The Pathway

To

EXCELLENCE
&
WEALTH.

(LIFE IS ONCE, BUT WHEN YOU LIVE IT WELL, ONCE IS

ENOUGH…

UCHE COLLINS IJEOMAH

1
Copyright © 2014 by Uche Collins Ijeomah

Published by Achiever’s Concept Publishing

The right of Uche Collins Ijeomah to be identified as the author

Of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
Or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording,
or otherwise, without prior written permission of the publisher.

Designed and printed by Phizz Printing Press,

Yenogua, Bayelsa State

ISBN 967-05481-805-07

Authors contact.

Uche Collins Ijeomah

Tel: +2347067010028
Email: icujindu@gmail.com

Acknowledgement

2
We are a sum total of who we are by what we have learned from others and the
inspiration given to us by God.

My profound gratitude goes to God almighty who through His Holy Spirit
granted me access into his wisdom base throughout the writing of this book.

And to many others who truly lived by fully releasing their potentials, and whose
works are the world’s greatest inheritance.

Thanks to my family members, friends and associates of Achiever’s Concepts

International outfits. I appreciate you all.

PROLOGUE

3
Life is once, but when you live it right, once is enough. All men eventually will
die one day, but some men never really live. How do I make the utmost use of my
time here on earth, and how do I maximize my potentials to become the person
God designed me to be.

As a matter of fact, there is who God wants you to be, and there is an assignment
He wants you to carry out. Knowing this is the beginning and the key to
excellence.

Excellence means to be successful in all facets of life, it means to be the very best
God created you to be. The pathway to excellence begins with a discovery of
God’s vision for you, second, the pursuit of that vision leads to achieving
excellence.

The truth is that very many have been deceived to believe that the pursuit of
money or material things is the ultimate in life, and they basically spend all their
life pursuing money. Many also, are virtually living for money, and their daily
bread. That is a poor way to live. You can’t attain excellence by merely living for
survival alone.

It is possible to pursue money and not get it, but practically impossible to pursue
your life purpose and not get money. Money, fame, glory and honor are all tied to
one’s purpose in life.

Notwithstanding, if the only reason for life is just to work and make money, then
God would have made a very big blunder. God is an excellent God, so his
children cannot be of lesser standard. Our creator intended that we live out our
very best on earth, just as a father will always wish his children the best.

And living an excellent life means quite a lot of things. Excellence means
maximum fulfillment in life. It encompasses all spheres of lives, including,
finance, work, family, and marriage, and integrity, value, fulfilling your personal
vision and carrying out your assignment in life.

Therefore, it is not enough to know where you are going to, but you must also
know the path that leads to your destination.

This is paramount, because very many believed that money or political fame will
give them fulfillment. And they basically lived for that. There are practical
examples of people who actually had this misconceptions about life and ended up
in dismal.

Jay Gould was a leading American railroad developer and speculator. He was
long vilified as an archetypal robber baron, whose success at business made him

4
the ninth richest U.S. citizen in history. He had an enormous fortune, when dying,
he wrote – “I suppose I am the most miserable man on earth.”

Lord Byron lived a life of Pleasure and Ease. He wrote – “The Worm, the Canker
and Grief are mine alone.”

William Tweed became the Brilliant Boss of Tammany Hall and ruled New York
City. He said – “My life has been a Failure in everything.”

Alexander the Great conquered the known world in his days. Then he wept –
“There are no more Worlds to Conquer.”

Lord Beacons Field enjoyed more than his share of both. He wrote – “Youth is a
Mistake, Manhood a Struggle; Old age Regret.”

These men were actually looking for fulfillment or excellence, but do not know
what it looks like. This explains why the search for success, for many, has been
an endless search.

Except you know what you are looking for, you may not be able to identify it
when you find it. It is one thing to know what you want, it is another thing to
know what it looks like.

Success is the inborn yearning of every human being; everybody craves for it,
everyone celebrates it. Parents and grandparents desire success for their children
and grandchildren. Little wonder, it is said that; “Failure is an orphan, as success
has many mothers.” Consequently, it is natural to embrace success and eschew
failure.

Everyone is in deep search for excellence, when you ask a man of his greatest
desire in life, he will give answers like – I don’t want to fail. Basically, they know
what they are running from, but don’t have an idea of what they want. Others, as
well knows what they want but don’t know how to go about it.

The poor knows he doesn’t want poverty, but has refused to know what will make
him rich. The student who fails every semester actually do not want failure, yet
he keeps failing every semester.

In conclusion “The Pathway to excellence” convincingly postulates that nobody

is a monopoly of success. And success is not scarce, if you know and do what
successful people do time and again, you become successful. Everything in life
answers to principles, likewise success.

The greatest truth that will ever be told is that, your success is not limited by the
things you don’t have (like money, education, or connections), but by the things

5
you have that you are not making use of. Invariably, all you will ever need to
become excellent in life came with you from creation. They are inborn gifts,
talents and potentials that God our manufacturer wired into our DNA.

In this book, you will also learn that life is about relevance not significance, about
service not status, and about disposition not position.

It’s a book that pointedly unveils the key to maximum living, and will cause a
significant paradigm shift in your thinking, finance, business, ministry,
academics, and in your relationship with others and with God.

You are about to experience a major breakthrough in your life. Every major
breakthrough in life starts with a significant change in your paradigm. Therefore,
to breakthrough, you must first break out from something. Welcome onboard!

This may be the most important book you ever needed to turn your life around. It
is down-to-earth, not philosophical; a practical manual, not a theory. It is intended
for those whose most pressing need is for excellence in life.

Each of the chapters in this book shows you how to maximize your life and how
to be more successful in everything you do instead of wistfully envying others
who you think are just luckier than you.

6
 PART ONE

Success begins with you…

“Only by much searching and mining are gold and diamonds obtained, and man
can find every truth connected with his being if he will dig deep into the mine of
his soul.” James Allen

7
 CHAPTER ONE

Paradigm Shift

Before we learn the basics of success, we have to identify what it is to have an

excellent life. We have to know what success we are aiming for, and where we
should be putting our efforts once we understand the basics of success. We have
to know what it means to be excellent or successful, and how to attain success.

The way we see life determines what we do and how we end. There is nothing as
powerful as concept and there is nothing more dangerous than misconception.
When an idea is developed it is called a thought. When thought is conceived it
forms one’s paradigm. And paradigm are the material that visions and dreams are
made of; they serve as the substance for living and interpreting life.

Paradigm is the way you see the world, your perception of things. The “WHO”
and “WHAT” you will be solely depends on the ideology or paradigm in which
your mind is built on. Paradigm are to life what the blood is to the body. Perhaps,
this is what king Solomon meant when he wrote over 3000 years ago. “As a man
thinks, so is he.”

You are your paradigm. Psychologist describe our value and estimation of our life
by the nature of our self-concept. This is the beginning of all successes. Success
begins with who you are, and who you are; is a function of the resident thoughts
you owe about life.

Fundamentally, you are where you are today because of what you believed. It is a
well-known fact that your mental attitude and your physical health are closely
related. Having a healthy paradigm will make you succeed and live long.

Therefore, what does it mean to be successful or rich? Does being it mean

having more money than your pals or family? Does it mean being able to
compare yourself to the world’s richest men and women, does it mean never
having to worry about money again?

It is a natural thinking to believe that been successful is all about money. As a

matter of fact, money has been the greatest desire of man. Those who don’t have
it; hunger and crave for it. Those who have it press for more of it. Those who
don’t know it end up mourning, while the lack and absence of it has brought great
sorrow to many. The hunger and craze for it has also been the undoing of many.
Virtually anyone you meet wants to be rich in the monetary sense. Nearly
everyone in life wants to make more money.

8
To be successful alone in terms of money is the greatest tragedy that will befall a
man. Many in pursuit of more money have lost the other major components of
wealth. The truth, however, is that being truly rich in life isn’t just about having
more money. Many people have lived in this delusion, and don’t realize it until
it’s too late.

As result of this ignorance, very many people have resorted to all awesome acts
in order to make money. Some go as far as stealing government money. Some
ladies has even become Public toilets, where all manner of men, both lunatics and
dirty “Mallams” go to litter.

This has degenerated to a level where people pray for the death of the rich, so,
they can inherit their properties. Even children poison their fathers just to inherit
their riches; and husbands kill their wives for rituals just to make money.

What does it really mean to be wealthy? To answer this question, we must first
see money as just a tool for getting things done. The more money you have, the
more things you can get done. Money is merely a means to an end, and not an end
in itself. It can buy you bed, but can’t buy you sleep. It can make you have things,
but can’t buy you happiness. It can build you a house, but can’t build you a home.

You may have a thousand different goals over the course of your lifetime, but
they all will fall into one of four basic categories. Everything you do is an attempt
to enhance the quality of your life in one or more of these areas.

The first category is your desire for happy relationships. You want to love and be
loved by others. You want to have a happy, harmonious home life. You want to
get along well with the people around you, and you want to earn the respect of the
people you respect. Your involvement in social and community affairs results
from your desire to have happy interactions with others and to make a
contribution to the society you live in.

The second category is your desire for interesting and challenging work. You
want to make a good living, of course, but more than that, you want to really
enjoy your occupation or profession. The very best times of your life are when
you are completely absorbed in your work.

The third category is your desire for financial independence. You want to be free
from worries about money. You want to have enough money in the bank so that
you can make decisions without counting your pennies. You want to achieve a
certain financial state so that you can retire in comfort and never have to be
9
concerned about whether or not you have enough money to support your lifestyle.
Financial independence frees you from poverty and a need to depend upon others
for your livelihood. If you save and invest regularly throughout your working life,
you will eventually reach the point where you will never have to work again.

The fourth category is your desire for good health, to be free of pain and illness
and to have a continuous flow of energy and feelings of well-being. In fact, your
health is so central to your life that you take it for granted until something
happens to disrupt it.

Therefore, true success is beyond riches in monetary terms. We need to identify

the components of true success, so that you will know it when you eventually get
hold of it.

INTEGRITY

True character encompasses integrity and honesty. Honesty starts with complete
congruency between what you say and what you do. Some persons with all their
money can’t be trusted for anything. You can’t do business with them and not be
cheated.

Honesty and integrity are the most important of your values. They set the tracks
that keep your life on course. If you don’t have the both, you are poor. Just about
anything else you lose can be replaced money, buildings, or cars. But your name,
reputation, and conscience, once ruined, can never be repaired. You have to live
with forever. A good name is better than riches. Proverb 19:1, “better is the poor
that walketh in his integrity, than he that is perverse in his lips, and is a fool.

Money without integrity is just like a king without a kingdom. A wise man said;

“When you lose money, you have lost nothing, when you miss your health, you
have lost something; and when you lose your integrity you have lost everything.”

Money can buy a reputation, but can’t buy you character. And it is your character
(who you truly are) that determines your place in life. Therefore, true wealth is
about being honest with yourself and others, and having strong values and beliefs.

RELATIONSHIP

To be truly successful, first, you must have a more fulfilling and rewarding
relationships, good friends, a happy family and enjoyment of life to the fullest. To
have money and you don’t have a family, friends or people, is another dimension

10
of poverty. Many ill-fated people have fallen into this trap and don’t realize it
until it is too late. They reach their goal of having a very big house, but cannot
call it a home- it’s an empty place with no tenderness and no one to share with.
They have cars but no real friends to cruise with. Some lost their wife and
children in the quest for money! Money!! Money!!! Just to weep at the end.

Somebody said one day; “that he can do anything for money, even if it means
selling his wife.” That is how poor some persons can be. Having no relations or
lovely family, will undermine whatever you achieve. If people can’t look at you
and find a friend, brother, sister, father or uncle, what difference will money, sex
or fame make.

MENTAL PROSPERITY

Some person’s mental bank are constantly showing red alert. Their mind lacks
information and ideas, and that is why they have remained poor. To lack ideas is
an awful poverty. Such a person will still remain poor, despite the amount he
receives. This is the reason why very many civil servants are poor. Idea rules the
world. One idea developed is enough to put poverty to flight. Every form of
poverty is traceable to mental incarceration.

Second, your wealth is tied to what you know. That is why those who earn
100times your salary are not 100times smarter or more productive. The only
difference between you and them is that they know something you don’t. So, poor
is the man whose wardrobe is richer than his library. If you study successful
people, you will discover that they all have one secret: learning. A commitment to
learning has given them the knowledge and tools to succeed. It will do same for
you.

Some person are sick in the mind, their mind is as poor, as poor Lazarus. They
basically, don’t have strong values and they live with toxic, and poverty
mentality. It is possible to have money in your pocket, but bankrupt in your mind.
Therefore, the money in your hand does not make you rich, it is the one that is in
your mind that makes you rich. That is why a man who has 100million dollars
can go bankrupt, while a man without a penny can become a multimillionaire.

True wealth is accessed through knowledge and skills. The skills and knowledge
we all have are latent wealth. Your wealth it tied to your “well” within.”

HEALTH

Health is wealth! True success is about living a long and healthy life - mentally,
physically and spiritually. It’s not necessarily the absence of money that makes
one poor. Some persons have plenty money, but have poor health. A man with
one million naira in his account that is scheduled for a major surgical operation is

11
poor. Therefore, you don’t need money to live, but you need life to use money. If
you have sound health, thank God because you are rich. I have seen cases where
somebody with all his possession is just asking God to take all he has, and restore
his health. The more grateful we are to God’s for his divine health, the more
addition we will come by.

FINANCIAL PROSPERITY

“Wealth maketh many friends; but the poor is separated from his neighbor.” All
the brethren of the poor do hate him: how much more do his friends go far from
him? He pursueth them with words, yet they are wanting to him.” Proverb 19:7.

I hate poverty with all my soul, spirit and body. A wise man said the love of
money is the root of evil, but I put it differently; that the lack of money is the root
of frustration. I know what it is to be poor. I have been there. People suffer for
the lack of vision, but more excruciating is that; vision suffers for the lack of
money. The desire to get wealth is divine, but one should not be obsessed with it.
It can also be very frustrating because without money you can hardly achieve
anything worthwhile.

The man who owns all he wants for the living of all the life he is capable of living
is rich; and no man who has not plenty of money can have all he wants. Even the
bible says; “Money answereth all things.” But that does not make money the
ultimate.

ACHIEVEMENTS

To have money and you’re not impacting lives is poverty in disguise. Your life is
supposed to be a legacy that the younger or the unborn generation will inherit.
You and I are living on the work of others, the airplanes, electronics, books,
theories, music, computers and many more. They are the achievements of other
people who maximized their lives.

Your life is meant to benefit three persons. First, your creator who created you to
carry out a divine function. Second, the people and the society at large – this is
serving humanity with your money, gifts, talents and above all your time.

SPIRITUAL PROSPERITY

A man with a million dollars without faith in God through Christ his Son is not
just poor on earth but also doomed for eternal destruction. The word father means
“Source.” Until you have made God your source, you will soon be sort out.” The
day you wear the immortal body through death, it is your relationship with God

12
on earth that will determine whether you will rest in heaven or rot in hell.
Therefore, what will it profit you to gain the world and lose your soul in hell?”

PURPOSE

No matter how much you have or you will make, if you are not living out your
purpose, you are the most wretched man. The essence of life is not to pursue
things, but to serve our purpose. God would have failed if the only reason he
created us was to come to the earth, to pursue money and afterward die. It will
please you to go and ask King Solomon who was in his time the richest man on
earth. One day he wrote that; “I, the teacher, was a King in Israel and I lived in
Jerusalem, I devoted myself to search for understanding and to explore by
wisdom everything being done in the world. I soon discovered that God has dealt
a tragic existence to the human race.”

He was expressing how poor he lived his life by pursuing things, fame and
women. Purpose is the only source of fulfillment in life, and the key to living an
excellent life.

Truth #1 “It is possible to have money and not be fulfilled, but it is not possible to
live your purpose and not be rich.”

II

Truth #2 “A wise man said; “Nothing is as amusing as seeing a poor person

declare “I am not poor.”

A lot of people try to mirror poverty and prosperity in terms of money alone.
Therefore, to strictly define poverty, we need to understand that there are three
motives for which we live; we live for the body, we live for the mind, we live for
the soul. No one of these is better or holier than the other; all are alike desirable,
and no one of the three-body, mind, or soul- can live fully if either of the others is
cut short of life and expression.

13
It is not right or noble to live only for the soul and deny mind or body; and it is
wrong to live for the intellect and deny body or soul. To be rich means the
complete expression of all that man can give forth through body, mind and soul.

The body needs good food, comfortable clothing, and warm shelter, rest and
recreation.

The mind, also needs books, and time to study them, intellectual companionship,
intellectual recreations like all the objects of art and beauty. The soul also needs
love, relationships, and fellowship with his creator and many more.

The loathsome consequences of not being able to strike balance between these
three that makes up one, is defined as POVERTY.

Thus, without good relationships, good name, sound health, experience of life,
satisfying career, spiritual maturity, emotional balance, living your purpose,
knowledge and skill, and money you cannot be totally wealthy.

Being rich is about striving for balance in all aspects of your life. So most of the
people we adore as rich people are basically wallowing in abject poverty.

Are you a poor man? You already know by now. There is no need reading further
until you have measured your standard with these dimensions of prosperity. If
you think your life is not properly balanced and you really wish to live a rich life
and retire from life fulfilled. Then, you already have in your hand the basic
information that guarantees that.

14
 CHAPTER TWO

The world within

Prosperity begins with one’s mind. The measure of your life will be defined by
your personal capacity. The truth is this; every frustration is traceable to mental
incapacitation and incarceration. Failure in life is an evidence of mental paralysis.
Napoleon Bonaparte wrote; “There are but two powers in the world, the sword
and the mind. In the long run the sword is beaten by the mind.”

“The mind is like a trunk: if well packed, it holds almost everything; if ill packed,
next to nothing. You might be poor, your shoes might be broken, but your mind is
a palace.

A man’s felicity consists not in the outward and visible blessing of fortune, but in
the inward and unseen perfections and riches of the mind.” To become a better
person, you need to grow in character. To advance in your career, you need to
grow in your skills. To be a better spouse or parent, you need to grow in
relationships. To reach your financial goals, you need to grow in your knowledge
about how money works. To enrich your souls, you need to grow spiritually.

It all starts with your mind. Ancient Wisdom teaches that our mind is a gateway
to transformation on every level. We can gain life-transforming insights, grow
our intuitive power, heal ourselves emotionally and physically, delay aging;
achieve greater happiness and spiritual growth when we use our mind in a certain
way.

The richness of your mind determines the outcome of your life. The fact about
life is this, what you do efficiently determines your success and the things you do
inefficiently will also determine your failure. Therefore, if you want to achieve
success, you have to strive to make your mind rich.

The potential of the human mind is subject to and limited only by, our individual
beliefs or un-belief as to whether we can accomplish a thing or Not. Human mind
power is evidence in the fact that we always get to be right.” -Chuck Danes.

Your mind capacity is all that’s required to create and experience a kind and
quality of life that you desire for yourself. Once you become keenly and
consciously aware of that fact and make a conscious and intentional choice to
desire how to utilize enough and the limitless creative power provided to you, me
15
and everyone else on this planet in a way that harmonizes with whatever vision,
hope, dreams and desires you hold for yourself.

MENTALITY

Every significant breakthrough was a breakout from the old way of thinking. The
significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we
had when we created them.

The truth is that your outer world is a reflection of your inner world and
corresponds with your dominant thoughts. This explains most of the reasons why
people become successful or unsuccessful, happy or unhappy, or is wealthy or
poor.

The weather may look gloomy or bad, but if the atmosphere of your mind is right,
you can do really great. I read an article about the Norwegians, they seem to be
the most adventurous people on the earth surface. Yet, they have one of the worst
climate conditions. They believe that it is not about the state of the weather, but
the state of the mind, so, they say there is nothing like bad weather, but bad
clothing.

Therefore, you certainly can’t control the length of your life but you can control
its width and depth” you can’t control the contour of your face, but you can
control its expression. You can’t control the weather; but you can control the
atmosphere of your mind.

The mind is so powerful that it generates thoughts and feeds on information. And
what you feed it on determines the kind of ideas or thought it will be generating.

Thoughts are so powerful, that it ultimately bend you or make you. Your outer
world reflects your most dominant inner thoughts.

There is nothing as more powerful than an idea. Ideas created and now control the
world we live in. When an idea is conceived it is called thought; when thought is
conceived it is called a concept. Concepts are the materials that dreams are made
of and they serve as the substance for living and interpreting life. Everything
humans have made or invented was first preceded by an idea. As a matter of fact,
inventions are often called one’s “brain child.” In essence, the mind can be
impregnated by ideas that develop into concepts that become visions that produce
reality.

16
Thoughts are to life what the blood is to the body. Therefore, the idea you hold
about money or prosperity determines whether you will have it or not.

Your outer world is a reflection of your inner world. Ultimately, what this means
when it comes to real situation, is that nothing will change for you on the outside,
until, it first changes for you on the inside.

If you want to improve the results you are getting in the outside world, you first
need to change the thoughts that you have in your internal world.

Wealth creation begins in your mind, and the results are reflected in the reality
that you see and experience. So be careful of the things that you expose yourself
to as they will all influence your internal mental environment, some for the better
and some for the worse.

Very many people are poor or living below average, not because of lack of
schooling but because of a poor mindset. They are some mindset that are
designed to keep people below excellence in life, and when you are living with
such mindset, chances are that you will never succeed in life.

Having a wrong mentality is like deciding to always be the wrong person for
success. Mentality simply means a mindset, thought pattern, perception, paradigm
or a way of thinking. Your mentality is like the software running your life. The
worst thing that will happen to man is not basically the lack of money, but the
lack of the right mindset.

There are venomous mindsets that you need to watch out for in your life, if you
truly desire excellence and wealth. They are called TOXIC MENTALITY. They
have the potency to corrupt your success as the virus in a computer system can
hinder the computer’s effectiveness.

II
NOMADIC MENTALITY

This nomadic mentality is a kind of wanderer spirits that controls people. Just like
the Fulani herdsmen in the physical without a fixed location. They basically do
not have a staying power to concentrate on one thing before it produces. People
with nomadic spirit go from job to job, place to place, business to business,
church to church, without focus and consistency.

Nomads are wanderer without any concrete plan to achieve anything worthwhile
in life. They move from one location to another just consuming what they didn’t

17
plant. When they come to your garden or farm, they will destroy all you have
laboured to plant, and can go as far as challenging you to a fight.

They don’t have their personal dreams, but are always ready to destroy another
man’s dreams. If this describe you, then you really need to adjust. Second, you
also need to watch out for nomads in your life, because they are capable of
destroying your dreams.

HUNTER’S MENTALITY

Hunters are known for their wild adventures, they actually go for what they want.
But hunters only have today in view, they are daily bread seekers and actually do
not act in long term perspective.

All they have today is just for today or at most tomorrow morning. They will go
hungry and start looking for what to eat after they have consumed the one for
today. Many youths, especially young ladies are victims of this mindset.
Basically trading their futures on today’s comfort.

To always consume without considering tomorrow is a great mistake. Many

spend all their lives consuming everything they get without any provision for
savings and investment.

“The wise have wealth and luxury, but fools spend whatever they get.” Proverb
21:20

Time is one your greatest resources, and to waste it means wasting your life.
When you lose money, you may get it back, but when you lose time, part of your
life is wasted. The wise always acquire wealth and luxuries, by the effective use
of their time, but the fool spends all his time doing nothing. To consume all that
comes your way is stupidity and closes the door of riches, and prosperity against
you. Don’t consume everything so that you will save your future from struggles.

VICTIM’S MENTALITY

The third toxic mentality is victim mentality. Very many person have remained
at the bottom pit of life because they always have one reason or the other while
they can’t achieve their goals.

That mindset of always feeling being cheated by fate or always feeling that
someone owes you something must go. Giving excuses and shifting blames are
trademarks of this mindset.

“It is because I was not educated”

18
“It is because I came from a poor family”

“It’s because nobody liked me”

“It is because in our family, nobody cares for me.”

You can never reach excellence in life, if you go on with this mentality. Your
duty is not to accept the status quo, your duty is to challenge it, break the limit
and launch into the realm of success.

The greatest truth that will ever be communicated to us is that no matter where
you are coming from, what you’ve been through or going through, if you have the
right mindset in place your life will become better. Notwithstanding, all the
challenges and tussles that life presents, we still have the choice to determine its
outcome.

Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we’re here we should dance.
Life may not offer us equal opportunities, but each of us carry in our mind the
world which we must live in. Therefore, there is nothing like fate in life, you are
the handicap you must face. You are the one who must choose your place.

Listen, you could not have chosen your parents, your background or family, but
your “front-ground” is your making. Franklin Roosevelt said, “Men are not
prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own mind.”

Therefore, fate simply means what happens if you never manifest your potentials
and never solve the puzzles of who you are.” While destiny is seen as what you
create if you solve the puzzles and manifest one of the possibilities defined by
your potentials.

Which could you choose? To resign to your fate or to create your destiny by
solving the puzzles of life, it’s up to you anyway.

There is no limits anywhere, the only one that exists is the one you created in
your mind. People blame their failures on poor background, lack of money, or
parental care, rather than working on manifesting their potentials and living up to
their destiny. Most people have resigned to fate and accepted life as made up of
two opposite sides – winning and losing. However, I see it as choice between fate
and destiny.

Some just want to play at life, take it easy and work with what their family,
society and generation has outlined for them, while others want to work at life, to
plough the field of possibilities, sow their seeds of greatness, nurture their
potentials and reap their own rewards.

19
The decision of which is highly a personal choice… both equally accepted and
supported by Islanders who know the value of both moving with the tides and
striving against the current of society. We embrace both the left and right hand
paths of Joseph Campbell, knowing that each offer valuable lessons and life
experience.

I CAN’T MENTALITY

To enlarge your capacity, you need to first remove the limits you have placed in
your mind. This is to stop “thinking “Can I?” and start “thinking “How Can I?”

John C. Maxwell wrote in “15 Invaluable Laws of Growth that; “At first glance,
the questions “Can I?” and “How can I?” may appear to be very similar.
However, the reality is that they are worlds apart in terms of results. “Can I?” is a
question filled with hesitation and doubt. It is a question that imposes limitations.
If that is the question you regularly ask yourself, you’re undermining your efforts
before you even begin.

How many people could have accomplished much in life but failed to try because
they doubted and answered no to the question “Can I?” When you ask yourself
“How can I?” you give yourself a fighting chance to achieve something. The
most common reason people don’t overcome the odds is that they don’t challenge
themselves enough. They don’t test their limits. They don’t push their capacity.
How can I? - assumes there is a way. You just need to find it.

Mary Kay Ash said; “Don’t limit yourself.” Many people limit themselves to
what they think they can do. You can go as far as your mind lets.

What you believe, remember, you can achieve. Success in life has some external
influences but ultimately influenced by your beliefs. The law of belief states that
you always act in a way that is consistent with your beliefs, especially, those
which you have about yourself.

The beliefs you have determine the actions you take which then determine the
results that you are likely to get.

The beliefs you have about money act like filters in your brain. They allow you to
see what you believe in, and hide from you the things which you do not believe
in. This in turn influences the type of actions you take, and therefore, the amount
of money that you are likely to make. The law of belief states that whatever you
believe in with feeling ultimately becomes the reality in which you will live.

For example, suppose that a person believes they will always be poor and that
there is nothing they can do to earn some extra cash for themselves. Such a belief

20
is likely to limit that person’s actions in a way that keeps them poor and blinds
them to any financial opportunities that arise. As a result, they will probably
struggle financially for the rest of their life locked in a mindset that keeps them
poor.

If you believe that you will always be poor and that there are no opportunities for
you, then those beliefs will lead to actions that will make those beliefs come true.
But now suppose that person began to believe that one day they would be earning
a high income. What do you think would happen? Since they are now no longer
limited by their previous belief, they are likely to take actions which they never
took before.

For example, rather than wasting their money on things they don’t really need,
they choose to save or invest their money and learn how to use it more wisely.
Consequently, as a direct result of their belief, they vastly increase their chance of
achieving their financial goals.

Do not underestimate the beliefs that you have about money and your current and
future financial situation. Positive beliefs are needed to become wealthy, whilst
negative self -limiting beliefs will keep you poor.

What you belief affects what you expect and attracts…

Your expectations is strongly influenced by your beliefs, and there is a law called
the law of expectation, it states that whatever you expect to happen in your life
eventually becomes your own self-fulfilling prophecy.

This means that you are always acting as your own fortune teller by the way that
you think and talk about how things are going to turn out. When you expect good
things to happen to you, good things usually do happen. When you expect bad
things to happen to you, bad things usually happen. You are always acting as
your own fortune teller as a result of the expectations you hold.

When it comes to money, wealthy people expect to live lives of financial

abundance and have their net worth increase year after year. Whereas most
people who are not wealthy, expect to struggle for their money and just earn
enough to get by. The beauty about this law is that your expectations are largely
under your control. This means that you can decide whether you expect to be
poor or whether you expect to be prosperous.

This is why having high expectations are so important if you want to become
well-off in life, because as long as you think that something is not possible for
you, you will never try your hardest to achieve it - If you ever try at all.

The expectations you have determine what you think will happen to you in your
life, which then determines the aims and objectives that you work to achieve. The

21
higher your expectations are, the greater a level of wealth that you are likely to
pursue. But having high expectations is not enough, as those who only dream of
riches without being willing to work hard, will remain just that, dreamers.

Your beliefs also determine what you attract. The law of attraction states that you
attract into your life the people, circumstances and events that are aligned with
your dominant thoughts.

What you think about throughout the day has a powerful influence on what you
actually achieve and experience.

In other words, the law of attraction states that the life you are living today is a
reflection of the thoughts that you have had in the past. Therefore, according to
this law, if you are able to change your thoughts you will be able to change your
life.

Attraction in action

There is no doubt that the law of attraction is an important factor in determining

whether you have a lot of money sitting in your bank account, or whether you
become penniless instead.

Whether this is due to some mystical force, or due to a change in your thought
patterns and the resulting actions you take, doesn’t really matter. The results are
still the same.

If you think rich, then chances are that one day you will become rich, because
you will start to attract the things into your life that will help you to make money
rather than lose it.

If you think rich you will start to attract the things into your life that will help you
to become rich. This “attraction” could come in the form of information, such as
through reading books on money, or it might come in the form of assistance, such
as by meeting people who can help you to achieve your long term financial goals.

Through the thoughts that you have, and the resulting actions that you take, the
law of attraction will eventually bring into your life whatever it is that you are
most focused on.

If, however, you think poor, you will invariably become poor, because chances
are that you will be attracting into your life the things that are going to take your
money away from you. If you focus on poverty you will tend to engage in actions
that attract poverty to you.

22
This may come in the form of being careless with your money and wasting it,
accumulating debt or taking out high interest loans to purchase liabilities that
quickly become worthless.

As long as you focus on being broke, then ultimately, that is what you will attract
into your life. Use the law of attraction to attract more money into your life by
focusing your attention on things that bring you closer towards the achievement
of your financial goals.

This doesn’t mean that you should ignore the bad things that happen to you, but
rather, that your dominant thoughts should be on what you want to happen and
not on what you don’t.

III

DEVELOPING THE RIGHT MENTATLITY

These are the mindset that sets one on the pathway excellence. They determine
people’s success level or outputs in life. If there are mindsets that hinders
people’s success, it means there should also mindsets that unlocks doors of
greatness and opportunities.

POSSIBILITY MINDSET

The word “can’t” should never be a part of your vocabulary neither should it be a
part of your thinking dictionary. As we have known from century, “can’t” means
won’t. A person has the power to do whatever he or she set his mind to do. Yes,
there are always obstacles, setbacks, and times of frustration, however if we take
one step at a time and believe in God and in ourselves, we will find our lives
changing for the better. We should try as much as possible to live beyond limits.
Giving up is a cop-out, never throw in the towel because it will only harm two
people; yourself and your generation.

Therefore never consider it as an option. Though, circumstances can make it

more difficult for some people, never forget that where there is a will, there will
definitely be a way. Life is full of challenges, and that simply make it worthwhile.
Where could we be if life was too easy?

Sharon Wood, the first North American woman to climb Mount Everest, said of
her experience - “I discovered it wasn’t a matter of physical strength, but a matter

23
of psychological strength. The conquest lay within my own mind to penetrate
those barriers of self-imposed limitations and get to the good stuff - the stuff
called potential, 90 percent of which we barely use.” If we want to tap into that
unused 90 percent, ask “How can I?” do that and greater achievement becomes a
matter of when and how, if not.

It is a mindset. You can’t live with limitations and utilize the fullness of your
mind or potentials. A story was told about a hen that was tied down in one place
with a short rope for a long time. And each attempt the fowl made to take steps
further failed. So all the while, it could not go pass the length of the rope. One
day the custodian loosed the rope unknowingly to the fowl, but for several days
the fowl remained on that spot, thinking it was still under lock and key. Its mind
has been programed to live with limitations. That is how most people are, because
nobody has done a thing in their environment, they so believed that it’s not
attainable.

God puts in every man the potential to grow, expand and achieve. The first step in
doing that is believing that you can.

Develop a mindset. Believe you can grow, build up strength, whatever is

necessary; just know you are not defective. You are wired for success. Have faith
in yourself. Believe in yourself and activate your conscious power. Have it
imprinted in your consciousness that everything is working together for your
good, that you are the best and you have the best brains.

Power-consciousness is what you feel when you know that you can do a thing,
and you know ‘How’ to do the thing with these strategies explained in this book,
success cannot elude you. You will succeed. Having read this book, dare to apply
the strategies in approaching life.

To become efficient you must feel positive about life, think positively and act
positively. You must have the consciousness that I can succeed, all that is
possible to anyone is possible to me. I am successful; I do succeed, for I am full
of the power of success.

This is the simple truth. Realize that it is true, and repeat it over and over until
your mentality is saturated through and through with the knowledge that you can
do what you want to do. You can; other people have, and you can do more than
anyone has ever done. It is within your power to make a greater success in your
field than anyone has ever made before you.

Before you continue, tear a piece of paper and write down these confessions and
then place it on your bed side.

24
 “I am created for success and the good life; sickness, poverty, disease,
death, and the down life are not consistent with my true nature and
identity.

“Therefore, I can never condescend to their level. God made me for his
Glory; I am a Wonder, a Product of Divine Orchestration and a Miracle
going somewhere to happen.”

“I am God’s dream come true. God has made me rich, successful super-
intelligent and influential, I am what God says I am, I believe in my
prosperity, health, success, promotion and increase.”

“I see myself making progress and moving forward. Hold these thoughts in
your mind and utilize all the given opportunity to learn and express
yourself.”

Whatever you hold in your mind will tend to occur in your life. If you continue to
believe as you have always believed, you will continue to act as you have always
acted. If you continue to act as you have always acted, you will continue to get
what you have always gotten. If you want different results in your life or your
work, all you have to do is change your mind.

IDEALISTIC MINDSET

To attain excellence, you should be filled with superior ideals. Creating an

idealism which contains no thought that is less than the utmost lofty state of mind
can possibly produce, and it entertains no desire that has not the very greatest
worth, the greatest power and the greatest attainment in view.

A mindset that does not recognize the power of evil in anything or anybody, it
knows that adverse conditions exist, but it give the matter no conscious thought
whatever because it is not possible to think the greatest thought about everything
while the mind is giving conscious attention to adversity or imperfection.

Therefore, try all you can to give conscious recognition to the power of good only
and live in the conviction that all things in your life are constantly working
together for good. Don’t see this conviction as a mere sentiment or a way to
comfort yourself. No matter what, everything that happens in the world is made
to work out according to God’s purpose. Evil may exist, but it is not allowed to
thwart God’s providence. “The lot is cast into the lap, but the whole disposing
thereof is of the LORD.”

25
This is the mindset you need to achieve excellence in life, evil exist but not to
stop you from being what and who God has ordained for you. Understand that all
things will positively work together for your good when you recognize only the
good, and when all the power of life, thought and action are concentrated on the
attainment and the achievement of greater things.

When you apply these principles to all things, it makes you advance in all things.
Think of the highest, work for the greatest, and the best that you know in the
present, and you will create the very greatest and the very best for the future.

You are continually faced with challenges and difficulties, with problems and
disappointments, with temporary setbacks and defeats. They are an unavoidable
and inevitable part of being human. But, as you draw upon your resources to
respond effectively to each challenge, you grow and become a stronger and better
person. In fact, without those setbacks, you could not have learned what you
needed to know and developed the qualities of your character to where they are
today.

Much of your ability to succeed comes from the way you deal with life. One of
the characteristics of superior men and women is that they recognize the
inevitability of temporary disappointments and defeats, and they accept them as a
normal and natural part of life. They do everything possible to avoid problems,
but when problems come, superior people learn from them, rise above them, and
continue onward in the direction of their dreams.

GARDENER’S MENTALITY

A gardener is known as a planter or grower. Someone involve in growing

flowers. Gardeners in the real sense are characterized by their abilities in
nurturing, planting, and watering seeds to maturity.

A gardener see in every seed, a potential tree and fruits. They also see life as a
seed that needs to be nurtured and planted for great harvest. A gardener nurtures
friendships, relationships, and prepares to reap the dividends of flourishing
associations.

Gardeners don’t also spend money anyhow, no matter how small they earn, they
strive to nurture it until it begins to yield high returns on investment. A person
with a gardener mentality on a salary level of #30,000 will be richer than a hunter
on a salary grade of #100,000. Perhaps, you may know that it’s not what you
earn, it’s what you spend.

In addition, a gardener is more concerned about the multiplication of all that he

has, while a hunter is bent on consuming all he has. A gardener sees salary as a

26
resources and seek for every opportunity to increase it, while a hunter sees salary
as an income, consumes it and wait for another salary alert. When gardener
mentality is in place, you are always looking for opportunity for growth and
increase, but when a hunter’s mentality is in you, you will always do things that
does not lead you to growth or increase.

OPTIMISTIC MINDSET

To live right, you must be an optimist, because optimistic people tend to interpret
events in such a way that they keep their minds positive and their emotions under
control.

Optimists develop the habit of talking to themselves in constructive ways.

Whenever they experience an adversity, they immediately describe it to
themselves in such a way that it loses its ability to trigger negative emotions and
feelings of helplessness.

Dr. Martin Seligman of the University of Pennsylvania has written a fascinating

book based on his 25 years of research into this subject. It’s titled Learned
Optimism. In this book, Dr. Seligman explains the basic response patterns of both
positive and negative people. As a result of his many years of work in cognitive
therapy, and the use of exhaustive testing, he finds, quite simply, that are three
basic differences in the reactions of optimists and pessimists.

The first difference is that the optimist sees a setback as temporary, while the
pessimist sees it as permanent. The optimist sees an unfortunate event, such as an
order that falls through or a sales call that fails, as a temporary event, something
that is limited in time and that has no real impact on the future. The pessimist, on
the other hand, sees negative events as permanent, as part of life and destiny.

For example, let’s say that the optimistic salesperson makes 10 calls on likely
prospects, and every one of those calls is unsuccessful. The optimist simply
interprets this as a temporary event and a matter of averages or probabilities. The
optimist concludes that, with every temporary failure, he is moving closer to the
prospect who will turn into a sale. The optimist dismisses the event and goes on
cheerfully to the 11th and 12th prospects.

The pessimist sees the same situation differently. The pessimist has a tendency to
conclude that 10 unsuccessful sales calls is an indication that the economy is
terrible and that there is no market for his product. The pessimist generalizes and
begins to see the situation and his career as hopeless. While the optimist just
27
shrugs it off and gets on with the next call, the pessimist becomes discouraged
and loses heart and enthusiasm for the hard work of prospecting.

The second difference between the optimist and the pessimist is that the optimist
sees difficulties as specific, while the pessimist sees them as pervasive. This
means that when things go wrong for the optimist, he looks at the event as an
isolated incident largely disconnected from other things that are going on in his
life.

For example, if something you were counting on failed to materialize and you
interpreted it to yourself as being an unfortunate event, but something that
happens in the course of life and business, you would be reacting like an optimist.
The pessimist, on the other hand, sees disappointments as being pervasive. That
is, to him they are indications of a problem or shortcoming that pervades every
area of life.

If a pessimist worked hard to put together a business deal and it collapsed, he

would tend to assume that the deal did not work out was because the product or
the company or the economy was in poor shape and the whole business was
hopeless.

The pessimist would tend to feel helpless, unable to make a difference and out of
control of his destiny.

The third difference between optimists and pessimists is that optimists see events
as external, while pessimists interpret events as personal. When things go wrong,
the optimist will tend to see the setback as result from external factors over which
one has little control.

If the optimist is cut off in traffic, for example, instead of getting angry or upset,
he will simply downgrade the importance of the event by saying something like,
“oh, well, I guess that person is just having a bad day.”

The pessimist has a tendency to take everything personally. If the pessimist is cut
off in traffic, he will react as though the other driver has deliberately acted to
upset and frustrate him. The pessimist will become angry and negative and want
to strike out and get even. Often, he will honk his horn or yell at the other driver.

There is a natural tendency in all of us to react emotionally when our expectations

are frustrated in any way. When something we wanted and hoped for fails to
materialize, we feel a temporary sense of disappointment and unhappiness.

We feel disillusioned. We react as though we have been punched in the

“emotional solar plexus”.

28
The optimistic person, however, soon moves beyond this disappointment. He
responds quickly to the adverse event and interprets it as being temporary,
specific and external to himself. The optimist takes full control of his inner
dialogue and counters the negative feelings by immediately reframing the event
so that it appear positive in some way.

Napoleon Hill, who, prior to writing his best-selling books on success,

interviewed
500 of the most successful people in America, concluded that “Contained within
a setback or disappointment is the seed of an equal or greater advantage or
benefit.”
And this is one of the great secrets of success.

Since your conscious mind can hold only one thought at a time, either positive or
negative, if you deliberately choose a positive thought to dwell upon, you keep
your mind optimistic and your emotions positive. Since your thoughts and
feelings determine your actions, you will tend to be a more constructive person,
and you will move much more rapidly toward the goals that you have chosen.

It all comes down to the way you talk to yourself on a regular basis. In our
courses of problem solving and decisions making, we encourage people to
respond to problems by changing their language from negative to positive.
Instead of using the word problem, we encourage people to use the word
situation. You see, a problem is something that you deal with. The event is the
same. It’s the way you interpret the event to yourself that makes it sound and
appear completely different.

Even better than situation is the word challenge. Whenever you have a difficulty,
immediately reframe it and choose to view it as a challenge. Rather than saying,
“I have a problem,” say, “I have an interesting challenge facing me.” The word
challenge is inherently positive. It is something that you rise to that makes you
stronger and better. It is the same situation, only the word that you are using to
describe it is different.

The best of all possible words is the word opportunity. When you are faced with a
difficulty of any kind, instead of saying, “I have a problem,” you can say, “I am
faced with an unexpected opportunity.” And if you concentrate your powers on
finding out what that opportunity is—even if it is only a valuable lesson—you
will certainly find it. As the parable says, “Seek and ye shall find, for all who
seek find it.”

Every situation is a positive situation if viewed as an opportunity for growth and

self-mastery. Whenever something goes wrong, immediately neutralize its
negative power by quickly reciting this statement.

29
If you are in sales, and your method of prospecting is not generating the results
that you desire, you can view it as an opportunity for growth and self-mastery.
The adversity you are facing may be meant to indicate to you that there is a better
way to approach this task. Perhaps you should be prospecting in a different place,
or with different people, or using a different script or a different method. Perhaps
your difficulty is simply part of the process of developing the persistence and
tenacity that you need to become successful in any kind of market. The difference
between the winner and the loser is that the winner faces and deals with the
adversity constructively, while the loser allows the adversity to overwhelm him.

The hallmark of the fully mature, fully functioning, self-actualizing personality is

the ability to be objective and unemotional when caught up in the inevitable
storms of daily life. The superior person has the ability to continue talking to
himself in a positive and optimistic way, keeping his mind calm, clear and
completely under control. The mature personality is more relaxed and aware and
capable of interpreting events more realistically and less emotionally than is the
immature personality. As a result, the mature person exerts a far greater sense of
control and influence over his environment, and is far less likely to be angry,
upset, or distracted.

The starting point in the process of becoming a highly effective person is to

monitor and control your self-talk every minute of the day. Keep your thoughts
and your words positive and consistent with your goals, and keep your mind
focused on what you want to do and the person you want to be.

Here are five ideas you can use to help you to be a more positive and optimistic
person: First, resolve in advance that no matter what happens, you will not allow
it to get you down. You will respond in a constructive way. You will take a deep
breath, relax and look for whatever good the situation may contain. When you
make this decision in advance, you mentally prepare yourself so that you are not
knocked off balance when things go wrong, as they inevitably will.

Second, neutralize any negative thoughts or emotions by speaking to yourself

positively all the time. Say things like, “I feel healthy! I feel happy! I feel
terrific!”
As you go about your job, say to yourself, I like myself, and I love my work!”
Say things like, “Today is a great day; it’s wonderful to be alive!” According to
the law of expression, whatever is expressed is impressed. Whatever you say to
yourself or others is impressed deeply into your subconscious mind and is likely
to become a permanent part of your personality.

Third, look upon the inevitable setbacks that you face as being temporary,
specific and external. View the negative situations as a single event that is not
connected to other potential events and that is caused largely by external factors
over which you can have little control. Simply refuse to see the event as being in
30
any way permanent, pervasive or indicative of personal incompetence of
inability.

Fourth, remember that it is impossible to learn and grow and become a successful
person without adversity and difficulties. You must contend with and rise above
them in order to become a better person. Welcome each difficulty by saying,
“That’s good!” and then look into the situation to find the good in it. Finally, keep
your thoughts on your goals and dreams, on the person you are working toward
becoming. When things go wrong temporarily, respond by saying to yourself, “I
believe in the perfect outcome of every situation in my life.” Resolve to be
cheerful and pleasant, and resist every temptation toward negativity and
disappointment.

View a disappointment as an opportunity to grow stronger, and about it to

yourself and others in a positive and optimistic way.

When you practice positive self-talk, and keep your words and your mental
pictures consistent with your goals and dreams, there is nothing that can stop you
from being the success you are meant to be.

Finally, perhaps the most powerful influence on your attitude and personality is
what you say to yourself, and believe. It is not what happens to you, but how you
respond internally to what happens to you, that determines your thoughts and
felling and, ultimately, your actions. By controlling your inner dialogue, or
“mindset,” you can begin to assert control over every other dimension of your
life.

Your mindset determine the words that you use to describe what is happening to
you, and to discuss how you feel about external events determines the quality and
tone of your emotional life. When you see things positively and constructively
and look for the good in each situation and each person, you have a tendency to
remain naturally positive and optimistic. Since the quality of your life is
determined by how you feel, moment to moment, one of your most important
goals should be to use every psychological technique available to keep yourself
thinking about what you want and to keep your mind off of what you don’t want,
or what you fear.

IV

Break out from the comfort zone

31
To break out from the comfort zone means the desire to stretch your mind beyond
the familiar. Very many individual are too used to the familiar that they are
unwilling to change. The most relentless enemy of achievement, personal growth,
and success is inflexibility. Change is a catalyst for personal growth. It gets you
out of a rut. It gives you a fresh start and affords you the opportunity to re-
evaluate your direction.

Life is constantly developing, and you need to grow with it. What is fashionable
in the 18th century is outdated and obsolete in this present generation. The
wisdom that survived our fathers, cannot survive us in this present time. You
must come out of your comfort zone and stretch yourself to become great and
relevant.

A wise man said;“You will remain who you are in 10yrs, except for two
things; the books you read and the friends you keep.”

Comfort zone is a behavioral space where your activities and behaviors fit a
routine and pattern that minimizes stress and risk. You have to stand up to
challenges, and walk out of the familiar and push yourself to get to the next level
and accomplish something amazingly.

You have to challenge yourself. The mother eagle teaches the baby eagle this
principle. When the baby grows to a certain level, the mother eagle will scatter
her next and push the baby eagle down. The baby eagle will then fall to a certain
level and then gets support from the mother. This exercise is repeated severally,
until the baby eagle will spread her wings and learn how to fly. Imagine the
mental torture the baby eagle would have gone through just to learn how to fly.

To be productive and effective in life, you have to stretch yourself beyond the
familiar. You have to get to a place where your mental productivity and
performance will reach its peak. Don’t be too relaxed about life. You are not born
to be an average person. You are born to do more stuff and express yourself fully.
And until you express all your abilities and gifts to the advancement of the world;
you are not better than a slave. Mental slavery is worse than physical slavery.

Challenge yourself to new heights. Life places a demand on everyone; and that
demand is a personal responsibility. Life does not give you what you desire; it
only gives you what you demand. You can’t achieve anything worthwhile by
folding of your hands, watching things happen. You can only achieve by making
things happen.

There are three kinds of people; those who watch things happen; those who make
things happen and those who wonder how things happen. And until you are ready
to create what you want; the things you never wanted will be attracted to your

32
life. Therefore, you have to decide what you want in life by breaking out of the
comfort zones of life. Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.

Breaking from the comfort zone means “Going far beyond that of duty, doing
more than others expect, this is what excellence is all about! And it comes from
striving, maintaining the highest standards, looking after the smallest detail, and
going the extra mile. Excellence means doing your very best. “In everything!”
and “In every way.”

CHAPTER THREE

How do you discover and develop your capacity?

The journey to excellence begins with human capacity development. True success
is too complex for one to get on a platform of common sense, rather, it is gotten
through acquired sense. Knowledge is so powerful, that the absence of it can keep
a powerful destiny in captivity.

“Therefore, my people are gone into captivity, because they have no

knowledge: and their honorable men are famished, and their multitude
dried up in thirst.
Prophet Isaiah Amoz

I really don’t know very much about the causes of poverty, but I know that the
greatest cause of poverty and the downward life is ignorance. At the base of every
affliction is ignorance. It causes sickness, pains, poverty and failure. And the only
cure to ignorance is knowledge. A knowledge based life is the key to a
prosperous living. Success requires skillful and intellectually based principles.

The Power of Knowledge is superior to the Power of Faith. There is assurance in

knowledge, but there is doubt in faith. Your personal knowledge is the bedrock of
anything you want to achieve. The knowledge you have and gain is what
distinguishes you from everyone else. You must recognize that the rich, who earn
possibly 100 times more than you do, aren’t 100 times smarter and don’t work

33
100 times harder. They just know more; they know the rules of business and
making money. And they are always willing to learn more.

For instance, say you are driving along at 120 km per hour and you knew
something nobody else on the road knew-that there was a speed trap waiting
round the next bend. That information will cause you to slow down and probably
avoid a death incidence. So many have died in life because they didn’t know
there was a death hole on the highway. What if you knew there was a broken-
down truck blocking the road, one that cause a fatal crash at that speed? Wouldn’t
that knowledge be critical to you?

How much will this knowledge be worth to you? Knowledge is a very powerful
thing for those who possess it. Successful people know this and aware of the
continuing need to learn as much as they can to allow them to maximize their
opportunities and to minimize their mistakes.

Very many powerful destinies are grounded in life because they are living their
lives in ignorance. Ignorance of who they are; ignorance of what they have;
ignorance of what they can do; ignorance of what they should avoid and above
all, ignorance of success or wealth creation principles. Poverty does not respect
status, race, nations, colours, age, or certificate. It only submits to you when you
know what to do and do them accordingly.

Basically, everyone has three major stages in life. We have the learning stages,
the Earning Stage and the Bending stage. And although, each of these occurs
sequentially, they can, and, do overlap.

Having an understanding of these stages of life can assist in planning by giving

you a realistic expectation of your likely situation during certain periods of your
life.

You cannot be successful beyond what and where your capacity can carry you.”
Have you maxed out your capacity? Have you reached your full potential as a
person? I believe if you’re reading this, the answer is no. if you are still breathing
and you are of sound mind, then you have the potential to keep increasing your
capacity.

Authors Robert J. kriegel and Louis Patler affirms, “We don’t have a clue as to
what people’s limits are. All the tests, stopwatches, and finish lines in the world
can’t measure human potential. When someone is pursuing their dreams, they’ll
go far beyond what seems to be their limitations.” The potentials that exists
within us is limitless and largely untapped… when you think of limits, you create
them.

34
It is not God that determines the measure of what you receive; it is your capacity
that sets the limits. In the world of success capacity plays a big role. The human
mind is unlimited. I have heard that most experts believe people typically use
only 10 percent of their true potential. That statement is staggering!

If that is true, then the average person has huge capacity for improvement. It’s as
if we possess hundreds of acres of possibilities but keep only half an acre under
cultivation. So how do we tap into the unused 90 percent? The answer is found in
developing our capacity, and breaking out from our comfort zone to reach new
heights.

God created man in a way that he gave him an unlimited capacity. MR.
OSBORNE, May I be excused? “My brain is full” a student with a particularly
tiny head asks his classroom teacher. The deadpan answer to this question was;
No, your brain is almost certainly not full”. Although there must be a physical
limit to how many memories we can store, it is extremely large. We don’t have to
worry about running out of space in our life time.

The human brain consists of about one billion neurons. Each neuron forms about
1,000 connections to other neurons, amounting to more than a trillion
connections. If each neuron could only help to store a single memory, running out
of space would be a problem. You might have only a few gigabytes of storage
space similar to the space in an iPod or a USB flash drive. Yet neurons combine
so that each one helps with many memories at a time, exponentially increasing
the brain’s memory storage capacity to something closer to around 2.5 petabytes
(or a million gigabytes). For comparison, if your brain worked like a digital video
recorder in a television, 2.5 petabytes would be enough to leave the TV running
continuously for more than 300years to use up all the storage.

Emily Dickson wrote; “The Brain is wider than the sky.

I
Commitment to Learning

The whole world is trading information.” And the role of information in the
world of success cannot be quantified. The most effective avenue for information
acquisition is reading. Reading makes living successful. Most of the great minds
in today’s world emerged out of a studious life. The quality of the information
that finds its way into your mind determines the quality of your life.

35
Henry Ford wrote; “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or
eighty.” Anyone who keeps learning stays young.

There is difference between growing older and growing up. Growing older is
mandatory but growing up is optional. And we don’t stop learning because we are
old; we grow old because we stop learning. If you are twenty years old and lie in
bed for one full year and don’t do one productive thing, you will turn twenty one
years old. Anybody can grow older. That doesn’t take any talent or ability. The
idea is to grow up by always finding opportunity in change.

Many people are old, but they have not grown up. They just refuse to grow. The
greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young. Information is a very great asset
in the world of success. Information is power! You must be informed in other to
be transformed. Therefore, you must crave for information as you can’t get any
higher than you are informed. To be an excellent person you must possess an
unquenchable desire for knowledge.

Every outstanding success is traceable to discovered secrets. Once you are rich in
knowledge, you will be rich in many other things - “Through knowledge shall the
righteous be delivered” All successful people are basically rich in knowledge. A
wise man said; “You will for sure remain who you are in the next one decade
except for two reasons; the book you read and the friends you keep.

Successful people know something that you don’t know. And until you know
what they know, success will completely elude you.

George R.R. Martin said; “The mind needs books as sword needs a whetstone, if
it is to keep its edge.

In the school of excellence, reading, studying and learning is a must. Educating

your mind; not necessarily in a formal structured setting but in an informal way
through diligent searching and finding of what is necessary for your mental
development. There is no limit to the height a reader can attain.

II
Learning Begins At Childhood

A person’s ideologies in life are formed at childhood. The child learns from the
people his environment, the people he listens to, and the things he watches.

36
If a Child Lives with Criticism – He Learns to Condemn
If a Child Lives with Fear – He learns to be Apprehensive
If a Child Lives with Hostility - He learns to Fight
If a Child Lives with Fairness – He learns Justice
If a Child Lives with Acceptance – He learns to Love
If a Child Lives with Honesty – He learns what Truth is, and many more.

It then follows by the years when you go to school to get on education, so that
you can get yourself a high paying job.

At this stage you begin to develop your human capital in life, with the mind to
improve your values as a human being.

Your value as a person is a direct function of how much you know. And your
earning ability is greatly determined by your learning horizon. So the fatness of
your account is determined by the vastness of your brain.

The law of exchange dictates that the amount of money you receive for a product
or service depends on how valuable it is.

The more something is needed, the fewer people who have it and the more
important it is, the higher its value will be and the more money that you will get
for it. This is the basic principle behind the law of supply and demand.

Value is largely determined by what someone is willing to pay for something, and
can therefore vary depending on that person’s feelings, attitudes and opinions of
what you have to offer. The more valuable something is perceived as being the
more people will be willing to pay for it.

Generally speaking, there are three factors which determine value in the real
world: the type of work you do, how well you do it and the difficulty in finding
what you do elsewhere. If you undergo formal education to train yourself in a
highly specialized field for example, you are likely to receive a high wage for it
because not many other people can do what you do.

The more skilled a profession is, the less people that will be able to do it, and so
the more you will get paid for it. If, on the other hand, you work in a low skilled
profession in which anyone can do what you do, then you are likely to receive a
lower wage because competition from other workers drives down the value of
your particular skill.

In order to make more money you must increase the value of what you do. This
may mean increasing your knowledge, skills or changing your job. The quality of
time you spend developing yourself or learning a new skill largely determines
your earning ability.

37
One of your major purposes in life should be to increase your earning potential to
receive the most amount of money possible in exchange for your time. An
effective way to do this is to identify valuable use of your time, and then focus
more of your time on doing those things.

The more personal value that you are able to create for yourself the greater the
value of the goods or services that you provide will be, and the greater the
monetary value that you will receive in return.

The highest paid people in society continually improve what they do so that they
can earn more money by offering products and services of increasingly greater
value.

In today’s knowledge based economy, what you earn depends on what you learn.
The amount of money you earn today is a direct measure of the extent to which
you have developed your earning ability. And your earning ability is a function of
your mental capacity.

Nobody pays you because you’re the oldest in an organization. Employers pay
you because you have the relevant information or skills needed to run their
organization.

Therefore, formal education determines how much you earn in a salaried job. For
instance, someone who stopped schooling at the primary school level will not
earn the same amount of money as someone with a secondary grade level. And
the man that stopped at secondary level will not also earn the same salary as a
university graduate. So you are rated according to your learning potentials.

III

Limitations of Formal Education

Very many Nigerian graduates has fallen victims of this limitation placed by
formal education on people. Poverty does not respect grammar or credentials.
Poverty only bows to laws or principles.

A wise man said; “If you want to be rich and happy, don’t go to school.”

In formal setting, we all receive a basic education that teaches us to read, write
and do mathematics. Then we’re thrown into the world, either to sit in a salaried
job, to join the ever-growing ranks of the unemployed, or to start business that are

38
likely to fail. We are basically cut loose without any skill in creating wealth or
securing a job, and with no idea of how to be in business for ourselves.

For instance, I studied electrical engineering, but 80% of what I was taught had
no success content in it. Rather, they were basic theories and derivations that has
no bearing.

If this says anything, it says our formal education system has limited very many
destinies. It doesn’t give us important life skills. School has become a tradition
that must be observed, giving people only what they expected, and getting ahead
by doing the same things as everyone else. Do you call that a recipe for success.

The present day schools, ninety five percent of the system in the world has one
major agenda- they are setup to qualify people to get a job. So all you do by
going to school is getting prepared to come out and look for a job, and when they
can’t find one, frustrations sets in.

Before you even start complaining about the lack of job vacancies, have you
asked yourself that – are my employable? Do I have what it takes to make things
work in any organization that would require my services?

Most people think work is a job to fill; Wrong! It is not, it is what you do with
your life… work is what you do with your knowledge, skills, intelligent, gifts,
talents and time.

Therefore, what makes you feel you are employable in this dispensation of
technological advancements? The school systems is still basically operating in the
Medieval/Analog generation. I read an article about the standard of education in
the United State of America; and I found out that a fresh American graduates is
four years behind the technological trend in the real world. If it is true, then it
means we on this part of the world are four hundred years behind.

With each new day in Africa, a gazelle wakes up knowing he must outrun the
fastest lion or perish. At the same time, a lion stirs and stretches, knowing he
must outrun the fastest gazelle or starve. It is not different for the human race.
Whether you consider yourself a lion or gazelle, you simply have to run faster
than others to survive. The world is in a race of globalization, and all we need to
join the race is to develop our mental capacity and not certificate.

There is a soaring rate of unemployment in the society today, and to outfit other
jobless people, you have to run fast enough to be ahead. And the only way to be
ahead is to acquire relevant/up-to-date information in your field of study. You
don’t have to rely alone on what you’re been taught in the school, otherwise you
will be outfitted.

39
Basically having a first class in your field of studies, does not guarantee you
success or excellence in life. Off course, I know quite a number of people who
went to school, then graduated with the best results, but have remained poor and
unsuccessful.

Not all educated people are well informed. I discovered from experience in my
21days National Youth Service Corps orientation course that quite a number of
the pseudo-graduates basically spent between two to eight years in school to
become an applicant.

Can I say this? There are enough jobs and money in the world, but the only
limitation is that we are not been able to acquire enough wisdom to access the
money, and to develop ourselves to become assets to our prospective employers.
Therefore, if you have what it takes to function in the required capacity, you will
always be hired.

IV

Personal Development

However, anyone who is serious about becoming financially successful should

note that learning does not end at school, or end when you starts working. But
rather, it is a continuous process that extends throughout your whole life.

Though, formal education” will guarantee you the first step to success, but “self-
development” guarantees the remaining 99 steps to a life of success.”

The best formal education can do for you is to give you a living; but self-
development will make you a fortune. It is not that you read a book, pass an
examination, and that ends your education. The whole of life, from the moment
you are born to the moment you die, is a process of learning.

Learning keeps you abreast with change in the world. Learning is like rowing
upstream; not to advance is to drop back.

A wise man said; “Who so neglect learning in his youth, loses the past and is
dead for the future…” Living without learning is dying without knowing. The
greatest tragedy that will befall a man is not death; but to expire in life.

40
Learning provides the opportunity for growth. Therefore, where you start in life
and how you start should not determine where you will stop.”

Change is a catalyst for personal growth. It gets you out of a rut; it gives you
fresh start and affords you the opportunity to re-evaluate your direction. It makes
you go far beyond that of duty, doing more than expected, this is what excellence
is all about! Excellence means doing your very best in everything and in every
way.

In what areas are you learning and growing? If the answer is none that means you
are stagnating or regressing. “Learn more, earn more, know more, grow more’’

Being ignorant is not so much a shame: as being unwilling to learn. This is

because learning is a treasure that follows the owner everywhere.

Alvin Toffler said: “The illiterate of the 21 st century will not be those who cannot
read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.” If you must be
successful, you must grow, and if you must grow, you must learn.

Don’t say because I am old, therefore I can’t learn again. No! You don’t stop
learning because you are old: you are old because you stopped learning.

Henry Ford said: “Anyone who stops learning is old, weather at twenty or eighty.
Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your
mind young’’.

So learning is not a means to an end; it is an end in itself. The best thing for being
happy is to learn something. That’s the only thing that never fails. You may grow
old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the
disorder of your veins; you may see the world about you devastated by evil
lunatics, or know your honor trampled in the sewers of listener minds. There is
only one thing for it then to learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it.
That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be
tortured by, never fear or distrust and never dream of regretting. Learning is the
only thing for you.

“Learning new things everyday makes you better than who you are yesterday.
Never be the same person twice.”

The desire to grow is the foundation for Riches. To become a better human being,
you need to grow in character. To advance in your career, you need to grow in
your skills. And to rich your financial goals, you need to grow in your knowledge
about how money works.

41
Life is all about growth. And to grow you need to be informed. To be an excellent
person, you need to constantly upgrade your mind by learning skills.

As psychiatrist Fritz Perls observed, “Learning is discovering that something is

possible.” The law of Expansion is about learning, growing, and increasing our
capacity.

ACQUIRE NEW SKILLS…

The importance of acquiring skills in this twenty first century cannot be

overemphasized as it is the compass with which one’s future can be charted. Skill
gives one a place in life and allows for dependability, reliability, and
responsiveness. Skill is what leads to proficiency in life. However, what are
skills. Skills are knowledge acquired through learning which could come in form
of apprenticeship, internship and sometimes by watching others for a long time. It
is pertinent to state that skills are different from talents/gifts. The latter are natural
endowment bestowed on one by nature or God, while the former is a profession
chosen for mastery. Talent requires education, which could be formal or informal
in nature, to manifest.

If you must excel, you would require at least one skill. After my secondary
school, I developed a passion for musical instrument and I went to be trained.
Skills can open doors naturally that certificate cannot open for you. Skills can
make you dependable without being a burden to your family, state or country at
large.

Developing multiple skills is what will enable you to face the global challenge.
Even corporate organizations are looking for skillful individuals to hire. To
acquire new skills, you must be determined, disciplined, self-motivated, and
above all, be mentored.

Be Trained

A wise man said; “Until you are trained, you cannot reign.” To become a major in
life requires training. High-flyers in life are great at learning. No matter how
gifted you are; what guarantees success is your ability to be trained.

42
Training can make a street urchin a general. Training can make dullard a genius. I
am not basically referring to earning a university degree. It goes beyond that. We
must never mistake schooling for education. Education is largely a function of
information whereas schooling is a career. Therefore, it is possible to spend five
years in school and still not be educated. Great minds are not born, they are
developed. Every great mind is personally developed. There is no one born a
success. Success is a conscious process that individual subscribes to.

Training simply means an established program of development towards the

accomplishment of your task. We have basically two types of training, namely:
formal (general) and informal (personal) training.

Anthony Robbins has grown to become a consultant to big corporations such as

IBM, the US Army, AT&T, etc. by personal development. The capacity of his
mind has been enormously enlarged.

Richard Branson, the sixth most important figure in Britain became an empire of
the mind via personal development. He wrote; “I was dyslexic, I had no
understanding of schoolwork whatsoever. I certainly would have failed IQ tests.
And it was one of the reasons I left school when I was fifteen years old. And if I
am not interested in something, I don’t grasp it.”

Sir Charles Nicolas Richard Brandson is the founder and chairman of Virgin
groups and his net worth is almost US$4.6 billion. Branson formed Virgin
Atlantic Airways in 1984, Launched virgin Mobile in 1999, and virgin Blue in
Australia in 2000, the chairman of Virgin Trains, Virgin Express, Brussels
Airlines, Virgin Nigeria, Virgin America, Virgin Cola, Virgin Vodka Brand, etc.
His company is a conglomerate of over four hundred companies. He is presently
researching on a product called Virgin Fuels, which is set to respond to global
warming and exploit the recent spike in fuel costs by offering a revolutionary,
cheaper fuel for automobiles and, in the near future, aircraft.

Branson has been tagged as a “transformational leader” in the management

lexicon, with his maverick strategies and his stress on the virgin Group as an
organization driven on informality and information, one that is bottom-heavy
rather than strangled by top-level management.

I think you’ve schooled enough. You have had more than 12years of formal
education and probably before you will graduate, you would have had at least
18years of formal education without anything to show for it.

Sherwood Anderson wrote; “The whole object of education is, or should be, to
develop mind. The mind should be a thing that works. It should be able to pass
judgments on events as they arise, make decisions.”

43
A man called Benjamin Franklin had only two years of formal education before
he branched off to become a printing apprentice. He spent his feeding money to
buy books, and thus read himself to a genius. This man was accomplished in life.

Benjamin Franklin became one of the most multitalented as well as the most
accomplished person in history! A famous Polymath, Franklin was a
businessman, a Leading Author and Printer, a Public Servant, Political Theorist,
Politician, Postmaster, Scientist, Inventor, Satirist, Activist, Statesman, Diplomat
and a Humanitarian.

Benjamin Franklin accomplished so much in his life time. He was successful in

everything he did. He lived an almost impossible spiritual life, but he was only a
mortal man with 24-hours day just like the rest of us. Certainly he was a brilliant
and a determined person, but his skill and brains alone didn’t drive him to
accomplish all he did.

Your chances of greatness are rooted in information. If a book binding apprentice

can emerge a great inventor in the scientific world, and a printing apprentice can
emerge a foremost philosopher in America, and they are still being celebrated
today, then you have hope.

Steps to Learning

1. Be Mentored – Learn from the Experts.

Rev. Joshua A. Bakare wrote; “He who does not have a mentor cannot go far in
life.” I have observed that the second most important success principle, after self-
discipline, is that you must learn from the experts. You will never live long
enough to learn it all for yourself.

If you must be successful, your first job is to learn what you need to learn in order
to achieve the success you desired. Learn from the experts. Read their books,
listen to their audio programs. Attend their seminars. Write to them or approach
them directly and ask them for advice. One idea may be all you need to change
the direction of your life.

Daniel, one of the greatest Babylonian that ever lived, said; “I Daniel understood
by books.” There is no height a reader cannot attain. Hey! Wake up the giant in
you through vigorous search of information.

2. Always Desire to be Like the Master you’ve Located

You can become productive by studying, dissecting and internalizing that work in
order to gain a true understanding and then, reproduce that work on your own.

44
3. Practice Imitating the Master until you Achieved your Own Mastery of the
desired Skills.

This is by rehearsing what you have learnt. You can become perfect by practicing
effectively. For without practice one can never truly gain mastery.

Save Hundreds of Hours and Save Thousands of Dollars in Personal

Advancement

Your mind is your most precious asset. You must be continually working to
increase the quality of your thinking. One of the best ways is to turn driving time
into learning time. Listen to educational audio cassettes in your car. The average
driver according to the American Automobile Association, drives 12,000 to
25,000 miles each year, spending 500 to 1000 hours that you spend each year in
your car. That is the equivalent of 12 1/2 to 25 forty-hour weeks. This is the same
as two full university semesters spent behind the wheel of your car each year.

Use Traveling Time as Learning Time

If you did nothing but use that traveling time as learning time, this decision alone
could make you one of the best educated people of your generation. Many people
have gone from rags to riches simply by listening to audio programs as they drive
to and from work.

Attend Every Seminar

In addition, for personal and professional development, you should attend every
seminar you can. You can often save yourself 100’s of hours of reading and
researching by attending a seminar given by an authority in his or her field. You
can learn ideas, techniques and methods that can save you hours, days, even
months of hard work and research on your own.

Increase Your Income

Remember, to earn more, you must learn more. Your outer world of results will
always correspond to your inner world of preparation. I've always loved the poem
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow where he describes those who achieve great
things with their lives:

"Those heights by great men reached and kept were not obtained by sudden
flight, but they, while their companions slept were toiling upward in the night"

Remember, continuous learning is the minimum requirement for success in any

field.
45
Now, here are two things you can do to put these ideas to work in your life
immediately. First, purchase an audio program that can help you to be happier
and more effective today. Begin listening to it immediately. Resolve never to
listen to music in your car when you can turn driving time into learning time.

Second, seek out seminars and training programs given by experts in your field.
Sit close to the front, take careful notes, and apply the best ideas that you learn
immediately.

Chapter four

The Power of Dreams

For most people, the person they are is not really the person they want to be. The
question is how will you express who you are in your life time? What will be the
greatest achievement you would like to accomplish? What will be the greatest
contribution you would like to make in life? What mark would you like to leave
behind in your life time?

To achieve success, you’ve got to have a dream. Not having a dream is a sign of
deadness. We have so many people walking around who are dead and don’t even
know it! You must have a dream. If you don’t, your life will be about problems
attracting your attention and will revolve around worries.

The ability to dream is the greatest power in the world. Dream is the tool that God
gave us to live beyond limitations. And the beauty of your dream determines the
beauty of your world. Proverb 23:27. “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.”
More so, whatever becomes real in your imagination over time will become real

46
in your life. Dream is the ability to create a mental picture of our world and birth
it into reality.

One of the greatest power that God our creator gave us is the use of our mind in a
way that brings into reality the things we desire. Everything that will ever be
created or invented, are first conceived in the mind and birthed into reality.

A world on the outside; that is a reflection of a person’s internal world is called a

“Mental Equivalent”. This simply means that their external world is equivalent to
their internal world.

Everyone should therefore aim to create a mental equivalent inside their mind of
the things that they would like to experience in the outside world, because unless
you create it in your mind first, it cannot be created outside of it. The moment
your mind is poor, no matter the amount you receive, you will still remain poor.
And if your mind can accommodate a million dollars, in no distance time it will
enter your hand.

All things are created twice. You first create it in your mind and second, physical
creation. So your future is first created in your imagination before it manifest.
Sometime in 2010 when I did a book presentation titled; “GOD’S INTEREST IN
POLITICS AND GOVERNANCE,” I hosted the key politicians in Delta State.
The Secretary to State Government, Acting governor, House of assembly
honorable members, serving commissioners and many grassroots politicians. The
glory was that of a big political figure, and I said something that day that shocked
the people in my speech.

“I said I am not surprised by the crowd I am pulling today, because I have seen it
5years ago.”

I have been carrying that crowd in my mind’s womb in form of a dream or

imagination. I have sat down months before that day to present the book before
the government officials, and in no distanced time, it came into reality. Today the
dream is greater, because in my mental world I see national leaders listening to
me on how to run the government. I see crowds, a large population of students
fluxing to my program to take direction for their lives.

Why? Because; “If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and
endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success
unexpected in common hours.” Dreams are like stars… you may never touch
them, but if you follow them they will lead you to your destiny. Kobe Yamada
said; “Follow your dreams, they know the way.”

47
Where you are today is your yesterday’s dream, and where you will be tomorrow
is your today’s dream. The raw material to create your future is your thought.
And the best control you have over your tomorrow is the best thinking of today.
Without a dream about tomorrow you are sunk, therefore the best time to control
tomorrow is before it arrives, you must see it before it arrives and prepare if not it
will take you unaware.

Hear this, tomorrow will not happen by chance, because nobody wakes up to
become somebody. Imagine somebody waking up one morning to declare that he
wants to start practicing medicine, while he has spent his last 10 years farming?
That is graciously impossible, you have to see it, prepare for it and walk into it.

Dreams are necessary to life. As George Bernard Shaw puts it that; “You see
things; and you say ‘Why?’ but I dream things that never were; and I say, ‘Why
not?’”

Dream brings into perspective; “Who you want to be,” and “Where you are going
to in life. The leaders of today were yesterday’s dreamers. A wise man wrote that;
“A dynamic life is always fired by vision, if you can imagine it, you can achieve
it, if you can dream it, you can become it.”

Oscar Wilde wrote; “Yes! I am a dreamer; for a dreamer is one who can only find
his way by moonlight; and his punishment is that, he sees the dawn before the
rest of the world.”

Walt Disney, the American Cartoonist said: “All our dreams can come true, if we
have the courage to pursue them.” To accomplish great things, we must not only
act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe. And one thing we must
understand is that a dream doesn’t become reality through magic; it takes
perspiration, determination and hard work.

Harriett Tubman wrote “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always
remember, you have within you the strength, patience, and the passion to reach
for the stars to change the world. This was the case of Henry Ford who had a
dream to make everyone own a car.

Not many people get to change the world they live. Henry Ford did. He did it
because he had a dream and believed in it, and he never gave up, even when
people laughed at him. His dream was to build an automobile so cheap that
almost everyone could own one; a car that could cost about a horse and buggy.
Ford said, “so that Store Clerks, School teachers, Carpenters, Farmers, Ordinary
people would be able to buy his car.”

Now, to any reasonable person at the turn of the century, the idea of an
inexpensive car seemed nonsense. Henry Ford approached J.P Morgan, the
48
chairman of the House of Morgan but received a turned down offer. He was told
“Automobile was for rich people.” Back then, if you were wealthy and liked new
gadgets, you must own a Stanley Steam- an awesome car powered by a steam
engine- or you might have an electric car, powered by a battery. Cars by the way
were called “Horseless Carriages”. The trouble with the Steam engine was that it
sometimes blew up. While the trouble with the battery car was that it often
needed recharging.
Henry Ford was a tinkerer – he loved to design and make things. He believed he
could design an inexpensive car powered by a liquid fuel. Nevertheless, he was
just a mere farmer’s son with a thin, angular body and head with ideas.

He later took a job with Thomas Edison as an apprentice. And one day he told
Edison of his dream of building an inexpensive automobile powered by a liquid
fuel. Edison liked it. He said to him. “Youngman keep it up!” Ford went to work
and came up with a car called Model T., it was just what he was aiming for; A car
that just worked well and was easy to build. But he needed to find a way to build
so that the cost would be very low. He further founded that way by designing a
system called the “Mass Production Assembly Line” that aided both skilled and
unskilled workers to build cars.

The first Model T, which came out in 1908, cost $850. At least, many Americans
could afford that. In 1915, Henry Ford drove his Millionth car off the assembly
line. Some friends who had lent him money to get started became rich. By 1916,
the price of Model T had dropped to $360. Now there were no questions about it.
Henry Ford had had a democratic car! You didn’t have to be rich to own one.
People who had never been farther than they could walk now got in their cars and
went traveling. Imagine not having a car and then suddenly getting wheels. It
changes the world.

Henry Ford created a revolution because he had a dream. He wanted to build a car
“for the multitude.” He did that – and more, too. He helped bring democracy into
the market place and today, commoners, civil servants; teachers are able to own a
car because somebody had a dream.

Without a specific dream to pursue, life will be meaningless, and you will just be
busy pursuing things. Defining your values lay the groundwork for your dreams,
and dream leads to goal setting. Goals lead to the fulfillment of your mission;
your mission leads to the realization of your life’s legacy.

D.H Lawrence wrote; “All people dream, but not equally. Those who dream by
night in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the morning to find that it was
vanity. But the dreamers of the day are dangerous people, for they dream their
dreams with open eyes, and make them come through.”

49
What is a dream?

The mere desire for sustenance is not dream. Such desires like in the next five
years I want to be a medical doctor, secure a good job, get married to the most
beautiful lady or handsome guy, and then send my children to school. Wake up!
That is not a dream; it is a mere desire for sustenance. Get this right, I am not
saying it is bad to have desires, but real dreams are bigger than that.

Dream is equal to Desire plus Vision plus Purpose. If I desire to be a medical

doctor, then what kind of a doctor will I be, the one interested in public wealth or
the one ready to revamp public health? Dream answers that question!

Without dreams you are just playing games with your life. People with dreams
see more and farther than others. Dreamers rule the world, because expectation is
the mother of delivery. The great men of today were yesterday’s dreamers; the
great achievements of today were first conceived in the womb of dream and later
delivered into the world of realities.

Dream is an act of breeding expectations. Being pregnant of something, the

ability to look into the future and create mentally what you will want to happen. It
is the ability to look into the future then see the possibility of becoming that
which you desire.

Malcolm S. Forbes said that; “When you cease to dream, you cease to live.”
Dreaming is one strategy that has always delivered. No matter where you are
now, once you have a dream, you have a future. And where you want to be
tomorrow is a function of your dream today.

Every turn around begins with a dream. No matter your age, once you have a
dream, it marks a turning point in your life.

Scientist came together in 1903, and concluded that metals cannot be flown into
the sky. But the two Wright brothers disapproved that hypothesis on December
17, 1903. Who are they? They were ordinary bicycle shop owners; neither of
them had graduated from the high school. Their names were Wilbur and Orville
Wright. It was not luck that made them build and fly an airplane that lifted off the
ground with its power. It was hard work and determination.

The only thing that made them achieve that great feat was their dream. Even
experts made speculations, that it was not possible. They despised those
speculations and studied, drew plans and built carefully. They had a dream and
nothing could stop them.

On September 3rd 1900, Wilbur wrote to the father;

50
 “It is my belief that flight is possible and while I am taking up the
investigation for pleasure rather than profit, I think there is a slight chance
of achieving fame and fortune from it. It is almost the only great problem
which has not been pursued by a multitude of investigators, and therefore
carried to a point where further progress is very difficult. I am certain I
can reach a point much in advance of any previous workers in the field.”

Was it actually achieved? Yes! It was. On that windy December day, Orville won
the toss of a coin. He got to fly first, lying flat on his stomach on the wing of the
kite-like biplane. Wilbur ran beside him, the plane lifted a few feet above the
sand and stayed in the air for 17seconds. The brothers took twice and flew four
flights that day. The longest lasted for 59secs. It was enough, they have flown. As
a matter of fact, they use their dream and intelligence to build a machine that
conquered the skies. They solved the problem of flight.

These were ordinary men like you and me who just wanted to be something
special; they wanted to be famous, like the great inventors of their day.

They did not only become famous. They solved the problem of flight by solving
three problem scientists called LIFT, PROPULSION AND CONTROL. The
Wright brothers needed to find how to lift a plane into the air and keep it there;
they needed also to propel the plane forward and control the flight to turn, to
climb and to land. Those problems had baffled some of the greatest scientific
minds of all times; the two brothers solved it.

It was just three years after Wilbur wrote that letter to his father that he and the
brother flew. Five years after that is in 1908, people believed it had happened.
If men could fly, anything might be possible.
All the comfort life has offered you through technology were once the dream
child of other people. What will be your greatest legacy? Benjamin Franklin
wrote; “Until a man discovers what to die for, he is not supposed to live.”

Imagination means “Image formation” and dream simply means the image you
have formed about the future. It is simply a desired place in the future in form of
goals. Dream is what creates the future because it brings it into perspective. The
biggest adventure you can ever take is to have a dream and live it.

Your imagination is one of the most powerful things you possess. Imagination is
your dream machine. Without it you don’t have a place in the future. The second
tragedy to befall a man, is to live without a vision or dream to pursue. Vision is
dreaming dreams about the future. Vision is a comprehensive sense of where you
are, where you are going, how you are going to get there and what you will do
when you get there. It is feeling challenged by the world around and being
51
compelled to make a mark on it through the forces of your own ideas, ideal,
personality, resources and desires.

The Creation process

Creation basically involves the use of the sixth sense. This is practically strange
to some people because formal education thought us that all humans have five
senses. The ability to feel, see, hear, taste, and smell. These are the basic five
senses. And people who end up making use of only these five senses don’t always
do exploit.

I have discovered additional two more senses that I called the sixth and seventh
senses. The sixth sense is known as the mind’s eye, i.e. the seat of creation, and
the seventh sense is the spiritual eye used by prophets to see things that the
ordinary eyes cannot behold. Developing this two senses makes one a
supernatural being.

There is no disability as deadly as mental incapacitation. A man who has the

ability to see with his mind, what the eyes cannot see, always do wonders and
receives the impossible.

In the next few lines, you will learn the secrets and the power of great inventors,
scientists, authors, and people who have made tremendous contributions to the
universe.

Basically, everything you will ever need in life, or that needs to be invented or
discovered already exists in creation. The beautiful world, the cars, airplane,
electronics, books, bridges, roads, computers, and all you need for the luxuries of
life. They all exist in the invisible realm and exists in the intangible form. But you
cannot see them making use of your five senses. They are not accessible to you
except you activate your sixth and seven senses.

For instance, you are able to hear me when I speak because your audio frequency
is within the range that grants you access to hear me. But when you go farther
away from me, you will not be able to hear me at all because of the wide range of
frequency that needs to be covered before you can hear me. But by the use of
frequency processing and amplification gadgets, you can communicate with
somebody in the USA undermining the distance. Why? The frequency processing
gadgets amplifies your voices to a high range of frequency through modulation
and demodulation or encoding or decoding processes, which automatically breaks
the limits of space or time.

52
Imagination does the same. To bring a specific desire to you, follow the simple
steps of the creation process. Whether it’s bringing something you want or
changing something you don’t want, the process is always the same.

Imagination makes it possible to experience a whole world inside the mind. It

gives the ability to look at any situation from a different point of view, and to
mentally explore the past and the future.

Your expectations about money are determined, and limited, by your imagination.
Some people have a very vivid imagination and can clearly envisage their future
life. Whether earning a six figure salary, or simply amassing material wealth, they
can picture what they want and are willing to work towards its achievement
because one day they expect to get it.

Wealthy people have a clear idea of what they want and expect to get it.
Unsuccessful people, however, generally have a very limited imagination which
causes them to focus their attention on the present moment and the satisfaction of
their immediate needs.

As a result, their financial expectations also become limited, which ultimately

becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy that they live by. If you want to bring financial
abundance into your life you therefore need to think big and expect the best,
because what you expect to happen will largely determine the type of things that
you try to achieve.

Richard Branson, for example, a billionaire from the UK, has dreamed big his
entire life. He dreamed of setting up a record label, owning retail stores
throughout the world and owning an airline. His latest ambition is to make space
tourism affordable for the general public.

Richard Branson dreamed big his entire life. He’s now one of the richest men in
the world. With low expectations, Richard Branson would probably never even
have thought of achieving any of these things.

Imagine it. Feel it. Receive it.

1. IMAGINE IT

There are two processes involved in creation that we must gain mastery over. The
first one is when create something out of nothing. This process is called BARA in
the Hebrew word. The truth is that you did not create it out of nothing; you
created it out of intangible resources.

53
You are using imagination to project it out from the invisible realm. This is called
projection, and it’s done by your imagination. Therefore, imagination is the
beginning of creation. Genesis 1:2, “And the earth was without form and void;
and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the spirit was “hovering” upon
the face of the water. As the spirit was moving God was imagining what he will
create to handle the shapelessness and darkness that befell the earth.

Whatever you can imagine exists. And creation is simply only the projection into
form of that which already exists.” Whatever desire you can imagine – already
exists! It does not matter what it is, if you can imagine it, it already exists in
creation.

The ancient but not old scriptures recorded that all of creation was done and
complete, and that anything that could possibly be created already exists. In
affirmation, quantum physics has established that every single possibility of
anything and everything actually exists now.

“The creation of the heavens and the earth and everything in them was
complete.”

Genesis 2:1

What that means for you and your life is that whatever you can imagine for
yourself in your life already exists. It’s impossible for you to imagine anything
that doesn’t exist. Creation is complete. Every single possibilities exists. So when
you imagine breaking a world record, or traveling to the Far East or being the
President of your country, or a senator, or inventing something new, those
possibilities of you doing those things exists in the intangible form right now! If
they didn’t exist already, you would not be able to imagine them!

To bring the things you desire and love from the invisible into your visible life,
all you have to do is to imagine it, take a positive step and receive it. Imagine
your life the way you want it to be. Imagine everything you want. Take your
imagination with you every day, and imagine what it would like if your life where
all wonderful. Imagine how you would feel if your business suddenly took off.
Imagine how you would if you have enough money to do all you can do.

You can create the house you want to build in your imagination and carry it
within you for ten years before building the concrete house. From the time you
created the house in your imagination, the house began to exist. You can actually
sit down and draw every detail of the house, yet it has not taken its physical form.
You can describe the features of the house to someone so vividly that the person
also sees the house clearly, yet it is still to be built physically.

54
 2. FEEL IT

When you start dreaming of becoming something, you must also start feeling it.
A wise man said, if you act it for a while, over time you will become it. When
your dream is to become the governor of your state, you start feeling you are one.
Start calling it, because we bring things into existence in this intangible form
when we speak them into being. “And God said let there be light and there was
light.” The first step was the spirit of God brooding over the darkness, and the
second step was declaring or calling forth the light. When you start feeling so;
your feeling creates the magnetism, the magnetic power, drawing people,
resources, and your desire to you. This completes your part in the Creation
Process.

I know of a guy in my childhood who was always “Acting Big-man.” When he

talks he will talk like a big-man, when he dresses he will dress like a big man.
Today he is one of the biggest shot in the society. He imagined himself wealthy
and acted the same way by giving enough feelings and love to that his dream, and
today he is living in that reality.

“Faith is to believe that which you do not yet see; and the reward of this
faith is to see that which you believe.”

Saint Augustine

Feeling it means having enough faith to attract it. Faith is having enough
convictions that it is real even if it is not practically available. You know that it
exists and you are taking hold of it in the shortest possible time.

3. DELIVER IT

After you have carried the dream in your mind’s womb for a period of gestation,
you need to deliver into reality. This involves making things from with the
tangible. That is using things that are already in existence to make the things we
want to bring into being. This is the “MAKING” process or the CONVERSION
process of the intangible to the tangible. The Hebrew word for this process is
called “ASAH,” which means to make. Birthing the things that has been created
in the intangible form to the physical, material form.

In Genesis 1:26, God said; “And let us make man in our own image and after our
likeness… this is BARA. The intangible existence of man.

Then Genesis 2:7, “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground,
and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”
This is called ASAH (tangible) form.

55
The ASAH process requires a lot of action processes. Some person don’t receive
their dreams because they feel those dreams will come to pass if they just fold
their hands and do nothing.

A television journalist once asked the great Oil man, H.L Hunt, who was at one
time the richest self-made billionaire in the world for his secrets of success. He
replied; “There are only three requirements for success:

1. First decide exactly what you want in life.

2. Second, determine the price that you are going to have to pay to get the
things you want.

3. And third and this is the most important, resolve to pay that price.

Paying the price means working deliberately, consciously, and continuously to

do, be, and have those things that constitute success for you.

We’ve talked about having a dream, now, are you willing to pay the price that
will make your dream a success. Perhaps, your dream is to be the best surgeon in
this generation, or maybe - to become a lawyer of repute, an engineer with
creative productivity. They are all attainable goals or dreams. But are you willing
to pay the price. Everyone wants to be successful. But most people are not
willing to pay the price.

The price you need to pay!

#. Work

A wise man said, “If wishes were horses, then beggars would ride on it.” One of
the greatest worries of our time is that we wish for everything and do nothing.
Dreaming without working is synonymous to building a castle in the air. It is not
enough to dream of becoming something or somebody, without an appropriate
sacrifice or a conscious decision to do something.

If your dream is to become a great author, then your work is to read and engage
in information search. If your dream is to be a lawyer; then you must engage in
studying law. Theodore Adorno wrote; “Work while you work, play while you
play - this is a basic rule of repressive self-discipline.”

There is no substitution to work. Not even prayer and fasting. What many people
think - is that God will do everything. God is in charge of all things, in Him the
bible says “all things consist;” but He will not do everything for you. It is your

56
responsibility to work out your dreams. In the school of success, there is no
substitute to work because dreams are mere illusions without work.

Your dreams or visions could be to lead a healthy, wealthy, and successful life; it
could be banking, business, law, and farming, preaching the gospel, music,
composing songs, being a classic politician, a doctor or any other professions. As
a matter of fact, they are good and attainable dreams, but they will never fulfill
themselves.

#. Be Committed

Commitment is given your task all it takes. Commitment inspires result. Having a
dream is not enough, being committed means paying all the necessary sacrifice to
require to achieve one’s dreams in life. Commitment means different things to
different people:

“To the boxer – “It means getting off the mat one time more than you’ve been
knocked down.”

“To the Marathoner – “It’s running another ten miles when your strength is
exhausted.”

“To the soldier – “It is getting over the hill, not knowing what is waiting on the
other side.”

To the student – “It means reading from the first day of resumption as if you are
writing your final examination.”

“To the footballer – “It means training as if you are playing in a world cup final.”

To be committed means to be sold out to a cause in life. Only committed people

excel in their pursuit. Without commitment, you cannot accomplish anything of
value.

Johann Wolfgaug Von Goethe, addressed the importance of commitment, “Until

one is committed, there is resistance, the chance to draw back and always
ineffectiveness… the moment one definitely commits oneself … a whole stream
of events issue from the decision, raising in one’s favour all manner of
unforeseen incidents and material assistance which one could have dream would
come his way.”

Your level of commitment determines whether you will quit. And in life what
distinguishes you, is how committed you’re to your pursuit in life. Commitment
is a winning attitude, it has no substitute. So cultivate it.

57
#. Be Persistent

You must be disciplined enough to persist and hold on to your goals in the face of
all setbacks and temporary failures. Persistence is essential to success and
excellence in life.

Persistence is the difference between failures and success. It is the characteristics

of all men and women who have achieved greatness. It is not much brilliancy of
intellect, talent or resources as it is persistency of effort and constancy of purpose
that draws greatness to the individual. Those who succeed in life are the men and
women who keep their shoulders to the wheel, who do not believe themselves
overly talented, but who realize that if they are ever to accomplish anything of
value, they must do so by determined and persistent effort.

Persistent people begin their success where most others quit. If those dreams must
be fulfilled, quitting is not an option. If anybody should quit, I am. When I wrote
my first book, nobody appreciated my effort. I wrote the second, they said I am
looking for money; I wrote the third, they said I should stop writing because I
lacked patronage. Then I wrote the fourth; the story changed, because they saw
that I was not ready to quit.
Persistence means the personal discipline and willingness to stand and keep
trying against all odds.

Abraham Lincoln said; “Always bear in mind that your resolution to succeed is
more important than any other thing.”

To develop persistence over the long haul, you have to cultivate inward fortitude
on continual basis. And if you do, someday your story may be similar to one of
these.

John Creasy- received 743 rejection slips from publishers before one word was
ever published; he eventually published 560 books, which have sold more than 60
million copies.”

Eddy Arcaro – Lost 250 consecutive races before he won his first.

Thomas Edison – Who attempted to develop an electric bulb for 999 times,
the1000 times, got it.

Admiral Pearl – Attempted to reach the North Pole seven times before he made it
on try number eight.

58
Don’t quit, because you will not know how close you were to success before
quitting. Stick to that your dream because the stamp only retains its value when
stock to the envelope.

Calvin Coolidge wrote; “Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence.
Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent.
Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not: the
world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are
omnipotent.”

Nobody will celebrate for how many times you failed, you will only be celebrated
by what you succeed in.

Why Do I Need a Dream?

“The poorest person or nation is not the one without a cent, but rather the one
without a dream.” Having dream is a decision to become somebody of value.
Dream sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible.
Michael Dell said; “You don’t have to be a genius or a visionary or even a
college graduate to be successful. You just need a framework and a dream.”

Dream gives one, a specific goal to pursue and adds meaning to one’s life. As
soon as you start to pursue a dream, your life wakes up and everything has
meaning. One of the greatest designer of our time Ralph Lauren said; “I don’t
design clothes. I design dreams.” And Vincent Van Gogh puts it differently, “I
dream my paintings and then I paint my dreams.”

Helen Keller, that wonderful blind and deaf person, said; “The greatest tragedy to
befall a person is to have sight but lack vision. It is true that poor eyes limit a
man’s sight’, poor vision, his deeds.

The bridge between where you are today and where you would want to be
tomorrow is your dreams. Without dreams the future will happen by chance, and
will not offer you much. But having the future in view guides all you do. it gives
your life, direction.

1. It Determines Your Goals

Dream determines your goals. Goals give you specific direction to work towards,
and specific direction, will keep you from wasting time and effort. Goals are
specific, measurable, steps to achieve your dreams. A goal is a dream with a
deadline. All successful people have goals. No one can get anywhere unless he
knows where he wants to go and what he wants to be or do.”

59
Importance of Goal Setting

 It Simplifies the Decision Making Process: when you know your direction
in life, as you establish goals it helps you to evaluate each situation as it
presents itself.

 Goal Generates Respect: People always admire and look up to people

who know where they are going to. If you don’t know where you are
going to, anywhere becomes your bus stop.

 Goals Determines What to Aim For: It is better to aim something you

want even though you miss it, than to get something that you didn’t aim
to get, and which you don’t want.

 Finally goal shapes the plan, the plan shapes the action, and the action
achieves the results.

2. It Defiles Adversity and Limitations

Another man, called Roger Crawford was born with a condition called
“Ectrodactylism.” When he emerged from his mother’s womb; the doctor saw
that he had thumb-like projection extending out of his right forearm. He had no
palms, and his left legs possessed a shrunken foot with only three toes. The
professionals told Roger’s parents, that he would never be able to walk. Probably
would not be able to take care of his self, and would never lead a normal life.

After recovering from the shock, Roger’s parents were determined to give him
the best chance possible for living a normal life. They raised him to feel loved, to
be strong and to develop independence; “You’re only as handicapped as you want
to be,” his father used to tell him.

When he was old enough, they sent him to regular public schools. They involved
him in sports. They encouraged him to do everything his heart desired and they
taught him to think positively.

“Something my parents never did was to allow me feel sorry for myself or take
advantage of people because of my handicap.”

In spite of his handicapped, he had a dream to be a consultant and a public

speaker. He actually became all of that, and has written several books. He travels
all across the country working with fortune 500 Companies, National and State
Association and School Districts.

60
Those are not bad credentials, but if they didn’t impress you, how about this?
Before becoming a consultant, he was a varsity tennis player, became president of
a professional tennis player Association, still not impressed? Would change your
opinion if I told you Roger has no hands and only one foot? And that is why his
story is such an inspiration.

Chances are that the adversity in your life has been nowhere near as difficult as
Roger Crawford’s has been, but Roger maintains: “Handicaps Can Only Disable
Us If We Don’t Have Dream”.

The story was told of another man who had this disability, but hadn’t any dream,
and was walking about with a bitter, pessimistic altitude who blamed all his life’s
disappointments and failure on his anatomy.

Roger received a call one day from someone who wanted to see him, someone
who wanted the secret of his business breakthroughs and Roger agreed to meet
with him at a nearby restaurant. When Roger stood up to shake hand with him, he
discovered that the guy had hands that were almost identical to his. Roger became
excited because he thought he had found someone similar to him, but older who
would act as his mentor. But after talking for a while, he realized he was wrong.
This man hadn’t any good credentials to show. He was dreamless and that left
him more disabled. Dreamers always cultivate good attitude even in frustrating
situations.

3. Dream is the Force that Drives One to Accomplishments.

Having a dream is like a force that drives one to accomplishment. That is why
you see that most successful men are dreamers. One of the wonders of the world
is Brooklyn Bridge in New York. Many admire such a creative work, but very
few know the story behind the construction.

A man called John Augustine Roebling one day came up with a dream of
building a bridge that could be suspended – which means “hung” from steel wires
attached to concrete and stone towers. Roebling designed the world’s first
modern suspension bridge. But he suggested a bridge across New York’s East
River between Brooklyn and Manhattan. For most people he had lost his mind. It
would be the longest and the highest bridge ever built anywhere in the world.

It would have to withstand powerful winds and ocean tides. Experts said “It is
impossible that the stone towers needed to anchor the steel rope could not be
placed on land; the distance from shore to shore was too great.” The bridge would
have to be built in the river. No one was quite sure how they could be done. New
construction method would have to be developed.

61
Well. It was done, and was called the Brooklyn Bridge, but it took 14yrs to build.
It demanded courage from financiers who believed in the idea and raised the
money. Dreamers are not easily stopped.

Augustine Roebling died in the process and his son, Washington H. Roebling and
Emily Warren Roebling his wife took over the construction. The son as well took
ill and was partially paralyzed. He was unable to move about and had to supervise
from the bed, using binoculars to watch the workmen. His wife Emily Roebling
went back and forth to the bridge with his daily instructions. When it was finally
done, the bridge was named a wonder of the world”. Its tower was bigger than
any other manmade structure except for the Egyptian Pyramids.

The question I keep asking myself is, “what will be my greatest achievement or
contribution in my life time”? And now, what will be your greatest achievement
in life. A genuine answer to that question will leave you with a dream.

Please don’t read further until you write down what you would want to achieve in
your life time…

a. ………………………………………………………………………………
……….......................................................................................................
b. ………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………
c. ………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………
d. ………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………

Dream - Dream of teachers who teach for life and not for a living; Doctors more
concerned about public health more than public wealth; Lawyers who are
motivated by justice and not judgeship. Dream of pastors who prophesy and not
to profiteer.

Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief
in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all
things are possible for those who believe. And for dreamers nothing is impossible
and everything is achievable.

62
 CHAPTER FIVE

SOMETHING MORE VALUABLE THAN MONEY

Success is not much of a function of what to do, but what to be. Very many are
occupied with what to do and they have done all they know, yet, success is not
coming forth.

Take for instance a motorcycle mechanic, who is knowledgeable in his job, but
lacks integrity. People say, “Oh yes, he is good in his field, but he is not reliable.

63
He therefore loses the market, and the future of his career is at stake; not because
he lacks expertise, but because he lacks character.

All of life is lived from the inside out. At the very core of your personality lie
your values about yourself and life in general. Your values determine the kind of
person you really are. What you value drives your mission and vision. What you
believe has defined your character and your personality. It is what you stand for,
and what you won’t stand for, that tells you and the world the kind of person you
have become.

Your personal values-what you think is right and wrong-are the bed rock of your
success. I have emphasized that success isn’t just about money; it’s about what is
important to you, and about being consistent with what is important to you. Doing
well in one area of your life, while sacrificing your values in another, is not
success.

Having unbreakable values gives you a real sense of worth, because you have set
your standards and met them, and you know that you will keep meeting them.
This can be personal moral standards, business ethics, or the standards you set for
your life.

To become successful the most important thing you need is not money but a well-
defined value, because if you are not conscious of your personal values, you end
up making choices out of impulse or instant gratification rather than on solid
reasoning and responsible decision making.

More so, your personal value also determine the things that you believe, and what
you believe determines what you achieve. They determine your priorities, and,
deep down, they are probably the measures you use to tell if your life is turning
out the way you want it to. When the things that you do and the way you behave
matches your values, life is usually good. You’re satisfied and contented. But
when these don’t align with your values, that’s when things feel wrong. This can
be a real source of unhappiness. This is why making a conscious effort to identify
your values is so important.

VALUE EXISTS

Values exist, whether you give them cognizance or not. Life can be more fun
when you recognize your values and when you make plans and decisions that
honor them.

If you value family, but you have to work 18hrs daily in your job, you will feel
internal stress and conflict? And if you don’t value competition, and you work in
a highly competitive sales environment, you are likely not to be satisfied with
your job?

64
In these kind of situations understanding your values can really help. When you
know your own values, you can use them to make decisions about how to live
your life, and you can answer questions like these:

 What job should I do?

 Who should I marry?
 Where should I live?
 What should I study? etc

So, take time to understand the real priorities in your life, and you will be able to
determine the best direction for your goals in life.

FOUR KINDS OF VALUE SYSTEM

Personal Values: Personal values are those traits we see as worth aspiring to, and
that define our character.

Spiritual Values: The values that connect us to a higher power and give us a
sense of purpose beyond our material existence. For instance; holiness, and
righteousness.

Family Values: To love and care for those we are close to; our children, our
parents, other family members and our friends.

Career Values: The best use and expression of our talents and skills for the
purposes of contributing to society and for monetary compensation.

No matter what tradition/or continent we are brought up in, there are traits we
value in others which transcend social, economic and religious boundaries. Some
of these traits manifest in our character, integrity, loyalty, honesty and what we
do and how we do them in general.

II

CHARACTER

Character should be considered as one of the greatest assets in the school of

success. Ability alone will never take you where your character would.
Cultivating the right character can do a lot of magic.

65
Your character determines your future. Just as you cannot separate the future of a
tree from its nature, so also you cannot separate the future of a man from his
character. It’s your nature that determines your future. Your habit defines your
habitat, and your “make-up” determines your “end-up.” Pay attention to this –
having a successful future is not a product of chance, but a task that has to be
engaged in consciously.

As a matter of fact, you don’t determine your destiny; you determine your
character and your character defines your destiny. Character is not a gift, it is a
choice. It leaves you with a personal responsibility to nurture it. The value of
your character is the basis for how great your future will be. Unluckily, awareness
of this fact is greatly missing in our world today. As a result, so many are
struggling with doing, not realizing that the fundamental requirements for
excellence lie in being.

Character failure is the root cause of every misfortune in life. No matter how
gifted a man is, if he lacks character, he will not have value. This goes to say that
what you are is as opposed to what you do, in determining your success.

Nevertheless, character is superior to prayer. They are beautiful women who

sleeps in prayer house, yet, are still facing serious family crisis. Just listen to them
talk, and you can quickly pick the reason why they cannot keep a home.
Therefore, no matter the quality of the degree that you have acquired, you require
quality character to make your fortune. A dynamic aspect of character is your
attitude. Attitude they say determines your altitude. This has to do with your
attitude to your Creator, to man, to work, and in general to life.

Lack of value is the foundation for poor character, and poor character is like a
punctured tyre that can only drive you to a halt. They are quite a number of
highly gifted people who has remained at the bottom pits of life because they
lacked character. Get this, your value shapes your character, and your character
impact every aspect of your life including personal and work behaviours, your
interactions with family, friends and co-workers; your decision making processes
and the direction you take in life. This is why it is important to know what you
value and what is important to you.

III

INTEGRITY

Integrity is trustworthiness, honesty and uprightness of character. We value

people of integrity because we know what to expect from them. We know they

66
will act honorably and that they will do what they think is right. We want people
with integrity as our friends, on our teams and in our organizations.

Integrity is a value, like persistence, courage and industriousness. Even more than
that, it is the value that guarantees all the other values. You are a good person to
the degree to which you live your life consistent with the highest values that you
adopt. Integrity is the quality that locks in your values and causes you to live
consistent with them.

Integrity is the basis of character. And character development is one of the most
important activities you can engage in. Working on your character means
disciplining yourself to do more and more of those things that a thoroughly
honest person would do, under all circumstances.

To be seamlessly honest with others, you must first be impeccably honest with
yourself. You must be true to yourself. You must be true to the very best that is in
you, to the very best that you know. Only a person who is living consistent with
his or her highest values and virtues is really living a life of integrity. And when
you commit to living this kind of life, you will find yourself continually raising
your own standards, continually refining your definition of integrity and honesty.

You can tell how high your level of integrity is by simply looking at the things
you do in your day-to-day life. You can look at your reactions and responses to
the inevitable ups and downs of life. You can observe the behaviors you typically
engage in and you will then know the person you are.

The external manifestation of high integrity is high-quality work. A person who is

totally honest with himself or herself will be someone who does, or strives to do,
excellent work on every occasion. The totally honest person recognizes,
sometimes unconsciously, that everything he or she does is a statement about who
he or she really is as a person.

When you start a little earlier, work a little harder, stay a little later and
concentrate on every detail, you are practicing integrity in your work. And
whether you know it or not, your true level of integrity is apparent and obvious to
everyone around you.

A wise man said, “Guard your integrity as a sacred thing.” In study after study,
the quality of integrity, or a person’s adherence to values, ranks as the number
one quality sought in every field. When it comes to determining whom they will
do business with, customers rank the honesty of a salesperson as the most
important single quality. Even if a they feel that a salesperson’s product, quality
and price is superior, customers will not buy from that salesperson if they feel
that he or she is lacking in honesty and character. Likewise, integrity is the
number one quality of leadership. Integrity in leadership is expressed in terms of
67
constancy and consistency. It is manifested in an absolute devotion to keeping
one’s word. The glue that holds all relationships together—including the
relationship between the leader and the led—is trust, and trust is based on
integrity.

Integrity is so important that functioning in our society would be impossible

without it. We could not make even a simple purchase without a high level of
confidence that the price was honest and that the change was correct. The most
successful individuals and companies are those with reputations of high integrity
among everyone they deal with. This level of integrity builds the confidence that
others have in them and enables them to do more business than their competitors
whose ethics may be a little shaky.

Earl Nightingale once wrote, “If honesty did not exist, it would have to be
invented, as it is the surest way of getting rich.” A study at Harvard University
concluded that the most valuable asset that a company has is how it is known to
its customers; its reputation.

By the same token, your greatest personal asset is the way that you are known to
people. It is your personal reputation for keeping your word and fulfilling your
commitments. Your integrity precedes you and affects all of your interactions
with other people.

There are three primary areas of your life where acting with integrity is crucial.
These are the three areas of greatest temptation for forsaking your integrity, as
well as the areas of greatest opportunity for building your integrity. When you
listen to your inner voice and do what you know to be the right thing in each of
these areas, you will have a sense of peace and satisfaction that will lead you on
to success and high achievement.

The first area of integrity has to do with your relationships with your family and
your friends, the people close to you. Being true to yourself means living in truth
with each person in your life. It means refusing to say or do something that you
don’t believe is right. Living in truth with other people means that you refuse to
stay in any situation where you are unhappy with the behavior of another person.
You refuse to tolerate it. You refuse to compromise.

Psychologists have determined that most stress and negativity comes from
attempting to live in a way that is not congruent with your highest values. It is
when your life is out of alignment; when you are doing and saying one thing on
the outside, but really feeling and believing something different on the inside; that
is when you feel most unhappy.

When you decide to become an individual of character and integrity, your first
action will be to neutralize or remove all difficult relationships from your life.
68
This doesn’t mean that you have to go and hit somebody over the head with a
stick. It simply means that you honestly confront another person and tell them
that you are not happy. Tell them that you would like to reorganize this
relationship so that you feel more content and satisfied. If the other person is not
willing to make adjustments so that you can be happy, it should be clear to you
that you don’t want to be in this relationship much longer anyway.

The second area of integrity has to do with your attitude and behavior toward
money. Casualness toward money brings casualties in your financial life. You
must be fastidious about your treatment of money, especially other people’s
money. You must guard your credit rating the same way you would guard your
honor. You must pay your bills punctually, or even early. You must keep your
promises with regard to your financial commitments.

The third area of integrity has to do with your commitments to others, especially
in your business, your work and your sales activities. Always keep your word. Be
a man or a woman of honor. If you say that you will do something, do it. If you
make a promise, keep it. If you make a commitment, fulfill it. Be known as the
kind of person that can be trusted absolutely, no matter what the circumstances.

Your integrity is manifested in your willingness to adhere to the values you hold
most dear. It’s easy to make promises and hard to keep them, but if you do, every
single act of integrity will make your character a little stronger. And as you
improve the quality and strength of your character, every other part of your life
will improve as well.

RESPECT

Respect is honoring the worth and dignity of all people. Those who respect others
treat them with fairness and courtesy. They treat others the way they themselves
wish to be treated.

LOYALTY

This simply means a commitment and faithfulness to a person or cause. Those

who are loyal to their family, friends, organizations and country stand behind and
support them during good times and bad times. They can be counted on to be
there when the going gets tough and to help out when the chips are down.

HONESTY

69
Honesty is one of the most important of your value. If you’ve been in business a
while, you’ll know that honesty and integrity on their own won’t make you rich.
Without them, however, you may find your success short-lived, if you manage to
get there at all. A life lived honestly is a life lived without fear or bad conscience,
because you live knowing that you do what you think is right.

When you lose your money; you have lost nothing, when you lose your health;
you’ve lost something, but when you lose your integrity, you have lost
everything.”

Every other thing you lose can be replaced, your job, money, cars, and buildings.
But your reputation, name and conscience, once ruined, can never be repaired.
You have to live with that forever.

Honesty and integrity is one thing you can’t pretend to have. Sooner or later
you’ll get caught and the word will spread. Even if you’re not caught, though,
dishonesty will eat at you from the inside. This is especially true when you try to
be selectively honest. You know the type: honest to those who are important or
rich and a double dealing liar to people that don’t count.

For sure, you make money, but definitely will leave a trail behind you that smells
a little off. Listen, it is not smartness, and it’s your living within values that will
build your long-term success.

RESPONSIBILITY

Those who accept responsibility are reliable, dependable and willing to take
accountability for who they are and what they do. They believe they have a moral
obligation to help others and to make a contribution to the society they live in.

When you accept responsibility for your life and your actions, you’re taking
charge and making things happen, rather than waiting for someone else to do it
for you. This will usually involve a risk: some commitment from you. This
principle applies whether you are self-employed or you work for someone else.
You must work with the fervor and responsibility you would adopt in your own
business. Everyone will benefit – most of all you.

Having this mentality, whether you’re in your own business or salaried job, gives
you self-worth, respect, and a power to determine your own path. Too many
people do not understand how powerful this is and what difference it can make to
their lives.
Everyone has a combination of one or two of these characters in place. The one
you value most, determines your priorities, and your priorities determines what
you invest or spend on.
70
 IV
Creating your Personal Value

To find out what values you have been living on or that has been driving you; you
need to pulse and answer these questions. What are the activities that eats most of
your time and money? Who do I spend most of my time with?

Ask yourself this question: What are your five most important values in life?
Your answer will reveal an enormous amount about you. What would you pay
for, sacrifice for, suffer for and even die for? What would you stand up for, or
refuse to lie down for? What are the values that you hold most dear? Think these
questions through carefully and, when you get a chance, write down your
answers.

Here’s another way of asking that question. What men and women, living or
dead, do you most admire? Once you pick three or four men or women, the next
question is: Why do you admire them? What values, qualities, or virtues do they
have that you respect and look up to? Can you articulate those qualities? What is
a quality possessed by human beings in general that you most respect? This is the
starting point for determining your values. The answers to these questions form
the foundation of your character and your personality.

Once you have determined your five major values, you should now organize them
in order of importance. What is your first, most important value? What is your
second value? What is your third value? And so on. Ranking your values is one
of the very best and fastest ways to define your character.

Remember, a higher order value will always take precedence over a lower order
value. Whenever you are forced to choose between acting on one value or
another, you always choose the value that is the highest on your own personal
hierarchy.

Who you are, in your heart, is evidenced by what you do on a day-to-day basis,
especially when you are pushed into a position where you have to make a choice
between two values or alternatives.

There are several things you can do to move you more rapidly toward becoming
the kind of person that you know you are capable of becoming. The first, as I
mentioned, is to decide upon your five most important values in life. Organize
them in order of priority. Then write a brief paragraph defining what each of

71
those values means to you. A value combined with a definition becomes an
organizing principle- a statement that you can use to help you make better
decisions. It is a measure and standard which enables you to know how closely
you are adhering to your innermost beliefs and convictions.

I have taken time to structure the kind of person I need to be, and below is my
vision value statements:

1. Excellence/Creativity
2. Integrity/Honesty
3. Tranquility/Humility
4. Determination/Discipline
5. Success/Contribution
6. Truth/Spirituality
7. Wisdom/Knowledge
8. Kindness/ Passion
9. Justice/Equity
10.Beloved community

MY VISION VALUES STATEMENT

 I want to be honest in all my dealings

 I work hard for fair rewards
 I want to be fair and thoughtful in everything
 I will give before I get in life
 Always seek to understand the other person before needing to be
understood
 I am proactive, not a reactive person
 I strive to learn something new everyday
 Never afraid to make mistakes and learn from them
 Always committed to my work and myself
 I take responsibilities for my results and my own future
 Always set a clear goals before beginning a task.
 I know that my future rewards and successes are directly linked to the
actions and commitments I make today.

Those are the things that turns me on, and I am doing everything within my
power to live on those virtues. You can’t be creative or excellent and still get
stranded, and you can’t have integrity and not succeed. These things determine
your life’s results.

The second step to developing integrity and character in yourself is to study men
and women of great character. Study the lives and stories of people like George
Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill, Florence Nightingale, Susan

72
B. Anthony and Margaret Thatcher. Study the people whose strength of character
enabled them to change their world. As you read, think about how they would
behave if they were facing the difficulties that you face.

A typical example is Benjamin Franklin.

Benjamin Franklin, one of the greatest man that ever lived had a set down code of
moral conducts that guided him in all through his life. And he concluded that;
“Truth, Sincerity, and Integrity in dealing with people must be the utmost
importance to finding happiness in business and in life. This philosophy is the
essence of what he called his “Plan of Conduct.” A plan he developed when he
was only twenty one years of age.

This plan involved both how to deal with people and how to approach his work.
To achieve these objectives he decided to practice and continually develop the
good habits of industry, frugality and constant self-improvement.

He further came up with the four step moral and ethical values that was the
foundation of his amazing success.

1. I pledge to be extremely frugal so I may always repay whatever debts I

owe.

2. I’ll always tell the truth; never make promises I can’t keep and be sincere
in everything I say or do.

3. I’m determined to diligently and energetically pursue anything I undertake.

Furthermore, I won’t allow myself to be distracted from my goals and
responsibilities by any foolish project or get rich quick scheme; because
diligence. Persistence and patience are the best ways to succeed.

4. I will never speak badly of anyone, even if it’s the truth, and I will always
look for some way to excuse the faults of others. And whenever possible I
will share all the good things I know about everybody.

Of a truth, when I first read this plan of conduct, I saw the reason why this man
without a university degree lived exceedingly great. Benjamin Franklin lived as a
Diplomat, Politician, an ambassador, author, inventor, scientist, political theorist,
statesman and a humanitarian.

He actually outlined thirteen moral virtues on which he lived his life.

1. TEMPERANCE: Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.

73
 2. SILENCE: Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid silly
conversation.

3. ORDER: Let all your things have their places; let each part of your
business have its time.

4. RESOLUTION: Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail

what you resolve.

5. FRUGALITY: Make no expense but do well to others or yourself; i.e.,

waste nothing.

6. INDUSTRY: Lose no time. Be always employed in something useful. Cut

off all unnecessary actions.

7. SINCERITY: Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, it you
speak, speak accordingly.

8. JUSTICE: Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are
your duty.

9. MODERATION: Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as

you think they deserve.

10. CLEANLINESS: Tolerate no uncleanness in body, clothes, or habitation.

11. TRANQUILITY: Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or

unavoidable.

12. CHASTITY: Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to
dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another’s peace or
reputation.

13. HUMULITY: Imitate Jesus and Socrates.

Franklin celebrated wholesome ambition. The central goal of life, he seemed to

imply, is to improve yourself and thereby improve your station in life.

Build this consciousness in you, they have the power to fire you up and keep you
afloat even after retirement.

Napoleon Hill, in his book, The Master Key to Riches, tells about how he created
an imaginary board of personal advisors made up of great figures of history. He
chose people like Napoleon, Lincoln, Jesus, and Alexander the Great. Whenever
he had to make a decision, he would relax deeply and then imagine that the
74
members of his advisory council were sitting at a large table in front of him. He
would then ask them what he should do to deal effectively with a particular
situation. In time, they would begin to give him answers, observations, and
insights that helped him to see more clearly and act more effectively.

You can do the same thing. Select someone that you very much admire for their
qualities of courage, tenacity, honesty, or wisdom. Ask yourself, “What would
Jesus do in my situation?” or, “What would Lincoln do if he were here at this
time?” You will find yourself with guidance that enables you to be the very best
person that you can possibly be.

The third and most important step in building your integrity has to do with
formulating your approach based on the psychology of human behavior. We
know that if you feel a particular way, you will act in a manner consistent with
that feeling. For example, if you feel happy, you will act happy. If you feel angry,
you will act angry. If you feel courageous, you will act courageously.

But we also know that you don’t always start off feeling the way you want to.
However, because of the Law of Reversibility, if you act as if you had a particular
feeling, the action will generate the feeling consistent with it. You can, in effect,
act your way into feeling. You can “fake it until you make it.”

You can become a superior human being by consciously acting exactly as the
kind of person that you would most like to become. If you behave like an
individual of integrity, courage, resolution, persistence and character, you will
soon create within yourself the mental structure and habits of such a person. Your
actions will become your reality. You will create a personality that is consistent
with your highest aspirations.

The more you walk, talk, and behave consistent with your highest values, the
more you will like yourself and the better you will feel about yourself. Your self-
image will improve and your level of self-acceptance will go up. You will feel
stronger, bolder, and more capable of facing any challenge.

VII
A list of Personal Core Values

There are a lot of value lists out there, so here are just the real core values that
most people have and that differentiates their character the most.

1. Accountability 15. Empathy 29. Humility

2. Ambition 16. Effectiveness 30. Honor

75
3. Achievement 17. Excellence 31. Happiness
4. Beauty 18. Energy 32. Independence
5. Balance 19. Fairness 33. Integrity
6. Boldness 20. Fame 34. Kindness
7. Creativity 21. Family 35. Knowledge
8. Contribution 22. Freedom 36. Loyalty
9. Courage 23. Friendship 37. Leisure
10. Compassion 24. Fun 38. Love, Sex
11. Competition 25. Fulfillment 39. Money, Status
12. Calmness 26. Freedom 40. Peace, Security
13. Discipline 27. Health 41. Success, Strength,
14. Diligent 28. Honesty 42. Truth, Tradition,

There are very many others, but at least one among these values are basically
what is controlling your behaviours. Basically, some people are living for money,
while some are living for sex. When you mention money or sex, you turn them
on. Therefore, to know the person you are, you need to find out your personal
core values.

What is your value statement in life, if you have not got, it means you’re still very
far from excellence. Value simply means - “What” and “Who” is important.
Stating your value helps in making choices about your priorities and dreams.

Your values expresses your true character. Someone who values money so much
is a different character as someone who values people more. Having no
committed value, or values you bend when it suits you, will undermine whatever
you achieve. If you can’t look at yourself and feel you are the sort of person you
want to be, what difference will money, sex, or fame make?

Write down your ten most important values, and live on them, then watch how
your life will flow in the direction you want it to go…

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
CHAPTER SIX

76
 The Wealth within
There was a certain rich man who had only one daughter. The daughter was of a
marriageable age, so he placed an advert for eligible bachelors to apply.
Subsequently, they came in their numbers to find out the conditions to emerge as
the suitable or anointed one. When the man finally showed up, he started
addressing them. And he said that the only condition is just for them to swim
across the Olympic size swimming in his compound. The moment he said that all
the men were very happy. But the certain rich man added to the condition, that
there are deadly and hungry crocodile resident inside the pool of water.
Therefore, they have to swim fast enough to outfit the crocodile or perish.

On that note, almost all the young bachelors got angry and left. Vilifying the rich
man as a wicked man that just needed men to feed his God forsaking crocodiles.
Leaving behind only three, who were still envisioning on what to do; as they were
still contemplating, one of them pushed one inside the pool. And before they
could realize it, the guy has made it to the other end of the swimming pool. He
got angry when he came out and said “WHO PUSHED ME? He could not believe
that one day he could swim fast enough to outfit those hungry crocodile. But he
made it.

The moral in this lesson is that, he had that potential locked up inside him, but all
he needed was a push. By taking that one step, he did not just became the
husband of the only daughter of the rich man. He became the automatic
billionaire.

The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to attain your full potential; these
are the keys that unlocks the doors of personal excellence. The potential that
exists within us is limitless and largely untapped.

The human creation is unique and wonderful. God our creator basically made
man in his own image and after his own likeness according to ancient scriptures
in Genesis 1:26-28. This an awesome truth to know. Being made in the image of
God and his likeness means a lot of things.

1. We are made in God’s class

2. We have the nature of God
3. We have the same creative ability
4. We have God’s DNA
5. We have God’s mind
6. We also have God’s kind of life (Zoe). Genesis 2:6

To be created in the image of God and likeness means that God designed man to
be like him. Therefore, he made man to function in the same class as Himself. He

77
created man to be able to think, talk, reason, create and dominate. Dominion
means to lead, govern, direct, and to reign.

Therefore, man was made little lower than God - Psalms 8:1-6. What basically
distinguishes God from man is that God is All-knowing, Omniscience,
Omnipotent, and Omnipresence. He is sovereign, and was not created. But every
other attributes of God was deposited in man’s DNA.

DNA in this context means; “Divine Nature and Ability.” Man shares in divine
nature and ability.

Man has a dual nature; the God’s nature and the human nature. This God’s nature
is what makes us divine and supernatural. Everything we need in life is packaged
inside this nature. In other words, everything you need to become who God has
created you to be is already inside you. Your life is designed as seed. Everything
the tree needs to grow and multiply is already inside the seed.

Therefore, the God factor are the invisible resources and seeds that God has given
to man to achieve excellence on earth. They are called potential or latent wealth.
Potentials are hidden wealth or seeds deposited inside man for a life of
excellence.

A quick rundown of all that God created shows that most of the basic things man
needed to make life excellent were not created.

1. He created the heavens and the earth

2. He declared Light
3. Created the firmament in the midst of the waters
4. He created seas and dry land
5. Commanded the earth to bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the
fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind.
6. He created light in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the
night, and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years.
7. He then made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the
lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.
8. He commanded the waters to bring forth abundantly the moving creature
that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament
of heaven.
9. He created different animals and beasts and living creatures that were
creeping on the earth.
10. Finally, he said let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let
them have dominion over all He (God) has created.

From the summary of God’s creation. It is now obvious that God omitted a lot:
things like the airplane, automobiles, electronics, computers, books, schools,
78
generator sets or electricity to run our factories, processed food stuffs, buildings,
bricks or blocks for construction of roads or bridges, handsets, music, video and
many more.

Did you think it was an error in creation? It wasn’t! It was a shift of

responsibility. The day God created man he transferred into him all his potentials
and abilities to function on earth as a co-creator. So, man was created as God’s
partners in progress and an extension on earth. God proved this point in Genesis
2:18-19. “And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field,
and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call
them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature that was the name
thereof.”

So, the key to excellence is understanding that you are not ordinary; that you
carry the world you will ever desire to live in inside you. Everything man will
ever need in life is not in abroad, but its “in-broad.” That is why running to
abroad for prosperity does not guarantee you one.

Your greatest undoing is not in what you don’t have, but in what you have that
you are not making use of. The potential for greatness lies within each of us.
What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what
lies within us.”

You have to stop looking at yourself as a creature that was only created to get on
good education, a good job and die thereafter. Life is more than that, there is
something in you that God has deposited to make the world a better place.

Imagine, what life would look like if the likes of Benjamin Franklin, Isaac
Newton, and Michael Faraday… did not give us electricity, and all other major
inventions that has made the world a better place to dwell in.

If you ever desire excellence in life, what you need is unleashing your latent
wealth. Potentials are tools to fulfilling ones purpose, and provision in life is tied
to purpose.

You are going to stop looking everywhere for money; rather look within you.
Men who look ‘within’ are always getting ahead than those that are always
looking ‘around.’ Whenever you look around, you are bound to see frustrations,
but when you look within you see the possibilities that already exists.

This is not religious! Men and women who looked within and unleashed the
treasure (potentials) in them have always affected the world positively
irrespective of religious affiliation.

79
Throughout time, the great and small works of individuals - be they Paintings,
Books, Poetry, Drama, Architecture, Inventions or the development theories…
have affected the lives of many. All who have helped to shape our society’s
destiny, the giants who teach us and inspire us used their potentials with a passion
and refused to let circumstances dictate their future.

The discoveries and inventions all over the world are constant reminder that
someone lived who refused death have the final word on their potentials. Their
released potentials are the world’s inheritance.

Nevertheless, each person has inside of him a piece of good news. The good news
is that you don’t know how great you can be! How much you can love! What you
can accomplish! And what your potentials are.

There is enough money in you. Genesis 2:7; “And the LORD God formed man of
the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man
became a living soul.”

There is an underlying truth in that scripture. Man was formed from the dust of
the ground – meaning man has earthly particles. Now where do we have crude
oil? On the earth. Where do we have diamond? Earth! Where do we also have
gold? Earth as well!

If this is true, it then means that you have in you all kinds of mineral resources
that is resident on earth. No wonder the Psalmist recorded that the earth is full of
the goodness of God. Come on! Whether you have a university degree or not, all
the money you will ever need to live an excellent life are deposited in you, in the
form books, songs, inventions, discoveries, drama, messages, ministries, talents,
gifts or potentials of different degree.

Bruce Lee wrote; “Ever since I was a child I had this instinctive urge for
expansion and growth. To me, the function and duty of a quality human being is
the sincere and honest development of one’s potential.”

With the realization of one’s potential and self-confidence in one’s ability, one
can build a better world. Until potential is discovered destiny is not born. The day
you discover yourself, a leader is born.

Most people are like the Tolstoy' fabled beggar who spent his life sitting on a pot
of gold, under him the whole time. Your treasure—your perfection – is within
you already.

Man is an object of gifts, talents and abilities. This is one truth that very many
have not taken hold of. Often times, people are looking at what they should have,
rather than looking at what they have, that they are not making use of. What you
80
need to achieve greatness is already in you merely waiting for your discovery. It
is called potential.

Mathew 25:14-30, Jesus speaking, He Said; “The kingdom of heaven is as a man

travelling into a far country, who called his servants, and delivered unto them his
goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to
every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey.”

A talent weighs 33kg. And the international price of gold is about US$600 per
troy ounce. One gram costs about $20.

If 1000 grams – 1kg

X grams – 33kg

This will give us 33,000grams. And 33,000grams × $20 = $ 660,000. At naira

equivalent we have about 660,000 × 168 = #110,880,000.This is what one talent
cost.
And I now discovered why Jesus was very angry at the man he gave one talent
that went to hid it, Mathew 25:16-30; “And he that had received the five talents
went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. And likewise he
that had received two, he also gained other two. But he that had received one
went and digged in the earth, hid his lord’s money.

In verse 24, “Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord I
knew thee thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering
where thou hast not strawed: and I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the
earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.” His lord answered and said unto him, thou
wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and
gathered where I have not strawed.” Thou oughtest therefore to have put my
money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received my own
with usury.”

Each and every one of us is endowed with talents in proportion to our own
abilities. And it is the desire of our Lord and Master to discover ours and put it to
trade. That is the reason why your poverty don’t move God. God desired that the
poorest man should at least be #110,880,000 rich.

HOW DO I DISCOVER MY WEALTH WITHIN..?

1. Develop self-awareness

Albert Einstein wrote; “Everybody is a genius but if you judge a fish by its
inability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life behaving it is stupid.”

81
To discover your latent wealth, first, you will have to be more self-aware. That is
finding the details of your life and discovering your strength and weaknesses.

Self-awareness is a psychological state in which people are aware of their traits,

feelings and behavior. Alternately, it can be defined as the realization of oneself
as an individual entity.” It is the understanding of your personality, behaviors,
habits, emotional reactions, motivations, intelligence styles and thought
processes.

One of the duty of man is to discover himself, and second, to magnify himself, to
multiply the ways in which he exists, to make his life full, significant and
interesting.

As you develop self-awareness you are able to make changes in the thoughts and
interpretations you make in your mind. Changing the interpretations in your mind
allows you to change your emotions. Self-awareness is one of the attributes of
emotional intelligence and an important factor in achieving excellence.

Self-awareness is the first step in creating what you want and mastering your life.
Where you focus your attention, your emotions, reactions, personality and
behavior determine where you go in life.

Abraham Maslow wrote; “Whereas the average individuals often have not the
slightest idea, what they are, what they want or their own opinions, self-
actualizing individuals have superior awareness of their own impulses, desires,
opinions, and subjective reactions.”

You can get a master’s degree in practically anything nowadays, but where do
you go to study you? You are the one subject that if comprehended on a Master’s
level, has the greatest potential to affect your long term happiness and success.”

Creating happiness is done in many steps. Only with self-awareness can we see
where our steps are taking us.

Knowledge is not the same as morality, but we need to understand that, if we are
to avoid past mistakes and move in productive directions. An important part of
that understanding is to know who we are, and what we can do. Ultimately, we
must synthesize our understandings for ourselves. There is power in identity.
Discover yourself and see the unlimited possibilities in your life. Woody Allen
wrote; “That his only regret in life was, he wasn’t somebody else.”

Billie Jean King wrote; “I think self-awareness is probably the most important
thing towards being a champion.”

82
2. Discover Your Area of Multiples Intelligence

It has been claimed by some researchers that our intelligence or ability to

understand ourselves and the world around us is complex. Some people are better
at understanding some things than others. For some of us it is relatively easy to
understand how a flower grows but it is immensely difficult for us to understand
and use a musical instrument. For others, music might be easy but playing
football is difficult. So everybody has what he or she is good at. It’s your function
to discover it and stop looking at your defections.

A wise man wrote; “God and nature first made us what we are, and then out of
our own created genius, we make ourselves what we want to be.

We all possess multiples intelligence in different degrees. Each person has a

different intellectual composition. These multiple intelligences can be nurtured
and strengthened, or ignored and weakened.

You don’t become a genius by luck, genius are made. By developing ones
strongest faculties one can become a genius. If you think that the world’s greatest
inventions came from the fevered genius, think again.

Until you ascertain your area of concentrated intelligence, the genius in you will
not manifest. We have genius in different fields of life. And it is easiest to
discover ourselves by seeing what comes naturally to us that others struggle with.

Some of us pick up language quickly; some are naturally good singers, writers,
and composers; things you naturally do without a formal training, some find ease
in construction or building up things from nothing, others just seems to have in
the saddle or with a skillet in their hand. But the only way we know that… is by
knowing people who is not like us, people who are hopeless at learning that
which come to us naturally. The things we are intuitively great at, that come to us
naturally points to help define our potentials.

As reviewed by Dr. Howard Gardener a professor of Harvard University, human

intelligence is made of at least 8 different styles of intelligence. You will be
stronger in some than in others. If you focus on your strengths, you will develop
great ability within that particular style of intelligence. Building your intelligence
in those areas will make you excel and be more likely to succeed.

A. Verbal/Linguistic intelligence

This Involves sensitivity to spoken and written language; it is the ability to learn
languages, and the capacity to use languages to accomplish certain goals. This
intelligence includes the ability to effectively use language to express oneself
83
rhetorically or poetically, and language as a means to remember information.
People with linguistic intelligence love and are talented with words. They enjoy
reading, writing and learning languages. They have an ability to teach and explain
things to others.

Career Matches includes – Writer, Editor, Public Speaker, Politician, Preacher,

Teacher, Journalist, broadcaster, Actor/Actress.

B. Logical/Mathematical Intelligence

People with Logical intelligence are abstract thinkers and are attracted to logic
and reasoning. They are good at investigation and scientific processes. This
consist of the capacity to analyze problems logically, carry out mathematical
operations and investigate issues scientifically, it entails the ability to detect
patterns, reason deductively and think logically, examples are associated with
scientific and mathematical thinking. They are good at strategy games, have a
mind “like a computer”, abstract thinkers, wonder how things work, looks for a
rational explanations.

Career Matches – Scientist, Mathematician, Lawyer/Attorney, Doctor,

Accountant, Bookkeeper, Computer, Programmer, Researcher, Financial Planner.

C. Musical Intelligence

They have great skill in the performance, composition, and appreciation of

musical patterns. They can also easily memorize songs, often singing, whistling
or tapping a song. It encompasses the capacity to reorganize and compose
musical pitches, tones and rhythms. This is an almost structural parallel to
linguistic intelligence.

Career choices includes but not limited to: musician, Singer, Composer,
Songwriter, Music Teacher, Music Director, etc.

D. Bodily Kinesthetic Intelligence

This entails the potential of using one’s whole body or parts of the body to solve
problems. It is the ability to use mental abilities to coordinate bodily movements.
This is the faculty that makes for good sportsmanship, dancing; enjoy creating
things with their hands, excellent physical coordination.

Potential career choices are: Sports, Dancer, Builder, Sculptor, and actor.

E. Visual/Spatial Intelligence

84
It is an area in the theory of multiple intelligences that deals with spatial
judgment and the ability to visualize with the mind’s eye. Gardner defines it; “as
human computational capacity that provides the ability or mental skills to solve
spatial problems of navigation, visualization of objects from different angles and
space, faces or senses recognition or to notice fine details. People with visual
intelligence are artistic. They are very aware of their surroundings and are very
good in drawing, painting. They enjoy photography and pictures.

Career Matches includes – Artist, Architect, Graphic Designer, Engineer, Fashion

Designer, Interior Decorator, and photographer, etc.

F. Interpersonal Intelligence

People with interpersonal intelligence have the capacity to understand the

intentions, motivations and desires of other people. It allows people to work with
others effectively and thrive in social interactions. They are good at reading
empathize and understanding others. They are good at working with others and
have many friends. They learn best through interaction and dialogue.

Their dominant characteristics are: Empathetic, Extraverted, Enjoy social events,

Love meeting new people, Cooperative in groups, like to Counsel others,
Sensitive to others moods, etc.

Career Matches – Diplomat, Leader, Manager, Politician, Clergy, Social Worker,

Receptionist, Sales Reps, Counselor, Child care, and coach.

G. Intrapersonal Intelligence

People with intrapersonal intelligence have the capacity to understand oneself, to

appreciate one’s feelings, fears and motivations. They are introspective and seek
understanding. They are intuitive and typically introverted. They learn best
individually.

Their dominant characteristics are: Introverted, Prefers Working alone,

Philosophical, Self-aware, Perfectionistic, Often thinks of Self-employment,
Enjoys Journaling, Intuitive, independent, spends time thinking and Reflecting,
likes Learning about Self.

Career matches includes: Psychologist, Philosopher, Writer, Theologian.

H. Naturalist Intelligence

85
The Naturalistic intelligence has to do with how we relate to our surroundings
and where we fit into it. People with Naturalist intelligence have a sensitivity to
and appreciation for nature. They are gifted at nurturing and growing things as
well as the ability to care for and interact with animals. They can easily
distinguish patterns in nature.

Dominant Characteristics are: enjoying having pets, like to learn about nature,
enjoys gardening, appreciates scenic places, feel alive when in contact with
nature, likes to camp, walk, and climb, notices nature above all other things,
conscious of changes in weather, etc.

Career Matches – Conservationist, Gardner, Farmer, Animal trainer, Park Ranger,

Botanist, Zookeeper, Geologist, Marine Biologist, Veterinarian, and Scientist, etc.

The power to become an excellent person lies within you, merely waiting for
your discoveries. If you want to be a renowned musician, develop your musical
faculty. If you desire to be an outstanding banker, then develop your faculty of
finance. Discover your area of concentrated intelligence and go to school. The
genius in you will emerge.

In choosing any course or business, you should choose the one which calls for the
use of your strongest faculties.

If you have good mechanical ability, and are not spiritually minded and have no
command of language, do not try to preach, and if you have the taste and talent to
combine colours and fabrics into beautiful creation in millinery and dress, do not
learn typewriting or Stenography, get into a business which will use your
strongest faculties, and develop these faculties.

Suzanne Collins wrote; “I think… you still have no idea. The effect you can
have.” If one can fully understand himself, life will be excellent in all
ramifications.

Why Do I Need To Discover My Potentials

First, “No great man is known for many things”. Therefore, knowing what you
excel at in life can realistically change your life by channeling your resources into
what you can do, and not wasting energy in guessing. It forever, reshapes the way
you see yourself, your possibilities and future. And that change in perspective
starts to change what you do, and how you take advantage of the opportunities
and events around you.

Second, by finding out, what you are naturally great at, changes what you see
each morning in the mirror. Instead of flaws and the passage of time, you see the

86
potentials of who you can become. And that new vision helps you transition into
the role you want to play when you start making your dreams come true.

Nevertheless, discovering your personal potential takes guess work out of your
life. By defining your work, relationship and also help you gain incredible insight
into how to make the best of yourself. And help you avoid making bad or
inappropriate choices when deciding the following:

* What you want to do to make a living.

* Where to go to school and what to major in.
* Where you want to live.
* Who you want to work for.
* With what to spend your money in and what to invest it in.
* What to do with your weekends and days off, where to go on vacations and
holidays.
* Who your friends are, both at work and outside of it.
* Who to date in a relationship or marry.
* And what you want to study.

Thomas Edison wrote: If we did all the things we are capable of doing, we could
literally astound ourselves.”

87
 PART TWO

DEVELOPING SELLING SKILLS…

88
 CHAPTER SEVEN

Successful Selling

Everybody is into the business of selling; and life is about business. Sometimes
when you ask, “How many people are in sales?” It’s interesting to watch how
people respond to that question. There are always a few people who will agree
first, and then others will follow, even though they may be in fields such as
management, administration, finance and accounting.

Basically, each of us is in the business of selling every single day. From the time
you get up in the morning until the time you go to bed at night, you are
negotiating, communicating, persuading, convincing, and influencing — trying to
get people to cooperate with you to accomplish the things that you want them to
accomplish, selling products, ideas, services, values, attitudes, and ultimately
yourself. So the pivotal question with regard to selling is not if you are doing it,
but if you are good at it.

The degree of how you are effective in selling yourself will determine how far
you will rise, whether you are in business for yourself or for others.

But a good salesperson focus on how to satisfy the customer’s needs rather than
on your product or service. Your customers may not necessarily mean people
who are buying products from you, your customers in this context may be your
neigbours, your children, your wife, your husband, friends, or family associates.
But the interesting thing about selling is that we are out to meet people needs
each new day, and how we are in doing this determines what we get on daily
basis.

To have a better output in life, always be prepared to put yourself in your

customers’ shoes and to make sure satisfying their needs is what your business is
doing.

Good marketing means having the ability to change your point of view so that
you always:

$ Understand your customers (Others)

$ Empathize with your Customers (Others)

$ Relate to your customers in a manner that pleases them, (People)

89
$ Love your customer

$ Help your customer in every way

$ Contribute to your customer’s life

$ Add value to every transaction

For those in the ministry of preaching the gospel of our LORD Jesus Christ, those
in selling product, those rendering services, if you can consider all these factors
mentioned above you will be the people’s person.

Forget what business you are in-it’s irrelevant. Forget what product you are
selling-it’s irrelevant too. None of us are in the product or service business. We’re
all in the people business because people are the ones who make decisions and
spend money. And when we’re in the people business, we’re also in the problem-
solving business-solving people’s problems.

To become rich, you must become a master of recognizing people’s needs and
desires, and of finding ways to satisfy them. If you can consistently do that
quicker, cheaper, better, more conveniently, and with more trustworthiness and
honesty than anyone else, you can’t help but make a lot of money.

Money is simply a currency for trading value or benefit. So if you are in pursuit
of money for money’s sake-and that is your main focus in business no matter how
hard you try-it will continue to elude. The sooner you take your focus off the
money and bring a valuable product, service, result, or benefit to the market, the
sooner you will start earning money. You cannot actually make money in
business unless you print it, you can only add value. It is the value that people
want, and they will pay you for the privilege. If you want to be rich, don’t try to
make money-just add value to people’s lives, because money is a by-product of
delivering value to people. That is what selling is all about.

All top executives are excellent salespeople. All effective parents are wonderful
salespeople. All effective employees use sales techniques to get their coworkers
and bosses to go along with them and to cooperate with them in getting the job
done.

Everyone who is effective in virtually any area of life that involves other people
is an excellent salesperson of some kind. All superstars are effective in selling
themselves. There are people who are not as good as you are in your field, but
they are known everywhere because they have good selling techniques.

90
Comedian AY sells Laughter and Happiness, likeness Basket Mouth and the rest
comedians and they are making good money from it. Tuface sells music which is
a source of joy and inspiration to people and he is making a lot of money.
Bishop David Oyedepo sells information and he quite making a fortune out of it.
All of them are basically not out to make money, but they are adding value to
peoples life and money becomes their rewards.
Unfortunately, over the years, a stigma has grown up around the selling
profession.
Many people feel that selling is a low-level type of activity and they don’t like to
be associated with it — even people who are in sales! Virtually no colleges or
universities have a “Department of Selling,” even though almost 90% of people
in the world make their living by selling something to someone.

Salespeople are the movers and shakers in every business and industry. They are
the key people who create the demand for all the products and services that keep
everyone employed at every other occupation. It is sales that drives everything, it
drives production, employment and economy.

Gap Analysis

The basis for all successful sales efforts is a discipline called gap analysis. Gap
analysis is clearly defining what your idea, product, or service can do for a person
and then deciding how to demonstrate that in a compelling way.

People tend to buy based on how they anticipate feeling as a result of owning and
enjoying a particular product or service. In fact, they make their decision based
on whether or not that feeling is more valuable to them than the money they will
have to part with.

So, in selling or urging anyone to do anything, there is an “ABC theory of

motivation” that is very powerful.

In it, “A” represents a state of “felt dissatisfaction.” This means that the
individual is not satisfied with his or her current situation or condition.

The “C” represents a state of greater satisfaction. If the individual can get to this
state, the felt dissatisfaction in his or her current situation will be relieved.

The “B” in this ABC theory is the product, service, idea, action, or activity that
you are trying to persuade the person to acquire or to engage in.

So, to repeat, the “A” is the existing state of dissatisfaction. The “C” is the future
anticipated state of greater satisfaction or relieved dissatisfaction. The “B” is
what you are offering as a means to that relief.

91
According to this theory, getting people to do something that they would not have
done in the absence of your influence is possible only when a gap exists between
their current situation and the ideal situation that they would like to enjoy.

The very best persuaders, communicators, and salespeople are those who
concentrate their attention on identifying the exact gap that exists and
determining how big it is. They then focus on widening that gap in every possible
way, until the prospect begins to feel more and more dissatisfied with his or her
current situation and more and more desirous of enjoying the preferable situation
that is achievable by the use of the product, service, or idea. This is called the
selling point or unique selling promise.

The truth is that there are products or people who are out there offering better
services or selling promises. And people don’t buy products they buy solutions to
their problem. If you are in ministry, why do you think people should come to
your church while there are better churches that seems to offer them better
worship atmosphere, and better time management options?

In the study of church growth, a little variance occurs between the churches that
are growing and those that are not. The growing church adopts a good selling
technique while the non-growing churches has a poor selling skills.

The growing ministries are motivated by the needs of the people and they are
basically out to give. But the exact opposite is the case of the non-growing
church. The growing ministries are people oriented while the non –growing
churches are money oriented. Forgetting that the more people you have, the more
money you will make.

In sales you have to be out to give, and not to get. That is the basic skills of all
good sales people. You must see yourself as a problem solver, don’t let your
customers see you as if you are looking for their money. People don’t buy
products or services, they buy the solutions to their problem. In selling, it is
called the red bottom. Everybody has a red bottom, and the moment you show
them that you have the solution to their problem, that automatically becomes your
selling point.

Secondly, there is a gap that exists between people and their needs. And as a good
sales person, you have to cover that gap. You can use these techniques to
persuade people to move from where they are to where you want them to be.

Remember that people buy solutions to their problems, not products or services.
In fact, as a salesperson, you need to be more of a problem finder than a vendor.
The more you focus on the problem, or the gap that exists between the real and

92
the ideal in the customer situation, the faster you will find a place where your
product or service can plug the gap.

The bigger the problem that the customer or prospect has, the bigger the potential
sale. One of the most powerful questions you can ask a person is, “How much is
that problem costing you?” Help him to identify not only the obvious, direct
costs, but also the not-so-obvious, indirect costs.

Ask the prospect, “What are the implications? What is the meaning of that
problem to you? What other things does it affect in your work or personal life?”

The most astute salespeople are those who are capable of finding a small gap and
then expanding it into a wide gap. They are capable of discovering a small
problem or dissatisfaction in the mind of the prospect and then, by questioning
and commenting, increase it until the prospect develops an intense desire for the
solution they are offering.

If you are selling to companies, you have to ask what the decision makers in the
organization want to accomplish. What is the gap between where they are and
where they want to be? How is the decision maker rewarded, and for what? What
does the decision maker have to do to earn the respect, esteem, and support of this
or her superiors and coworkers?

One of the deepest subconscious needs of all people is the need for self-esteem,
for feeling valuable, important, and worthwhile. If you can ascertain what people
need to do to increase their self-esteem and their perceived value in their
organization, and then show them that by using your product or service, they can
earn the approval and appreciation of the people around them and above them,
they will often be very motivated to buy what you are selling.

When you meet prospects for the first time, you will find that they are usually
unaware that a gap exists between where they are and where they could be. They
will often say things like, “I’m not interested,” or “I can’t afford it,” or “We’re
quite happy with our current situation.” These are normal and natural responses.
No one likes to change. Your job is to describe a state of even greater satisfaction
that they could enjoy if they did something different. Virtually all advertising is
aimed at showing people how much better off they could be with a product or
service that they have not yet acquired.

Gap analysis is based on asking good questions — questions focused on

discovering problems that might be troubling the prospect. There is a direct
correlation between the use of good questioning techniques and sales success.
The more and better questions you ask aimed at finding a problem or uncovering
a dissatisfaction, the more interest the prospect will have and the more sales you
will make. The person who asks questions has control.
93
Good salespeople always plan the wording of their questions, rewriting them and
practicing them before they get face-to-face with a prospect. Poor salespeople, on
the other hand, make up their questions as they go along.

Here are some great questions for gap analysis.

The first question is an application of the “magic-want technique.” Imagine that

you have a magic wand that you can wave over the prospect’s situation and you
ask this question: “Mr. [or Ms.] Prospect, if this situation were absolutely perfect
in every respect, what, would it look like? Then remain completely silent. When
the prospect begins to describe that perfect situation, you’ll uncover the gaps you
can fill to create his or her ideal future. When you explain how your product or
service can bridge those gaps, you will greatly enhance your chances of making a
sale.

A great set of questions begins with the words What if? For example, you can
ask,
“What if we could achieve this particular result for you; what effect would that
have on your current operations?”

Good questions that grab the prospect’s attention will start him or her visualizing
and imagining an ideal future state, exactly the state that your product or service
is meant to achieve.

A final key to effective selling through gap analysis is to share some of the
experiences of people who have previously purchased your product or service.
Use third-party references, testimonials, and anecdotes. Say something like, “I
have a very good customer who had a similar situation to yours not long ago.”
Then go on to explain how your customer was able to rectify that situation in a
cost-effective way by accepting your recommendation.

To be truly persuasive in the selling process, use gap analysis. Instead of trying to
overwhelm your prospects with reasons and rationales for doing what you want
them to do, ask questions aimed at uncovering their current problems, needs, and
dissatisfactions. Listen carefully to the answers they give you, and ask additional
questions to help them expand on their situation. Take a few moments to feed
their answers back to them, to show that you were really listening and that you
really understand their needs. Then position yourself to influence and persuade
your prospects by showing them how your product or service just happens to be
the ideal way to solve their problem, satisfy their need, or achieve their goal.

When you take this low-pressure approach to getting people to do what you want
them to do, they will buy from you with pleasure, and they will recommend you

94
to their friends. They will feel they are being helped to improve their lives rather
than being pressured into buying something that they may not want or need.

The wonderful thing about selling is that it is a learned skill. No matter what level
of selling ability you possess today, by continued practice, you can become better
and more persuasive. And the more effective you are at selling, the more
successful you will be in every area of your life.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Selling Yourself

Your ability to sell yourself to those who have the power to make the decision to
move you forward will determine your success. No matter how intelligent or
gifted you are, if you don’t know how to sell yourself, you will still not get the
most out of life.

If you know how to sell yourself, you will grow like magic. This happens when
people or a customer realizes that you’ve done something wonderful for them-
something far beyond their expectations. When you give them value in excess of
what they felt they deserved or paid for, you have created a magic experience.
The aim of magic experience is to make the transaction between you and your
customers memorable. It could be a little courtesy, or a little favour that you
showed to somebody, it for sure leave a lasting positive impression, one that
makes people want to do business with you again or meet you again.

To your boss, magic experience could be giving him a Christmas gift or offering
to take him out for a launch. No matter how small, this may mean a lot to him,
and guess, any opportunity for promotion will always be yours.

Another form of magic experience is being observant of others to discover their

needs and offering to voluntarily meet them without any cash involvement.
Especially to people who have the power to make the decisions that can lift you.
You could be offering to be dry-cleaning the suit of your pastor or your boss free
of charge, magic experience goes beyond the call of duty.

MAGIC EXPERIENCES TO REMEMBER

Employers – Employees’ relationship

Imagine offering to dry-clean the suit of your boss every weekend free of charge
or buying a packet of “Vicks sweet” for your boss every week. And making sure
that you remember his birthday, and send him wishes and probably gifts. Then
95
always making sure that you buy him gifts every feasting period. Your guess is as
good as mine, because you will always be in his green list.

Car Wash

When people brings their car to be washed, while waiting for their turn, you offer
them a cool Malt Drink and snacks, or maybe offer them a free hair-cut. Wow!
Even if your prize is 100% higher than the others, they will be tempted to always
come back because of how you gave them a treat.

A Restaurants

Imagine you visited a restaurant, and on your arrival, a gentleman walks up to

you with three different kinds of drinks, and asked you to pick and be sipping
while you make your order. And when you enquired for the prize he said, that the
drink is in appreciation for your patronage. Even if you eventually don’t buy
anything, it does not affect their countenance. Where would you go another day?

I went to a church in Warri, Delta State, and as I was highlighting from my car, a
beautiful lady walked up to me with a white handkerchief and said, “We are glad
that you came. Welcome sir o her kneels while giving me the white Perfumed
face tower. I was honored, and any time I visit that city, I am always compared to
go to that church.

Do small things that cost you very little but mean a lot to your customers.

I know of people who has everything it takes to be up there, but have remained at
the bottom pit of life, simply because they lack a good selling ability. Knowing
that you are good is not enough, you must show people that you are.

Discover Your Own Uniqueness

Being like every other person is like a tomato seller at the markets-you offer the
same goods as everyone else, and all you can do to get more customers is drop
your price. This gets you nowhere!

Have you imagined why some things are cheap and others are expensive? It’s
simply because those that are expensive are unique, rare, or just hard to get. On
the other hand, those that are cheap are usually easily obtainable.

If your aim is to attain excellence in all you do, you should strive to make
yourself unique, not just another commonly available commodity. When you
produce something that’s a commodity, there is nothing to differentiate you from
anyone else, except your price. That’s exactly where you don’t want to be,

96
because inevitably you will have to drop your price and cut your margins to keep
your customers. This will quickly make you fade out.

If you are a performing musician, you don’t stop by just doing shows, you need to
have your own unique selling point, why people should prefer your services to
others. I know of people who sings very well, but they are not hired, why?
Simply because they are not different from the others.

In anything you are doing, whether you are in business or not, strive to have a
“Unique Selling Point.” Or a “Unique Selling Promise.” It is that special promise
you make to your customer (people) that only you can offer.

It is also that special thing that you can do practically well that others cannot
afford to do. Employers wants to hire you not because you are handsome, but
because you have something that other prospects doesn’t have. It sells you, so it’s
your duty to make yourself unique.

Your USP is the cornerstone of your marketing and without it you cannot
compete, nor will you ever get rich. If you don’t have it, I suggest you stop
everything and find one-now-today! Without a powerful USP, you have no
positioning, no edge, no reason for customers to buy from you other than,
perhaps, price. This is costing you a fortune in lost profits and lost sales.

If you want to get rich, you cannot do what everybody else does. You must be
different, scarce, or unique. Becoming scarce, different or unique is the reason
why people will line up to buy what you have and pay top dollar to get it.
Therefore, take a fresh look at yourself. How different, scarce, or unique are you?

Engaging the Power of Charisma

Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary defines charisma as “a Personal

Magic of leadership arousing special popular loyalty or enthusiasm for a public
figure.”

Charisma is also that special quality of magnetism that each person has and that
each person uses to a certain degree. You have a special charisma to the people
who look up to you, who respect and admire you, especially the members of your
family and your friends and coworkers. Whenever and wherever a person feels a
positive emotion toward another, he imbues that person with charisma, or
attractiveness.

In trying to explain charisma, some people speak of an “aura.” This aura is a light
that is invisible to most people, but not to everyone, and that radiates out from a
person and affects the people around that person in a positive or negative way.
The halo around the heads of saints and mystics in many religious paintings was
97
the artist’s attempt to depict the light that people reported seeing around the heads
of these men and women when they were speaking or praying, or in an intense
emotional state.

You also have an aura around you that most people cannot see but that is there,
nevertheless. This aura affects the way people react and respond to you, either
positively or negatively. There is a lot that you can do, and a lot of good reasons
for you to do it, to control this aura and make it work in your best interests.

If you’re in sales, this aura, reflecting your level of charisma, can have a major
impact on the way your prospects and customers treat you and deal with you. Top
salespeople seem to be far more successful than the average salespeople in
getting along with their customers. They’re always more welcome, more
positively received and more trusted than the others. They sell more, and they sell
more easily. They make a better living, and they build better lives. Salespeople
with charisma get far more pleasure out of their work and suffer far less from
stress and rejection.

The charismatic salesperson is almost invariably a top performer in his field and
enjoys all the rewards that go with superior sales.

If you’re in business, developing greater charisma can help you tremendously in

working with your staff, your suppliers, your bankers, your customers and
everyone else upon whom you depend for your success. People seem naturally
drawn to those who possess charisma. They want to help them and support them.
When you have charisma, people will open doors for you and bring you
opportunities that otherwise would not have been available to you.

In your personal relationships, the quality of charisma can make your life more
joyous, happier. People will naturally want to be around you. Members of your
family and your friends will be far happier in your company, and you will have a
greater influence on them, causing them to feel better about themselves and to do
better at the important things in their lives.

There is a close association between personal charisma and success in life.

Probably 85 percent of your success and happiness will come from your
relationships and interactions with others. The more positively others respond to
you, the easier it will be for you to get the things you want.

In essence, when we discuss charisma, we are talking about the law of attraction.
This law has been stated in many different ways down through the centuries, but
it basically says that you inevitably attract into your life the people and
circumstances that harmonize with your dominant thoughts.

98
In a sense, you are a living magnet, and you are constantly radiating thought
waves, like a radio station radiates sound waves, that are picked up by other
people. Your thoughts, intensified by your emotions, as radio waves are
intensified by electric impulses, go out from you and are picked up by anyone
who is tuned in to a similar wavelength. You then attract into your life people,
ideas, opportunities, resources, circumstances and anything else that is consistent
with your dominant frame of mind.

The law of attraction also explains how you can build up your levels of charisma
so that you can have a greater and more positive impact on the people whose
cooperation, support and affection you desire.

The critical thing to remember about charisma is that it is largely based on

perception. It is based on what people think about you. It is not so much reality as
it is what people perceive you to be. For example, one person can create charisma
in another person by speaking in glowing terms about that person to a third party.
If you believe that you are about to meet an outstanding and important person,
that person will tend to have charisma for you.

One of the most charismatic people in the world today is Mother Teresa of
Calcutta.
In a physical sense, she is a quiet, elderly, frail woman in poor health, and she
wears a modest nun’s habit. She might be ignored by a person passing her on the
street, were it not for the tremendous charisma she has developed and for the fact
that her appearance is so well-known to so many people as a result.

If someone told you that he was going to introduce you to a brilliant, self-made
millionaire who was very quiet and unassuming about his success, you would
almost naturally imbue that person with charisma, and in his presence, you would
not act the same as you would if you had been told nothing at all. Charisma
begins largely in the mind of the beholder.

Of course, lasting charisma depends more upon the person you really are than
upon just the things you do. Nevertheless, you can build the perception of
charisma for yourself by utilizing the 10 great powers of personality that seem to
have a major impact on the way that people think and feel about you.

The first of these powers is the power of PURPOSE. Men and women with
charisma and personal magnetism almost invariably have a clear vision of who
they are, of where they’re going and of what they’re trying to achieve. Leaders in
sales and management have a vision of what they’re trying to create and why
they’re doing what they’re doing. They’re focused on accomplishing some great
purpose.

99
They’re decisive about every aspect of their lives. They know exactly what they
want and what they have to do to get it. They plan their work and work their plan.
In more than 3,300 studies of leadership, in every book and article ever written on
leadership, the quality of purpose, or vision, was one of the few qualities that was
consistently used in describing leaders.

You can increase your charisma and the magnetism of your personality by setting
clear goals for yourself, making plans to achieve them, and working on your
plans with discipline and determination every day. The whole world seems to
move aside for the person who knows exactly where he is going. In fact, the
clearer you are about your purposes and goals, the more likely people will be to
attribute other positive qualities to you. They will see you, or perceive you, as
being a better and more admirable human being. And when you have clear goals,
you begin attracting to yourself the people and opportunities necessary to make
those goals a reality.

The second personality power is SELF-CONFIDENCE. Men and women with

charisma have an intense belief in themselves and in what they are doing. They
are usually calm, cool and composed about themselves and their work. Your level
of self-confidence is often demonstrated in your courage, your willingness to do
whatever is necessary to achieve a purpose that you believe in.

People are naturally attracted to those who exude a sense of self-confidence,

those who have an unshakable belief in their ability to rise above circumstances
to attain their goals.

One of the ways you demonstrate self-confidence is by assuming that people

naturally like you and accept you and want to do business with you. For example,
one of the most powerful ways to close a sale is simply to assume that the
prospect has decided to purchase the product or service, and then go on to wrap
up the details. One of the best ways to achieve success in your relationships is to
assume that people naturally enjoy your company and want to be around you, and
then proceed on that basis. The very act of behaving in a self-confident manner
will generate personal charisma in the eyes of others.

The third power you can develop is ENTHUSIASM. The more excited you are
about accomplishing something that is important to you, the more excited others
will be about helping you to do it. The fact is that emotions are contagious. The
more passion you have for your life and your activities, the more charisma you
will possess, and the more cooperation you will gain from others. Every great
man or woman has been totally committed to a noble cause and, as a result, has
attracted the support and encouragement of others in many cases, thousands or
millions of others.

100
The fourth personality power that you can develop is EXPERTISE, or
competence. The more knowledgeable you are perceived to be in your field, the
more charisma you will have among those who respect and admire that
knowledge because of the impact it can have on their lives. This is also the power
of excellence, of being recognized by others as an outstanding performer in your
field. Men and women who do their jobs extremely well and who are recognized
for the quality of their work are those who naturally attract the help and support
of others. They have charisma.

The fifth power of personality that gives you charisma in the eyes of others is
THOROUGH PREPARATION, detailed preparation prior to undertaking any
significant task. Whether you are calling on a prospect, meeting with your boss,
giving a public talk or making any other kind of presentation, when you are well-
prepared, it becomes clear to everyone. The careers of many young people are put
onto the fast track as a result of their coming to an important meeting after having
done all their homework.

Whether it takes you hours or even days, if an upcoming meeting or interaction is

important, take the time to get on top of your subject. Be so thoroughly prepared
that nothing can faze you. Think through and consider every possibility and every
ramification. Often, this effort to be fully prepared will do more to generate the
respect of others than anything else you can do.

Remember that the power is always on the side of the person who has done the
most preparation and has the best notes. Everything counts. Leave nothing to
chance. When you do something related to your work or career, take the time to
do it right in advance.

The sixth power that gives you charisma is SELF-RELIANCE, or self-

responsibility. The most successful men and women in America are intensely
self-reliant. They look to themselves for the answers to their questions and
problems. They never complain, and they never explain. They take complete
ownership of projects. They volunteer for duties and step forward and accept
accountability when things go wrong.

An amazing facet of human nature is that when you behave in a completely self-
reliant manner, others will often be eager to help you achieve your goals. But if
you seem to need the help and support of others, people will avoid you or do
everything possible not to get involved with you.

One of the most admirable qualities of leaders, which lends a person charisma in
the perception of others, is the capacity to step forward and take charge. The
leader accepts complete responsibility for getting the job done, without making
excuses and blaming anyone. When you become completely self-reliant, you
experience a tremendous sense of control and power that enhances your feeling of
101
well-being and that generates the charisma that is so important to you in attracting
the help of others.
The seventh personality power is IMAGE. There is both interpersonal image and
intrapersonal image. Intrapersonal image, or self-image, is the way you see
yourself and think about yourself in any situation. This self-image has an
inordinate impact on the way you perform and on the way others see you and
think about you. Your self-image plays an important part in your charisma.

The other type of image is interpersonal. This is the image or appearance that you
convey to others. The way you look on the outside has an inordinate impact on
the way people treat you and respond to you. Successful men and women are very
aware of how they are coming across to others. They take a good deal of time to
think through every aspect of their external appearance to assure that it is helping
them rather than hurting them.

Remember that everything counts. If an element of your image is not building

your charisma and your respect in the eyes of another person, it is lowering your
charisma and your respect. Nothing is neutral. Everything is taken into the
equation. Everything counts.

The three primary factors in personal appearance are clothes, grooming and
accessories. Select your clothes with care. Before you go to an important meeting,
stand in front of the mirror and ask yourself, “Do I look like one of the best
people in my field?” If you don’t feel that you look like one of the best people in
your business, go back to the closet and change.

Look at the most successful people in your area of endeavor. What do they wear?
How do they dress? How do they wear their hair? What kind of accessories do
they use? Pattern yourself after the winners in your field, the people who already
have personal magnetism and charisma. If you do what they do, over and over,
you will eventually get the same results that they get.

The eighth form of personal power is CHARACTER, or integrity. Men and

women who possess the kind of charisma that arouses the enthusiastic support of
others are invariably men and women with high values and principles. They are
extremely realistic and honest with themselves and others. They have very clear
ideals, and they continually aspire to live up to the highest that is in them. They
speak well of people, and they guard their conversation, knowing that everything
that they say is being remembered and recorded. They are aware that everything
they do is contributing to the formation of their perception by others. Everything
about their character is adding to or detracting from their level of charisma.

When you think of the most important men and women of any time, you think of
men and women who aspired to greatness and who had high values for
themselves and high expectations of others. When you make the decision to act
102
consistent with the highest principles that you know, you begin to develop
charisma. You begin to become the kind of person others admire and respect and
want to emulate. You begin to attract into your life the help and support and
encouragement of the kind of people you admire. You activate the law of
attraction in the very best way.

The ninth power of personality is SELF-DISCIPLINE, or self-mastery. Men and

women of charisma are highly controlled. They have a tremendous sense of inner
calm and outer resolve. They are well-organized, and they demonstrate willpower
and determination in everything they do.

The very act of being well-organized, of having clear objectives and of having set
clear priorities on your activities before beginning, gives you a sense of discipline
and control. It causes people to respect and admire you. When you then exert
your self-discipline by persisting in the face of difficulties, your charisma rating
goes up.

Men and women who achieve leadership positions, who develop the perception
of charisma in others, are invariably those who possess indomitable willpower
and the ability to persist in a good cause until success is achieved. The more you
persist when the going gets rough, the more self-discipline and resolve you
develop, and the more charisma you tend to have.

The tenth power that you can develop, which underlies all of the other powers
that lead to charisma, is RESULT-ORIENTATION. In the final analysis, people
ascribe charisma to those men and women who they feel can most enable them to
achieve important goals or objectives.

We develop great perceptions of those men and women we can count on to help
us achieve what is important to us. Men and women who make great sales, or
who establish admirable sales records, develop charisma in the minds and hearts
of their coworkers and superiors. They are spoken about in the most positive way.
Men and women who are responsible for companies or departments that achieve
high levels of profitability also develop charisma. They develop what is called the
“halo effect.” They are perceived by others to be extraordinary men and women
who are capable of great things. Their shortcomings are often overlooked, while
their strong points are overemphasized. They become charismatic.

Charisma actually comes from working on yourself. It comes from liking and
accepting yourself unconditionally as you do and say the specific things that
develop within you a powerful, charismatic personality.

When you set clear goals and become determined and purposeful, backing those
goals with unshakable self-confidence, you develop charisma. When you are
enthusiastic and excited about what you are doing, when you are totally
103
committed to achieving something worthwhile, you radiate charisma. When you
take the time to study and become an expert at what you do, and then prepare
thoroughly for any opportunity to use your knowledge, skill or experience, the
perception that others have of you goes straight up. When you take complete
responsibility and accept ownership, without making excuses or blaming others,
you experience a sense of control that leads to the personal power that is the
foundation of charisma. When you look like a winner in every respect, when you
have the kind of external image that others admire, you build your charisma.
When you develop your character by setting high standards and then disciplining
yourself to live consistent with the highest principles you know, you become the
kind of person who is admired and respected everywhere. You become the kind
of person who radiates charisma to others. Finally, when you concentrate your
energies on achieving the results that you have been hired to accomplish, the
results that others expect of you, you develop the reputation for performance and
achievement that inevitably leads to the perception of charisma.

You can develop the kind of charisma that opens doors for you by going to work
on yourself, consistently and persistently, and becoming the kind of person
everyone can admire and look up to. That’s what charisma is all about.

Gaining Visibility

Have you noticed that some workers receive more promotions and greater pay
than do their colleagues do, even though they are apparently not as competent or
as capable as their colleagues are? This doesn’t seem fair. Why should some
people get ahead when others who seem to be working far harder, and even
longer hours, get passed over for promotion and the additional rewards that go
with it?

The fact is that to be a great success, it is important not only to be good at what
you do, but also to be perceived as being good at what you do. Human beings are
creatures of perception. It is not what they see but what they think they see that
determines how they think and act.

If your coworker is perceived as being more promotable than you are, for
whatever reasons, then it is very likely that your coworker will get additional
responsibilities and more money, even though you know that you could do a
better job, if given the chance.

Fortunately, however, there are several things that you can do to increase your
visibility and accelerate the speed at which you move ahead in your career.

104
The starting point to attain high visibility is to develop competence. Determine
what parts of your job are most important to your boss and to your company, and
then make the decision to become very good in those areas. You must be
perceived as being very competent at what you do; your future depends on it.
That perception alone will bring you to the attention of more people faster than
you can imagine.

The perception of excellent performance will open up opportunities for greater

responsibilities, higher pay and better positions. Becoming good at what you do
should be the foundation of your strategy for gaining higher visibility and rapid
advancement in your career.

Employers everywhere are looking for men and women of action, people who
will get in there and get the job done right as soon as possible. When you develop
a reputation for competence and capability, you quickly become visible to all the
key people in your working environment.

Excellence at what you do is essential, but it’s not enough. There are additional
elements that go into the perception that others have of you. And one of the most
important elements is your overall image, from head to toe. How you appear to
others makes a real difference.

A recent survey of personnel executives found that the decision to hire or not to
hire is made in the first 30 seconds. Many people believe that the decision to
accept or reject a job candidate is actually made in the first four seconds. Many
capable men and women are disqualified from job opportunities because they
simply do not look the part.

There are many elements of your life over which you have no control and which
you cannot choose. But your external dress and appearance are totally a matter of
personal preference. Through their choice of clothes, their grooming and their
overall appearance, individuals deliberately make a statement about the kind of
people they are. The way you look on the outside is a representation of the way
you see yourself on the inside. If you have a positive, professional self-image,
you will take pains to make your external appearance consistent with it.

It’s a good idea to dress the way the senior people in your company dress. Dress
for the position two jobs above your own. Since people judge you largely by the
way you look on the outside, be sure to look thoroughly professional.
Consequently, the perception of the people who can help you in your career will
be positive. They will open doors for you in ways that you cannot now imagine.

Another powerful way to increase your visibility is to join one or two

professional associations connected with your business or field. Begin by
attending meetings as a guest to carefully assess whether or not a professional
105
association can be of value to you. Determine if the members are the kind of
people you would like to know and are well-established in their careers. Then, if
you have decided that becoming known to the key people in this association can
advance your career, take out a membership and get involved.

Most people who join any club or association do little more than attend the
regular meetings. For some reason, they are too busy to assist with the various
things that need to get done. This is not for you. Your job is to pick a key
committee and volunteer for service. Find out which committee seems to be the
most active and the most influential in that organization, and then step up to the
plate. Volunteer your time, expertise and energy, and get busy. Attend every
meeting. Take careful notes.

Ask for assignments, and complete them on time and in an excellent fashion. In
each case, you have an opportunity to perform for other key people in your
profession in a non-threatening environment. You give them a chance to see what
you can do and what kind of a person you are. You expand your range of valuable
contacts in one of the most effective ways possible. The people you get to know
on these committees can eventually be extremely be helpful to you in your work
and in your career.

Also, join a well-known charitable organization, such as the United Way, and
become active by donating your services to its annual fund-raising programs. You
may not be wealthy now, but you do have time, and your willingness to give of
yourself will soon be noticed by people who are higher up. Many men and
women with limited contacts and limited resources have risen to positions of
great prominence as the result of getting to know the key community leaders who
participate in charitable organizations and professional associations.

It’s amazing how far and how fast you will go when you begin to give your time
and energy to others on a volunteer basis. It’s one of the fastest ways up the
ladder of success today.

There are many other things that you can do to increase your visibility things that
don’t occur to most people. For example, a study of 105 chief executive officers
concluded that there were two qualities that would put a person onto the fast track
in his or her career. The first quality was the ability to set priorities, to separate
the relevant from the irrelevant when facing the many tasks of the day. The
second quality was a sense of urgency, the ability to get the job done fast.

Managers place very high value on a person who can set priorities and move
quickly to get the job finished. Dependability in job completion is one of the most
valued traits in the work force. When your employer can hand you a job and then

106
walk away and never worry about it again, you have moved yourself onto the fast
track, and your subsequent promotion and pay are virtually guaranteed.

Another way to increase your visibility is to continually upgrade your work-

related skills, and to make sure that your superiors know about it. Look for
additional courses you can take to improve at your job, and discuss them with
your boss. Ask him or her to pay for the courses, but make it clear that you’re
going to take them anyway.

Ask your boss for book and audio program recommendations. Then follow up by
reading and listening to them and asking for further recommendations. Bosses are
very impressed with people who are constantly striving to learn more in order to
increase their value to their companies. Doing this regularly can really accelerate
your career.

Finally, you’ll be more visible if you develop a Positive Mental Attitude. People
like to be around and to promote people they like. A consistent, persistent attitude
of cheerfulness and optimism is quickly noticed by everybody. When you make
an effort to cultivate an attitude of friendliness toward people, they, in return, will
go to extraordinary efforts to open doors for you.

In summary, here are the five keys to increasing your visibility so that you can be
more successful, faster in your career:

1. Become excellent at the important things that you have been hired to do.
Excellence in your chosen occupation is the primary stepping-stone to higher
positions and better pay.

2. Look, act and dress the part. Become knowledgeable about styles, colors and
fabrics. Dress the way senior people in your company dress. Never take anything
for granted. Remember that in the area of image, “casualness brings casualties.”

3. Develop your contacts, both inside and outside the company. Always be
looking for ways to give of your time and effort, as an investment, so that others
will be willing to give of their time and effort to help you sometime in the future.

The most successful men and women in any community are those who are known
by the greatest number of other successful people. Begin with your professional
association or club, and join a local charity that you care about and that also has a
prestigious board of directors.

4. Take additional courses to upgrade your skills, and make sure that everyone
knows about it. Ask your boss for book and audio program recommendations.
Then read and listen, and go back to your boss with your comments on what
you’ve learned and to ask for further recommendations.
107
When your boss feels that you are eager to learn and grow, often he’ll become a
mentor to you and will help you up the ladder of success. This process of being
mentored, or guided, has been instrumental to the careers of many successful
executives.

5. Be positive, cheerful and helpful. Be the kind of person other people want to
see get ahead. Treat other people with friendliness and patience, and always have
a good word to say to the people you work with.

In the final analysis, taking the time to become an excellent human being will do
more to raise your visibility and improve your chances for promotion than will
any other single thing that you can do. And you can do it if you really want to.

Cultivating Your Self-Esteem

Your self-esteem is probably the most important part of your personality. It

precedes and predicts your performance in almost everything you do. It is the
energy source or the reactor core of your personality, and how much self-esteem
you have determines your levels of vitality, enthusiasm and personal magnetism.

People with high self-esteem are more positive, more likable and more effective
in every part of their lives. Everything that you do or say or think will affect your
self-esteem. Your job, therefore, is to keep your self-esteem high and positive on
a continuing basis.

Probably the best definition of self-esteem is this: the level to which you respect
and value yourself as an important, worthwhile person. People with high self-
esteem feel terrific about themselves and their lives. When you feel really good
about yourself, you tend to be the very best person you can possibly be.

Your level of self-esteem is really your level of “mental fitness.” It’s a measure of
how healthy, hardy, and resilient you are in dealing with the inevitable ups and
downs of daily life. Your self-esteem determines how much peace of mind and
inner contentment you experience. It is also closely linked to your health and
levels of energy. People with high self-esteem are seldom sick and seem to have
an inexhaustible flow of energy and enthusiasm that progressively moves them
toward their goals.

How much you like and respect yourself also determines the quality of your
relationships with people. The more you like and enjoy yourself, the more you
will like and enjoy others, and the more they will like you. In fact, when your
self-esteem is hurt in any way, the very first thing that is affected is the way you
get along with people.

108
To perform at your best and to feel terrific about yourself, you should be in a
perpetual state of self-esteem building and maintenance. Just as you take
responsibility for your level of physical fitness, you need to take complete
responsibility for the content and quality of your mind.

I have developed a simple formula that contains all the critical elements of self-
esteem building, and you can use it on a regular basis to assure maximum
performance.

This formula is comprised of six basic elements. They are: goals, standards,
success experiences, comparison with others, recognition, and rewards. Let’s take
them one at a time.

How much you like and respect yourself is directly affected by your goals. The
very act of setting big, challenging goals for yourself and making written plans of
action to achieve them actually raises your self-esteem, which causes you to feel
much better about yourself.

Self-esteem is a condition you experience when you are moving step-by-step

toward the accomplishment of something that is important to you. For that
reason, it’s really important to have clear goals for each part of your life and to
continually work toward achieving those goals. Each progressive step causes your
self-esteem to go up and makes you feel more positive and effective in everything
else you do.

The second element in self-esteem building is having clear standards and values
to which you are committed. Men and women with high self-esteem are very
clear about what they believe in. The higher your values and ideals are, and the
more committed you are to living your life consistent with those values and
ideals, the more you will like and respect yourself, and the higher your self-
esteem will be.

Lasting self-esteem comes only when your goals and your values are congruent—
that is, when they fit into each other like a hand into a glove. Much of the stress
that people experience comes from believing one thing and trying to do another.
But when your goals and values are in harmony with each other, you feel a
wonderful surge of energy and well-being, and that’s when you start to make real
progress.

Many people say that they are unhappy with their job because they can’t seem to
achieve success no matter how hard they try. I always ask them if they are doing
what they really care about and believe in. In many cases, people realize that they
are not happy with their job because it is the wrong kind of work for them.

109
Once they change jobs and start doing something that they really enjoy,
something that is more consistent with their innermost convictions, they start to
make real progress and get a lot of satisfaction out of their work.

The third element in self-esteem building involves having success experiences.

Once you have set your goals and standards, it is important that you make them
measurable so that you can keep score of your small and large successes along
the way. The very act of setting up a goal, breaking it down into smaller parts,
and then completing those parts makes you feel like a winner and causes your
self-esteem to go up. But remember that you can’t hit a target you can’t see. You
can’t feel like a winner unless you clearly lay out the standards by which you are
going to measure your success and then achieve those standards.

Let’s say that you set a goal to sell a certain amount or earn a certain amount of
income in a given year. If you break that down into monthly and weekly goals,
and then you achieve the first of those goals, you will feel great about yourself.
Each time you reach another milestone, your self-esteem and ability to perform
will increase, and you will feel encouraged and enthusiastic about the next
challenge.

The fourth element of self-esteem is comparison with others. Leon Festinger of

Harvard University concluded that in determining how well we are doing, we do
not compare ourselves with abstract standards, but, rather, we compare ourselves
with people we know. To feel like a winner, you must know for sure that you are
doing as well as or better than someone else. The more you know about how well
the others in your field are doing, and the more favorably you compare with
them, the more you will feel like a winner, and the higher your self-esteem will
be.

Successful people continually compare themselves with other successful people.

They think about them and read about them and study their performances, and
then they work to surpass them one step at a time. Eventually, successful people
reach the point where they compete only with themselves and with their past
accomplishments. But this comes after they have moved to the top and left many
of their competitors behind.

The next element for self-esteem is recognition of your accomplishments by

people whom you respect. To feel really great about yourself, you need the
recognition of people you look up to and admire, such as your boss, your
coworkers, your spouse and people in your social circle. Whenever you are
recognized and praised for any accomplishment by someone whose opinion you
hold in high regard, your self-esteem goes up, along with your eagerness and
enthusiasm to do even better on the job.

110
The final element of self-esteem involves rewards that are consistent with your
accomplishments. You may work in a field where you receive financial bonuses,
status symbols—larger offices, bigger cars—or even plaques and trophies for
superior achievement. All of those symbols can have an incredible impact on
raising your self-esteem and causing you to feel terrific about yourself.

If, however your existing situation does not offer the tangible or intangible
rewards that are necessary for you to build and maintain your self-esteem, you
must create rewards for yourself. One of the smartest things you can do is to
design a system for giving yourself rewards for both small and large
accomplishments as you move progressively toward your goals. For example,
people who do telephone prospecting will often treat themselves to a cup of
coffee after every 10 calls. After 25 calls, they will reward themselves with a
walk around the building or the block.

After 50 calls, they will go out to lunch. Each of those rewards serves as an
incentive that motivates them to repeat the performance. The end result is
success, enthusiasm, and high self-esteem.

Whether or not, your current environment provides the six elements of self-
esteem building—goals, standards, success experiences, comparison with others,
recognition, and rewards—you need to establish your own structure and take full
responsibility for building yourself up on a regular basis.

Of course, it is possible to like yourself in the abstract, to think of yourself as a

valuable and worthwhile person, but this tends to be a very shaky form of self-
esteem that is easily knocked down by a negative experience or a temporary
disappointment. The only real way for you to absolutely know that you are a
valuable and worthwhile person is for you to make the effort, overcome the
obstacles and pay the price to bring these elements into your life. When you have
that foundation, you will experience a form of mental fitness and unshakable
optimism that will sustain you through failure and propel you to success.

111
 PART THREE

ACHEIVING FINANCIAL EXCELLENCE

“Money is not a scarce resource, what is scarce is having the correct knowledge
and skills needed to acquire large sums of money.”

112
 CHAPTER NINE

INCREASING EARNING POTENTIALS

One truth that will ever be told is that we live in an abundant universe in which
there is plenty of money available for anyone who wants it, that is of course,
providing that you are willing to do what it takes to earn that money.

In today’s digital age the law of abundance has become more relevant than ever,
as now, most of the money in the world exists only in the digital realm as
numbers on a computer screen.

The law of abundance states that there is more than enough wealth for everyone
to enjoy.

A good example of an excellent understanding of the law of abundance can be

found with banking institutions.

When banks first started hundreds of years ago, they provided people with a safe
place to keep their gold coins or gold bars in exchange for a fee.

113
A person would go to a bank, give that bank their gold or valuables, and in return
receive a paper receipt. If they ever wanted to collect their gold, they would give
the bank their receipt and receive their gold.

But the banks soon realized that only a few people would come to collect their
gold at any one time. This meant that the rest of the gold they were looking after
was sitting there doing nothing.

Fractional reserve banking arose from the realization that only a small percentage
of customers would claim their gold at any one time.

So the banks decided to use the gold that they were looking after to make
themselves more money by investing it in other things or loaning it out to people
at interest.

As long as all the bank’s customers didn’t come to the bank at once, the bank
would always have enough gold to give back to its customers should they ask for
it?

Today, we call this fractional reserve banking and in the digital age it is easier to
do than ever before. Banks can now lend out virtually unlimited amounts of
money, because unlike physical gold, money that exists on a computer screen is
limitless.

In today’s digital age the law of abundance is truer than it has ever been.

As a result, lending institutions are able to make tremendous amounts of money,

as essentially, they can lend out money to borrowers which they do not really
have and that doesn’t really exist.

In summary, since we entered the digital age there has been an endless supply of
money being pumped around the world each and every day.

Money is not a scarce resource, what is scarce is having the correct knowledge
and skills needed to acquire large sums of money. Therefore, the more you are
able to develop your human capital, the more money you are likely to receive in
return for your efforts.

Whatever may be said in praise of poverty, the fact remains that it is not possible
to live a really complete or successful life unless one is rich. No one can rise to
his greatest possible height in talent or soul development unless he has plenty of
money; for to unfold the soul and to develop talent, he must have many things to
use, and he cannot have these things unless he has money to buy them with.

A man develops in mind, soul and body by making use of things, and society is
so organized that man must have money in order to become the possessor of

114
things; therefore, the basis of all advancement for man must be on how to
succeed.

Living an excellent life is the ability to own all you want for the living of all the
life you are capable of living. And no man who has no plenty of money can have
all he wants.

Life has advanced so far, and become so complex, that even the most ordinary
man or woman requires a great amount of wealth in order to live in a manner that
even approaches completeness. Virtually everybody naturally wants to become
all that they are capable of becoming; this is an excellent desire, and we cannot
help wanting to be all that we can be.

Money does not answer to prayer, it only responds to laws or principles. To make
money you need to understand what will make people want to give it to you.
Nobody will give you money because you are nice or you have a certificate.

Your earning ability is largely determined by the perception of excellence, quality

and value that others have of you, and what you do.

The market only pays excellent rewards, for excellent performance. It pays below
average rewards or unemployment for below average performance; the more
valuable your time or services is, the more money that you will receive in
exchange for them.

Before you ever start earning…

Before you ever start earning there are things that you need to know about
money. There are laws guiding excellence and it’s your responsibility to
consciously discover and apply them.

Can I say this; you are not poor because of lack of resources, rather, you are poor
because of lack of wealth creation principles.

I know of people who made plenty money, but before the sky is up, they became
very broke. Money doesn’t make one rich, but preparing for it is what does.
When money enters your hand and you are not prepared, it will always find a way
to disappear. Politicians and civil servants has fallen victims of this tragedy. The
period they are in the office, they will start living extravagantly, not minding that
one day they will leave the office and stop earning. Almost 80% of politicians
and civil servants always become broke three months after they have left office.

Ignorance to wealth creation principles can keep one in perpetual poverty,

irrespective of a truck load of anointing or prayers. Even if you have a well-
paying job, without the knowledge of wealth creation principles, you will still get
broke.

115
Can I humble you? The rich is not prospering because he is working, wrong! He
is rich because he knows how to make money work. This is the reason some
people who are working today still complains of money before the end of every
month.

There are two major difference between the rich and the poor – the poor spend all
his time working to earn money, but the rich spend his time making money work
for them.

Before you start earning you must deal first, with any form of toxic mindset.
Toxic mindsets refers to thought patterns or strongholds that can keep one
perpetually doomed for mediocrity. One of such mindset is the hunter’s
mentality.

Economists say that the inability to delay gratification—that is, the natural
tendency of individuals to spend everything they earn plus a little bit more, and
the mind-set of doing what is fun, easy and enjoyable—is the primary cause of
economic and personal failure in life. On the other hand, disciplining yourself to
do what you know is right and important, although difficult, is the highroad to
pride, self-esteem and personal satisfaction.

So setting priorities begins with your deciding what you want most in life and
then organizing your time and activities so that everything you do is the most
valuable use of your time in achieving those objectives.

Second, before you start earning you basically need to understand the following
truths:

$. Money is just a means of exchange…

$. Money is just a tools to get things done, the money you have it, the more
things you can do.

$. The amount of money you earn does not make you rich, it is the portion
that you are able to keep that does.

What Makes People Want To Give You Money

To proceed we need to ask, what makes people want to give you money? Money
simply is a means of an exchange for a service or a product. Therefore, to earn
money is either you are rendering a service or creating products. Money must be
earned. You first need to understand the real, underlying reason why people will
hand it over to you-short of your pointing gun at them, that is. And here it is:
116
Truth #1 “People will only give you money only as a means of getting whatever it
is they want.”

Money obeys a law called the law of exchange. The law of exchange states that
money is a medium through which people exchange their labour in the production
of goods and services for the goods and services of others.

In other words, this law states that people receive an income for doing or
producing something that other people value and are willing to pay for.

Therefore, the higher the value of the service or product that you provide the
more money that you will receive in exchange for it.

Before money was invented people used to barter. This involved exchanging
goods or services for other goods or services.

For example, if you came to my house to fix my leaking roof, then in exchange I
would provide you with wood for your fireplace. This is called barter, and is what
people used to do before there was money.

As societies grew larger however, it became far more convenient for goods and
services to be exchanged into a medium like coins. Coins could be accumulated
and stored, and then later exchanged for the goods and services that you required.
Before there was money people obtained the things they wanted by doing
something for another person in exchange for that person doing something for
them.

Today, we do exactly the same thing, only instead of using just coins; we now
also use paper money and digital money in the form of credit cards or debit cards.

We work for a set amount of time and receive a set amount of money in return.
We then use the money that we have earned to buy goods or services from other
people who are also exchanging their goods or services into medium which they
will then use to buy goods and services from others.

In economics, the flow of goods and services in an economy is referred to as “real

flows” and is said to exist in a “circular flow” because the income of one
individual equates to an expense of another.

Understanding this is the first principle to creating wealth. People will only pay
you if you closely meet their needs and desires, or remove their frustrations, fears
or concerns. What successful people do is use all their energy to get to know and
understand what people needs are. They do this through their research, their
experience, and their own understanding of people. What we can do is to begin

117
with a review of one of the most widely accepted theories of what motivates
people.

According to Abraham Maslow, there are five basic levels of human need. The
five needs are summarized as follows: –

5. Self-actualization – (Self-fulfillment)
4. Ego Needs – (Prestige, Success, Self-respect)
3. Social Needs – (Affection, Friendship, Belonging, Association, etc.)
2. Safety and Security Needs - (Protection, Order, Stability, Comfort etc.)
1. Physiological Needs - (Food, Water, Air, Shelter, Sex etc.)

The list is upwardly progressive, he suggest people start at the lowest level of
need of satisfaction; then, once that need is satisfied, they move on to the next
level. The need of an individual is what makes him or her to pay for your service
or your product. It means money will always come to you if you can do any of
the following for them better than anyone else:

a. Make or save them money

b. Save them time
c. Supply them with food, shelter, or clothing
d. Provide them with security, safety, or comfort
e. Offer them leisure or entertainment, affection, friendship, or belonging
f. Give them status, prestige, or self-respect
g. Add value to their lives

There are many businesses or individuals doing all these already, but people,
organizations and companies are looking for people who can do it better. It then
boils down on whether you have what it takes to do it better – Information, Skills,
knowledge, intelligence, talents or gifts. These are the things that will distinguish
you from the majority who are already doing that same stuff.

Analysis

To present several examples of production and its relationship to wealth, we will

examine the production of a simple restaurant meal, passenger services on an
airplane, and production of housing services.

A sole proprietor operating a small restaurant uses raw materials in the form of
food ingredients, Capital in the form of stove or oven, and labour input in the
form of his own time. The proprietor is motivated by the fact that he is able to
create a meal that is valued by his customers over and above the value of the
individual inputs.

118
This added value is created by his talents and know-how as a capital of the
restaurant. Wealth in this case is not only in the materials or factors of
production but also in the proprietor’s knowledge of preparing a meal. Over time
this human capital will generate a stream of income for the proprietor for as long
as he operates the restaurant and as long as there is a demand for his product.

An airline makes decision to purchase an airplane based on anticipated demand

for transportation services. The value of these services is based on the benefits
customers receive by flying relative to other forms of traveling from one place to
another (safety, comfort, speed, and saves time.) Like the restaurant the value of
the airplane (a unit of physical capital) is in the provision of passenger’s services.

Building this airplane represents an addition to wealth in that it will generate a

stream of revenue (income) for the corporation generated over its physical life
provided demand for passenger services remain.

More so, the construction of an apartment building represents an addition to

wealth based on the demand for apartments by those seeking housing services.
The building will generate a stream of rental income over its life based on
occupancy levels and rental rates.

Therefore, the creation of wealth is based on knowledge… the ability to take raw
inputs and convert them to into outputs with value greater than the sum of the
individual parts. Additionally, this value is determined by correctly assessing the
demand for the output and how it will satisfy needs and wants.

Find a better way to satisfy people’s needs. This will be the starting point of your
success. Therefore, your earning ability today is largely dependent upon your
knowledge, skill and your ability to combine that knowledge and skill in such a
way that you contribute value to which costumers are going to pay.

And your value as a person is determined by how much you have developed or
invested in yourself. The problem is not that there are no job vacancies, but the
problem is that there are no valuable human capitals

When you start earning don’t stop learning and don’t stop dreaming…

The moment some people starts working, they immediately turn down every
other options for growth. It is pathetic to work for 35years maintaining one work
routine. Wake in the morning, eat, dress, and proceed to work. Thereafter returns
home after closure. This is the routine of so many people, especially the civil
servants for a whole lot of 35years.

119
You can’t attain excellence this way. Excellence means been your best at all
times. It demands that you engage at least 10% of your income in personal
development programs. Buying of relevant resource materials in your field,
attending workshop/seminars, buying books, and constantly upgrading through
formal settings.

To start earning as a driver, clerk, security, messenger, police constable, or a

mere gardener is not despicable, but to die or exit from your starting point is the
most pathetic condition.

When you are not developing or learning in your job, you are like the anti-virus
in a computer that is outdated, which needs upgrading. Though, the anti-virus
remains in the system, but its presence is not felt.

The world is not static, it is dynamic. And therefore, your duty is to embrace
change by bracing up.

The lack of capacity development is the reasons why some people starts working
with O level, and plans to retire with that same status. I know of people who
started work as a driver and also retired as a driver, people who were employed as
a police constable and has remained in that level for a period of up to 20 years
now.

There is no law that says when you are employed as a driver; you should remain a
driver. I have seen drivers who metamorphosed into managers, clerks who grew
to become Heads of Department, Security men who became lecturers.

One of my father in the Lord told me that in the early 90s when he was an
honorable member in the former Rivers State House of Assembly that Hon. Barr.
Henry Sierake Dickson was his Security aid as a Police Corporal. But within a
space of 19 years he metamorphosed to a Lawyer, a Politician and a Governor of
a state.

This man did not wake up overnight to become all these, he basically had the
desire for growth. And he worked hard for it.

Why do you want to die as a clerk, a gateman, or a mere messenger? Why are you
comfortable with answering sir/ma? Come on, you can be the boss. All you need
is a steady income and you have got it. Blame your past on the help you never got
from your parents or uncles, but you are responsible for the future.

I met a man who was working as a security man in my school, and we got talking.
Along the line, I discovered that he could speak very well, so I became curious
and asked him about his educational status and he replied that he stopped at
secondary school because of lack of sponsor.
120
Then I said, I accept that you hadn’t help yesterday, but I will totally disagree if
you remain in this status. Thank God you have got a Job today, and you have also
started earning. All you need is to take a form for weekend programs and start
school. He finally gave it a thought and started. Three years after he got his
Ordinary National Diploma in Electrical Engineering, and as we speak now, he is
working with one of the Oil and Gas industry as an operator.

The greatest mistake you will make in life is to consider your salary as an
income, the only thing you will do with it is to pay bills and survive, but when
you use it to develop yourself today, you will earn more.

I also know of a man who started work in the bank as a mere gateman, but ended
becoming a bank manager in that same bank.

Life is a choice, but average people accept the status quo, while great men
challenges the status quo. As a matter of fact, it is not God that determines the
measure of what you receive: it is your capacity that sets the limits. The most
relentless enemy of achievement, personal growth and success is inflexibility.”

Your days of earning very little is over. You can increase your earning horizon by
focusing on developing yourself.

CHAPTER TEN

RETIREMENT STAGE:

A wise man said; “Youth is a mistake, manhood struggle, and old age regrets.”
This is another way of saying that all the stages of life do overlap, and what you
did not do well at one stage affects the results you will get. For instance, when
you play when your mates are learning, you will pay when they’re earning. And
when you don’t plan when they are saving, you will start depending on pension
allowance or church welfare when they are still flourishing.

121
Statisticians tell us that only 5 percent of sixty-five-years-old can support
themselves without government or family assistance. This is really a depressing
statistic. Especially as you start to creep past forty or fifty.

More so, a research that has been carried out practically everywhere in the world
with the same results, irrespective of location, economic climate or political
climate is the retirement research. If you arbitrarily select one hundred young
people from age twenty and follow them up for the next forty years, till they
reach age sixty, you will find out that;

 1% of them will have attained financial independence and be extremely

rich and wealthy.
 4% of will be rich and wealthy
 5% of them will be working and struggling to make ends meet.
 36% of them would have died
 64% will be broke, poor, penniless, and dependent on relatives, their
children, government handouts or church welfare.

No one seems to have asked the important question. “Why?” What is it that
makes financial independence difficult to attain.

The simple answer is that most people have never been taught how to;

$. Earn, manage and multiply money

$. How to create and build wealth with little or no money at all.

$. How to develop investment mentality and use money effectively during their
life time.

We actually did went to school, but what we were never taught was how to be
successful. Therefore, we were all wrongly educated. Education was supposed to
empower one to acquire intelligence on how to be successful. But one cannot be
truly successful without money, and nobody teaches that in school.

The holy book wrote that: “The righteous shall flourish and still bring forth fruit
in old age.”

Righteousness means living right, and living right is beyond religious dictates. It
simply means living excellently.

The aim of every right thinking man is not to beg at old age, but to still be
relevant. Ironically, almost 90% of people become almost useless or broke at old
age. This is not the desire of God for any of his creature. Abraham at old was still
a containing of God’s covenant blessing.

122
To retire excellently, does not necessarily mean retiring at 80years of age, or
adjusting your age to still work till you transit to the world beyond. As a matter of
fact, to still be doing much at old age is a proof that you didn’t do much at your
early age. Whenever you see a man at his 60s who still work tediously under the
sun for his daily bread, know that he missed it at 20s. You will not suffer in your
old age.

So retirement, simply means to have enough money so that you can spend the rest
of your days enjoying yourself without having to work to survive. Hopefully, by
the time you reach retirement you will have enough money to support yourself
with. If not, you will have to turn to the government for help. With an average life
expectancy approaching 80 years, one of the best things that you can do
throughout your earning years is to continually develop yourself and save your
money so that you have enough left over for your retirement years.

Beware of the stages of life because failure to do so may result in you retiring
with little or no money to support yourself with, something which has already
happened to many elderly people who are now suffering as a result.

I want to help you. I had a neighbor who retired at grade level 16, yet three
months after he became very broke that he has to depend on little income the wife
was earning.

Some have grown very old with trembling anatomies, yet they want to work till
they go down to the grave. Others when their retirement is in view, they begin to
tremble and ask: How will I survive and what will I be doing?

These are the two major reasons why so many people do not want to retire. They
feel is over with them and so therefore, they want to die in service rather than
going home to rest after a long period of work.

I took a statistic of 100 retirees, and I found out that a greater percentage of them
becomes:

1. Idle
2. Sickly
3. Very poor as if they never worked
4. Jobless
5. Useless
6. Irrelevant

123
What I mean by joblessness does not necessarily the absence of work, because
there are people who are not working but they are not jobless. Work is not a Job
to fill, but it is what you do with your life.

Nevertheless, it now looks as if retiring from work, invariably means to retire

from life. Sometimes it is hard to tell if retirement is a reward for a lifetime of
hard work or a punishment.

Retirement is a time to do what you want to do, when you want to do it, where
you want to do it, and, how you want to do it’’

Retirement is like a long vacation in Las Vegas; the goal is to enjoy it to the
fullest but not so fully that you run out of money”

The question is not at what age I want to retire, it’s at what income. Age is only a
number, a cipher for the records.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

FINANCIAL EXCELLENCE

In order to retire rich in life there are basic principles you need never to ignore
during your earning stage. Failure to live with these principles is like planning to
fail.

124
The universe is simply governed by a law called the law of cause and effect -
which states that everything happens for a reason because there is a cause for
every effect.
For every effect there is a cause. This is an extremely simple principle to
understand, as it states that rich people are rich because they do things which
make them rich, and poor people are poor because they do things which make
them poor.

For example, a rich person may focus their efforts on accumulating assets, such
as precious metals like gold and silver which increase in value over time; whilst
poor people focus their efforts on accumulating liabilities, such as expensive
electronics goods or cars which decrease in value over time.

This is the law of cause and effect. For everything that you do there is either a
positive or negative outcome which comes as a direct result of the actions that
you take.

The law of cause and effect not only applies to your personal finances, but also to
every other aspect of your life. How successful you are; for example, largely
depends on the actions that you have taken in the past.

If you spend the majority of your time trying to become better at what you do,
then the law of cause and effect dictates that your skills or knowledge will
improve in proportion to the amount of hours that you have invested into
bettering yourself.

Your skills and knowledge will improve in direct proportion to the amount of
time you spend trying to better yourself. If, however, you spend the majority of
your time watching TV and playing computer games, then the law of cause and
effect dictates that the amount of failure you experience will be proportional to
the amount of time that you spent having fun rather than working hard on things
of long-term significance.

Once you start looking at things through the eyes of cause and effect, you will
find that you start to see things a lot more clearly as your vision will no longer be
clouded by delusions of chance, good luck or bad luck.

As a result, you will realize that you are where you are due to your actions in the
past, and that where you will be in the future, will be determined by the actions
that you take today.

Financial success is simply an effect that comes as a result of taking certain

actions. To become wealthy, you must therefore learn to identify the actions that
will bring more money into your life, and then keep on repeating those actions
until you achieve a level of wealth that satisfies you. Money doesn’t change a

125
person, it only amplifies what is in you. Second, money doesn’t have value, but it
only shows the value in you.

1. Time perspective
2. You must have a financial goal
3. Principles of budgeting
4. Principles of savings
5. Principles of investment
6. Principles of accumulative effect

II

Time Perspective

In 1970, sociologist Dr. Edward Banfield of Harvard University wrote a book

entitled The Unheavenly City. He described one of the most profound studies on
success and priority setting ever conducted.

Banfield’s goal was to find out how and why some people became financially
independent during the course of their working lifetimes. He started off
convinced that the answer to this question would be found in factors such as
family background, education, intelligence, influential contacts, or some other
concrete factor. What he finally discovered was that the major reason for success
in life was a particular attitude of mind.

Banfield called this attitude “long time perspective.” He said that men and
women who were the most successful in life and the most likely to move up
economically were those who took the future into consideration with every
decision they made in the present. He found that the longer the period of time a
person took into consideration while planning and acting, the more likely it was
that he would achieve greatly during his career.

The essential key to success in setting priorities is having a long time perspective.
You can tell how important something is today by measuring its potential future
impact on your life.

Very many people think the future will happen by chance. No, your future is
already building up today by your actions and inactions.

Therefore, the people who will become successful in life are those who keep the
future in view. They look at things from a long term rather than a short term
perspective. You can see evidence of this law all around you, as the people at the

126
bottom end of society tend to be focused only on short term immediate
gratification.

As a result, they spend the majority of their time and money relaxing, having fun
and thinking only about how they are feeling in the present moment.

Those at the lower end of society tend to focus only on short-term immediate
gratification. This often comes at the expense of long-term failure in life. A wise
man said; “When you pay today you play tomorrow, but when you play today,
you pay tomorrow.

The people at the top end of society, however, such as, managers, business
executives, CEOs, politicians and presidents, think about things very differently
to those at the bottom end.

They consider how their actions will affect the type of results they get in the
future, and so they make sure that their day to day activities will give them the
most return on their time investment.

In other words, rather than focusing on the satisfaction of their short term needs
and desires, successful people tend to think long term and are able to resist the
temptation to give in to immediate gratification.

The Importance of Thinking Ahead

Truth #1. “When a person begins to think about things using a long term time
perspective, they generally do so because they have decided upon what they want
to achieve and are willing to do whatever it takes to get it.”

They think about the consequences of their financial choices, and then decide
whether or not following a particular course of action will help them to reach
their goal.

As a result, most people who become financially successful in life have done so
by being very careful with their money and only spending it when absolutely
necessary.

“Success comes from thinking about the consequences of your actions, and then
choosing the path that will lead you to your desired outcome.”

If we contrast this to the lower end members of society, it becomes very clear
why so many people struggle financially and get themselves into debt.

127
These types of people tend only to think about the present moment, and so they
engage in financial behaviors that are virtually guaranteed to ensure they spend
the rest of their life poor and in debt.

For example, rather than saving their money or investing it so that they can have
financial security later in life, they spend all the money they earn on products
they see advertised on TV and in magazines.

As a result of these wild spending sprees, it’s not uncommon to see such people
living paycheck to paycheck and running up massive debts.

All this because they could not discipline themselves to think about things from a
long term perspective. Failure to think about the future can result in
undesirable consequences.

When it comes time to retire, these heavy spenders must then rely on a
government pension just in order to survive as they have little or no savings of
their own to support themselves with. If there was no government pension, a lot
of these people would be forced to live in the streets homeless.

In summary, thinking about things with a long term time perspective is not
always easy, as it’s very tempting to live for today and have fun now.
Unfortunately, however, as you have already seen, this comes at a very grave
price.

In order to make yourself think about things from a long term perspective, you
need to develop the ability to make yourself do what you know you should do
whether you feel like it or not.

This is called self-discipline, and the degree to which you are able to discipline
yourself throughout your life will largely determine the amount of financial
success that you achieve.

III

Personal Financial Goal

128
People who become successful and wealthy in life have learned how to use
money to their advantage. They do this by following certain principles that have
been passed down throughout the ages. As a result, they are able to accumulate
wealth and enjoy the financial freedom that those reserves provide them with.

Unsuccessful people, however, or those who tend to remain poor despite having
many opportunities to change their life, do not follow the same laws that wealthy
people do.

In fact, in the majority of cases, the exact opposite laws are followed producing
the exact opposite results that rich people experience. So instead of building
wealth, such individuals tend to decrease their wealth and become slaves to debts
that they can never afford to repay.

What all these means is that, when it comes to money, you really have only two
options: Either you follow the right principles and make money, or you follow the
wrong principles and lose money. There is no middle ground.

And one of the actions that will guarantee you success is setting a clear financial
goal. Imagine spending time and energy to train for a football competition, on
getting to the pitch, you discover that there are no goal posts. More so, working
without a financial goal is like playing a football without a goal post. It will
surely end in effort in futility.

The reason why you are working is not just to pay bills, but to achieve, your
financial goals. Have you ever asked yourself - “why are my working? Is it to just
pay my rents, clothes and probably to have a three square meal a day? Are you
sure that is what you are working for?

Anyway, if that is your sole reasons for working, your life would have been a
wasted life, just as many people spent their whole life working and living for their
stomach.

What does it mean to have a Financial Goal?

Financial goals are different from financial dreams. While they may sound like
the same thing: they’re not.

A financial dream is something you hope for: a financial goal is something

you’ve planned for. And it’s the planning – not the hoping that turns financial
desires into reality. Dreams start with “I wish” and goals start with “I will”.

129
For instance, Mr. A may say; “I want to get out of debt in five years – that is
dream. But Mr. B says “I will be out of debt in five years – that is goal. Goals are
specific measurable steps to achieve our desires.

Having a financial goal helps you to make money to keep working for you even
when you stopped working for it.”

Just as our dream house could end up poorly designed due to a lack of planning,
many people hoped for. That’s usually what results from a lifetime of making
financial decisions independent of a major blueprint.

The good news is, this doesn’t have to happen to you, make this the year you set
aside time to create a personalized financial plan that’s designed to build the kind
of future financial home you’ll enjoy living in.

In a moment, we’ll examine two basics common to every financial plan. The first
is the necessity of developing a clearly defined set of God-given goals, clearly
defined goals establish your priorities.

A financial goal states:

 What you plan to accomplish

 What resources you’ll need to make it happen
 How much time you’ll need to make it happen.
 How you plan to make your goal into your overall budget and life
 Decide what you will give in exchange for the money- value must be given

Regardless of what life stage you are in, you are likely to have some short and
long term personal financial goals. Setting tangible and realistic goals, following
them, and tracking your progress is the key to success in achieving all of your
financial goals.

Therefore, to stay ahead of the cost of living, you have to be alert for
opportunities to make your money grow. These things don’t come to you by
accident. You have to go after them, and that means setting some goals.

The most important step toward financial security is to translate it into your own
terms. What, exactly are your personal financial goals? If you have trouble
sorting them out, try classifying them as either wants or needs. Go a step further
and add long term or short term to the description. Now you have some useful
labels you can apply to your priorities.

Nevertheless, using the financial goals worksheet, list your goals by how long
you think it will take to achieve them. Place goals that can be accomplished in

130
under six months under short – term goals: goals that can be accomplished in six
months to a year under medium- term goals”. And goals that will take more than
a year to accomplish under long – term goals!

Say you are going to have a car soon. Gathering the money for the down payment
without borrowing or dipping into savings would be a short term need.

More examples of a

Short Term Financial Goal Are;

 Saving for your rent

 Acquiring new set of electronics
 Saving for your children’s school fees.
 Changing your wardrobe

Long Term Goals

 I want to own a million dollars’ worth of stocks by the time I am 50.

 I want to retire with enough money to pay all my bills
 I want to save enough money to set up a business empire after my
retirement.

Now you have set your goals, you can put a future price on, and that price can be
translated into a savings or an investment plan that you can start today. Put your
goals in writing: that makes for a great motivational tools.

STEPS TO ACHIEVING YOUR GOALS

1. Narrow your objective:

You probably won’t be able to achieve every financial goal you’ve ever
dreamed of. So identify your goals clearly and why they matter most to
you, and decide which are most important by concentrating your efforts,
you have better chance of achieving what matters most.

2. Prioritize your goals:

This should be done in the order of importance, and then determine how
long you have to save for each of them. It also means, you need to focus

131
 first on the goals that matter. At times you would need to choose between
your child’s school fees and fixing your cars.

3. Estimate the cost:

How much money will it take to reach each goal? Create an estimate, and
write the resulting figure under ’’estimated cost” category

4. Set a target date:

When do you hope or need to meet your goals? Set a target date for each
goal on your list, and use this as your deadline to meet or beat.

5. Estimate How much Interest or Capital gains:

You will expect to see in the account at where you are saving your money.
While capital gains are never guaranteed you can use on estimated average
for this purpose.

6. Determine how much you’ll need to save:-

This is certain by diving the estimated cost of your first goal by the
numbers of weeks or months until your target date. This will show you
how much money you need to save each week or monthly to meet your
goal. Enter the resulting figure in the” amount to save weekly or monthly
column, and repeat for all of the other goals that you have listed.

7. Budget for your goals.

This involve reworking your personal budget to incorporate the money that
you need, to meet your goals. Then, put your plan into action those
financial goals turn into financial reality.

Analysis

Let’s assume our goal is to create an emergency fund within 18 months. That is
now our financial goal. Second, you’ve to determine the amount you want to put
in the emergency fund, say #400,000 naira. So we have a specific goal, how
much it’s going to cost and the time frame.

Next, we have to determine how much we have to save per month in order to
achieve this goal within that time frame. Some basic mathematics tells us that in
order to save #400,000 in 18 months we’d need to put aside #22,222 each month.
132
Be realistic about how much time and money it will take to accomplish each
goal- an estimate that is too low will only frustrate you.

Now that we have a specific and realistic number to work with it’s time to outline
how we can accomplish that. This is where you get to go into detail and outline
how you’re going to come up with the monthly commitment. For example,
maybe you will cut back on few meals out each month, cut down on your variable
expenses and open up a high-yield savings account.

Don’t be discouraged. If the amount is overwhelming. The important thing is to

have a set of tangible financial goals to work toward. On a monthly or quarterly
basis. If you are not meeting your goals, revisit your financial budget to see if
there are only areas where you can cut expenses in order to free up money for
savings. In addition, use this plan to allocate any windfall amounts you may
receive from bonuses, tax-refunds or interest.

Keep your motivation by revisiting your list frequently to check on your progress.
Setback will happen if something throws you off, of your target date, don’t give
up- set a new date. Have more goals than you can work on at once? Then
determine which ones are most important to you, and make them your first
priority

IV

Budgeting

One of the greatest pathway to financial excellence that very many people has
neglected is called budgeting. Nations do it, organizations and state also do the
same. Likewise successful individuals.

A personal budget is a financial plan for your future income and expenditures that
you can use as a guide for spending and saving. Without a personal budget, you
are bound to spend more than you can afford.

There is a common saying that says “one should leave within his means”, that is
actually not too correct, the right thing is to spend within your means, and the key
to spending within your means is to know your expenses and to spend less than
you make. A good monthly budget can help ensure you pay your bills on time,
have funds to cover unexpected emergencies, and reach your financial goals.

133
The whole idea is to learn how to make our income to be greater than our
expenditure. When your expenses is greater than your income, you will be
running deficit, and on the pathway to debt.

ANALYSIS

Income ˃ Expenditure = Surplus (Safe)

Income ˂ Expenditure = Deficit (Unsafe)

The surplus shows a good sign of financial discipline and if carefully managed, it
can be set aside as savings.

It’s not spending that makes people rich, it is how much you are able to keep.
Having a budget helps to drive one’s flow of finance. And always endeavor to
live within your budget, except some life-taking events that may lead to extra
budgetary expenditure. Like trying to save a dying relation, which normally
occurs in a rare occasions.

Your personal budget should accommodate the following expenses…

1. Your kingdom Investment: “Honor the lord with your substance…” It’s a
spiritual ordinance that guarantees financial excellence. These includes
your tithe, offering, (welfare offering, prophet offering, worship offering)
and finance outreach programs. When you do this you are recognizing God
as your source, and you are partnering with Him in advancing his kingdom
on earth. That is a good thing to do. Even occult people do it.

2. Your Savings: This has to do with reserving a portion of your income for
future needs. It’s not a wise thing to always spend everything you make. It
means you are just working to pay others, and nothing is left for you at the
end of every month. To successfully do this, you have to remove at least
10% of your income into a savings account, before you ever begin
spending.

3. House Keeping. This has to do with taking care of your spouse, children
and family.

4. Utilities: this is a portion of your income that you spend on rents, transport,
electricity bill, energy, GSM, and many more.

5. Debt Payment. Schedule to clear your debt because “ proverb 22:7

To prepare a good budget you will need to follow this step by step principles:

Step one: Add up your Income

134
To set a monthly budget, you first need to determine how much income you have.
Make sure you include all your sources of income such as salaries, interest,
pension and any other income – including a spouse income if you are married.
Then carefully write it down.

Step two: Estimate Expenses

The best way to do this is to keep track of how much you spend for one month.
This can be easily done by dividing your expenses into fixed and flexible
expenses.

Fixed expenses are those that generally do not change from month to month, such
as rent and insurance payments.

Flexible expenses are those that do change from month to month, such as food,
clothing, call cards, entertainments, groceries, and many more. After ascertaining
your expenses, you can now proceed to the next level.

Step Three: Figure out the difference between your monthly income and expenses

Once you’ve totaled up your monthly income and your monthly expenses,
subtract the expense total from the income total to get the difference. A positive
number indicates that you’re spending less than you earn—congratulations. A
negative number indicates that your expenses are greater than your income. This
means you will need to trim your expenses in order to begin spending within your
income.

Saving

If you wish to become financially successful in life, then you absolutely must
develop the habit of saving your money on a regular basis.

The more money that you are able to save today, the more financially secure your
future will be. As a result, the less you will have to worry about having enough
money to survive on, or having enough money to buy the things that you want
and need in life.

To become rich you must be able to save a portion of your income each and every
month.

135
This is the law of saving, and in essence, it states that you should aim to save
more of your money than you spend.

Saving money gives you a safety net to protect against unexpected disruptions to
your primary source of income. The goal of saving your money is to protect
yourself against sudden or unexpected losses of income.

You should therefore resolve to have at least six months’ worth of income saved
in an emergency fund, which you only draw upon when your regular source of
income has been cut off. Having an emergency fund will allow you to maintain
your current standard of living, whilst at the same time allowing you to find
another source of income.

Knowing that you have money saved in reserve will also give you tremendous
peace of mind, especially if you have a family to look after.

So if you don’t have an emergency fund, make it a top priority to create a

separate high yielding savings account and start putting some money away each
month to ensure that your future remains a financially secure one.

Pay Yourself First

One of the easiest ways to begin saving your money is to pay yourself first. This
simply involves taking a portion of your income each month and putting it into a
savings account before you do anything else with your money.

One common mistake that people make when it comes to saving their money, is
to try and save what they have left over from their paycheck at the end of the
month. But more often than not, there is no money left and so they end up not
saving anything at all.

By paying yourself first, you will find that your spending habits will quickly
adjust to accommodate the amount of money you have left over.

So if you follow this simple principle, you will always be able to save money, pay
your bills and buy yourself things.

Pay yourself first by automatically deducting a portion of your income each

month into a savings account.

How much money should you save each month? A good figure to aim for is
around 10% of your income, and if possible, 20%. But if you can’t save that
much, then save at least 1% of your income each month and gradually increase
the amount as you can.

136
The important thing is to get into the habit of saving your money on a regular
basis, because once you are able to do this, you will find it a lot easier to save
your money and to save more of it over the course of your working life.

30/70 Principle

This principle postulates that you divide your income into 30% and 70% fraction.

Analysis

First 30%...

The first 10% goes to Tithing or Charity for those who don’t believe in tithe. I
don’t intend to argue with you. Tithe is a spiritual pathway that guarantees
financial excellence. It makes God involve in your finance. And imagine God
partnering with you, success is sure guaranteed. Funny enough everybody pays
tithe, the difference is the condition which you are paying your own and who
you’re paying to. Some pay to devil through sickness, repairs of vehicles,
accidents, hospital bills, police case and all kinds of unnecessary expenditure.
Your financial destiny is in your hand to decide.

The second 10% goes to your savings. That is a portion of the money you pay
yourself every month. It’s fixed and non-negotiable if your dream is to retire rich.

The third 10% is re-invested into developing yourself in your job or field of
endeavor. This means buying books, attending seminars and workshops. This is
the way to be a better person. If you do this for 10years you would attained
excellence in all aspects of life.

The remaining 70% is what you use in running your expenses, paying your bills,
feeding, and doing all you need to do. If you think this 70% left is not enough,
think of those who are earning 30% less than what you are earning and live
within that level of their expenses. When you do this, you will have enough to
enjoy in the future.

Breaking Parkinson’s Law

In order to become financially independent you must make a conscious effort to

break Parkinson’s Law. This law states that, the more money you earn, the more
your expenses. And very many people are trapped by this law, today they are
crying for increase of wages, and the moment they get that, they soon discover
that they are not better off, simply because it’s not the amount you earn that
makes you rich, but the one you can keep. Ecclesiastes 5:11, “When goods
increase, they are increased that eat them…”

137
As long as you obey Parkinson’s Law, you will never become financially
successful in life.

One of the best ways to break Parkinson’s Law is to increase your expenses at a
slower rate than your income increases, and then to save or invest the difference.

If you are able to separate your income and expenses in this way, you will be able
to increase your standard of living whilst ensuring that your future remains a
financially secure one.

So from this point forward be aware of Parkinson’s Law and make an effort to
save a portion of any salary increase you receive, rather than falling into the habit
of spending more just because you are making more.

When people earn more money they tend to spend more money, which
subsequently keeps them in roughly the same financial situation throughout their
life.

In order to become rich, you must therefore develop the ability to accumulate
wealth by ensuring that your expenses increase at a slower rate than your income
increases. To get rich you need to build wealth, and the only way that you can do
this is by saving more money than you spend. If you spend more than you save
you will go broke and you won’t become rich.

VII

Investing

The man who does not know where his next dollar is coming from, does not
know where he spent his last dollars. The law of investing states that you should
spend as much time studying a particular investment option as you does earning
the money that you will put into that investment.

The amount of time you spend researching an investment should be proportional

to the amount of money you will put into it.

Any investment option you look into should therefore be done with extreme care,
and never rushed into.

138
At a minimum, you should have full and complete disclosure of every detail, and
if you have any doubts at all, you would probably be better off choosing a safer
option such as keeping your money in a bank.

Don’t Lose Money

One of the simplest principles that will virtually ensure your long term financial
security is to never lose money.

The money that you currently have is a result of all the hours, weeks and years of
your life that you have put into earning that amount.

Your money is therefore a part of your life and should be held onto tightly,
because once it’s gone, it’s gone for good.

When it comes to investments, you should therefore avoid any investment where
there is a possibility that you will lose your money unless you can afford to
survive that loss.

If all you ever do is hold onto your money, rather than losing it, you can rest
assured that your future will be a financially secure one.

Some people, however, have an attitude that they can afford to lose a little bit of
money, because after all, it’s only a small amount and they have plenty more.

There is an old saying which reflects the wisdom of this mentality that you would
do well to remember. “A fool and his money are soon parted.”

And also another.

“When a man with experience meets a man with money, the man with the money
is going to end up with the experience and the man with the experience is going
to end up with the money.”

Always resolve to hold on tightly to the money that you have, no matter how
small or large the amount. Once you develop a mentality of losing money,
eventually, that is all you will do.

Only Invest with recognized Experts

Any investment you undertake should be undertaken with careful research and
with a recognized investment expert who has a proven track record of success.

Never invest with people or firms you know nothing about, and always invest in
something you have an interest in or have a good understanding of. This is

139
exactly what Warren Buffett does, and he is one of the most successful investors
in the world.

Be careful who you invest your money with and only invest in things that you are
knowledgeable about.

When taking specific investment advice, do so only from people who are already
financially successful and not those who are trying to become successful through
you.

Note: Robert Kiyosaki, author of “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” does not believe in the
traditional investment advice of diversifying your portfolio. He argues that doing
so results in a zero sum gain because your gains will be offset by your losses.

Instead, he agrees with the Warren Buffett way. Know what you are investing in
extremely well, and only invest in those things.

Investing your money holds the potential of bringing you great returns on your
original investment, and is therefore something that you will have to do at some
point in your life if you wish to build your level of wealth.

However, rushing into investments and making poor investment decisions can be
an easy and quick way to lose your money and leave you broke.

When the dot com bubble burst, for example, many investors lost lots of money
because they rushed into something they did not fully understand thinking that it
was a quick and easy way to get rich.

140
 PART FOUR

PERSONAL STRATEGIC PLAN

AND

EFFECTIVE TIME MANAGEMENT

“One thing is to know where you are going; another is to get there. Planning
gives value to time and resources, and ultimately to one’s pursuit. It is the non-
transferable responsibility of everyone who desire true success.”

141
 CHAPTER TWELVE

Personal Strategic Plan – Develop it

Success is 20% skills and 80% strategy. You might know how to read, but more
importantly, what is your plan to read. I understood the necessity of personal
strategy plan far back when I was in primary three. Then, I had a friend called
Frank; we were both in the same class. But something happened that led to a
revolution in my personal and academic life. We were about thirty pupils in my
class, and in our promotion exam I happened to come about the 27 th position,
while my very best friend took the first position in the class.

You could imagine how I felt seeing my best friend celebrating his success, while
I buried my face in shame. To aggravate my situation, our mistress told the class
to woe those people who came about the last three positions. Oh! Hell was let
loose and all the ugly demons came mocking the hell out of me. Our aunty looked
at me in particular and said; “Uche, You be Olodo” – meaning you are a dull
headed boy. That statement got me more destabilized, that I said to myself, if my
aunty could disgust me so much, how much more, my mummy, whom I
perceived to be a very harsh person.

Nevertheless, my situation was further compounded by my unsympathetic friends

who were ready at every point to make jest of me. As far as I can remember, I sat
back in school that day crying until my parents came to fetch me. The moment I
set my eyes on my mummy approaching, I wished the earth could open, so that I
can disappear. I knew my mum will be sore mad at me, when she sees the result,
and she would possibly ask me to repeat primary three.

Exactly, as I had perceived, when my mum saw my result, she saluted my failure
with a dirty slap on my face, and decreed that; “No more play for you from today,
and you will have to repeat primary three.” Oh! I shouted. So my friends will
leave me behind, coupled with the fact that, I would not have to play football
again. It was just unthinkable for me.

As I look back, I think repeating primary three and stopping me from playing all
the time was one of the best gift my parents has bequeathed to me. I am almost
certain that I will not be who I am today, If that singular decision was not taken.

142
My parents actually helped me with a structured personal plan. They prepared a
reading time table for me. They engaged me in constructive play and gave me a
sense of value for life. My father said to me categorically, that; “Son if you pay
today, you will play tomorrow.”

You have got a glorious destiny. Thank God for those gifts or talents. Thank God
for those dreams. Thank God for your hard work. But you need more of that to
achieve excellence. Hard work does not reduce hardship; It is the “know how”
that makes hard work productive.

Notwithstanding, the world has become a complicated place in which to live. A

personal strategic plan can help you get clarity and focus on your own preferred
future. Corporations do it. Entrepreneurs do it. Successful students develop a
strategic plan to help them get clarity and focus. We saw the importance of
having dreams, but dreams don’t fulfill themselves. You will need a structured
plan to get clarity and focus on actualizing your dreams.

The past few decades have witnessed enormous, accelerating changes in

technology and social structure, geopolitics. Every day we are faced with multi-
problems to solve. We have our hopes, our dreams, our aspirations; the things we
want to do and the places we want to go. This is why it is important to make wise
decisions about how we invest our time and energy.

Why do you feel that there’s more to do than you can possibly do? Because there
is more to do than you can possibly do. You must make choices. Often difficult
choices! It is imperative that we are doing the right things, every bit as much as
doing things right. You’ve heard of the 80/20 rule --- 20 percent of all activities
will produce 80 percent of the meaningful results. What is your 20 percent? What
is the handful of activities that will produce the results that you want; that will
make a difference; that will take you in the direction you wish to go?

This is what strategic plan is all about! The purpose of this strategy is to identify
those aspects of your life that requires special attention. After all, you can’t do
everything, so to get focused on those things where it is critical to produce
results, you will need a plan.

Success is not an accident. It begins with a well-conceived plan. You can and will
achieve more in the next one year than you have in the past ten years with a
disciplined personal strategic plan. I have learnt by experience that you can
actually get healthier, wealthier and happier by following this simple step-by-step
process of having a well-structured plan.

Captain Edward V. Rickenbacker wrote; “I can give you a six-word formula for
success: think things through – then follow through.”

143
Why Do I Need a Personal Strategic Plan?

Having a personal strategic plan is a valuable tool in the journey of life. It will
make you do more and ultimately have more from life.

One thing is to know where you are going; another is to get there. Planning gives
value to time and resources, and ultimately to one’s pursuit. It is the non-
transferable responsibility of everyone who desire true success. Benjamin
Franklin said; “When you fail to plan, you plan to fail”

Personal strategic plan does the following:

 Provide direction, meaning and purpose for your life.

 It will help you make decisions that positively affect your future.
 Focus your energies on what’s most important.
 Achieve the greatest results in the shortest period of time.
 It will significantly increase your level of performance.
 Eliminate uncertainly, anxiety, doubt and fear.

“Planning is nothing but the application of logical, rational, analytical thinking to

your objective.” It determines how resources are channeled, and it does a lot good
in saving energy. While, Personal strategic planning (PSP) is a disciplined
thought process, which produces fundamental decisions and actions that shape
and guide who you are, where you are going, what you do, and how, when and
why you do it. All of this is done with a focus on the future.

Proper planning prevents poor performance, and enhances excellent performance.

There is an ideal life we all deserve! A life of financial independence, excellent
health, excellent performance in life and all we need is a solid game plan.

It is not the sophistication of the general’s weapon that wins the war but the
strategic plans that does. Success does not depend on hard work alone. It is
devising a road map on how to get there that does.

Do you have a model for your future? Do you have a real vision of the future, for
you and your family over the next ten to fifteen years, complete with written
strategies to achieve that vision of the future and strategic plans that you do not
only follow, but monitor and update on a regular basis? Walt Disney had a
50years plan written down. What is your plan for the future? The future will not
happen by chance, you would have to prepare for it.

Personal strategic plan helps us to answer this questions each day – why am I
doing this, is it taking me where I want to go with my life.

144
How Do I Develop My Personal Strategic plan?

Developing a vision of your future and a personal strategic plan is not a

complicated process, but it does take some thought and time. The process starts
with personal research that includes an understanding of your life stages, the -
forces that drive your life and plausible events for your current life stage.

It is important you know how to develop your personal strategic plan because it
sets out before you, what’s truly important to you and what direction you really
want to go in life. It will help you order your time, make career choices, and
create more balance in your life.

1. Your Personal Vision - Developing personal strategic plans begins with

your personal visions -“What will I be?” This is determined by what your
personal values are. A statement of what you want your future to be. The vision is
where you would like to be in as few as three months or as many as 15years or
more. Vision must be written down. The very act of writing your vision down
helps to clarify your thinking. Instead of floating around in your head, writing the
personal strategic plan helps you to articulate it better and helps you to be more
coherent.

When asked, some people say their vision is to be healthy, wealthy and
successful. That’s a good start, but you should recognize that those terms might
have different meanings at different times in your life. “Healthy” to a young
person may mean healthy enough to compete in competitive sports, while
someone in their seventies may consider health to mean the absence of illness or
the ability to walk moderate distance considerably. Views of wealth and success
may also vary between individuals and at different stages of life.

To develop your vision of the future, start with this small worksheet, and ask
yourself “What” do I want for my future? What would your future look like if
there were no financial constraints? No time constraints? Write it down.

To successfully do this, ask yourself about your values. What or who is really
important in your life? Is it Family, Career, Wealth Ethics, Knowledge, or to have
a first class in school? What do you want to achieve during this life stage? Write
it down.

145
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This written vision should give you direction, declare where you are going, what
you want to achieve and by implication, what you want to avoid. Examples of
personal vision statements are:

 “I want to improve the lives of sick people while at the same time being the
best husband and Father I can be.”

 “I want to work just enough to be able to support my family and spend as

much time with them as Possible.”

 “I want to behave in a way that elevates others and inspires them to lead
more decent life.

However, a vision is just a dream unless you have all the pieces in place to reach
your goals. Base your vision on its ‘obtainability’ if given enough time and
resources. Having a personal vision is what guides you and give you a sense of
direction.

Whatever it is, it will give you a life to live.

2. Your Personal Mission - John Foster wrote; “It is a poor disgraceful thing
not to be able to reply, with some degree of certainty to the simple questions.
What will you be? What will you do? You are not truly free until you have been
made captive by your mission in life.”

Do you feel that you have a mission in life? This is something different than
vision. This is something that you must accomplish.

It could be to write a book that will bring about social change, to educate the
younger generation by organizing seminars, achieve a certain social status or any
other mission that is a motivating force in your vision of your future.

It’s also an action statement. That states what you wish to do with the available
resources to fulfill your vision. Examples of a mission statement are:

 “I will use my skills and training as a biomedical Engineer to create

devices which will cure diseases;”

 “I will use my career to make the law more humane”

146
  “I will use my writing skills to write books that will add values to people’s
life.

 “I will organize seminars that will impact destinies.”

It should be well understood and written down because a mission statement

determines your areas of energy investment.

3. Your Personal Strategy - This has to do with the “HOW” - How will you
achieve that component of your vision of the future? What strategy will you use
to advance your career? Is it working harder in your present position? Changing
your friends? Changing environment? Or getting more education? It all depends
on what you want to achieve.

Personal strategy has to do with your approach in life. To live healthier, you may
choose to quit smoking, to follow a nutritious diet, to exercise regularly. Also, in
trying to achieve excellent result, you may adopt the strategy of spending more
time on reading and studying your books; separating from friends to avoid
distraction. To attain spiritual growth your strategy may be to read at least the
bible everyday with prayer and fasting.

All you need is to design a strategy and be flexible enough to change it when the
circumstances changes.

4. Events in Your Future Life - In adopting your strategies you must also
consider events with high probability and high impact in your future life. And
develop strategies that have some flexibility; you should be prepared to modify or
change a strategy if it becomes appropriate, so that you will not be locked into a
strategy that is failing.

5. Your Personal Action Plan - When you have decided on your strategies to
achieve your vision and to deal with life events, you can start laying out an action
plan. Action plan asks “When”? List actions you want to take each day, with your
vision, mission, strategy and life events. “You’ve got to be very careful if you
don’t know where you are going because you might not get there.” Yogi Berra

“Action planning is a process which will help you to focus your ideals and to
decide what steps you need to take to achieve particular goals that you may
have.”

It is a statement of what you want to achieve over a given period of time.

Preparing an action plan is a good way to help you to reach your objectives in
life; don’t worry about the future, start planning for it!

147
It involves identifying your objectives; setting objectives which are achievable
and measurable, prioritizing your tasks effectively and identifying the steps
needed to achieve your goals.

An effective action plan should give you a concrete timetable and set of clearly
defined steps to help you to reach your objective, rather than aimlessly wondering
what to do next. It helps you to focus your ideas and provides you with answers
to the question. “What do I do, to achieve my objective?” It is ok to have several
objectives, but you will need to make a separate plan for each, otherwise, things
will get confused.

Action Planning Model

There are many different models of action planning, but a good starting point is
shown here. The process is more organic and stages will overlap, or you may
change your goals as you progress, and you must be prepared to revise your plan
as circumstances dictate. The stages are as follows:

Where Am I Now? – This is where you review your achievements and progress,
and undertake self-assessment.

Where Do I Want To Be? – This is where you decide your goals.

How Do I Get There? – They are all the possible things you could do to take you
closer to achieving your goals, no matter how small. Break down any large steps
into smaller components, so it doesn’t seem so difficult to achieve.

What is the biggest obstacle? What could go wrong? Identify the end point for
each step and give yourself small reward for achieving it. Arrange the steps in a
chronological order and put a date by which you will start each step. Develop the
habit of planning a timetable each evening, listing your tasks for the day or two.
Develop a Contingency Plan – These are strategies for dealing with unexpected
events, or “wild cards”.

6. Live Your Personal Plan - The final step in strategic planning may be the
most important… Live your plan! One of the frustrations that individuals face is
that often they will go through the entire planning process, and then never
execute the plan. Hopefully, by the time you complete your plan, you will
recognize that you not only have an investment in your plan, but you have the
opportunity to improve the future for your family and yourself.

As you live the plan, be sure to monitor how your life is unfolding. By
monitoring all aspects of your life and maintaining awareness of the world as it
changes around you, you should be able to adjust your plan, modify your

148
strategies where necessary and take your life in the direction that will be most
favorable to you and your family.

7. Scan for threats - Finally, there are more a thousand stuffs that can hinder
you from not achieving your plans or goals. They are called threats. They could
be internal or external, but they need to be constantly monitored for and
addressed. If ignored, your goals are just a wish and a hope that may never be
realized.

These can come in form of engaging in unwanted activities like cultism, hanging
out with friends, going to party, unwanted friends. They are all detrimental to the
future you so desired, so deal with them

Finally think of everything you’re doing in life and see what fits and what
doesn’t. The hardest thing to do in consequence of this is to jettison those things
that hold you back. Therefore, do not ignore any threat to your goals.

Benjamin Franklin – “By failing to plan, you are preparing to fail.” You have got
to have a plan. It’s a strategy that says that you are going to go somewhere, do
something, be somewhere by a certain time. It gives your life structure and shape,
gravitas and power. Work out what it is you want to do, plan it, work out the
steps to take to achieve your goal, and get on with it. Having a plan gives you
clear details of how to achieve your life vision.

149
 CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Good Time Management

There is perhaps, no area of your life in which self-discipline is more important

than in the way you manage your time. Time management is a core discipline that
largely determines the quality of one’s life.

To accomplish anything of worth requires dedication to your ideals, and daily

discipline in time management strategies.

Denis Waitley once said; “Time is an equal opportunity employer. Each human
being has exactly the same number of hours and minutes every day. Rich people
can’t buy more hours, scientists can’t invent new minutes. And you can’t save
time to spend it on another day. Even so, time is amazingly fair and forgiving. No
matter how much time you’ve wasted in the past, you still have an entire
tomorrow.”

A wise man said; “A man who dares to waste one minute of his time has not
discovered the purpose of life”. Your quality of life is determined by the value
you add to time and time is the currency of life. We use time to purchase life as
we use money to purchase goods. When you abuse time, you are invariably
abusing life, because life is essentially human consciousness residing in a
physical body that exists in a linear but finite continuum of time and space.

Michael Leboeuf wrote; “Waste your money and you’re only out of money, but
waste your time and you’ve lost a part of your life.” Until you value yourself, you
won’t value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with
it.

In all our deeds, the proper value and respect for time determines success or
failure. The unfortunate thing is that very many individuals are not actually living
in this consciousness, that time is perishable; it cannot be saved. Time is
irreplaceable; nothing else will do. Time is irretrievable; once it is gone or

150
wasted, you can never get it back. Time is indispensable, especially for
accomplishments. And all success requires time.

Everything requires time. It is the only truly universal condition. All works takes
place in time and use up time. Yet most people take for granted; this unique,
irreplaceable and necessary resources. Nothing else, perhaps, distinguishes
excellent people as much as their tender loving care of time. Nelson Mandela
wrote; “We must use time wisely and forever realize that the time is always ripe
to do right.”

Benjamin Franklin said; “Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for
that’s the stuff life is made of.”
Quit literally, time is money and time must be considered the most precious thing
that we own. More so, the wonderful thing about time is that we have total and
complete control over how it’s used. We can decide to apply our precious time in
being productive or watch it evaporate like dew from a morning flower. To
master over your entire life. It’s your choice. You can resolve to be the master of
your time.

Perhaps the greatest single problem that people have today is “time poverty.”
Time is free, but it is priceless. You can’t hold it, but you can use it. You can’t
keep it, but you can spend it. Once you have lost it, you can never get it back.”

Michael Altshuler wrote; “The bad news is that time flies, but the good news is
that you are the pilot.” Ordinary people think merely how they will spend their
time; a man of excellence tries to invest his time by using it effectively.

You cannot save time; you can only spend it differently either by using it, wasting
or abusing it, or investing it. It all depends on the activities you allocate your time
usage; from areas of low value to areas of high value.

Working people have too much to do and too little time for their personal lives.
Most people feel overwhelmed with responsibilities and activities, and the harder
they work, the further behind they feel. This sense of being on a never-ending
treadmill can cause you to fall into the reactive/responsive mode of living. Instead
of clearly deciding what you want to do, you continually react to what is
happening around you. Pretty soon you lose all sense of control. You feel that
your life is running you, rather than you running your life.

You must master your time rather than becoming a slave to the constant flow of
events and demands on your time. And you must organize your life to achieve
balance, harmony, and inner peace.

On a regular basis, you have to stand back and take stock of yourself and what
you’re doing. You have to stop the clock and do some serious thinking about who
151
you are and where you are going. You have to evaluate your activities in the light
of what is really important to you. Taking action without thinking is the cause of
every failure. Your ability to think is the most valuable trait that you possess. If
you improve the quality of your thinking, you improve the quality of your life,
sometimes immediately.

Time is your most precious resource. It is the most valuable thing you have. It is
perishable, it is irreplaceable, and it cannot be saved. It can only be reallocated
from activities of lower value to activities of higher value. All work requires time.

And time is absolutely essential for the important relationships in your life. The
very act of taking a moment to think about your time before you spend it will
begin to improve your personal time management immediately.

I used to think that time management was only a business tool, like a calculator or
a cellular telephone. It was something that you used so that you could get more
done in a shorter period of time and eventually be paid more money. Then I
learned that time management is not a peripheral activity or skill. It is the core
skill upon which everything else in life depends.

In your work or business life, there are so many demands on your time from other
people that very little of your time is yours to use as you choose. However, at
home and in your personal life you can exert a tremendous amount of control
over how you use your time. And it is in this area that I want to focus.

Personal time management begins with you. It begins with your thinking through
what is really important to you in life. And it only makes sense if you organize it
around specific things that you want to accomplish. You need to set goals in three
major areas of your life. First, you need family and personal goals. These are the
reasons why you get up in the morning, why you work hard and upgrade your
skills, why you worry about money and sometimes feel frustrated by the demands
on your time.

What are your personal and family goals, both tangible and intangible? A tangible
family goal could be a bigger house, a better car, a larger television set, a
vacation, or anything else that costs money. An intangible goal would be to build
a higher quality relationship with your spouse and children, to spend more time
with your family going for walks or reading books. Achieving these family and
personal goals are the real essence of time management, and its major purpose.

The second area of goals are your business and career goals. These are the “how”
goals, the means by which you achieve your personal, “why” goals. How can you
achieve the level of income that will enable you to fulfill your family goals? How
can you develop the skills and abilities to stay ahead of the curve in your career?

152
Business and career goals are absolutely essential, especially when balanced with
family and personal goals.

The third type of goals are your personal development goals. Remember, you
can’t achieve much more on the outside than what you have achieved on the
inside.

Your outer life will be a reflection of your inner life. If you wish to achieve
worthwhile things in your personal and your career life, you must become a
worthwhile person in your own self-development. You must build yourself if you
want to build your life.

Perhaps the greatest secret of success is that you can become anything you really
want to become to achieve any goal that you really want to achieve. But in order
to do it, you must go to work on yourself and never stop.

Once you have a list of your personal and family goals, your business and career
goals, and your self-development goals, you can then organize the list by priority.

This brings us to the difference between priorities and posteriorities. In order to

get your personal time under control, you must decide very clearly upon your
priorities.
You must decide on the most important things that you could possibly be doing to
give yourself the same amount of happiness, satisfaction, and joy in life. But at
the same time, you must establish posteriorities as well. Just as priorities are
things that you do more of and sooner, posteriorities are things that you do less of
and later.

The fact is, your calendar is full. You have no spare time. Your time is extremely
valuable. Therefore, for you to do anything new, you will have to stop doing
something old. In order to get into something, you will have to get out of
something else. In order to pick something up, you will have to put something
down. Before you make any new commitment of your time, you must firmly
decide what activities you are going to discontinue in your personal life.

If you want to spend more time with your family, for example, you must decide
what activities you currently engage in that are preventing you from doing so.

A principle of time management says that hard time pushes out soft time. This
means that hard time, such as working, will push out soft time, such as the time
you spend with your family. If you don’t get your work done at the office because
you don’t use your time well, you almost invariably have to rob that time from
your family. As a result, because your family is important to you, you find
yourself in a values conflict. You feel stressed and irritable. You feel a
tremendous amount of pressure.
153
You know in your heart that you should be spending more time with the
important people in your life, but because you didn’t get your work done, you
have to fulfill those responsibilities before you can spend time with your spouse
and children.

Think of it this way. Every minute you waste during the waking day is time that
your family will ultimately be deprived of. So concentrate on working when you
are at work so that you can concentrate on your family when you are at home.

There are three key questions that you can ask yourself continually to keep your
personal life in balance. The first question is, “What is really important to me?”
Whenever you find yourself with too much to do and too little time, stop and ask
yourself, “What is it that is really important for me to do in this situation?” Then,
make sure that what you are doing is the answer to that question.

The second question is, “What are my highest value activities?” In your personal
life, this means, “What are the things that I do that give me the greatest pleasure
and satisfaction? Of all the things that I could be doing at any one time, what are
the things that I could do to add the greatest value to my life?”

And the final question for you to ask over and over again is, “What is the most
valuable use of my time right now?” Since you can only do one thing at a time,
you must constantly organize your life so that you are doing one thing, the most
important thing, at every moment.

Personal time management enables you to choose what to do first, what to do

second, and what not to do at all. It enables you to organize every aspect of your
life so that you can get the greatest joy, happiness, and satisfaction out of
everything you do.

In life there are three categories of people when it comes to time management

(i) Time wasters

(ii) Time users
(iii) Time investors

1. Time Wasters

Time wasters are the categories of people who do not know the value of time.
They actually do not have any sense of value for life. They have not discovered
their mission in life so they are like someone going everywhere. This group of
people will wake up every day without any set objectives to pursue or
accomplish. They are lost in the bandwagon and tossed to and fro by the tides of

154
the ocean. Anything their hand finds per day is what they will do. Life without
goals culminates to time wastage. That is why people who are going nowhere are
not conscious time. These people will spend a whole day playing games and
blabbing. How do you really know you are a time waster?

If you are comfortable in watching TV a whole day and you don’t really care.
Second, by Surfing the internet or cruising chat rooms with no purpose in mind,
third, if every day you don’t have a list of objectives to fulfill, you are like a mad
man moving to and fro without a destination. If you will spend a whole day
talking and gossip then you are nothing but a time waster.

A wise man said; “Youth is a mistake, manhood a struggle and old age a regret.”
I believe he was partially correct because if you dare waste your time as a youth
you already wasted a big part of your life. It will manifest in the kind of life you
will live as an adult. Whenever you see a foolish old man, ask him how he spent
his time as a youth. You will discover that he wasted it. The Holy book
admonishes us “that we should redeem the time for the days are evil.” Every day
you spend on earth is either an addition or a subtraction.

Henry Ford wrote; “It has been my observation that most people get ahead during
the time that others waste.”

2. Time Users

These groups of people confuse motion with action. They think been busy is
equal to been effective. That you are busy does not mean you’re actually
effective. Effectiveness or excellence in life comes from doing the right thing at
the right time, while busyness is simply doing a good thing at the wrong time. For
example, a student who chooses to pray while his mates are there in the class is
using time or rather having a misplaced priority. There should be time for
everything. Even the bible recommended such. 24hrs is allocated to everybody by
God, but it is our responsibility to plan it.

One way of not getting your desired future is to be very busy, engaged in an
activity that does not help you in achieving your desires. It is not enough to be
committed because you can be committed to the wrong cause. Faithfulness also is
not enough because so many people are faithful to the wrong belief. What is
required for excellence is the discovery of the most important thing and getting
committed to it.

Time users are people who will spend hours watching football, but will not spend
just one hour reading their books. Time users are religious folks who will pray in
tongues for 10hrs, and engage in church fellowship activities, without spending at
least 2hrs in studying their books as students. This is a matter of having the

155
wrong priority. When you have a misplaced priority, you may succeed in some
things but not that which is most important.

3. Time investors

These groups of people have a well-organized or structured priorities. They have

a lot to do like getting occupied with religious activities, cultism, sport activities
and so many other extra-curricular activities. But, draw out a well-structured plan
to manage all of that. They understand that there is never a time you can do
everything, but there is always time for everything. This understanding makes
them invest time in most important and urgent needs.

They are good managers of time, they always know what to do, how to do it and
when to do it. Until you give priority to important tasks and pay lesser attention
to unimportant ones, the chances of achieving success is slim.

You already know the group you belong to, but remember when you lost time
part of your life is wasted. For every ten adults you meet, at least seven wishes
they could turn back the hands of clock to get some things right. Those wishes
never always come through because time is irretrievable. Would you dare waste
your time? The choice is yours.

TIME KILLERS

In order to ensure the effective use of our time, we need to find out some things
that unnecessarily eats up our time and avoid them. Not knowing this is
detrimental to our personal breakthrough.

Wrong Companion

Who you choose to be your companion or associates is one of the most important
decisions you will make during the course of your life. It is said that your friends
are a reflection of your future. It is not show me your friends then I will tell you
who you are, it is tell me your friends I will tell you where you are going. I want
you to understand that friends are a blessing of God, but also can be a curse.
Every relationship in your life is going to do one or four things; it will either add
to you, or take away from you, it will multiply you or it will divide you and break
you into pieces.

Helen Keller wrote, “Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking
alone in the light.” But I reframed it that; “it is better to walk alone than to be in
the company of a wrong person; it is the sure way to muddle up your destiny.”

156
The people that you spend most time committing your “ear time” or listen to
determine the outcome of your daily events. “It is written that faith cometh by
hearing,” and as man thinketh in his heart so is he.” So who you will be is closely
related to who you listen to. The vessel of your personalities is your ear. Your ear
is the leading vessel.

Who do you spend most of your time with? Write down the names of four people
who most time command the greatest share of ear time. They may be people who
you hang out with? They may be your class mates, or your neigbours. Write
down their names. Then I want to ask you a question – think about the effects
these people have in your life and be very honest.

Friends determine a lot about your life. Someone said; “You cannot do anything
about your family, but at least you have the right to choose who you should call
your friends.” And nobody has the right to choose you as a friend. Life is all
about choices. Life does not force anything on you; it only offers you several
options. Look at this list of people and be very honest. Do they add ideas? Do
they add inspirations? Do they motivate you? Or they are just in your life to steal
your ideas, kill your dreams, discourage or perhaps, mislead you. Be very honest
with yourself.

Take note of those who are not adding anything of value to you, rather they only
come to still and destroy. When they visit you, they only leave you with a deficit.
As a matter of fact, they are minus in all.

Note those who are multiplying you or adding to you, they worth spending time
with. Also, identify those who are constantly subtracting and breaking or dividing
you, then take action and quit. You will not go far by hanging out with them.

The easiest way to miss your flight is to be in the company of those who are not
traveling to your destination. Believe it or not your friends are either, adding to
you, or subtracting from you. Therefore, you must identify their roles in your life.

Steve Jobs wrote; “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s
life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other
people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own
inner voice. And most importantly, have the courage to follow your heart and
intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become.
Everything else is secondary.

Social Media

The present day generation is gripped with a disease I called ‘Social Media
Syndrome’ (SMS). This is a very serious threat to the destiny of our generation.
The time one is supposed to use in investing on important activities, he will
157
choose to spend it on social media. The time you spend on Facebook, Whatsapp,
and 2go, if you choose to spend it reading or doing something meaningful you
will become great in a short time.

I am not saying that socializing is bad, but there is time for everything. You can
only use your free time or leisure time on social media not your contracted time.

Interruptions

Interruptions are unwanted events, calls or uninvited friends. They can be a great
source of distractions. Personally, any time I want to study, I do put my phone in
silence and probably shut my door against visitors. As a matter of facts, you only
visit me when I want you to. Identify what you need per time and discipline
yourself to know how to manage people, and things around to achieve them.
Avoid unnecessary interruptions.

Procrastination

Edward Young; “Procrastination is the thief of time.” How often do you find
yourself saying “In a minute”, “I’ll get to it” or “Tomorrow’s good enough” and
every other possible excuse in the book? Compare it with how often you decide
it’s got to be done, so let’s get on and do it! That should tell you how serious your
procrastination problem is really is.

Very many individuals are trapped in what I called rationalization trap: these
People second guess everything they do and as they prepare to take action, they
will say; “Maybe it’s really not that important.” But the truth is if you wait long
enough nothing is important. Ed’s fifth rule of procrastination states; “Spend
sufficient time confirming the need and the need will disappear”

Sydney J. Harries wrote “Regrets for the things we did can be tempered by time;
it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable.”

Procrastination is the idea of putting off urgent task or delaying to kick starts a
Program; especially with flimsy excuses. “Mark Twain says; “Never put off till
tomorrow what may be done day after tomorrow just as well.”

Pablo Picasso puts it better; “Only put-off until tomorrow what you are willing to
die having left undone.”

As a matter of fact, if there is anything to put off, it is should procrastinations. For

some people, they always find excuse of not doing one thing or the other and that
is why they are always stocked in a rut.

158
Overcoming Procrastination

To overcome procrastination, you must identify the consequences of putting off

that work till tomorrow. You have to understand that procrastination can be a
major problem in both your career and your personal life.

To help overcome it, you must know the possible causes so that you can
deliberately overcome them. It is caused by the following: poor time
management habits, Lack of discipline, Lack of motivation, Laziness, Overwhelm
and Stress.

Sometime you will procrastinate because you’re overwhelmed with too much on
your plate, and procrastination gives you an escape route. Other times you’ll feel
tired, lazy and lack motivation and you just can’t get going.

John C. Maxwell said: “pay today and play tomorrow or play today and pay
tomorrow,” the choice is yours. Whenever you want to procrastinate, remember
these words. Whenever, you don’t just really feel like doing something new or
trying to put it off letter - Just remember “if it can be done tomorrow, it can be
done today. Even if I can’t get the whole thing done right now, l can start on this
part”

Never say: “It is no big deal if it doesn’t get done” say instead: This is important
to me so I choose to start now and get part of this done right away.”

159
 CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Two effective ways to manage your time

Victor Hugo puts it right; “He who every morning plans the transactions of that
day and follows that plan carries a thread that will guide him through the
labyrinth of the most-busy life.” A good time management practice helps one to
exercise control over the amount of time spent on specific activities to increase
effectiveness, efficiency or productivity.

Having a well-structured time management helps one to be very organized. All

great and successful people are very organized individuals. You can’t achieve
success when your life is disorganized. To be organized; means to be carefully
and thoughtfully selecting what to do, when to do it and how to do it.

CATEGORIZE YOUR TIME

You get to decide where your time goes. You can either spend it moving forward,
or you can spend it putting out fires. You decide. And if you don’t decide, others
will decide for you.

“Time is what we want most, but what we spend worst.” To ensure the effective
use of your time; you must always remember that time lost cannot be recovered.
Good time management demands that you do the important thing rather than the
urgent thing. Understand there is a lot to do but there is never enough time to do
everything.

To ensure the effective management of your time, it’s of great importance to

categorize your schedules into four groups.

1. Contracted Time

160
This refers to the time a person allocates towards an agreement to work or study,
or pursues a career. It’s a “must do” activity that has serious consequences for
noncompliance. Example is avoiding going to school as student, dodging duty as
an employed personal.

2. Committed Time

It is referred to as the time allocated to engaging in productive activities that are

capable of enhancing your success. It’s a “should do” if excellence is desired.
These include doing the extra works of self-improvement, reading, studying,
praying and fasting to achieve balance in life. The how much time you invest in
your pursuit makes the big difference.

3. Necessary time

Necessary time refers to time required to maintain one’s self as it applies to

activities such as to eat, sleep, cleansing, and to a large extent physical exercising.
It’s “Nice to do” activities.

4. Free Time

Free time refers to the remains of the day after the three other types of time have
been subtracted from the 24hrs day. This type of time is not necessarily
discretionary time as the term “free” time may imply, because people tend to plan
activities in advance and creating committed free time in lieu of discretionary
time. It is time to engage in social interaction.

Remember time wasted cannot be renewed or recovered. Spend your time wisely
and see that life is fair.

SETTING PRIORITIES

The principles of priority states that (a) You must know the difference between
what is urgent and what is important, and (b) You must do what is important
first.”

All humanity wrestles with two major problems associated with priorities. A life
of misplaced and absence of priorities.

Absence of priorities causes one to drift through life with no focus or sense of
purpose or direction. And at the end accomplishes nothing.

161
Second, life of misplaced priorities results in wasting one’s life pursuing the
wrong assignments. A life of misplaced priorities succeeds in many things, but
not in that which is most important.

You can’t achieve excellence without consciously having organized priorities.

And you can’t have a priority if you don’t understand that time is not enough to
do everything. Living a life of smart priorities is one of the best ways to become
more effective, to make the most out of your time and reach your goals with less
effort. Instead of running around like a chicken with no head, you can walk
calmly in the right direction, do less, but be more powerful in what you do.
Something you should remember, however; is that priorities are not what you say
they are – they’re what you actually do.

So take a moment to reflect on how you spend your time, what your priorities
have been lately, until now. And reflect on whether those are the priorities you
want to live.
Brandon Sanderson got it when he said; “The mark of a great man is one who
knows when to set aside the important things in order to accomplish the vital
ones.”

In 1970, sociologist Dr. Edward Banfield of Harvard University wrote a book

entitled The Unheavenly City. He described one of the most profound studies on
success and priority setting ever conducted.

Banfield’s goal was to find out how and why some people became financially
independent during the course of their working lifetimes. He started off
convinced that the answer to this question would be found in factors such as
family background, education, intelligence, influential contacts, or some other
concrete factor. What he finally discovered was that the major reason for success
in life was a particular attitude of mind.

Banfield called this attitude “long time perspective.” He said that men and
women who were the most successful in life and the most likely to move up
economically were those who took the future into consideration with every
decision they made in the present. He found that the longer the period of time a
person took into consideration while planning and acting, the more likely it was
that he would achieve greatly during his career.

For example, one of the reasons while doctor are among the most respected
people in the society is because they invested many years of hard work and study
to finally earn the right to practice medicine. After university courses, internship,
residency and practical training, a doctor may be more than 30 years old before
he or she is capable of earning a good living. But from that point onward, these
men and women are some of the most respected and most successful professional
people in the society. They had long time perspectives.
162
The essential key to success in setting priorities is having a long time perspective.
You can tell how important something is today by measuring its potential future
impact on your life.

For example, if you come home from work at night and choose to play with your
children or spend time with your spouse, rather than watch TV or read the paper,
you have a long time perspective. You know that investing time in the health and
happiness of your children and your spouse is a very valuable, high-priority use
of time.

If you take additional courses in the evening to upgrade your skills and make
yourself more valuable to your employer, you’re acting with a long time
perspective. Learning something practical and useful can have a long-term effect
on your career.

The key word, then, to keep in mind when you’re setting priorities is sacrifice.
Setting priorities usually requires sacrificing present enjoyment for future
enjoyment. It requires giving up a short-term pleasure in the present in order to
enjoy a far greater and more substantial pleasure in the future.

Economists say that the inability to delay gratification—that is, the natural
tendency of individuals to spend everything they earn plus a little bit more, and
the mind-set of doing what is fun, easy and enjoyable—is the primary cause of
economic and personal failure in life. On the other hand, disciplining yourself to
do what you know is right and important, although difficult, is the highroad to
pride, self-esteem and personal satisfaction.

So setting priorities begins with your deciding what you want most in life and
then organizing your time and activities so that everything you do is the most
valuable use of your time in achieving those objectives.

With your larger, long-term priorities in order, you can much more easily decide
upon your short-term priorities.

You can say that the process of setting short-term priorities begins with a pad of
paper and a pen. Whenever you feel overwhelmed by too many things to do and
too little time in which to do them, sit down, take a deep breath, and list all those
tasks you need to accomplish. Although there is never enough time to do
everything, there is always enough time to do the most important things, and to
stay with them until they are done right.

Peter Drucker once said, “Efficiency is doing things right, but effectiveness is
doing the right things.” And this requires thought.

163
Once you have listed your tasks, ask yourself this question: “If I were to be called
out of town for a month, and I could finish only one thing on this list, which one
thing would it be?” Think it through, and circle that one item on your list. Then
ask yourself: “If I could do only one more thing before I was called out of town
for a month, what would it be?” This then becomes the second thing you circle on
your list.

Perform this exercise five or six times until you have sorted out the highest
priorities on your list. Then number each according to its importance. With these
priorities, you are now ready to begin working effectively toward the
achievement of your major goals.

Another popular method for setting priorities on your list, once you have
determined your major goals or objectives, is the A-B-C-D-E method. You place
one of those letters in the margin before each of the tasks on your list.

“A” stands for “Very Important;” must do; severe negative consequences if not
completed.”

“B” stands for “Important;” should do; but not as important as my ‘A’ tasks, and
only minor negative consequences if not completed.”

“C” stands for “Nice to Do;” but not as important as ‘A’ or ‘B,’ and no negative
consequences for not completing.”

“D” stands for “Delegate, or assign to someone else who can do the task in my
place.”

“E” stands for “Eliminate, whenever possible.”

When you use the A-B-C-D-E method, you can very easily sort out what is
important and unimportant. This then will focus your time and attention on those
items on your list that are most essential for you to do.

Once you can clearly see the one or two things that you should be doing, above
all others, just say no to all diversions and distractions and focus single-mindedly
on accomplishing those priorities.

Much stress that people experience in their work lives comes from working on
low priority tasks. The amazing thing is that as soon as you start working on your
highest-value activity, all your stress disappears. You begin to feel a continuous
stream of energy and enthusiasm. As you work toward the completion of
something that is really important, you feel an increased sense of personal value
and inner satisfaction. You experience a sensation of self-mastery and self-
control. You feel calm, confident and capable.
164
Here are six ideas that you can use, every day, to help you set priorities and to
keep you working at your best:

1. Take the time to be clear about your goals and objectives so that the priorities
you set are moving you in the direction of something that is of value to you.
Remember that many people scramble frantically to climb the ladder of success,
only to find that it is leaning against the wrong building.

2. Develop a long time perspective and work on those things in the present that
can have the greatest positive impact on your future. Maintain your balance in life
by setting priorities in the areas of your health, your personal relationships and
your financial goals.

3. Make the commitment to improve those aspects of your life that are most
important to you. If you’re in sales, learn how to be an excellent salesperson. If
you’re a parent, learn how to be an outstanding mother or father. The power is
always on the side of the person with the best practical knowledge.

4. Be sure to take the time to do your work right the first time. The fewer
mistakes you make, the less time you will waste going back and doing it over.

5. Remember that what counts is not the amount of time that you put in overall;
rather, it’s the amount of time that you spend working on high-priority tasks. You
will always be paid for the results that you obtain, not merely the hours that you
spend on the job.

6. Understand that the most important factor in setting priorities is your ability to
make wise choices. You are always free to choose to engage in one activity or
another.

You may choose a higher-value activity or a lower-value activity, but once you
have chosen, you must accept the consequences of your choice.

7. Live your Priorities. Keeping things simple and focused makes it so much
easier to actually live your priorities. Take time each morning to remind yourself
of your priorities, and to put them into your schedule. Block off priorities, so your
life will actually reflect the priorities you set.

How to Reorder Your Priorities

To progress, you have to pulse and answer these questions. What are the things
or activities that eat most of your time? - Least at least 5 of them.

165
Could it be Sports, Friends, Health Issues, Fun, Religious Activities, Cultism,
Sleep, Career, Personal Developments, Service, etc?

A ……………………………………….
B ……………………………………….
C ……………………………………….
D ……………………………………….
E ……………………………………….

Second, assess how satisfied you are with the way you are spending your time.
Pulse also to think about the most important areas of your life, is it
(Relationships, Career, Personal Development, Finances, Health, Social
Activities, or Religious Activities). Write it down.

A ………………………………………
B ………………………………………
C ………………………………………
D ………………………………………

Dallin H. Oaks said; “Desires dictate our priorities, priorities shape our choices,
and choices determine our actions.

Rate each area in terms of how important it is to you. Now rate how well you are
living each of these areas. How satisfied are you with the amount of time that you
spend on these areas?

The third step, to reordering your priorities is to figure out, what important
activities are missing from your life. This you can discover by answering the
following questions.

a. What is the most important thing in my life right now (e.g. school, marriage,
sports, health, or money.)

b. Where would I want to spend more time?

c. Where would I want to spend less time?

d. What areas need my attention now?

Write down your activities in the order of importance. This is your new list of
priorities.

166
Mahatma Gandhi wrote; “Action expresses priorities.” Things which matter most
must never be at the mercy of things which matter least. The life you have left is
a gift. Cherish it. Enjoy it now, to the fullest. Do what matters, now.

Be Loyal To Your Future

Life is segmented into three phases – that which was (past), which is (present)
and which will be (future). Let us learn from the present, to live better in the
future. The future belongs to those who prepare for it today. Your future will not
happen by chance; it is your thoughts and acts of the moment that creates your
future. The outline of your future path already exists, for you created its pattern
by your yesterday’s action.

The future starts today not tomorrow. The greatest good you will do to yourself is
to be loyal to your future and invest in it. You invest in it by searching for
relevant information that will impact in your life; Information that will arm you
with principles of life. Success in any undertaking, answers to principles and not
luck. When you base your life on principles; 90% of your decisions are made.
And guess what? Mistakes are deliberately avoided.

A wise man said, “Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs
to those who prepare for it today.

Get prepared! Ensure the effective use of your time, because it is the greatest
resources you have to secure the future. Never dare to waste one minute out of it.
Time is short. This is one fact you can’t escape; it’s a given. If time is short then
it makes sense not to go wasting any of it, not a single lovely drop.

167
 Notes

 John C. Maxwell, (2012). “The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth. California

 Dominion Mandate, Manifesting the Divine Nature. David Ogbueli

 The Principles of Success, by Brian Tracy.

 The Secret, the Power, by Rhonda Byrne

 My Vision-Challenges in the Race of excellence. Mohamed bin Rashid Al

Maktoum

 “The Automatic Millionaire” by David Bach.

 Bill Wayman (1987). Unleashing the Tremendous Potentials in You.

Positive Living Publication. Phoenix, Arizona

 John C. Maxwell. “Failing Forward.”

 Stephen R. Covey (1989). The Habits of Highly Effective People. USA.

Free Press.

 Bill Newman (2000). Soaring with the Eagles.

 Myles Munroe (2003). The Power of Vision. Whitaker House USA

 Napoleon Hill (1966). Think and Grow Rich.

 Jack Canfield with Janet Switzer, The Success Principles: How to Get from
Where You are to Where you Want to Be (New York: Harper Paperbacks)

168
 Brian Tracy (2010). The Power of Self-Discipline: 21 Ways to Achieving
Lasting Happiness and Success (Vanguard Press)

 Wallace D. Wattles (2007). The Science of Getting Rich (Penguin Group

USA)

 Ernest Holmes. Creative Mind and Success

 Ernest Holmes. The Science of the Mind

 Emmie Oludele. (2011). Paradigm Shift (Grace House Publishing)

 David Ogbueli. (2011). The Secrets of Self-Improvement from the life of

Benjamin Franklin

 Bishop David Oyedepo. The Pillars of Destiny. (Dominion Publishing)

 Richard Templar. (2006). The Rules of Life (Pearson books UK )

 Strategies for success website. www.lsa.umich.edu/advising/acader

 My personal Strategic plan by Leo Lo. Posted by Melissa on Mar 11, 2013

 Your Personal Strategic Plan. www.bizsuccess.com/articles/perspl

 Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences. www.tecweb.org/styles/gardner.html

169
 ACHIEVER’S CONCEPTS INTERNATIONAL
This outstanding motivational and Human Capacity development organization
was founded in 2013 to Champion viable transformation in our education system;
by restoring virtues, value, creativity and innovation in our education sector.

This organization headed by Uche Collins Ijeomah is poised also with the
responsibility of youth motivation, mobilization and sensitization for national
rebirth.

Our Empowerment Programs includes:

 Retire Rich Seminars for workers

 Business Development Seminars
 adverts
 School Seminars
 Skill Acquisition Programs
 Entrepreneur Developmental Programs
 Leadership/Citizenship Training Programs
 Achiever’s Concepts Publications

For more information, write or contact:

Achiever’s Concepts International

Email: icujindu@gmail.com

Tel: +2347067010028, +2347062589557

170
 Purpose – ETERNAL SOFTWARE

Truth #1 “God’s provision is tied to one’s purpose”

A manufacturer will not produce an item without a specific function, which

implies that every product is designed to meet a particular need. And the
manufacturer can only find maximum fulfillment in seeing his product solve its
purpose.

Everything God created is a solution to a problem. Your eyes solves the problem
of sight, your legs are used for locomotion, nose for respiratory functions, ear
solves the problem of hearing, and the brain helps in coordinating all the different
parts of the body function, and also acts as a cognitive tools.

Ironically, all over the world are people who are busy, active, dedicated, faithful,
famous people who are respected, accepted, revered and admired. But deep
inside, they are tired, frustrated, bored, disillusioned, confused, empty and
depressed. Their lives are aimless. Day after day they go on smiling, pretending
and living up to an identity and reputation that is different from their true selves.

God was speaking to me one day as I was studying; He said; “I have two major
problems with man as regard priorities; First people living without priorities and
those having misplaced priorities.

And a life of absence of priorities causes one to drift through life with no focus or
sense of purpose or direction and at the end accomplishes nothing. It’s more or
less a wasted life.

While a life of misplaced priorities results in wasting one’s life pursuing the
wrong things, carrying out the wrong assignment. Though, at the end, a life of
misplaced priorities may succeed in many things; but not in that which is most
important. At least they were not useless, but also not useful to the manufacturer.
Thiers is a spent life. They are known as men of activities.

Principally, we have three kinds of life. Wasted life, Spent life and Invested life.
When you live your life without priorities, living a life of anything goes, yours is

171
a wasted life. You are not adding to yourself; talk less to the society or people
around. All you know is that you are surviving anyhow.

When you live a dedicated, committed, busy and activities full life in pursuit of
things, without any eternal values; yours is a spent life. When such persons die,
the children or the family members will write in their poster; “LIFE WELL
SPENT.

Basically, your life was meant to benefit three persons; the first person is you;
second, is the society and the people around, and the third is your manufacturer,
your creator.

Successful people are effective because they know how to focus on the most
important things in life. Therefore, you can invest your life by serving the
purpose of God and serving humanity better.

Therefore, that you are busy in life does not guarantee your productivity. To be
busy is not enough, but one must be effective. Commitment also is not enough,
but one must be committed to the right course.

There is an assignment you must carry out, and until it is achieved success is not
enough. To succeed in the right assignment is the key to life fulfillment.

There is no father that will be pleased with his son whom he gave money to pay
for his school fees, returning home the father found out that his son used the
money to buy clothes. The boy has just abused the purpose for that money.
Though, clothe is a good thing, but that is not what the father wanted and there is
no way he can be pleased with that boy.

SERVING THE PURPOSE OF GOD

The key to a lasting prosperity is to serve the purpose of God on earth. I found
this not just in the scriptures, but also in the life of great men.
God is a king that dwells in the invisible Kingdom of heaven. But he also created
another visible kingdom called the earth, and put man in charge as the sole
administrator. I am not preaching religion, but at least all religion agrees with this
basic truth.

After that he decided to create man in his image and likeness. That is to manifest
his nature and also function like Him. God knew that that is the only way we can
exercise the divine priority mandate. Therefore, our manufacturer built into us
both the inclination and the capability for exercising dominion over the natural
order. He made us kings and queens on the earth to extend his government,

172
authority, and influence of His invisible supernatural realm unto the visible realm
of the natural world.

So it was on this intent that he gave us the conditions for a successful living,
which are basically to:

1. Seek his kingdom

2. Pursue his righteousness.

HIS KINGDOM

To seek means to pursue with vigour and determination. It also means to explore.
Now the kingdom of God is God’s government. It is His rulership and dominion
over heaven and earth. It is His universal jurisdiction and executed will over all
creation. It also means to have influence over a territory.

Therefore, to seek the kingdom of God means first, - “Considering the interest of
God or the kingdom before making any decision.”
Second, it means to work hard to extend God’s influence over the entire world in
our private life, our business life, our marriage life, our business life, our sexual
life and influencing decisions in the government of the world.

So our utmost priority in life is to ensure that we extend the governing influence
of God over the earth and impact it with His personal will, purpose and intent
producing a Culture, Values, Morals, and Lifestyle that reflects God’s nature.
HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS

Every kingdom always reflects the nature and character of the king. God is
righteous and therefore His kingdom is also righteous. Seeking the righteousness
of God is as important as seeking His kingdom, because his righteousness
protects, and preserves us.

“Righteousness means right positioning, to be in correct alignment with the

ruling standard. It means we have right standing with authority, it means we are
not conforming to the system of the world, but in conformity with the legal corpus
of God’s kingdom.”

It is manifested in our actions. For instance, when others are conforming to the
tradition of stealing government’s money, you stand out and rebuke them. That is
the nature. Righteous life is a life of obedience to the word of God

The scripture says that; “Righteousness is the scepter of God’s kingdom. A

scepter means the symbol of a king’s royal authority. God always extends His
blessings to you when you stand on his side to protect his interest. The least God

173
can do for you are to care for you, protect you, support your life to uphold in
everything, provide everything you need and become responsible for your
welfare. The psalmist wrote that; “since I was born, now that I am old, I have
never seen the righteous beg or forsaken.”

Righteousness brings one under the king’s favor. God wants you to seek his
kingdom and his righteousness, so He can add every other things (cars, money,
wife, houses, all material possessions), to you.

Truth #5 “Prosperity is the reward of the righteous.”

God is looking for people today, CEO’s, and managers, and supervisors and
employee who will stand for righteousness and say “here is where I stand, I will
not steal because of money, I will not lie, cheat or cut corners, I will not accept
bribes and I will not steal time from my employer, because all of this violate my
higher law, the law of heaven.

We need people who will say I will pursue honor, honesty and integrity and
excellence in everything. That is the only way you can impact your sphere of
dominion with the will and the nature of God.
God’s provision is tied to purpose; while poverty is tied to lack of purpose.
Living your purpose connects you to God as your source.

Truth # 1 “True wealth is found not in an abundance of possessions, but in

unlimited access to infinite resources.”

SERVING HUMANITY

Service is the heart of kingdom culture. The key to prosperous living is service.
In the law of wealth creation, service is one of the ways to access wealth. This
time, I am talking of serving the purpose of God and serving the need of
mankind.

Two brothers woke up one morning and saw that mankind needs an airplane to
fly across oceans. And they gave themselves to meeting that need - The Wright
brothers. Somebody discovered that man would need electricity to make life
comfortable, he invented it. Also, Bill gates one day saw the need to improve the
operating system of the computer, he met that need and today he has a fortune.

You are poor because you have refused to solve one major need of mankind- just
as I am solving your ignorance problem. Dangote today is solving the food needs
of Nigerians and Africans and he is making fortune out of it.

174
Greatness in life comes as result of service, and the day I discovered this, I
resolved never to be poor. Jesus Christ narrated the areas we can render practical
services to humanity…

1. Feeding the hungry – Catering Business

2. Giving drink to the thirsty – Beverages Company like Coca Kola
3. Welcoming the stranger - Hospitality
4. Clothing the naked – Fabrics and Textile Industries
5. Tending the sick - Medicine
6. Visiting the imprisoned – Security and Justice

Do you know how much Mr. Biggs, Pepperoni, Kilimanjaro, Sizzlers, Thrillers,
Tantalizer, Crunches and many others are making by mere feeding the hungry.
Will you underestimate Coca Kola, how much they make in a day by giving
drinks to the thirsty; or some persons who are running hotel business? Come to
think of it, can you estimate how much you have spent in buying clothes that
other people made? I learnt that Michael Jackson was still making millions of
dollars for the family he left behind several years after his demise. And you are
alive, yet complaining that there is no money. I am too sure that Jesus will frown
at you in the last day. It is possible you will go to heaven, but will be like a king
without crown.

They are two things that make God’s nature unique. One is love, and He doesn’t
give love. God is love. Love is his very nature. Love means a commitment and
dedication to meet another person’s needs above our own. Second, God’s nature
is caring. To care means to anticipate a need and meet it; planning to meet a need
before it even arises. This is the nature of the king.

Our purpose, your purpose is to love and care for humanity. That was why when
God created Adam; he kept him in the Garden of Eden to tend the plants and
animals. That was his purpose.

Yours could be banking, business, farming, preaching, and financing God’s work,
composing songs, politics, administration, Doctor or any other profession,
whatsoever it is, find it.

It is important you do because purpose is the only thing that gives a man
direction, dignity and vision in life. God has designed you for a specific purpose;
however, the idea of living just for living sake, wake, eat drink and acquire
material things is not the essence for your existence. I haven’t submitted that this
is wrong. But we should realize that we will be punishing ourselves, our relations
and the whole world, if we do that.

The world is dying for some precious and extraordinary ability we have which we
can’t afford to die with and the world is eagerly waiting for someone who will do

175
the right thing, rather than doing things right. Therefore, the purpose of life is to
have the life of purpose.

Truth #6 “The purpose of life is to have the life of purpose.”

Having a life of purpose means doing things that have great eternal values,
motivated by things that will outlive one, and concern for doing the right thing
rather than the desire to do things right. That “right” is the purpose for which
God created us and gave us breath.

In essence, the true purpose of life is to have a committed life; living far
beyond human standard or the expectations of others. Discovering a problem or
vacuum and committing your life to fill that vacuum is the purpose of life. If you
have not discovered a vacuum or a need you can meet, then your purpose in life is
yet to be discovered.

Five facts you must know about your purpose

1. Your purpose is given to you; it’s not chosen – “Before I formed thee in your mother’s
womb, I knew thee, before you were born, I set you apart, and I appointed you as a
prophet to the nation.” (Jeremiah 1:5)

Imagine if Jeremiah went to become a doctor or something else, nobody would have
held anything about him. Your purpose is the only thing that announces you, not your
degrees.

2. Your purpose is always to a person or people - “For thou shalt go to all that I shall send
thee and whatsoever I command thee, thou shall do. Jeremiah 1:7).

3. If you don’t employ yourself, others will deploy you - If you are not serving the purpose
which is the reason you exist, you will be deployed by others to serve their purpose. For
instance, very many persons have lived their life helping other people to fulfill their
purpose in the name of work. While not find your own so that others can help you.

4. Your provision in life or from God is tied to your purpose - Nobody will be responsible
for what he did not send you to do. So when you are not living your purpose, God can
never be committed to your welfare. That may be the reason why you are not getting
supply from heaven.

5. Purpose eliminates struggle in life – there is a function you are created to serve, and
until you discover that assignment you will be living like a man swimming against the
tide. Not living your purpose is like walking in the dark, and there is no way you can
make meaningful progress in darkness.

God expects us to discover our purpose in life; because that is the only way we
can enjoy heaven’s back up. He wants to empower us to fulfill life but not in the
things he has not made us for.

176
There is a purpose for your existence. There is a vacuum only you can fill; would
you die leaving it empty? Others came, and fill their own vacuum and have made
the world better. What about you?
How Do I Discover My Purpose in Life?

Some people are born knowing what they want to do, and even how to do it. The
rest of us must spend time figuring what to do with our lives.
It is a poor disgraceful thing not to be able to reply, some degree of certainty to
the simple questions! What will you be? What will you do? You are not truly free
until you have been made captive by your mission in life.

Your purpose may not necessarily becoming a prophet like Jeremiah or Oyedepo,
neither is it found in your vague goals such as; “I want to make the world better,
or even I want to be rich. They sound good but are newly useless. We must ask
the primary question, why are mine here?

God’s duty is to decide your purpose, but your responsibility is to locate it. Mike
Murdock said; “compassion is always a signpost to the geographical location of
where you belong. What makes you cry is a clue to the problem God has
qualified you to heal.” What grieves you is a clue to what you are assigned to heal
and restore.

What you love the most reveals the greatest gifts you contain. That thing you talk
about, think about, and learn about – is your place of assignment.
You are special and unique. God made you from the original mold then threw it
away when you were completed. Check out your uniqueness and find out what
differentiates you from the millions of people who inhabit this planet then pursue
your aspiration deliberately and consistently.

Be what you are, capitalize on the natural skills and talents with which you were
born with and don’t lose them when others belittle your special gift and try to
remake you according to their plans and purposes. Refuse to yield to their
domination when circumstances try to remake you – tell yourself; “I am a divine
product and I must fulfill that which I am created for.

The essence of life is for you to be yourself and express yourself fully. Often time
our parents or our society may try to inculcate us into their purpose - they may
want you to be this or that but it is only God that can truly employ your purpose
because he is your creator.

Given all these, it might seem like a hard thing to do to find one’s life purpose but
it is not that hard to discover. Why? Because you’re your life purpose is hiding
right beneath the surface of your like; like a golden thread it snakes between the
major events of your life and opens windows of opportunity. So to find it, all you

177
need to do is see your life with new eyes. To take a close look at events,
challenges and lessons of your life and see what life is teaching you, or trying to.
Always remember that the purpose of life is to have a life of purpose, and the key
to purpose is not in doing what you like, but in liking what you do. Purpose is the
supernatural drive, passion to do something that benefits you little but greatly
benefiting others.

Try to discover your purpose and you will see that success is a natural thing.
Success comes by doing the right thing, not doing things right.

If at this point you still don’t know why you are living, then ask God to show you
in prayer, because the important of purpose cannot be overemphasized.

First, concentrate on finding your purpose, then concentrate on fulfilling it.

Having a powerful ‘WHY’ will provide you with the necessary ‘HOW.’ There is
something for you to start that is destined for you to finish. Take care of your
purpose, and the end will take care of itself.

Considering an action? Without purpose nothing should be done. The height of

your accomplishments will equal the depth of your convictions. Seek happiness
for its own sake, and you will not find it; seek for purpose, and happiness will
follow as a shadow comes with the sunshine.

178
179