Dananjaya Hettiarachchi recently shared some tips on presentation posted in Business Insider

A world champion. A motivational speaker. An individual who can unlock something special in you. His journey has been inspiring to many from the failures to the successes that he never thought he would have dreamt of.

Hailed from Sri Lanka, I only came to know of the lad back in August 2014 when I attended an International Convention (Toastmasters) in Kuala Lumpur and we met again back in Kuching in May 2015. The KL trip was something that I wouldn’t forget for two reasons – supporting our Brunei Speakers’ Club finalists Chris Woo (the best achievement for a Brunei toastmasters club) and a world champion speech by Dananjaya Hettiarachchi.

Even to this very day, his tagline “I See Something” has become a household phrase in toastmasters meeting or speeches and it was the most talked-about speeches of 2014. I would considered myself fortunate to be one of the audience among the thousands that attended the finals of the World Championship of Public Speaking 2014 in Kuala Lumpur because I never felt that “sold” in listening to speeches. Dananjaya was simply inspirational and charismatic on stage and I knew the finalists then would have a hard time stealing his thunder.

From that moment, I wish I could bring him to Brunei one day and inspire the youths in our country. After months of planning, I was over the moon when I heard the news that he accepted our invitation to speak in Brunei Darussalam this coming October 2016. I’m truly grateful for Dananjaya to schedule his time for the Brunei Convention 2016, knowing that his schedules are very packed with seminars and talks.

Dananjaya Hettiarachch delivering his award winning speech that made him a champion in public speaking in 2014

So my buddy Dananjaya, on behalf of the organizing committee of the Brunei Conference 2016, I would like to extend our deepest appreciation for making your short trip to Brunei possible. We are ready to host you and welcome you with great hospitality. A big thanks to Shawn Cassidy Narcis for making his trip possible.

Don’t forget to catch the video of Dananjaya Hettiarachchi on the link video I have posted on this post. It may be a short one but it was surely inspiring and compelling towards the audience. Even his winning speech has garnered 1 million views on youtube. Now that he’s making his way to Brunei, what are you waiting for? For more details, you can click here and I would highly recommend you to attend this conference.

For those interested in attending the Brunei Conference 2016, you can reach me at ranoadidas gmail.com or whatsapp me at +68738677773. There are still seats available for the 3 day convention. There will also be other speakers such as Mohamed Murad (Past International President) and Willie Jones (World Champion of Public Speaking 1996). Not forgetting our local speakers, Soon Loo, CEO of Darussalam Enterprise (DARe) and Stuart Lee of Rhymin Partners. I have also finally secured another speaker and he is no other than the reigning World Championship of Public Speaking 2016, Darren Tay, who was crowned in August in Washington, D.C.

Believe it or not, I want to be a champion like Dananjaya. Taken back in May 2015 when he was a keynote speaker in Kuching

Click image to find out more

He’s known as “Dan” by many and I’ve been following his journey on IG @dananjaya_h and Facebook and even on the internet. Though he was a champion two years ago, he still is one of the most sought speakers around the world. He has been traveling around the world and his next date will be Brunei before he heads off to Amsterdam (Holland), Hiroshima (Japan) and Richmond (USA) to cap off the year. Awesome!!!

If you meet him in person, only one word to describe him – charismatic (and super cool). He has been in a journey of toastmasters or public speaking for 10 years. He loves to inspire the thousands in bettering their communication skills and he is very popular in schools.

The Brunei Conference committee is very privilege to have his presence in Brunei on 28th October to 29th October. We are certain that his presence and his keynote speech will have a positive ripple effect on the audience and hoping for more youth to attend the conference.

If you are interested, please reach me at 8677773. We are selling tickets by next week (mid September) and the prices are BND 120 (29th October, Saturday session 9am to 4pm) and BND 50 for the Speech contest (30th October, Sunday 8am). If you are interested also in attending the dinner, it will be BND 50 for Friday, 28th October.

This is slated to be the biggest toastmasters event ever hosted in Brunei Darussalam because we have three world champion speakers – Willie Jones, Dan the Man and reigning champion Darren Tay. So yes, sometime to look forward to and the target audience will be the youth, working class, teachers, parents, students, professionals, government officials and entrepreneurs.

A big thank you also to the sponsors, partners and supporters of this event – Progresif, Brunei Tourism under the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism, RYS Entertainment, Armtrix Enterprise, NBT, BIG magazine, The Brunei Times, AKK Design, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Rizqun International Hotel and many more (to be finalized). I would also like to acknowledge the Ministry of Home Affairs for approving this event.

So once again, If you are interested, please reach me at 8677773 and you can read more details here on our official website.

When you are climbing a mountain there is a summit , in life all you find is an endless wall. You can take the easy way and slide endlessly into the darkness or take the hard way and climb into the eternal light. Either way, there is no end to how far you can fall nor how high you can climb – Dananjaya Hettiarachchi. Image taken of Dananjaya Hettiarachchi’s Facebook page.

Ciara with the man himself back in Kuching 2015

Danajaya being a speaker at a Rotary event in July. Image taken from Dananjaya Hettiarachchi’s Facebook page.

Another excited person to see Dananjaya in Brunei

 

SupaKart making a comeback on school holidays. Are you ready?

Ready, Get Set and Goooooo…..

With the recent developments of Jerudong Park, everything is going as planned. First we have the waterpark which has been a huge hit among family members. Then the revamped of new activities such as the laser tag. Then the reopening of the Musical Fountain which had an overwhelming response from the public especial on its first weekend. It attracted more than 10,000 guests alone. Amazing!! For your info, the Musical Fountain is open to public every Friday, Saturday and Sunday night from 7:30pm and the performances will be at 8:30pm and 9:15pm. According to Jefri Daniel, Senior Manager of Jerudong Park, there will be newer music in the coming weeks or so.

But today the highlight will be the comeback of the Go-Karts. Something that many youths will enjoy and look forward to. The media had a quick taste of Jerudong Park’s SupaKart this morning and it is slated to be launched this Thursday 8th September, in time for the upcoming school holidays.

They are two types of new karts which are “Bandit” and “Le Mans” and the tracks are full refurbished. The single seater race type “Bandit” will be used on the track “F1” while the two-seater (more family oriented) “Le Mans” will be used on track “F2”.

In terms of their safety procedures, there is a height requirement. They must be at least 4 feet 4 inches tall (52 inches) or 10 years of age. Any child between 4 to 10 yrs must be accompanied by an adult. For guests, not to worry, as there will be shuttle buses from the Colonnade to the SupaKart’s area every 15 minutes.

There is also a private room for those who are interested to rent for corporate events or birthday parties. The prices are yet to be known as this is a new avenue for Jerudong Park and they have refurbished the area at the SupaKart to make this a family event or even a corporate event. A very good move indeed and I see this as a potential for other events apart from GoKarting.

Do follow their IG @jerudongpark for updates and thank you once again for hosting us today. So Aziz Idris and Dean Kassim? A rematch? hahahaha

Oh yes, Kart 9 is the fastest of the lot 😀 This is the “Bandit” version

Or you can try the family version (not as fast but still enjoyable)

Public can rent a space here for birthday or corporate events at the SupaKart

Press conference with the Jerudong Park management with Progresif and Makan Ceria (McDonald’s) this morning

 

The final day of the travel. I won’t write much you can refer to my older posts. So do visit Brunei Travel Fair at the Centrepoint Hotel, 7th floor (sorry, badminton players). There are many great deals and even opportunities to win special discounts and deals at the fair. This is the first time they held for three days and yes, this is your final chance to book your flights at a much cheaper deal.

Have you evolved to a Butterfree yet? Do evolve it at the travel fair and you will stand a chance to win a rare flight fare and on top of that, you will automatically get 15% discount voucher on your next trip

The past two days have been eventful at the Brunei Travel Fair

Visitors giving feedback on Royal Brunei Airlines online

Have you tried the Better Catch Them All? Once your purchased more than BND 500 worth of Royal Brunei Airlines flight, then you can be eligible to be part of the game. Here both my friends managed to win some discount vouchers from the game.

She did pretty good

And so did he

Rio having a ball at the Brunei Travel Fair

Both my friends still deciding where to fly

Have you signed up for Royal Skies? It’s free and you will be given 1,000 points for new subscribers.

Friends at Darussalam Holdings

Packed as usual

 

Catching the sneaks later. Showing this weekend at The Mall Cineplex and Times Cineplex

 

The models of the Samsung Galaxy Note7

Yes, Samsung has suspended its sale of the Note7 in some countries. Brunei also issued a statement through its seller DST group. The announcement comes barely two weeks after the Note7 went on sale. After users posted photos of their burnt Note7s with exploded batteries, Samsung mounted an investigation and found 35 Note7s worldwide with battery cell issues.

The replacement program has begun and it will take at least two weeks. In Singapore, all the telcos also suspended the sales of the Galaxy Note7.

So for those who haven’t purchase yet, you’re in luck.

Samsung Note7 on fire

 

Check out the Black Pepper Feast

You can download a digital version of it from it here, print it out and enjoy great discounts.

 

Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Awang Hj Mustafa bin Hj Sirat, Minister of Communications receiving a memento fromMr. Karam Chand, Chairman, Sabre TN Brunei cum CEO of Royal Brunei Airlines during the opening ceremony of the Brunei Travel Fair

Karam Chand gave his appreciation to all the parties involved in this far

It was officially launched this morning at the Green Quartz Multipurpose Hall 7th Floor at The Centrepoint Hotel. The guest of honour was Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Awang Hj Mustafa bin Hj Sirat, Minister of Communications and he was accompanied by Mr. Karam Chand, Chairman, Sabre TN Brunei cum CEO of Royal Brunei Airlines.

The place was pretty packed as usual. With many vendors involved and trade partners, it will be a packed three day event with customers eyeing for great deals. The Better Catch Them All gimmick has been a huge hit among RB customers as he or she will trying to grab 5% or 15% on their next flight on RB.

Ministry of Tourism from Republic of Indonesia is making a bigger bang than last year as they are finally having their own dedicated ministry for tourism. Their big presence in the Brunei Travel Fair showed their commitment in targeting Bruneians to fly over to Indonesia.

So what are you waiting for? This is the place to be for the weekend and even for Pokemon Go players, you will be entitled to a 15% discount on RB flights. Just visit the RB pavilion at Centrepoint to find out more and it’s so easy to claim 😀

Did you know RB is in the top 10 of most loved airlines by SkyTrax 2016? Awesome!!

At the Taiwan booth

The Ellewan 😀 Catch them tonight

Busy booth at RB Pavilion

Freme booth going pretty strong

The Minister receiving a gift from the Indonesian Ambassador to Brunei

Here are lists of exhibitors:

Sabres Travel Network Brunei
Royal Brunei Airlines
Baiduri Bank Berhad
Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam
Brunei Tourism Board
Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board
Ministry of Tourism, Republic of Indonesia
Sarawak Tourism Board
Standard Chartered Bank
Tourism Authority of Thailand
Taiwan Tourism Bureau

The participating travel agents

Anthony Tours & Travel Agency
At-Taqwa Travel Tours
Century Travel Centre
Darussalam Holdings
Freme Travel Services
J J Tour & Service
Pan Bright Travel Service
Southern Cross Travel Agencies
Straits Travel Agencies

Products and services:

Attractive air fares, hotel rates and packages
Haji and Umrah
Medical Tourism products (health screening

Sabre Travel Network Brunei promotion:

Every booking or purchase made during the fair, customer has a chance to win attractive prizes such as 1 set of GoPro HERO4. If you use your Baiduri card for payment, you will get three additional chances for lucky draw.

Pierre Imhof sharing on what Baiduri has to offer during the Brunei Travel Fair

Check out the good deals offered to Baiduri customers

Lyna Mohd of Borneo Bulletin interviewing the CEO of Baiduri Bank

Promotion

On offer; tickets to all RB destinations except Kota Kinabalu and Jeddah.
Special promos include: Early Bird Specials, December Specials and London Specials.

Activities

1. RB Grand Draw
Customers who purchased RB tickets at the Brunei Travel Fair 2016 are automatically entitled for a chance to win:
02 Return Economy Class tickets to Dubai
02 Return Economy Class ticket to Melbourne
01 Return Business Class ticket to Ho Chi Minh City
01 Royal Skies membership complimentary upgrade

2. Daily Lucky Draw

Visitors who purchase RB tickets are also eligible to participate in the daily lucky draw which will be held at 2:00PM and 09:00PM on Saturday and Sunday, and 11:25AM and 09:00PM on Friday.
Participants stand a chance to win:
a. Return Economy Class tickets (to Shanghai, Bangkok, Jakarta, Bali, Manila or Surabaya)
b. One Way Complimentary upgrade award
c. Skylounge access pass
d. RB Merchandise

3. Instagram Competition

Visitors can participate in the RB Instagram competition for Brunei Travel Fair to win a Return Economy Class ticket to Jakarta. (Details will be announced on RB’s Social Media Channel)

4. Better Catch Them All

RB Customers during the BTF with a minimum spending of BND500 can participate in the Better Catch Them All game, where they will stand in a box for 10 seconds and catch as many prizes as they can.

Prizes:
a. 5% and 15% discount vouchers for their next purchase with RB to be redeemed at RB’s Customer Service Centre
b. RB Merchandise.

Better Catch Them All has been a huge hit 😀

Now you show this character at RB Pavilion and you will get awesome deals. Trust me!!

Travel Bug

1. To be eligible to participate, you must be a resident of Brunei and a Royal Skies member. If you are not a Royal Skies member, you can apply for membership at the RB Booth.
2. This game is not open to RB staff and their immediate family.
3. Catch or evolve a Flutter Free (refer image above) and collect a one-time 15% discount voucher (valid for 3 months) at the RB counter at the Brunei Travel Fair.
4. The discount voucher is to be used for your future purchase with RB to be redeemed and purchased at RB’s Customer Service Centre.
5. The game closes at 09:00PM on Sunday 04th September 2016.
6. Participants who caught or evolved their Flutter Free from 02-04 September 2016 are entitled to participate in a lucky draw to win a “rare fare”.
7. Only one Flutter Free  per lucky draw entry.
8. 03 lucky participants will win BND10, BND25 or BND50 rare fare that they can use to any RB regional destinations of their choice (except Kota Kinabalu).
9. We strongly advise that all players to be aware of their surrounding and safety whilst playing the game.

The Minister congratulated At-Taqwa on their operations and also getting a licence for the Haj and Umrah pilgrimage

Salinah Salleh from Brunei Tourism Board explaining the new packages from Temburong which was launched yesterday

BIBD also having their presence at the Brunei Travel Fair

Great deals at Pan Bright Travel and who knows you can win a car or a Birkin

Tourism Malaysia have awesome promotion for the locals.

One of the lucky family that managed to get a free luggage from Tourism Malaysia as part of the special offer for those who spend BND 1,000 for Malaysia packages. Stocks are limited.

Pretty busy at the RB Pavilion

 

Yang Teramat Mulia Pg Muda ‘Abdul Muntaqim kicked off the Music and Dance recital by playing a piece “Fur Elise by Beethoven. Accompany the royalty was Deon Ong, Director of Yippy Tune in the background.

Yang Teramat Mulia Pg Anak Muneerah Madhul Bolkiah in her piano solo performance

Yippy Tune Music School and Fitness Zone joint hand to put together a private event for parents and friends for the Music and Dance recital with 138 young performers at the Arts Centre Foyer in Jerudong International School.

The lively music event was graced by His Royal Highness Prince Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah, the Crown Prince and Senior Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Her Royal Highness Pengiran Anak Isteri Pengiran Anak Sarah, who were there to support their children.

The afternoon was accentuated by Yang Teramat Mulia Pg Muda ‘Abdul Muntaqim, who kicked off the recital with a distinguished solo piano performance of Fur Elise by Beethoven as well as performing a group recital of the Star Wars music playing the piano with other young musicians.

Amongst the highlights of the event were the performances by Yang Teramat Mulia Pg Anak Muneerah Madhul Bolkiah, who showcased her piano talent for both solo and group performance, together with a group ballet dance entitled Lavender’s Blue.

This is the first time Yippy Tune Music School has collaborated with Fitness Zone on a Music and Dance activity, as both organizations found a common ground in training up students in performing arts.

Yang Teramat Mulia Pg Anak Muneerah Madhul Bolkiah in a ballet performance

The ballet performers were dancing to Lavneder’s Blue

Around 300 in attendance last weekend

According to Deon Ong, Music Director of Yippy Tune Music School, “Music Together started with the idea of everyone coming together with the opportunity to fully express their talents while at the same time, appreciate arts, dances and music.”

Yippy Tune Music School brought to the event a strong contingent of vocal and musical performers, which includes Piano, Violin, Guitars and Drum. A group of violin students coached by Yippy Tune Music School from St Andrews School and SMSS also took part in the event.

Fitness Zone was represented with four dance recital pieces to showcase classical ballet and modern hip-hop performances. The Brunei’s leading fitness centre recently introduced dance lessons for young children a year ago, and was met with a resounding success. “It is truly an event to come together to celebrate and appreciate music and performing art with the future generation.” Said Wu Chun, the Managing Director of Fitness Zone.

“Orchestrating 138 young performers in a recital is an audacious task,” said Deon Ong. “The success of this event is a reflection of the dedication from the students, teachers as well as the committed parents. The months of preparation and planning came down to an enjoyable and memorable experience for the audiences and the students themselves. The effort has definitely been worthwhile seeing the joy on everyone’s face.”

“The energy at the JIS auditorium was electrifying from the get go. These young talents have carried themselves with nothing but grace and poise throughout the event. They have made their parents proud” Said Teacher Marceleigh Blanche, Yippy Tune’s Music teacher.

A total of 19 pieces were performed in the 2 hours event for over 300 participants. The audiences were enchanted with a spectacular musical treat with the special touch of magic on the magnificent Sunday afternoon. Images courtesy of Yippy Tunes.

The Interview with Deon

Rano: What did you feel after the event? Having 19 pieces performed by young kids.

Deon: Right after the event, I am so proud of all the students who performed on stage. I told them all the practices and hard work have paid off! And right after, I thanked all my hard working teachers. I sincerely thank all parents for including us as part of their music education.

Rano: How was the preparation? When did it begin?

Deon: The preparation started only 4 months ago as it began with a small idea. Since all of the pieces required playing music together, most challenging part is to get all students to gather together for their practice as everyone has their own tight schedule.

Rano: In your music school, which is the most popular instrument or class?

Deon: Our most popular instrument is piano.

Rano: What are your thoughts so far with the collaboration with Fitness Zone? This is something new and will it be an ongoing partner?

Deon: As i mention earlier, it started with a small idea, the idea of simply let all students to be able to play music together hence the recital-Music Together. We have pianists playing with an ensemble of 30 violinists and 10 keyboardist, we have a setting of band with vocalist, we have acoustic guitar with singers- just to name a few. And so I have an idea to have dancers as well. Therefore, I approached dancers from the Fitness Zone dance group. A Music and Dance event. An Ongoing partner? Yes especially when we have common ground in developing young talents in performing arts.

Rano: How many teachers or instructors involved?

Deon: We have 7 music teachers and one dance instructor. We don’t have a big team but we produce big results

Rano: How to join Yippy Tune?

Deon: We are in Gadong central B19 2nd floor. Please contact 7181698.

Overall it is an enjoyable and memorable private event for all parents and students as parents are very proud of their children’s achievement and students enjoy their journey of playing music together.

Deon Ong with the music teachers of Yippy Tune

Fitness Zone trainers getting involved in the recital. Good to see Wu Chun attending the event to support his daughter’s performance.

Behind the scenes before the actual recital. A lot of hard work has been invested to make the event successful.

 

Yang Berhormat Pehin Datu Singamanteri Colonel (Rtd) Dato Seri Setia (Dr) Awang Hj Mohammad Yasmin bin Haji Umar delivering his welcoming remarks and applaud Baiduri Bank for making it easier for SMEs to do their online transactions

Now this is a very interesting system especially when you are doing businesses online. The one who will benefit the most are e-vendors and also their customers. Once you master the usage of this new payment gateway of the MerchantSuite, online transaction can become seamless.

The idea and implementation stage took a few months as Baiduri Bank wanted to focus on bringing the best out of MerchantSuite for the residents of Brunei Darussalam. Under the care of the Business Banking Unit, the MerchantSuite is a suite of solutions to enable SMEs to elevate their businesses by providing an affordable online platform to conveniently issue invoices and accept card payments. The suite complements an SME’s social media presence and does not require the setup of a website, which may get costly for entrepreneurs starting a business. Now, isn’t that interesting?

Baiduri Bank launched its new product, MerchantSuite, at Radisson Hotel recently. The launch was officiated by the Minister of Energy and Industry, Prime Minister’s Office, Yang Berhormat Pehin Datu Singamanteri Colonel (Rtd) Dato Seri Setia (Dr) Awang Hj Mohammad Yasmin bin Haji Umar, the guest of honour for the event.

Also present was CEO of Baiduri Bank, Pierre Imhof, who continues to bring new innovative ideas and systems to Baiduri Bank and hence, it’s no surprise that Baiduri Bank keeps winning accolades internationally. It’s always Baiduri’s strategy to always partner with the best, most reputable names in the world in order that we design and distribute the best products available in the market and the most suitable for the local Brunei environment. Keep it up, sir!!

Pierre Imhof delivering the opening speech

Launching the event

The guest of honour being briefed on how MerchantSuite works

Yang Berhormat mingling with guests during the break

In a nutshell, MerchantSuite is user friendly, convenient and will greatly benefit SMEs who are seeking to expand their business by offering card payment options for their customers. The service will be able to accept payment from any credit or debit card bearing the Visa, Mastercard, American Express logo.

On top of allowing users to accept card payments securely, in line with Baiduri Bank’s commitment to providing the highest industry standard in data security, MerchantSuite complies with the globally recognized PCI-DSS. Having the PCI-DSS requires stringent security standards during processing and transmission of cardholder data thereby assuring the users of better protection from credit card data leak.

How to apply?

To register for MerchantSuite, customers will need to set up and maintain a company account in Baiduri Bank. Once set up, a simple online registration is required, with 4 tier options available, namely, Bronze (USD60 per year), Silver (USD120 per year), Gold (USD500 per year), and Platinum (USD1000 per year). Those who would like to register for a trial account may simply do so for free.

Aside from MerchantSuite, the Business Banking Unit under Retail Banking provides support and services to small and medium enterprises (SMEs), such as the Baiduri Internet Gateway System, as well as the Business i-Banking to assist businesses in paperless transactions and assist them in SME credit facilities where eligible.

For more information on MerchantSuite, the public can contact Baiduri Bank at 2449666, log on to www.baiduri.com, or find Baiduri Bank on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

The awesome features of MerchantSuite

Guests inquiring on how MerchantSuite works. Don’t be afraid to ask 😀