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On the 18th of June, I got my first dose of the COVID-19 vaccination at vaccination centres (PPV) at World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur. My appointment was at 5:30p.m. So, I decided to go 30 minutes earlier than my appointment. I went to PPV by Grab because it is way easier than driving by myself. Upon arriving at the PPV, there were many people, but everything went pretty smoothly. The volunteers and police there are kind and helpful and the wait was not long for my turn.
A few hours after I got the vaccine, I got my first side effect, which was fatigue and a slight fever. On the second day, I still felt fatigued and had a fever with a headache. On the third day, the spot on my left arm that was vaccinated turned swollen red. The next day, the fever and fatigue lessened but the swollen spot worsened as it got bigger and itchier.
As the swelling got worse, I decided to go to Klinik Kesihatan (KK) for a check-up. The doctor did a blood test on me to check if there’s an infection but there was none. Then they referred me to a specialist dermatologist in HKL since they were unsure of my condition. So, I went to the dermatologist the next day and got consulted by two doctors. They asked me if I had an allergic reaction for any vaccination done before. They told me that this may be the allergic reaction of the Covid-19 vaccine to me. They also told me that some people also got the same allergic reactions but on other parts of their bodies.
They said it’s their first time getting a case where the allergic reaction is at the injection spot. They told me that the reaction may last for 2 weeks and advised me to avoid scratching the spot to prevent further swelling. By my second appointment, the swelling was getting better, the doctor confirmed that it was just an allergic reaction to the COVID-19 vaccination, and he gave me a letter to show to the staff at the PPV to do my second dose on the other arm.
For the second dose, I didn’t get any side effects like the first dose, except for tiredness and a slight headache. So, I just spent the rest of the day resting. On the second day, I felt better. The tiredness and headache from the first day of the second dose is gone. I was happy the second dose did not cause me to have any allergic reaction on the injection spot for the second dose.
This first part of my vaccine journey was not pleasant and some of you may be like me and have side effects however the vaccine is necessary as it may save your life. If you are hesitant consult your doctor or head over to https://covid-19.moh.gov.my/ to do your research. Get the vaccine now as its the norm of life in Malaysia and the world.
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Pelbagai MCO yang telah dilaksanakan tidak membenarkan kita untuk melancong sama ada ke luar negara atau dalam negara sendiri. Yang dah ada perancangan untuk pergi bercuti atau berjalan-jalan, terpaksa dibatalkan atau ditangguh.
Sekiranya anda ingin melancong, anda boleh melancong secara ‘virtual’ sekarang! Anda boleh pergi kemana sahaja anda mahu. Jika anda merasa seperti terperap di rumah, anda boleh cuba pergi ke laman web yang disenaraikan di bawah.
Explore Malaysia Virtually
Laman web yang membenarkan anda untuk melancong secara ‘virtual’ di Malaysia. Anda boleh sertai tour secara atas talian dengan tour guide berlesen atau pilih untuk tengok segmen yang telah direkod. Kebanyakkan tour mereka dibuat di Melaka (Kampung Morten dan Jalan Praya) dan Kuala Lumpur. Tour guide akan bawa anda kunjungi ‘Kuala Lumpur lama’ dan Kuala Lumpur yang kita kenal sekarang.
Laman web yang membenarkan anda untuk melancong secara ‘virtual’ ke banyak tempat. Anda boleh pilih untuk kemana sahaja yang anda mahu. Ipoh, Melaka, Cameron Highlands dan banyak lagi. Tour diberi secara 360° jadi anda boleh tengok sekeliling tempat tersebut.
Laman web yang menceritakan pengalaman dan menyediakan tour 360° kawasan yang dipergi mereka. Laman web ini masih belum banyak tour yang disediakan tapi anda boleh menghayati tour dengan lebih mendalam sambil membaca pengalaman mereka pergi ke kawasan tersebut.
Laman web ini juga merupakan tour disertai oleh tour guide. Anda boleh membuat tempahan kemudian host akan berhubung dengan anda sebelum tour bermula. Di laman web ini anda boleh membuat tempahan bagi banyak benda selain daripada virtual tour.
Laman web ini merupakan laman web virtual sejak 2009. Mereka bergabung dengan Google dan merupakan Google Street View Trusted Agency di Malaysia yang pertama. Terdapat 600 virtual tour untuk pelbagai jenis bisnes daripada berlainan industri.
Laman web ini juga fokus kepada Melaka dan budaya-budaya di Malaysia. Terdapat pengalaman virtual untuk wayang kulit dan safari virtual untuk bertemu dengan Borneon Sun Bear yang berada di Sabah. Anda juga boleh tengok penemuan ikan lumba-lumba di Malaysia.
Laman web ini membenarkan anda untuk melawat muzium di Malaysia secara ‘virtual’. Terdapat beberapa galeri muzium yang anda boleh tengok secara ‘virtual’ di situ. Antaranya adalah Muzium Pameran Negara Kota yang Hilang.
Laman web ini menawarkan pelbagai tema melalui enam galeri tetapnya: Galeri Kanak-kanak, Galeri Bank Negara Malaysia, Galeri Ekonomi, Galeri Kewangan Islam, Galeri Numismatik dan Galeri Seni. Kepada yang berminat untuk mendapatkan pengetahuan dengan lebih mendalam tentang ekonomi Malaysia, bolehlah ke laman web ini kerana galeri ini merangkumi ekonomi Malaysia, peranan bank dalam pembangunan ekonomi dan landskap kewangan negara sejak pra-kemerdekaan sampailah sekarang.
Laman web ini membenarkan anda untuk sertai virtual tour di sekitar zoo. Baru-baru ini Zoo Taiping menyediakan virtual tour melalui Facebook Live dan Instagram kepada orang ramai secara menggunakan media sosial. Anda boleh tengok segmen yang telah direkod di laman web mereka, tapi anda perlu daftar sebagai ahli dahulu sebelum anda dapat tengok video tersebut.
Anda boleh pergi ke laman web yang tersenarai di atas untuk menghilang rasa rindu untuk melancong atau berjalan-jalan. Sekarang individu yang sudah lengkap dua dos vaksin dibenarkan untuk merentas daerah atau melancong, jadi sekiranya anda ingin melancong semula pergi dapatkan vaksin anda sekarang. Selamat melancong!
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Due to quarantine lockdowns and international travel restrictions, all our travel plans have stopped due to the Covid-19 outbreak. Not to worry I have good news for everyone who has been feeling cooped up at home. You may now indulge your wanderlust by experiencing virtual tours on your laptop, tablet, smartphone, or even VR!
In this post, I’ll recommend the best virtual travel sites in Southeast Asia that you should visit.
YouVisit
One of the best virtual travel sites is YouVisit. This website includes panoramic photos, 360° video, and virtual reality (VR) experiences. They provide virtual tours of the entire continent, not just Southeast Asia.
You can now visit Vietnam’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites without ever leaving your couch. This website provides a memorable experience. Through interactive virtual tours, you can discover all of Vietnam’s best attractions from the comfort of your own home.
Nothing surpasses the actual thing, but this Google Maps behind-the-scenes virtual tour comes close. You will have the opportunity to visit any location you choose. You may use Google Maps to get there. At the very least, online. You may walk about the camp in street view and take in panoramic views with this interactive tour.
360cities is another website that offers curated collections of panoramic pictures from across the world, however the most of them are shot from ground level and the quality is nowhere near as good as on the AirPano site. However, there are some intriguing 360° panoramas of Iran, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka that can be seen on 360cities.
For a more realistic virtual reality experience, the 360cities website still recommends viewing its material via mobile phones and the Google Cardboard disposable headgear.
AirPano provides high quality 360° videos and panoramas to give viewers the closest experience of being at the place – short of really being there. AirPano allows travellers to see regions of Asia that most of us will never see, such as the isolated and rugged mountain ranges of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan – but if you’re seeking for breath-taking intensity, check out the galleries of 360° panoramas of Indonesia and the Maldives. Among them are some breathtakingly gorgeous destinations.
I’d have to say that Airpano is my favourite website for virtual tours. This is because the panoramas are filmed from various elevations as well as from the ground, allowing the spectator to see more detail of the location than if they were there in person.
The National Gallery Singapore holds approximately 8,000 pieces from the 19th and 20th centuries in all mediums, including painting, sculpture, printing, photography, and video, and is one of the world’s major public collections of contemporary art in Southeast Asia. Through the National Gallery Singapore’s extensive collection, you will learn about Asian ancestry and cultural ties on this virtual tour.
The huge collection of priceless paintings and sculptures made by prominent Thai artists is quickly and easily accessible through a pleasant virtual tour brimming with colours and vibrancy
Because of its extensive scope, Museum Nasional Indonesia is regarded as Indonesia’s most comprehensive museum, with approximately 141,000 items. Prehistoric, archaeology, pottery, numismatic-heraldic, history, ethnography, and geography are among the seven categories of collections housed at the museum.
It’s never been easier to choose the ideal vacation spot. Explore Indonesia’s limitless beauty without having to go outdoors and have a sneak peek before arranging your ideal vacation! Maybe next year we can travel again 🙂
These virtual tours are here to stay even when this pandemic is over. We can’t yet feel the right thing but taking these tours connects us to an experience of wanderlust that all humanity has. Enjoy your tours!
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In these pandemic times, due to limited incomes that businesses are getting, we have learnt new skills out of necessity. Whether you are a new business or an existing one, you probably want to know what tools are best and free to use for your business.
A small medium enterprise needs tools and resources to grow its business in the new normal of doing business. But some of the good business tools are a bit too expensive for a new small business to afford.
So MyRehat has listed tools that we use which are free! Below are some of the free tools that are great to use for your business :
Canva is a graphic design platform, used to create social media graphics, presentations, posters, documents and other visual content. If you are looking for a visually appealing and professional, Canva is the answer. There are ready-made templates for you to use and you can create social media profile headers, flyers, banners, logos, infographics, marketing ads, blog graphics, and so much more. The drag-and-drop functionality makes the software easy to use. You can use the free version and still get your design to stand-out in the sea full of competitors.
The free version is adequate to use to create communication materials for your business So you don’t have to hire a graphic designer, you can create designs on your own.
Trello is a project management software that is free and easy-to-use. With Trello, you can communicate and do collaboration with your team, fast and easy. You can track how far your team has gone and your team can see what others are doing to ensure that everyone is on the right track and to prevent miscommunication from happening.
All of us are remote working more now than before, so this software allows work to be tracked and measured. In the past we reduced physical meetings with each other saving time and meeting costs.
Zoom is a video conferencing software and has over 300 million+ users all around the world. You can communicate with your customers or clients through Zoom. Video calls or conferencing can get you to interact with your customers or just as if you’re there in person. The free plan for Zoom allows you to host up to 100 participants. You also receive access to unlimited one-on-one meetings lasting up to 40 minutes and you can get an unlimited number of regular non-video meetings, as well.
MyRehat has done hundreds of meetings via Zoom. All free!
Mailchimp is a marketing automation platform and email marketing service. Email marketing is an important part of running a business, so it is important to find the right email service provider. Mailchimp is easy to use, and it’s free for up to 2,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails. You can create sign-up forms and campaigns, and automate emails to your subscribers.
The features of Mailchimp include beautiful templates, easy personalization, advanced analytics, retargeting, built-in photo editing, and so much more. Give it a shot.
SurveyMonkey is an online survey site that simplifies the survey process considerably. SurveyMonkey is a good choice for you if you want to give your customers a survey to gain insights to their journey on our business. Users can include 10 questions in their survey, view 100 responses per survey, track email responses, optimize surveys for mobile, and gather responses from social media. All of this is for free. We have used surveys to find out how our customers feel about us.
Google Suite (now is Google Workspace) is a cloud collaboration tool that Google has offered. There are a variety to use from it : email, spreadsheet, documents and slides. Every file you have will automatically be stored in your Google Drive. By using the Google Suite, you can easily share your files and you can edit your work together with your team real-time. Every time you edit your work, it will be saved regularly so you don’t have to worry about losing your work.
Google Data Suite is an analytical software that MyRehat uses to track our customers, how much they are paying us and who are actually staying in our unit. These data help plan our strategies. Try it out and it will benefit your business.
Nikon has started to make online courses, so you can send one of your team or join the course yourself. This is so you can learn how to take pictures or videos for your product marketing professionally without hiring a professional photographer. You can save your budget there plus you get to gain knowledge. You have to pay for the online course before this, but now it is free to help creators stay inspired, engaged and grow despite the uncertain circumstances during this pandemic. See how much money you have saved so far. We certainly did!
Facebook marketing is an important tool for marketing digitally now. You can hire a company to do this marketing for you but why don’t you learn and do it yourself. Their online courses are free if you want to learn about how to start marketing your business on Facebook. These free courses come with a recognized Facebook certificate too! The courses can help you build ads for your social media, how to engage with your audience and how to use the platform effectively.
The courses are technical and require patience to learn but hey all we got is time right now.
Running or starting a business is not easy now. So by trying all these tools, you manage your business effectively and save money to spend elsewhere. Once your business starts to expand, you can pay for the pricing plans for these tools to get more features.
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An OTA is a website that provides a platform for hotels, airlines, tour operators and travel related businesses to sell their services to consumers. In the past before online these services were advertised in print media and TV. Now you don’t see these ads, it’s all online now. It costs nothing to advertise on OTAs but for every booking there will be commission charges. Charges vary from OTA to OTA.
MyRehat derives 80% of it’s booking from OTAs. To run a homestay business, you need your home to be seen on an OTA. MyRehat is on four platforms at the moment. We will describe the pros and cons of listing on these OTAs. We would like to state your experience listing on these platforms may be different from ours. The four platforms we are on are Airbnb, Agoda, Booking and Traveloka.
Airbnb
Airbnb was established in 2008. Airbnb is a shorter form of its original name, AirBedandBreakfast.com. Consumers can book accommodation as well as experiences on its platform. Currently it is valued at USD143 billion! Wooh not bad for its two founders who started out by just renting their rooms. In Malaysia they have 66,000 listings as of 2020.
MyRehat first started listing on Airbnb. To list is a long process and requires patience, however the step-by-step process is easy to follow. Airbnb takes 14% commission charge for every booking transacted at their platform.
Why did MyRehat list on Airbnb, that time is the most well-known platform, and their commission was only 3%. They have increased since then. They also have an insurance policy for those who have listed from their units on their platform. So, disputes and damages caused by guests can be claimed through. We submitted three claims. Successfully in two claims and unsuccessful on the third one due to insufficient evidence. Asides from insurance you can also set a deposit which is a minimum of USD100. Since our claim was small it came from the guest’s deposit. We heard from other hosts when the claims come in thousands Airbnb did pay these claims via their insurance. The Host Insurance Protection provides up to $1,000,000 USD in liability coverage for a host’s legal liability to a guest or third party who is injured or has property damaged as a result of an Airbnb stay.
What we liked about Airbnb is also a very effective Feedback system and recognition of being a good host. Both guests and hosts can leave feedback good or bad on their stay at the unit. Bad guests are removed from the platform, same goes for Bad hosts as well. We have consistently maintained a Superhost rating for the past 2 years. We strive to give the best service for us to maintain our Superhost status. If you maintain it for a year you will get USD100 credit. We used it to book units in Penang and Genting. All the other OTAs do not have this benefit.
Airbnb remains our preferred OTA 🙂
Agoda
Agoda.com was established in 2003 and is a worldwide hotel booking service. In 2007 it was bought by Booking Holdings, the parent firm of Booking.com, another OTA we will review later. The Agoda network offers consumers a selection of over one million hotels and vacation rentals, with a particular emphasis on the Asian market.
Its primary business is still hotel bookings but in order to compete with Airbnb it launched Agoda Homes a few years ago. Registration process is easier than Airbnb for hosts. MyRehat is charged 10% commission for bookings on Agoda. Agoda has many tiers of commissions. It’s highest is 17% with more features and benefits but for now we are ok 10%
Many Asians prefer Agoda as they can earn points and use it to offset their payments, and the registration process is very easy peasy lemon squeezy! For hosts because the registration is easy you can’t really tell who is booking. The guests can even use their Facebook profile and don’t have to give any contact details which is a hassle for hosts to communicate with guests. Their screening of guests is also not the best. So, you will get bad guests from Agoda eventually. You get bad guests too on Airbnb, but the incidences are less.
There is also no insurance policy, so anything happens to your unit or guest there is no protection. As hosts, the best we can do is collect a token deposit of a few hundred Ringgit but if your TV is damaged that deposit will definitely not cover it!
Same as Airbnb, Agoda has a rating system for hosts, which is Agoda Top Host. It’s not as great as Superhost on Airbnb but as hosts we should always try to maintain a good rating.
So why are we on it? It’s low commission and locals are frequent users of Agoda. In fact, MyRehat’s booking on Agoda is more than Airbnb this year.
Booking.com
Booking.com, which was created in 1996 and is owned by the same firm as Priceline, is one of the oldest online travel agencies. The company’s headquarters are in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and the website contains listings from 200 different countries across the world.
Booking.com, like many other OTAs on the market, allows customers to book hotels, motels, vacation homes, and other similar types of accommodations, as well as act as a travel fare aggregation service. In Malaysia, Booking.com has more than 10,000 listings.
Many travellers who stay in hotels are already familiar with Booking services and have a high level of trust in the site. Depending on visitor comments, hosts may be awarded the annual Guest Review Award. It comes with an official certificate as well as a window sticker that may be displayed within the rated property to attract additional customers. There is also a ready-made digital version of the certificate that can be shared on social media. Their rating system is good.
Guests are not charged any additional costs for using the service. This increases its popularity. As a result, putting your ad here increases the likelihood that it will be viewed. Guests are not charged any additional costs for using the service. This increases its popularity. As a result, putting your ad here increases the likelihood that it will be viewed.
Like Agoda, for hosts they have tier commission rates for the bookings between 15% to 18%.
Booking.com’s registration process is primarily registered for hotels so for homestays it is a very complex registration.
Like Agoda, Booking.com doesn’t have insurance for hosts. So, you have to take a token deposit but this may only cover small damages. Their guest verification is also not as strong as Airbnb so you will get bad guests from here. Though they do ban guests who are bad but only if it meets their definition of a bad guest.
MyRehat only used Booking.com selectively. To be frank they are our least favourite platform.
Traveloka
Traveloka is an Indonesian OTA that offers online airline tickets and hotel booking services and is fast growing throughout Southeast Asia and Australia. It has lately expanded to provide lifestyle products and services such as attraction tickets, excursions, vehicle rentals, and restaurant coupons.
In Malaysia, Traveloka has thousands of listings and guests prefer Traveloka for its competitive pricing.
The host and listing registration process are quite easy, plus their in charge person would guide you from A to Z! Yes, you are assigned an account manager so any issues you can refer back to them. Other OTAs have issues called customer service.
They only have one standard commission like Airbnb. They charge 17% for every transacted booking.
We only listed here a few months and we have not had many bookings possibly also due to the current MCO.
There are many other OTAs out there, but this is the four we use. There are hosts also who don’t use OTAs but Instagram and Facebook. We also do that but so far, we find that OTAs right now bring us more guests. Find the best OTA for you and just work on beautifying your listing there and if one OTA works for you that is ok too.
Check our listings at Airbnb for your listing’s idea below. Thanks for reading.
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Semenjak berlakunya COVID-19 ni, ramai orang yang terpaksa duduk di rumah sahaja. Jadi ini maknanya, orang akan meluangkan banyak masa mereka di rumah. Anda semestinya ada perkara yang anda sudah lama terfikir untuk buat tapi tergendala kerana sibuk bekerja, buat kerja sekolah dan sebagainya,
Memandangkan sekarang ramai orang yang bekerja dari rumah dan belajar secara atas talian, ini akan memberi anda masa untuk membuat semua perkara tergendala yang ingin lakukan itu! Sekiranya anda tidak mempunyai idea tentang apa yang anda boleh lakukan semasa ‘lockdown’ ni, artikel ni boleh bantu anda untuk pilih yang mana anda rasa sesuai untuk anda.
Jom!
Belajar bahasa baru
Belajar bahasa baru merupakan salah satu perkara yang ramai orang nak tapi tak semua orang boleh buat kerana banyak benda yang menjadi penghalang. Jadi sekarang adalah masanya untuk anda belajar bahasa baru yang anda inginkan!
Anda boleh pilih bahasa apa yang anda ingin belajar – Bahasa Itali, Bahasa Jepun, Bahasa German dan sebagainya. Benda ini boleh dimanfaatkan bila-bila masa sahaja, terutamanya setelah pandemik habis dan kita boleh melancong semula.
Ini akan memberi banyak manfaat kepada mereka yang suka melancong kerana senang untuk anda bersembang atau bertanya kepada orang-orang yang berasal di situ. Boleh buat kawan!
Anda boleh belajar bahasa dengan percuma menggunakan Duolingo.
Baca buku
Sekiranya anda telah beli buku seperti novel yang lama dibiarkan di rak buku kerana anda tiada masa untuk bacanya, sekarang adalah masa untuk anda baca buku tersebut! Anda boleh baca buku dan boleh mengurangkan stres anda dan membayangkan watak-watak serta persekitaran di dalam buku. Seronoknya!
Anda yang fikir untuk membaca juga boleh mula membaca. Sekarang terdapat banyak cara untuk membaca, anda boleh baca secara e-book ataupun audiobook. Anda boleh pilih ikut genre pilihan anda, fiksyen, bukan fiksyen, dokumentari, agama dan sebagainya.
Dengan membaca juga, kita dapat membuka minda kita untuk meningkatkan cara penulisan serta percakapan kita.
Nak cuba resepi Khairulaming yang baru? Nak cuba masak ikut resepi sendiri? Semua ni boleh dibuat masa lockdown ni! Untuk yang baru nak belajar memasak pun boleh gunakan waktu ni untuk belajar. Ada di antara kita yang tau cara untuk memasak yang basic ataupun goreng goreng biasa sahaja.
Gunakan peluang ni untuk belajar memasak dengan lebih sedap untuk anda dan keluarga menikmatinya! Selain belajar memasak lauk, anda juga boleh belajar untuk buat kek, roti ataupun pizza!
Kalau berasa bosan dekat rumah sambil main telefon bimbit dan rasa lapar, bolehlah masak sendiri. Boleh juga jimat duit daripada selalu guna penghantaran makanan.
Anda boleh daftar untuk sertai mana-mana kelas memasak atau boleh pergi ke YouTube sahaja untuk belajar memasak atau untuk rujuk resepi.
Bersenam dengan kerap dapat mengurangkan stres dan banyak lagi manfaatnya. Bersenam tak semestinya kena pergi ke gim ataupun pergi berjoging. Sekarang banyak lagi cara untuk anda bersenam. Anda boleh tengok video di YouTube dan cuba ikut rutin tersebut.
Anda juga boleh cuba untuk meditate dengan buat yoga. Yoga juga merupakan senaman yang memberi banyak manfaat untuk kita. Sekiranya stres bekerja atau belajar, boleh cuba untuk bersenam. 😀
Selain daripada memasak dan bersenam, anda juga boleh berkebun. Anda boleh menanam pokok bunga kegemaran anda ataupun tanam bahan-bahan masakan anda, contohnya pokok cili. Anda boleh juga cuba untuk menanam pelbagai jenis pokok.
Berkebun merupakan salah satu jenis terapi untuk anda lakukan bagi mengisi masa lapang anda. Dengan melihat pokok-pokok anda tumbuh dengan elok, anda akan merasakan benda menyeronokkan kerana anda dapat melihat proses pertumbuhan pokok anda. Sekiranya anda berapa pasti tentang cara untuk jaga tumbuhan dengan baik, anda boleh search di Google atau YouTube.
Sekiranya anda masih mempunyai minat untuk belajar, anda boleh ambil kurus secara atas talian sekarang. Anda boleh pilih untuk belajar apa sahaja yang anda minat : belajar coding, belajar alat muzik dan sebagainya.
Ini adalah masa untuk anda belajar kursus yang anda minat tapi tak ada kesempatan untuk belajar, Gunakan waktu ini untuk anda belajar dan nikmati keseronokan belajar kursus tersebut.
Anda boleh pergi ke FutureLearn untuk ambil kursus online. Anda juga boleh pergi ke laman web Coursera atau Udemy untuk ambil kursus online secara percuma!
Pandemik ini memberi kita semua peluang untuk melengkap diri dengan kemahiran yang boleh membantu rohani kita. Di zaman pandemik ini kita mesti sentiasa mempunyai kekuatan kendiri yang boleh menguatkan diri kita untuk era baru yang akan datang selepas tamatnya pandemik ini.
Marilah kita harap pandemik ini akan cepat berakhir supaya kita boleh melawat rakan dan keluarga dan dapat melancong semula supaya anda boleh menginap di tempat penginapan kami.
Sila hubungi MyRehat via Telegram untuk membuat tempahan!
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E-Wallet is a digital wallet that allows you to pay via a smartphone. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, paying via E-Wallets has become one of the new norms. Due to health concerns, going cashless and online buying has tremendously increased. In fact 40% of Malaysians paid via E-Wallets in 2020 making us the number one country in South East Asia in terms of E-Wallets payment.
Currently there are a total of 53 E-Wallets in Malaysia according to, Fintech Malaysia report in 2019. If you are wondering which e-wallet to try out first, keep on reading as we compared some of the main E-Wallets in the country for the 60% of the population that has not tried it yet and those who want to try out the other E-Wallets.
1. Touch ‘n Go eWallet
Touch ‘n Go eWallet (TNG) was launched in 2017. There are over 250,000 merchants in Malaysia that accept TNG. TNG can also be used to pay tolls at highways, street parking, mall parking, game credit top-up, and bill payments. Apple services and products can also be paid using TNG. Lazada, Tealive, Klook and Eat are directly connected to TNG.
Users of the e-wallet can send up to RM5,000 to their friends or colleagues. Any amount is okay as long as it doesn’t exceed over RM5,000. Besides that, their Money-back Guarantee policy promises full compensation within five days if your e-wallet is being charged with unauthorized purchases or reload.
There has been a new feature for the e-wallet called, TnG GO+ where users can invest the balance in their e-wallet account in unit trust funds to earn potential returns. The returns will be credited daily into e-wallet, enabling users to compound their earnings growth exponentially. You can now also pay your car insurance here at TNG. No more lining up at the post office.
Boost eWallet, was also launched in 2017 has over 213,000 merchants accepting the e-wallet payment. You can pay your Shopee or Lazada purchases using Boost too. Topping up Boost is easy as they are partners with 17 banks like Maybank, CIMB, RHB Bank and many more.
Aside from cashback, vouchers and promo for your transactions, there is a BoostUP feature where you can get Boost Coins for every transaction that has been made. Boost Coins can be used to redeem rewards from their catalogs, gadgets, household appliances and more. Boost also lets you pay your bills, top up your game credits and reload your mobile phone credit.
You can also give Ang Pow to your friends through their e-Ang Pow! There is also a collaboration with Hello Gold if you are into gold investments.
GrabPay is the biggest E-wallet in terms of merchants and users in Malaysia. It is aiming to be a super app connecting everything from grocery shopping, ride hailing to food under one Grab ecosystem. For each GrabPay transaction, you will earn points to redeem attractive deals.
Grab is really convenient and user-friendly as you can use GrabPay to pay for your food (GrabFood), rides (GrabRide) and for your groceries (GrabMart) too! During Ramadhan, GrabPay digitized Ramadhan bazaars by partnering with local wet markets to make it easier for people to pay just by scanning QR code.
You have to spend a minimum of RM4 to get GrabRewards points that can be used to redeem cool items from the GrabRewards catalog. It depends on the promo of the month, you can enjoy additional discounts for car rides by paying using GrabPay!
Grab has also home maintenance features like servicing your Aircon in partnership with Kaodim.
Fave was founded in 2015 and has 40,000+ merchants around 4 countries : Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and India. There are more than 6 million users that use Fave as they always have offers for users that use their platform.
You can get cashback, earn points, and there is always a code for you to use to get discounts. Besides that, you can also link your GrabPay and Boost e-wallet to Fave so you can enjoy more coverage and earn rewards from both Fave and GrabPay or Boost!
Fave now has a “Buy Now, Pay Later” service which involves 40,000 merchants on the platform. Eligible users can purchase and pay back in 3 interest free installments.
E-Wallet makes our life much easier so you should really consider using one, if you haven’t yet. E-wallet can reduce theft and fraud because it uses QR code to pay. It is also much safer because it can minimize contact during this pandemic. You can also get rewards and cashback and you track the rewards you get with an e-wallet.
Choose what e-wallet you want to use! If you are like me, I have all 4 e-wallets 😀
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Our country has been struggling in this Covid-19 pandemic for more than a year. We are now in MCO 3.0 and 2021 is all about how to protect your health mentally and physically and as well as survive financially. Salaries have been reduced or we have lost our jobs and seen significant reduction in our business. The number of unemployed fresh graduates has risen significantly this year, as most businesses have attempted to decrease personnel as a result of the slowing economy and cash flow. I am glad to still have a job 😊
We are living in an emergency and lockdowns affecting every aspect of our lives. Without a doubt, these MCOS, EMCOs, CMCOs and RMCOs have had an impact on our economy, from informal businesses being unable to trade, to many companies being forced to provide lower employee pays, temporary or unpaid leave, merely to keep the business going.
The environment is bleak, and things are not within our control and in order to weather this pandemic we have to manage our money, grow it and pay it forward! Here are my tips on how I did this.
Manage Your Money
Before the pandemic I didn’t really manage my money, but Covid-19 has taught me to be Mrs. Stingy. You need to manage your salary or business income by listing it all out. Use a spreadsheet or even just a notebook to write down your fixed monthly commitments (car loan, house rent/loan, phone bills, insurances or other loans etc), and also other expenses such as groceries, fuel & toll, utilities, etc.
Alternatively, to pay everything you can use Debit Card Apps and E-Wallets. For example, Big Pay is a debit card App with analytics that covers all your expenses in a trackable manner. It’s easy to sign up, click here.
Using the E-wallets are also a good way to manage your money as everything is trackable. Knowing what you are spending on is an important aspect of managing your money.
Saving money is an important aspect and due to this we have all become MasterChef out of necessity. Eating out like before is no longer an option, not only to save money but to protect your health! Though I really miss eating out :’(
If you are not a fan of apps then at least write down in a simple format what you are spending every month. My example below. If you don’t know what you are using your money for, you cannot ever hope to manage it properly.
Monthly Income
RM2,500
Fixed Monthly Commitments:
Car loan
RM500
Apartment Rent
RM500
Phone Bill
RM80
Insurance
RM150
PTPTN loan
RM250
Total
RM1,480
Other expenses:
Toll
RM70
Fuel
RM120
Groceries
RM350
Utilities
RM50
Other expenses
RM50
Total
RM640
Saving
(Balance)
RM380
Saving and Emergency Funds
After you’ve paid off all of your fixed monthly commitments and other expenses, the rest of your income will be your savings. Savings are important as you aren’t sure what the future would look like now. Maybe today I am still working and getting paid on time. But tomorrow my salary could be deducted or worse, I could lose my job!
Make it a habit to save aside an amount and put it in an emergency savings account. Even a little amount of money may add up to a huge sum if left untouched and can come in handy on a rainy day.
If you are financially literate aside from putting your savings in ASB or fixed deposits. You can try your hand at stock investments, crypto trading and unit trust investing. These are some sites to check out; Rakuten Trade, Luno and Stash Away.
Only do investments after you gain knowledge on investing. You don’t need big amounts to start investing through these platforms
Advance Budgeting & Expense Tracking
If you want to plan your expenses better in a disciplined manner, start with a long-term budget plan, monthly and eventually daily budgets. I recommend you use money and expenses tracking apps such as Spendee, Monefy, Money Lover and there are many more you can find. Just simply install it on your phone. Or you can use the traditional way; Buku 555 as your journal.
Control Your Wants and Needs by Helping Others
While you may be able to manage your money and keep your needs and wants in check. Others in our society are not so fortunate. If you have a bit of extra help those in need like those flying the “bendera putih” or give more to Lembaga Zakat or establish organisations, such as Mercy Malaysia, Yayasan Food Bank Malaysia, and many more. There’s some individual or influencers that are also helping people out there, such as Arwind Kumar who started #QuaranTEAM and #FromAMother food aid projects.
Terato Tech, a local web developer, has launched Kita Jaga Malaysia (KitaJaga.Co), a website that allows those in need to raise a white flag digitally. Users may also search for and record the locations of food banks on this site. Whether you want to signal for help, provide information about food banks in your neighbourhood, or contribute to be a donator. All you need to do is just pin the location on the map and fill in the required details.
How is this related to managing my money? By not getting that new phone or shoes, giving it to others so their families may eat. We have emotional needs and wants, by channelling it productively we are showing maturity in managing our money.
Allah SWT will multiply the good deeds of His righteous servants up to seven hundred times as much or even more. Like a single seed from which springs forth hundreds of grains, Allah will cause the good deeds of His righteous servants to grow and multiply in a similar manner.
The example of those who spend their wealth in the way of Allah is like a seed which grows seven spikes, in each spike is a hundred grains. Allah multiplies His reward for whom He wills, for Allah is vast and knowing.
Surat Al-Baqarah 2:261
Starting Your Own Business
If you lose your job due to this pandemic and why not start a business. You can start with a small amount of money or none at all. You can sell things or services that have high demands or the things that most people would buy such as foods or other essentials. Since lockdown and people can’t go out easily, you may do your business online.
There are businesses you do without putting any money down like drop shipping. Drop shipping definition “ a form of retail business wherein the seller accepts customer orders but does not keep goods sold in stock”. Let me explain in this way – Makcik Kiah sells good nasi lemak and kuih but she is not good in online business, so you set up a store online or post these foods on Social media using her foods. Either mark up the selling price or agree beforehand with Makcik Kiah the commission for the sales of her food. This way you hold no stock and you have not paid anything for the cost of the goods.
If you don’t know what business to start with there are many portals that teach you how to start a business or find the business that suits your passions. Sites such as Eventbrite, have many online talks and ideas on business. Institut Keusahawanan Negara (INSKEN) has a lot of marketing and business training at a very affordable price or just go to social media to look for business ideas, plenty there.
This easiest business to start with is one you already have a skill in. If you are an engineer, accountant, gym instructor and a cook, there are many freelance jobs out there. Last time you were working for someone, now use the same skills for your own business.
Here are some websites to look at if you’re looking for a freelancing job – Upwork,Guru and Goget.
Upwork and Guru are worldwide freelancing platforms that engage businesses and people to conduct business. It has clients all around the world. Clients may use Upwork’s platform to interview, employ, and collaborate with freelancers and freelancing agencies.
The next platform is GoGet, which is founded in Malaysia. Goget is an on-demand job platform that connects companies and customers with certified gig workers for jobs such as delivery, catering, and administrative support. You can find the right job for you in the ‘GoGetters’ section on the website. This is a platform where you may find job that you enjoy doing and set your own hours. They provide flexibility, a diverse range of work options across sectors, and large fluctuations.
Who could have imagined that this pandemic would still last till now since last year? All of us are affected financially and emotionally. All we can do is adapt and prepare for any worst-case scenarios. I hope that this pandemic will teach us the importance of planning for life’s uncertainties. We need to know how to safeguard our well-being and finances and grow our wealth in the new norm. I hope that this article will give you ideas on how to create and preserve your wealth. Be safe and do follow the SOP until I don’t know when :’(
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In the second part of our homestay business series, we will explore our selection process. Selecting where to operate your homestay can make or break your business. Some people pick a kampung house, near the beach, in the city or even within their taman! This is usually in mid-size towns where the dewan is the centre of many activities. A rented house in a mid-sized town is usually below RM700 a month. You can charge a few hundred a night hence you only need to rent it out for 4 nights to turn a profit already, pick those houses near a dewan with lots of kenduri kahwin!
For the purpose of this article, we will share only how we select units based in condos. For houses we are not the expert but the strategies we use should be applicable for houses as well.
New vs Existing Condo in a Popular Location
We always pick an existing condo that is popular as there is already a sizable ready market for it. Our definition of an existing condo is any condo more than a year old. There are operators who will pick a newly built condo in a popular location because it has less competition from other operators though you would need to do heavy marketing and more manpower to promote the new condo.
For new hosts, it is always better to pick a popular condo in a good location in MyRehat’s view as you would spend less time explaining to people where your homestay is.
Once you have identified a condo, you have to do due diligence:
Does the management of the condo allow for homestay business? If not, then you better pick another place as the majority will always win and you will be fighting needless battles to operate. Of course, they are people who operate anyway in a place that is not favourable to homestay businesses.
How can guests enter the condo? In the beginning, MyRehat would check in all our guests. But as the number of our units grew that was no longer possible. So, it is important to see if the condo has easy access to the mailbox for guests to take the key and friendly management allowing taking of key from the mailbox.
Utilities are a big expense of any homestay operator, especially TNB. So, it’s important to see if the condo utilities are commercial or residential rate. The difference between commercial and residential rates is 30%. Example if the residential rate TNB let’s say RM200 a month while commercial is RM260. That’s a 30% difference!
The amenities. One of the reasons people come to stay at a homestay condo are the amenities. There are many amenities but for MyRehat the swimming pool and rooftop is key. People will pay extra if they know your condo has a great swimming pool and a spectacular view.
Fully Furnished. MyRehat only takes fully furnished units. What we mean by this: TV, beds in all rooms, water heater, aircons, fans, lights, kitchen, and stove. Of course, our preference is always units that were previously managed by other homestay operators.
If you have a condo in Kuala Lumpur that you do not want to manage that fits our criteria do contact us, we would love to manage it for you. Happy reading everyone!
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Food delivery is now part of the way we eat. Before the pandemic most people generally only ordered pizza as their food delivery. SInce the pandemic the way we get food has changed forever! Now you can order food through a restaurant or grocer’s website or mobile app, or through a food ordering company without ever having to step foot in the restaurant!
Foodpanda (written as foodpanda) is the first large scale food delivery service in Malaysia and it has been operating since 2012 till now! It has been almost 10 years and foodpanda is still going strong despite the many competitors.
During this lockdown, sometimes you are feeling lazy to cook so you probably would order in. Since there are many food delivery services nowadays, you probably wonder which one is a good platform to order at.
Here are some of the main food delivery services out there :
foodpanda
As foodpanda was the first and still has one of the largest food delivery services in Malaysia, it has a variety of food options for you to choose as they partner with many restaurants. From Malay food, fusion, Indian, Chinese and much more. You also have an option for self pick up of your food by ordering online. Their delivery fees differ depending on the store and distance from your location.
But, the food prices are usually 20% to 30% more than what you would have ordered in a restaurant. There are special promos and food vouchers available to claim, so by using the vouchers you can lower the prices. How great is that?
You can order through their website or download the application on your phone. The riders always wear their shirts and bags so you can easily spot them when they arrive.
For those who still have not tried foodpanda, you should try it because they don’t only deliver food from popular merchants like McDonalds but also many specialty food places too.
GrabFood
Grab started as a ride-hailing service before they expanded their service to food delivering, grocery delivering, bill payments and much more. Grab aims to be a super App the way WeChat is in China. Even when they started as a ride-hailing service, their food delivering services were becoming a key part of their platform. You can filter what kind of food you want from Chinese cuisine, Korean, Western, you name it! They also have Halal filter for the Muslim customers. Their prices are similar to foodpanda and you pay using their e-wallet, GrabPay. Grab has almost everything you need in an app. Pretty awesome isn’t it?
Their delivery fees also depend on your location to the store. There are always promotions so you can get discounts for your order. You can also get GrabReward points upon ordering if you used GrabPay to pay. Grab has an e-wallet in which you pay for so many things from TIME internet, phone bills, attractions and much more hence you collect points every time you use Grabpay. So the points you accumulate is enough to redeem free meals on a monthly basis!
AirAsia Food
AirAsia Food first started in Malaysia in May 2020. They started this service ever since COVID-19 hit its airline’s business pretty badly. It has over 500 restaurants and has delivered close to 15,000 orders in its first three months of its operation. Pretty sure, they have grown bigger now. This platform doesn’t offer a map feature in their apps so you can’t track your order, but you can still chat with them in-app to know about your delivery status.
The platform charges restaurants a 15% commission per delivery. Their delivery fees are 5% lower than GrabFood and foodpanda. Convenient for us to save money during this pandemic. Their choices are still not as many as Grab or foodpanda but you can order the AirAsia Santan Meals to help you reminisce about the time you are in the plane like Nasi Lemak Pak Nasser. Yummy!
You can order via their website or you can download the ‘airasia’ apps on your phone. Fun fact, with each order, you can get reward points to be used for AirAsia Flights. Let’s hope COVID-19 becomes manageable soon, so that everyone can fly again!
DeliverEat
DeliverEat was founded in 2012. They have over 1500 restaurants for you to choose from, including some of the popular ones like Sushi King and 4Fingers! You can order multiple menu from a restaurant plus there is no minimum order for any restaurant.
The delivery fees are RM5. You can pay via card or cash. You can also order through their website or you can download their apps on Google Play Store or App Store.
Recently, they had a campaign where you can pay using ShopeePay to get free delivery. You have to spend a minimum of RM15 to get free delivery using your ShopeePay account. The campaign just ended on 15th June. Let’s hope that this campaign will be back because I can eat and shop at the time via Shopee!
You should try all these food delivery services at least once to find which one is suitable or browse them all for the best deals! While browsing, make sure to book your stay at MyRehat so you can eat, chill and watch Netflix 🙂