Posts tagged ‘faith’
Success is Now!
I write this blog entry for my friends and families whom I’ve seen struggle as they chase something thinner than thin air called success.
The idea for most people is that success lives in the future. It is what you will gain – the big house, nice car; position – the big promotion, being in the C suite, and fame or network – the friends and connections you will have in influential positions. I want to emphasize that for most people, all these ‘things’ are in the future, that is, these are what you will have or will be in the future.
Here is an idea that may seem radical: That success is not in the future, but rather lives here, in present tense. You can be successful right now. You don’t have to postpone anything. The decision to succeed now can lead to you having or be all that you want to be.
One of the ways that success can be defined is as follows:
A successful person is someone who has made the commitment NOT to give up on goals. No matter what the obstacles, that person will push through. If this person falls 777 times, the natural reaction is to just get back up. That is a successful person.
I have yet to see anyone with this kind of attitude fail
Being successful involves adopting the attitudes, belief systems, and values of successful people. The person who does this is bound to achieve desired life goals.
Note that the definition above says nothing about what you have or where you are in life. I know of friends and family members in their 40s and 50s who are nostalgic about their 20s and what they could have accomplished. They see themselves as failures because they are not where they want to be. Consider this idea: That in the next 5 years, some people in their 20s will accomplish goals that people in their 40’s previously gave up on. So what’s the difference between people in their 40s and 50s who have given up on their dreams, and those 20 somethings who will attain those levels of achievement? Those in their 40s and 50s likely have more experience, more education, and larger networks.
Some achieve their goals with their efforts fueled by fear of failure. The fear to fail can be a powerful catalyst, pushing you to work so hard to avoid it. However, based on my experience this type of success could come at a high cost to personal relationships and health. There are no guarantees that the failure a person tries to avoid will lead to reaching the goal. However, there is no doubt in my mind that fear has a negative effect on the fearful and those around him. On the other hand, pursuing your goals from the position that you are already successful (because you have what it takes!) will serve as fuel and make the journey more enjoyable. Such an approach provides the confidence and the mental fortitude needed to overcome challenges that will come your way.
Success involves making a powerful choice in the present tense—now! That choice can propel you forward and sustain you for whatever goals that you have set out to accomplish. Wherever you are in your journey, take the challenge today– choose that from now you are successful!
Having the eye of faith
“Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see” Hebrews 11:1
[One of the most important qualities of a leader is being able to visualize the future. In Christian terminology, I call it the eye of faith. In secular or religiously-neutral language, I call it “visualization power,” the ability to see what can be as opposed to what is. If you can see barely in front of you, how can you lead others to the promise land? Below is an excerpt from a sermon I preached during the occasion of a youth day. I hope the language is accessible to everyone whether you go to church regularly or you’ve never set foot in one. Be blessed!]
Visualization starts with dreaming. But many people don’t know how to dream. For some it is because others have told them that they are good for nothing, that they will never get a good job or they will never find a good person to marry. When you have God, though, you have to learn to shake negative things off. When I was young, kids said very mean things to me. Fortunately, I learned to shake it off. They could only see my present whereas I could see my future. Don’t let other people stop you from dreaming.
One of the main qualities of a leader or a high achiever is that he or she has a good ability to see beyond what things are now to what they could be in the future. In business schools, they might call this quality “having vision” or “being a visionary.” In fact, I believe that what distinguishes many successful people from others is that they have dared to have bigger dreams! Joshua was a visionary. When he went to Canaan as a spy, 10 of the other spies saw the giant soldiers who they thought could not be defeated, Joshua on the other hand saw the beautiful land that God was going to give them as a country. David did not focus on Goliath, instead he saw the easy victory that God was about to give through Him. While his servant was focused on the army around them, Elijah instead could see thousands of angels protecting them. When you have vision, you’re not limited by your present conditions because you know with God, things can become better.
What I call vision for the Christian is simply the eye of faith. Hebrews 11:1 says that “Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” (NIV)
The Bible tells us that God says that he will be with us with whatever we undertake, whatever we initiate, whatever enterprise we embark on, wherever we go. That is a license to dream. Because of God’s promise, if I want something and I have asked Him for, I can already see myself having it. Someone said that if you’re going to dream, dream big. I encourage you today to dream big.
AyiPreneur 