Motivation Parlour

Category: Motivational

Success in Life is in Your Mind
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Everyone desires success in life, but not everybody can become successful, unfortunately. To be successful, you need first to understand what success is.
Your success is what you envision in your mind. It’s not what you see in other people. If you are with me here, let’s move on. Everything you ever want in life is inside you. God and the universe can only help you accomplish it. But everything starts from within you.
What is Success in Life?
Photo by Jill Wellington
Success in life is two-pronged. In a general sense, it’s all about accomplishing your goals. The goal should never be money because that’s only a means to an end. Money is never the end goal.
In the truest sense, success in life is happiness. It’s about being secure in your skin with high self-esteem. The sad part is that many people have a skewed sense of success. They think a life of success is about dressing in fancy clothes and driving sleek machines. That’s not success.
You’re just an average Joe trying to impress people you don’t like. Successful people buy assets. Over time, these items appreciate in value, like jewellery, land, and stocks. They don’t buy dumb shit to impress other people.
Success in Life Begins in Your Mind
A typical example I may use is the one of the Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg. Facebook was once a mere directory used in Harvard dormitories.
Mark began experimenting on the Facebook idea when he was a sophomore at Harvard, together with co-founder Dustin Moskovitz. The rest is history.
Julian Kyula, the Senior Pastor, Purpose Centre Church, Nairobi, is the founder and former CEO of Mode, a mobile decisioning company that lends airtime credit to its consumers.
Having worked with Credit companies in the US, Mr Kyula used his knowledge and experience in the industry to open his company, which is valued at millions of dollars. You can read more about a new company he is working on here.
Success in Life Means Creating Your Path
Those are some examples of successful startup stories in the US and Kenya. I’m not encouraging you to be a start-up founder. You need to know that everything you can create in this world is within you.
The success stories of the aforementioned examples were just a decision away. Mark would have continued with his Computer Science degree and shelved his Facebook project. But he thought otherwise.
If you are a student, please don’t drop school. Create your own path.
Kyula would have continued living in the US, earning a six-figure salary in a first-world country. Living the American dream, right? But there is something he discovered within him that was far beyond his job.
Think Long term
Young people! Please be patient and appreciate the value of hard work. Whether you work for somebody or are self-employed, keep your attitude right and grinding.
I can assure you a successful idea will come and be from within your mind. Shortcuts in life are there, but they are the longest routes bedecked with regrets, pain and frustrations if you think about it.
A young man deludes that when he hooks himself to a sugar mummy for riches in exchange for sexual favour, that’s a well-cut-out life for him.
That’s akin to dancing with a bear, and sooner she will eat you up. Young ladies! Being a rich man’s second wife or side chick doesn’t make you successful. You are sowing some evil seeds, and you will reap them later.
Young people should give themselves grace, believe in themselves (God already believes in you), and work hard because there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
And if you think you have seen your success in life, you have seen nothing yet because your success is in your mind.
Stay hopeful, stay positive.
16/11/2020
The Road of Life: Where Are You Heading to?
The other day I was driving down this familiar road that appeared entirely new because I had taken a long to pass through it. Interestingly, nothing was fascinating about it: broken culverts, gaping potholes, and common drainage issues. However, I do not want to talk about physical roads today. Why don’t we discuss the road of life?
The Enormous Question
What is it that comes to your mind when you hear about the road of life? If you are reading this piece, you must be on a journey that has an ultimate destination with several goals in between.
Alternatively, you could walk through several routes converging at the same point. Well, I even don’t know whether the statement above makes sense itself. But the fact is; eventually, you want to be somewhere in life if you are of a sound mind.
Greatness is in all of us
One pure truth about life is that everyone born of a mother under the sun has an inherent desire to be great. And some driven by vice have used crude methods to get to the top. Isn’t it true that some of our political leaders have killed and exiled their rivals and political opponents to get to the top? Well, you may say you fight for power and don’t beg it, but no one has the right to take away life.

One pure truth about life is that everyone born of a mother under the sun has an inherent desire to be great
Job Kiniale
What’s your view of success/greatness?
If you are still there, I want to talk partly about my experience in the Kenya Education system 8.4.4. Has not education played a major role in shaping our lives? Whether or not you went through it? There must be one or two things you learnt from it.
When I was in primary school, pupils who had done their last exams and left; probably joined national schools would come back visiting. We used to revere them and see them as our heroes because they achieved what we hadn’t.
We viewed them with awe and admiration and imagined the wonderful life they were leading in national schools. Our teachers could celebrate them, telling us to be like so and so.

Oblivious to us, they were also the typical high school students on a life journey with the core desire to make their lives more meaningful. Back in primary school, we imagined an excellent experience in a prestigious national school after that. Time passed, and the lucky ones like me (or should someone else be saying this) found themselves in high school.
Know things for What they are
We realized high school wasn’t a bed of roses either. Primary school was a walkover. In my case, mine was an excellent performing provincial school whose promotion to a national school was long overdue.
They deemed the school among the best in Western Kenya under the leadership of the head teacher we had nicknamed “Jeshi”. In high school, it was survival for the fittest.
A series of CATS, assignments, and quizzes. We met poor performance with some hard lashes on our sitting apparatus, and our teachers would threaten us with repeating classes.
So this is what the heroes we revered in our primary school days went through? The food was not much different from the one we used to consume with relish back in primary school but was better in my opinion.
Failed Expectations
Over time, I watched as guys gave up when things became tough. Some stricter subjects like Mathematics, physics, and chemistry proved to be a tall order for many.
In primary school, for instance, you could gamble with multiple choices and scoop 97/100%. If you have been through the Kenya 8.4.4. In the education system, you must relate to this.
I wouldn’t want to talk about myself here lest I brag or get biased. Add to the indiscipline cases that bedeviled the crooked ones.
As a high school student, the word expulsion or getting expelled was so dreary that thinking about it would send chills down my spine. Actually, to a high school student, it was like your life had ended abruptly.
While going home after getting expelled or suspended, you needed to think hard to fabricate lies that you would use to convince your parents why you were out of school or otherwise, your goose would be cooked.
And what were the villagers expected to think of you? After hearing the son of so and so joined high school and is now passing the time at home.
Many guys we schooled with in primary school got expelled or suspended indefinitely for many indiscipline cases.
The lucky ones would get suspended for two weeks, get back, and write course notes for missed classes. However, the worst would await them.
If students had done any exams during their suspension period, it means they would rank bottom, and “Jeshi” would shame them during the academic parade.
In the wildest of our dreams in primary school, this is not the life we had dreamt of or envisioned.
The Good Memories
On the flip side, there was the fun part of it. Graduating from putting on shorts to trousers. Writing letters to girls and interacting with them. Entertainment on weekends and abrupt changes with something delicious on the menu.
Also, not forgetting games, Mathematics contests, Science Congress, Drama and music fests, and many other co-curricular events.
In high school, we had revered visitors who could stop by for their teaching practice. Talking of an AGM, a complete bull would go down for parents’ lunch. The dining hall would instantly become a no-go zone for students.

Source of Hope
Among the revered visitors were the old boys who would motivate us to work hard. We would find great relief in listening to them, not because they were talented speakers but because they had gone through the system.
In them, we found the hope to join University via the government program called JAB–Joint Admissions Board, known as KUCCPS.
We also saw superheroes, role models, and guys who were already making it. To us, these were making it on the road of life. Looking back, I imagine the life struggles they also faced even though they appeared as heroes in our sight.
Now, I had this fairy picture of a university. I imagined a place where young adults were well-behaved, disciplined, focused, go-getters, and all the positive words you can think of.
Well, but wait till you visit the washrooms. Hahaha. Wait till you go for student elections! People would get stupid, forget about ideologies and primitively go tribal.

Add to the injury, the many tribal associations still exist within our campuses. Ooh! Kitwek Student Association! What for!!? Students would speak vernacular in some of these meetings. I thought we derived the name university from the adverb universal. Don’t we?
Logically, this would be expected regarding student elections. Weren’t their sponsors the same tribal kingpins we see in parliament buildings?
A friend once mentioned how University thwarted his expectations.
To him, the university was a citadel of research, where guys were immersed in research on several topics. Shockingly for him, it was an endless journey of lectures, the same handouts, and exams.
The White Lie
Talking from the eyes of a Kenyan graduate University wasn’t a walk in the park as our high school teachers would want us to believe.
If you burned your Chemistry book after your final exam imagining Chemistry was over, you would be in for a rude shock. Science-based courses still had elements of Chemistry and biology in the first year.
Freedom was at its peak on campus, and you had to learn discipline, manage your time, money, and foodstuffs.
Come exam time; people would read and study like there was no tomorrow. Even the best of jokers would seclude themselves and get down to business.
Apparently, at every stage of life, the Darwinian selection theory applies. By the fourth year, some chaps we began with were missing for myriad reasons. A proof of the fact that every stage on the road of life has lessons to offer.
Some reasons, such as having no school fees, were rather pathetic. However, cases of indiscipline, missing classes on end and getting pregnant along the way would make life difficult for many.
The Situation as it is
Four years later, everyone was out again, and we mingled through social media and WhatsApp groups.
Some came out married, others engaged, and some marriage was a distant dream far away. Still, when joining, others came from the North but left going South in search of greener pastures.
Others lingered for a while, perhaps waiting for a sign from God knows where.
For those who were partly students and partly engaged in businesses, it was merely a matter of transitioning from being a part-time student to a full-time business.
To them, education was a tool for relevancy, but they appeared to have their lives figured out already.
As of writing this, it’s another four years since campus. Time seems to have moved fast but with minor changes.
Young families are still coming up. Some saw the need to advance their education and returned to it again. Interestingly, a few unheard-of chaps have taken the world by storm.
They now driving gigantic machines and living a life that would only amount to wishes and dreams at our age.
You would think because they live largely, they would be quick to lift and support others. But nothing could be further from the truth.
Success is a process. You get to apply for jobs and not even get a regret email. You try a business, it somehow cannot see the end of the year. You try relationships; you get some rough rides before a soft landing.

You would think because of them living large, they would be quick to lift and support others down the ladder. But nothing could be further from the truth. Success is a process. You get to apply for jobs and not even get a regret email. You try business it somehow cannot see the end of the year. You try relationships; you get some rough rides before a soft landing.
Now to somebody who has achieved some sense of significance without going through breaking a sweat, the need or the heart to help may not even exist.
Some who had relatives and friends in prominent places knew they had well cut out their road of life only for matters to take a downward spiral.
The Big Questions
Essentially, the big question to ask ourselves is, where are we walking on this road of life? Why all the toil and sacrifice? Is it worth it? Is there a crown awaiting you at the other end of the tunnel?
Is it to disapprove of people who never believed in you, or what fuels you to keep walking? What meaning or significance are you looking for in life? At the end of your journey, what do you want people to remember you for?
That you paid school fees for orphans or built and lived in the most expensive house? Let me know in the comments below.
Bottom Line
Strictly speaking, things could differ from reality, however much you may think someone is living the best of life. As I wrap this up, it’s more important to know where you are heading on the road of life than just dragging yourself by.
19/06/2019
Success in Life: 5 Simple Things you Should Avoid to Earn it
Affiliate Disclosure:We often use affiliate links in our contentat no extra cost to you.This helps us offset some of the cost of running the website. Thank you for the support.
Success in life means unique things to different people. For some, it’s all about achieving your goals.
To others, it’s about inner peace and fulfillment. While many of us want to reach the peak of our careers, health, and business, many are void of the will to succeed. More so, fear of failure sometimes takes over, and we would rather do nothing than try.
However, we shouldn’t walk bedecked with that kind of mentality. And here are the things you should avoid to have success in life.
1. Self-doubt
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As one author puts it, no one will ever doubt you more than yourself.
Normally, this appears to be something that we can easily brush over our shoulders and put the blame on something else.
But the reality is that success in life will be an elusive dream unless you work on getting past your self-doubt.
But the reality is unless you work on getting past your self-doubt success in life will be an elusive dream.
Self-confidence could be the only difference between your failed state and success.
2. Wasting time
Image courtesy
The rich and the poor have both twenty-four hours a day. How the two groups spent their time makes the difference. Waste time and success in life will be an elusive dream for you.
To avoid wasting time, have a to-do list on your table every day you wake up. Make this easier by buying yourself a personal diary that will help you keep tabs on things you intend to do.
Many distractions in life kill our time. Movies, TV, and social media are all avenues that steal away our precious time.
However, from today on, you can desire to be a good time manager. You can plan your day well so that you have a constructive activity to do every our of your day.
3. Procrastination
Do it now if you have the chance. Period.
Image courtesy
As pupils back in the day, our parents could admonish us to finish our assignments in time before resting.
This practice was a life of virtue they were trying to instill in us at a young age.
If we could have procrastinated on our assignments, the consequences would be our teachers punishing us for getting to school late.
As we become adults, we always forget what our parents tried to instill in us at a young age.
Even though these habits could still be ingrained somewhere n our subconscious minds, we either ignore them or feel they were meant for kids.
As we begin to adult, we always forget what our parents tried to instill in us at a young age. Even though these habits could still be ingrained somewhere in our subconscious minds, we either ignore them or feel they were meant for kids
It’s today or never. Prioritize and take action.
4. Indiscipline in our Finances
You can watch all the podcasts and attend workshops and seminars about building wealth.
Similarly, you could attend classes on saving money and investing. But all these will be a waste of time if you won’t take action.
Success in life calls for good financial planning. And this means working with a budget.
Image courtesy

I was at this place at one point in my life. I wasn’t in charge of my finances and went from one debt to another with no savings or investment plan.
Realizing my lack of discipline and penchant for overspending is saving me a lot of bucks, and my bank account is growing fatter by the day.
How did I curb my lack of financial discipline? I used my bank’s standing order to make me never see the money I saved.
Also, any delay in depositing money into my bank account for the standing order the bank was to apply meant they would sir-charge me..
You don’t go shopping without a shopping list. You will buy everything your money can afford at the shop – Impulse buying.
Have multiple streams of income to have a constant cash flow. I still balance two jobs despite the pressure to deliver on both. Success in life calls for making tough decisions.
5. Giving Up
Giving up is always the simple thing when everything else fails to work. I have been a victim of this in life.
Image courtesy

The environment at the bottom is discouraging and snaps out of you the boundless energy you had.
It’s even worse when you surround yourself with pessimists who tell you nothing will ever work.
If you feeling overwhelmed with a task at hand or a project, take a break by all means but never give up.
Conclusion
Success in life means many things to many people. That means only you can define the breadth of your success and how you want it to be.
Additionally, not everyone can have the same route to success. In fact, some will arrive earlier at it than others.
There is no sense in getting envious or jittery about your friend’s success. They are in their own route with different circumstances compared to yours.
Success in life requires investing in yourself and focusing on becoming a better you.
Are there any of the mentioned points that you still struggle with? Let me know in the comments section below.
05/03/2019
Don’t Seek Success, Seek Value
Seeking success is good, but not better when compared to seeking value. What success are you seeking in your life? Is it the perfect marriage? Do you want to get a promotion at your workplace? In fact, you have been told the sky is the limit. Right? I’m not disputing the saying, but here is a thought: don’t seek success, seek value.
In life, we pay for value. Nothing more, nothing less. Whether it is a product or service, you use it not because of anything but the value you get from it.
So, lets take a deeper dive and find out why we should seek for value and not success.
4 Reasons You Should Seek Value and Not Success
1. You Change Lives by the New You
Think about it for a second. What? Life before Facebook. Social media was unheard of. You wouldn’t imagine in your wildest dreams sharing your photo over the world save for pen pals.
There is nothing so satisfying like being an agent of change or transformation in the lives of other people. You don’t have to invent Facebook like Mark. Light kind-hearted activities like feeding the hungry, giving an attentive ear make a lot of difference in peoples’ lives.
Similarly, in your workplace rather than chasing the success of getting a promotion, how about you focus on seeking and adding value to your team? Ask yourself what you could do better to improve your team’s performance.
By serving others, you tie yourself less to your goals and aspirations. You pay more on the value you are bringing to society. This builds you in the long run.
Your way to greatness is by serving others and adding value to their lives. However, amid all these, also pay attention to how you are growing in your life.
2. It’s Value that Brings you Success and not Vice versa
We always see success all around us and you can’t deny it. Whether it’s someone driving your dream car or having a fat paycheck.
Someone is running a successful business that is flourishing. You wish you could pull off something like that too. And so, clearly, our definition of success comes from what we admire or what someone is doing successfully in our space.
However, in most cases, this serves to hurt you because you are trying to project a journey or a milestone that isn’t yours. Put another way, you are trying to be the person who created that success. You and I know it’s a wild goose chase you are up to.
Comparison is the thief of joy. And so when you compare yourself with others, it leaves you empty and disappointed.
On the flip side, don’t seek success, seek value, and provide it to others. The truly successful people are those who contribute value to others. They don’t accumulate glory for others but want to see others succeed as well.
If you have a brand that is giving back to the community, people are more likely to value you and appreciate your efforts. Moreso, they will trust your brand. They will support you and join you in your value addition efforts.
That’s exactly how you build your success. You don’t seek success; you seek value and add it to the lives of other people.
When you seek value, you will begin giving that value to others. In the process, you will change, growing and building your brand. And that will be your success.
I work for a nonprofit in Kenya by the name One Acre Fund. It began as a small social enterprise serving 38 farmers in Kenya. Today, it has spread its program across 6 countries. The Kenya program alone serves 440,000 farmers.
3. You Build an Abundant Mindset
In most cases, we always focus on ourselves. We focus on how we can take care of our daily minor problems but forget to examine our mindset.
Even so, it’s easier for you to build an abundant mindset by focusing on others. Because by helping others, your mind will begin noticing that there is the value you can offer people.
You, therefore,, start appreciating yourself for what you can do. The joy you give to others will refresh you every day and put in you in abundant disposition.
4. Value Lasts Success is Temporal
Let’s say you are successful, right? You have no problem paying the bills; you got the money. Going for vacations is not an issue of at what cost it’s about when.
But if you were to die today, all the mega lifestyle disappears. Conversely, you could run a non-profit that feeds the hunger-stricken. The contrast is clear right away.
Success dies on the day you die
The former is having the best time of his life, while the latter is changing lives.
What always lingers for long after we die is the value we offered and not the sleek machines we drove.
Therefore, get out there. Do an act of kindness, or support a social course. People rarely forget your acts of kindness. Don’t seek success, seek value.
Icons of Value in the World
The world’s greatest are not remembered because of their successes, but because of their value. Check this quick rundown of people valuable in the world.
Bill Gates -Founded Microsoft
Mark Zuckerberg – Facebook
Andrew Youn – One Acre Fund
Lewis Brown – Motivational speaker
These people are not just successful out of the blue, but they sought after a value of over the years; which made them the successful figures they are today.
Bill Gates’ obsession with computers did not begin today.
If you have been seeking success all this long! Stop in your tracks right now and change what you seek after for value. Success is short-lived, but the value will never be archaic.
You want to be that person people won’t fail to mention at an important meeting or event because of your value. With value, you can’t afford to be ignored?
Bottom Line
Seek to be a person of value and not a person of success. This begins at finding a skill or carving out a niche you can be good at. A jack of all trades was never a master at anything. Besides, your simple acts of kindness can also make you a person of value.
22/12/2018
Why being Grateful gives you More Opportunities to be
The things I’m grateful for
There are two groups of people in the world today. Those who know how to be grateful and those who know how to complain. In which category do you identify yourself?
For the last two weeks, I have a been sleeping at an exclusive guest house. While here, I have enjoyed a sumptuous supper and breakfast, all paid and taken care of.
Well, this is not something happening out of the blue. Probably many of you have had a similar or even better experience.
Similarly, an equal majority may not have had the same experience or something close to this.
I say this not to brag, but to show gratitude to what life can offer if you maintain your grateful attitude.
I’m also aware of the many homeless and hunger-stricken who to whom life has given painful experiences. But they haven’t lost everything just yet.
Count your Blessings
In saying all this, I must emphasize that it is more important to count your blessings.
Whining and sulking is a wilderness mentality that kept the Israelites stranded in the wilderness for 40 years. Yet, their journey was to last for a mere 11-day journey to the promised land. (Canaan)
You are better off developing the culture of gratitude no matter how tough the going might be than joining a bunch of complainers along the streets, pub, church or you mention where.
You are better off developing the culture of gratitude no matter how tough the going might be than joining a bunch of complainers along the streets, pub, church or you mention where.
More to the guest house experience is also the fact that I have changed my place of residence to move closer to my workstation.

Embrace what makes you be Grateful
While many people I know were uncomfortable with my preference or choice of the place to stay, I chose not to look at things from their point of view but do what makes my heart comfortable.
I’m a firm believer in the principle of frugal living to create more avenues for saving and investing my money for the next 60 years (all factors constant) that I still have to live on planet earth.
One factor that would have turned me off from choosing this flat as a place of residence is its proximity to the office. Interestingly, though, I saw it as an added advantage to my principle of frugal living.
A few colleagues were of the opinion that it is more like living in the office from Sunday to Sunday because you are never away, literally because you live closer.
Close here is really close in the sense that when I stand at the door of my house, I’m able to see the main entrance to the office. Hahaha.
However, I saw things differently first because of my rental fee, which is way below the normal rates charged here.
More beneficial is the fact that I won’t spend a nickel and dime to get to the office, which helps to cut on my expenses even further.
Given the nose-bridge distance between my place and the office, that also means cases of being late because of busy traffic and facing a disgusted boss are now behind my back.
Let me also mention that I have a free and secure Wi-Fi connection 24/7 thanks to being a neighbor to the office.
Jim Rohn
Just yesterday I was listening to one renowned motivational speaker in the name of Jim Rohn.
Rohn says that one philosophy of success that made him rich was “wages make you a living, but profits make you a fortune”
And in saying so, Rohn mentioned the 70.10.10.10 principle of spending a dollar. That you must strive to ensure you live on 70% of what you make. The next 10%, spent it on charity and tithing.
The other 10%, put it to active investments, let’s say a business or a venture that has a quick turnover.
The last 10%, spent it on passive investments lets say buying a house and collecting assets.
Practically speaking, the money you make will never be enough to meet all your expenses and maybe take care of your savings and investments. But you can make the money be enough to cover all that if you want to. The buck stops with you.
Comparison, the Thief of Joy
Unfortunately, it is so pathetic that many of us get caught in a web of comparison, therefore, feeling our hearts with so much jealousy and “it should have been me” attitude.
Where is the joy in all that? I’m an employee, but I think most victims of this quagmire are employees.
Rarely the self-employed entrepreneurs and business people have the time for such comparisons because they are busy interacting with customers, sales, and themselves.
But they too can’t escape comparison syndrome because they are human beings with life in social media.
If you are in a social grouping of people, be alert and shield yourself against comparing yourself with other people. Run your own race.
Athletes when running stick to their lanes and focus on the finishing line without looking sideways. Why should you be the one to sabotage your own efforts to win by looking at the new mansion or BMW your neighbor gained? That should not be you at all.
Final Thoughts
I greatly so the need to exhort you this day on counting your blessings and being grateful for having them in your life. If I were to write all my blessings in this post, then I could still write them. In counting your blessings, you are not doing anybody a favor but you. Every day strive to count the three things that made you happy, or you were grateful for, and life will give you more opportunities to be grateful.
15/09/2018
Run Your Own Race
Gladys Cherono, Mary Wacera and Sally Chepyego at the 2014 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships (Google Images)
You may have heard of the statement – Run your own race. Have you for a moment ever thought of its significance in your life?
In actual sense, many people run other peoples race while thinking they are running their own race. Take for example a young man whom I will call Fred. Well, Fred chose to marry even when he was not ripe for marriage because his close friend and schoolmate, Julian had already married.
So Fred is motivated to marry by the decision of Julian his friend and not because he is ready to marry.
So Fred is motivated to marry by the decision of Julian, his friend and not because he is ready to marry.
I agree that we don’t emulate apes, we emulate fellow human beings and try to do what each one of us does best, however, that does not give us a ticket to run others people’s race.
No man is an island and everyone will always find themselves in a group or community of people at places of work, business, school or social events.
All is well until when you chose to abandon your own race for others peoples pursuit. Your colleague putting on the latest and trendy fashions in town should not be the driving force for you to upgrade your wardrobe when you know clearly you don’t have the money to do that.
Photo by Jonathan Chng on Unsplash
It is sad that many of us conform to purported norms and generalities and fail to be the CEOs of our lives. Ever heard of a company or organization that had the same mission statement, vision, and agenda as three other different companies? No!!
The same applies to our own lives. We lose our originality, sense of purpose and vision when we allow ourselves to get trapped in others peoples dreams and visions.
Do you have the will to follow your own course in life without wavering or your neighbor’s life is what you copy?
It’s not a surprise that some of the mentally challenged students and former schoolmates are driving posh vehicles and living in luxurious homes. But by the fact that your life isn’t that successful does not mean your drop your values, goals, and vision in life to pursue their course.
If you fall victim to materialism, the truth is that at no single day will you ever be contented with what you have. But later own you will learn the hard way that contentment with divine living does you a lot better.
True satisfaction in life can only be found when you run your own race. You are your number one competitor better stick to your own lane and be focused if you want to achieve greater things in life.
What many people do in common should never be taken as the gospel truth. Many people could as well be doing the wrong thing while being blinded by the notion that everybody is doing it and so it is right. How wrong?
We should refrain from the temptation to think that there is only one defined way to success in life. People get to be successful through different avenues in life and you better align with yours by running your own race.
Til next time.
30/08/2018
Use Common Sense
Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash
Twelve years ago, I got enrolled in an institution of secondary education that was deemed one of the best in the country.
We first formers were called “MONOS”. I guess the older students came up with the nickname because we were always on the receiving end of their harassment and bullying.
Coming from a place where most school mottos could be clearly understood or their intended meaning put out clear, the motto of the secondary institution I was enrolled into seemed to be quite unique and different from most school mottos I know.
The reason it turned out to be that way is the fact that most school mottos always appear to have the same pattern of cheering you on, for instance, you will find school mottos that go like, “Aim higher”, “The Sky is the Limit”, “Together we can”, “Striving for Excellence” and more like them. However, in my new found hub of education, things caught me by surprise because the motto did not follow the common pattern of school mottos I knew about. In fact, what made it more unique was the fact that it did not address the school or a large group of people but you as an individual. You could actually get that feeling in your heart that indeed it’s my duty to abide by this motto and no one else will if not me.
To us first formers, we got more confused by the motto than embracing it. The motto kind of led you to yourself. You needed to know your surroundings well and know what to do at the right time and in the right place. Unfortunately, many of us, we still had no clue or a proper grasp of the school routine and rules and were therefore in limbo.
Well, the motto wasn’t like something about coding or rocket science. As a matter of fact, it was very simple to understand but how to put it into practice was the big deal. So when we were told “Use Common Sense was the motto or we rather so it painted all over we got that awful feeling in our stomachs while asking ourselves what all this was about.
But as the school term gained momentum we came to learn from the older students that we had only ourselves to blame because we kept on imagining many unnecessary things about in the school. You simply needed to do the right thing at the right places at the right time. And for you to be able to do it right and maintain discipline, you needed your five senses of see, hear taste, smell and touch to be very and always alert.
For instance, we used to be woken up for morning personal study that was usually referred to us Morning Preps that could begin at five o’clock. There was an old, rusted rim of a tractor tire that used to be hit with a metal object every day at five o’clock. It was actually our morning alarm.
After one student complained about the rusty rim being too primitive for our school image the administration changed it to an electronic bell.
Well, life generally has its own puzzles and people need to realize that not many use common sense in their day to day living. I interact with both the old and young in my place of living, work and social events but it really becomes disgusting when people cannot use their common sense to do the right things at the right time. However, I agree that the aforementioned statement is itself relative and somebody’s right could be someone else’s wrong but at the end of the day we must agree that facts are facts and there is always a guiding principle to the thing of things.
Take, for example, an adult who cannot leave the washrooms clean as he or she found them. Etiquette dictates that you use the washrooms responsibly for the sake of others who are using the same facility. In the event that you mess it up, common sense dictates that you clean up your mess because it should not be anyone else’ responsibility to do that.
Take, for example, an adult who cannot leave the washrooms clean as he or she found them. Etiquette dictates that you use the washrooms responsibly for the sake of others who are using the same facility. In the event that you mess it up, common sense dictates that you clean up your mess because it should not be anyone else’ responsibility to do that.
To those living in rented apartments or flats, it becomes illogical when your neighbor who is hardly a stone throw away from you to want to listen to their music at the highest volume possible when common sense would have simply told them not everyone likes that type of music or they could be listening or watching something else in their living rooms.
It even becomes more disgusting when adults cannot make a queue to be served food or attended to for whatever service they need but would rather scramble creating more chaos. Some literally walk to the front of the queue or jump the queue and give you that look that says, “Utado?” or “What will you do?” Common sense demands that when you happen to see a queue then all those people standing or seated in that queue are feeling the same way as you feel but have chosen to be orderly, therefore, you need to see the orderliness and follow suit. Haaa!!!
For heaven’s sake, common sense demands that you eat with your mouth closed because you yourself know very well its uncomfortable being on the other end where you have to see the masticated food particles in someone else’s mouth. Right?
On public utilities like latrines, you must always knock on the door first lest you push it through when someone is in there. On the other hand, If everyone around you is using a fork, spoon, and knife to eat, why be the one to do it the opposite way.
While you may want to call it etiquette or something else but the end of the day, it all boils down to using your senses to make the right decisions and choices.
Best.
21/08/2018
4 Misunderstood Statements about Money
Hello good people,
It has been long since we got to interact with each other but I’m fit and sound like a giant fig tree. For a moment, I have been having these negative thoughts about money but on a closer introspection, I realized how wrong I was. To some of us, money has been over glorified at the expense of our families, relationships, friendships and personal development.
Well, who said money isn’t important anyway. Just as you do need it, I also need it to offset some of my bills and keep life moving forward. However, money is not all that matters in life but many other things as well.
If you agree with the aforementioned statement then we are definitely on the same page. Out there, many are the statements concerning money. Many mention it when looking for it or when trying to justify their unwanted conditions.
So today, in the spirit of self-growth and personal development, I would like us to demystify a number of myths about money that get as all on the wrong side of things.
# 1. Money is Everything
If money was everything, then your very breath of life would be dependable on it. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not talking about the patient who needs a life-supporting machine that obviously costs money to be used. The thing is, you have an obligation to pay your water bill, electricity bill and et. Cetera but no any single time did anybody from anywhere stood at your doorstep demanding a clearance of your life bill for the years you have so far lived on earth.
Besides, genuine friends and true lasting relationships can never be bought with money.
Let’s say your breath of life was worth $0.01/minute then you need to calculate your age and you will know exactly what amount you will have to part with to pay for your life.
Fortunately for us, all that is unnecessary because the breath of life has been given freely.
The Bible talks about the story of the rich fool in Luke 12:13-21, who after harvesting bountifully thought he still had a life to destroy his barns and build bigger ones for the bountiful harvest only for his life to be taken that very night.
# 2. Excess Money Makes You Immoral
On many occasions, this statement has hit my ears both from friends, foes and family members alike. Clearly, I didn’t get it right what could be the reason they spewed such ignorant statements but the fact remains that they are all wrong. One important question I keep asking myself is whether these individuals would one day in life wish to have a lot of money or not.
You need to know that the excess money being castigated as making one immoral has been used to contain aids and Malaria prevalence in Africa provided relief food in famine and hunger stricken parts of the world, built both churches and schools.
In all these instances, donor funding both from individual and institutional donors has been used immensely but I do not see where money made anyone immoral but to create solutions.
But one thing I do understand very well is money simply picks the character of the beholder. Money in the hands of a drunkard makes him or her more of a drunkard. Same is true for a gambler, child trafficker or drug dealer.
#3. I want to be a Millionaire
This statement is correct in every sense and there is no problem with anyone of us wanting to have millions in our bank accounts. But the question is, what do you want the millions for? Some of the world renown billionaires never had the dream of becoming what they are today but because they were focused on solving a problem or filling a gap by adding value to the way of things, that in itself minted them billions let alone millions. Have someone in mind? Point is, it is not about the millions it is about the purpose you got behind the millions.
If your desire to be a millionaire is driven by anger, need for approval or security think twice because even after you get your millions these issues will still be right there with you.
If your desire to be a millionaire is driven by anger, need for approval or security think twice because even after you get your millions these issues will still be right there with you.
#.4 The Rich Steal to Continue Being Rich
I’m not sure I want to write this statement because I seem to be in limbo myself. This is because; I come from a country where corruption is so rife that making money legally, ethically and morally now appears to be a thing of the past. I must say that this statement is partly true going by corruption dossiers and inquiries done in Kenya and are in public domain. However, I also must add that to anyone of us who has a desire to be counted among the rich, this statement is not the very right one for you. You can’t be what you negatively keep on talking about.
Firstly, this statement paints the rich, something you want to become like thieves and only thieves. What effect will it have on you? You will start resenting the rich, envy them and make them your enemies. You can as well forget about being rich.
I would rather suggest you focus on them that have made much money legally, morally and ethically right rather than sabotage your own billion dollar dream.
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29/06/2018
5 Things to Do When You Feel a Failure in Life
Photo credit: wakeupcloud.com
I’m not sure I want to write about this but deep inside I feel there is a soul out that there that needs some fuelling words to soldier on. That soul could be me or you. The word failure in itself is scary, unwanted and attracts no admiration but sympathy and shame.
In your life right now, you could be having this feeling because of one reason or the other but you need not put yourself down or remain in that fallen state. Life needs to be understood as a journey and not a destination. If you understand life as a journey, well and good because that means you are privy to the fact that a journey is never smooth all through but around comes bumpy and meandering roads.
However, if you understand it as a destination, the bumpy rides along won’t make any sense to you and that means you will walk in negativity, misery, and hopelessness but luckily for you in every Alpha there is always an Omega unless you choose to remain in that situation.
If you are feeling that broken, stuck and way below your peers in life then you need to try this out:
1. Read God’s Word
Reading the Bible has many benefits to your soul that you will come to understand later when you get deep into reading it. From it comes revelation of God’s will over your life, hope over tough situations in your life, an answer for every single situation surrounding your life.
You will read about the story of the Israelites, that despite being God’s chosen people they failed God in many ways, were given unto their enemies, exiled, afflicted but they still remained to be God’s people and God restored them promising them a future and hope. You are not any different because, despite the bumpy ride at the moment, there is a future and a hope for you.
1. Be Inspired by those Who Have Overcome Your Challenge
Hope is a word so simple yet difficult to understand especially when you are at the bottom of the totem pole.
At the bottom, everything seems to be bleak, lifeless and stagnant. That said, it is extremely difficult for someone to understand it when he or she is facing that huge mountain to climb, a financial or emotional struggle.
However, you can find inspiration in those who have conquered the same battles. For instance, there are those who have gone through a stream of bad marriages and failed severely. But later on, they were able to learn from their failures to the point of becoming marriage counselors themselves.
There are those who have broken the bad habits you are struggling with right now. Find inspiration in them and soldier on.
1. Read autobiographies of Great World Leaders
We all know that being a leader comes with a great responsibility of leading people. People look up to you for guidance, direction and rely entirely on your wisdom and leadership skills. Leaders, therefore, whether by chance or choice face difficult situations in their career and life that may devastate them too many times.
Case in point is Abraham Lincoln, a onetime US president who went through a stream of failures in business, politics and his personal life before clinching the seat of the most powerful nation on earth.
1. Know your Failures and Face Them
It is said that successful people take 100% responsibility for what happens to them. Therefore, for life to move forward you have to take action by facing your failures and knowing them for what they are and subsequently laying down a plan to overcome them.
The world does not recognize victims of life or those who play victims to life but heroes and those who have conquered storms in life to bring the ship back home. If it is a financial struggle or overcoming your debts, you need to know all the debts you owe from the smallest to the highest and lay down a plan to clear them as soon as possible. As one author put it if you find yourself in a hole stop digging.
1. Tell Yourself it’s Never too Late
In this voyage called life, the word late is allowed to be relative clearly because one’s lateness maybe another person’s timeliness.
Actually, the point is that everyone operates in their own time zone and your peer owning a company at 25 does not mean something could be wrong with you. However hard you may have worked or tried hard, it is not yet the time to give up but to persist even more because it’s never too late.
Your dream house or company could just be around the corner. If you are still young and energetic, take comfort in the fact that you still have the time to work hard and achieve your goals.
If you felt encouraged or inspired, like and share this post.
14/06/2018
Destined for Greatness? 10 Signs you are
Well, I don’t know about you. But the fact is we are all destined for greatness. Yes! You read me right.
Life on many levels has not encouraged us to see the seeds of greatness we carry. We seem to walk in an oblivious state of the blind side of greatness we possess.
You need to realize that you are not alone in this. Many others know they have a feeling of greatness in them and are trying to find it out.
Some have been born of rich parents. Some have been born with unimaginable talents. Still on the same not, some have been born intelligent and with outstanding character. In all these arrays of things, everyone carries a seed of greatness in them. Yes. Very true.
And therefore, these lead to the 10 crystal clear signs that you carry a great destiny.
1. You Don’t Fear to Dream Big
Some say dreams are just dreams, but show me a person who does not dream? If not, I will show you a person on the verge of extinction.
Great civilizations and revolutions in the world have been born on the mere platform of dreaming.
By all means, possibly dare to dream bigger than your reality because a seed of greatness lies in dreams.
2. You are Destined for Greatness if you Never Stop Learning
A degree is just a percentage of knowledge. In no way does it give you a ticket to put your brain on auto-pilot mode.
That said, it is important to know that people destined for greatness never stop learning. Safaricom, the Kenya giant telecommunication network, had Ksh 55.3 Billion in the year ended March 2018.
The late Bob Collymore was at the helm then. Bob never had a University degree. Nevertheless, he kept learning.
You can learn virtually everything without a degree if you have a hunger for knowledge.
3. You are Destined for Greatness when you Build Great Relationships
Relationships are the hallmarks of human living. As the old saying goes, no man is an island, no matter how introverted you could be.
Learning to be open-minded, listen, and respect other people’s point of view is important.
Knowing how to live right with people is key. Understanding human psychology means you are destined for greatness.
Out of these human relationships emerge great networks. Also, remember that your network is your net worth.
4. Your Third Name is Persistence
You can bounce back even in the face of adversity and life’s misfortunes. You can prove the world wrong.
If this fits you, be sure you are a candidate for greatness.
History is dotted with award-winning movie stars and celebrities who never imagined they would go beyond the theatre stage.
Today, they gross our TV screens. It’s only persistence that can define how far they have come.
5. You Want to be Your Own Boss
You may be an employee that is good and committed to achieving your company’s core values.
However, that has not prevented you from pursuing your own interests and ambitions in life. Maybe you want to start an online business.
You give your employer the same energy levels; you also put in the effort to push forward your passions and ambitions.
6. You Always Want to be Different
John F. Kennedy, former President of the United States, said, “Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth.”
Accepting the status quo points to a man who has just killed his seeds of greatness.
One true mark of greatness is daily taking a step to challenge your life mentally, spiritually, and in all possible ways.
7. You Have One Thing You are Willing to Die for
“If you haven’t found something you are willing to die for, you aren’t fit to live.” Martin Luther King Jr.
I couldn’t agree more with the aforementioned quote. Terrorists thrive in their illegal operations because they have found the one thing to die for.
The same extends to you and me. Once you have found the one thing you are willing to die for, you are destined for greatness.
8. You Have no Attachment to Material Things
You know how to control worldly desires, which means living frugally.
Okay, I have the newest Subaru model, but losing it doesn’t mean life will be boring.
Your ability to detach yourself from material things in a world where everybody wants to flaunt their new Rolex or latest BMW in town shows the seeds of greatness you carry.
9. You Have Room for Randomness
Sometimes the best things in life have happened not because of proper planning and timing but sheer randomness.
You wake up one morning with a written to-do list of what to accomplish for the day. Funny enough, your friend shows up at your doorstep and asks that you accompany him to a social event.
Well, it just never turns out to be a social event. Actually, you happen also to find the one who becomes your soulmate.
10. You are Optimistic
Using scripture in the Bible as an analogy to this point, Luke 6:45, in part, says that, out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
Anyone negative on the inside will definitely speak negative words. The same is true for one who is positive on the inside.
Ever met someone who made you want to write points every time he or she spoke? If yes, then you know what I mean.
Unleash your seeds of greatness because you are destined for greatness!
Bottom Line
Do you want to know if you are destined for greatness? Well, you just read about what makes you one. In fact, you already are, and this post confirms that you are. Guard your mind and stay positive against all negative forces in life. Safe journey to your great destiny.
18/05/2018