ORDER!!! (PART ONE)

There are two definitions of ORDER that I like:

1. "The arrangement or disposition of people or things in relation to each other according to a particular sequence, pattern or method."

2. "Putting things into their correct place following some rule."

Imagine the various wars that have been fought on this planet and in fact are still being fought and what comes to your mind? Imagine car drivers driving on the wrong side of the road at terrifying and impaling speeds; what comes to your mind? Imagine the mayhem of customers all thronging against each other at the door of a supermarket heatedly aspiring to get inside because it has all the goods in its store on sale; what comes to your mind? Imagine the various coaches of a speed train coming off the rails as the train speeds on with thousands of people inside; what comes to your mind? Imagine you wake up in the morning with loads of things to do yet not knowing where to begin; what comes to your mind?

I could go on and on but am pretty certain you already get the drift of what am getting at.

Without order, things will never be very right in our lives. It is the one most important thing that enables us to sail somewhat accurately and assuredly towards a particular goal, target or destination. When I was in college, I do recall been taught in Mathematics that, "The shortest distance between two points is a straight line." Any other route one takes towards one's destination that isn't straight will mean one will get there pretty late, or possibly may not even get there at all. Order is that straight line that takes us from where we are to where we hope or expect to get to. It is a very key element, if not the most important one, in every person's life that we cannot afford to throw away.

Now we have stepped into a new year with all our usual expectations and high hopes and glamorous plans of success and victories, just like we did last year, and the year before last year, and the year preceding that too! Expectations, expectations, expectations; everyone of us eager for a better season this term around than the last one. But, in truth, seldom are quite a number of us actually ready for them. We often step into a new year with exactly the same mindset as the last and yet have the hope that things will be different somehow. How, my dear friend; how? Without order in our lives, we all have the potential to spill out of control. When things are not put in their proper places and perspectives, nothing moves or gets done well...and we all have to resolve to do what is necessary in order for us not to have the same unprofitable results like we had the last time. 

Proper order in our lives is the key. If we are expecting better results this year than last year, then we must assiduously and consciously put order into our lives because no one else is meant to do it for us and because it's the only way we can be assured of meeting our goals.  We must, therefore, order our minds, our time, our lifestyles, our businesses, our jobs, our finances, our health, our families, our education, our driving habits, our relationships, our ideas, our speech and even our legacies. In fact, the list goes on and on...but I don't have space to spill all. Yet this simple, practical step will save us loads of stress in the future.

Recently, I realized that my room has been in a serious mess; I just seem to have everything thrown anywhere I like in it. Even when I make a mental note to tidy up a particular area of the room later, I somehow never get round to doing so. Other important matters  find some way of stopping me from doing so. But see, it is my room!!!! Where I sleep and rest after a whole day of work and running around. It is the place where I lay my head and get recuperated for the next day; and if it's untidy, that's how I will meet it when next I want to sleep. This will affect my whole body system because I will end up not having a good night's rest. But once my room is all tidied up, I can sleep in peace and comfort and the tranquility of my mind is guaranteed.

ORDER YOUR MIND

Our minds are the engine rooms for every decision we make and every action we take. If anything will change in our results this new year, how our minds work will be key to that. We must, therefore, put our minds in proper order. Certain unprofitable ways of thinking must go. Everything that has not worked in the past we must drop and instead strive to re-arrange things for better results. This would mean reading more, studying more and doing all we can to educate and improve our minds because no one individual knows everything. If we can put our minds in order, we would put our lives in order because everything that goes on in our minds affect our lives.

ORDER YOUR TIME

The way we use our time this year has to be better than we have in the past. This is so because time is a very serious and essential matter and tool that, if utilized properly, will help us to attain growth and success. We must stop wasting time on non-profitable adventures and instead invest it in worthwhile ventures. We must take the time we have here on earth seriously because nobody lives for ever. We need to take our wake-up and sleeping times more seriously. We need to value our being on time to work and important meetings instead of this so-called African Time that is anti-order. We need to practice how to finish or accomplish certain tasks that we are saddled with at the expected time and not behave as though we own time. Because in truth, the fact that we have time (by being alive) does not  mean that we own it. I will never forget how I wasted precious time and years doing the wrong things after I left college instead of utilizing time by engaging myself in preparing for university. I had to write the Joint Admissions Matriculation Board (JAMB) exams five times before I could eventually enter the university. And of the five times, it was only at the fifth time of asking that I really was serious and didn't play with my study time.

Next week, we will continue in this line of thought as I'll reel out other areas that are important that we put order into.

SET-UP YOURSELF...

A few days ago, a friend and fellow colleague of mine walked up to me for advice with which he hopes to properly start up the new year. He was particularly concerned about not wanting to make either a wrong or poor start to this new season. And I understood why he had that concern.

Usually, the way you start may not necessarily mean you'll end that way, but it does really matter because it often helps to set-up the foundation for the rest of the journey. So, all things being equal, if you start well, there's a great possibility that you'll have a good journey and subsequently eventually end well. I don't know about you; but this year, for me, has to bring in better dividends than last year did, and am very eager to see that happen.

My eagerness, however, is one thing. How I go about achieving it is another. In my first blog for 2014, I did outline a few things I said I was hoping to achieve this year. And I know that am not the only one carrying dreams full of possibilities for the year. Still, except we take out time to properly plan, we most likely won't see anything positive happen.

I call the time for proper planning SET-UP TIME. It's a very crucial period when we should sit down and take proper stock of our lives, our potentials, our hopes, the possibilities, the constraints...virtually all the factors that could play vital roles in our march to achieving what we want and desire for the year. The Set-Up Time is actually the Thinking Time.

Quite a number of people hardly do this in the New Year. Yes, they are filled with expectations but such expectations are nothing more than mere wishes because there are no plans backing them up. We have to stop acting on whims and yet expect concrete results. Our outputs can never be better than the level of our preparation. I heard of a study that said, "Only 5% of the human race think. 15% think they are thinking, and the remaining 80% will rather die than think."  Now, that may sound a little bit too far-fetched to you, but do please calm down and take some quality time out to think through your expectations and plans for this year. It will do you a whole lot of good.

By setting up yourself properly for this year, you would actually be leading yourself right. A lot of the time we view leadership as "Me leading others,"  when in truth it has to be first "Me leading myself." Once am able to properly lead myself, I now stand in good stead to be able to lead others and also take charge of what I need to so that I can properly control and direct the affairs of my life. Living a life of chance is definitely not what I plan to do this year because an achievement is more fulfilling when I see the results I had planned for. Nothing beats that.

Take out quality time to plan your goals. But spend a good chunk of that time to do some very good thinking.

  You will definitely come out with a solid structure upon which you can now ride on for the rest of the year. Your mind is carrying the building blocks of all the success you can ever achieve in 2014 and am eager to celebrate with you when we all get to the end of this new season.

This is the year you and I have been waiting for, so let's take the necessary steps that we should and that will lead us gradually but definitely to where we want to be.

Set-up yourself for your success this year.

Take out some time to pause and ponder on this thought....

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!

Happy New Year, folks!!!! And welcome to 2014, a year a lot of us have been looking up to with great expectations. A year dreams and hopes are expected to come true for many. A year in which loads of happiness and joy are expected to flow. A year in which things are expected to work, where the failures of the past year or years are expected to be forgotten and success is expected to be embraced. A year we all hope will end well.

2014.

For me, I believe it's going to be one great ride of a year. The year in which my next set of books, IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE PERFECT, MIND YOUR MIND and GIFTED!!! finally get published and released. The year my radio programme, PAUSE & PONDER MOMENTS ON RADIO kicks off. The year my podcast and YouTube presence finally get to roll. The year my media outfit begins to make positive waves in the country. The year my investments become more stable. The year my vision and plans for an empowering seminar finally comes to fruition. And the year I take that bold step with her as she smiles non-stop into my eyes with everlasting affection (am smiling here.....hehehehehehehehehe).

Great plans, not so? Am sure you'd agree that they are. Am telling you, should they all pan out, I would be one of the happiest persons on this planet.

Hold on one minute though... As much as I do know that they are plans I so eagerly await to see all come true, am also conscious of the fact that if there's first of all no dream, I cannot possibly eventually get to the end. So, my friends, I implore you all to DREAM!!!! Because no dream, no hope; no hope, no expectations; no expectations, no possibilities; no possibilities, no effort; no effort, no results; and no results, no fulfillment.

And as the days and weeks go by, I will do my little best to show you how best to get the most out of this new year. And I sincerely do hope I do a good job for you all.

So, get your journals, pens and enthusiasms ready and up because it's certainly going to be a good year!!!!

Once again, welcome to 2014!!!!!!!

HEALTHY FINANCES (PART 2)

For those of you who took out time to read the first part of this piece, thanks a million. And for those of you who did me the honours and made comments concerning it, thanks a zillion. It really made my day to know that the article was able to be of immense help to someone. In this second part of HEALTHY FINANCES, I want us to briefly look at the issue of setting aside a little from what we earn either periodically or occasionally for what is usually termed "the rainy day". 

I was in elementary school when I first started this habit of putting money aside for times that I felt it could come in handy. Am not really sure who taught me the concept at that tender age but am quite sure I didn't learn it in school because we were never taught money matters then. And I doubt if they've started teaching money matters in our elementary schools at present. Which is quite a shame, really, because such an education could go a very long way to help many students as they gradually ease their way through elementary and secondary schools as well as universities or any other higher tertiary institutions they may find themselves in over time. I recall always setting aside the shiny kobo coins from the not-too-shiny or clean ones that our father used to give to us every day for school lunch. In some days, if all the coins were shiny, I would ignore lunch and just put the coins away into a small basket that my stepmother had made available for me. Then, from time to time, when I felt like it, I would take a little out of my saving basket and declare a special lunch spree for my close friends then during recess. Or I'd buy a special book, toy or any other thing I'd been eyeing for a while. Nonetheless, the spirit of my childhood always eventually overcame that of a lack of maturity and before I knew it all my well saved money would be gone by the holiday season. And I would have to start all over again!!!!

I have briefly shared this experience because of something it has taught me. One, for you to be able to handle a rainy day, you need to have money saved somewhere. Two, you can't have money saved somewhere unless you PLAN TO DO SO. To have healthy finances you must be strategic in your thinking and handling of your money. Strategic thinking helps you to know where you stand financially; it helps you to know where you want to go financially; it helps you to know how you intend on getting there; and, hopefully, should show you the steps you can take to eventually get there. Strategic financial thinking is the one big missing part of most of our decisions concerning our finances. We mostly think that all we need to do is wake up one morning, make a simple decision and all will be well. Not so. We must be more certain than that. And taking stock of our true financial state is always the best way to start. Once we've identified that, we must also identify how we want to improve our finances. And one very key way is the setting aside of a little of what we already have so that we do not spend all we have at once. It can be painful and agonizing but you must commit to it (remember Part 1 of this piece) because it's the only way.

Commit to putting aside a certain percentage of whatever income you may have per time and practice the habit of ignoring whatever is set aside. As much as possible, try to apply the 30/70 Principle, where you save and invest 30% of your income and then spend (not waste) the remaining 70%. As a suggestion, half of the 30% you save can be used for investments no matter how small while the rest stay as savings or as your EMERGENCY FUND. 

Listen, no matter how much money you may be making as a business owner or salary earner, if you don't learn and practice saving, you will not like your financial state months or years down the line. Strategic financial thinking demands it for you to gradually walk yourself into a healthy financial state. 

I'll be seeing you in 2014. But for now, do kindly take out some time to pause and ponder on this.

THE GOOD BOSS

Quite a number of us want to be bosses; bosses of our own personal businesses or bosses over a set of people wherever we may be working for our monthly stipends. And there's nothing overtly wrong with that. But being a boss in whatever capacity means we will be at the head of someone or a set of people, people who need to carry out certain instructions of ours to ensure that our business, office or organisation makes progress. After all, you cannot be a boss if there's no one following you.

Being a boss or a manager entails that those following you must be led in the right direction. But being a good one entails more than that. While some may argue with some of the points I've listed below, it is worthy of note that they are tried and tested points and would give you and your organisation great mileage in the pursuit and accomplishment of the organisation's goals. 

And to achieve that, the people working with you really need to be treated as human beings with brains inside their heads. Don't I know that there are difficult employees with agenda that are often contrary to that of the boss and/or the organisation? Of course, I do. But before the mighty hand of hammering discipline finally descends on them, a good manager should take out time to do all he/she can and give them the very best of benefit of doubts; because not every employee is negatively predisposed to their working environment.

So, what mustn't a good boss do?

1. HE MUST NOT BE ARROGANT

When a boss constantly prevents his employees from getting ahead by always demeaning them all in an attempt to prove his own competence and superiority, it shows that he is an arrogant fellow. And if not checked, that could become a destructive element and force within the organisation as he now has power over employees' work assignments, promotion opportunities, and performance reviews.

2. HE MUST NOT BE UNCLEAR

An unclear boss is one who doles out confusing directives to his employees or those working under him. Such directives tend to leave the employees guessing as to what he really wants from them. And it can be really frustrating as well as they also become unsure of what to do, which in turn negatively impacts on the organisation's goals.

3. HE MUST NOT BE A MICRO-MANAGER

When a boss constantly interferes with an employees assignments or projects and is unwilling to allow the employee control over them, he is said to be a micro-manager. This style particularly passes across to the employee the impression that he or she doesn't really have the mental capacity or ability to do the work that was entrusted into their hands in the first place. And it can also really irritate. Why give me an assignment to do when you won't even allow me handle it my own way? What's the point?

4. HE MUST NOT HAVE UNREALISTIC DEMANDS

When you never give your employees sufficient time to complete whatever assignments or work that is given to them, that's being outright unrealistic. It puts undue pressure on their minds and will definitely affect their work. Mistakes can even ensue and thus have negative impacts on the goals of the organisation.

5. HE MUST NOT BE INSECURE

The boss who constantly tries to block the progress of staff because he doesn't want the skill of any employee to overshadow him is insecure. Such a boss is, in truth, a stumbling block of progress to the organisation himself as he definitely isn't the sole harbinger of knowledge and skills on the planet and so is preventing the organisation from benefiting from the gifts embedded inside others.

6. HE  MUST NOT LACK INTEREST

Almost similar to Number 5 above. This boss deliberately ignores the talent of his employees. And this makes it impossible for him to be able to get the best out of them because he doesn't really know the people working for him and doesn't take time to determine where they can excel based on their talents.

 

7. HE MUST NOT BE A SELECTIVE LISTENER

This kind of boss believes that all the answers are with him and that his staff do not have the adequate knowledge to contribute meaningfully to the project at hand. As a result, he rarely listens to what they have to say no matter how fantastic and profitable their ideas may be. Again, such an attitude is detrimental to the progress of the organisation and he would be doing it a whole world of good by changing that attitude.

8. HE MUST NOT BE UNDULY PROACTIVE

Again, when a boss feels that only his skills are good enough and are able to save time that will ensure that the job is done quicker, he is said to be unduly proactive. Such an attitude prevents the employees from learning how to solve problems on their own. It does not allow them to be adventurous and proactive in their own thinking but instead makes them feel like robots that are only there to do a certain bidding. It is an attitude that is always discountenancing the intellect and abilities of the staff. This is also detrimental to the progress and growth of an organisation.

9. HE MUST NOT BE SELF-SERVING

A boss who is self-serving is one who likes to take all the credit and will never allow his employees or staff gain the recognition they deserve for successful assignments or projects. He is purposely preventing employees from advancing in the organisation, possibly because he feels threatened or simply because he has an ego problem. Either way, it is detrimental to the organisation regardless of the level of accolades he manipulates himself into.

To be a good boss, the aforementioned above are very key. And we all need to heed them, whether we are in charge of offices, companies, our personal businesses, a small or large group of people, shops, restaurants, airlines, etc.

It is very important that we take out some time to pause and ponder on these...

COMING SOON...

CLUB GREED...

At one point or another, we all have belonged to this club called CLUB GREED. In fact, it's an endemic human problem. Some of us have been there many times, some are about entering it, while quite a handful find it worrisome and difficult to get out of it. It's the special club for special people with a universal qualification and appeal... All you need to join is just to simply have a CRAVING FOR MORE!!!

Now, you're asking..."Is it wrong to want more?"

The answer is no, it isn't. If my clothes get old, I'd surely like to have them changed. If my family increases in number and the house we are staying in obviously becomes too small to handle our increase, I'd surely like to get everyone into a bigger place. But it is wrong to always want more on the basis of just trying to prove a point to others as proof of God-knows-what.

Greed is defined as, "an excessive desire to acquire or possess more than what one needs or deserves." It is also defined as, "an intense and selfish desire for something, especially wealth, power or food." Wikipedia says that, "The purpose for greed, and any actions associated with it, is possibly to deprive others of potential means or future opportunities or to obstruct them therefrom, as a measure of enhanced competitive advantage."

We all have been greedy at one time or another. In fact, some of us still are and are even ever more  willing to defend our desire for more and more with as many superlative logic as is possible. For us, it is not bad because it is human nature. Yet we fail to see the real driving force behind this desire. Our intense eagerness to always have it all or to have it more than the other person isn't necessarily because we need extra stuff, but because we want to show that we are in a different class than others. It is that desire that drives men to steal what doesn't belong to them, or usurp power that they are not meant to have, or push their wives into becoming baby-making machines so that the world would see that they are "real men" even when they don't have the capacity to take care of them, or makes the unmarried desire to pry away from the married their spouse, etc, etc. 

You get the picture.

Greed isn't just about money. Many want power and positions they don't deserve. Many want podiums they aren't qualified to mount. Many seek so much material stuff that they don't even have enough space or room to store. Many want to be like people they were never designed to be. Many want to show the other person "who they are" or what they assume they are capable of doing or being. Many would rather frustrate the life of another just because they believe they are better than that person.

Greed is the source of wars, manipulations, victimizations, murders, envies, hatred, despots, lies, betrayals, frauds, thefts, hijackings, kidnappings, brutalities, fights, gangs, cults, dupes, the chase of degrees and certificates that we in truth don't need in this lifetime, unwholesome acquisitions, etc, etc. Greed is a bottomless pit that will always threaten to swallow us up except we get to our senses and realize that it really isn't worth all the fuss.

The solution for greed is contentment per time. Yes, it's a heavy word for our ears, I know, and may even look like an impossible platform to attain; but it is a very real and possible and most ideal place we all should be per time. The man or woman that is truly content will never be under any pressure because, in truth, we can NEVER have everything. New things will always appear on the scene and new opportunities will always manifest from time to time, but not every new thing or opportunity can be ours...there are others out there too.

While greed is fueled by selfishness, contentment is fueled by selflessness and the understanding that with time my capacity will naturally (and not forcefully) increase and that when that time comes I will be in a more qualified position or state of mind to handle the next big thing.

We all need to sincerely check ourselves and be sure of where we stand because this place called CLUB GREED is where too much evil lies and resides.

We should pause for a moment and ponder on this...