Perhaps the most sought after goal in our present society is success in business. Whether you want to be promoted into high paying management positions, or wish to start your own independent enterprise, knowledge of the business world is important.
As you plan a course of action towards accomplishing your goal, keep in mind the small goals that put you closer to the end. And be prepared to change often. You may need to change companies, or to take opportunities in other department as those positions open.
Create an aura of success around you. People who are successful dress that way. Even if you’re not in a high income bracket, act as though you have already achieved without being egotistical or overspending. Develop an expertise in an area. Don’t keep special information to yourself, but be quick to learn all there is about your position and the tasks surrounding getting that job done.
Capitalize on your strengths, and let others help you develop your weakness into assets. Get to know the people in the company and the people in the industry. Read all the trade journals and magazines relating to your company. Make appointments with people who a successful in your field and learn from them.
You need to have a total commitment to succeed in business. Most people who make it to the executive boardroom put in long hours, often at the sacrifice of everything else. Regardless of the physical effort involved, you must mentally be engrossed in your business and the company enterprises. In order to help yourself develop fully, you might seek a mentor, someone who will offer you time and teach you the ropes. This person is someone who believes in your ability, someone who you can develop a mutually beneficial business relationship with. Some people become friendly with all their co-workers and find that is a way to advance. But don’t try to be extroverted if it’s not real to you. Most people who successfully run their own business are individuals who like to work alone.
As you increase your activities and accomplishments, you increase your potential to reach higher. The more you achieve, the more confidence you develop to achieve more. You don’t have to be the same as everyone else and fit like a vegetable in a patch. Be unique, different. Capitalize on your own self-image. Don’t fall victim to self-consciousness. Trust your intuition. Hunches and inner feelings usually are the best route to travel, regardless of what seems to be the logical choice. Make decisions quickly and with firmness. A true leader will handle theses responsibilities efficiently. That’s what makes you different and why you’ll rise to the top.
Be persistent in attaining your goals, but be open and sincere. Many people choose not to increase their own accomplishments and will give you the right of way to be successful. If you are having personal difficulties with any co-workers, try to know more about these people from a personal angle. Be interested in them and their accomplishments and goals. You might be able to turn opposition into friendship.
Above all, use your integrity. If the goal is not worthy of your inner desires, it will be hard to attain. If your methods are not sincere, you will receive opposition. If your actions are not honest you will suffer the consequences. Turn all negative qualities into positive aspects, then watch yourself achieve.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“The secret of success is learning how to use pain and pleasure instead of having pain and pleasure use you. If you do that, you’re in control of your life. If you don’t, life controls you.” – Anthony Robbins
Friday, September 28, 2007
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
BEGIN, NO MATTER HOW SMALL
Think about the ants again. How long does it take them to prepare? How much food they gather every day? Not much, I guess, but because they do little they can do daily, they are able to gather enough to be prepared for the next phase of life. Begin, no matter how small. An oak tree started out as an acorn, and a forest started out as a single tree.
John F.Kennedy, in his inaugural address about his plans for the American people said, “…All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days, nor in the life of this administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin…” Let us begin! Winning starts with beginning.
“Despise not this small beginning, for the eyes of the Lord rejoice to see the work begin...” ZECH 4:10
God is excited to see you begin your dream. He is excited to watch you take your first step, whether that’s writing down the title of your new book, registering for an examination, or sending in your proposal. Whatever your dream, “the eyes of the Lord rejoice to see it begin.” Begin, no matter how small.
Small beginnings do not mean small destinies. They are great destines that need time to mature.
Give your dream the opportunity of taking a life of its own by giving birth to it through beginning. God is waiting for you to begin. He is waiting for you like He waited for the four lepers, waiting for you to take the first step so that He can enter onto the scene on your behalf. Therefore, begin, no matter how small!
QUOTE FOE TODAY
“All great ideas have small beginnings.” – 3M
John F.Kennedy, in his inaugural address about his plans for the American people said, “…All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days, nor in the life of this administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin…” Let us begin! Winning starts with beginning.
“Despise not this small beginning, for the eyes of the Lord rejoice to see the work begin...” ZECH 4:10
God is excited to see you begin your dream. He is excited to watch you take your first step, whether that’s writing down the title of your new book, registering for an examination, or sending in your proposal. Whatever your dream, “the eyes of the Lord rejoice to see it begin.” Begin, no matter how small.
Small beginnings do not mean small destinies. They are great destines that need time to mature.
Give your dream the opportunity of taking a life of its own by giving birth to it through beginning. God is waiting for you to begin. He is waiting for you like He waited for the four lepers, waiting for you to take the first step so that He can enter onto the scene on your behalf. Therefore, begin, no matter how small!
QUOTE FOE TODAY
“All great ideas have small beginnings.” – 3M
CREATING PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
As a Candler bought a kettle and the formula for a drink and simply improved on the idea. He produced the drink in large containers and put them in public locations. That was how Coca cola exploded in sales.
One of the cheapest routes to creating products and services is to look around at the things that are being done already and to improve on them. In fact, start-up entrepreneurs are usually advised not to try to start with an entirely new product. It could be a costly experiment. The truth is that there are loads of products and services being supplied already. People are used to receiving them; ride on their reputation. There is a difference between an inventor and an entrepreneur. It is not every inventor that is an entrepreneur. That is why there are many inventors who never make money from their inventions. It is when entrepreneur come along, take the inventions and package them for business that those inventions begin to make money. So, the fact that you have invented a product or service does not mean you are going to make a lot of money from it. It is advisable that you look at the myriads of services and products that are being supplied now and just design something better.
There are a few entrepreneurs in Nigeria that I quite appreciate. One of them is the publisher of Success Digest magazine and Complete Sports series of magazines. He is a sport journalist who suddenly realized that all the newspapers only have sports sections in them. But there were sports enthusiasts whom as soon as they bought a newspaper, first flipped to the back page to read articles on sports. Then he thought, “It looks like some of these people are probably keen on sports only. What if we provide a newspaper that specializes in sports? What if we did a magazine that is focused purely on sports?” He did it and it was a success. I came across a young man also sometime back, his name is Shina Adegoke. He discovered that Nigerians see products, either from magazines or TV programs or on the internet that they would like to buy from overseas but they don’t have a means of paying for these products and the cheapest way for you to order for any product is for you to pay online via credit cards. So he opened a Website called NigeriaBuyOnline.com. The simple arrangement is that you pay to him, and he arranges your payment overseas.
TRY THIS EXERCISE
- Make a list of everything in your living room
- Go through the list
- Try and write down how each item could be supplied in a better way
This little exercise would help you develop your creativity. If you want to start a bank, well, go ahead and do that. The new generation banks did that and beat the first generation banks to it. The old banks used to give us tallies and keep us for hours, before the new banks came along offering 5 minutes banking services. That got everybody’s attention.
There is such enormous need in our formal education system. Over a million candidates wrote the last Universities put together cannot take more than a hundred and fifty thousand students, “Where should the remaining eight hundred and fifty thousand go?” Thank God for private universities. These needs are in all levels of formal education – Daycare, Nursery, Primary, Secondary and the University levels.
Secondly, there is such an awesome need for informal education in Nigeria today. You see a good chunk of what people study in school is useless for day-to-day living. What informal education does is to cut off all the flesh and go straight to the bones. That is what seminars, audio training cassettes, video training and books do. Out of this one-year course cut 11 months and 3 weeks, then organize a three-day seminar and give people what they can apply immediately. We need that more than ever before. One of the reasons people like Bill Gates of Microsoft did not finish school was because most of the things he was being taught were somehow not of benefit to him. He already had his mind on being an entrepreneur, and he wanted things that were relevant to his dream.
Soichiro Honda, the founder of Honda Motor Company, was a mechanic that used to repair motorcycles. He was trying to design an engine of his own because the motorcycles they had were imported from Europe. But he was having serious problems with his piston and rings, so he went to study mechanical engineering in the university. You know the only problem? He never attended the theoretical classes, just the practical. There was a particular course that addressed the problem he had. He managed to hang on in school until they got to the particular class that address his problem and as soon as he got what he needed, that was as many people as possible in Nigeria to teach the things that would be of immediate use to 120 million Nigerians, for example, entrpreneuring.
I believe that a season of insight and understanding would come on your life. As you move around town this week I believe there would be transfer of wealth and ideas to you. We have heard other names of people associated with particular lines of business but now; I believe it is your turn. I see you taking over. You will succeed.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“Efficiency is doing better what is already being done” – Peter F. Drucker
One of the cheapest routes to creating products and services is to look around at the things that are being done already and to improve on them. In fact, start-up entrepreneurs are usually advised not to try to start with an entirely new product. It could be a costly experiment. The truth is that there are loads of products and services being supplied already. People are used to receiving them; ride on their reputation. There is a difference between an inventor and an entrepreneur. It is not every inventor that is an entrepreneur. That is why there are many inventors who never make money from their inventions. It is when entrepreneur come along, take the inventions and package them for business that those inventions begin to make money. So, the fact that you have invented a product or service does not mean you are going to make a lot of money from it. It is advisable that you look at the myriads of services and products that are being supplied now and just design something better.
There are a few entrepreneurs in Nigeria that I quite appreciate. One of them is the publisher of Success Digest magazine and Complete Sports series of magazines. He is a sport journalist who suddenly realized that all the newspapers only have sports sections in them. But there were sports enthusiasts whom as soon as they bought a newspaper, first flipped to the back page to read articles on sports. Then he thought, “It looks like some of these people are probably keen on sports only. What if we provide a newspaper that specializes in sports? What if we did a magazine that is focused purely on sports?” He did it and it was a success. I came across a young man also sometime back, his name is Shina Adegoke. He discovered that Nigerians see products, either from magazines or TV programs or on the internet that they would like to buy from overseas but they don’t have a means of paying for these products and the cheapest way for you to order for any product is for you to pay online via credit cards. So he opened a Website called NigeriaBuyOnline.com. The simple arrangement is that you pay to him, and he arranges your payment overseas.
TRY THIS EXERCISE
- Make a list of everything in your living room
- Go through the list
- Try and write down how each item could be supplied in a better way
This little exercise would help you develop your creativity. If you want to start a bank, well, go ahead and do that. The new generation banks did that and beat the first generation banks to it. The old banks used to give us tallies and keep us for hours, before the new banks came along offering 5 minutes banking services. That got everybody’s attention.
There is such enormous need in our formal education system. Over a million candidates wrote the last Universities put together cannot take more than a hundred and fifty thousand students, “Where should the remaining eight hundred and fifty thousand go?” Thank God for private universities. These needs are in all levels of formal education – Daycare, Nursery, Primary, Secondary and the University levels.
Secondly, there is such an awesome need for informal education in Nigeria today. You see a good chunk of what people study in school is useless for day-to-day living. What informal education does is to cut off all the flesh and go straight to the bones. That is what seminars, audio training cassettes, video training and books do. Out of this one-year course cut 11 months and 3 weeks, then organize a three-day seminar and give people what they can apply immediately. We need that more than ever before. One of the reasons people like Bill Gates of Microsoft did not finish school was because most of the things he was being taught were somehow not of benefit to him. He already had his mind on being an entrepreneur, and he wanted things that were relevant to his dream.
Soichiro Honda, the founder of Honda Motor Company, was a mechanic that used to repair motorcycles. He was trying to design an engine of his own because the motorcycles they had were imported from Europe. But he was having serious problems with his piston and rings, so he went to study mechanical engineering in the university. You know the only problem? He never attended the theoretical classes, just the practical. There was a particular course that addressed the problem he had. He managed to hang on in school until they got to the particular class that address his problem and as soon as he got what he needed, that was as many people as possible in Nigeria to teach the things that would be of immediate use to 120 million Nigerians, for example, entrpreneuring.
I believe that a season of insight and understanding would come on your life. As you move around town this week I believe there would be transfer of wealth and ideas to you. We have heard other names of people associated with particular lines of business but now; I believe it is your turn. I see you taking over. You will succeed.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“Efficiency is doing better what is already being done” – Peter F. Drucker
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
UNLESS THE LORD GOES WITH US
Then Moses said to him, "If Your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here." - Exodus 33:15.
Moses was in the middle of his journey through the wilderness, leading the people of Israel out of Egypt. The people had just sinned by worshiping the golden calf. Moses interceded for them and God spared them their lives. Moses then talked one on one with the Lord. He knew he could not lead this stubborn people without God's presence. He had come to realize that without God's presence, he could not do anything.How will anyone know that You are pleased with me and with Your people unless You go with us? What else will distinguish me and Your people from all the other people on the face of the earth? (Exodus 33:16)Moses did not want to move farther without the assurance that God was moving with him. He knew it was a life-and-death situation. He sought the Lord with his whole heart on this one matter.The question is a good one. If we are to be effective in anything we do for the Lord, the Lord must be in the midst of it. Unless the Lord's power is seen among us, we will be just another person who has religion. Unless we manifest His life to others, they will see only good behavior.Moving out in presumption will end in failure and frustration. Ask the Lord today to assure you of His presence and power in your activities. Then you will be assured that you will be distinguished among all the other people on the face of the earth.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“The world’s great characters have been products of faith. Faith is the mighty force that drove them to produce the miracles of civilization.” - E.W.Kenyon
Moses was in the middle of his journey through the wilderness, leading the people of Israel out of Egypt. The people had just sinned by worshiping the golden calf. Moses interceded for them and God spared them their lives. Moses then talked one on one with the Lord. He knew he could not lead this stubborn people without God's presence. He had come to realize that without God's presence, he could not do anything.How will anyone know that You are pleased with me and with Your people unless You go with us? What else will distinguish me and Your people from all the other people on the face of the earth? (Exodus 33:16)Moses did not want to move farther without the assurance that God was moving with him. He knew it was a life-and-death situation. He sought the Lord with his whole heart on this one matter.The question is a good one. If we are to be effective in anything we do for the Lord, the Lord must be in the midst of it. Unless the Lord's power is seen among us, we will be just another person who has religion. Unless we manifest His life to others, they will see only good behavior.Moving out in presumption will end in failure and frustration. Ask the Lord today to assure you of His presence and power in your activities. Then you will be assured that you will be distinguished among all the other people on the face of the earth.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“The world’s great characters have been products of faith. Faith is the mighty force that drove them to produce the miracles of civilization.” - E.W.Kenyon
BEGIN, NO MATTER HOW SMALL
Think about the ants again. How long does it take them to prepare? How much food they gather every day? Not much, I guess, but because they do little they can do daily, they are able to gather enough to be prepared for the next phase of life. Begin, no matter how small. An oak tree started out as an acorn, and a forest started out as a single tree.
John F.Kennedy, in his inaugural address about his plans for the American people said, “…All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days, nor in the life of this administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin…” Let us begin! Winning starts with beginning.
“Despise not this small beginning, for the eyes of the Lord rejoice to see the work begin...” ZECH 4:10
God is excited to see you begin your dream. He is excited to watch you take your first step, whether that’s writing down the title of your new book, registering for an examination, or sending in your proposal. Whatever your dream, “the eyes of the Lord rejoice to see it begin.” Begin, no matter how small.
Small beginnings do not mean small destinies. They are great destines that need time to mature. Give your dream the opportunity of taking a life of its own by giving birth to it through beginning. God is waiting for you to begin. He is waiting for you like He waited for the four lepers, waiting for you to take the first step so that He can enter onto the scene on your behalf. Therefore, begin, no matter how small!
QUOTE FOE TODAY
“All great ideas have small beginnings.” – 3M
John F.Kennedy, in his inaugural address about his plans for the American people said, “…All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days, nor in the life of this administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin…” Let us begin! Winning starts with beginning.
“Despise not this small beginning, for the eyes of the Lord rejoice to see the work begin...” ZECH 4:10
God is excited to see you begin your dream. He is excited to watch you take your first step, whether that’s writing down the title of your new book, registering for an examination, or sending in your proposal. Whatever your dream, “the eyes of the Lord rejoice to see it begin.” Begin, no matter how small.
Small beginnings do not mean small destinies. They are great destines that need time to mature. Give your dream the opportunity of taking a life of its own by giving birth to it through beginning. God is waiting for you to begin. He is waiting for you like He waited for the four lepers, waiting for you to take the first step so that He can enter onto the scene on your behalf. Therefore, begin, no matter how small!
QUOTE FOE TODAY
“All great ideas have small beginnings.” – 3M
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
CHANGE AGENTS - FOUR LEPERS WHO MADE HISTORY
This is the story of four outcasts who made history not too long ago in a city called Samaria. They had a disease called Leprosy, and their society had banished and ostracized them. Therefore, they lived outside of the city, at its entrance. 2 Kings 7:1-11.
At the time, Samaria was experiencing a famine so severe that some of its citizens had begun to resort to cannibalism. The King had become so desperate for change that he approached a Prophet in the city, called Elisha. In those days, prophets were the mouthpiece of God. Elisha, under divine inspiration, informed the king that within the next 24 hours, God would cause abundance to come to the city in such a way that “nine litres of flour or eighteen litres of bailey
Grain will be sold in the market of Samaria for 40p.” So ridiculous was the prophecy that the King’s personal assistant, who had accompanied him, did not believe it. He said, “That couldn’t happen if the Lord made windows in the sky!” The King’s assistant, engulfed by famine, could not see how a miracle would occur within 24 hours.
In the meantime, outside of the city gates, the four lepers were experiencing the same hunger pangs that everyone else in the city was experiencing. They knew nothing about the meeting the King and the Prophet, nor the prediction that within 24 hours there would be abundance at the gates of Samaria.
But rather than sitting down and wishing that things would get better, the lepers decided to do something to change their situation. They decided to act upon overcoming starvation, and they moved towards the camp of the Syrians their enemies. That step changed their history forever.
When they got to the camp of the Syrians, no one was there! The Lord had filled the Syrians’ minds with the sound of a great army approaching, the clatter of speeding chariots and the galloping of horses. The Syrians assumed the king of Israel had hired men to attack them, and in panic and fear, they fled into the night, abandoning their tents, horses, donkeys, and stores. The lepers got to the camp and had a feast.
The turning point in the lives of the poor lepers came when they asked themselves, “Why sit here until we die?” This statement was the catalyst for the breakthrough they needed. And when they took action, they fulfilled the prophecy. It was the step that brought the reality of the promise of abundance that God had in store for them. Had they not taken that first step, had they not moved towards their dream, the prophecy would have gone unfulfilled, and they and the rest of the inhabitants of Samaria would have starved to death even though abundance was there, waiting for them to step out and collect it.
The four lepers became the agent of change for their city and the instruments through which God’s plans and purpose for their generation were accomplished.
We learned these lessons:
- Prophecies and promises go unfulfilled without corresponding actions.
- God often works through ordinary people, even outcasts like lepers, who know nothing about His plans but who are willing to take the steps necessary to fulfil His promises.
- Work is the father of opportunity and the mother of luck. The more we apply ourselves to the task, the more opportunities we’ll have and the “luckier” we’ll become. The lepers were “lucky” because they worked.
What was special about the lepers? Nothing. In fact, they were at a major disadvantage in life. They were discounted as failures in the eyes of their society. But they discovered the power of taking risks.
TAKING RISKS
History is usually made by ordinary people who take extraordinary risks.
Is profit not rightly defined as the return on risk? In business parlance, “high risk, high return: low risk, low return” is the law of the land. However, when it comes to decisions in life, we most often settle for low-risk ventures. Little wonder the returns on our lives are not commensurate with our potential for success.
How risky were the adventures of the four lepers? They took a step forward in hope that their enemies, the Syrians, would spare them a meal although that step held the possibility of death for them. They knew that their present situation held no future for them, but rather than sitting around hoping for change, they took a risky step forward towards the camp of their well-fed enemies.
If risk entails leaving a presently negative situation in pursuit of a better prospect even if it holds the possibility of failure, then it is worth it. If the risk holds the option of a new beginning, then it is worth taking.
The truth is, it is risky to remain in a negative situation. It is risky to remain at a job that you loathe. It’s like remaining in a boat that is sinking when life has given you chance to walk on the water of opportunity. Opportunities will pass you by if you don’t step out and take risks like the four lepers.
The greatest risk in life lies, not in taking risks, but in failing to take them.
SUCCESS, ANTIDOTE TO PREJUDICE
The four lepers teach us that success is just a step away. But they also show us that success changes people’s perception of us.
While success might not be able to change our background, race, colour, sex, and so on, it has power to change other peoples’ opinions. The success of the lepers did not change that fact that they were lepers, but it changed the way they were seen and treated by their society. Before they succeeded, they were outcasts, abandoned to the outskirts of the city. But once they found success, they were not only allowed back into the city, they were invited into the King’s palace to convey the good news.
The King and his people no longer viewed them as lepers. Instead, they saw them as agents of change, people with the solution to the problem of famine. They teach us the following:
- When you have the solution to the problems of your generation, their prejudices usually disappear. Even a purebred racist, sexist, etc, would praise the person who discovered the cure for cancer or HIV/AIDS.
- The easiest way to change people’s opinion of you is to succeed. Prejudices take years to form, and it would take years of campaign for it to change. South Africa is still not completely free from Apartheid. American blacks are still not free from racism, despite passing of nearly 150 years since the Emancipation Proclamation. However, on an individual level, all that changes once you succeed. Colin Powell became the first black Secretary of State in U.S. history, and nobody campaigned against it. Why? He was a testimony of success.
- Success opens door that have previously been shut due to our colour, race, or gender. The doors shut before the four lepers were immediately opened when they had good news for the citizens of Samaria.
- It is not how you look that counts, it’s what you reflect. Who remembers Abe Lincoln because of his looks? When Nelson Mandela’s name is mentioned, is it his looks that come to mind? Even today, with all emphasis on beauty, it’s crystal clear that people are remembered, not for their looks, but for their accomplishments, no matter how big or small they may seem.
REASONS WHY PEOPLE FAIL TO ACT ON THEIR DREAMS
Why do people fail to act on their dreams? While the reasons are numerous, let’s discuss two:
- Analysis paralysis:
Analysis paralysis is a buzzword in business used to describe people who are always analysing situations but are never able to take action. They want conditions to be perfect before they start. I call them, “Prisoners of Hope.”
- Unwillingness to start small:
They want to start with a bang, and if they cannot, they would rather not take the little steps necessary to reach their dreams. They want the lead actor role in a play of greatness and if they can’t get it immediately, they would rather not participate in the play.
PRISONERS OF HOPE
These groups of people are those who sincerely hope that someday conditions will be favourable. Someday, opportunities will knock at their door. Someday, conditions will be perfect and they will have a luck break in life. They live in a fool’s paradise called “someday.” Their hope of a better tomorrow has kept them in prison today. They cannot move on, or accomplish great things in life, because they have built prison doors around themselves and committed their release to “ Mr. Someday.”
Don’t be a prisoner of hope. Don’t allow your hope for a better tomorrow to blindfold you to the opportunities that are before you today. Don’t allow your hope of a brighter future to blind your eyes to the dawning of a new day. Turn! Take a bold step. Leave your present state. Take the necessary actions towards your goal, and you will find that success has been waiting for you all while.
Break free from the “tomorrow” mentality. It doesn’t really exist. Between a thousand yesterday and a million tomorrows, there is only today. Today is the only day to accomplish greatness. TODAY IS THE DAY TO BEGIN YOUR SUCCESS STORY. There will never be another day like today. You will not enjoy successes you were meant to enjoy today if you postpone it to someday.
Abraham Lincoln once observed, “The best thing about the future is that it comes only one day at a time.” Today, therefore, is not only the dawning of a new day; it is the unfolding of your future. Utilize it effectively. No matter what your dream or goal is in life, there is something about it that you can do to make it a reality.
And do it daily. Remember that great people do daily, what ordinary people do occasionally. Use the summer period of your life to prepare for greatness. Follow the advice of the sage, “ A wise youth makes hay while the sun shines, but what a shame to see a lad who sleeps away his hour of opportunity.” Proverb 10:5. Don’t sleep away your hour of opportunity. Wake up to the demands and challenges of your future. Destiny beckons everyday. Respond to it. Recall the success of the ants. The ants teach us the principle of urgency. Why do they labour hard all summer? Because they do not want to be caught hungry in winter. They use the summer period of their lives to prepare for “the retirement” of winter.
From the ants, we learn that success is maximizing each moment, each day, each season; to live with a sense of urgency that you are willing to work hard all summer because you know that winter is about to begin, when conditions will no longer be favourable.
People who succeed are driven by the passion of the now. Maximise your day.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“Our grand business is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what is at hand.” – Thomas Carlyle
At the time, Samaria was experiencing a famine so severe that some of its citizens had begun to resort to cannibalism. The King had become so desperate for change that he approached a Prophet in the city, called Elisha. In those days, prophets were the mouthpiece of God. Elisha, under divine inspiration, informed the king that within the next 24 hours, God would cause abundance to come to the city in such a way that “nine litres of flour or eighteen litres of bailey
Grain will be sold in the market of Samaria for 40p.” So ridiculous was the prophecy that the King’s personal assistant, who had accompanied him, did not believe it. He said, “That couldn’t happen if the Lord made windows in the sky!” The King’s assistant, engulfed by famine, could not see how a miracle would occur within 24 hours.
In the meantime, outside of the city gates, the four lepers were experiencing the same hunger pangs that everyone else in the city was experiencing. They knew nothing about the meeting the King and the Prophet, nor the prediction that within 24 hours there would be abundance at the gates of Samaria.
But rather than sitting down and wishing that things would get better, the lepers decided to do something to change their situation. They decided to act upon overcoming starvation, and they moved towards the camp of the Syrians their enemies. That step changed their history forever.
When they got to the camp of the Syrians, no one was there! The Lord had filled the Syrians’ minds with the sound of a great army approaching, the clatter of speeding chariots and the galloping of horses. The Syrians assumed the king of Israel had hired men to attack them, and in panic and fear, they fled into the night, abandoning their tents, horses, donkeys, and stores. The lepers got to the camp and had a feast.
The turning point in the lives of the poor lepers came when they asked themselves, “Why sit here until we die?” This statement was the catalyst for the breakthrough they needed. And when they took action, they fulfilled the prophecy. It was the step that brought the reality of the promise of abundance that God had in store for them. Had they not taken that first step, had they not moved towards their dream, the prophecy would have gone unfulfilled, and they and the rest of the inhabitants of Samaria would have starved to death even though abundance was there, waiting for them to step out and collect it.
The four lepers became the agent of change for their city and the instruments through which God’s plans and purpose for their generation were accomplished.
We learned these lessons:
- Prophecies and promises go unfulfilled without corresponding actions.
- God often works through ordinary people, even outcasts like lepers, who know nothing about His plans but who are willing to take the steps necessary to fulfil His promises.
- Work is the father of opportunity and the mother of luck. The more we apply ourselves to the task, the more opportunities we’ll have and the “luckier” we’ll become. The lepers were “lucky” because they worked.
What was special about the lepers? Nothing. In fact, they were at a major disadvantage in life. They were discounted as failures in the eyes of their society. But they discovered the power of taking risks.
TAKING RISKS
History is usually made by ordinary people who take extraordinary risks.
Is profit not rightly defined as the return on risk? In business parlance, “high risk, high return: low risk, low return” is the law of the land. However, when it comes to decisions in life, we most often settle for low-risk ventures. Little wonder the returns on our lives are not commensurate with our potential for success.
How risky were the adventures of the four lepers? They took a step forward in hope that their enemies, the Syrians, would spare them a meal although that step held the possibility of death for them. They knew that their present situation held no future for them, but rather than sitting around hoping for change, they took a risky step forward towards the camp of their well-fed enemies.
If risk entails leaving a presently negative situation in pursuit of a better prospect even if it holds the possibility of failure, then it is worth it. If the risk holds the option of a new beginning, then it is worth taking.
The truth is, it is risky to remain in a negative situation. It is risky to remain at a job that you loathe. It’s like remaining in a boat that is sinking when life has given you chance to walk on the water of opportunity. Opportunities will pass you by if you don’t step out and take risks like the four lepers.
The greatest risk in life lies, not in taking risks, but in failing to take them.
SUCCESS, ANTIDOTE TO PREJUDICE
The four lepers teach us that success is just a step away. But they also show us that success changes people’s perception of us.
While success might not be able to change our background, race, colour, sex, and so on, it has power to change other peoples’ opinions. The success of the lepers did not change that fact that they were lepers, but it changed the way they were seen and treated by their society. Before they succeeded, they were outcasts, abandoned to the outskirts of the city. But once they found success, they were not only allowed back into the city, they were invited into the King’s palace to convey the good news.
The King and his people no longer viewed them as lepers. Instead, they saw them as agents of change, people with the solution to the problem of famine. They teach us the following:
- When you have the solution to the problems of your generation, their prejudices usually disappear. Even a purebred racist, sexist, etc, would praise the person who discovered the cure for cancer or HIV/AIDS.
- The easiest way to change people’s opinion of you is to succeed. Prejudices take years to form, and it would take years of campaign for it to change. South Africa is still not completely free from Apartheid. American blacks are still not free from racism, despite passing of nearly 150 years since the Emancipation Proclamation. However, on an individual level, all that changes once you succeed. Colin Powell became the first black Secretary of State in U.S. history, and nobody campaigned against it. Why? He was a testimony of success.
- Success opens door that have previously been shut due to our colour, race, or gender. The doors shut before the four lepers were immediately opened when they had good news for the citizens of Samaria.
- It is not how you look that counts, it’s what you reflect. Who remembers Abe Lincoln because of his looks? When Nelson Mandela’s name is mentioned, is it his looks that come to mind? Even today, with all emphasis on beauty, it’s crystal clear that people are remembered, not for their looks, but for their accomplishments, no matter how big or small they may seem.
REASONS WHY PEOPLE FAIL TO ACT ON THEIR DREAMS
Why do people fail to act on their dreams? While the reasons are numerous, let’s discuss two:
- Analysis paralysis:
Analysis paralysis is a buzzword in business used to describe people who are always analysing situations but are never able to take action. They want conditions to be perfect before they start. I call them, “Prisoners of Hope.”
- Unwillingness to start small:
They want to start with a bang, and if they cannot, they would rather not take the little steps necessary to reach their dreams. They want the lead actor role in a play of greatness and if they can’t get it immediately, they would rather not participate in the play.
PRISONERS OF HOPE
These groups of people are those who sincerely hope that someday conditions will be favourable. Someday, opportunities will knock at their door. Someday, conditions will be perfect and they will have a luck break in life. They live in a fool’s paradise called “someday.” Their hope of a better tomorrow has kept them in prison today. They cannot move on, or accomplish great things in life, because they have built prison doors around themselves and committed their release to “ Mr. Someday.”
Don’t be a prisoner of hope. Don’t allow your hope for a better tomorrow to blindfold you to the opportunities that are before you today. Don’t allow your hope of a brighter future to blind your eyes to the dawning of a new day. Turn! Take a bold step. Leave your present state. Take the necessary actions towards your goal, and you will find that success has been waiting for you all while.
Break free from the “tomorrow” mentality. It doesn’t really exist. Between a thousand yesterday and a million tomorrows, there is only today. Today is the only day to accomplish greatness. TODAY IS THE DAY TO BEGIN YOUR SUCCESS STORY. There will never be another day like today. You will not enjoy successes you were meant to enjoy today if you postpone it to someday.
Abraham Lincoln once observed, “The best thing about the future is that it comes only one day at a time.” Today, therefore, is not only the dawning of a new day; it is the unfolding of your future. Utilize it effectively. No matter what your dream or goal is in life, there is something about it that you can do to make it a reality.
And do it daily. Remember that great people do daily, what ordinary people do occasionally. Use the summer period of your life to prepare for greatness. Follow the advice of the sage, “ A wise youth makes hay while the sun shines, but what a shame to see a lad who sleeps away his hour of opportunity.” Proverb 10:5. Don’t sleep away your hour of opportunity. Wake up to the demands and challenges of your future. Destiny beckons everyday. Respond to it. Recall the success of the ants. The ants teach us the principle of urgency. Why do they labour hard all summer? Because they do not want to be caught hungry in winter. They use the summer period of their lives to prepare for “the retirement” of winter.
From the ants, we learn that success is maximizing each moment, each day, each season; to live with a sense of urgency that you are willing to work hard all summer because you know that winter is about to begin, when conditions will no longer be favourable.
People who succeed are driven by the passion of the now. Maximise your day.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“Our grand business is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what is at hand.” – Thomas Carlyle
JOTHAM'S FOUR PRINCIPLES OF SUCCESS
I want to begin with the story of a young man who grew so great that he became a reference point for his generation. He was appointed as the leader of his country at the age of 25. Yet at that tender age, he was able to make a significant difference in his time. His name? Jotham. The secret of his success is seen in the epitaph:
“Jotham became mighty because he prepared his ways before the Lord his God.” 2 Chron 27:6
How Jotham did become mighty? By preparing his ways before the Lord his God. How did he prepare his way before the Lord?
There are four fundamental principles from the testimony of Jotham that I would like you to consider.
God is interested in our success
Jotham became a success because God was involved in his life. Jotham’s successes were a direct result of the fact that “…..he prepared his ways before the Lord his God.”
Often times, people are blinded to this principle. They think that God is not interested in their success or their prosperity. Whether the work of the devil or the result of a negative attitude, these people are quick to point out the examples of these who served God and died “wretched.”
Jotham’s life informs us that God is not a taskmaster. If we humans desire the best for our children, how much more the Creator of the Universe? Why did He create the silver and gold and the abundant natural resources if not for humanity, the object of His love? God is not against your prosperity, He is simply against covetousness. He wants you to have things, but He doesn’t want things to have you.
Plans have a greater likelihood of succeeding when God is involved in them
Jotham teaches us that plans have a greater likelihood of succeeding when God is involved with them. Proverb 16: 1(LB) beautifully summaries this thought: “You can get horses ready for battle, but it is the Lord who gives victory.” Prepare in every way you know you can, but if you don’t ask for God’s help, chances are high that your plans will go awry.
Does a reliance on God or prayer stop us from planning and preparing? Not at all. Jotham prepared. He did not fold his arms and let God work things out. He did what was required of him while depending on God for guidance. God still expects us to plan and prepare, but in planning, we should depend on him. So plan as if the outcome depends on you, and pray as if it depends on God.
Successful people not only include God in their strategy, they place Him at the centre.
Jotham prepared his way before the Lord His God. He didn’t pray after he had finished planning, asking God to rubber stamp his plans. On the contrary, he developed his plans in the presence of God through prayers. He formulated his plans with God directing him. God was the alpha and omega of his plans. Jotham was a smart leader. Little wonder he became a successful man.
Join the company of the Jothams. Let God be at the centre of your strategy. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths.” Proverb 3:5-6.
Depend on Him to direct you as you formulate your plans.
Frustration is the end result of leaving God out of our plans.
Although we might be able to achieve our plans without God, we cannot find fulfillment without God. Only God gives meaning to accomplishment. Without God, our world is devoid of meaning and our successes are temporary.
“Unless the Lord builds the house, they labour in vain who build it; unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.” Psalm 127:1
The end result of every effort without God is described as having been done in vain. You can build your house without Him, you can watch the city without him, but in the end, you cannot find fulfillment in an activity or an accomplishment. Fulfillment is found only in a relationship with Him.
No degree of accomplishment can substitute for the emptiness of a broken relationship with God.
Jotham teaches us another definition of success:
SUCCESS RESULTS FROM THE SKILLED APPLICATION OF LABOUR DEPENDING ON THE FAVOUR OF GOD
Don’t be in such a hurry that you forget the Creator of the universe. Since He knows the best route for you to take to your destination, it is best to enlist Him into your journey. Pray over it!
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“Successful people not only include God in their strategy, they place Him at the centre” – The Maxwell Leadership Bible
“Jotham became mighty because he prepared his ways before the Lord his God.” 2 Chron 27:6
How Jotham did become mighty? By preparing his ways before the Lord his God. How did he prepare his way before the Lord?
There are four fundamental principles from the testimony of Jotham that I would like you to consider.
God is interested in our success
Jotham became a success because God was involved in his life. Jotham’s successes were a direct result of the fact that “…..he prepared his ways before the Lord his God.”
Often times, people are blinded to this principle. They think that God is not interested in their success or their prosperity. Whether the work of the devil or the result of a negative attitude, these people are quick to point out the examples of these who served God and died “wretched.”
Jotham’s life informs us that God is not a taskmaster. If we humans desire the best for our children, how much more the Creator of the Universe? Why did He create the silver and gold and the abundant natural resources if not for humanity, the object of His love? God is not against your prosperity, He is simply against covetousness. He wants you to have things, but He doesn’t want things to have you.
Plans have a greater likelihood of succeeding when God is involved in them
Jotham teaches us that plans have a greater likelihood of succeeding when God is involved with them. Proverb 16: 1(LB) beautifully summaries this thought: “You can get horses ready for battle, but it is the Lord who gives victory.” Prepare in every way you know you can, but if you don’t ask for God’s help, chances are high that your plans will go awry.
Does a reliance on God or prayer stop us from planning and preparing? Not at all. Jotham prepared. He did not fold his arms and let God work things out. He did what was required of him while depending on God for guidance. God still expects us to plan and prepare, but in planning, we should depend on him. So plan as if the outcome depends on you, and pray as if it depends on God.
Successful people not only include God in their strategy, they place Him at the centre.
Jotham prepared his way before the Lord His God. He didn’t pray after he had finished planning, asking God to rubber stamp his plans. On the contrary, he developed his plans in the presence of God through prayers. He formulated his plans with God directing him. God was the alpha and omega of his plans. Jotham was a smart leader. Little wonder he became a successful man.
Join the company of the Jothams. Let God be at the centre of your strategy. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths.” Proverb 3:5-6.
Depend on Him to direct you as you formulate your plans.
Frustration is the end result of leaving God out of our plans.
Although we might be able to achieve our plans without God, we cannot find fulfillment without God. Only God gives meaning to accomplishment. Without God, our world is devoid of meaning and our successes are temporary.
“Unless the Lord builds the house, they labour in vain who build it; unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.” Psalm 127:1
The end result of every effort without God is described as having been done in vain. You can build your house without Him, you can watch the city without him, but in the end, you cannot find fulfillment in an activity or an accomplishment. Fulfillment is found only in a relationship with Him.
No degree of accomplishment can substitute for the emptiness of a broken relationship with God.
Jotham teaches us another definition of success:
SUCCESS RESULTS FROM THE SKILLED APPLICATION OF LABOUR DEPENDING ON THE FAVOUR OF GOD
Don’t be in such a hurry that you forget the Creator of the universe. Since He knows the best route for you to take to your destination, it is best to enlist Him into your journey. Pray over it!
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“Successful people not only include God in their strategy, they place Him at the centre” – The Maxwell Leadership Bible
Thursday, September 13, 2007
THE SPIRITUAL REALM
"So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind." - 1 Corinthians 14:15
How real is the spiritual realm? My lawyer friend from Nigeria tells a personal story of how he was preparing for an important case. He knew that he must be prepared to argue five separate points. He was to appear before his country's supreme court, so it was a very important case.As he neared the time in which he was to go to court, he began to pray about how he was to argue the case. He spent much time in legal preparation and intercessory prayer. As he went to court, the Spirit spoke to him and said, "Do not argue point one, point two, point three, or point four. Only argue point five." Imagine my friend's struggle of faith. If he were reading this wrong, the shame and professional fallout would be devastating.The time had come to present the case before the judge when my friend said, "Judge, I wish to withdraw points one through four. I wish to argue only point five."The opposing counsel stood up and objected. "Your honor, he cannot do that!""Objection overruled, counsel," said the judge.My friend went on to present his case around point five only, and then sat down. When the opposing counsel stood to present his case, he stood speechless for 12 minutes. He could not get a word out of his mouth. He finally mumbled a few words and complained to the judge that he was going to have to yield. It seems that the opposing counsel had prepared to argue only point’s one through four, but failed to prepare for point five. The judge ruled in favor of my friend.
The unseen Lord wants to help us in the physical realm of our work life. We must acknowledge His presence and tap into this incredible resource He has given to each of us. Seek Him today and ask Him to reveal His perfect plan for you this day.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“For it matters not how small the beginning may seem to be. What is once well done, is well done forever.” – Henry David Thoreau
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
DYING FOR LACK OF KNOWLEDGE
"The Lord's anger burned against Uzzah, and He struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark. So he died there before God." - 1 Chronicles 13:10
A business friend of mine confessed that he did not like to read. He found it a difficult discipline. I replied, "If you do not commit yourself to knowing what is in God's Word and following it, you will fail to know and experience God. God's Word is life to our souls. It provides knowledge that leads to life." The prophet Hosea tells us, "My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as My priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your children" (Hos. 4:6).
God has given us His Word that has specific laws and principles that must be followed if we expect His blessing. King David forgot to follow one of those laws related to the ark. "...But they must not touch the holy things or they will die..." (Num. 4:15). When they were transporting the ark, Uzzah innocently reached to steady the ark but was immediately stricken dead when his hands touched the ark of God. Did David know this law or did he simply forget? Did Uzzah know this law? If so, did he really believe it? David thought it was okay to carry the ark the way Uzzah did. A man lost his life for his presumption.
Many workplace believers I know take God's Word lightly. They believe they can violate His Word without consequence. This is not true; the Lord stands by to uphold His Word. It can be life, or it can bring death. When God provides instructions, we need to follow them.
Knowing this about God brings a healthy fear of the Lord. "David was afraid of God that day and asked, 'How can I ever bring the ark of God to me?' " (1 Chron. 13:12) We must all have a fearful respect of God's Word. For truly, it is life or death.
Do you take God's Word seriously? Is it life or death for you? Do you feed upon His Word daily so that you might know Him and know His precepts? Feed upon this knowledge and be blessed of God.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“Make your life a mission not an intermission” – Arnold Glasgow
A business friend of mine confessed that he did not like to read. He found it a difficult discipline. I replied, "If you do not commit yourself to knowing what is in God's Word and following it, you will fail to know and experience God. God's Word is life to our souls. It provides knowledge that leads to life." The prophet Hosea tells us, "My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as My priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your children" (Hos. 4:6).
God has given us His Word that has specific laws and principles that must be followed if we expect His blessing. King David forgot to follow one of those laws related to the ark. "...But they must not touch the holy things or they will die..." (Num. 4:15). When they were transporting the ark, Uzzah innocently reached to steady the ark but was immediately stricken dead when his hands touched the ark of God. Did David know this law or did he simply forget? Did Uzzah know this law? If so, did he really believe it? David thought it was okay to carry the ark the way Uzzah did. A man lost his life for his presumption.
Many workplace believers I know take God's Word lightly. They believe they can violate His Word without consequence. This is not true; the Lord stands by to uphold His Word. It can be life, or it can bring death. When God provides instructions, we need to follow them.
Knowing this about God brings a healthy fear of the Lord. "David was afraid of God that day and asked, 'How can I ever bring the ark of God to me?' " (1 Chron. 13:12) We must all have a fearful respect of God's Word. For truly, it is life or death.
Do you take God's Word seriously? Is it life or death for you? Do you feed upon His Word daily so that you might know Him and know His precepts? Feed upon this knowledge and be blessed of God.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“Make your life a mission not an intermission” – Arnold Glasgow
THE IMPORTANCE OF TRUE GOALS
So why exactly are you NOT doing what it is you’re truly wanted to? Now, only a few people will reply that they are ... because they have identified their nature, dreams and made them in to Goals. Have you identified your 'purpose', identified your goals?
In my life I was able to find out what my true goals in life were, and it started out by questioning what I would like to contribute to the world in life if money was no longer something I had to worry about. I start thinking of a few things like photography. I could do some beautiful portraits and some artistic prints; however, would I actually be able to do something that had never ever been done in the past? Then I considered my computer design project. Sure, it would help society in some ways, but it may not last for long, it may not be earth shattering, and it may not have a huge impact on people.
Then I started thinking about a book that I had started on a few years before. I had never finished the book because it just did not seem important enough. Books have always been amazingly influential in my life, and I really felt that my thoughts were important and unique, and that the world needed to hear them. Books have actually been around for hundreds of years, and people still learn from them. Then I decided that this really could be my contribution to society.
It is important that you find out what our true goals are. These goals are important things that will help to enrich the world around use. Even if we had all the money in the world, we would still want to work on our true goals, and they are also things that you can start working on right now. You see, if I would have gone with the computer project, then I would have taken time to get more learning and to make some more contacts as well. There are some goals that may take some preparation before we start the real work, and then we may have to actually find a different service to help us pay for our other obligations, even if the service we are providing is not even related to our goal.
Most people will find that they do need some kind of an income, even while they are at work on their true goals. However, if you can make your true goal into something that will help you bring income, this is even better. If you can find a way to make money with your true goal, more than likely you will be able to earn more money than you every dreamed of. Most rich people actually become rich because they are doings something they enjoy, and even after they have money they continue to do it.
First of all you need to figure out if there is anyone else that is making some money while pursuing a similar true goal. If you find someone, then you can follow in their footsteps. If you do not find anyone, you need to figure out how your goal will help to contribute to society. A goal that does not make a contribution is not actually a true goal. Most of the time a true goal will have something that people will pay for, and then you will just need to find out who will be willing to pay for it.
You will find that governments, churches, and even philanthropists actually pay to have good deeds done throughout the world. Some people will pay people to provide medical treatment to poor countries while others may pay someone to feed people who have no homes. In some cases you may find that your living expenses and salary will be paid while you are working on the preparation for your goal.
You may have a goal that is in the area of motivating people. In this case, usually the people you are going to motivate will pay you. There are speakers that give motivational speeches that people pay to attend. To get started towards this goal you may want to do some speaking for free at schools, homeless shelters, the YMCA, and even at missions. This will provide you with some great practice and also a good reputation as well, which will help you to land the engagements that will pay. You may also want to promote yourself by doing some appearances on local television channels as well.
Many true goals include providing services and products in the market. Many people have traveled this path before you, and with just a bit of research you can find out a great deal of how to pursue these true goals and how to make money as well. You can work out a system to make your service or your product better than ever before. Other systems may be created to keep track of all the various aspects of your business and what you need to do for certain people. Believe it or not, with just a bit of research, you may find a way to make your true goals lucrative and fulfilling.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“The secret of success is consistency of purpose” – Benjamin Disraeli
In my life I was able to find out what my true goals in life were, and it started out by questioning what I would like to contribute to the world in life if money was no longer something I had to worry about. I start thinking of a few things like photography. I could do some beautiful portraits and some artistic prints; however, would I actually be able to do something that had never ever been done in the past? Then I considered my computer design project. Sure, it would help society in some ways, but it may not last for long, it may not be earth shattering, and it may not have a huge impact on people.
Then I started thinking about a book that I had started on a few years before. I had never finished the book because it just did not seem important enough. Books have always been amazingly influential in my life, and I really felt that my thoughts were important and unique, and that the world needed to hear them. Books have actually been around for hundreds of years, and people still learn from them. Then I decided that this really could be my contribution to society.
It is important that you find out what our true goals are. These goals are important things that will help to enrich the world around use. Even if we had all the money in the world, we would still want to work on our true goals, and they are also things that you can start working on right now. You see, if I would have gone with the computer project, then I would have taken time to get more learning and to make some more contacts as well. There are some goals that may take some preparation before we start the real work, and then we may have to actually find a different service to help us pay for our other obligations, even if the service we are providing is not even related to our goal.
Most people will find that they do need some kind of an income, even while they are at work on their true goals. However, if you can make your true goal into something that will help you bring income, this is even better. If you can find a way to make money with your true goal, more than likely you will be able to earn more money than you every dreamed of. Most rich people actually become rich because they are doings something they enjoy, and even after they have money they continue to do it.
First of all you need to figure out if there is anyone else that is making some money while pursuing a similar true goal. If you find someone, then you can follow in their footsteps. If you do not find anyone, you need to figure out how your goal will help to contribute to society. A goal that does not make a contribution is not actually a true goal. Most of the time a true goal will have something that people will pay for, and then you will just need to find out who will be willing to pay for it.
You will find that governments, churches, and even philanthropists actually pay to have good deeds done throughout the world. Some people will pay people to provide medical treatment to poor countries while others may pay someone to feed people who have no homes. In some cases you may find that your living expenses and salary will be paid while you are working on the preparation for your goal.
You may have a goal that is in the area of motivating people. In this case, usually the people you are going to motivate will pay you. There are speakers that give motivational speeches that people pay to attend. To get started towards this goal you may want to do some speaking for free at schools, homeless shelters, the YMCA, and even at missions. This will provide you with some great practice and also a good reputation as well, which will help you to land the engagements that will pay. You may also want to promote yourself by doing some appearances on local television channels as well.
Many true goals include providing services and products in the market. Many people have traveled this path before you, and with just a bit of research you can find out a great deal of how to pursue these true goals and how to make money as well. You can work out a system to make your service or your product better than ever before. Other systems may be created to keep track of all the various aspects of your business and what you need to do for certain people. Believe it or not, with just a bit of research, you may find a way to make your true goals lucrative and fulfilling.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“The secret of success is consistency of purpose” – Benjamin Disraeli
Friday, September 7, 2007
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
OPPORTUNITIES ARE GUIDED BY PROBLEMS
Albert Einstein said, “In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.” This principle of opportunity knocking at the least likely moment is something that must be learned by firsthand experience. You can take someone’s word for it, but when it happens to you, it’s a revelation that you will never forget.
Opportunity 1 - Every situation, properly perceived, becomes an opportunity.
Did you hear about the employee who used to walk his dog in the woods? By the end of the walk, the dog’s fur would be full of burns, stuck securely in the tiny hairs. One day he looked closely at the annoying little burrs and saw something truly inspiring. As a result, he invented what we now call Velcro!
Another employee apparently had a bad day in the glue factory and had made up what everyone thought was a bad batch of glue. The problem was that it had only marginal stickiness. A little thought into the matter and “sticky notes” were born!
Another gentleman, who sold potato chips to grocery store chains, was having marginal success in getting the store to allocate much shelf space for his product. One day his daughter came home from school with her science project. She had to go in the forest and collect leaves from the various species of deciduous trees, and when she returned, she had the leaves neatly stacked one upon the other. It gave him an idea that would change the balance of power in the potato chip wars. He came up with the idea for stacking potato chips in a can. The can took up less space than bulky bags filled with air and he was able to get more products in the smaller space than his competition. The wave of Pringles was born!
Opportunity 2 – Improve skills removes barriers, while shifting paradigms moves mountains.
You can wait for something to come along to shift your paradigm, but chances are you won’t like it, or you can artificially shift your paradigm to help you see other options. Though some artificial shifting of paradigms may appear silly to some, the effects are helpful. For example, when I was selling printers I would sometimes ask my self what I would do if I got a call from a kidnapper who had kidnapped my wife. I would then tell myself that the ransom was of the day and it had to be within normal profit margins and no one could know about the kidnapping. Failure was not an option, so I came up with prospects who I hadn’t thought of in months and other opportunities that might be worth pursuing. I would then go after those opportunities like my life depend on it, and regardless of whether I made a sale that day, I got myself out of any ruts and started the pipeline moving again. Try shifting your paradigms artificially. You might be surprised what you come up with.
Opportunity 3 – The bigger the problem, the greater the opportunity.
Here is a testimony of someone whose first daughter was born with a Down’s syndrome and a sizable hole in her heart. They didn’t tell us any of this until we had her home for a few days and being new parents we really didn’t know anything was wrong. When I finally found out, I was devastated! It completely took the wind out of my sails. For me, it was especially frightening because it was the only thing that I knew I feared might happen to me, and it did.
Suddenly, I was parent of one beautiful but handicapped little baby girl. Early one morning I laid her on the living room floor and just looked at her while I asked God for His perspective on things. Immediately I realized that God loved me regardless of my level of perfection, or lack thereof. He loved me unconditionally and I had no right to do any less for my daughter. Second, I realized that this trial felt as though someone had taken a backhoe and dug a huge hole in my heart. I knew the hole would fill with water. The question for me was. “Am I going to let it make me better or make me bitter?” I chose the latter. I believe that the adversity had the potential to give us wisdom beyond our years if we would embrace the package it came in. So I embraced my little one and cherished each and every day of the eighteen months we had her. She died six days before Christmas in 1979 and great was the loss of her beautiful life.
Opportunity 4 – You rarely exceed your own expectations.
I often tell salesmen not to let their company limit them with their sales quota. Always set your own expectations and reach for those. The computer company I worked for used to have sales quota of four major orders per month, though the national average was 3.2 per month. I set my goal for twenty orders per month, and though I never hit it, nobody ever got upset with me for getting twelve to sixteen orders in a month. Before my first year was over I was asked to be a manager, so I never got to hit my goal and often I wished I had stayed on a little longer just so I could have hit the goal.
Another example was Jesse Owens in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. He was going for a world record and a goal medal in the long jump. On his first attempt he committed a foot fault and had to try again. He committed a similar fault the second time and only had one more opportunity to jump. He slowly walked down to where he would need to land to win the gold medal and placed a red scarf on the sand, and then slowly walked back to the starting point. Unbeknownst to him, his coach kicked the scarf a foot further. Jesse took a good run and jumped without committing a foot fault, landing right on the scarf, a full foot further than was necessary to win the gold and set a world record. I can’t prove it, but I bet he would have landed on the scarf if his coach hadn’t moved it because you rarely exceed your own expectations.
Opportunity 5 – Others see us the way we see ourselves.
When the twelve spies returned from their reconnaissance mission in Canaan, ten of the spies were spooked by the giants and said, “We were like grasshoppers in our own sight” (Numbers 13:33). They saw themselves as grasshoppers, so the people of the land saw them that way too! If you walk into a room with a confident, successful individual, others are more likely to see you in the same light also. Learn to see yourself the way God sees you. If you don’t know how He sees you, consider what He did for you in the work of the cross. You will find that the father has a profound love for you and created you with a destiny. Get a hold of that and carry that perspective into the day!
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“Each problem I solved became a rule which served afterwards to solve other problems.” – Rene Descartes
Opportunity 1 - Every situation, properly perceived, becomes an opportunity.
Did you hear about the employee who used to walk his dog in the woods? By the end of the walk, the dog’s fur would be full of burns, stuck securely in the tiny hairs. One day he looked closely at the annoying little burrs and saw something truly inspiring. As a result, he invented what we now call Velcro!
Another employee apparently had a bad day in the glue factory and had made up what everyone thought was a bad batch of glue. The problem was that it had only marginal stickiness. A little thought into the matter and “sticky notes” were born!
Another gentleman, who sold potato chips to grocery store chains, was having marginal success in getting the store to allocate much shelf space for his product. One day his daughter came home from school with her science project. She had to go in the forest and collect leaves from the various species of deciduous trees, and when she returned, she had the leaves neatly stacked one upon the other. It gave him an idea that would change the balance of power in the potato chip wars. He came up with the idea for stacking potato chips in a can. The can took up less space than bulky bags filled with air and he was able to get more products in the smaller space than his competition. The wave of Pringles was born!
Opportunity 2 – Improve skills removes barriers, while shifting paradigms moves mountains.
You can wait for something to come along to shift your paradigm, but chances are you won’t like it, or you can artificially shift your paradigm to help you see other options. Though some artificial shifting of paradigms may appear silly to some, the effects are helpful. For example, when I was selling printers I would sometimes ask my self what I would do if I got a call from a kidnapper who had kidnapped my wife. I would then tell myself that the ransom was of the day and it had to be within normal profit margins and no one could know about the kidnapping. Failure was not an option, so I came up with prospects who I hadn’t thought of in months and other opportunities that might be worth pursuing. I would then go after those opportunities like my life depend on it, and regardless of whether I made a sale that day, I got myself out of any ruts and started the pipeline moving again. Try shifting your paradigms artificially. You might be surprised what you come up with.
Opportunity 3 – The bigger the problem, the greater the opportunity.
Here is a testimony of someone whose first daughter was born with a Down’s syndrome and a sizable hole in her heart. They didn’t tell us any of this until we had her home for a few days and being new parents we really didn’t know anything was wrong. When I finally found out, I was devastated! It completely took the wind out of my sails. For me, it was especially frightening because it was the only thing that I knew I feared might happen to me, and it did.
Suddenly, I was parent of one beautiful but handicapped little baby girl. Early one morning I laid her on the living room floor and just looked at her while I asked God for His perspective on things. Immediately I realized that God loved me regardless of my level of perfection, or lack thereof. He loved me unconditionally and I had no right to do any less for my daughter. Second, I realized that this trial felt as though someone had taken a backhoe and dug a huge hole in my heart. I knew the hole would fill with water. The question for me was. “Am I going to let it make me better or make me bitter?” I chose the latter. I believe that the adversity had the potential to give us wisdom beyond our years if we would embrace the package it came in. So I embraced my little one and cherished each and every day of the eighteen months we had her. She died six days before Christmas in 1979 and great was the loss of her beautiful life.
Opportunity 4 – You rarely exceed your own expectations.
I often tell salesmen not to let their company limit them with their sales quota. Always set your own expectations and reach for those. The computer company I worked for used to have sales quota of four major orders per month, though the national average was 3.2 per month. I set my goal for twenty orders per month, and though I never hit it, nobody ever got upset with me for getting twelve to sixteen orders in a month. Before my first year was over I was asked to be a manager, so I never got to hit my goal and often I wished I had stayed on a little longer just so I could have hit the goal.
Another example was Jesse Owens in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. He was going for a world record and a goal medal in the long jump. On his first attempt he committed a foot fault and had to try again. He committed a similar fault the second time and only had one more opportunity to jump. He slowly walked down to where he would need to land to win the gold medal and placed a red scarf on the sand, and then slowly walked back to the starting point. Unbeknownst to him, his coach kicked the scarf a foot further. Jesse took a good run and jumped without committing a foot fault, landing right on the scarf, a full foot further than was necessary to win the gold and set a world record. I can’t prove it, but I bet he would have landed on the scarf if his coach hadn’t moved it because you rarely exceed your own expectations.
Opportunity 5 – Others see us the way we see ourselves.
When the twelve spies returned from their reconnaissance mission in Canaan, ten of the spies were spooked by the giants and said, “We were like grasshoppers in our own sight” (Numbers 13:33). They saw themselves as grasshoppers, so the people of the land saw them that way too! If you walk into a room with a confident, successful individual, others are more likely to see you in the same light also. Learn to see yourself the way God sees you. If you don’t know how He sees you, consider what He did for you in the work of the cross. You will find that the father has a profound love for you and created you with a destiny. Get a hold of that and carry that perspective into the day!
QUOTE FOR TODAY
“Each problem I solved became a rule which served afterwards to solve other problems.” – Rene Descartes
Monday, September 3, 2007
QUOTABLES
"Not many people are willing to give failure a second opportunity. They fail once and it is all over.The bitter bill of failure is often more than most people can handle. If you are willing to accept failure and learn from it, if you are willing to consider failure as a blessing in disguise and bounce back, you have got the essential of harnessing one of the most powerful success forces." - Joseph Sugarman
"A native American grandfather was talking to his grandson about how he felt. He said, 'i feel as if i have two wolves fighting in my heart. One wolf is the vengeful, violent one, the other wolf is the loving compassionate one.' The grandson asked him, 'which wolf will win the fight in your heart?' The grandfather answered,'The one i feed." - Blackhawk
"The winners in life think constantly in terms of i can, i will and i am. Losers, on the other hand, concentrate their waking thoughts on what they should have or would have done, or what they can't do." - Dennis Waitley
"A native American grandfather was talking to his grandson about how he felt. He said, 'i feel as if i have two wolves fighting in my heart. One wolf is the vengeful, violent one, the other wolf is the loving compassionate one.' The grandson asked him, 'which wolf will win the fight in your heart?' The grandfather answered,'The one i feed." - Blackhawk
"The winners in life think constantly in terms of i can, i will and i am. Losers, on the other hand, concentrate their waking thoughts on what they should have or would have done, or what they can't do." - Dennis Waitley
MOVING WITH THE CLOUD
"Whether by day or by night, whenever the cloud lifted, they set out". - Numbers 9:21b
Imagine living with the uncertainty of this situation. One day you work at getting your "house" in order, only to have to pick up the stakes and move. Your ability to plan is totally gone. But even greater is the temptation to move when the cloud did not move because you felt it was time to move. For the Israelites, perhaps the grass was no longer green. Perhaps the water was not easily accessible. Perhaps the bugs were a problem. Whatever the case, they were strictly prohibited from moving if the cloud did not move.It is still the same today. We are not to move unless the Holy Spirit instructs us to do so.
We are not to make that business deal on the basis of whether or not it makes sense, but on the leading of the Holy Spirit's "cloud" in our life. It is a difficult process to move only when we are directed, and to remain if we are not. The pressure is always upon us to move, to plan, to act. But if we act, we may move into a place where the presence of God may not be. Hence, the rub. The Christian workplace believer must learn to move when God says move; it is a sign of complete surrender and dependence on God's Spirit to direct our steps.
Ask God today if you are sitting under His cloud. Or, have you moved when He said stand still? He will show you.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us" - Ralph Waldo Emerson
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