That night, Hana sat quietly on the veranda, staring at the stars. Her mind was full of work challenges, family responsibilities, and hopes for the future. She remembered the words of her old ROTU instructor:
> “Life is not about removing problems. Life is about learning to enjoy the journey while solving them.”
1. Problems Will Always Exist
When her mill faced frequent breakdowns, Hana almost gave up. But she learned to smile even through exhaustion, because problems are simply part of the path to growth .
2. Futures Are Built by Habits
Hana never planned to become a General Manager overnight. She simply built daily habits: waking up early, reading reports, writing machine logs. Those small habits eventually shaped her future .
3. Effort and Attitude Are All You Control
She realized she could not control global palm oil prices, government policies, or even her workers’ behavior. But she could control her effort and her attitude, and that made all the difference .
4. Don’t Ask How to Start — Just Start
People asked her, “How do I begin leading?” She smiled, remembering her own start. She didn’t wait for perfect answers; she just started — speaking up in meetings, offering small ideas, and improving step by step .
5. Purpose, Not Pleasure
There were days she questioned the meaning of her work. The answer came when she saw the children of mill workers she supported receiving scholarships. True happiness was not in pleasure, but in purpose .
6 & 7. Expect Much of Yourself, Little of the World
At first, Hana was often disappointed, expecting the world to be fair. Later she learned: life is easier when you expect high standards from yourself and low expectations from others .
8. The Mind Magnifies Problems
When floods hit the estate, panic almost consumed her. But she remembered: half of the problem is in the mind, making small things appear larger. With calmness, solutions slowly appeared .
9. Repetition Is the Secret
Many sought “the secret of success.” Hana already knew it: repetition. She repeated ROTU drills, repeated mill checks, repeated her daily prayers. From repetition came mastery .
10. Don’t Let People, Money, or the Past Control You
Once, a colleague betrayed her trust. Another time, finances grew tight. But she refused to let people, money, or the past control her. She chose to move forward, free from chains .
11. Opportunity in Challenges
When COVID-19 halted operations, Hana refused despair. She turned crisis into innovation — implementing digital monitoring systems and strengthening local supply chains. Challenges became opportunities .
12. Gratitude Every Day
Each night, Hana wrote down three things she was thankful for. Sometimes it was just a hot cup of coffee, or her child greeting her at the door. She realized her “ordinary” day was another person’s dream .
🌟 Conclusion
Hana finally understood: life isn’t about waiting for problems to disappear, but about building the strength to keep moving forward.
These twelve lessons were not abstract theories, but footprints of her own journey — guiding her from a young ROTU cadet on the parade ground to a resilient leader in the industry.
> “Problems will come and go. But as long as I have effort, attitude, purpose, and gratitude — I will keep walking forward.”
📚 References / Footnotes
1. Lakshmanan, S. (2022). Palm Oil Industry in Malaysia: Efficiency & Transformation. Sandakan Refinery Journal.
2. Duhigg, C. (2012). The Power of Habit. Random House.
3. Covey, S. R. (1989). The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Free Press.
4. Duckworth, A. (2016). Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance. Scribner.
5. Frankl, V. (1946). Man’s Search for Meaning. Beacon Press.
6. Seneca, Letters from a Stoic. Penguin Classics.
7. Kabat-Zinn, J. (1990). Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress. Delta.
8. Ericsson, K. A. (2006). The Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance. Cambridge University Press.
9. Seligman, M. (2002). Authentic Happiness. Free Press.
10. Malaysian Palm Oil Certification Council (MPOCC). Palm Oil Industry and Digital Transformation During COVID-19. (2021).
11. Emmons, R. A., & McCullough, M. E. (2003). Counting Blessings Versus Burdens: An Experimental Investigation of Gratitude and Subjective Well-Being in Daily Life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
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