The power of Self Reflection
Have you ever noticed the negative habits of someone? You are able to highlight and perfectly explain all the reasons why the other person is a bad person. If you have, clap for yourself. Well not as a form of praise but well, you know what I mean.

That you are able to identify the bad habits of someone is not in itself a bad thing, but it would really be a great thing if you are able to do that to yourself. To be able at any point to sit back and reflect on your habits is a great thing. Beyond reflection, it would do you good to also find ways to become better.

Many at times, all we do is wish that our conditions change without willing to put the effort. We just want to see the change happen. The only change you can see is a negative thing until you are ready to put in the work, the change you want to see might never come.

We are sometimes moving very fast but in exactly the opposite direction of our greatness. We are overwhelmed by the speed and we feel we are productive, but we can only be productive if we are moving in the right direction.

The road to greatness is open for everyone, but sometimes it is not about the speed, it is about moving in the right direction. Today is never too late to begin to reflect on your life and the very important things that matter.

Think and reflect on how much better your current situation can be and work towards that. Seek to look inwards and know more about yourself. Seek to always be your own worse critic. It helps.

Seek to find faults only in yourself and seek to know about others in the form of curiosity rather than criticism.
Because we find the bad things in others does not make us any better. Life can be better if we seek to find within ourselves a way to grow and proceed in life.

It is not too late to star. Look inwards and begin to move forward. The world needs more of that.

Thanks and God bless.

A Thousand Reason To Be Grateful
Life does not always go as we want and this causes us to be angry and unhappy sometimes. But nonetheless, we still have what someone elsewhere can only dream of. Due to the speed at which we live our lives daily, we tend to want to forget that, but it is never too late to sit back and reflect on the things you are most grateful for.

Sitting down in my room yesterday, I heard some sounds that felt like gunshots. It was for a while and then it stopped. I never really understood what I had at that moment until now. Imagine some countries right now where the sound in the air at every moment is the sound of gun battle, places where peace seems to have bidden them farewell.

The simple fact that you are currently living in peace anywhere you find yourself right now is a cause to be grateful for. Can you even begin to count the countries in the world right now where one form of crisis or another is currently going on? Well, it would be a long list.

But what then should the people in this areas be grateful for. Well, there is no peace. Even in the midst of crisis and chaos, one still has to be grateful, because imagine how much more are not even alive to witness the war. How many have left this world to the world beyond? Your current existence here on earth is something to be grateful for. Be grateful for what you have.

In the face of crisis and challenges, it is always very difficult to be appreciative but it is at this moments that the real us emerge. You cannot expect to be your best self only when the condition is right. What happens when the condition is not right? You must always present a united front even in the face of adversity.

For the simple fact that you have a country to call yours is something to be grateful for. Even when you are deported from any country, you have a place to go back to. Do you know that there are some people still living on this planet that have no place to call their country?

All these reasons might be very subtle but when you look at them very critically, you have more things to be grateful for. If you think that is not true, take out a piece of paper and begin to write about what you are grateful for and let us see if you would stop. The list is endless.
The simple idea that you are reading this shows that you have something to be grateful for. With the ubiquity of the internet, some people still do not have access to it, but you do. So be grateful.

In the end, you would still have what makes you sad or unhappy. Do not let that weigh you down. Look to the bright side and be grateful.

For a single reason that makes me sad,
I seek to find a thousand reason that would make me smile,
Because in my sadness is gratefulness,
Grateful that I am still here to learn a lesson from the experience,
Who knows where I would have been if not here,
Whether in a much worse place than I currently am,
This makes me seek to always find a thousand reason to be grateful

Thanks and God Bless.

Becoming Better Everyday
Becoming better day by day is what we all seek for. But this sometimes is difficult to achieve. But I have realized that with some simple tweaks, we can achieve that.

The most important thing you would have to focus on is your habits. Look carefully at the characteristics you would like to improve your life. Write them down and create a schedule that allows you move towards that direction every day. Take it one step every day.
It might not sound like a big way to change yourself, it definitely is a concept that would change your life in the long run. It might not be today or tomorrow, but certainly one day.

Do not worry whether you do not see any immediate returns. Bad days come early and good days come last. Remember that. On the path of becoming a better version of yourself, seek out continuous daily habits. Habits that keep you in the right direction.
Start today and continue. Thank And God Bless.

So I Have Been Evicted From Another Relationship
Let not the events in your life discourage you, but seek to learn as much as you can from it.

We all want to achieve what we set out for, but sometimes it does not work out the way we want. Same happened to me when I met this lovely lady, we spoke for a while and she finally said she was not interested in a relationship but we can be friends.

Looking at it one way, I lost a relationship but look at the other side. The number of successes involved in the process. Remember I am a guy who is very shy at speaking to ladies, but I spoke to this complete stranger and we are now friends. Imagine the confidence I have now been able to build.

Beyond that, she only said no to the relationship but that we can still be friends. Well, another friend on my list of real friends. This might sound like trying to console myself but when you look at this from that perspective, you might be right. But well, who cares.
Your situation might not have been a relationship gone south, it might have been a plan you so much wanted to accomplish. Whatever it is, you can always learn from the action and gain the best lessons you can from the experience.

Looking back now, I have realized that my level of confidence in speaking to a complete stranger has improved and I look forward to using this level of confidence in all areas of my life. In the end, it is a win-win situation for me.

Seek to find the good sides of the experiences in your life. It might not go as you planned, but it might have gone the best way possible.
Keep this in mind that just because it did not work out does not mean you failed, it might mean that you have simply learned from life that this option is not viable.

Look to life with an optimistic mindset that what you missed was never meant for you and what is for you would definitely find its way to you. You simply have to keep trying. Only when you try can you get it.
So go out there today and live with all the best that you can. Never let any experience remove that greatness in you. Setbacks are simply trying to set you in the right direction. You might have been moving very fast in the very wrong direction and you simply need to be refocused on the important things.

Life might not always give us all that we want, but we can always learn from these experiences to become better. The choice is seriously yours to make. Are you going to be sad about what happened or seek to learn from it? Start NOW.
Thanks and God Bless.

Towbaba500:

Thanks for your comment sir.I just gained admission into the university of Ibadan to study computer science. I've to hit the ground running before lecture resume by march.That was why I'm searching for materials so i can get familiar with my course before resumption.
My problem now is where to go from here.I searched for materials on Google but it looks complex to me.Everything now look burdensome to me. That was why i asked for any learning materials you could recommend. I started learning web design last year but it seems I've not gotten anywhere.pls your pieces of advice is highly needed.thanks

Hi, Congratulations on your admission into one of the best schools in the Country. I am really happy for you. To discuss the materials you might need for school and others, it would be nice if we could get to talk better. You can call me up on 07069414970 to have a better-continued conversation and also try to connect with some of the students I know over there at UI.

Hoping to hear from you soon.

Winning Is Overrated
It is not about whether you win or lose, it is that you give your best in the end that matters

As a kid, I remember the only position that mattered at the end of every term in school was whether you came first, second or third. Every other person was looked upon as needing a kind of divine mercy to succeed in life.

Looking back now at those days, it seems that those celebrated successes and uncelebrated failures did not really add up. Does it mean that does who excelled then still excel today? The answer is obvious and if the success of yesterday did not determine if someone would still be successful today, how then do we continue to worship winning as it was the end goal.

Do not get me wrong. Winning is worth celebrating but do not make that create an impression in your mind that simply because you lost today, you would not win tomorrow. It matters that you look back and see how much effort you had and how much effort you were able to expend towards that goal.

The most important thing to realize is that anything is achievable as long as you keep pushing forward. The idea that someone did it because he or she is talented is a mentality that needs to be fried out of your memory. The sheer amount of effort a talent puts into his/her work is simply so much that it would be difficult to not achieve the goal.

Imagine the number of works composed by the music prodigy Mozart, about 600 works. Think for a second how much music can anyone produce to become a prodigy. He started at a very early age and continued on that path. It simply meant that it was not the talent alone that bought it such success, the amount of effort put into the whole work was simply remarkable.

Consider the greatest basketballer of all times, Micheal Jordan. Consider the number of throws he had to make to achieve that status. How many people would be able to achieve that number of throws without becoming one of the very best?

It might be said that much more have made more throws or written more works and are yet not considered greater than these men. But one thing should already be clear by that. Such men are no longer the same people they were when they started. It simply meant that they developed and became better and in the end, all that would matter is that they gave their best.

It is not whether they out-performed Jordan or Mozart, it is that they have done the best they can do with the effort available to them. That is the key to handle a lot of our challenges today.

Seek to be victorious, but seek to be victorious over self first. Victory over self is being able to give your possible best at every time
When you get to the end and you gave your best, it would not matter whether you won or not, it would matter that you were able to win over yourself.

Thanks and God bless.

Towbaba500:
Weldone @ azibit,m just a Newbie Who just gain admission to Study comp Sci In ui.advise Me On BOoks to read aNd materials nEeded

Hi @Towbaba500, that would depend on a lot of things like what you would like to focus on in school and the university you are in, but the first and the most important is excellence everywhere you find yourself.

So seek to get the books you would be using in school and begin to understand the computer science concepts in them. That is what would take you further than someone who did not study computer science.

This is a huge topic and I would really like us to continue this conversation. You can send me a direct message so that we can continue on a personal level. Hoping to hear from you soon

The Production And Production Capability Principle
There was once a poor farmer who had a goose. One day, he saw one of the eggs of the geese looking very different. On further investigation, he realized that the geese had laid a golden egg. The egg was completely gold. The next day, the geese did the same thing. Little by little, the farmer became very wealthy and one day decided he could no longer wait for the geese to lay the eggs one after the other. He decided to kill the geese and remove all the eggs at once. Well, after killing the geese, he found nothing.

This story might sound familiar to you or not, but it sounds like a very silly thing to do. Despite how silly this story looks, many of us still continue to pursue this concept in our daily lives.

The human body is more like the geese that lay golden eggs every day. That is the production. The farmer was not focused on the production, rather he was focused on the production capability, the golden eggs the geese laid every day. Similarly, we are also more focused on what we do and how to do more neglecting the most important part which is our body. We continue in the pursuit of our daily bread without seeking to maintain the engine that produces the daily bread.

This happens in a lot of aspects of our lives. In our marriages and other relationships, we are more focused on what we can get out of the relationship rather than focus on your partner in the relationship and how to make the relationship works.
It matters that we continue to strive to be better at our jobs, families, and relationships but we should never neglect the engine that produces all that we are seeking. In our jobs, it matters that we focus not only on our salaries but also on the company which is, in essence, the machine that produces our salary.

The story of the farmer might not look so serious but take a step back and look at how much of your life’s production is properly maintained. We are all too focused on the production capability that we forget the source.

It is never too late to start. Begin with the small things, your health, your family, and your environment. These are what creates almost everything we call ours today, but if we neglect it and do not take care of it, it would simply break down one day and there would be no way to get it back to its proper life.

It matters that we all begin to reflect on the things that are very important in our lives rather than simply taking some things for granted. Life is too short to live a life of regret in the end. It is not too late to take better care of your production engine. When you do that, your production capability would definitely improve.

Thanks and God bless.

You Are What You Read
Reading is the way we learn about a lot of things, from knowledge to the experiences of others. So for one to gain more knowledge and experience, one of such ways would be to read. Well, you actually can learn the knowledge and experience without having to read, but that would mean that you would have to create the knowledge yourself and to experience all the situations yourself. But well, that is highly unlikely.

So, therefore, one of the ways we can seek to create a better version of ourselves is in reading. How long has it been since you decided to read a book? Reading is a part of life and something that should become almost as important as eating or sleeping.

By reading, you are able to live the lives of a lot of people through the experiences and knowledge they share from what they write. Reading about knowledge other people have sort out to find is another way you become more knowledgeable. In a world where we want to get the information as soon as possible, we decide to go for the summarized versions and simply hope to gain all the information from the summary.

I am not saying that reading summary is bad, I am simply advocating that if you want the full knowledge, then you must follow the hard way, the only way. Read the whole book and get to learn more.

As the world continues to grow, people can only grow if they have a certain value to add to life, but some of these values are written deep down in books. Values we might not find unless we take time out to read more.

Reading comes in a lot of ways, but I would greatly advise you pick a book and try to gain the knowledge and idea involved in the book. It matters that you do because the wealth of knowledge in such books can only be explored when you read.

Beyond reading, you would also need to create and document your own experience. What best way then is available if not writing about it? And the best way to create the best experience is if you have read books others have written about their own experiences.

It matters that you read every day. The world needs more people to read. That is what was said to the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) “Read in the name of your Lord” and I say the same to you today READ.

Thanks and God bless.

Be In The Present
Have you ever been present physically somewhere but your thoughts seemed somewhere else? Have you ever had some thoughts run through your mind that takes you away from the present? These type of thoughts seem to bring the past back to the present or seem to bring the future to the present.

In any case, you are not physically present where you are and all you thoughts does is to take you to that imaginary world where all you can see our emotions or what could have happened if you were either in the past or the future.

The present is all we have. The past is gone and the future is yours now in some hours or days to come. Come to think of it, your current present was a future you have longed for and now that it is here, all you want to do is to seek another future. Whatever the case may be, always seek to be present in all that you do. Now is all that you have.

That does not mean that you would not think about what happened in the past, or what you hope to happen in the future. What you have to do is to make the best use of all that you have around you now hoping that tomorrow comes with great rewards for your actions today.

You do not really have to figure everything out before you begin to be in the present. The idea that everything is not figured out is what makes the present most important. How then can you plan for something that is not certain while you have what is certain right in front of you right now?

The next minute is not certain, the next hour is not certain. Your past experience might not have been the best experience ever. So that means all that you have is now to create the best version of yourself. Whatever happens, remember that all you have is NOW.

Some people are currently seeking to have what you currently have. Some people only seek to have the situation you are currently in, but why then would you not make the best use of it.

Seek to be present in your everyday task and continue to pursue greatness. Greatness lies in the use of all that you have NOW because NOW is all that you have.

A Thousand Place I’ll Rather Be
Life can be very challenging going as far as trying to challenge the very core beliefs we hold dear to our hearts. We face enormous challenges every day and we sometimes wish we gave up even before we started. We dream of those days when we would simply sit at the beach all day simply enjoying what nature has provided us with.

But clearly, it goes beyond simply thinking about what we want, but also going out there and striving for it. In doing that only can we achieve the success we have for long been thinking of.

A thousand place I’ll rather be is a poem by Mariya Sidi that clearly shows the life of a hardworking medical student who wished she could be somewhere else rather than remaining in the hospital, taking rounds, and many more. She wished she could close her eyes just for a minute as her eyes simply could not hold on any longer but her brain keeps explaining why that might not be the best thing to do.

Many more experiences of this wonderful medical student have simply caused me to sit and reflect on the challenges we all face daily. We simply wish all the challenges were over and we did not have to deal with any of them. But no matter what, to be successful in life, you would need to be ready for the challenges ahead,

Being ready does not mean you would not get tired. Being ready means you are aware that the worst might happen but you are optimistic that you would live through. You have a mindset that believes that you would persist and persevere.

Even with the thoughts of all the other activities, you could be doing, you would choose to do the very honorable things. Those that require that you put in your best at all times.

You would wish to rather be watching a movie than working out. You would prefer to remain in bed when you should be awake early in the morning to serve your Lord. You would wish you did not have to do some things but you still need to persevere and carry on.

To be able at any point to give up what you are for what you want to become is one of the greatest traits of great people. A thousand thoughts of all the interesting things you could be doing right now that might simply bring short-term happiness would cloud your mind all day, but continue to persist and never let those thoughts overpower you.

The world is yours to conquer but first, you would have to fight those thousand thoughts of where else you could be.

Thanks and God bless.

ak22:


Good evening all , what advice would you give for a beginner with no prior knowledge but has passion and interest in programing. Route to take, as in programming language to start up the journey. Thanks

Hi,
It is fascinating to learn that you are interested in seeking a path in Programming.

Check out this link and let me know what you make of it. We can continue from there
https://codeburst.io/what-programming-language-should-i-learn-f3f164ca376c

Seek Life Changing Events
So when we look back and analyze the things that we are grateful for, we are most grateful for the good things that happened in our lives and seldom are we grateful for the bad things that have happened.

But looking back now and looking at where I currently am, the activities that have led me here have not only been the good ones, but some even not so fantastic events have all led me here.

Imagine when I had to write my first university entrance examination (JAMB) and I did not make it as I did not have a certain subject in my O-level result. This was a pivot point as I did not gain admission into the university that year and I was able to get introduced to computers. My introduction to computers have been a live-changer for me as I simply moved from wanting to study medicine to been interested in computers and that decision has led me to where I am today.

Looking back, I simply am grateful for the missing result in my O-level result and many more events that have not really looked good when they happened but have indeed turned out at the end to be the very best choice ever. As humans, we do not go around being happy when bad things happen, but when we critically look at some these events, they are sometimes even more impactful than the great things that have happened in our lives.

They sometimes seem to be the very things that push us to achieve greater success. So when you begin to list and remember the things you are grateful for, remember the not-so-interesting events that have turned out to be the very best in the end.

Life is a school and we have to learn every day. Remember back in the days when you were in school and you used to despise some teachers for giving you too many homework and assignments. Looking back now, one seems to be most grateful for having had those teachers. Those that indeed made us into better versions of ourselves.

That is how we should always look at events in life. Rather than simply listing the things we feel happy about, I think we should start to categorize events based on the impacts they have had in our lives. Some people find their love only after a divorce. Some find out their callings only after having to drop out of school. These activities can look bad from a distance, but their effects, in the end, are most impactful.

So before you begin today, consider some of those activities that are currently happening in your life that seems to not be immediately the best things, simply be present in the current moment and learn all that you have to from all these events. In the end, it would all make sense.

Look back at the year 2017 and not only list your accomplishments, but also those events that have brought you to where you are today. Seek to learn from every event and be a better you, a better person than you were yesterday.

Thanks and God bless.

faithogiga:
Skill up this new year. I got some stuff for programmers and designers. I am on the file and resource sharing side.

That's one way to grow.

http://vializer.com/BoAM - PHP and Mysql beyond the basics.

http://vializer.com/BnUD - PHP for beginners

http://activeation.com/4Cm1 - Graphic design videos

http://activeation.com/4Ciw - Graphic design books

http://activeation.com/3abJ - Photoshop duotone course.

Take anyone you like

Thanks very much for sharing

So I Made A Toast At A Wedding
Yesterday at a friend’s dinner party for his wedding, I was asked to make a toast to the bride and groom. Kindly understand that I am someone who hardly ever attends any wedding and if I do, I mostly simply remain quite at such weddings.

To be the center of attention for the few minutes caused me to shiver simply at the thought of it. I gathered my strengths and gave the toast. Well, apologies to the couple and those in attendance, I think I made one of the worst toast ever in history. I really felt I could have done much greater.

But isn’t that how we feel when we do something. We believe we could have done better. I have learned never to stay too long in the past, simply learn by lessons from such events and move on. One such thing I learned yesterday was to always never be afraid.

Whatever the situation is, try to never succumb to your fears and let them win. I am sure I could have done a better toast but how would I have known that if I did not make the first toast. True success comes only by starting something. Only after I did the toast did I realize some of the ways I could have been better.

Same in life. Some of the things that scare us can only be better only when we try and learn from them. Some people keep away from their fears creating very good alibis of why they believe they cannot do it. I could have also said I did not want to make the toast. Opportunities come all the time, but they simply dress up so badly that we mistake them for something else.

If I never made the toast, I might not have known how much I can improve on. Come to think of it. Look at the bright side, I get to be introduced to everyone at the event for free. It was simply also a way to fight my fear of appearing in public.

In whatever way I look at it, it was a major success. Well except probably from the angle of the couple who wanted something better. But yes, we can improve and get better. And maybe I will make another toast for their wedding anniversary.

Whatever the situation is, just try. You never can tell what happens until you try. Your mistakes can only become clear when you try. Hoping to try never brings out the mistake. Take a few moments today and try to do some of those things that really scare you.

It might not work out the way you wanted but at least, you learned a lesson or two. Thanks and God bless.

Do not let failure stop you
We do not lose for making mistakes, but the actions we take after making the mistake is all that matters. We seem to think that great people made it all by simply following the best step in what they do. It seems that they simply were lucky and in time to meet all the opportunities available.

But on a closer look, you would realize that a lot more factors were involved in the success. It was not only about the timing, it was simply about how they reacted when they were not successful that caused all the success in the end.

Reading through part of the book “The Intel Trinity”, it became quite clear that the success of Intel did not come basically because they played their games quite well. It was because they indeed persevered during their failure and found a better way out. That was the revolutionizing point for them.

Same goes for me and you today. How do you handle failure? Do you simply give up and let go or you simply understand your weakness, gather your strengths and get back up? It matters that you get back up.

Has it not occurred to you that success only comes when you are busy doing something? Busy trying to achieve success. It is that point success knocks on your door. I have not seen anyone who became successful by doing nothing. Even royalties have to be born first.

So make sure you never let a mistake or a failure pull you back. The greatness of this world is infinite to those who never give up. It belongs only to those who continue to see better ways to come back even in the face of defeat.

If everything was perfect, there would be no need to develop another solution. It seems that the world is the way it is so that we can create more values than we can currently see and imagine. Whatever it is you are onto, you can give up, but remember that greatness comes to those who keep trying.

You might persist in another direction. Not giving up does not mean continuing on the same path when there is a better path to follow. Seek to find better paths and never cease to follow them.

The future is only for those who seek to never be deterred by mistakes or failures. The world needs you. Do not let failure stop you.

Thanks and God bless.

Pay Attention To The Small Things In Your Marriage
Have you ever seen a hen move around with her chicks and some young ones that are not even chicks? Maybe young turkey or other birds. This happens when hens are incubating and people add eggs of other birds so that the hen incubates them together and then watches over them like her own.

When the hen hatches, all the chicks and the young of the other birds work together in all aspect. They follow the mother hen and do almost everything together. In the end, all the birds are like one.

But when you look at it, how did that union happen? It happened from sharing and doing the small things together. The young birds both search for food together, play together and in fact do almost everything together.

In time, they become way closer and the relationship bond is very strong that they do not see themselves as birds of different species. If birds can get to love one another even when they are not of the same species, then it is possible for love to grow among humans that are basically of the same species.

Love grows. For love to grow in your marriage, the small things must matter. Simply checking on your loved ones makes the relationship stronger. Doing almost every possible thing together is a way to get relationships to be stronger. Love is like a garden, it grows when we pay close attention to it and it grows weeds when we forsake it.

Live your life today full of love. Love is one of the strongest and greatest forms of energy we can share with others. Seek to do the small things and see how it becomes very great things in your relationship. Seek to do the very small thing.

When people court, the relationship seems to be perfect because attention is paid to even the simplest things. You seek to appreciate your partner on every small accomplishment, you seek to do things together. You eat together, and many more.

At this stage, you are simply growing your love by the little things you are doing. At this stage, your love is growing and that is what makes you feel so over in love. The small things are catered for.

But after we get married, we seem to forget the small things and simply think that my partner would understand. It is like leaving a garden without paying attention and saying that the garden would understand what you are currently passing through. If you do not give it time, weeds would take over and it would soon be a bad place to visit as different dangerous animals would have sought abode in the garden.

So is our relationships. So take a few minutes today to grow your relationship and your love. Focus on the small things. It is always the small things that matter. The compound effect of the small things is the big effect but you must start small.

So take a few moments today to focus on the small things in your marriage. That is what matters. Remember the number of people who are currently seeking to have what you now have.

Thanks and God bless.

Think Differently
Many of us want to be successful in life. We want to achieve all the great things the world has to offer. We want to drive the best of cars, have the finest of clothes, and the best of everything. But often, we miss the most important thing we need to handle.

That is our thought. Your thought is the only thing you can have full control over. Your thought. But how do you use your thought every day? Your thought manifests in how you handle the small things. Every small thing that you think about. Your thought comes into play.

Until you begin to think differently, you would always be on the path everyone is on. When your thought is same as others, you simply become as others, but when your thought is different, you start a new path. A path never followed before.

Take a few minutes and realize the great men and women that have changed history. These people simply took a course no one was willing to take. They decided to follow a path not followed before. They decided to think differently.

Until you begin to be interested in the way you think and the way you do the small things, you would not change. Decide today to focus on the little things and do them well. Doing the small things well is what becomes the great things.

Life has no single path to greatness and as such, follow God in the way that you can and continue to seek better paths. That is the way too greatness. But greatness has never been about following the crowd. When you follow the crowd, you become indistinguishable. Follow your path and your name echoes in the air.

Take a few minutes today to think differently about the little things you are doing. Find a better way. Do not follow the path, create your path and follow it.

The world awaits your greatness but it lies in thinking differently.

Thanks and God bless.

Saying NO
We all want to be as productive as possible in everything that we do. We want to achieve all and everything that we set out for. But sometimes, we overburden ourselves and become overwhelmed by what is not important that we forget what is indeed important.

It is necessary that we choose to focus. Choose to start and complete one thing, then move to another. Most of the time, we seek to multitask hoping to complete all the tasks at once, but it is always much better to single-task.

Take one task, complete it and move on to the next one. Therefore, choose a single task today and decide that to be your main task. Then start saying NO to every other task. Because if you say YES to another task, your current task might not be your main task anymore.

In a world where we are continuously distracted, we want now more than ever to be focused and dedicated to the most important tasks. We feel productive when we start the number of tasks and activities we are working on. The power we feel when we say all these tasks makes us feel good.

But decide today what it is going to be. Choose the main task. Begin and make it your most important task. Complete that and move to the next task. This does not mean you only deal with one task. It simply means that you have a major task you are always working on.

Others might be secondary but make sure you have the main task you are working on. Start today with that single most important task and do not add any more main task until you are done.

Say NO to all other distractions. Have a great day and God bless.

Fear of Criticism
Have you ever been criticized? How did you feel? I am absolutely sure you do not want to be in the same situation again. We all do not want to.
Criticism is an expression of disapproval based on the perception of faults or mistakes. So, therefore, it means that you can only be criticized for doing something no matter how small. It is in criticism that we realize that inactivity is also a decision.

People would criticize you for doing something and also still criticize you if you choose to do nothing. Such is life and you would have to learn to deal with criticism. In the best form, criticism makes you better and stronger and in the wors form, seeks to make you feel as worthless as possible.
Whatever form of criticism you are feeling now, you are not alone. We all have the fear of criticism in one thing or the other. But it seems as if some people have better mastered it.

Since I was a kid, I was always afraid of speaking to strangers especially females even if I had something important to say to them. I would feel what if she snaps and says get out of here. Well, I did allow my self-criticism dissuade me from getting to meet and know more people but now I know more than ever before, I would have been much better if I fought my fears.

So now is never too later. I have taken it upon myself to face my fears for as long as possible. I still tremble every time I want to speak to a stranger but I would still continue and never let my fear of criticism stop me.

Whatever it is that is stopping you, you can always win. Give yourself some tasks you have always shun due to your fear of criticism and get on with it today. You might never know until you try.
So whatever your fear of criticism is, go out there and be the best that you can towards fighting it off. You never know what can happen until you try.
Do have a great day and God bless.

Keep Pushing Forward
I recently read an about an Intern who cost her company millions of dollars. Well, all I had in mind while reading was that the lady would definitely have been fired due to the lost the intern cost the company.

However, this was not the case. The person narrating the experience explained that the intern was let go because she simply froze and could not do anything after she discovered what she did. It was an incident on a plane.

That really got me thinking about what we normally do when things break down or do not work out. It is fine to cry when things go wrong, but never let that incident stop you. The past should never determine your future.

Whatever situation it is you are currently in, you basically have 2 options. One is to give up and never continue or continue pushing forward. Continue to lament about the challenges and wishing everything was better. If everything was better, you would have also prospered.

But sometimes, the worst thing to do is simply sit and take no action. You do not have to take the big step now. You can start small. Whatever it is you are currently facing, you can do more and be more.

Great people did not attain greatness because everything around them was perfect. In contrast, most great men achieved success because almost everything around them was not perfect and they sort to make it perfect.

Your current situation should not determine your future. Imagine the humble beginning of messengers of God and the number of people they have touched and inspired today. Your current situation should not hold you back. Rather let it keep pushing you forward.

In face of a difficulty or a mistake, the most important thing to do is to learn from the mistake or difficulty. Learn as much as you can and then move on. Life is like a school but you have no physical teacher to teach you.

You would have to figure it out on your own sometimes. So when you face a difficulty, do your best and keep moving. You are being tested for something greater than your current situation. How then can you succeed when you do not win at the small challenges?

It would be truly difficult if I say I understand what you feel right now, but all I can say is that staying where you are does not bring greatness. You have to move from where you are to where you want to be.

Go out there and make it happen. Thanks and God bless.

Getting Back Up
It rained this morning and everywhere was wet. People still have to move around. While heading back home from the mosque, I saw a biker fall off from his motorcycle. The most important part was not him falling but what he did after he fell.

Luckily, he was not injured much, just a little bruise I guess he must have sustained. What he did after that was to dust himself and keep going. This might seem like the normal thing to do but how many of us use this principle in real life.

How many times have we fallen and just gave up? How many times did something not work our way and the only thing we did was to let it go and give up. The story of the bike man might not really inspire or move you but I want you to always have the attitude of the biker when something happens.

No matter how bad you must have felt, sitting down and complaining would never have prevented the accident from happening. The biker would be in more serious case if he just sat on the road and never did anything. Maybe an oncoming car not looking properly would simply pass and squatch him.

But he stood up and continued. He really made my day. Started the bike and without any sign as though he just had an accident, he proceeded and moved on.

Take this simple principle with you everywhere you. Get back up no matter what happened. Your case might be much worse than the biker but the same principle applies. If you stay in the same place without doing anything but lamenting, you might essentially be exposing yourself to a greater danger.

So everyone out there who is facing one issue or the other, simply get back up and keep moving. You never know what the future holds. Keep going, keep moving.

Thanks and God bless.

Why I Applied to MIT, Cornell, Harvard, and Caltech
Currently, on my journey to graduate school, I have applied to four of the most prestigious schools in the world. Cornell, Caltech, Harvard, and MIT are some of the schools I have submitted my applications to.

Why then do I seek to apply to these great institutions while I could simply choose to apply to others? Well, not that these are the only schools I would apply to, but I seek to apply to these schools for one reason: HOPE. Many more reasons abound but this is one of my strongest reasons.

What is the context or meaning of hope in seeking admission? I am seeking admission to these schools with the intention that I would be able to give hope and inspiration to anyone who has the same background like me to also aim for the best. Due to our upbringing, some of us choose to follow the least difficult path, leaving the higher paths for others we think are better than us.

But it does not have to be like that. I pray and hope to secure admission into all these schools so that anyone who thinks he/she is disadvantaged because of their background can think twice. Your current conditions should only determine your past, not your future.

I am the first child in my family to attend the university. This would inevitably give hope to everyone in my family and my community to believe that if I did it, then they can also do it. Graduating with a first-class is another motivation that they can also do it.

One of the events I remember most during my secondary schools days is having to be sent home because of my school fees payment. All these conditions and much worse happen to a whole lot of people and I want to be able to give them hope.

Imagine how it would feel if you realize that I finally get into my dream school. If my background was not too favorable. That would give you the hope and drive not only to apply for a better school but to also pursue whatever it is you want in life.

So when I get asked why I applied to these prestigious schools and would still apply to more, my answer is so that I can give hope to that child who thinks any of his/her goals are impossible to attain.

Right now, getting into these schools seem such an arduous task that the only thing that keeps me moving is the faith that I would get in.

Whatever it is that you want to achieve, no matter your background, you can reach it. Never be intimated by anyone.

You can only know when you try.

Thanks and God bless.

How To Pray
Prayer can be defined as an earnest hope or wish of something from God. It could also be defined as an expression of help or thanks to God. Whichever definition you choose to believe in, the baseline is that you are seeking something from God.

In seeking for something, you must do it with all your heart with no iota of fear or doubt that the request would be granted. When you pray, you must believe that the outcome would always be in your favor.

Even when you do not get what you wished for, your prayers were definitely answered. Look back and realize some of the things that you prayed for that you now have and also look at the things that you prayed for but did not have and you are grateful for that.

Sometimes we wish to have something and when we pray, it seems to not come. But the denial of that thing, in the end, was a blessing in disguise. You can definitely think of such scenario and that means that your prayer was answered.

To pray, you must believe with conviction that your prayers are answered. If you pray and still have fear about what you prayed for, then you still have not prayed. Prayer is about asking and believing that the person you have asked would give you the best. Until you believe that, your prayers are yet to become as powerful as you would want them to be.

Prayer is faith. Faith that the person you are calling upon would answer your request. But when you pray and still do not have faith or hope, then your prayers need to be checked.

Pray every day and not only when you feel overwhelmed with the issues of life. Pray with your heart and mind present. Practise mindfulness when you pray. Seek to flow with Almighty God in your request. Understand that the outcome after you have prayed is the best option for you.

That you did not get what you asked for is no indication that your prayers were not answered. It might be that you are asking for something less. Seek more and be hopeful and faithful that the Almighty God you are conversing with will give you the best.

Prayer is a way of faith. Seek to be faithful and hopeful when you pray. Never give up when you pray. By praying, you believe that your hard work would definitely be rewarded. When you pray, you do more hard work, you do not relent because prayer only works when you work.

Keep up the good work, and keep praying. Prayer conquers all. Never make the mistake of praying without working. Praying alone without praying is about wishing only. You need to wish but also go out and work for it.

Ensure that in the end, all you have done is your best. Ensure that your prayer is with a great faith and hope. Never pray with a mind of fear.

Thank you and God bless.

Clarity Matters
In whatever endeavor you pursue in life, be clear on your goals. Life seems to always want to test whether you are indeed true to your words or not. And it seems that those who are not clear on their goals are those that lose in the end.

Have you ever realized you wanted to achieve something, then people talked you out of it and you gave up? Well, that was a way of testing if you were indeed interested in that thing and what did you say, you gave up and said you were not interested.

It matters that you live every day with a sense of clarity in all that you do. When everyone does not understand your goal, it is your clear goal that would keep pushing you forward even when no one sees or understands your goal. Everyone wants to conform and remain on the same path, but you must see and present a new clear path to everything that you do.

You need to be clear because it seems that every day, we are tested to determine if we are truly clear about what we want.

The Prophets of God were all tested to determine if they were really clear on their mission. What did they do? They remained clear and steadfast on that path. To begin to seek a goal, seek first to be clear about it. Only by dwelling on clear goals can we make progress.

Beyond being clear in our goals, we need to be clearer with our communication. People do not hear what you say, people interpret what you say based on their bias, experience, and exposure. You must continue to ensure that you leave very little space for a wrong interpretation of what you say. As a leader in your field and domain, you must always continue to seek to be clear in your communication.

Communication is complete only when the receiver of the information understands what you are saying and also understands your intent. Seek to be clear in your goals and communication because clarity matters.

Thanks and God bless.

Hi Everyone,
Please how much does it cost to send my IELTS score to a university if I did not use the Free version and it has now expired

The Small Things Matter
As kids, we often cry or get angry when our parents tell us to stop something that seems only innocuous or harmless at that time. Very small and minute things that we cannot fathom how that would make any difference in our future life.

But looking back now, I realize that it is some of those small things that have greatly shaped whom we have become. Remember when your mum always told you to say the truth, now consider if you still say the truth. If your mum convinced you to always say the truth since you were a kid, I doubt if you would be able to change that habit now.

Our habit and behavior is simply a combination of the many small things. Are you a truthful person? If you are very concerned about the truth in small things, you would also apply the same principle in every other part of our lives.

This is basically true because we live based on our everyday experience and when you keep doing something over and over again, it simply becomes a part of you and you even hardly think about it before doing it.

It is like driving a car. The main action of driving a car is a combination of a number of minutes tasks that combine to become your habit as a driver.

It does not matter what you are doing now. All that matters is that whatever you are doing is a combination of the number of small activities and how you deal with these activities would determine how you would live your life.

Life is how you make it. Take care of the small things and keep moving forward.

Thanks and God bless.

Planning An Award Winning OKR
Objectives and Key Results… That is what OKR means. The concept of OKRs started at Intel and has now spread to a whole lot of companies around the world.

We all want to grow in our personal lives, careers, marriages, and every other aspect of our lives. We set goals and we hope to achieve them at the end. But something happens and we forget to go back on that goal we so much wanted to achieve. We get overwhelmed and simply move on to something else. In the end, we remember and wish we had completed that goal.

Well, this scenario sounds familiar to a whole lot of us which is why an OKR is especially the right tool for goal setting and tracking. An OKR involves two major parts, an objective, and key result.

Objective
An objective is that goal you wish you accomplish. I personally prefer to define objective as an end in view. So what do you view yourself accomplishing at the end of a specified time? That is basically what an objective is.

In setting an objective, it must inspire you. Set an objective that basically models a domino. If you are able to achieve a certain objective, then it should be able to inspire you to aim and achieve higher goals.

Beyond setting an objective that motivates and inspires you, ensure you set objectives that are in accordance with your life goals and projects. Simply ensure that they are relevant to your overall life goals.

Key Results
In setting key results, ensure that it is what helps you achieve your objective. As a result of achieving each of your results, then you are closer to achieving your objective. Your key results should be SMART.

It should be specific, measurable, actionable, relevant, and time-bound. You need to be able to specifically determine what that result would be that would help you achieve your objective. It must be measurable so that with time, you can determine whether you are progressing or not.
It must be actionable so you know whether you have achieved it or not. Whatever key result you have must also be relevant and lastly, your key result must have a timeline. You would need to ensure that there is a deadline to which your results must be executed.

In developing an OKR, it is not only about things you want to achieve or acquire, it also encompasses things you do not want to acquire. Some bad habits you want to stop.
Consider key results as those actions that if executed, would come with your objectives
Finally, ensure your results are simply not a list of tasks. Basically, results should be much more than a list of tasks you want to complete.

Mistakes When Creating OKRs
OKRs should be ambitious, but ensure that you have an OKR that has between 3 to 5 objectives. You do not want to spread yourself too thin within a particular period of time.

Take time to develop an OKR instead of taking the task of a 20 minutes task. You give yourself time to imagine and see yourself in the future 3 to 4 months from now and then come up with an amazing OKR that helps take you closer to your end in view. You might take a day or two to simply picture and imagine yourself in the future.
Developing an OKR is a very crucial task and enough time should be given to its development.

How To Track OKRs
Have a tracking officer who keeps you on track. Asks to see your OKR at regular intervals. Ensure you choose someone whom you respect their opinions. Sometimes we get the best opinions about ourselves from others.

Ensure you reward yourself at the end of an OKR quarter. It feels good to know that you have achieved and completed something.
Developing an awarding winning OKR requires a lot of practice and dedication. See that you persist in developing wonderful OKRs.

Thanks and God bless.

Why Did You Study Computer Science?
One of my mentors recently asked me the question while I was preparing my statement of purpose “Why did you study computer science?”. For a long time, I was convinced that I studied computer science because of the movie 24, but well, yes, watching that movie was a great inspiration, but there was yet another reason why I decided to study computer science.

I studied computer science because I wanted to know more about the computer. I was not satisfied simply knowing that the computer would work when you switch it on, the mouse would move a cursor on the screen when you move it, I really wanted to know why all that happened. I guess I simply wanted to know more.

I would sit in cyber cafes for hours browsing through the internet learning from how the RAM works to how the computer screen works. I was indeed obsessed with understanding how it all works maybe I can one day create my own computer. Well, I like to really be in charge. So when I am handed a computer and I do not know how it works, I am a little impressed with seeing the computer working. I am more impressed when I understand how it works.

Maybe it is for this reason that during my undergraduate days, I would first try to write out my programming assignments on paper to better understand precisely how the computer would reason it before I sent it to the computer for processing. For me, it was not about solving the problem but understanding how the computer runs the program.

Maybe this is why I continue to pursue studies in Computer Science. I believe this is why I keep on going everyday learning as much as I can in the field of computer science.

I am also lucky to not have only learned how the computer works, but I have also been lucky in teaching how it works. For me, learning was about understanding, but that was not complete until I have taught someone else.

This makes the knowledge easily accessible to others. Because what else would be the use of knowledge if others do not benefit from it.

Well, this is all I can remember about why I decided to study computer science and I continue to pursue studies in computer science.

Feel free to share. Why did you study the course you studied?

Hoping to hear from you soon.

Thanks and God bless.

What Type Of A Friend Are You?
Have you ever wondered what you want in a friend? Have you ever considered why the current set of friends you have around you are indeed your friend? What would you do to not be their friends anymore?

Pondering over these questions can make us realize who truly are our friends. We can be friends with people for the benefit we gain from them. A friend who would pick your calls when you are down, a friend who would help in financial times and many more.

You could have a friend whom you gain pleasure from being with that person. You feel cool, able to say what you want to say, just being okay around them.

Well, these are all good reasons for being friends with anyone but have you considered what happens when that friend stops giving you all those benefits or you stop getting all that pleasure from that friend. Would they still remain your friends?

There is one more reason why a person could be your friend. For their goodness. You can be friends with someone for the great good they are doing. If a person is your friend for the reason that they are good, this would definitely make the relationship better because even when the person is not there when you are weak or in need, you are sure that are preoccupied with something good elsewhere. Simply thinking about that person not being there with you and thinking that are working on something good where they are would make you happy.

Also, being friends with someone because of their goodness gets you all the other benefits for free. The benefits of pleasure and the benefits. These types of friends are hard to come by.

But well, you attract the same type of people as you are. If you want to have friends that are inherently good, you would have to be good by yourself. You would seek to benefit others, serve as a pleasurable person and in essence be a good person.

Your attitude and goodness are what would make your relationship stronger and better. When you do all these and still do not have that friend, realize that you were meant for something better.

Imagine what would happen if relationships are built on the foundation of goodness. If couples and spouses learn to love the good in each other. This would greatly make friendships far more cherished than they currently are.

How many relationships are simply built on benefits and pleasure? Concepts like Friends with benefits are such that limits the meaning of friendship.

Friends can be far more than what we make them. Friendships are meant to inspire goodness and greatness in us.

Ask yourself today “What type of a friend are you?”

Thanks and God bless.

What Would I Do When I Get Married
This article is inspired by the Million Dollar speech by Dr. Frank W. Gunsaulus. In his speech, Dr. Gunsaulus who did not have a million dollar said what he was going to do if he had a million dollar. His goal was to build an educational institute which today is the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Well, I am not going to build an educational institute today if I got married but I would do something different. I would continue to devote myself to my personal development and also the development of my spouse. It is easier said than done but it has always been said that two heads are better than one. I would love to look into this quote when I get married.

These days, the belief that we can all go out there and be whom we want to be without seeking help from others is gaining grounds but I have in my little experience learned that great men and women have never worked it all out alone. They had great help and support from others, not necessarily their spouses. But it is an important trend for great men that most of them had a great woman to serve as their fountain of inspiration.

I would serve to help her continue on the path of knowing Allah and serving him. In the path of becoming a better human being in every way that I can. I would be that buddy who would do everything possible to make sure we are together in Jannah. I would do all that I can to make her a better version while she does much more for me.

I would do the best to improve the well being of my spouse with all that I have if and when I get married. Some would say that this is a cliche. All men say this. I would not disagree but I believe this is what I want to do and I would go for it.

I would provide the listening ear to listen and be there for my spouse whenever she needs me. I would in my possible best do all that I can to listen when she needs someone to tell all her issues. Her shoulder to lean on, a chair to sit on, a bed to sleep on, a car to ride in. All these I would be willing to do for my spouse. Well, not because that is what makes me a better man, but because I am well aware that my spouse would go the extra mile for me.

I would do all that I can to preserve her dignity in the little way that I can. Keep that her secrets like mine and never do anything to sabotage our relationship. Why would I do that? Because I know my spouse would go the extra mile to do the same for me. She would do far more than I can.

Honestly, what would I do if I get married? Definitely more than what I have written or hope to do. Much more. I would give in my sweat to make my marriage the best for both of us. A marriage where we wished we had married earlier.

Well, at this point, this is a wish. The wish to get married. My second half, where are you? My heart longs to meet you. I cannot wait to have you in my life. My zaujati.

I can’t wait to meet you.

Thank you and God Bless.

When Life Does Not Seem To Work Out
We sometimes want things so badly that we feel hurt when it does not come to pass. We hope to get that scholarship we have been aiming for, hoping to get our relationship right, hope to stop a bad habit. But then it all falls out and we do not get what we want. This stage is better remembered than experienced because it makes one feel so lowly of themselves.

But beyond not getting what we want, remember the lessons that come with these experiences. My case this year was no different. I applied for a number of scholarships but well, yet to get any. I always believe I am the right match for the scholarship but then they simply just slip by and I have to prepare and apply for another. Just as my relationships have been, I seem to just get into a relationship and the next minute I am out. Trying frantically to prove to myself that I can make it work, but it just slips by.

However, I have learned very important lessons from these setbacks. Well, most importantly that it is okay to be sad. It is okay to feel unhappy but that does not mean you give up. The unhappiness and challenges that we face during these moments are meant to make us better. To create a better version of ourselves. Consider what it takes to get fine pieces of jewelry. The gold must be refined to get the best out of it. This is what the stages when we feel down are meant to be. Those are the stages when the best in us is being developed. It is not easy, but well no manual said it was going to be easy.

When it does not seem to work, when you feel your plans have been shattered, when you feel like giving up, remember that these moments are the defining moments. What you end up doing now would determine how your life would generally be. Do you want to be a quitter and give up when things do not go your way? I am sure everyone does not want to quit. So why you?

Take a few moments to be sad, unhappy or even cry. That is okay. But let that moment make you stronger, better, and more focused than ever on achieving your goal. When things do not work out, you plan another way around it.

Well, I am yet to get any scholarship but who says I would not get. Well, I am yet to find the fun and interesting relationship I am seeking, but who says I would not find. My limitations are only those I set for myself. I would today and forever never limit myself because I am at my lowest point. My greatness and yours is yet to come. Why give up now?

Once you have taken the time to be emotional about your setback, get back up and keep going. Expect more setbacks but expect much more comebacks. When the number of comebacks is greater than the setbacks, mathematically, that is a success. You are always going to be back.

So whatever setback you are facing today, that does not define you. How you react is what defines you. Take a deep breathe and get back. The world needs more winners.

Thank you and God Bless.