Richard Zinkiewicz - Personal Blog

I am crying as I think about my Oscar right now. For over 19 years, Oscar stood by me all the time, even run hundreds, if not thousands of miles with me, over trails in Hong Kong. He has always been kind and caring, adapting to any situation I put him in, and has not once complained. He is truly representative of the resilience of the Hong Kong people...he’s truly a Hong Kong dog, in that sense. Every day, I wonder if I have given him even a small part of what he has given me all these years!

For those who don’t know, Oscar is blind due to a tumour behind his right eye. Each time poor Oscar whines or whimpers, I imagine how much the tumour (which by the way is growing deeper and bigger into the top of his mouth) must be hurting him..and my tears start to well up. The tumour is almost impossible to operate on, as it has now grown too big for surgery. I don’t think any vet in Hong Kong has dared to perform surgery on a growth this big before. At least none of the surgeons in our clinic. The best chance of surgery was apparently six months ago, when the tumour was much smaller. I am both sad and angry at myself for not deciding to act on this sooner. In three days, we will receive the biopsy results of the tumour, which will help us understand the origin of the growth. Right now, chemo seems like the only logical option. Our vet, Dr Ho has also advised us on an alternative option, to give Oscar an Aloe Vera-based immune injection from the US, called Acemanon.

Physically, Oscar is weighed down in more ways than one. After every visit to the vet, this 19-year-old dog, (who would be 135 years old had he been human) walks all the way back home on his own, dragging his right hind non-weight bearing leg, carrying a big ball of mass that has grown between his legs over the past three years.....without a single complaint! As much as it hurts to watch him suffer, it is his spirit that I can’t help but admire. He has taught me so much. I love Oscar, he is my real best friend!

Just like Oscar, many other animals and creatures throughout the world have become reliable and loyal friends to people. If we open our hearts and minds enough, it is plain to see that the bonds of friendship can be extended beyond the human world, and can cut across various dimensions of the animal kingdom. If our hearts are big enough, humans and animals can in fact come together as one happy family.

If I could go back into the past, there are certainly some things I might have done differently. For one, I would have spent a lot more quality time with mum, instead of spending more time getting into arguments with her. I would have been happy and grateful just being in her presence, and said thank you more often.

Recently, I attended the funeral of the late Mrs Senathirajah, and when I saw her three sons breaking down before us – something I had never seen before – I could certainly relate to it. Just like my mum, Mrs Sena had raised her sons single-handedly, and she was the pillar of strength for these men who have today grown to be independent and hugely successful in their own fields. I had always known Mrs Sena to be a warm person, who would go out of her way to welcome me and make me feel part of her family.

If I had a chance to change the past, I would also have taken more time to get to know my grandpa better. He was a grouchy old man, but there was something about him that I secretly admired. He was a blacksmith, and in my opinion, one of the most hardworking people of his time. He was what one would call, a man of steel, a strong personality. Perhaps, if I tried hard enough, I could have made him smile more often.

As for Oscar, my beloved dog and my best friend, I wish I had pet him and played with him more often...I try my best to hold him and show him more love now. He’s getting old and is partially blind, with a tumour behind his right eye. To make things worse, he’s got a massive growth between his legs, and has been dragging himself around on his own, without a single complaint, for three whole years now! I don’t even know how much longer he’ll be with us.

In terms of work, I wish I had invested more energy to maximise and optimise my personal contributions to the development of the whole Group. The world needs leaders with a strong value system, who go beyond lip service, who have a sense of responsibility that drives them to walk the talk. As we all know, it’s far easier to preach then to practice.

While I can’t change the past and undo my mistakes, I can definitely do something to influence the future. And I intend to begin with my son, Ricky. I’m on a downside slope, while Ricky is on an upside slope..he’s young, charged and has a low database of experience and knowledge, which makes it the right time for me to make a difference in his life and influence him positively. But that’s where the challenge lies... to be a living example for this young boy, I need to exercise more self-discipline. I need to stop making excuses for myself. Instead, I need to be ten steps ahead of myself. If I start today, perhaps I will have less regrets tomorrow...

I recently had the opportunity to visit the QuestNet India office in Bangalore. In fact, I was the first Director to visit the office since the prolonged India crisis which is still in the midst of being resolved. Suresh Thimiri, the Acting CEO of QuestNet Enterprises India introduced me to his dynamic team of 15-20 people who are working very hard to overcome the challenges of the market and give QuestNet a fresh new face in India.

During my three-day stay in Bangalore, I also had the chance to watch a product demonstration and meet up with potential suppliers for new products and consumables that will soon be introduced into the market. In-line with the company’s resolution to ‘go green’, we are looking at introducing a range of environmentally-friendly cleaning products that will certainly be well-received if accompanied by a strong marketing strategy. Other products under consideration include meal replacement products, and also unique interchangeable jewellery which is aimed at the Mumbai market.

Meeting face to face with the team also gave me the opportunity to talk to them about the history of the QI Group and QuestNet, our diversity, our strengths and how our employees are our greatest, most priced assets. I also told them about our newly acquired building in Malaysia and briefed them about our sponsorship involvements in the AFC and motorsports arena. As a Group, we pride ourselves on giving back to the communities in which we operate, hence, I shared with them some of RYTHM Foundation’s projects which have successfully been carried out in the past year. Last but not least, we discussed the company’s expansion plan for 2010/2011 into countries such as Brazil, Japan, US and Russia.

At the end of my trip, I felt a certain sense of satisfaction because I was able to get my message across to the India team about the importance of interacting and interfacing with their international counterparts, be it the Customer Support team, IT, Finance or even Logistics. Just like the wheels of a cart, whichever part of the world we are in, nothing is possible without integration and cooperation. Teamwork is a must in order for us to collectively achieve our individual goals and missions. The India team especially needs to shift from their former perception of QuestNet, to acknowledge the new, legitimate positioning of the company, while realising that each individual is a key influent in his or her own right.

To the QuestNet India team, my prayers and well wishes are always with you!

For those who don’t know, I have a 19-year old dog named Oscar. How did I get him? Well that’s a long story, and something I’d love to share with all of you who are taking the time to read this. You see, back then I had a partner who was a dog lover and we lived in a two-level apartment in a small village in Sai Kung, Hong Kong. When we first moved in, we got two dogs, and before we knew it, it turned into a troop of seven, among which there were two Saint Bernards, an English Sheepdog, and even a German Shorthair. My partner, well she was the bigger dog lover, so she named most of them.

Anyway, one day while we were driving downtown, we saw a taxi run over a little puppy. We thought the puppy had died. However, before we knew it, the little fella was pulling himself up and making his way out from under the car! What a fighter! Well, we couldn’t just leave him there, so my partner and I picked the puppy up and took it to RSPCA. RSPCA told us there wasn’t much they could do, they said he was a stray dog and even if he survived, he wouldn’t live well because he had a broken hip that needed surgery. They said the best thing to do was to just put him down. No way in hell were we going to do that, so we decided to adopt him. So that was the first time I named a puppy, simply because I felt that we had a connection. Frankly I had no clue what to call him. But since the Oscars was playing around the time, sometime in March or April, that’s what we decided to call the little fella..Oscar!

The vet told us that if we kept Oscar active, his hips would be replaced with muscle. And since his hip was totally broken, he limped around for a while but managed pretty well. He lived with us in the village for two and a half years.

I used to take Oscar running with me on the Maclehose trail in Hong Kong. Back in the early 80s, the Ghurkhas used the trail for training. Lots of people also trained there to prepare for the Maclehose Trek, which was a 100km trek up the hill. It required a team of four people, who each had to finish in time. It was quite a challenge and I daresay there have been a lot of broken relationships along that trail. For 5 years I trained to improve my time, and all the while Oscar would come with me. Never once did he complain.

I remember an incident that took place sometime in my 3rd year of training on the trek. It was a hard Sunday and I had just finished hiking for 4 hours, I still had two more hours to go. Oscar was running ahead of me, when I suddenly stopped at a shop to get a drink. Suddenly I heard a whole lot of barking and I found that he had gotten into a fight with 2 German Sheppards up ahead. The owner had his dogs off a leash and they were really vicious. At one point, it got so bad, I had to throw myself between the dogs to save Oscar. By then, the owner realised and grabbed his dogs. Oscar seemed alright, so we continued on our way. Only later did I realise that he was limping. When I looked closely, I saw that he was hurt. He actually had little chunks bitten out of him in at least four places. But he never once complained.

There was also another incident that I remember clearly. Some cruel people used to intentionally leave rat poison along the Maclehose trail in Hong Kong. One unfortunate day, Oscar ate some food that was poisoned and he went into violent convulsions...I had to carry him 4 and a half blocks to a vet and they had to literally pump the poison out of his body to save him.

Sometimes I wonder if Oscar’s half human. He’s never been trained, but even when he needs to answer the call of nature, you’ll find that he’ll never do it along the sidewalks or the streets. He always looks out for a bush. And even when he does it in the bushes, he seems almost embarrassed if anyone is watching! Today, age has finally caught up with my 19-year old Oscar. He now has a big growth between his legs and a tumour behind his eye, and everyday his limp becomes more pronounced because of his hip. He also suffers from arthritis and rheumatism. But he’s been taking it one day at a time.

It’s been an amazing journey with Oscar by my side. He’s been more than a pet, he’s been a good friend. It stuns me as to how it started off as an arbitrary and inconsequential relationship, and how, just by showing him some tender loving care and affection, he has reciprocated it a thousand fold. I guess that’s the difference between man and dog. Sometimes the latter just appreciates you more.

Whoever said bringing up a child is easy! Today the lack of discipline in certain aspects of my life has certainly come back to bite me in the form of my 12-year old son, Ricky, who all this while has been living with his mum. Now that he’s come to live with me, I’m faced with my own worst enemy...myself. What could be more challenging than getting someone to follow the principle of “Do as I say, not as I do,” particularly in cases where you know that you’re not exactly leading by example. It’s tough, I tell you! One minute I’m telling him to turn off the telly and focus on his homework and the next minute, I’m reaching for the TV remote myself. My intent for my son is well and good, but the more I observe him, the more I feel that he is exactly like me – he would tell me that he WANTS to do something I ask him to, but he won’t end up doing it.

Ricky has good social skills, but his value system is something that isn’t totally in place yet, so he’s at the age basically where he’s testing to see how far he can go. I ask him what time he gets off school and everyday it’s a different answer. Sometimes he says 4.30pm, and then another day it’s 5.30pm, when in actual fact he finishes at 3pm. One day I call him at 4.30pm and ask him where he is, he tells me he’s at school. But then I find out he’s actually sitting in the toilet at McDonalds. Gosh...most days I’m faced with a mental battle as to whether I should use the ‘carrot’ or the ‘stick’ to get him on track. So far I’ve been using the ‘carrot’...making a simple request or giving him an instruction to see whether he follows it. There are days when I threaten him or just start talking to him about his future. The problem is, someday you get to the limits. If you threaten him, you’ve got to carry out some kind of punishment.

Being put in a situation like this makes me think of how mum managed me when I was younger. How did she do it??! We lived on a farm, and she was a single parent, so she was always busy with something. One day I told her I was going next door to see the neighbour’s son and instead I took off with him to the quarry. Well, God has a way of making the truth known, and somehow she found out. She was far from happy! Well, you know how white peas become really hard when you set them out to dry under the sun. She made me kneel on them for 20 minutes. Talk about painful! I can still remember it till today, so it must have made some impact.

Growing up, I was fearful of mum..but it was out of respect, more than anything else. I remember, when I was six I had a taste of my first cigarette. In Poland, at the time, ciggies had no filters, and trying it for the first time at that age, I certainly didn’t like the taste of it, not to mention the fact that it went down the wrong pipe! Arghhh! Never had another ciggy after that. But meanwhile I had to cover up the smell so mum wouldn’t get even a whiff of it. So when I got home after my little escapade, I immediately went into the garden and grabbed a few cloves and popped them into my mouth. Oh...it was strong. When I walked into the kitchen mum could smell the cloves and asked me why I was eating them. I had to lie...told her I loved cloves. So really, Ricky is doing pretty much what I did as a kid. He’s still confused between lying out loud, and learning to manage the truth.

Even today, being a Director requires me to encourage others and push for change. But how do I do this when I’m also part of the problem, thanks to my own lack of discipline. As a leader I don’t have the luxury of questioning myself openly. I have to give others the perception that I am in control...that I know what I’m doing. You think Vijay doesn’t make mistakes? Of course he does, except that he has the knack of turning his mistake into a positive, and in most cases the best thing he has ever done! Here, I have people walking after me telling me, “Oh Richard, don’t worry, you’re only human!” Sometimes that just puts me back in my comfort zone and makes me feel like it’s alright to make a few mistakes, no harm done. Nothing changes in the process.

At the end of the day, I feel it’s a trial and error process. When it comes to bringing up a child, in some respects we’ve got to have some ground rules. And in some respect we’ve got to make room for some adjustments. If Ricky exhausts all his breaks, and if he fails to follow what I say, he has agreed to be punished. The million dollar question is – can I carry it out?