The 7 Ingredients for Success

It’s been quite a while since the last Motivation Today blogpost. Yours truly has been busy on some photography projects. I wish to appeal that we may have to limit these posts to 1ce monthly, watch out for new projects coming soon. Thanks for reading…

 True enduring success is not a product of chance or luck, but a planned, consistent and deliberate effort. Success is a choice – you become what you choose, consciously or unconsciously, to become. Winning can become your habit as you constantly leverage the elements that make it predictable.

1. Vision- A sense of purpose & direction determines ALL your life’s choices. Your vision is an insight into a favourable future. You must not only develop insight but also “outsight”, “farsight” & “fatsight” as you journey into the world of your dreams. Insight and outsight are the products of a sound knowledge and understanding of the facts. Farsight is the capacity to see the future of bliss in a seeming bleak situation; it’s a run against myopia. Fatsight is the ability to dream big. A clear vision underguards the dream journey, which is a faith walk. See beyond your nose, keep the end in sight.

2. Passion- To succeed in any endeavour; believe in your vision, yourself and your environment. Passion provides the combustion for hardwork and the strength to surmount challenges. It sees the path through every barricade of distraction & problem and supplies you energy with self confidence. Don’t keep mute about what makes you cry. Cry out in passion and see you fly. Passion is a good disturbance that rattles you out of your comfort zone. Inertia and casualness will give way once you discover your passion: whatever makes you cry, laugh, complain, angry and catches your attention always is your passion.

3. Information- Information adds flesh to your vision and helps you design a roadmap that will lead to accomplishment. Insight and outsight cannot develop without appropriate information. Curiosity will help grow your knowledge base. Brian Tracy says, “Successful people are those who learned from others who have gone before them.” Learn why others failed or succeeded. There is also the need to be able to clearly and effectively communicate your ideas.

4. Money- The currency that translates vision to reality and the resource that provides other resources. In the actualisation of your dream, money must be a means to an end, never an end in itself because when it becomes an end, it only intensifies a sense of unfulfilment in life. Money can NEVER deliver 100% satisfaction to anyone, whereas loving and touching others’ lives positively will. The human desire for wealth is insatiable; otherwise, the rich would have quit striving to be richer. Get out of your inertia; quit complaining about ‘lack of capital’. Instead, go and learn how to use OPM (other people’s money). OPM comes through loans, bank overdrafts, mortgages etc. A good alternative is to use your social capital. Social capital is using your integrity or goodwill to get business favour. For instance, Mrs A may start a pastry business by getting 10 bags of flour on credit from Mrs. B based on long-standing goodwill. Money is not everything and not all the money you need to accomplish your vision will flow in from day 1.

5. People- People are the machinery that translates vision to reality. By now should have realized you’re neither omnipresent nor omnipotent. People within your circle of influence act as your 3rd hand as they assist with what you are unable to achieve on your own. They contribute physical, moral and intellectual skills. Avoid the temptation to see people as tools that can be used and over-labour and dumped. Assemble a balanced team, understand the personalities and skills of your team members, and then leverage them for success.

6. Character- The sustenance of a man with a vision. A character flaw does to a man what toothache does to a beautiful face. An unfixed character flaw is a silent plot of one’s downfall. A leader’s personal values always transmit to an organisation’s core values. Enron and Cadbury are unfortunate recent instances. Work daily at self discipline, making quality choices and delaying gratification and you’ll build a lasting reputation.

7. God- The invisible Persona that makes things fall in place and the supernatural Authority whose final word makes all the difference. Human effort without divine leverage is futile. Pray to God to align you with His perfect will, which is a guarantee for winning. Trust Him to make your plans come through. Show charity to God, orphans and widows, and it will come back to you in multiples. Caveat: don’t depend on God if you’ve chosen the path of indolence, lethargy or indifference.

Dream, make achievable plans, run a feasibility test on your dream, and boldly step out and execute your plans. Water your dream constantly. Develop the necessary passion, get the capital (intellectual, financial & human), build your character and trust God to bless your effort. Today is the future you made reference to yesterday; the future is today!

Step into your dreams

I chose to drop out of a MSc. programme sometime ago because I figured that the exercise was not adding any value to my life. My lecturers were so disorganised that they hardly attended classes and if they did, it was to sell their handouts, which of course added to students’ bottom line at the end of the course!

They quoted the same books they studied as undergraduates and imparted no current knowledge or skill! Out of discontent, I opted out to follow my passion for photography. I bought my 1^st D-SLR equipment, got trained, and today I’m happy, having added a veritable money-making skill to my life. I’m assured that I won’t have to live from job to job, seeking to make a living with an unjustifiable certificate.

Life is a decision. It is the way you dream and work towards it. Live a fulfilling life.

Money follows people wherever they go and in an overly populated nation like Nigeria, money flows along people’s path. Money-making opportunities abound and one must plug-in to discover how to trap this flow of currency. Your skills and ideas are necessary to create avenues of generating wealth.

The workplace is changing in such a rapid manner that graduates are now garnering skills and taking up vocations hitherto reputed to be practiced by illiterates and artisans. Professions like hairdressing, tailoring, photography, event catering and decoration are examples. In a few years, in fact, graduates who do not add an extra skill to their lives will be outdone by their skilled counterparts. It would make no sense not to get a degree but its only relevance would be just that and basic knowledge. Vocational skills would generate the currency you require to provide your needs. Spending decades on a white-collar job is definitely fading out as upwardly mobile executives are now looking inwards and creating the businesses of their dreams.

Usually, people find it Herculean taking the step of faith out of their comfort zones and zones in sync with public opinion. Below are tips to staying ahead:

Document your dreams: A dream is a stream of water; it flows away, never returning to its initial spot. A dream is a bird; it escapes on its wings so soon. The shortest pen is longer than the longest memory. Never underestimate the power of a dream, it has the capacity to bestow on you renown. Trap your hunches & visions down in written form as it helps you to crystallize your ideas.

Chart your course: Fill in the gaps between your current reality and your dream. What goals/steps would take you into the future you crave? Design an action plan and be disciplined enough to follow the path.

Get a mentor: Find an accessible & experienced person from whose wealth of knowledge and experience you can glean. You must be teachable, willing to serve and ready to pay the price.

Get informed: Go to school. Read books/journals. Attend seminars/conferences/workshops. Google it! We’re in an information age, you know? Information increases exponentially by the second. What you need is as close to you as the next click. Appropriately interpret what you read, hear, see and perceive.

Pay the price: Every prize has a price tag. The national anthem says: “The labour of our heroes past…” People become heroes as a result of their work. Work hard and smart at your dream. Subject yourself to physical, spiritual, financial, mental and social discipline in congruence with your dream. Be consistent, strategic and deliberate in your approach.

Keep the end in focus: Discouragement is bound to try your belief in yourself. Courage is the antidote to fear and doubt. Fix your eyes on the distant image in your telescope. Superimpose your future in your mind’s eye, never giving it up to momentary challenges. Your difficulties have a shelf life, if you’ll hang on; you’ll have what you desire. Hope is the medicine of despair so, be patient, consistent and you’ll climb to the top of your dream.

Never seek significance, rather seek destiny. In seeking your purpose in destiny, you’ll find significance. Those who seek significance find it only to lose it so soon.

Pix: Microsoft images