LIFE IS A PROJECT

 How do you achieve your desired project construction profit? That is a million dollar question.  Let me tell you my story from my 40 years of experience as a JKR, Consulting Engineer, Project Manager and G7 Contractor. Being there and done that. As JKR engineer, my job is not to make profit. My roles are a regulator and supervisor to ensure that consultant and the contractors are doing their job as agreed in the contract. At the same time, I represent the clients from other ministries and government departments and agencies. When I joined a property development company in 1984, I became a project engineer. The company sells houses and commercial properties. My job was to ensure the consultants and the contractor are doing their jobs as agreed. In 1989, I became a contractor as business owner and CEO.  This was where the real learning construction begins.  It is not just to manage project but also to secure new tenders andmake money. Both were not easy. After getting...

Ramadan as a Personal Project Fasting during the month of Ramadan is fardu ‘ain—a personal obligation—for every Muslim and Muslimah. While it returns every year like a familiar guest, I choose to embrace Ramadan not merely as a routine, but as a personal project—one that requires intention, planning, and reflection. Each Ramadan is unique. The act of fasting from dawn to dusk remains constant, but the spiritual journey, physical challenges, and emotional growth differ from year to year. By approaching Ramadan as a project, I begin with setting clear goals—goals for worship, personal development, and acts of kindness. I outline the activities I want to focus on: improving the quality of my prayers, deepening my relationship with the Qur’an, helping others, and refining my character. I monitor my progress weekly—not to be overly strict, but to stay mindful and consistent. This structure helps me remain focused and engaged throughout the month. InsyaAllah, by the end of Ramadan, I aim to ...

House Renovation: A Personal Project Renovating a house is one of the most personal and impactful projects anyone can undertake. For many of us, it becomes necessary once we buy our own home. In my case, I was fortunate—the house I purchased had been renovated less than two years before by the previous owner. Still, it wasn’t long before I found myself planning upgrades of my own. Some of my neighbours are passionate about home design and seem to renovate their homes every five years or so. I admire their enthusiasm, but my situation was different. At the time, most of my funds were tied up in building my business, and to make matters more complex, my office also needed renovation. Thankfully, house renovation isn’t rocket science—especially if you approach it like a project. I had a distinct advantage: I’m an engineer with over a decade of experience managing multimillion-ringgit projects. Compared to those, a home renovation is a relatively small-scale exercise. But what makes it spe...

Life is A Project #18: Business of Property Development From Government Engineer to Project Manager of Property Developer: My Personal Transformation During the 1980s, Malaysia experienced a significant construction and property boom. This period saw many of my peers in the engineering field leaving the government sector to join the private sector, either as employees in consultancy and construction firms or as business owners. It was a time of opportunity and bold decisions. I began my career with the Public Works Department (JKR) in 1976 under a government scholarship that required me to serve for ten years. However, in 1984, before fulfilling the full term of my contract, I made a life-changing decision: I resigned from government service, settled my contractual obligations, and joined a government-linked company (GLC) in the property development sector. That marked a major turning point in my career and, in many ways, my life. This move was more than a change of employer—it was the...