By Henry Ukazu
Greetings my good friends,
It’s a great pleasure to be here once again. Please pardon my inability for not
been able to write last week. I know some of you might be a little bit
disappointed, honestly, it was due to circumstances beyond my control. I
received so many several calls, emails and messages. I promise to do better
next time. In whatever in life, I always look at the end in mind, in that way I
will be properly guided on where my aim and vision in life lies. This is the
more reason why I take my time in writing every week even when I am
stressed up because I am addicted to sharing motivational and inspiring
articles. As you all may know success in life has to do more with the journey
rather than the destination.
Today, I chose to write on the relativity of journey and destination as
facilitators of success. Just like any other aspect of life, life is indeed a
process. You may heard of the saying success is more of a journey, rather than
destination. Some other rational minds opine that the end justifies the means.
These assertions are relatively true, however, it all depends on the angle you
are looking at it from. We shall be comparing on both factors today but we
shall be concentrating more energy on the process (journey).
It is an indisputable fact that in life the journey of a thousand miles begins
with a step in the right direction. It is also a fact that little drops of water
makes an ocean. Just like a leader needs a team to achieve success, same way
success needs to be processed in order for it to be truly justified. With my little
knowledge and understanding of mathematics, the process of arriving at the
answer via the formula generates more point more that the actual answer
itself. True success doesn’t work in isolation. It works in harmony and unison
with other component parts and characteristics which I call siblings and
friends.
As human beings, sometimes we seem to neglect how far we have come in life.
We are always eager to see what we lack as opposed to appreciating what we
have. Human beings by nature can be ungrateful. The same analogy is
applicable to the journey of success. Let’s take the example of an accomplished
author who is now a bestseller. The journey to the top wasn’t easy. He/she had
mentors who inspired him/her to write the book, publishers, family members,
friends and associates who contributed in one way or the other to the work a
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great success. To me, they are the real MVP’s as far as I am concerned. Theyare the people who deserve the main accolades and should be appreciated, butsometimes some irrational beings tend to forget those people who contractedto their success. Also, if a student excels in life to an enviable position in theworld (President, CEO, Governor) etc. It will be nice for such person toremember his/her teacher who groomed him/her. It is on this context we shallbe discussing about journey and destination to success.It is interest to note that Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay literally wentwhere no other human had been when they became the first people to reachthe peak of Mount Everest. Can you imagine what they must have felt? Pride,accomplishment, fulfillment. Question, did they achieve it alone? No, I guess.Think about the most important achievement in your life. Remember thatfeeling when you finally reached the summit of your academic career, politicalambition, financial status and professional career. If you will agree with me,you didn’t do it alone, there were people behind it and it was truly a journeyand process.Last week I was listening to Joyce Meyers – a charismatic preacher. She wasspeaking on everyday life. In that message, she said true success lies in thelittle deeds and things you do daily as opposed to one major task you do.According to her you need to do small task nor matter how little it is in yourdaily routine which will add up to the goal you have in mind.To understand how the journey of success really works, imagine yourself beinga man or lady who needs a particular shape, it is expected that you’ll hit thegym at least three times a week and do some work out. You’ll follow up thealso the process with a good hygiene. In fact, I personally feel the highest gymis in your kitchen. Let’s face it, it’s common to feel resistance whenundertaking a new exercise habit. This is because there are several stepsrequired. You have to pack your gym bag, travel to the gym, change into yourworkout clothes, warm up, exercise, warm down, shower, and change backinto your normal clothes before traveling back home. This is the attitude andmindset which a rational mind desirous of making an impact should have. Itis the process that denes the destination. Isn’t it true that youcan easily spot a dedicated and discipline student or athletic. who is doingwhat he or she needs to be do in order to succeed in life? It’s always importantto take note of the journey or inventory of all stocks.It is quite unfortunate that many people regard the destination more than thejourney. In as much I agree that the outcome/ nished product -
is very important, it is worthy to mention the sacrice,challenges, failures, people and the experience that came itwith it.Let’s discuss some worthy points that will assist us in appreciating the role ofprocess and journey to our dream destination.Get specicHaving the end in mind is very important. Being specific helps your overallgoal and road map in order to get to your destination. When you are specific,you will know what to focus on. One quality of every great man or woman isthat they are very focused and specific in whatever they plan to achieve.Employers’ are always looking for specific beings to solve specific problems.The more specific you are, the easier it is for people to assist or work with you.Break it down and start smallIf you have a goal to accomplish, it is always better to start small and grown.You can do this by breaking it down and taking it bit and bits. Try to do littlethings every day nor matter how little and stressful, it gives some level ofsatisfaction. Breaking the journey in pieces helps you to appreciate thejourney.Celebrate the progress and enjoy the journeyWhen it’s not all about the goal, you can take it all in (and take whatyou’ve learned with you).When you have a big goal, it’s tempting to think you haven’t succeeded untilyou’ve achieved it. Otherwise, you might think you have failed forgetting thatthe set backs propels you to appreciate the progress and accomplishments thatawaits you. According to Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, professor of BusinessPsychology at University College London, he observed that small milestonesare powerful for seeing a change in the positive direction, noting that “thepoint is not to get better than others, it’s to get better than the old version ofyourself.” Keep track of what you’ve accomplished with a done list,which is a log of the tasks you’ve completed. Seeing your progressboosts motivation, heightens positive emotions, and sustains yourproductivity. A Harvard study found that we spend almost 50 percent of ourtime thinking about the past and future, instead of focusing on the present,which leads to increased unhappinessReect dailyActively thinking and reflecting about your business, idea, product, academicmajor etc. Reflecting daily can help you plan very well. As a rule of thumb, it’s -
always helpful to set a sizable amount of time during the day to reflect on theactivities of the day before you sleep and also spending at least fifteen minutesof the day to mediate and think when you wake up every morning. By so doingyou can motivate and inspire yourself when you think the lines are not addingup. You can do this by asking yourself “What is one step I can take today to getcloser to my goal?” “What did I learn today?” You can also check in on aweekly or monthly basis to assess what you’ve gotten out of your journey thusfar.Whenever you are tempted to give up in life, always remember the words ofBrian Tracy, “It doesn’t matter where you are coming from, all that maters iswhere you are going. The past is in the past for a reason, the present is here fora reason which is a gift to work with for tomorrow which is not guaranteed.In conclusion, always bear in mind “Success is never final. Failure is neverfatal. In the end it’s the courage to continue that counts.”Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with New YorkCity Department of Correction as the legal Coordinator. He’sthe author of the acclaimed book Design Your Destiny –Actualizing Your Birthright To Success..
