A Reason to Act

Motivational speakers were the trend... A lot of people loved them...Then disdained them..because they soon realized, no person can give you your reason for long term living or acting in a particular way.. It is an internal, personal decision requiring commitment. So, they in turn rejected the brand and called themselves "Inspirational Speakers".. To inspire means to cause or produce a feeling, thought or idea or to quicken or animate. 
Listening to speakers may both motivate and inspire feelings, thoughts and ideas and get you all excited. And people should not disdain them because encouragement has its place. However, anything that endures require decisions and commitment on the part of the individual, after the thought or idea is triggered..which is a very personal action. So, don't turn on them in anger because your dreams never came to pass. Even prayer requires your responsible cooperation. I'd leave you with Proverbs 19:3- A man with his own hands spoils his chances..and blames it on God. Today, don't pray to God to do the things you ought to take responsibility for.. And don't blame others for your shortcomings either. Take responsible action.

Integrity Costs... But Pays.

Black is black..but some reason- it could be blue black, navy blue, a shade of grey if one looks closer. Not so with integrity. With integrity, there's no place for compromise or bending the rules. Black is black!
The shifty employee had no qualms about bribing the regulatory authority- "Everyone else is doing it sir, it has become part of the procedure". The employer thought hard. They had chased this contract for eight months. Austerity measures were biting hard. Doing this could make this so easy..and they'd be home and dry..yet..his principles nagged at his conscience. His father's legacy of forthrightness. His belief in the rewards of diligence. "No!" He blurted with finality to the disgruntled employee. A year later the bubble burst as investigations into financial crimes indicted firms involved in bribing regulatory officials. The employer lost no sleep over it and became the man to do business with.
That wrong doing is popular doesn't make it acceptable. Don't compromise...integrity does cost, but it ultimately pays.

Cos They Lived

I remember my English teacher did say “Never start a sentence with ‘because’. And so I started my title with ‘cos’ (lol). On a serious note, it is almost a given that to make considerable impact in your generation, you’d have to break with tradition in some way. It is a pleasant paradox that in keeping with the tradition of leaders and innovators, you’d have to break with the tradition of “how we have always done it”. Stereotypes are meant to be improved upon; yesterday’s innovation is today’s convention. Certain individuals decided to do “business unusual” and for that, the world was better for it. The late Steve Jobs of Apple called them the crazy ones, the rebels, the people who see differently. These are the people that radically revolutionize whole industries and societies by veering off the tracks of tradition; and taking us into a new world of possibility. They dare to mine life’s hidden treasures and explore the regions the majority dread to tread.

In the sarcastic words of Christopher Plummer (Captain Von Trapp) in the classic film, Sound of Music, “Activity suggests a life of purpose.”  And that is so true. It is not about being busy; what are you busy about? Time management really is about purpose management, not simply filling up the hours with routine activities that achieve no results. And I wonder, how many of us would have performed in line with purpose if we could view God’s marking scheme for every area of our lives.  

Certain people’s lives were so purposeful that even their days of trouble and incarceration were meaningful to the advancement of humanity. Their job losses bore the fruit of great companies, their experience with hunger produced charitable foundations. Mandela’s incarceration resulted in South Africa’s freedom from the apartheid system, John Bunyan’s time in prison, the bestselling book, “Pilgrim’s Progress”. The attack on Malala Yusoufzai, the teenage Pakistani, young girl who was shot in the head for writing against the injustices of the Taliban and the need for the  girl-child to be educated, yielded ample global attention for the advancement of that cause.

Innovation, freedom and the ability to influence lives is directly related to the degree to which we are capable of breaking away from the status quo of tradition. That acceptable way of doing things, the way we have always done it or the safest path to walk. It means standing apart from the crowd of popular opinion and a convenient, ordinary, good life to standing alone to stand tall and becoming a tree under which others are refreshed providing fruit that the masses may benefit by; and providing seed for the dreamers, the crazy ones, the rebels of tomorrow. I pray that your life would not be about non - impactful activity but one in which even your trying times would make a purposeful and inspiring statement even for generations to come.

I’d love to hear from you. Please post your feedback or send an email to bigthinking2000@yahoo.com. Cheers!

Not Poor, Just Ignorant

A lot of sayings are flung around, and their meanings resonate with you based on perspective and personal experience. One of these is about “some of us being born poor, while others are born rich”. I understand the literal meaning of the saying. But, putting it in perspective, I don’t think anybody was born poor. I believe we are introduced to life on a neutral platform. We all are NOT born poor, only ignorant. And that ignorance is about our potential, life’s mission and unique gifting. And God sends us into that perfect family or material situation of abundance or pressures; experiences and philosophical musings to direct us and introduce us to our life’s mission and the rich deposit we have within and around us to execute them.

However, often times, convenience and natural care blind and prevent us from discovering who we are. In my short time as an entrepreneur, I have learned that some conversations are best not had with certain people. Like my mother, for example. And that is because her natural care may crush my sense of adventure, stifle my convictions and douse my enthusiasm to a place of safety and convenience in the arms of a regular paying job or other safer options. Love is blind because it doesn’t see beyond your present struggles to a glorious future of impact and inspiring revolution. Safety may present the real poverty. The poverty of never discovering who you are and all you were meant to be.

Convenience is the enemy of contribution. Men are advised to pursue certain career paths first for the convenience then, second, third or not at all for their contribution. Contribution is fueled by sacrifice and risk. I’d question the validity of greatness devoid of risk and sacrifice. We experience mediocrity in large part because we have too many people in the wrong fields, with the inappropriate skills, personality and zest, barking up the wrong tree for the sake of convenience. Albert Einstein rightly said, “Everybody is a genius. But, if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree it will live its whole life believing it is stupid.” My friends, if you think you are poor, think again. Your problem just might be that you are ignorant and driven by convenience and not your contribution.

I’d love to hear from you. Please post your feedback or send an email to bigthinking2000@yahoo.com. Cheers!

Silence is Golden

Serenity..the environment in which torrents of wisdom are drawn from wells within. The noise of the world on the outside..the noise of clashing thoughts on the inside..pinging, ringing, singing, talking gadgets through the day require that we declutter our minds. Part of problem solving techniques is simply getting quiet on the inside (in a serene environment) and focusing on a problem or an issue. More often than not, you'd leave with a strategy or way forward. Can you practise getting quiet for 1hr in the day? Studies have shown that thinking in silence does not only stimulate idea generation, but it increases radical innovation and idea selection, thereby improving individual creativity and strategy levels. Profit by silence..it is golden!

Learning is Coming Empty

A well traveled, enlightened young man approached Suzuki, a Zen Buddhist teacher, to be his student. He knew a lot and made that clear to anyone that came across him. Suzuki's school ran a four year program and the first year consisted of menial duties and serving the senior classes. At the end of the first year, the young man's peers were moved to the next class while he was left behind. Same thing happened at the end of his second year.
When the young man had been made to repeat the first year class twice and serve both his peers and former subordinates, he marched angrily to confront Suzuki. "Those I began with have gone ahead of me while I am making no progress", he cried.
Suzuki quietly told him to fill his cup with tea. The agitated young man obeyed. He stopped when the teacup got full but Suzuki told him to continue pouring. The tea spilled to the table and onto the floor. He felt stupid after a while and stopped pouring. So, Suzuki said, " You are like this teacup - so full of knowledge, you can't learn from anyone else. Till you learn to empty your cup, no one can add anything to you".
Obviously, you know a lot or you wouldn't have progressed this far but, there is always a fresh knowledge for the next level. Learning is about coming with an open mind. People with an "I know it all mentality" never learn from others and so, restrict their own progress. We would grow more quickly in life if we'd embrace this attitude towards learning and come empty.

Needy versus Needed

Hmmm! That drive for money can skew your thinking. Thinking money, money, money would set you on a pensive edge and affect your ability to make objective decisions. Rather, think “how can I make contribution and create value?” and the money would follow. Too many people have fallen for tricksters and scam jobs due to their needy mentality. These quick money making schemes promising instant cash without working for it flood the internet. And interesting thing is lots of gullible folks are their cash cows. They thrive on people’s need for jobs, money and relationships.

Do you know that the chances are you’ll never get employed by any company that does not see how you can add value to their operations and bottom line in some way? So, how can you become needed? Henry Ford thrived on the motto; “Help the other fellow.” Seek to be a problem solver. Here are some pointers to help you.  

1.       Big Vision: You are what you think. The picture before your eyes is vital to your achievement. You must have heard it said, “What you see is what you get.” See my post on The Vision Principle.

2.       Trending Needs: There are needs that crop up based on technological innovation and seasonal changes. Daily, new product and service lines are created in the area of information technology; Social media branding and marketing, customer service, web and graphics design, automated money transfer and payments, E- Learning, Data Analytics,  I.T training and hardware sales like personal computers and tablets are all business lines that developed through technology trends. Seasons like rainy, dry, winter or summer time create opportunity for the sale of specific goods. Rubber footwear in the rainy season, easy and comfy wears in the summer and so on. These are needs that people can look to meet.
3.       Government Policies: Some of the greatest business opportunities can be found in government policies. Local content policies, Automotive policies, Youth development programmes, IFRS policies (International Financial Reporting Standards); and Empowerment programmes dictate the trends and gaps enterprising individuals and organisation can take advantage of within an economy.
4.       Be action oriented: Procrastination is the thief of time. To sit and do nothing is a heinous crime. Vision without action is hallucination, said Henry Ford. And for someone who had such great impact, he should know. Too many people dwell on “someday when” rather than get up and putting their hands to the plough. ! By much idleness, the building droppeth through” goes the proverb. If you have been planning long, perhaps it is time to take a step. You learn by doing. Take a cue from Richard Brandson…. Screw it, just do it!!!