The Power Of Starting Small

It is a truism that no one ever raised to stardom without grappling and contending with a paltry beginning. The maxim is often being used 'Think global, start small'. Dearest friends, no one ever stumbles upon success or conquered the world in one fowl swoop. They all started somehow; they all started small. There is a great power in just starting small. Larry King, one of the greatest broadcasters to ever adorn our t.v screens, started out in an unknown radio station in the United states. Aliko Dangote, Africa's richest man, had to begin with an infinitesimal sum of 500,000 naira. Chimamanda Adiche, one of Africa's finest young writers, began with writing chronicles of unseen stories. Cristain Ronaldo, arguably the best football player on the planet at the moment, started out playing street football. What is the moral of their stories? They started from where they were. They knew what they were born to do, and they gave it all the attention and smartwork it required. Without mincing words, many might despise you in your little beginning, but you have to turn a deaf ear. Afterall, it's your life, no one will live it for you. Even the 'Good Book' admonishes us never to despise the days of little beginnings. Remember, the world and the forces of nature makes way for the man who will stick to his dreams and is ready to chase it even through the shadows of death and the abyss of trials. But, you must start today. There is an indescribable power in pursuing your goal when it is at it's embroyic stage.

10 Practical Ways to Improve Yourself! Part 3

6. Make your own needs a priority. – Stop putting your needs on the back burner. The most painful thing is losing yourself in the process of loving someone too much, and forgetting that you are special too. Yes, help others; but help yourself too. If there was ever a moment to follow your passion and do something that matters to you, that moment is now. 7. Learn and practice one new skill every week. – Self-reliance is a vital key to living a healthy, productive life. To be self-reliant one must master a basic set of skills, more or less making them a jack of all trades. Contrary to what you may have learned in school, a jack of all trades is far more equipped to deal with life than a specialized master of only one. And besides, learning new skills is fun.

10 Practical Ways to Improve Yourself! Part 2

4. Exploit the resources you do have access to. – It’s not about having access to countless resources; it’s about exploiting the resources you do have access to. Stevie Wonder couldn’t see, so he exploited hissense of hearing into a passion for music, and he now has 25 Grammy Awards to prove it. What resources do you have access to that you are not using? 5. Help others when you are able. – In life, you get what youput in. When you make a positive impact in someone else’s life, you also make a positive impact in your own life. The more you help others, the more they will want to help you. Love and kindness begets love and kindness.

10 Practical Ways to Improve Yourself! Part 1

1. Maintain a positive attitude. – Positive thinking is at the forefront of every great success story. The mind must believe it can do something before it is capable of actually doing it. So be aware of your mental self-talk. We all talk silently to ourselves in our heads, but we aren’t always conscious of what we’re saying or how it’s affecting us. Start listening to your thoughts. If you hear negative thoughts, stop for a second and replace them with positive thoughts. As the Dalai Lama once said, “The way to overcome negative thoughts and destructive emotions is to develop opposing, positive emotions that are stronger andmore powerful.” For some practical positive thinking guidance, I recommend reading The Power of Positive Thinking. 2. Be kind to yourself. – If you had a friend who spoke to you in the same way that you sometimes speak to yourself, how long would you allow that person to be your friend? The way you treat yourself sets the standard for others. You must love who you are or no one else will. 3. Embrace problems as a natural part of growing. – Part of living and growing up is experiencing unexpected troubles in life.

Otedola & Lawal: A Drama For All Times

You know it's a pathetic nation when the 'dog eat dog' principle is the order of the day. Here is a nation where truth wears different faces, and one wonders what has happened to integrity. The saga involving oil magnate, Femi Otedola, and exquisite law maker, Farouk Lawal, is a reminder of the degeneration of standards and values in our society. The fuel subsidy report is in itself a masterstroke, a litany of scatching revelations and a job well done. However, the chairman of that committee, Farouk Lawal, could well have shot himself in the foot. The three million dollar bribe scandal he is currently embroiled in leaves a sour taste in the mouth. Lawal is one of those few lawmakers that was believed to still have an iota of integrity. His legislative dexterity and vast experience cannot be gainsayed. But, as is the case with power in Nigeria, he compromised. To have initially denied collecting bribe from Otedola and later admitting it, is foolhardiness in itself, and surges questions. The evidence against the diminutive Kano state born lawmaker is both damning and astonishing, to put it mildly. The begging question is, was he lured? Entrapped? Or simply doing his job? It has been said and not without reason, that there is something 'fishy' about the timing of the revelations. Why did Femi Otedola wait till after the probe to induce Mallam Farouk Lawal? Perhaps, it is worth reminding ourselves that Femi Otedola, the father of Zenon oil, is not just an ordinary Nigerian. This is a man that dines with the custodians of Aso Rock. A kingpin of the massively corrupt system. In fact, he is a member of the Presidential Economic Team. And just to state the obvious, heis one of the prima donnas and financiers of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Farouk Lawal has a famous history for stepping on toes, but he might have gotten himself stuck this time. Everything he has built now lays on the altar of implosion, and if ever he nurtures a governorship ambition for 2015, this is a major blow. Only time will tell how this theatrics will end, but it is only common sense to say that it will be crass madness to throw the baby away with the bath water. Lawal might go down if found guilty, but the fuel subsidy report should not be allowed to go down with him.

Which Way Nigeria?

From the Dana horror, to the senseless and countless killings in some parts of the North, Nigerians have been treated with tales of anguish, agony and avarice. The debacle has attained new gruesome heights, and a majority of Nigerians now live in a cloud of uncertainty, a knowing that they could be the next victim. It bleeds the heart when one considers that all these chronicles of pains could have been averted. Nigeria, for all the wrong reasons, have become the crux of international media. The world must now be in awe of us.They must be wondering what a farce of a people we are. Every single day holds fresh fears. Fears that have been made possible by the shenenigan and unscrupulous practices of men in our society. The gloom that has enveloped our nation is too petrifying for words. The uncertainty could even make suicide look like a mild option. Indeed, the man that stands in the focal point of all these, is Dr. Goodluck Jonathan. As he must have found out, leadership is a first class burden. The demands of his office is completely enormous, and he has only helped in providing the cynics with their firing darts. It has now become a trend that every sunday in our country must be a black one, with the recurring attacks of churches in the North. Yet, there are no measures to curtail the anomaly. The reactiveness of the Jonathan administration is complicating our problems. How long will Boko Haram remain faceless in an age when nothing is new under the sun? Has the fuel subsidy probe report now become a theatrics of some sorts? Will the Dana plane crash report ever see the light of the day? Questions everywhere. Questions that requires a firmness and dexterity in leadership. Questions that demands an active followership, beyond the rantings many only vent on social media. As Fela asked decades ago, we ask today: Which Way Nigeria?