by good friends. This was the day I would celebrate with two good friends and my girlfriend. The only thing I knew though was, that I would need to be at Holborn station at 5pm. During the morning I was skyping with my family who are the cutest and most lovable people I know. They actually made a Black Forest birthday cake for me and celebrated my birthday with a big poster hanging in the background that said “Congratulation for your 20th birthday”. That was so heart-warming. With a smile I took a walk from St.Paul’s Cathedral to pass some time on my own, always accompanied by thought of my life, where I am, where I will go and realised that I am very happy. I am 20 and very happy with my life. Still many challenges to face and obstacles to overcome but absolutely happy.

I was waiting for my friends in Café Nero near Holborn. I had no idea what would happen. I was innocently drinking a cappuccino, dressed casually, ready for a surprise. We walked to the prestigious, posh and elegant Kingsway Hall Hotel nearby. Feeling completely under-dressed we were lead to our table for the dinner. We all were, surprised by the ambient and felt slightly wrong at place with shoulder-free tops or Converse shoes. The wine card was the first challenge I faced, though, I managed quite well with some vague vocabulary about taste and scent of the wine. The dinner was followed by the actual big surprise: a comedy show. Four hilarious comedians, I can’t remember their names, gave the best show which made me laugh hard and heartily. Coincidentally, we had front-row seats, right in front of the mic. We were not just watching but experiencing the show. Being part of the whole mockery about Swiss people and others made it a ten times more memorable night. It was so much fun, laughing out load about their jokes. At some point during the show, when one was talking about either religion or politics you could easily notice that the laughter was limited since, obviously, some felt offended. I laughed anyways, when the Pope was entitled the head of the world’s largest pedophile ring I laughed and the fact that comedians were struggling to come up with jokes during 8 years of Bush administration because he wrote the best jokes himself. That was just hilarioius.

I am a happy guy and happy to have my friends around me, and my family, and my workmates. In the end, I absolutely enjoyed Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The icing on the cake though was the champagne brunch with my friends on Sunday with salmon and fresh croissants. All of us sitting around the table, talking and having a laugh, while the morning sun was shining through the window after an eventful weekend which I will always remember. I’m 20 now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dePMU8R131s

I already finished half my marketing internship here in London and I was able to gain insights, experience and ideas which are crucial for planning my future. My future is uncertain but flooded with options. Fortunately, I found out that I am not the only person thinking of what to do. Two of my workmates just finished their bachelor degree last summer and invest a lot of time now in finding their right master program. GMAT, IELTS, TOEFL, rankings, fees are criteria which need to be checked and rechecked until in the end an application with all the information about you and preferably some recommendations are sent to universities across Europe. Afterwards they only can wait and hope. Also one of my flatmates, a master student from Austria, is in between his time-consuming master thesis and a start-up company. Once you enter the real work-life, you quickly forget about grades and a face much larger challenge. Real responsibility. Until the end of your studies everything seems to have a clear direction: bachelor, master and internships and the like. And what then? Something real big starts. It is as if you fought your way on a giant ship, through all decks to the steering wheel and you will need to take it from there yourself. You need to seize the opportunity and make your way into the future. If you want you can make it a bright and promising one. You make the decisions, be target-oriented and do not under any circumstances drift into nowhere because that would make the entire effort you made, from the lowest deck to the captain’s chair a huge waste of time.

There is a saying in German with smiths and how they forge their own luck. I think “Man forges his own destiny.” is what English people would say. It is invaluably helpful for me to see people making their decisions and be able to ask them questions. In London in particular I come across many people who are about to take their life in their own hands. These impressions are indispensable even though I do not always notice them consciously. It shapes your plans, rules out some options, shows you where you might go and where not. In the end it broadens one’s mind and a distant dream emerges on the horizon and becomes an achievable goal which you can pursue. If you are persistent enough then at some point you will find the way through the sea of options life has given you and you will realise it is not just useless lemons, it is what you make it. A dream can come true even if at first it is far away, the further you sail the more it becomes a goal, in the end you will have a plan and your dream comes true.

And do not worry if you do not succeed at first, we all get lost every once in a while, especially on such a large ship as life. Luckily, you will always find friendly people who are happy to listen to you, to help you and to bring you back on the right way.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbD2cZG9R6E

Now it is time to prepare for holiday and for those who celebrate Christmas it is time to show how important other people are for you. Make a nice present, call someone or do something else. It is supposed to be a holiday of love. Show it to the people you love. It is not about money or self-gratification, it should be only to have a good time with people that you could rely on during the year. Who was there when you needed someone to listen? Who made you smile with a small letter, mail or gift when you least expected it? Who gave you a call one night when you did not feel well? Who could you talk to when you wanted to and be yourself without disguising your real emotions? It is exactly those people who deserve a present from you. Without such celebrations people would stop making presents for anyone. Christmas is just a very auspicious moment and brought to every one’s mind since everything is covered in decorations, music on the radio is all Christmassy and so on. People don’t have to make a present but they can and the best time for that is Christmas. Make someone you like smile and I can tell you there is nothing more worth than a happy smile of someone that you like and is close to you.

Thanks to all people who read this blog, I appreciate it a lot and look forward to being back next year.

Merry Christmas and a happy new year.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3W3PTK2WJms

But, unfortunately, we cannot achieve all our goals no matter how much effort we put in. Some succeed in more things than others. And there are many of us thinking they are not successful or not as successful as they are supposed to be. Society enslaves us and puts us in cages where we need to fit in as something we are not. Just like little hamsters we run and run and end up at the same place we started. Our efforts are doomed to fail because we are just not made for it. People like that sometimes see themselves as losers and I quite frankly believe, that all of us thought of themselves as underachievers or losers one time or another. This particularly happens as we get older. To all those who think they are LOSERS, I say that “NO”, you can change.

I got to know myself and know many things I am not talented at. I am not a musician neither can I sing, I am also no athlete or a craftsman. I learnt that I am not good at sports because I played and never reached more than average. I was mediocre. I thought I was a loser because I wanted to be better at it. Friends of mine who play music always made me feel envious because I could not play and I always thought I have to play too and when I tried I failed terribly. It takes a great deal of time and practice and even then you may not reach a level beyond average. It can also be at work, every day we try to sell, present and impress and it sometimes just does not work. We see ourselves as failures and feel bad. There are people walking around and thinking that they are not good at what they do. Losers.

I say that everybody can be a WINNER.  The issue is that we always think we need to be good at what others tell us to be good at. Consciously or subconsciously our environment shapes us and so our goals in life are defined by others. When you are surrounded by prodigious musicians you will feel the need to play music or see yourself as a failure otherwise. In your job the same applies, you think you want/need to be good at something whereas it’s only that other people expect that from you. Often parents push their kids in a direction and when a child is being told to be a doctor or lawyer it will inevitably always think of being that and if not it will see itself as a loser. Open your mind and try new things. There are so many great people getting up every morning and heading towards a pointless, unhappy life. These so-called losers who sometimes walk around for decades of their lives just have not yet FOUND what they could be succeeding in. Anyone can find that particular thing he is good at. Basically, it is a process of trial and error. Try a job, hobby, anything and see if it is what you are good at.

THAT is the only thing that distinguished losers from winners. I have my thirst for knowledge and people say I’m a smart guy. As I said, I am not good at sports, working with tools or making music but I can talk. I can talk about things. I can’t sew but I can persuade, I can’t run but I can convince, I can’t throw but I can understand, I can’t play guitar but I can conceive, I can’t saw but I can argue.

My mind is the tool I need to sharpen. Questions which I ask are the right ones, that is what I think, as of now at least, is what I need to do. I will try and who knows maybe I will succeed.

As I said, sometimes it takes a lot of time to find the right thing, sometimes it’s less but UNDOUBTEDLY everyone can find it and be a WINNER.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tY5WxDqggbs