يطيب لنا أن نهنئكم بمناسبة حلول السنة الهجرية الجديدة

وبهذه المناسبة تطلق خطوط. كوم موقعها الجديد الخاص بالتصاميم الهندسة المعمارية.
نرجوا زيارة الموقع من خلال

http://www.khotootplus.com/
وكل عام وأنتم بخير

Khotoot.com Launches its Architectural Design Division - Kindly visit :

http://www.khotootplus.com/

Eid Mubarak to every one :

Just to be a little bit different in sending our greeting for Eid Al Adhaa - here a short story written in Arabic by one of our creative writers "Ms. F/One"

طابعه عندي الرتابة والحزن » جلست أول ساعاته لوحدي إلي الظهر »حاولت ان استمتع بخلوتي مع ابنتي » فقمت بخلق جو من المرح مع أميرتي لكن سرعان ما غفت وأعلنت استسلامها لسلطان النوم » طبعا تم خلال هذه الساعات تقديم واجب التهنئة لأهل زوجي لكني كنت مختلفة هذه السنة » حضنت عمتي وقبلتها ثم جلست ”كالشيخة“ من يريدان يسلم علي فليتفضل ولكن رجاء دون زحام وبالفعل لم أري الزحام ولا الأيدي » متكبرةأنا ؟!

تفهم شخصيات الاخرين يساعدك علي حسن التصرف معهم » مناسبات الست سنوات الماضية جعلتني اتغير» عندما تتفاجئ بأن التقبيل نوع من التصرفات المستهجنة وكرم الضيافة نوع من المهانة والسلام والسؤال نوع من التدخلات الغير مرغوبة وان الطيبة انسان `أهبل`» هذه أمور جعلتني اصبح ”شيخة“ » تغيرت المفاهيم فحري بي ان اتغير !!

عفوا نسيت ان أذكر بأن ”شيخة “ العيد هي بنفسها قامت باعداد فطور العيد وفي النهاية تم استبعاد تعبها » لا أعلم قد تكون عيشة قنديشة زميلة لها في منزلها وتقوم بمساعدتها!!!!» علي كل حال مرحبا بها » عفوا يجوز في العيد مالا يجوز في غيره من المسجات» فاصل ونواصل

وصل موكب ”شيخة“ العيد ليبدأ معه جولتها المتعارف عليها،،أولا محفظة ابن الشيخة وهدية العيد وبعدها تم الوصول الى منزل الجد القديم وقبل دخولك يعانقك رائحة الزعفران والبن والهال » تشعر من خلاله بأنك محاط بكرم الضيافة العربية الأصيلة» لحظات الدخول ::الكل يقف والابتسامة تراها مرسومة على كل شيء وحتى الجمادات » صحيح من مجاملات كبار الشخصيات بيان ان وجودهم خفيف ومرغوب فيه » اقنعة لا غير !!!» لكن هناك أمر غريب

هنا الأيادي تحيطك تشعر بدف عجيب وأنت تستقر في الاحصان » ثم لا تلبث ان ترى الدموع تمتزج مع الابتسامات » فهذه أم ”الشيخة“ وتلك جدتها والاخرى اختها » نعم يا فرحة العيد انطلقي فهنا القبل معناه محبه والسؤال دليل اهتمام والضيافة كرم والطيبة {بكسر الطا} شخصية محبوبة» هنا اتنازل عن مكانتي الشيخية لأرضى ان أكون انسانة بسيطة سعيدة باللمة الحلوة لا ينقصها غير قلب احتوإها منذ القدم..{اقرأ الأقدم فالأحدث

let us know your thoughts or maybe you can share with us your Eid experience :)

This time the amazing thing was not the way the results of F1 2009 season ended as much as of the amazing track of Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, UAE - which made me proundly speechless.

A few exclusive pictures from the Yas Marina Circuit - and let us know your comments please.

Regards,

Mahir  

 

By Esther Tang

Dear Friends, Colleagues, Neighbours, and Acquaintances:

Like you, I'm deeply troubled by the effects of the global economic turmoil in Dubai. We come from many walks of life and varying socio-economic backgrounds; we each came to Dubai to move one step closer towards realizing personal dreams. We chose to live here in hopes of trading hard work and dedication for the unlimited benefits of an organized economy teaming with talent, resources, and energy.

Whether our personal "Dubai goal" was to consistently send money home, build an Arab city, or enhance our global perspective, we came with a mission.

The purpose of this letter is to encourage us to continue faithfully working towards our mission in spite of the tempting option to mentally give up, "check out", and become emotionally numb.

Below are 10 small actions that when totalled, can move us from disenfranchised to determined. 

1. Each morning, make a conscious decision to take control of your attitude.  Allow yourself two minutes to feel scared, distressed, sad, and vulnerable.  Then tell yourself to “saddle up” and manage your emotions the way a great leader would: with maturity, deep thought, and courage.  A great leader would not sulk and constantly feel sorry for himself.    
2. Limit your interactions with people who gossip.  During this time of uncertainty, many people will want to speculate and commiserate so much that they are both unproductive employees and unhealthy influences on loved ones.  Remember that your mind and heart are meant to meditate on matters that are productive not destructive. 
3. Instil a sense of accountability in your organization by first being accountable for your own actions.  Employees yearn to work for a boss who strives to be the best leader that he can be.  Do more than admit when you are wrong; take corrective action to prove you are a man of your words.  
4. Learn as much as possible from your current job.  Make a list of current work projects from which you are genuinely developing skills.  Minimize time spent on all other projects to a reasonable amount. 
5. Applaud journalists when they offer solutions to Dubai’s issues; dismiss articles and emails written to sensationalize and generate resentment.  Though many journalists insist on writing articles that unfairly defame our hard work, still there are others who offer practical ideas, reliable research, and useful analysis.     
6. Deliberately spend time with someone who doesn’t look like you.  As economic tensions grow, so too will political tensions.  Leaders will point fingers of blame at entire people groups.  Do not let ignorance, fear, and manipulation influence the way we ought to treat our fellow man.  Guard against bias from the media and society by remaining engaged with communities of various ethnic and national backgrounds.     
7. Think about who you are.  Ask yourself, “If I am laid off today, what would my colleagues say about me after I'm gone?”  Have you always treated others with respect and courtesy?  Did you perform your responsibilities well?  In addition to money, our jobs offer us relationships…are yours strong? 
8. Try to understand causes and solutions to economic crisis.  The more you understand what is happening, the more you will gain from this experience.  You might not understand all or even most of what has transpired, but you will be that much more prepared to “connect the dots” around you. 
9. Live within your financial means.  Control your personal finances.  Learn how to budget.  These skills are not usually taught in school so few people really know how to determine how much they can responsibly afford to spend food, vacations, and homes.  Regardless if a government somewhere in the world claims it will support you in your old age, only you can really ensure your family’s financial safety. 
10. Find joy in excellence, not money.  Dubai’s future is not inextricably linked to oil revenues, but to its ability to develop, attract, and retain the best human capital.  If Dubai is to improve, we must each constantly improve the way we live and work.  Whether we are locals or expatriates, every single person here has benefited from being here. We all have a place in our hearts for Dubai.  Each of us has a responsibility to help Dubai to emerge from this recession. 

Though we cannot control the fate of the world with one accessible lever, we can increasingly control our own lives but practicing these ten behaviours above.  I hope you will join me by ushering in nothing less than unwavering, dogged emergence. 

Esther Tang is an American living in Dubai. Her MBA is from the University of Oxford where she served as farewell speaker in 2007. Her Bachelor of Science degree is from Cornell University where she served as senior class president in 2004.  Esther currently works for a Dubai government investment company. In her leisure time, Esther sits on a panel for the Mohammed Bin Rashid Foundation and represents Oxford’s interests in its “Rhodes Scholarship of the Arab World.”   http://www.news.cornell.edu/campus/commencement04/Esther.Tang.html

By Masood Mahmood

It seems to me that human beings always try to find a common bond among themselves to remind themselves that they are not alone, this bond could vary from a common goal (fight famine and preserve the environment), to a common enemy (terrorism, bird flu), and most recently, the financial crises

I will not attempt to explain the reasons behind the crises, nor I will attempt to give my view on the future outlook of the economy like other 'crystal ball' analyst tend to do, what I want to do is to explore this gargantuan, overwhelming and almost suffocating urge that people have to offer their views on the financial crises...it has become a fad, a fashion, a natural and an expected part of every conversation, and in fact, a conversation opener...instead of 'so what about the weather today' or 'how about those red sox', now people strike a conversation with 'so is it really that baaaaad?' or 'did Abu Dhabi really refused to bail out Dubai' or the best one I've heard so far 'is Dubai really over?'...as if Dubai was a great bollywood movie that was too good to be true and now the film has ended and the credits are up, or as if Dubai is this awesome chocolate bar that just got consumed...

I feel sometimes that people need to feel connected and this time the financial crises offers exactly that for them… from investment bankers, to credit analysts to stock brokers, to real estate brokers, to commodity brokers, to even taxi drivers, every one has a view, and every one has their insider info, and it keeps going on and on....

True to some of us, the issue is not that amusing, you're talking layoffs, mortgage installments, car installments, a feeling that the vibe is mellowing down, a sense that we might lose it all, but when you look at the full side of the cup, you'll see that your dirham [UAE Currency] today buys more steel, more cement, more rice, more diesel, a better apartment, and a cheaper business class ticket, longer stay in London or Switzerland, and bigger loaf of bred...you're commute to work is faster you're parking is easier to find, your head is not spinning from the dizzying announcements that come up here and there from obscure names that you wouldn’t trust 5 dirhams with (nothing against new startups, I am a firm believer that they are the next bloodline that will pick us up, and save us) and finally you are able to focus on basics and fundamentals.. people have shifted jobs, and selected different careers, people have discovered talent within that they would have never known about have they continued the way they were in their comfortable jobs, until they wake up one day and realize that they wasted their lives, or until their residency visa expires...

So I call out to all my fellow 'financial crises' enthusiasts, don't let your conversations become like the fast food industry (junk, fast, makes you feel good that you had it, but it does not have any value or benefit to your system.. just increases your cholesterol and clogs your arteries after a while)...

So the next time you strike a conversation with someone, don't become like the fast food joints where they offer 'do you want 'fries' with that?' (instead we offer with every conversation, do you want 'financial crises' with that? just keep it up and keep going about as you were doing yesterday, and the day before, and stay positive.. in fact scrap that, I would even go further and say take advantage of what’s happening and using as a good opportunity to look within and discover the hidden talent, discover news things, discover even new parts of the city that you never visited, because this is an opportunity, and when things get back on track again (and they will), you better be ready.......ow salamatkum

What do you think? let us hear your thoughts, comments and experience.  Click "comments" at the bottom of this message, and write your comments and then click save comments.  

We would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a happy new Hijri year.  Inshallah it will be a great and fruitful year for all of you.

Best regards,

Khotoot.com Team

The 2^nd of December 2008 is the 37^th United Arab Emirates National Day, and we would like to take this opportunity as our nation celebrates this glorious occasion to congratulate our President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, Their Highnesses the Supreme Council Members and Rulers of the Emirates, and the UAE government and people on the occasion.

We also cannot but pay a great tribute to the rich legacy left behind by our late fathers’ Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan and Shaikh Rashid Al Maktoum, the great founding and visionary leaders of the our today’s nation.

Let's celebrate together in a style and share with the rest of the world your comments, greetings and experiences.   

May Allah Bless our country with more and greater success.

Best regards,

Khotoot.com Team

P.S: Please click on "comments" at the bottom of this message, and use your own language and style to write your comments and then don’t forget to click save comments.    

What an amazing were the last couple of minutes for F1 2008 Season.  It was really a great final race (rain-sun-rain)!  As been described on the official Formula 1 website (www.f1.com) “…one of the most dramatic title deciders in history.  No Hollywood script could have been more exciting.”

The final result:  Lewis Hamilton (McLaren-Mercedes’s Drive) is the youngest-ever world driver champion and Ferrari won the constructors’ world championship.   But for sure it is Lewis’s year and a defeat for Ferrari.

Even I hold small doubts about the scenario of final couple of minutes “Timo Glock, Toyota’s Driver”!! But congratulation Lewis Hamilton he deserved it this year and hopefully next time to the heartbroken Felipe Massa (Ferrari’s Driver).

We believe next year the Formula 1 will be even better and completely different, more regulations,  more advanced technologies, and watch out for stronger-smaller teams and of course the open of the Abu Dhabi circuit as the final race of 2009 season.  

Regards,

Mahir

Some pictures from 2008 Bahrian F1 Race

Hi All,

Wanted to let you know that there are couples of interesting exhibitions at the Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Center

1^st Dubai International Character & Licensing Fair (28-30 Oct 2008) – exhibitors: interesting & promising UAE/local companies and talents, plus some of international big companies.  (For further info visit www.character.ae)

2^nd Dubai World Game Expo (28-30 Oct 2008) – some nice games and character models.

Regards,

Mahir

Dear All,

Gulf Information Technology Exhibition (Gitex), is the largest IT exhibition in the Middle East region, is planned to kick off from 19^th to 23^rd of October 2008.   

We will aim to post here some of updates and insights about the event and some of interesting products and services that are being exhibited in the event.  

At the same, if you had the chance to attend the event and you came across anything interesting, then we appreciate if can share it with us.