Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Damn...I've passed 2 years in RedRibbonDays! Woot! Woot!

First of all, I need to kick myself as I just realised that it has been more than a year since I blogged last. But on another note, I've passed my 2 year mark here in RedRibbon Days! *pats on my back*

Let's me make a quick re-cap on the highlights:

- participated in organizing the annual dinner of a corporate client in Tawau, Sabah! ~ FUN!
- welcomed new colleagues, Reza, Aisyah & Sophia to the RedRibbon Days family! ~ COOL!
- got promoted to Pleasure Team Leader ~ THANKFUL!
- bid adieu to a colleague, Theing Ng ~ BYE! BYE!
- RedRibbon Days Christmas and Annual Dinner celebration! ~ DOUBLE FUN!
- participated in the preparation and organizing of a World Environment Day celebration of a corporate client - AWESOME!
- bid adieu to another colleague, Aisyah! ~ SAYONARA!
- RedRibbon Days 3rd Anniversary celebrations! ~ HAVOC!

All in all..it has been the most exciting 2 years in RedRibbon Days! I'm very thankful to the most happening bosses, Sherin, Ming Ne & Nik and also to the wonderful RedRibbon Days family for making me wake up every morning and looking forward to going to work! *hearts*

Looking forward to more years to come! Yeay!
-

Monday, August 2, 2010

My 1 year as a RedRibboner!

Gosh...I just realised that I have successfully completed 1 full year in RedRibbon Days! Woohoo!

This past year with RedRibbon Days has been one of the most fantastic, awesome, gratifying working experience ever!

I still remember answering one of the questions during the interview about what made me apply to this post and I think I answered something along the lines of 'I think the whole idea of gifting an experience is amazing! And I believe that this concept will definitely catch on in Malaysia'. That, my friends, is something that I still believe & hold on to dearly, even a year later.

I consider myself very lucky to be a part of this groundbreaking company. Sherin, Nik & Ming Ne have taken RRD 'to boldly go where no other company in Malaysia has gone before' and I have to say kudos to them for bringing RRD to where it is now....2 years in business...a spanking new & bigger office...more staff...700+ varied experiences...these are definitely steps to even greater heights!

I have been indeed very lucky to have been able to experience some of the experiences that we have like Sphereing, Pilot For A Day, Paintball, Team-building events, Corporate events for clients & exciting events like birthday parties, hen's night parties and so on.

Experiencing these amazing experiences are not the only perks of this job. The instant gratification you get when a customer compliments & thanks you for making their day, is something that one cannot easily get. The knowledge that we have made someone out there happy is truly a blissful feeling. And the joy af being part of someone's special day, be it birthdays, anniversaries, marriage proposals or even mother's day & father's day is something I look forward to daily!

A lot of my friends are very envious of my job and job title! ; ) They say that I'm truly lucky to be able to be in a job which seems so exciting & fun! Yes, I agree! My job is FUN! I love being able to plan exciting, fun & out-of-the-box kind of events. Planning events is something that I've always loved to do...even before joining RRD! So, I guess it's quite safe to say that I've landed an ideal job for myself.

Well, enough of my ramblings. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Sherin, Nik & Ming Ne for firstly, hiring me and secondly, for all the support that you have given me in the course of my 1 year here in RRD. I would also like to thank Theing (adik) for all your assistance and help in the course of our day-to-day job.

I'm truly proud to say that I'm a RedRibboner!

Here's to many more years to come!

Cheers!

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Crushed!!!

Part of my job description includes composing a write-up for each new experience package that I have managed to secure. In this instance, I managed to get a reputable spa which is part of an international chain of spas to come onboard as our partner supplier. What a joy it was to have a 'world-class' spa as part of experiences provider! And one smack in downtown Kuala Lumpur! As most of our current spas are all in the outskirts of town, we were quite overjoyed that now we have one in town for those customers who do not wish to travel too far out for their relaxation fix.


So, Nik & I went for the meeting, got a tour around the premises, managed to get the agreement signed and I was all set and ready to put all the vibes into words.


16 different spa packages...I was on a roll. 5 down and 11 more to go. I was getting a bit antsy. Come on...how many times only I could keep on using the words like relaxing, rejuvenating, refreshing, pampering, stress reliever and soothing??? But never mind, by hook or crook, I had to get it done. So, 10 down and 6 more to go. I could literally feel my brain juices depleting...I think I even started dreaming about spas. The write-up was the first thing on my mind when I got to office and it was also the last thing on my mind as I left office. Then voila, I did it! 16 spa package write-ups, fresh from the oven, sent to Nik to be uploaded unto our website.


But wait a second, the supplier requested to review the write-ups first before we can upload it. So ok, we send the links to them. Mind you, all the write-ups are based on the brief (read 2-liner) description that the spa provided in the form of a spa menu.


And guess what, in one felling swoop, all my write-ups get shot down! (Mouth wide open in utter disbelief!) What the...and the reason being 'Our regional office in Singapore does not want your description to vary from our standard description. Please use back our own description of the packages. Thank you'. What?!?!?! So, I'm supposed to entice my customers to buy your spa packages based on 4 lines of description???Come on lar!!!!


Well, this is business...We have to keep our suppliers happy. So, they send me their description and it's not in a Word document. It's a JPEG!!!AARRGGHH!!! Cannot copy and paste!!!! So, here I go, start typing again....Amazingly, managed to finish it within 2 hours, I think. And the previous original write-ups took me almost a week....


So, earlier today, we sent the revised packages links to them and yes, it is approved. Managed to squeeze in 2 - 3 sentences on top of their description. So, it's all good.


I'm not going to insert links to the specific spas packages so here's the general page of the spa packages available from RedRibbon Days. http://www.redribbondays.com.my/cart/categories/view/63


Here's to more relaxing, rejuvenating, pampering days ahead! =)

Thursday, January 14, 2010

RedRibbon Days Company Dinner 2009





Our company dinner was held on 8th January 2010 in The Westin, KL. A bit late but better late than never, rite!

I've never had the opportunity to dine in The Westin before so you can say that I was looking forward to it. We were to dine in EEST, a restaurant of Pan-Asian cuisine influenced by the best food, culture and values from the heart of Asia. It was on a Friday evening. Just the mere mention of that should send alarm bells ringing. Imagine, we had to get from our office in Damansara Heights to Bukit Bintang on a Friday night and reservation was made for 7.30pm. And the rain didn't help either. So, all of us (Sherin, Nik, Ming Ne, Theing & myself) vowed to leave the office early in order to reach there on time but you know how insanely things will crop up at the last minute. So, it suffice to say that we left later than we intended to and gloriously got stuck in a mammoth sized traffic jam...Sherin, Nik & Ming went together and lucky them, they had a driver who had the 'smarts' in mind to use the SMART Tunnel (he he he) and managed to escape the jam while poor Theing & I were irrevocably STUCK! But it was in such an occasion that I witnessed a small 'miracle'. What miracle, you may ask? I actually saw a Malaysian policeman go beyond his call of duty. This cop was a policeman, mind you and not a traffic policeman. He was actually in a patrol car and what he did was..the traffic on the road that we were on was stuck because every driver was not civic minded enough to give-in and every fella wanted to move an inch further which kinda created a grid-lock. So, out comes this cop, mind you, it's raining, ya...and starts to direct traffic!!! YES!!! He actually did! and thanks to him, the grid-lock cleared and we were happily on our way again!!! Too bad i didn't manage to get his ID tag or I actually would have sent a thank you note to him!!! Thank you Mr. Policeman...you have restored my faith that there still are a handful of your kind who actually believe in the motto 'Service above All'!

So, finally we arrive at The Westin, secretly hoping that the 'bosses' will be later than us but to our utter dismay, there they were, already seated and actually tucking into appetizers! =( But that didn't dampen our spirits to have a really enjoying the night...and talking about spirits, we had Champagne!!! Sipping some bubbly truly made us relax and look forward to the night ahead..We had some appetizers...a sashimi platter, fish cakes and some spring rolls thingy,i think..Aiyo, can't remember already...Then we went ahead and ordered our mains...So, while we waited for the mains, we exchanged gifts! Basically, it was Secret Santa lar...and I got an amazing gift..Thank you, my Secret Santa!

we were still waiting for our main course to arrive so we decided to play a game. We were told to prepare 3 statements (2 true & 1 false) about ourselves which no one else in the office knew and the others were to guess which was the false one...I was the first to go and my statements about myself (i'm not gonna reveal them) certainly left the others dumbstruck...They told me that they had to change their statements now coz mine sounded so 'gempak' and theirs’ seem so lame..hahaha! Only Theing managed to get mine right and she's the one who knew me for the shortest period of time!!! This game was certainly fun and it allowed us to get to know the side of each other which we never knew existed. And it was so much of fun that what was supposed to be just for 1 round went on for a few rounds. And we had to come up with statements on-the-spot! Oh, I forgot to mention...after having the appetizers, Sherin immediately wasn't feeling well..we reckon it was the sashimi...though all of us ate the same but unfortunately only Sherin 'kena'. In the end, Sherin didn't eat anything after that.

So, finally, our main courses arrived...all of us had surprisingly ordered from the Teppanyaki selections. I had soft-shell crab, Theing had Salmon, Nik ordered Scallops, Ming Ne ordered King Prawns and Sherin had ordered Salmon (she ordered before she got sick). Ming Ne traded her Prawns with Sherin's Salmon but Sherin still could not stomach it...so, eventually the prawns was shared amongst us.

The food wasn't all that great and we felt that they could & should improve. Nik's scallops was slightly burnt and I felt that mine was a tad too salty. So, while having the main course, we played another game..this was 'Guess who am I?'. We had to think of a famous person (celebrity, politician, sportsman etc.) and the others can ask a yes or no question to guess who the famous person is. Though a bit childish but it was fun! But the one Sherin had thought up really stumped us! Good one, Sherin!

We finally finished dinner about 10.30ish and were ready to leave. Sherin, Nik & Ming Ne were heading off to one of our supplier's restaurant to check the venue as we had an event there the next morning and they wanted to make sure that all our requirements was ready. We said our goodbyes and left.

For more information with regards to the 4-course Signature for 2, please go to http://www.redribbondays.com.my/cart/products/view/289

That's it folks...toodles!


Tuesday, January 5, 2010

My first ever sphereing ride....



So....this has been put off for far too long...I was supposed to blog about this adventurous experience...but I was yet to get around to it...so here goes...

I was given the opportunity by my company, RedRibbon Days (www.redribbondays.com.my) to try out one of the best-selling adventure gifts that we have. The sphereing ride... My bosses, Sherin & Nik, believe that each one of us 'Redribboners' have to try out our own experiences so that we will be able to relate to it better when our customers call-in with enquiries...RedRibbon Days is basically a gifting company but with a difference. We sell experiences...it can be anything from adventure, dining, pampering, flying etc. So,off I went on a Sunday morning to Taman Tasik Titiwangsa for my inaugural sphereing ride!!!

What is sphereing?

Sphereing / orbing is basically a ride like no other...imagine a roller-coaster ride without the train and the tracks!!! Imagine being strapped inside a 3 metre inflatable ball and rolled down a slope!!! Each sphere ball can fit 2 adults...
and I was actually supposed to carry out this experience with another person who happens to be the winner of one of our monthly contest give-aways on Facebook...So,when I arrived, the sphere ball was still being inflated by a hand held air-blower...Though I was super excited to try this experience out,my slight nervousness must've showed as our partner supplier came to assure me that it's all safe and that I won't break my neck!!!As the sphere was still being inflated,the facilitators ran-through several safety checks with me...I was told to remove all accessories and even my watch as there could be a possibility of it coming loose and hurting me or the other person in the sphere.While still waiting for the other participant,I was strapped on with the safety gear...


Laa dee daa...still waiting...looked like the other participant was not gonna show up...so,we just decided not waste time and just go ahead with the ride...Nik was there as well,with her hubby, Azlan...as it is not usually customary for us to be at every experience that our clients take on, Nik was there as this other participant actually flew down from Aussie...and also as this was my first experience and first time trying the ride out,she was there as moral support...besides also being the camerawoman...and talking about that...I'm sure y'all know how busy Taman Tasik Titiwangsa can be on a Sunday morning,people out jogging, children playing in the park and basically a lot of people going up and down..it was suffice to say that I had loads of spectators waiting to see what the hell was I gonna do being strapped with safety harness and all...

So,back to the ride...getting into the ball was an adventure on its own...imagine the opening to enter the ball was about 10 inches in diameter and I ain't no Victoria Beckham to be able to slide in gracefully without a hitch...so, CJ, one of the facilitators who was gonna go on the ride with me, slid in first...easy for him lar coz he'd probably done it hundreds of times and having a slim body helped as well...so, with CJ already inside the ball, I was asked to throw my upper body through the hole and CJ will help pull me in from the inside...it's best to do it with a little run...one,two,whoosh!err....hello....I'm stuck!!!imagine,half my body in the ball and the other half is happily hanging outside!!!so,with the help of CJ pulling me in and Nik pushing my butt from outside,I managed to wriggle my way through...Phew...finally...



Once inside,CJ straps me up to the safety harness so that I will be anchored to the walls of the ball and not go tumbling around inside the ball like in a washing machine while it's being pushed downhill.Even my feet was secured to some feet pocket thingy so that the legs won't go flying around...All this took a while as it's not easy standing upright in a sphere ball that keeps moving about...and then,when I'm all secured, CJ, strapped himself to the other harness and we were ready to roll!!!



There were a few other facilitators there to help roll the ball downhill until it gained momentum...so,on the count of 1,2,3...they started pushing.....guess what happened????

I screamed and screamed and screamed...not out of fright coz I'm game for any roller-coaster but purely out of exhilaration...it was super fun & exciting!!!it was like doing a 360degree loop on a roller coaster again and again and again!!!!the feeling of weightlessness was awesome!!!and then,as suddenly as it began...it ended!what felt like 5 minutes to me was barely over in less than 1 minute!!!OMG!!!I was giddy with excitement and ready to have a go at it again...I tell you..it can become quite addictive...but I didn't get a chance to do it again as there were other customers there waiting to do the ride as well...and I bet that they were drawn by my screams...hahaha!Check out this link for the video (http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=159026048022)


Now,here comes another challenge...how to get out???well,CJ got me unstrapped from the harness and instructed me to throw my feet out first this time...there were 2 handles above the hole for me to hold on to while pushing my legs through the whole and eventually wriggling out...just to land unglamourously on my butt!!!a thought just went through my head at the time...the process of getting out of the ball is akin to childbirth...yeah...imagine!!!


so,yeah..that's about it...I stood up...my hair all tousled up and my arms all sore from holding onto the straps so tightly....my adrenaline was so pumped and to add salt to the injury...Nik shows me the video taken of the ride where I can be heard screaming till kingdom come!!!I swear I didn't realise I was screaming that loudly....I knew I was but I just didn't realise that it was in the higher decibels region...

so,that was it folks...my sphereing adventure...it's was so much of fun and excitement that I can't wait to go for it again!!!


For more information on this ride or any other adventurous experience, please log on to www.redribbondays.com.my.