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  • Persisting Through the Challenges of Life is Good Preparation for the Rewards Ahead

    Sometimes life gives you what you did not bargain for. You must learn to overcome the many challenges that come your way. If you want to progress and grow, don’t be afraid when faced with challenges.

    In fact, adversity prepares you for what is coming ahead. Embracing and conquering your current challenges will help usher you into your destiny.

    “Accept challenges, so that you may feel the exhilaration of victory.” – George S. Patton.

    Every day you wake up is an opportunity to do what you want. You must always look forward to the day ahead, knowing you will give it your very best and conquer it.

    I am encouraged by Mr Hakainde S. Hichilema, the 7th Republican President of Zambia. Businessman turned into a politician.

    He lost many general elections and never gave up. He was imprisoned and faced one of the most unfriendly governments I have ever witnessed in Zambia.

    In the end, he won an election by a huge margin, defeating the sitting President convincingly. His story inspires some of us. This is a story of perseverance and having a never-give-up mentality.

    Being on the opposing side for 20 years and still believing and having faith that he would win is amazing. It shows how much faith the man has in his abilities.

    Well, I guess that is why he’s such a successful and respected businessman.

    It takes a lot of courage, determination, sacrifice, and resilience to do what he has done, especially in African politics.

    Some of the folks who joined him gave up along the way and went back to the other side of the coin to sit and dine with the very people they were calling all sorts of names and opposing.

    His story also teaches us many things and makes me believe even more in the principle that “do unto others as you would want them to do unto you.”

    Life can change at the snap of a finger. God always has the final say in your destiny. Don’t be discouraged by what people say about you keep the faith and look to God for guidance.

    Never be too comfortable when you hold a position of power, especially in political office. People will respect you only while you still hold office. Mostly because of what they can gain from your office.

    The moment you leave the office, and especially if you leave in a disgraceful manner, you will be humiliated. You will be alone. You will realise that all those who sang songs of praise for you will not be anywhere near.

    That is why it is better to leave the scene when people are still clapping for you. That way, they will continue to respect you long after you have left the office.

    Stay Focused on the Prize

    When you are focused and can see the end of the road, you will be motivated to work until you achieve your goals. No amount of adversity can sway you from achieving your goals.

    Your vision illuminates the path to your success. It is the torch that lights your way. Everything you do is laser-focused and centred on your vision.

    All your efforts and energies are channelled to achieve what you desire.

    Mr Hichilema’s prize was the presidency, which he finally won after contesting five times. He did not let his suffering get the better of him.

    I am sure that spending all those nights in prison, in what he called a filthy environment, made him even more hungry to achieve his goal.

    It also teaches that when you are destined for something great, God always protects you from your enemies. For all I know, he could have easily been harmed or killed whilst in detention.

    Yet, his life was preserved and rewarded for his tenacity and faithfulness. Today, he goes down in history as the 7th President of the Republic of Zambia.

    Hang in There

    The higher the prize, the higher the cost. The more adversity, the higher the rewards. After the storm, the sea is calm.

    Many of us give up just when we are about to experience a breakthrough. That is what happened to those who were alongside Mr Hichilema.

    They jumped to the other side, not knowing he would become President and that they would remain on the opposing side.

    If only they had persisted and endured the rough journey with him, they would have been celebrating with him.

    In life, it is always important to be focused and believe in yourself and your cause. Life will always throw things at you. Especially when you are destined for a greater calling.

    Conclusion

    “Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage. The human spirit is to grow strong by conflict.”  – William Ellery Channing.

    Follow your heart’s desires and have a vision for what you want to achieve.

  • You Don’t Grow When Things Are Going Easy

    “In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity” – Albert Einstein.

    “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in the moment of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenges and controversy” – Martin Luther King Jr.

    As human beings, we naturally tend to choose the easier things in life. No one wants to tackle the difficult things. Everyone wants to have a soft life.

    However, you will realise that if you want to grow and succeed, you’d better get used to doing the hard stuff too. Doing the things that you are not used to. The things that you like to postpone.

    The things that make you uncomfortable are the things that really help you grow. Not everything is easy the first time. But with practice, perseverance, and patience, they become easier, lighter, and more enjoyable.

    Growth usually doesn’t happen in times of ease. This is because in times of plenty, we normally concentrate on enjoying the rewards. However, life demands that we keep growing in everything we do.

    This month, I have dedicated myself to writing and posting 30 articles. I am already behind. Not that I want to make excuses, but this is the reality.

    Writing daily is unfamiliar territory for me. I have had a few other personal challenges that have hindered my progress, but talking about them would be making excuses.

    I would rather pick it up from here and see how far I can go. Well, I guess it will be worthwhile to review and measure my performance at the end of the challenge. I take full responsibility for it.

    They say all growth comes from within. The ability to grow is implanted within each and every one of us. If you really want to grow, be it financially or in personal development, you need to start nurturing the seed of growth within you.

    Personal development is like a mustard seed. You plant a small seed; with care and nurturing, it grows into a tree. All things take time, but better things take even longer to produce. 

    They say good wine takes time to mature. The longer it takes, the better the quality. Likewise, if you are working on a good project, you should not expect immediate results.

    You will need to overcome failure and many other obstacles before you see the fruits of your labour. Most of the time, a thin line separates success from failure. Most people give up just before they strike gold.

    Endurance is Key

    Without perseverance and endurance, there is no success. Without endurance, there is no real growth. If there is a formula for personal growth, I would say, “hard, smart work + persistence + endurance = success.”

    Let’s take a college student as an example. To get good grades, they have to work hard, be smart, and endure long hours of sleepless nights studying. This is the only way I know to give a student a better chance of passing exams.

    When I was studying computer programming, I would study into the wee hours of the night before going to bed. Tiring as it was, it was worth it.

    As a student, I had to endure the sleepless nights and persistently pursue my studies. Without which I would not have graduated.

    I guess endurance measures how far we are willing to go to achieve certain objectives.

    All great inventors had to endure and conquer failure many times. Without endurance, they would not have achieved even what has been accomplished.

    You may not realise it, but you have made certain sacrifices and have come out strong. It could be positive or negative; we have all experienced endurance.

    How Motivated are You?

    What contribution are you giving to humanity? Are you spending 8 hours a day doing something that does not inspire you? Are you just doing time?

    What will you leave behind because you came to earth with nothing? These questions keep me motivated to keep writing and pursue my life’s purpose.

    I believe the most important day in one’s life is when one realises their purpose. When they realise why they wake up in the morning and do what they need to do every day.

    There is a saying that the moment you are born, the body begins to prepare for death. When you were born, they dug your grave and put the dirt on the right side. When you die, they will put the dirt on the left side.

    Unfortunately, the reality of life is that many of us will not be remembered after some time. And many of us will not even be known to have ever lived on this earth.

    One day, we will be made to account for the time we spent on this beautiful planet. We must therefore make good use of it. To do that, we must do things that keep motivating us to achieve our life’s purposes.

    That is why it is important to do things that make you happy every day. One of the best ways to be happy is to earn a living doing what makes you happy.

    Conclusion

    “How you respond to the challenge in the second half will determine what you become after the game, whether you are a winner or a loser” – Lou Holtz.

    You usually notice your Personal growth and development when you go through challenges. Your resilience and persistence will be fully tested during these challenges.

  • You Have the Potential for Improvement

    The potential for improvement lies within you. We all have the power to change and improve our lives.

    No matter where you are or what you have done before, there is always room and opportunities for growth; the choice is yours.

    All growth is from within, but it has to be nurtured. Take a seed, for example: with the right nutrients and conditions, it sprouts into a tree and bears fruit. Whether that fruit is good depends on how consistently you nurture it.

    The same is true for human beings, but even more so, because we choose and control what we want. You decide where you want to go and what you want to do.

    In other words, you have free will. You have the will to be or not to be, the will to do or not to do. The earlier you realise that the power and potential for improvement are within you, the better you can lay a solid foundation for yourself.

    The more you realise that the authority and ability for improvement are within you, the more easily you can chart your own scope for growth.

    But unless and only if you tap into this inner resource, personal improvement will always remain potential. That is the difference between successful and average people.

    The most successful people have known how to tap into this power to realise their full potential. We have heard of sportsmen and women who were highly rated early in their careers but never fulfilled their full potential.

    They say the greatest tragedy of the average person is being buried with their unsung songs. They die before they realise their full potential.

    Be a Student of Yourself

    This may sound absurd to many, yet it is true. If you want to succeed, you need to keep being a student of yourself.

    Yes, a student of yourself. Take time to fully understand your emotions, your desires, and your thought patterns.

    Know your weaknesses and your strengths. Funny as it may sound, some people don’t even know their weaknesses and strengths. Learn everything you need to know about yourself.

    We are all made differently; I believe that God does not make duplicates. What may work for me might not necessarily work for you.

    Study and know yourself. I have found that writing things down helps me to remember a lot of stuff. I am not super intelligent, so I cannot totally rely on my memory alone.

    That is why I carry a notebook with me most of the time. This notebook has so many things written in it. I constantly write down ideas and what I am learning.

    I have attended so many meetings, and it is amazing to notice that many people do not take notes. Worse still, they do not carry notebooks to meetings.

    Well, I guess it is just me, but I have noticed that taking notes works wonders for me. Every time I sit down to review my notes, everything starts to flow back. This has really helped improve my productivity.

    Being a student of yourself means trying out so many things and finding what works best for you. Not everything will work for you.

    For example, I recently discovered that playing soft classical music in the background while working actually works well for me.

    Playing high-energy music while exercising or staying fit is very helpful. These are the small discoveries I have made about myself.

    Studying yourself is a lifelong process. It means that you must continuously pay attention to yourself.

    This process also requires some personal time. Time to sit alone and reflect, time to introspect. I usually do this early in the morning and late at night just before going to bed.

    Keep Your Eyes on the Ball

    You cannot hit a target you cannot see. Life is like a game of football; the general idea is to score more goals than your opponents.

    In football, the goal is to hit the ball past the opposing goalkeeper. To do that, you must ensure that your team keeps possession of the ball. You can do this only by keeping your eyes on the ball’s movement and ensuring you control it.

    In life, however, you set your own targets, and you must do this. If you have not yet found your life’s purpose, I strongly encourage you to do so now and begin working toward it.

    Unlike in a football match where you outscore your opponents, in life, you will fail many times. Your goal is to keep moving.

    The more you move, the closer you get to achieving your life’s purpose and the more progress you make. This is the only way you can measure your progress.

    Remember that you should measure personal development only by yourself, not by outsiders. Don’t use other people’s progress as a yardstick; rather, use them as motivation.

    Just like in football, your opponents are also trying hard to score; you must be prepared to face life’s adversities. Don’t let what people say about you distract you.

    Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and you can’t control what people think of you.

    Think of people as spectators watching a football match; they can only cheer and grumble based on what they see and feel.

    They have no control over the game, but you control the game called life. It is entirely and squarely in your hands.

    What matters most is what you think about yourself. That should be what propels you. If you think you are successful, well and good; enjoy your success.

    Just keep your mind focused on the task at hand. Work to improve on it and give it your very best shot.

    Conclusion

    “Consult not your fears, but your hopes and your dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you have tried and failed in, but for what is still possible for you to do” – Pope John XXIII.

    We all can improve our lives. This potential for improvement is God-given. God gave us the power and will to decide what we want for our lives.

  • Everything is Hard Before It’s Easy

    “If I have correct goals and I keep pursuing them the best way I know how, everything falls into line. If I do the right thing, I am going to succeed” – Dan Dierdorf.

    By nature, human beings want life to be easy. Most of us feel envious when we see friends driving beautiful, fancy cars and living seemingly comfortable lives.

    How we long to arrive at the destination, the so-called“easy or soft life”, without hard work.

    The lazier we become, the further away we drift from the good life. Yes, we can all achieve what we want, and I believe that is what God intended for us all. But achieving your heart’s desires requires taking bold, right steps and decisions that demand a mindset change.

    Personal development and self-growth require a change in your mind and belief systems. To achieve your goals, your attitude and mindset must be in sync.

    This could be a great start for setting your year’s objectives and goals. The key thing is to start somewhere. Start now, and plan to succeed at whatever you intend to do. I believe that everything worthwhile is worth your effort.

    If everything in life were easy to achieve or get, life would be very boring. We were designed to work, both physically and mentally, and that is what makes life worth living.

    I have discovered that nature is neutral. God has blessed us with the same environment; we all have equal access to the environment.

    No one on this earth can claim to have more or less than 24 hours a day; I have never heard of anyone who has more or less air.

    We all experience the same conditions at a given time. We all tap into the same universal resources. We are all products of the same universe. We were all created in God’s image.

    The difference, however, is how efficiently and effectively we use these abundant resources that God has given us.

    The question one may ask is, how come life seems easy for some people? Well, I believe nothing comes as easily as it seems, and let me say this: life is never easy.

    All good things come at a cost. You must be willing to pay the price before you begin to reap and enjoy the rewards. I know that to live a happy and successful life, you must be willing to pay the price and disciplined enough to delay gratification.

    Most of us want to live in the now, not the future. We do not want to delay gratification. We spend every coin we earn as if there is no tomorrow.

    Even the so-called easy life is not as easy as it seems. It may look easy from the outside, but it is not what it seems.

    I remember my early working days, when we used to envy our friends who worked for bigger and “better” corporate organisations.

    We all would be saying, “If only I worked for that organisation, life would be easy”. Yet the people working for the same organisations would be looking elsewhere.

    Condition Your Mind to Start Working

    Everything good is worth working for. It feels very nice to work for something and enjoy the benefits.

    It gives me great pleasure when I achieve a target. I feel joy, and my mind is motivated to work even harder. It is, therefore, very important to set achievable goals so you keep a positive mental attitude.

    However, failure should not be an obstacle; it should be viewed as a challenge to overcome. It should be a learning process.

    Every day of our lives, we constantly push ourselves to achieve targets. You may not realise it, but every day of your life you are achieving a target; this could either be positive or negative; the choice is yours.

    You need to prepare your mind for success. Preparing your mind for success is important, as it will also help you grow with your success.

    This will require deliberate steps to condition your mind. If need be, you may have to change your friends or get out of some bad relationships. Yes, I mean change your friends.

    Not all relationships are actually beneficial; some can be very detrimental. You may also need to move to a new location.

    Over time, I’ve had to make some drastic changes to my lifestyle. I have had to reduce my inner circle. This has helped me a great deal.

    I am more focused on what I do. Believe me, some relationships can distract your progress; the sooner you identify them and make the necessary change, the better.

    It may be difficult for you to make drastic changes right now, but if you are serious about shaping your future, find a way to adjust. Don’t let friendship hinder your progress.

    Your mind plays a key role in determining your overall progress in life. What you feed your mind daily matters. The Bible says, “For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.”

    If you hang around people with a positive mental attitude, you will most certainly have a positive attitude; the opposite is also true.

    Everything that you do or want to do in life begins in your mind. Your mind is, therefore, the workshop or the engine room for everything.

    Do you realise that everything man makes was first conceived in the mind? This is how important your mind is.

    Besides hanging around with positive-minded people, you can also start reading books and listening to audiotapes that will positively impact your mind.

    Make a deliberate habit of changing your mind, and take action every day. Every small step you take counts towards your destiny.

    There is No Easy Route

    Once you have started pursuing your goals, learn to be patient with yourself. You will keep on failing and falling. When you fall, you must get up. When you fail, it is time to learn a new skill.

    Every new skill or habit takes time to execute with minimal effort. Keep learning from your mistakes and be open-minded to make the necessary changes.

    Most of the younger generation are in the habit of cutting corners, especially when it comes to financial freedom. They want to start climbing the tree from the top instead of learning the ropes.

    Believe me, it is not worth it. I haven’t found an easy route to success that lasts. Ever since I started doing what I love most, it hasn’t been easy.

    Yes, I enjoy it, but the journey hasn’t been easy. I have enjoyed both dry moments and good ones. What keeps me going is that I enjoy writing and believe these articles help someone.

    I am still very much a work in progress, but I am impressed with my progress so far. The more I write, the more satisfaction I get.

    From my studies and personal experience with self-growth and improvement, I have learned that cutting corners only yields short-lived happiness.

    If you want long-lasting happiness, resolve to do the right things. You will have peace of mind for the rest of your life. The small things that I have achieved so far through hard work make me feel over the moon.

    They may be small, but they actually count a lot to me. After all, success is the sum of the small things we accomplish every day.

    I am not in any competition or race with anybody, so I will move at my own pace.

    If something is worth its salt, then it is worth your sweat. Everything is always difficult the first time.

    Conclusion

    Everything in life is hard before it’s easy. They say that it takes 21 days to develop a new habit. If habits can be learned, then they can be unlearned.

    You can use this theory to replace unproductive habits with ones that help you grow as an individual.

    The Bible says “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” – Philippians 4:7.

    “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it” – Proverbs.

    Because our minds are critical to our personal development and self-improvement, it is important to learn to guard your mind and heart.

  • To Change is to Be Progressive

    “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference” – Serenity Prayer.

    Change comes from within. Ignoring change is accepting defeat and acknowledging failure. Successful people embrace change. When you embrace change, you have a better chance to succeed.

    Without change, meaningful success is impossible. Change drives success; before success, there is the “change” process. This is the painful and most dreaded process.

    If you want to succeed at anything you do, you cannot expect different results if you keep doing the same things that make you fail. Change your habits, and it will positively impact your life.

    One of the biggest stumbling blocks to achieving our goals, be it personal, organisational, or indeed financial, is a lack of change in attitude. You want to succeed, but you don’t want to change your attitude.

    John F. Kennedy once said, “change is the law of life and those who look only to the past and the present are certain to miss the future.”

    I have failed before, actually many times, and I keep failing daily. This does not mean I have acknowledged failure. No, no, no. 

    One of my latest shortcomings is not being able to fulfil the challenge to publish 29 articles in February, as promised.

    Have I given up on the challenge? No. The shortfall taught me to set reasonable and achievable targets. The target was reasonable; I just did not apply myself.  

    It was a worthwhile target but one that needed a lot of time and dedication to implement.

    However, I reserve it for the future. I now know what adjustments I need to make for a challenge of that magnitude and nature.

    Learn From Every Challenge

    I learned many lessons from the previous challenge. I will mention just a few here. The biggest one was that I needed a lot of time and dedication.

    But during the implementation period, I was faced with a lot of time constraints. I guess this is usually what happens when you plan to conquer a challenge. Time will always be a constraint.

    I couldn’t devote enough time to writing articles, as other, seemingly more pressing matters needed my attention. I could not dedicate enough time

    This is not to negate the importance I attach to this website. In fact, the plan for this website is to grow it to be the number one stop for personal development and self-growth materials.

    It is more of a long-term than a short-term project. However, the other matters were short-term and more physical, and they really drained my energy.

    I needed to come up with a practical way of writing articles and publishing regularly, or better still, daily.

    Unfortunately, I stayed in my comfort zone. I now need to move out of my comfort zone if I have to fulfil the vision and plan for this website.

    I also plan to write and post articles that I feel add value for my readers. In other words, I write content for people, and not for search engines.

    With the lessons learned so far, I hope to start showing that movement out of my comfort zone. I now know, without a shadow of a doubt, that I won’t achieve my goals without a radical change.

    The other lesson learned is that I lost my focus. There were times when I could have written something but lacked total concentration.

    To write valuable content, you need to be relaxed and focused and let your thoughts flow onto paper. I needed to make sure my writing skills matched the task at hand.

    I know my friends who are artists will agree that you need to be focused and inspired when writing a song and, later on, singing it; it’s the same with writing web content.

    You Have the Capacity to Change

    Do not doubt your ability to change. We all have the capacity and ability to change. 

    If you want to achieve anything worthwhile, you will need to change and adapt your ways and mentality to winning ways.

    There is no shortcut to achieving your dreams. Hard work, or rather smart hard work, is the key.

    The Bible says, “Do not despise the days of your small beginnings” (Zechariah 4:10).

    A 1,000-mile journey starts with one step in the right direction. Emphasis is on the first step. The first step is as important as the last step. Without taking the first step, there will never be a last one. 

    You will not move a mile if you do not take the first step. Every step that you take counts towards your goal.

    Every small change you make matters. You have the capacity to make those small adjustments, and before you know it, you will have made bigger, meaningful adjustments.

    Every change you make is progress. Every one of us can be progressive by changing one thing at a time, no matter how small.

    I know for a fact that we all have things we want to change. No one is perfect. We all have skeletons in our closets.

    One of the many mistakes we make is wanting to succeed without changing our ways. Success comes with change.

    How To Prepare for the Future

    Many factors should be considered when preparing for your future. Some of them are beyond your control. Do not worry about them. 

    However, we must always endeavour to change what is in our control and leave the rest to God Almighty. 

    Brian Tracy says “You cannot control what happens to you, but you can control your attitude towards what happens to you, and in that, you will be mastering change rather than allowing it to master you.”

    We all have a chance at succeeding. Life gives every one of us a second chance.  So for as long as you have the breath of life, you have a chance to make it. 

    Many things that will shape your future are within your grasp. You have all that it takes to succeed.

    Most of us miss opportunities to shape our future through foolish decisions and end up making mistakes that come back to haunt us.

    Sometimes the mistakes we make can be very fatal. But remember, we all make mistakes, and the most successful people have learned from their own.

    The most important ingredient for success is making the change and stopping the same mistakes over and over.

    Decide today to make the change and start moving towards a better life. It is never too late to make the change.

    Start by accepting that you are responsible for your own life. Acknowledge that you owe it to yourself to live a better life, and that no one will change anything without your consent.

    Stop blaming your parents for what they never gave you; your government for limited opportunities; your siblings for not sharing; or, indeed, your spouse.

    You are totally responsible for everything that you do. Go out there and conquer the world. Be the change you would like to see in the world.

    I strongly believe that there is more than enough wealth in the world to go around. There are many things that need attention, and you could be the solution.

    If we all played our part and did what is right,  we could help change the world for the better. The world today is short of so many things.

    You are the solution to some of the challenges being faced. Dig deep within you and unleash that solution that the world is craving and waiting to see.

    Dr Myles Monroe says, “The richest place on earth is the graveyard.” Because buried there are dreams and ideas that were never realised. Songs that were never sung, buildings that were never built.

    Conclusion

    “If we don’t change we don’t grow, if we don’t grow we aren’t really living” – Gail Sheehy.

    To make meaningful achievements, you must set goals. Goals that are realistic and achievable. 

    As a human being, you should have your own personal development goals; relationship goals; financial goals; and, above all, spiritual goals.

    We must never forget that God loves us all regardless of our ethnicity and what our past holds. Stay blessed, and may the good Lord guide you in your endeavours.

  • Decide to Be Happy Every Day and Enjoy Your Life

    “There are two things to aim at in life: first to get what you want, and after that to enjoy it. Only the wisest of mankind has achieved the second” – Logan Pearshall Smith.

    Every day is a beautiful day filled with joy and happiness, but it is also a beautiful day filled with sadness. Every day is a gift; that is why they call it the present.

    If every day is a gift, why do you then decide to live a life of sadness? We live our lives based on the decisions we made in the past. That is why it is better to make the right decisions today that will affect our future.

    I’m not perfect, but every day that I wake up, I thank God Almighty for giving me another opportunity to better my life.

    For as long as you are alive, you have the chance and an opportunity to improve your life and that of the people around you and beyond.

    You may not be in a position to do the things you want to do now, but you have the chance because you are still alive. The fact that you have the breadth of life gives you an equal opportunity to succeed

    One thing I have noticed is that human beings take life for granted. We do not take time to appreciate the fact that we are alive and in pretty good health.

    If you are reading this article, you are even more privileged than most people. It simply means that you have access to a computer and the internet.

    However, you are accessing them; these things cost money, and they do not come cheap. Do you know how many people cannot even come close to thinking about having the privilege you have?

    Yet you continue living a life of sadness. You may not have all you desire, but at least give thanks that you are alive. Life is not just about having all you desire but living happily and enjoying what you have.

    Take Responsibility for Your Decisions

    The biggest weakness we have as human beings is not taking full responsibility for our decisions. We only want to take responsibility when things are going right, and people are praising us.

    Taking responsibility for your mistakes is a sign of maturity. It is a sign of humility. I am proud to take full responsibility for my personal decisions.

    Sometimes it is difficult to accept that I am in a certain situation because of my decisions, but that’s just the truth. If I had made better choices, I would not have found myself in difficult circumstances in the first place.

    Ever since I decided to take full responsibility for my decisions, life has been more fulfilling and enjoyable. What this has done is that before I make a major decision, I think about it very hard.

    I have also learned that deciding to be happy early in the morning makes my day a lot easier to navigate. I know that sometimes people want to mess it up for me, but because a decision was made in the morning to be happy, I stick with it.

    My mind is preconditioned to stay happy, and this flows to my emotions. They say your thoughts influence your emotions.

    When you decide on something and you stick with it, nothing can shake you. Sometimes, things may be thrown at you, but when you have resolved to be happy, you will be, even during the bad and difficult times.

    One of the things I do when confronted with a potentially explosive situation is to just smile, excuse myself and walk away if I can, or better still, just keep quiet.

    It is hard to just walk away at first, especially if you are hot-tempered, but with practice, it becomes easier. It is better to look like a fool and maintain peace than to look clever and create animosity.

    There is no need to allow people to annoy you. Life is too short to be lived sadly. God has given us the ability to choose freely. Choose peace every time you are confronted with negative vices.

    The power to decide is entirely in your hands. I like to make a comparison, say, going out to have fun with friends.

    Most of the time, when something goes wrong, we blame the company we were hanging around with for the decisions we made.

    Yes, they may have played a part, but the final say lies in our hands. If you say no to taking part in an unwanted situation, you can.

    This also goes to being in a toxic relationship. You can either decide to continue in it, or you can get out of it; the choice is yours.

    Learn to Enjoy Your Life

    Life is too short; learn to enjoy it. You can only enjoy life if you decide to, and this decision is entirely yours.

    There are many ways to enjoy life, one of which is to do the things that make you happy more often.

    Most of us do not enjoy our lives simply because of the jobs we do. If your daily job does not make you happy, you are most likely living a sad life.

    The happiest people are those with jobs that make them happy. You can be paid as much money, but without happiness, the job is meaningless.

    You would probably be contributing more if you found a job that makes you happy. Now, a job does not necessarily mean being employed by someone or working for a big corporation.

    You could be self-employed and earning a decent living by doing the things that make you happy. “Be absolutely determined to enjoy what you do” – Gerry Sikorski.

    That is why it is very important to know your life’s purpose earlier in your life. This helps in choosing careers that will enhance and help you achieve your goals.

    One of the ways to know what your life’s purpose is is to list the things that easily flow from you. The things that you do with much ease and less effort.

    These are the things that could point you to what your life’s purpose is. It could be that you are gifted at making people laugh; well, go ahead and be a professional comedian. What you are good at will earn you a living.

    The idea is to start living and enjoy your working life. After all, we spend most of our time working.

    If you have made mistakes in the past like me, don’t worry; there is still room for change. You can make the change right now and decide to do the right things for the rest of your life.

    And besides, who has never made a mistake in their life? Forget the mistakes you made, treat them as a learning point, and move on.

    You cannot change the past, but you can positively influence your future beginning this moment by making the right decisions.

    Conclusion

    “You don’t pay the price for success. You enjoy the price for success” – Zig Ziglar.

    I would like to conclude by advising you to make a decision to start living a happy life.

    Get your power back by taking responsibility for your decisions. We all fall, but we get up and press on with life. Until next time, have a blessed and happy life.

  • Life Gives Us a Second Chance

    Today is the first day of the rest of your life, and you have every reason to be grateful for it. Thank God for the gift of your life.

    You are alive for a reason and for a season. Life has always given us an opportunity for a second chance.

    You may not currently be in a position to afford a good life. A life that you desire. You may have messed up or have let an opportunity pass you by.

    Yes, life may seem to be unbearable and unfair; the doctors may have given you a bad report on your health, but that’s not the end of the world.

    Thank God you are still alive. Let me assure you that, for as long as you have the breath of life in you; as long as you are alive;  you definitely have a chance and an opportunity to overcome your current challenges.

    Never give up; it is never too late to achieve your dreams.

    Yes, some people may seem to be far ahead of you, but always remember that you have your own life to live; and who says you should live your life based on other people’s progress? Even mangoes from the same tree do not ripen at the same time.

    Most of us have had a very bumpy life. Sometimes due to our own making and at times due to circumstances beyond our control.

    Most of the circumstances we go through in life are of our own making. Meaning we have the power to change them.

    Most of us have given up on making progress with our lives. We have become accustomed to and have accepted living a mediocre life.

    When we fall down, we must learn to pick ourselves up. Many times we will have very few people around when we have fallen.

    It is at these times when you should summon all your strength and courage to stand up and keep moving.

    The God who has given you life also provides you with the strength and direction in your life only if you pay close attention to him.

    As human beings, we must embrace and be thankful that we are always given a second chance at life.

    Though we fall, when we dare to get up, God gives us more life and grace so that we can achieve our goals.

    I know that there are opportunities that come once in a lifetime. Some of these may not be the best ones for you.

    Never give up; just know that God’s timing is the best. You should all bear in mind that the greatest glory of living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time you fall.

    Those that have succeeded have failed before. The great inventors of this world have failed many times before they succeeded, and today, who remembers their failures?

    Have a Never Give Up Mentality

    I love football and sports in general. Sportsmen and women who succeed have a never-give-up mentality.

    Sportsmen and women are impressive; the hours and days they put into training for them to show their skill only for a short period of time is amazing.

    Not only to show their skills but also to win matches is out of this world.

    I recently watched a football match where the team I support was written off even before the beginning of the match.

    The only consolation I had as a supporter was that we were going to have a good game of football.

    But as the players entered the pitch, you could see the positive mindset they were carrying. They just looked like they had already won the match.

    You see, they had lost the first match and needed to win this one by an “impossible” scoreline against one of the very best teams.

    When my team scored the first goal I believed that the impossible would be possible. Well, the rest is history.

    The never-give-up mentality should be adopted at all times. Those who never give up even in times of adversity are bound to succeed.

    When you are given a second chance, embrace it with all your might and ensure that you make the most of every opportunity.

    Don’t be discouraged when you fail, because you have just discovered one way of not making it.

    I have set a one-month challenge; beginning 1st September, I will be posting an article every day until the month ends.

    This is a huge challenge for me, as I have never done this before. But I pray that God will give me a never-give-up mentality.

    A mentality to press on until I achieve the goal. I will evaluate my progress at the end of the challenge and share the experience. I am looking forward to it.

    I believe that challenging our abilities is one of the best ways to ensure and enhance personal development and growth.

    I think life would be very boring without challenges. I am now developing a mentality of constantly challenging my abilities.

    Enjoy Your Life

    Learn to live a happy life. Decide to be happy every morning you wake up.

    Did you know that happiness is the highest level of success? One of the best ways of enjoying life is doing the things you enjoy, most of the time.

    There is no point in living a life of grumbling every day. “Life is too short to be lived with hate and sadness” – said Nelson Mandela when he was released from prison after 27 years.

    He had no choice but to forgive his oppressors because he did not want to continue being their prisoner by carrying hatred in his heart.

    He wanted to enjoy total freedom for the rest of his life. If you are carrying hate, unforgiveness, and anger, you are not free; you are a prisoner. Free yourself and begin to enjoy your life.

    Happiness also comes through giving. I have great joy when I give and see the joy in the other person.

    I used to wonder why the Bible says it is more blessed to give than to receive. I mean, after all, we all want to be on the receiving end, especially good gifts.

    But I have learned that as a parent, we are always happy to see our children enjoying the fruits of our labour.

    I don’t know about you, but the joy I get when I have provided a solution for someone, and they walk away happy, is just mind-blowing.

    Giving may not necessarily be in monetary form. It could just be a helping hand. It could be your time or just being good to someone.

    There is so much we could do for the world that will put a smile on many people’s faces. Imagine living in a world full of happy people.

    Conclusion

    Life is what you choose to make it. With every choice you make, you create your life.

    God is such a gracious father; he is a God of second chances. We must learn to embrace the opportunities and chances that come our way.

    Many a time you will fail, but you must never give up. You must remain steadfast and focused.

    You must embrace failure and learn from it; you must never be defeated by it.

    “In the end, it is not the years in your life that count. Its the life in your years” – Abraham Lincoln.

    Remember that life is built of the things we do. The small things we do every day.

  • Your Values Make the Person You Are

    Life is lived from the inside out. At the very core of your personality are your values. What you become, or who you are, is largely shaped by the values you hold dear.

    If your values are love, kindness, honesty, positivity, and sincerity, you’ll often show them in your life. You will exude love, kindness, and everything inside you.

    Your outward life reflects your inner core values. The Bible says, “You shall know them by their fruits.” Your values are your fruits.

    We all live by our values, whether right or wrong, and sometimes knowingly or unknowingly. People are mostly guided by the values they cherish.

    We show what we value every day through how we live. The life you live today directly reflects your inner values.

    Notice that most successful people have a positive outlook about themselves. They harbour positive values within their inner being.

    So, if you want to succeed at whatever you do, you must learn to feed your mind and inner soul the right material.

    If you feed on negative emotions, you will most likely produce negative emotions, and the opposite is equally true.

    In short, your character is a total of what you feed on. The good thing about the mind is that it can be transformed.

    If you want your mind transformed, feed it the right material. The Bible says, “You shall be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

    The only way I know of renewing your mind is by reading and learning. Look, whatever you read sticks in your mind, and someday it will come out.

    If you read wrong books, your mind will be transformed by them. One book I read daily is the Bible. It is full of positive affirmations. The Bible is actually my life’s guide.

    You have to make a deliberate policy and have the will to change. Your daily actions are controlled, consciously or unconsciously, by your thoughts.

    You may not have noticed it, but believe me, your thinking directly affects your character and general behaviour.

    What you hold dear to your heart will always manifest. I often use the example of thieves; do you realise that no one is born a thief?

    People just learn to steal, and since it can be learned, it can also be unlearned. Equally, no one is born with bad habits. They are formed along the way.

    Nature provides us all with equal opportunities. For example, we all have 24 hours a day, 12 months a year.

    The biggest difference is the way we seize the opportunities that come our way. Sometimes opportunities can be disguised as a “disaster”, say, loss of employment.

    Most of the time, when someone loses employment, they moan and groan about it without realising it could be an opportunity to become self-employed or even look for better employment.

    Improve Your Values

    As I said before, you can learn and unlearn your values. The question is: how can you unlearn the bad values that have accumulated over time?

    Over the past months, I have been focusing on changing some of my values by reading, listening, and watching motivational materials and attending personal transformation seminars.

    This has changed my internal values tremendously. To this day, some of the things I once thought were valuable are actually worthless.

    When you change your values and focus on building positive ones, you gain a sense of purpose and feel in control of your life.

    Most of us are not fully in control of our lives and just go with the flow. Hence the frustration with life.

    A positive mindset can create a sense of responsibility and help you enjoy life much more.

    You feel less pressure, and you don’t panic when things go wrong. Believe me, things will always go wrong and sometimes be very messy.

    The most important thing is how you react. Do you let the situation overtake you, or do you take control?

    Most of the things that go wrong are actually within our control. I believe everything that happens to us happens for a reason, and it is mostly an opportunity to solve things differently.

    However, this entails thinking outside the box. In fact, removing the box altogether. I always like to think of life as a journey.

    When faced with a challenge, do I go back or face the challenge head-on? I focus on facing the challenge head-on.

    There is always a solution to every challenge that comes your way. Remember that God always makes a way where there seems to be no way.

    The Bible says “seek ye first the kingdom of God and everything shall be added on to you”. The Bible also says that “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”

    Therefore, a prayerful life is important if you want to be successful. Prayer and meditation on the word of God open doors.

    Your values are the key components in determining your character. As human beings, our lives portray our core values.

    Take stock of your life and see what you value most. The best way is to write down what you think your values are.

    Now compare that with how you live your daily life. If your values are love, honesty, and sincerity, that’s likely how you treat other people.

    You will always treat people with love and sincerity. I have also noticed that we form opinions about people based on our own character and past behaviour. 

    Take time to observe your life, and you will agree with me that what you value most will be central in your daily life.

    Clarify Your Values

    One characteristic of good leaders is clarity about their values. They know exactly what they want.

    Remember that we are all leaders of some sort. You may not be in a leadership position, but you are the leader of “yourself corporation limited.”

    The more clearly you know your values, the better person you become and the more happiness you experience.

    Many of us have unclear values. If you want to succeed at what you do, you must write down a clear set of values you believe in.

    These values should be engraved and aligned with your belief system. This is also true: most successful corporations have values they adhere to.

    Your belief system also shapes your values. Remember that you can also learn or unlearn your belief system.

    Our beliefs are mainly deduced from our past experiences and what we have read and seen. Some experiences can be directly linked to us as individuals or to someone we have seen or read about.

    To be successful and develop a positive mental attitude, you need clarity in your values and belief system.

    Personal development and self-growth are not a destination but a journey. We are all on the journey of life; however, the difference is how we enjoy it.

    Enjoy Your Life

    There is so much joy in doing the right things. I know for a fact that if you are feeling low and want to feel happy, try lending a helping hand to someone.

    You will definitely feel joy when you see the glow of happiness on the other person.  Humanity was created to help each other.

    We can be the solution for many people around us. If you look around, you will realise that many people are worse off than you.

    The onus is on you to make the best out of your current situation. Stop complaining and blaming people for your current situation.

    Especially if you are over 18, you are fully responsible for your life. Learn to enjoy life by doing that which God created you for.

    You have the ability and capacity to improve yourself no matter how bad the situation may look.

    Life was meant to be enjoyed. As long as someone has the breath of life, they are not to be written off.

    Never look down on anyone, no matter their current situation; instead, try to help them when you can.

    They say as you climb the ladder, ensure that you look after those you leave below, as they will be able to catch you when calamity falls on you.

    No offence, but I have noticed that people in higher authority tend to think they don’t need anyone below them. 

    Life is a vicious circle. You never know when someone will come and give you a helping hand simply because you helped them at some point in life.

    You may not be the direct beneficiary of that help, but it could be your children or indeed someone close to you.

    Some of the favours I have personally received are a result of my late father’s goodwill.

    People have told me we have done this for you not because you deserve it, but out of appreciation for your late father’s good standing with us.

    Conclusion

    “Just as your car runs more smoothly and requires less energy to go faster and farther when the wheels are in perfect alignment, you perform better when your thoughts, feelings, emotions, goals and values are in balance” – Brian Tracy.

    One key area of personal development and success is knowing your values. Your values form an important aspect of your character. Your character will eventually drive you toward your life’s goals.

    I encourage you to set goals for your life and just be a student of yourself. Know yourself as much as possible and take action to correct the areas of your life that you think need correction. Lastly, if this site encourages you, please feel free to share it.

  • How Not to Be Successful

    You may be thinking, why would you want to know how not to be successful? Don’t we all want to know about how to be successful after all, that is one of the main themes for this website?

    Before we delve into the article, let us define the word successful, according to the Oxford Learner’s Dictionary it means “achieving your aims or what was intended”.

    From this definition, you can already see why learning how not to be successful can help you achieve your goals.

    Sometimes in life, we focus so much on the positives that we forget to learn how to avoid the negatives.

    We are so consumed with how to do this and that that we never take time to learn how not to be positive, for example. If you want to be positive, you must know how not to be positive in order to avoid being negative.

    Many of us are busy researching success but failing to understand why we aren’t achieving it.

    I want to highlight some of the things that have slowed progress or kept it from happening at all.

    Maybe if you take a break and learn the opposite of not being prosperous, you will avoid the pitfalls and stay on the right track.

    The above definition is straightforward and on point. It is not ambiguous. For me, the definition highlights a few things I am passionate about and have been writing about on this site.

    Before you embark on the road to success, a few requisites need to be addressed. If you don’t attend to these basics, you will find it very difficult to thrive.

    Being successful is all about achieving. When you achieve, you are successful.

    “Success seems to be connected with action. Successful men keep moving; they make mistakes, but they do not quit” – Conrad Hilton.

    Not Knowing Your Life’s Intended Purpose

    Your life’s intended purpose is key to being victorious. Remember, the definition says “achieving what was intended.”

    If you do not know what you were created for; what you were intended for; you will find it hard to be successful.

    The first thing you need to do is find out or establish your life’s intended purpose. This will generally lead to decisions and steps that help you achieve that purpose.

    In other words, you need to set goals and targets and work toward attaining them. Perhaps one of the surest ways to fail is not having goals or not knowing your purpose in life.

    If you do not have a goal, you simply cannot attain it. Yes, you may have all the possessions, but is that your goal? Only you can measure the true level of your success.

    “To be successful you must decide exactly what you want to accomplish, and then resolve to pay the price to get it” – Bunker Hunt.

    Another way to fail is to be insincere and not true to the situation. Most of us care more about who is right than what is right.

    We have so much ego that we let it cloud our judgment. I have been in situations like this before, questioning who gave the solution, and believe me, most of the time I have ended up missing the opportunity.

    This is very common, especially if you are so involved and interested in politics. A famous politician once said politics makes you sit on your intelligence.

    Most ardent followers of political parties do not form honest, objective opinions about the candidates they support.

    They turn a blind eye to the wrongs being committed by the party they support and are quick to point out the wrongs being committed by their competitors.

    That is why I have detached myself from politics. I do try as much as possible to make an honest and balanced judgment.

    However, on this website, I promise not to take sides with any politician and will always avoid talking politics. I just think politics are more divisive.

    Not Having the Right Mental Attitude

    Achievement is in your mind and your attitude. If you do not see yourself as successful, you are not ready for it. They say you are what you think about most of the time.

    If you look back critically at your thoughts over the last few years and compare them with your current life, nine out of ten times you are living your thoughts.

    Not having the right mental attitude is a sure way to fail to achieve your goals. The two major mental obstacles for success are fear and doubt.

    Fear is one of the greatest negative emotions. First, it is the fear of failure; the fear of embarrassment; the fear of loss; and the fear of poverty.

    I have also learned that fear mostly exposes our inadequacies. We fear doing something maybe because we do not have enough knowledge on a certain topic.

    The second emotion, doubt, is just as detrimental as fear. We doubt our abilities mostly because we compare ourselves to others who are more competent and smarter than we are. We feel inadequate to the challenges at hand.

    However, the good thing is that both fear and doubt are learned emotions. We acquire them as we grow. This is true because I have never seen a baby be negative.

    Children are fearless; that is why they need adult supervision all the time. Whatever has been learned can be unlearned.

    Fear and doubt can be replaced with courage and confidence. The higher your courage and confidence, the lower your fear and doubt.

    The more knowledgeable you are about a subject matter, the more courageous and confident you are to participate. I can attest to this because the more I write and post articles, the more courageous and confident I become in talking about personal development.

    I hope that in the months to come, my writing skills will transform completely.

    Conclusion

    “If you consistently and persistently do the things that other successful people do, nothing in the world can stop you from being a big success also” – Brian Tracy.

    Many factors can challenge you on your journey to achieving your goals, but it’s essential to recognise that these obstacles can also be opportunities for growth. Embrace the challenges that come your way, as they often teach valuable lessons and build resilience.

    Shift your perspective and focus on what you can learn from each setback. Remember, every great achievement is often preceded by a series of hurdles.

    Stay determined, keep pushing forward, and use every experience to fuel your motivation. The other side of life is filled with possibilities; all you need to do is take that first step.

    It is not my intention to see you fail, but to help you change by bringing to light some of the things that may be a roadblock in your life.

    I believe knowing what works and what doesn’t in your life is more important for making decisions that will push you closer to the finish line.

  • Your Mind is the Get Way to Your Success

    “Nurture your mind with great thoughts, for you will never go any higher than you think” – Benjamin Desraeli.

    This article is a follow-up to the post entitled your health is your wealth. The state of your mind has a great effect on your life’s well-being.

    Your mind directs your footpaths. In other words, your mind is the compass for your life’s direction.

    You are where you are because of what you think constantly and the action you have taken. You are a sum total of your thoughts and actions.

    That thinking takes place in your mind. With this knowledge, I know that a healthy mind is key to achieving your life’s intended purpose.

    As human beings who are aspiring and focused on contributing positively to a better society, it is, therefore, inevitable that we know how to keep our minds healthy.

    We must also aspire to develop and devise the right mental attitude and create the desire to take action. There is no quick fix to this statement.

    This, however, does not come easy. They say the most high-paying jobs are those that involve thinking. Whether this is true or not is a matter for another day.

    Most people who have succeed in life have deliberately developed the right mental attitude towards life. I know that life will not always be easy.

    But, it also entails that we must be prepared for what comes along because even the so-called easy things are not as easy as they seem.

    Just because you can get over a task with ease does not necessarily mean it is easy for the next person. What is easy for you may not necessarily be easy for someone else.

    If you point your compass in the right direction and take the necessary steps in the right direction, you are surely guaranteed to meet with success.

    “The mind has exactly the same power as the hands; not merely to grasp the world, but to change it” – Colin Wilson.

    In this regard preparation is key. At the core of ones, character is ones thinking and attitude. It is, therefore, of paramount importance that we feed our minds with the right stuff.

    The stuff that will help us in the future and in the present. The right stuff could simply mean changing the people we hang out with; taking time to further our education; making a complete u-turn in the things we are currently doing.

    You will agree with me that our minds continuously playback our lifes experiences. These experiences come in different ways that may include the following; real-life experiences, reading books, watching videos, etc.

    We should not just exist to navigate through life but to ensure that we leave the world a better place than we found it.

    “To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one’s family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one’s own mind. If a man can control his mind he can find the way to Enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him” – Buddha.

    Throughout the years of my life, I have discovered that everything that I have become, is a result of the thoughts and the decision I have made.

    Believe me, some of the decisions I have made in the past are terrible. But you know what, am OK with them because I cannot change the past. These are what have helped me learn how to navigate through life with ease.

    You may not realise it but your thinking and attitude towards life is what has brought you to your current situation.

    However, do not despair, if your compass is pointing in the wrong direction there is still room to correct it. It does not matter how old you are there is still room and time to correct it.

    I believe that you can still achieve your goals and your life’s intended purpose regardless of your current situation and age.

    You can turn round the ship and begin to sail in the right direction. After all, life is not a competition.

    The fact that you are reading this article could be that you are ready to take the next step in your life. The starting point of all success is to change the way you think.

    If your thoughts are always negative change them and begin to believe in yourself a lot more and just having a positive outlook about life.

    Look, not everything that glitters is gold. Even the people you think are successful have struggles in their lives. It’s just that they are more optimistic and positive about it. They have prepared themselves mentally for what life has to offer.

    Conclusion

    “The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind” – William James.

    The sooner you realise that you need to protect your mind from negativity the better. The Bible says “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.”

    If we are to live in a better world we then must learn to feed our minds with the correct stuff and begin to act on it. There is so much going on in this world that needs to be corrected and I believe that you are living now for a reason and purpose.

    You may be going the wrong way with your life but I know that you can change the status quo by repositioning your mind. I challenge you to find it within yourself and beginning repositioning your compass.

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