Opportunity knocks

I got a mail today from a great friend in the UK who among others helped bail me out when things got really rough here.  You need the occasional reminder of just how cool your real friends really are.  And how much you owe them beyond just cash.

In replying to him though, I began to list the opportunities I have in the pipeline and I was rocked by how good it all looks compared to even a month ago and if looked at in the light of, say, last Xmas then it's a stunning advance.

I have some paying work.  Enough to keep the wolf from the door at least by the looks of it.

But more importantly there are deals in the pipeline that are real and solidifying fast.  If 20% come off then all my financial and legal problems go away.  If 10% come off I can eat and put a roof over my head for a year.

We're establishing a slew of new businesses - consulting and training oriented, trading and broking and even the manufacture of a simple product in Malaysia.  There's even an investment fund in there if we can get our act together.  If effort were a measure of success...well eat your heart out Bill Gates. 

We have a strange economy here in Dubai.  There's massive government interference in licencing and bureaucratic nonsense but little actual regulation.  It's a pretty much free market economy - largely unfettered capitalism.  If you don't make it as a business you fold.  If you owe people money you go to jail.  Generally - unless you're a local of course.  Or the Government who are the worst payers and biggest debtors...but that's a whole other issue.  The important thing though is the  activity in our local market reflects the world as a whole pretty much unfiltered.  And it's getting better.

New businesses are starting and old ones recovering.

Real estate and hospitality are still a mess and real estate in particular is probably in for worse yet.  Hotel rates are still falling but more slowly and peak season is kicking in.

Rents have a way to fall yet.  I'm glad I don't depend on rent from apartments for my living!  I have a friend whose current rental income doesn't equal the service charge from the developer - Nakheel, a government entity in deep shit who doesn't understand that screwing over the landlords is destructive to its long term survival.

Final assessment?  Recovering but government needs to respond more openly and stop protecting its collective arse.  Help the economy as a whole and you'll all benefit.

Well...people are kinder than you expect.

And it shows in little things.  My phone ran out of credit while I was at the airport today and I couldn't buy any more till I got home.  But I did have free wi-fi.  So I whined about my running out to a friend by email.  And she promptly stuck some credit on my phone for me from a distance and demanded a call back cuz I sounded 'down';-)  Cool friend.

The staff at the hotel where I stayed recently greeted me one morning with a breakfast plate and asked me to try it before they offered it in the restaurant the next day.  Why?  Because they said if it was horrible I would tell them truthfully but not yell at them.  And if it was nice I would be appreciative;-)  Made my day.  It was good btw and will be on the menu from tomorrow.

Eid brings on philosophy

I'm good at people though I don't like them very much.

I love the wilderness though I live in the city.

I'm fond of the ice but I crave the sun.

I make money though I am unable to keep it.

I don't believe in Gods but I admire their creations.

I've been working on a project to re-brand a hotel cum apartment block.  And it's been a disaster of total misunderstanding between the consultants and the clients.

So, to us the branding is a deep thing.  It represents everything the business stands for and it covers how people think, how they behave, how we approach the guests and residents, how we make decisions, what we do to make them feel good, how we decorate the building, what kind of restaurants we put in the building, what kind of uniforms we put the staff in, even the age and cultural mix of the staff, how we greet the guests, what we do differently for guests or residents, what words we use in our communication,s what colour we paint the walls, what kind of signage we use and where we put it and so on and so on through every detail of the operation and communication and interaction with staff and guests. 

It's a mix of psychology, semiotics, graphics and financial analysis.  It's where art meets behavioural science meets interior design meets accounting.

To the client it means a new logo and some new headed notepaper.

So to the client it's an exercise in quick and dirty graphic design.  We the consultants spend a great deal of time thinking and planning and looking at every detail.  One is fast and trivial.  The other is slow and complex.

There's a cultural difference too.  We've been concentrating on getting every detail right and setting into place processes to make sure it happens.  They've been going with the flow and mixing and matching and buying at the lowest possible price at every opportunity.  Value equals cheap.  Quality means cheapest.  Best means cheapest.

We've been talking 'Green' and 'Sustainable' and they've been buying polystyrene cups.

It's going to be a total train wreck.  And it will be our fault.  We're the consultant.  We're the professionals.  We should be able to find a way to get out ideas over to the client.  We knew for ages they were lying to us but we let it ride.  Now it's all going to come crashing down.

And who will suffer?

The Guests and residents.  That includes me:  I live there too.  Shame.