KEEP GOING...ALWAYS FIND A WAY TO KEEP GOING...

After going 14 games without scoring after a blistering first half of last term (2011/2012 season), DEMBA BA, the Senegal international who plays for English football club, Newcastle United, always knew his goal drought would come to an end. Strike partner and country man, Papiss Cisse, stole most of the limelight following his £10million arrival but the Senegalese ace brilliantly got off the mark on Saturday (19th August, 2012) with a cracker. 

BA said: “I was OK going so long without scoring...You just have to carry on doing your work and it will come back...I spent a lot of time after games, watching them again and analysing them, seeing what I had to do to change the bad stuff and that is why I am back scoring.”

Champions (or winners) never fail to review their performance, however good or otherwise. Even if you are winning, you still have to do a review of your performance and see how you can make it even better. Also, when the desired results are not coming in as envisaged, just keep at it; vary your approach and never fail to pick up the lessons on what works better and what does not. Never give in to challenges...keep going! Never, never, give up. Blessings...

OVERCOMING CHALLENGES

THE FORCE OF CREATIVITY AND INNOVATION

It is not what problems you are confronted with; it is your response to them that shapes your outcomes.

Problems are doorways to opportunities. The challenge with us is seeing it as such. Often we are one dimensional in thinking and approach. We need to be creative and innovative at problem solving. Achievers are willing to vary their approaches to solving problems.

Anyone remember Dick Fosbury? He developed the high-jump technique used by many top performers today, well-known as the Fosbury Flop.

Where previous athletes used the straddle method to high jump, in which they went over the bar while facing it, with one arm and one leg leading, Fosbury's technique was to go over the bar head first with his back to the bar.

Fosbury recalled: "I was told over and over again that I would never be successful, that it was not going to be competitive and the technique was simply not going to work. All I could do was shrug and say, 'We'll just have to see'"

Well, the world did see it when He won the gold medal in the 1968 Olympics at Mexico City, shattering the previous Olympic record and setting a new world record in the process.

He varied his approach in the pursuit of his goal and did not succumb to the doubters, mockers and naysayers. If you can make some adjustments to the problem you are working to overcome, you'll surely find what works better and be successful.

As we see in Dick Fosbury's case, the challenge is not the problem that confronts you, or the goal you seek to achieve; it is the approach you've taking to solving it, or reaching that goal.

Make a change today, and see what outcome you'll enjoy. Like Fosbury, do not give in to the doubters and naysayers. The fact that it has not been done before does not mean it cannot be done.

Every success…

THE POWER OF IMAGINATION

Whilst reading the sports news today, I came across an interview Belgium international Romelu Lukaku granted the press when he signed for Chealsea Football Club this week.

He said, "I first visited Stamford Bridge on a three-day trip to London with his school friends. And he recalled: "All my friends were LOOKING around the dressing rooms but I just stood on the pitch IMAGINING playing with Drogba. "

I told my teacher, 'One day I will play here'. "And on the day I signed for Chelsea I called him up to tell him I had achieved my dream". That's the POWER OF IMAGINATION. Friend, if you are to reach your dream, you have to Stop LOOKING and Start IMAGINING!

Imagination takes you beyond your current realities into your future possibilities. In other words, it helps you to think and act beyond the frontiers of your current experience.

The amazing news for us Christians is that, our God is committed not only to what we ASK, but also to what we think (IMAGINE), and He is ABLE to do it even Exceeding ABUNDANTLY (Ephesians 3:20).

Go ahead and DREAM as big as you can. Let them call it a Fantasy, or call you a Day Dreamer, when it is aligned with Divine Agenda, it will surely SPEAK and not lie.

See you at the TOP! Every success...

ON THE RISE 2011 (The Emerging Business Leaders Conference)

Date	Saturday 30th July, 2011 ·
Location	Shammah Assemblies of God Church, Ashongman Estates, Accra
Time	8:00am - 1:00pm
	"ON THE RISE 2011" - (The Emerging Business Leaders Conference) is a One-Day Entrepreneurship and Leadership Empowerment Conference designed for young entrepreneurs and those who are keenly interested in going into business (profit or non-profit). This event will provide cutting-edge information, ideas and training in a friendly atmosphere for young business minded people. It will also serve as a forum for people to meet and connect. Whatever your current endeavour, you can benefit a lot from attending this conference. Come get the edge, and impact your world. THEME: SHIFTING PARADIGMS, LEADING THE FUTURE SPEAKERS: GEORGE ATUTOR (CEO, Uchoose Holdings (Gh) Ltd.) SELORM ALFRED BETEPE (CEO, Seloart Co. Ltd.) CLAUDE ATO MANN (CEO, Diamond Pen Writings & Exec. Dir., FatherServe Africa) KWAMENA BELLO (President, KBI & Conference Host) 4 Speakers, One Extraordinary Experience For further details, kindly call 0209 800 796. ADMISSION IS FREE!

OVERCOMING ADVERSITY SERIES (7)

UNLEASH THE POWER OF CLARITY

The present is a moment of creation and power; you can create or design the architecture of the future you want to have. It is in this moment that you define the direction, or course for your life. To embrace the present is to take charge of your future; you create your future, instead of letting the future happen to you.

The fact that you’ve faced challenges, had problems, experienced adversity doesn’t mean that you have to accept anything that comes your way. You must have clarity of vision. Where do you want to go now? What conditions do you want to experience? What exactly do you want? You must be able to hold a picture of that in your mind as well as state it clearly on paper. It takes a clear mind to choose the future you want and to follow your path.

Suppose someone gave you a 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle, but it didn’t have an image on the box of what the end result should look like. Wouldn’t you have a much harder time putting the puzzle together, than if you had a clear picture of the end result? Definitely!

Well, through trial, and a lot of error, you may eventually put it together, but the process will be long and arduous. Having a clear picture of the end result eases the feelings of frustration and increases your chances of achieving success.

If we do not have a clear picture as to what we want to create in our lives, we have doubt; confusion, stress, worries, dysfunction and then fear, which by default take the place of clarity. When we have clarity, we eliminate these negative emotions; the pictures in our mind are vibrant and rich in detail. When you see what you want, you also see yourself in possession of what you desire.

Have you ever noticed how certain you are when you know the directions to where you want to go? We think in pictures. Aristotle said “The soul cannot think without pictures.” The images you hold in your mind influence what you focus on and will influence your actions and consequent results. When you can “see” your goal, the path that will take you there becomes illuminated as well.

Clarity is a choice

Clarity is a key ability shared by successful people everywhere. If you are going to achieve anything significant in life, you will have to get clear on exactly what it is you want to achieve and why you want to achieve it.

If you are not clear, or you don't know exactly what you want, then you would have to sit down and clarify your intentions. That sense of knowing what you want isn't going to just come to you. You have to consciously choose.

Clarity is a choice, not an accident or a gift. Clarity doesn't come to you – you go to it. This can only be done by you, and no one else. Those people who know exactly what it is that they what to achieve, are at a distinct advantage to those who do not know.

When you choose to clarify your dreams and goals that’s the moment you begin to lead yourself than allowing others to lead you. When you don’t set clear goals, you become a slave to the goals of others. But why choose to be slave when you can be king?

Clarity is king

Nothing ever happens without clarity. You cannot achieve much, or maximize your potential without clarity. A lot of people have an idea of what they want but they are not clear on exactly what they want to achieve and why. Someone has said, “If you don’t know where you are going, a map will be of no use.”

What makes some people more successful than others is their ability to have a clear vision of who they are and what talents, skills and abilities they have, and where they are going.

Clarity is essential to anything you do in life. Without clarity you would not succeed the way you would like to. Once you achieve clarity, life changes. You are able to accelerate actions and processes. Clarity guarantees speed.

¹¹Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree. ¹²Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it. (Jeremiah 1:11-12)

Clarity is power

“People who are confused take no action. Clarity = Power. You can’t commit if you’re still looking” – Keith Cunningham

Clarity changes everything. Nothing worthwhile is ever achieved without clarity. Clarity precedes success; it is the key to unlocking your potential and manifesting your destiny.

If you read the verses that preceded the scriptures quoted above, God spoke to Jeremiah about his mission and his destiny. But that was only going to be possible to the extent to which he sees well. Seeing well (clarity) will help manifest his destiny speedily.

The things that fight us from gaining clarity are the multiplicity of events that competes for our attention. And this is especially so when we are working to climb out of adversity. Our attention is pulled in every direction; therefore, having clarity about what is truly desired provides a focal point with which to direct our attention deliberately.

Without a focal point, directing attention becomes more of a challenge. When you are very clear about what you want and you make that your focal point, directing your attention becomes effortless. So, decide what you want, be very clear about it and give that your attention.

In my next post, I will help you with the steps you can take to gain greater clarity in your pursuits. Every success…

OVERCOMING ADVERSITY SERIES (6)

EMBRACE THE PRESENT

In my previous post, I wrote about Releasing Your Past. I suggested a few strategies we can use to achieve that. One of those strategies was to “Embrace the Present.” I believe it is crucial to our life, if we are to move on from the pain and hurt of the past and encounter the kind of future we envision.

In today’s post, I intend to help you better understand what it means to Embrace the Present and show you exactly what you can do to better your lot and move on to you colourful future.

Adversity, whatever it means to you, is a time of change – the old conditions do not exist anymore, and new ones have come, which of course is not what you desire. Everything changes. In fact, change is an ever present in the cycles of life. Each person deals with change differently and how we handle change determines what outcome we experience.

Whatever change we experience can affect us physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. You may have lost a job, a loved one, or a lucrative contract. Your business might have failed, or you may have failed an examination, or you may have sustained a life altering injury. Whatever you current situation you can rise from it and become a better person.

Life is a present – the present moment, the NOW. It is not the past, because it is dead and gone – it holds no promise. Today holds the chance to build new dreams, achieve new goals and successes, and show new kindnesses and serve others. If you envision a colourful future, you must start painting portions today; for your brightest future hinges on your ability to pay attention to the present.

We destroy the present when we focus on events of the past. We tend to feel emotions which make us angry, feel fear, shame and regrets. When that happens we abandon the present, which is life, for the past, which is dead. We also annihilate the power of the present with fear, anxiety and worry and take up residence in the past or an imaginary future.

How can we embrace the present?

“Of the sons of Issachar who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, their chiefs were two hundred; and all their brethren were at their command” (1 Chronicles 12:32)

Clearly, for anyone to be in command in the affairs of life, they need to have an understanding of what times they are in and also know exactly what to do. Here are a few things you need to appreciate and do:

Recognise adversity as a season in your life: there are seasons in everyone’s life just as there are seasons in nature. Recognition of it will transform the quality of your life. The preacher noted: “To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven” (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

See your current condition as one of those seasons. Every tree knows how to go through autumn and winter and come blooming fabulous at spring time. We all love spring time, don’t we? We too can transition from life’s autumn and winter (when we seem to lose our sparkle and all the stuff we love to rave about) to the spring and summers of life.

Do not argue with reality: what is, is. Everything that happens just “is.” There’s no point arguing and complaining about it. Your thought and attitude should not be that of a victim. That will rob you of power because your focus will be on the past – what went wrong, who is to be blamed etc, instead of finding or crafting a solution.

Choose the good in your current conditions. Every situation that looks bad has an equal amount of good. That’s the universal law of polarity, so choose to apply it to your situation; for whatever you call it, it becomes for you. The Apostle Paul knew the negative impact of arguing and complaining when he exhorted: “Do everything without complaining or arguing” (Philippians 2:14 NLT).

Complaints work against you in three ways. First, no one wants to hear negative news about your problems. Second, complaining reinforces your own pain and discomfort. So why keep replaying painful, negative memories? Third, complaining, by itself, accomplishes nothing and diverts you from the constructive actions you could be taking to improve your situation.

Avoid Rationalisation: Do not rationalise or justify your conditions. Someone has said, “It is the talent of the weak to convince themselves they suffer for something when they suffer from something.” Refuse to play the blame game, no matter how justified you feel.

Avoid the Scarcity Mentality; Adopt an Abundant Mentality: the mindset with which we approach problems, challenges and people is very crucial to our success or otherwise. We can choose to operate or act from a scarcity or abundance mentality. But if we are going to be successful then we must consciously choose and strategise to operate and function from an abundant mentality.

People with a scarcity mindset believe that their resources are finite and that there’ is not enough to go around. They say, “look at all the resources we need,” whereas those with an abundant mindset believe that their resources are infinite – that there’s enough for everyone. . They say, “look at all the resources we have.”

Scarcity thinkers believe mistakes are disasters. They are complainers and murmurers. Abundant thinkers, on the other hand, always believe they can recover and learn from their mistakes. They are problem solvers – able to separate people from problem.

Envision the kind of future you want: as I mentioned in my previous post (Release the Past), the past is powerlessness and futility. The present is a moment of creation and power. In this present moment, you can create or design the architecture of the future you want to have. It is in this moment that you define the direction, or course for your life. You must understand that, if you are to experience anything in life you must create it in this moment. It must exist in some form right now, or it doesn’t exist at all. The seeds of the future that you want to create must be sown today.

Avoid Procrastination: Life is too short to wait a minute longer. There is no someday; there is only right now. Do not wait for perfect conditions, for none exist anywhere. Also do not wait till you have the wherewithal before you start taking action that improves your current conditions. Start now where you are, with what you have and you’ll be amazed at the progress you make. NOW is the acceptable time. Do it NOW!

Thank you for reading. I trust the information you find here is helpful. I wish you all the best! Cheerio...