Always do your best. What u plant now, you will harvest later - Og Mandino

The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potentials......these are the keys that will unlock the door to personal excellence - Confucius

Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try one more time - Thomas A. Edison

Aim for the moon; if you miss, you may hit a star - Clement Stone

Keeps your eyes on the stars and your feet on the ground - Theodore Roosevelt

Problems are not stop signs, they are guidelines - Robert H. Schuller

A creative man is motivated by the desire to achieve, not by the desire to beat others - Ayn Rand

Failure can never overtake me if my determination to succeed is strong enough - Og Mandino

Nobody can deprive you of your right, but your right to stretch your hand ends at my nose.
#GudMorning
#TheAltruist

alertbest:
Nobody can deprive you of your right, but your right to stretch your hand ends at my nose.
#GudMorning
#TheAltruist

And the truly educated one is he who has developed the faculties of his mind so that he could achieve whatever he's determined to achieve, without violating the rights of others.

Good day my peeps

Dear Over Esteemed Weakness,

I trust you are doing fine! (Not for long though) I slept with a craving for you that felt like a fever that won’t go away.

I woke with a dull need to find you and hold you close. I have enrolled in the school of discipline but I seem to be failing RC 101 – Restraint and Control but thankfully this seems to be a course that only has carryovers to offer its students.

I have ransacked every course material for what I need to leave you behind but eyes have not seen, ears have not heard and it has not yet come into my heart what is required to scale you…. UNTIL NOW!

It is simple! I cannot leave you behind because you are an important part of my success. In order to pass RC 101, I need to embrace you and not run from you! All I have to do is embrace your energy and channel it into something I love besides you!

Yup! All I have to figure out is what I have a groaning for besides you. What is my passion that I am not afraid for the world to know? Because you see, I am ashamed of you; I don’t like people to know about you. It won’t do well for my peace of mind because I fear that one day, you will begin to rule over me and overpower me.

But now I know what to do. I have to find the reason why I like you because that is the energy I need to channel. I used to love you because you are exciting and appeal to my creativity. So what else do I love that appeals to that? I love to write, read, paint, swim because it has an air of danger like you.

Oh! I'm so excited already thinking about it. I'm going to draw a list now. Wait! How do I make sure I use your energy to achieve this without you coming back? I know! I will do a plan to make sure I'm always busy.

Thanks for your unwilling contribution!


Why don’t you write your own letter now? It doesn’t matter what it is e.g. pornography, sex, lies, anger, violence etc. Make sure you do what is in the plan because he is just waiting for you to fail. Go on!

Source [url]asksisterngozi.com[/url]

Oh my goodness....... *smiles*

Ok Sir.... I'm here. Saw the mention but I had "other issues" . So sorry for the late show........*hope I'm forgiven*

Anyway, about purpose, passion, our journey, "destiny"............ Hmmmmm

Thumbs up to Sir bare1. He hit the "nail" on the head.

All I'll do now is just add coz Sir bare1's comment can serve as the foundatiom of the answers u seek.

NOTE: EVERY THING I PUT DOWN IS BASED ON MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCES AND SOME KNOWLEDGE/EXPERIENCE GAINED BY OBSERVING SOME OF THE GREATS.



Ur question: what are the characteristics or features that go with one's true purpose or life call? What signs authenticate your call or purpose?


Well Sir, like Sir bare1 rightly said, it's normal for humans in general to be passionate about a lot of things BUT INDEED THERE'S ONE THAT JUST WON'T GO AWAY UNLESS YOU EMBRACE.

What are the signs or features then? Firstly I must point out that the very first sign of ur true purpose in life is this: YOUR PURPOSE IS USUALLY FAR BIGGER THAN YOU ARE AT THE BEGINNING. It will be one that "to you(initially) or others" will seem "almost impossible".

Truth is this, God never attaches a purpose to us that doesn't require us to "stretch" and "grow". GOD WILL ALWAYS GIVE YOU A DESTINY THAT'S SO BIG YOU HAVE TO CALL HIM IN WHOLLY.

But understand this, this is not "fate". This is destiny that GOD HAS WRITTEN "BUT HAVE NOT PUT A LIMIT UPON"............ THIS IS WHERE SIR BARE1's beautiful "last" point comes in...... "We create our own realities" all in line with "the purpose". IN OTHER WORDS, GOD OWNS OUR LIVES BUT HE HAS GIVEN US THE "PEN" TO WRITE OUR OWN STORY, THE "BRUSH" TO PAINT OUR OWN FUTURE AND THE RIGHT TO BE THE ARCHITECT OF OUR DESTINIES.

To every man is given a purpose but it's in the hands of that man to determine just how far he wants to go in line with that purpose.

So the FIRST SIGN is YOU DISCOVER AT THE INITIAL THAT UR PURPOSE IS BIGGER THAN YOU.

SECONDLY, along the line you discover that "it just won't go away". IT STICKS TO YOU LIKE A GUM. Whenever you think about it, you "HAVE THIS SUPER DEEP KNOWING INSIDE OF YOU THAT IF U DON'T PURSUE THIS....... YOU WON'T BE FULFILLED... YOU'LL FEEL NOT TOO SATISFIED IN THE END." This is what happened to people like John G. Lake, Chimamanda Adichie(was studying medicine up to 200level/2nd year), and more who "had to yield" to that longing to do that which is "fulfilling"..... "THEIR PURPOSE"


ANOTHER SIGN IS THIS: It might scare you BUT WON'T STOP YOU FROM EMBRACING IT.

AND EMBRACING YOUR DESTINY/PURPOSE IS A MAJOR STEP TO EVENTUALLY moving in line to "greatness" which brings me to another sign.


SIGN NO.4: Your purpose, your true purpose may make you great and world-reknown....BUT YOU REALIZE DEEP INSIDE YOURSELF THAT "IT IS NOT REALLY ABOUT YOU" BUT ABOUT OTHERS. You realize that if you "fail" then other lives may go down the drain. IT IS NEVER REALLY ABOUT YOU BUT ABOUT GOD'S GLORY AND OTHER PEOPLE.

Furthermore, another sign is simply this, it's bound to bring you before the eyes of "many". This shouldn't scare you or make you shrink. Criticisms and feedbacks can all be channelled by you to serve as your springboard in reaching for levels in your destiny walk beyond the stars..... *smiles*

Yet another sign is this: EVERY TRUE PURPOSE CARRIES WITH IT ITS CHALLENGES. Challenges that can "crush" you if you allow them. I've had my fair (sometimes I think it "unfair" **giggles**) share of such..... *and more are bound to come* #winks


A 7th sign for me is: Mind-blowing "Miracles" will occur at different stages in your destiny walk or purpose journey that will only point to the fact that "MAN, this is you. You just can't be knocked off now."

Example: It happened to Dr.Ben Carson and it has happened to me all at crucial stages.... Very crucial stages.
**and more of such are bound to still happen**




Other signs do exist, some are specific to people but some others are "generic" in nature (can be linked to almost every great).......

Sir, my purpose dawned on me at age 12+. At age 14, I saw a "clear path". At Age 18, I stepped deeper into that path............... Now I'm 23+ and I know I'm gradually living the dream......... Every day, new phases open up, because my purpose is so "big and mighty" that I just have "this knowing" that I'm being set up for something far much more enormous.

Honestly Sir, the topic of "purpose, passion, destiny and fulfillment" is "too big" for even the greats such as Robert schuller, Zig Ziglar, Napoleon Hill, Brian Tracy, Dale Carnegie, Andrew Carnegie, John maxwell, Joel Osteen, Von Goethe, and many more to discuss to the "fullest satisfaction."

I hope this may go a long way in helping out you or anyone see things in another dimension with respect to purpose and the likes.

This is the little I could come up with within the limited time I have.

**once again sorry for showing up late. I was even taken aback to see such a mention #smiles

IN CONCLUSION KUDOS TO THE OP ( Sir dearpreye), Sir bare1, Miss/Mrs Stephanie75, you Sir OgaOfficer, and every other "wonderful contributor".

THIS IS A TRULY BEAUTIFUL THREAD..... I think I've found "another" home on NL apart from the Sports and Travel sections. (Career, Education, Science and technology, AND Health are other sections I'm gradually trying to blend into) **winks**

GOD BLESS YOU ALL....................

GOD BLESS NIGERIA.....................

ogaofficer:
thanks boss, i love the last sentence and i can deduce something from it. TheSuperNerd where art thou share your view with us.

To the poster above, i don't know how to appreciate you concerning the piece of insight up there, but all i could remember is THANK YOU. I am very grateful.




The cost of every mission should be calculated in terms of not only MONEY but also the personal investment of time and emotional energy. What are the price you willing to pay? What sacrifices are you willing to make? It is imperative that you estimate the stress and strain on your valued relationships. Your passion to pursue your calling will have a bearing on your marriage, family, and friends. Will the hoped for rewards be worth those risk? Culled from Robert H S. TheSuperNerd, Dearpreye, stephanie75, Bare1, June24th, Alertness, awakon and others which i didn't mention, pls try to contribute your quota to help save this girl on my signature. God bless you all.

I have learnt that kindness does not necessarily mean money. There are some instances that we may want to give but we don't have, at moments like that, what we have in excess is our prayer of help.

Have you prayed for someone today?

May God send helper to the baby and also make the surgery a success. Amen


#TheAltruist

Good day my peeps

this is to all my sisters:each time a woman stands up for herself....

Success is goals and all else is commentary. This is the great discovery throughout all of human history. Your life only begins to become a great life when you clearly identify what it is that you want, make a plan to achieve it and then work on that plan every single day.

Success is achievable if the innate ability to achieve the unachievable is ignited and fanned to a wild fire. We should know that the treasure is already in us but we need to discover it.

As we go from one place to another today, lets keep thinking of how we can refine that crude ability to have a shining gem. Gold is useless until its refined.

Have a fab day!!!


#TheAltruist

You have been told that you are a nobody and judging from all that has happened in your life which no can understand, you are starting to feel that maybe you truly are INSIGNIFICANT

Well here is the thing

What others think you are is just their opinion, what you think you are is the reality.


The man who succeeds at the end is always the wise one who does not listen to much advice but who knows how to solve his own problem. For no other person ever have your own interest fully at heart.


#GoodMorning
#TheAltruist

BE THERE Wherever you are, whatever you do; be there, be all in, immerse yourself fully in it, consume the total plot, draw from it, capture the whole moment. Convey your message. Let your voice be heard. Be the director, produce it, let your being reach, stake your highest odds in it. Let your story prevail, let your song be so melodious, let your poem recite with the best rhymes, let your touch leave impacts. Wherever you go, go with all your heart. Stamp it with your soul, be the best in it. It will lead you forwards, towards your own legacy. Be There!
# BeThere # BeAllIn # ItWillLeadYouForwards
Adetayo OJO. Join the conversation on # AdetayoSpeaks or follow me on Twitter @AdetayoOjo
#AdetayoSpeaks #BeThere Inspire me: BE THERE https:///BOEzTITj2O

Hello Everyone..... Happy weekend!!! **smiles**

Great to see u all again.......... Well, I just wanna share a story that was shared with me as a 14+ year old when I was in Senior high... In S.S.1 to be precise.

This story has always stucked with me.... Some of u might have heard it and I bet it was told by my vice-principal(academics) back then to keep me "super focused" because she felt I was "something really special" and needed strict guidance so I don't go off course. Bless her heart...... *smiles*

This is how the story went:


There lived an old man(never knew his name) in a certain part of london who would wake up every morning and head to a nearby subway.
He would get the train right to Central London, and then sit at the street corner and "Beg".

He would do this "EVERY SINGLE DAY" of his life. He sat at the same street corner and begged for almost "20 YEARS"......... (Yeah, you got read that rite...... 20 looooonnng years).

He had a small house and boyyyy!!!!! IT WAS FILTHY, and a stench came out of the house because it smelled horribly.
The neighbors around could not stand the smell anymore, so they summoned the local police to come clear the place.

The police officers arrived and knocked down the door to the house (NOW THE OLD BEGGER WAS OUT BEGGING AS USUAL), went in and started cleaning the place up.

In so doing they discovered small bags of money littered all over the house which the old beggar had collected over the years..... (And yeah, the police knew he was a beggar.... Everyone knew).

The police counted the money, and they soon realized that the old man was a "millionaire" (CRAZZZYYY!!!!).

After the clean-up, They waited outside his house in anticipation of sharing the good news with him.

When he arrived home later that evening, he was met by one of the Police Officers who told him thus, "Sir, there's no need for you to beg anymore as you're a rich man now, a millionaire. Come on Sir, you've done it. You've hit the jackpot without even knowing it. You can start a whole new life now..........."

BUT WHAT DID THE OLD DIE-HARD BEGGAR DO??

He said "NOTHING" at all; he just went into his house and locked the door (the door was fixed by the police before he showed up) and retired for the night.

The "very next morning", the old beggar woke up as usual, went to the subway, got into the train, and head to "his office" at the street corner and "CONTINUED TO BEG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"


***Yeah, I see some of you are stunned and probably laughing rite now*** #smiles

Well, what's the "MORAL/LESSON OF THIS STORY"?

Obviously, this old man had no great plans, dreams, or anything significant for his life. He did not know what his purpose was. All he wanted to do was "BEG" and he "LOVED" it too..... He obviously spent some money but only on what he'll eat to get by. He bought no new clothes. He hardly had a bath. And because of his "POVERTY AND BEGGING" MENTALITY, HE DIDN'T EVEN WANNA UNDERSTAND THE IMPLICATION OF HOW MUCH HE HAD GATHERED OVER THE YEARS.



Ladies and Gentlemen, we learn nothing else, on a major scale, from this story OTHER THAN THIS:

"STAYING FOCUSED"

Staying focused on or staying committed to the things we enjoy doing..............



What did the old man "enjoy"?

He enjoyed "begging" and even with the wrong mindset, Begging brought this guy "millions" others could only dream of, even though it took him twenty years plus........... Yet he didn't even allow it stop him from continuing to beg...... NA WA O!!!!!!!

His may be a weird story BUT STILL "COMMITMENT TO WHAT YOU ENJOY DOING IS ONE MAJOR THING TO PICK FROM THAT CRAZY OLD BEGGAR"

We should remain FOCUSED and True to our course; which may mean committing yourselves to things that people around you would normally disapprove.

Let nothing distract us from being happy, let nothing else determine our fate, but ourselves. We're the writers of our own stories.

What makes us happy is what matters in the end, not what we acquire................ *smiles*

GODBLESS........ AND HAVE A LOVELY WEEKEND....

LOVE Y'ALL...... *smiles*

A man sat on his chair at the end of his life waiting to die...
Death and Time were patiently standing silently there by his side ready to collect him... when his life time would come to end.

Then the man's dream walked into the room and had came to pay his last respects and bid farewell to the man who had never used it...

And as his dream spoke to the man... he looked down in shame.

"Why did you not realize me?"... the dream asked the man.

"Because I was afraid"... the man replied.

"Afraid of what?" ... asked the dream.

"I was afraid I would fail"... the man replied

"Have you not failed by never attempting to use me?"... asked the dream.

"Yes I did... and I always thought there would be a tomorrow"... replied the man.

"You Fool"... said the dream.

"Did it never occur to you that there was only ever today... the moment that you are in right now... do you think that now that Time is here with Death... that you can put them off until tomorrow?"... spoke the Dream sadly.

"No"... replied the man... a tear gently rolling down his cheek.

The dream was softer now.... because it knew that there were two types of pain... the pain of discipline and purpose to realize your dreams to gain success and merit and the deep pain of regret for never living your dreams... a life wasted living with no purpose or meaning and while discipline weighs ounces... regret weighs pounds.

Then the dream learnt forward and gently wiped away the tear and said...

"You need only have taken the first step and I would have taken one to meet you... for the only thing that ever separated us was the thought in your mind and the lack of trust in yourself that you could not have me."

Then they said goodbye and both died...

After a respectful silence... Death and Time entered another name in the long list of men and women who had lived an unfulfilled life and dream in the Book of Life... then quietly slipped out of the room ready to visit and collect the next person who had not lived the fullness of their life and dreams. Ange Fonce

Hello peeps. Here is an inspiration recipe.

You may be in a storm right now, but make no mistake about this, the storm is not in you

Success is something I can never lose because it's something I can always choose.

Living an incredible life is no accident. You have to do it on purpose

People are lonely because they build walls instead of bridges.

A friend is a gift you give to yourself.

Good morning all. Many thanks for your continued posting on this thread. For the next 7 days, I seek to drop a summary of each of Stephen Covey's 7 Habits of Highly Effective people.

Take a brief look at the 7 habits.

Habit 1: Be Proactive
Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind
Habit 3: Put First Things First
Habit 4: Think Win-Win
Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, then to Be Understood
Habit 6: Synergize
Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw

So lets get started with the very first habit. BE PROACTIVE.

To be proactive, according to Covey, means that you have to be accountable to yourself. Your life is not perfect right now, however rich or poor you are. You always think that there is something lacking. A proactive person knows that something is lacking, but they do not start blaming external factors for those shortcomings. They won’t blame their parents, their family professions, their country’s economy, their lack of education, the weather, etc. Proactive people will rise above all this. They will understand what the situation is, they will realize that it can be bettered and that’s that. They do not sit down and play the blame game, which is never anything but a gross waste of time.

Proactive people know that they can make their choices. They can choose to be happy or sad, they can choose to be pleasant or angry, they can choose to be complacent or responsive, they can choose to say yes or no. They have every choice. They are aware of this, and they take benefit of this fact.

A proactive person will never depend on others to make decisions for them. They will analyze the situation perfectly well and then they will decide what to do based on the merit of the situation.

Most importantly, proactive people are always optimistic. They are never shrouded in apprehension. They use sentences beginning with ‘I can’, ‘We can’, ‘We should’, etc. They do not think about the negative verbs. They do not thing that there is something beyond them. Even if there is something they have not achieved so far, they do not think that they are limited in doing so. If there is something they have not achieved yet, it is only because they haven’t tried it. They always harbor the optimism that if they put an effort into it, they will definitely be able to achieve what they have set their minds to.

Proactive people are positive people. They are always sure of doing things, whether it relates to their family, their profession, their love life, their health, etc. They do not handicap themselves with limitations.

Now, that doesn’t mean proactive people always meet with success. But this is only the first habit; we are just getting started. There are six more habits to go… it is only when all these habits are put in place in the right manner that things begin happening the way they should.

At the same time, you shouldn’t get the idea that proactive people are obstinately optimistic. That isn’t so. Practicality rules over everything. For instance, if there is a natural calamity or some other uncontrollable incident, then even proactive people may change their line of thought. This is acceptable. But, at least, proactive people will put in the attempt. And uncontrollable factors won’t faze them. They will know that there is a way out… it is only about finding out what it is.

So, be proactive. That’s the first habit. Be accountable, take responsibility. Do not sit back and think that you cannot do things. You can do them. You have to set your mind to them. This is how you start on your journey of success.

God bless you sir, i misplaced the book a long time ago. Thanks to you.

dearpreye:
Good morning all. Many thanks for your continued posting on this thread. For the next 7 days, I seek to drop a summary of each of Stephen Covey's 7 Habits of Highly Effective people.

Take a brief look at the 7 habits.

Habit 1: Be Proactive
Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind
Habit 3: Put First Things First
Habit 4: Think Win-Win
Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, then to Be Understood
Habit 6: Synergize
Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw

ogaofficer:
God bless you sir, i misplaced the book a long time ago. Thanks to you.

Good morning, my brother. Hope you've found it?

I lent it to a friend, and he refuse to return it. May be it has been misplaced who knows. But all the same thank you. Following the next Habit bumper to bumper.

dearpreye:


Good morning, my brother. Hope you've found it?

@dearpreye, waiting for your update.

alertbest:
@dearpreye, waiting for your update.

Good morning, my dear. The update is coming. Thanks for following.

HABIT 2: begin with the end in mind.

Throughout history, we have observed that it is the farsighted people who have always achieved great successes. It is these people who have become legends and shaped the world in the way it is. Today, we see such people all around us. They are the people who begin with the end in mind. They are the people who are the diehard result-oriented people. They first think about what they want to do, what they want to achieve. The hows come later.

When you were young, you probably were asked many times, or maybe you thought about it yourself, as to what you would like to become when you grow up. This is actually a very common question and there are so many adults who ask it just for making a conversation with a kid. It becomes a nice filler when you are talking to children. But, the next time you ask that to a child, listen and watch closely. Look at how serious the child is about what he or she says. They may say they want to become a fighter pilot or an astronaut or the next great legend in sports. But don’t scoff it off with a laugh. Look at how earnest they are. Their eyes become totally expressive and there is some kind of a thought process going on in their little mind.

Now take yourself back to when you were a kid… when you were asked the same question. Perhaps you don’t remember it now, but in all likelihood you answered the question in the same way. You have the same fervent zeal and appeal. You were totally earnest about your ambition too, even if it sounded ludicrous to everyone else.

Then, what happened on the way? Why did your aspirations falter? Did you, like most people, make some kind of compromise for some reason and put a tether on your galloping horse of imagination?

Covey tells us, in no minced words, that that is not the attribute of a highly effective person. If you have to be highly effective, then one of the most important things you have to do is to stay true to your ideals.

And that is what you can do by beginning with the end in mind. First, sit down and think what you have to achieve. This may not be something as mammoth in proportions as your life’s ambition. It may be something small like a business goal. But, sit down and think. Think hard about wanting to achieve that whatever you are thinking about. You should think so hard that you should begin visualizing the success already. You should be able to taste your achievement!

When you are able to do that, you will find that automatically everything that you do falls into place. By already envisioning what you want to do, you have already set the wheels in motion. Consciously or subconsciously, you are working towards those ideals.

Most people have it pegged on all wrong. They start with the start. That’s wrong. You have to start with the end. Think about the end. Whatever you are doing, your efforts… why are you doing them? What do you want to achieve at the end of the day? What is the end you are chasing?

When you start from that point, you know precisely what you have to do. Every waking—and even sleeping—moment of your life becomes a step in the right direction.

So, the bottom line is that you have to start from the finishing line. Look at the finishing line with complete attention and move on forth, unflinching from your path. When you have your complete focus on the end, you are quite unlikely to move away from the shortest and the most effective route you can take to reach there.

Waoh..... Nice thread

Those that stop half way are those that do not have the end in mind, they are just too afraid to take the risk.

We should know that the trophy, accolade, honour, crown and fame is at the end, if we want that we will surely see it to the end.

alertbest:
Those that stop half way are those that do not have the end in mind, they are just too afraid to take the risk.

We should know that the trophy, accolade, honour, crown and fame is at the end, if we want that we will surely see it to the end.

Very apt. The end in mind keeps us going against all odds.

If you don't want to feel the smoke, get out of the kitchen!