BREAKING THE LIMITS

Obstacles are simply the frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goals [Henry Ford]. The problem for most people who want to be successful is not that they can’t achieve success. According to M. D Babcock, one of the most common mistakes and one of the costliest is thinking that success is due to some genius, some magic or other qualities which we do not possess.

Not long ago, Dr Benjamin Bloom of the University of Chicago conducted a research based on the anonymous interviews with the top twenty performers in various fields. Included were a variety of professionals such as concert pianists, Olympic swimmers, Mathematicians, Neurologists. Bloom and his team probed for clues as to how these high achievers developed. For a more complete picture, they also interviewed their families and teachers. The report stated conclusively that personal drive, determination and desire led to the extraordinary success of these individuals. Most of them had no great natural talent to achieve this feat. Friends, no revivalist can wake up the sleeping don in you except you.

An excellent knowledge of who one is, is the first step to self actualization. Self assessment explores our strengths and weakness. You build your strength and work towards eliminating your weaknesses. Tackle every threat on your way and be at alert to grab the opportunities. Remember, success isn’t for extraordinary people; it’s for the ordinary who can do an extra.

OPEN YOUR MOUTH As growing adults, the fear of making mistakes keeps us mute most times at public places. Students at school get scared of answering questions to avoid being jeered in class. He doesn’t want to miss it. On the contrary, the student is making a great mistake. He hasn’t missed it, he has only learnt that his opinion isn’t correct. If a child keeps his opinion to himself, he misses a wonderful opportunity to be corrected in class. Invariably, he postpones the evil day. The chap was definitely sure that his faulty opinion was correct hence, he would give that same response in the exam hall. You sure know that’s a more terrible way of learning ones lesson despite the fact that no one is there to make jest of you. Pally, being an actor is a lot better than being a “spectator”. Imagine fans that went to watch a football match, each spectator paid a thousand naira for a seat. The spectators were glued to their seats for 90 minutes. However, they kept making jest of the footballers. Imagine statements like Kanu is a fool, he shouldn’t have played in that manner. Friend, in reality, who is the greater fool? Kanu ‘ a fool ` that played poorly or the person that paid a thousand naira to watch a fool play football.

The same applies to classroom situation. Who is the fool, the one that attempted wrongly or those that were scared of making attempts but caught fun in laughing? Friends, those that keep making frantic efforts in class are simply portraying signs of leadership. A leader keeps making attempts to solve problems. He’s never scared of mistakes and he rarely repeats mistakes.

The truth is, no leader doesn’t make mistakes. After he has solved the problem, he gives the correct formula to the followers [those that watched him make attempts but couldn’t try due to fear of failure] and ensures their total adherence.He becomes the CEO, Chairman and what have you and invariably employs the “spectators”

Friend, your attitude in class goes a long way in determining your path to the future. A leader or a servant, the choice is yours