Acknowledgements

This book would not have been possible without the goodwill and guidance from a wide range of people. I would first like to thank all those involved in helping me attain my PhD in the first place, including the directors who allowed me access to respondents in their companies and the respondents themselves who spent nearly three hours of sheer mental exertion in completing the tests and questionnaires. I would like to thank Thomson Learning for believing in me and the potential of my first book for the mass market when other publishers I approached were simply interested in publishing textbooks for undergraduate students. I also thank them for continuously encouraging me to write a second book on the same subject.

I would like to give special thanks to my supervisor Colin Ingleton whose knowledge in psychology has enabled him to know which of my buttons to press. Life as a PhD student of his was a rich learning experience, from tense to light moments, from exasperation and frustration to exhilarating success, and from ignorance to knowledge. Though his sense of humour may seem cruel at times, he was an excellent motivator and guide. He has:

• Taught me but never spoon-fed me.
• Guided me but always allowed me to make my own little discoveries.
• Given me confidence but never allowed me to become complacent.
• Defended me when others were attacking me.

I would like to thank members of my family, especially my wife Zaleha who married me shortly before I did my MBA then ICSA then PhD, then writing this book. I am indeed grateful for her patience, sacrifice and support these past ten years. Thanks also to my son Kamarul Shahiran (born during my MBA) and my pretty baby daughter Nur Shahirah (born during the third year of my doctorate studies), who provided pleasant distraction during my studies and a sense of perspective. Also to my late father who passed away earlier this year while this book was being written. However, thanks to Allah, he managed to live long enough to see me complete my PhD.

I would also like to thank all the people who have touched my life since completing my PhD—the people who believed in me and my potential, and encouraged me to live life to the fullest and to be everything that I can be. They have made me realise that:

• The PhD is not the end of the pursuit of knowledge but the awareness of ignorance and the start of acquisition of new knowledge.
• The completion of a PhD is not the end of a journey but rather the start of a new life.
• There is indeed life after the PhD!
• The possession of knowledge does not equate the ability to impart knowledge. One must not fall into the trap a lot of academic lecturers have fallen into.