BUILD UP YOURSELF 3

Years ago, I learnt a fundamental principle that has turned my life around; I call it the Parameter for success. It's so simple, we talk about it but we still don't understand it. 

It's called "Numbers".

Life is a Numbers game

Success in certain aspect of life could mean improving your numbers and Success in other areas could mean decreasing or moderating your numbers. 

When you look at your facts sheet (scoreboard, results, account statement, percentage profits, list of Clientele, Academic results, etc.), what can you see?

Numbers!

Before you start laying blames or making excuses pay attention to your numbers. Your numbers reflect your discipline, talks about your work ethics and most importantly where you are today.  

Your account balance does not bear your friend's name; if it is in red, no one is to blame. When you step on a weight balance, what you see does not belong to your boss nor your colleagues, it's yours...it's all yours.

Do you remember the Parable of the talent? Growing numbers. 

If you don't like your numbers, it's time to improve on your numbers. Build up your daily hours of Productivity; are you a sportsman? Increase your hours of practice; are you a business man? Develop strategies to improve your Clientele. 

You might be smarter than your competitors, more established than they are in the business but if they are better in the control of the numbers, it's just a matter of time, they will soon be your Consultant. Better still they will either buy you up or you will seek for a merger. 

Can you truly account for your 24 hours? Can you truly account for your last pay cheque? How have you been managing those customers? 

Jesus said something profound

"...those that thou gavest me, I have kept, AND NONE OF THEM IS LOST..." Jn. 17:12 (KJV, paraphrase are author's).

What you cannot successfully manage, you will fail to grow.

You will not fail!

Good morning and Happy New Week!

WHAT ARE YOU INVESTING IN?

There is a word that unconsciously drives everyone to do what we do. It determines what we shop for and how we shop; it determines how parents treat and relate to their children; it determines the type of  Job we seek, etc. That word is called VALUE.

Contrary to most beliefs, I think value is perceived, it can not be seen physically. For instance, what makes you valuable as a human being is the air you breathe (true or false?) It is not your hair cut or your flashy car.,,it is simply the air you breathe. When you look at a plane, what makes it valuable is not its size but the quality of its engine. How? Every other thing that goes wrong, can be fixed and the plane would not be grounded but if the engine is faulty, the plane is definitely grounded. 

When you look at a tree, the value of that tree is not its leaves or stem, its value is in its root. Cut the leaves and the stem off, there will still be life in the tree, but when you take out the root, the tree dies. 

                              

So, one of the characteristics of VALUE is that, it cannot be seen. Permit me to say...

IF YOU ARE CHASING AFTER WHAT IS SEEN, YOU ARE NOT CHASING VALUE...you are busy chasing things.The interesting bit is, when you get VALUE you have ALL things. Get your priorities right! So, the question is

What are you investing in? It is time to start increasing your value.

Does it surprise you why certain children (even adults) can not survive outside home? Some times it is as a result of the fact that, their parents were busy BUYING THEM THINGS but not necessarily DEVELOPING SUSTAINABLE VALUES, hence they can not survive independently. 

An employer is seeking for VALUE not a certificate.

Let me share some examples of values to invest in:

KNOWLEDGE: The conscious acquisition and understanding of relevant information.

DISCIPLINE: The art of temporarily depriving oneself of pleasure so as to be focused on the pursuit of one's assignment.

DILIGENCE: The art of sitting on a task and delivering an excellent outcome.

DETERMINATION: Staying focused on the task in such a way that obstacles literally surrender.

CREATIVITY: Injecting new and functional perspectives to existing cycles.

POSITIVITY: The discipline of staying optimistic in spite of prevailing negative circumstances.

GODLY CHARACTER: Honouring God in all you do as well as demonstrating love for everyone you come across.

The list is inexhaustible but as could be seen, these are virtues that can not be seen with the physical eyes. 

MONEY IS A REWARD FOR VALUE INVESTED. IF YOU THINK YOU ARE LOW ON CASH, SIMPLY INCREASE YOUR VALUE. 

Parents it is okay to get things for your kids, but much more...develop in them sustainable values. Remember, VALUE is not necessarily material possession, hence it can not be seen with the eyes. VALUE is that priceless core of any system that keeps the rest of the system alive and functional.

Joseph had value...he did not have a degree, yet he was sort after by a King.

David had courage (value), he did not have the height (as at the time), neither was he physically built, yet a physically built Saul lost the throne to a man of inestimable value.

Daniel was so VALUE-FULL to the point that he was relevant to the scheme of things under 9 different kings.

It's time to shop for sustainable values.

Till when next you visit this blog, KEEP INCREASING YOUR VALUE!

BUILD UP YOURSELF 2

''...Woe to the, O land, WHEN THY KING is A CHILD and thy princes eat in the morning...'' Eccl. 10:16 (KJV, paraphrase are author's)

Everything rises and falls on Leadership - John Maxwell. 

Your life is like a Nation and everything you are involved in are like institutions of that Nation and guess what...You are the Prime Minister or the President. 

If your Nation is failing economically it is because you have not built that sector of your Nation. If your industries are failing it's as a result of lack of working knowledge. 

Haven't you observed...an underdeveloped Nation attracts less investors...so also an underdeveloped individual attracts less opportunities. 

There is a place for prayer, there is a place for fasting, there is also a place for miracles but none of these will be a substitute for practically building up your life. 

The Tower of Babel didn't go up by Prayers, yet they were so pragmatic in their approach that God came down to stop them. [Gen. 11:6].

It's time to settle down and look inwards...see areas of your life that needs attention. Go for relevant trainings, go online and educate yourself...do whatever it takes to build yourself. 

An underdeveloped CEO will ruin his business venture. Next to a system that appears not to be working is an ignorant/underdeveloped operator. 

When you build up yourself, the things around and the things you are responsible for are also affected; when you decide not to commit to continuous Personal Development, soon everything around you begins to experience stagnation. 

What you are yet to see in your life is what you are yet to grow into; and what you are yet to grow into is what you don't deserve. 

You will not fail!

Good morning and Happy New Week!

GIVE A DEFINITION TO YOUR PURSUIT

There are two types of people in the world today: there are those who go with the flow and there are those who create their flow. What difference will it make if a soccer coach tells his team 'we are going into this game to score 5 goals'? The other coach might say, 'we are going to win'...but by what margin?

Both teams will approach the game differently and it will show in the discipline with which they prepare. Whereas the '5 goals team' will not relent until they achieve the 'definition of their pursuit' the other team will simply score '2 goals' and become complacent assuming they have won but it is not always the case. 

As a business man, what exactly do you want to achieve today, this week, this month? As a team leader, where exactly are you driving your team to? As a husband, a wife...what type of family do you see yourself having? Stop doing what everyone else is doing, stop letting things take there natural course. Those who drive can attest to the fact that...if you just leave your car to drive itself for about 2 minutes, it is very likely that you would be heading for the mechanic garage, right?

Someone who desires to lose 3 stones in the next 3 months have a different type of discipline compared to someone who just want to lose weight. Why? One pursuit is more defined than the other. If you could take a look around your world, everything working are those with CLEARLY DEFINED OBJECTIVES from the start; and everything that is not working efficiently are those that had a poor definition from the start. 

 

The question is: WHAT DO YOU WANT? Don't just desire to succeed, what definition of success would you like to have? Paul said: 

1 Corinthians 9:26

...I therefore so run, NOT AS UNCERTAINLY...NOT AS ONE THAT BEATETH THE AIR...

There is a wise man who said, he desires a 'itch free' marriage, it empowered his preparation and the discipline with which he pursued his definition and today, that is his reality. There is another young couple I know...they have said they desire a 'blissful home', they are committed to it and that's their experience till date. 

What do you want?

How will you qualify (define in specific terms) what you want?

Are you willing to commit to the discipline and the sacrifice required?

The truth is you can do way better than what you are doing right now as a person (family, business, career, relationship, walk of faith, relationship with God). You will be amazed at how much your body can stretch to deliver your mandate. Why? When you clearly define your pursuit, your brain naturally sends signals to your body and your body delivers the required strength for the task. 

At 85 years a man called Caleb demanded for his inheritance...he said....'give me this mountatin'

At 17 years, a boy called David brought down a giant...he said ''I  will cut off your head''

In Gen 11:4. some group of men assigned themselves a well defined task...they said '' let us build a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven''. As unimaginable as that dream was, they moved the one who sits on the throne to take action - God moved. 

There is so much on your inside, but until you CLEARLY DEFINE YOUR PURSUIT, you might never realise how far you can go. 

Till when next you visit this blog KEEP GIVING A DEFINITION TO YOUR PURSUIT.

BUILD UP YOURSELF 1

A future that is not prepared for is a future that will never be experienced. A house that remains a plan on paper is a house that will never be inhabited.  

Every student who wants to pass an exam in one seating must build the capacity to sit for a minimum of 4 hours daily.

Show me a man who wants to become an effective leader tomorrow, I will show you a man who is committed to building effective people skills today.   

It does not matter how big or how small your next goal/dream in life is; you will always need to build up your capacity to deliver that goal or dream. 

It's time to focus on building up the relevant skills, competencies, abilities and capabilities. I know you have the ability to sing a song, how about producing an album? I know you have the ability to mend clothes, how about sewing a dress and moving up to owning your fashion line? 

Stop congratulating yourself that you have laid the foundation, a foundation cannot accommodate anyone...it's time to build beyond the foundation. 

You that claim you have been praying for a life partner: as a man, have you really sat down to build  yourself to become a good husband...as a girl, have you built yourself to the point where you can be an effective wife? 

Ability might come natural but skill is built over time. You have the ability to run does not suggest you have the skill to win a race or a Marathon. 

A wise man once said "a man without skills will kill".

You will not fail!

Good morning and Happy New Week!

JULY THEME

Dear Friend,

Congratulations and welcome to another Month!

Have you discovered, no matter how colourful and how beautifully designed a House appears on a Plan, no one is in a haste to live in that House? 

In this new Month, we will be considering the theme BUILD UP YOURSELF. 

No Construction site ever appears comfortable, because of the building activities on going. 

It's time to leave your Comfort zone...it's time to begin the Construction of a glorious Future. 

Congratulations once again and Happy New Month! 

GROWTH METRE

Every time something looks impossible to us, every time something looks overwhelming to us, there is a simple explanation we give to such tasks: it is hard...it is too difficult...maybe it is not for me.

Give a 3 year old a 10 litre of oil in a jar to move for 100 metres. The child might not even be able to lift it up from the floor. Bring another child who is 12 year old to do the same task, he does it comfortably. Have we changed the task? No! So, what happened? The difference in the level of growth and development between both children. 

I tell you the truth, for everything you think is a problem, challenge or difficulty...someone somewhere is currently triumphing over the same situation. Challenges come to measure our level of growth in life (as it applies to that challenge); but most of us instead of RESPONDING to those challenges, choose to REACT to them. When we respond, we simply ask yourselves, HOW CAN I..? When we react, we simply give ourselves reasons to justify why we are in such difficulty. 

It is time to grow up!

Your negativity towards life and the challenges that come with life is definitely taking you nowhere. Enough of your complaining, enough of the self pity and endless reasons for you not being where you want to be or achieve what you want. Your level on the growth metre is just too low. 

In Numbers 13 (the story of the 12 spies): Every one of them saw giants, but 10 of them were REACTIVE and only 2 of them were RESPONSIVE. The interpretation we give to life's seeming challenges is a reflection of our growth level. If we feel overwhelmed it is an indication that we need some growing up to do. 

Every giant is kill-able; every mountain is surmountable. The question is ARE YOU READY TO PAY THE PRICE FOR GROWTH? ARE WE READY TO GIVE UP OUR CRAVINGS FOR PLEASURE AND FUN AND SUBMIT TO THE PAIN OF DISCIPLINE THAT MAKES US FIT FOR THE CHALLENGES OF LIFE. There is only one reason, why someone who is overweight would remain the way they are...not simply ready to give up their unhealthy but comfortable lifestyle for the pain that comes with working out, in order to keep healthy.

The pain of discipline is temporary but HIGHLY REWARDING, the fun of not accepting responsibility for growing up is also temporary but SPEEDILY DESTROYING 

I say to you today, that marital challenge, relationship challenge, financial challenge, career challenge, etc are all surmountable. Yes! They are surmountable. How?

Growing up is a DELIBERATE and CONSCIOUS action. GROWTH CAN NEVER BE ASSUMED. 

Here are a few basic steps: 

1. Stop justifying your current attitude towards the problem. Complaining and blaming everyone and everything does not solve the problem.

2. What new disciplines (reading, studying, working out, praying more, being more positive, etc.) do I need to commit to for a positive change in my world? List them.

3. GO ALL OUT AND DO what you have listed in number 2.

WE CAN NOT FIX THE WORLD, WE CAN ONLY FIX OURSELVES

What is your reading on the GROWTH METRE..? It is time to grow up a bit more. Every challenge is not there to kill you but an indication that there is some growing up to do.

Till  when next you visit this blog...keep WELCOMING CHALLENGES and BE RESPONSIVE not REACTIVE.