Dear Destiny Friends,

Everything in life has rules and processes. There is every tendency that one may hit the rocks if for any reason he fails to adhere to the set rules and processes. It is only on rare occasions that the luck or “grace factor” can come to one’s rescue. In legal matters, one must understand the laws, rules and exceptions to win a case. In mathematics, one must know the formula while in medicine, diagnosis is a prerequisite to ascertain the cause of any illness.

The focus of this article is on the necessity of soft skills in achieving success. Note that rules bordering on success are not exhaustive; they are more like basic and insightful ideas one can explore if one is determined to succeed.

Just like there are many ways to kill a rat, there are also many ways to succeed. However, one thing is certain, one must follow and adopt relevant principles. Principles are universal, and once rightly applied, one is bound to reap the benefits. I will be sharing some of the principles a diligent, progressive and success-prone mind can adopt.

While reading, working hard and smart on your business are important, it is imperative to note that learning a skill, developing your talent and gifts are equally important success magnets a rational mind must adopt. Some of these success principles which I call success magnets are built into soft skills among which are building capacity, having a good reputation, being diligent, consistency, networking, personal relationship, good attitude, good communication, problem solving skills, creativity and empathy.

You may be wondering how one applies these soft skills? Let’s start from the area of building capacity. In any area you would like to get prominence, you must endeavor to learn as much as possible to gain credibility. When you have developed capacity, it will be easy to apply soft skills.  It is sad to note that sometimes, some people put the cart before the horse, and think the universe will favour them. No, you must understand the process. No serious mind will give you an opportunity when you are yet to develop capacity. When you develop capacity, it will be easy to apply the soft skills.

Even if you haven’t developed capacity, you can creatively use soft skills to learn how to develop capacity if you have a good communication skill, great mindset and attitude.

These soft skills might sound ordinary, but trust me, they are very fundamental. This is because, even with theoretical and practical knowledge, if you don’t have these soft skills, you might appear unattractive. But if you have these soft skills, you can learn both theoretical and practical knowledge.

It is easy to say ‘I want to succeed’, but when we are exposed to the diligent and consistent work we must do, we’ll rather remain in our comfort zone. Trust me, I have been there, but I refuse to stay there because I have since understood that there’s no gain in playing little when you can play big.

On a personal note, I normally do all within my reach to give my best shot by preparing for the best and expecting the worst to the extent it goes south. As you may know, nothing is guaranteed in life, no matter how hard you work, or how much trust you may have in your work. You can do all you are expected to do and still fail. Yes, you can have theoretical, practical and social skills and still fail. In such a situation, just know that your time has not come yet.

It’s important to note that there’s no substitute for excellence.  It’s either the work is good or not. To achieve excellence, endeavor to spend one percent of your time in an area of your life you have a strong interest in or whatever you are passionate about. By doing, you will develop expertise.

Another great rule for success is surrounding yourself with greatness. By this, I mean people who are exceptionally good in what they do. They might not be in your areas of interest, but if they are, that’s a plus. These people might be younger or older than you, they must have certain traits or values you admire, but more importantly, they should bring out the best in you.

Most times, in our quest to make an impact in life, we tend to focus on hard work which is good, but experience and life has taught me to focus on what ignites your spirit and soft silks can be the game-changer. When you channel your energy on where you are celebrated, you will understand the importance of value. Imagine working with someone who doesn’t understand the value you bring to the table, all your work will be considered as mere service, but someone with a heart of service, gratitude and appreciation knows the importance of value when they see one. This is the simple reason why most employers and resourceful beings make conscious efforts to retain certain people despite the noise outside.

When you are successful, there’s this level of happiness and fulfillment that comes to you. This success comes to you because you have done something unique like having mentors or role models. Let’s take a minute to discuss mentors and role models, and their importance.

If you will agree with me, success leaves clues where it derived its strength and foundation. There’s nothing in life that doesn’t have a foundation. As you journey through life, find mentors and role models who have already achieved what you would like to achieve. Just like you study what the happiest couples have done to stay together for decades if want true love; you can also learn from the experience of those whose marriage didn’t work, they might give you one or two advice that might be more beneficial to you than couples whose marriage never broke up.

If your dream is to be the best lawyer in your city or State, study what the best lawyers in your city or country did to achieve their reputations. If you want to be a World Champion, study the lives of World Champions, and learn how they did it. If you want to be a millionaire, find millionaire role models who you would like to be someday. If you want to be an entrepreneur, find a few entrepreneurs who inspire you and study how they achieved what they have. Without a doubt, mentors and role models are your shortcuts to unleashing your greatness. By learning from the experiences of others, you will increase your possibility of succeeding, and avoid unnecessary mistakes.

Give and Give: This principle is mind-blowing. As humans, we are naturally selfish, we do care for ourselves most times more than others do. Don’t get me wrong, you need to care for yourself first. However, for the purpose of this principle, I want you to know that you will get what you want faster when you help other people to achieve what they want. Life is not about you, neither is it centered on you . The average man seeks what he can receive from the world. The extraordinary man seeks what he can give to the world. When you assist other people without having an expectation, they will be glad to go the extra mile for you if they have an appreciative mindset. And of course, a lot of people do!

Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator.  He’s a Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate and creative writer. He’s the author of the acclaimed book Design Your Destiny – Actualizing Your Birthright to Success. He can be reached info@gloemi.com

Dear Destiny Friends,

“Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” – Albert Schweitzer

Nothing makes the heart merrier than success. Success comes in different shapes and sizes. However, our contemporary society is now positing money or wealth as success.  But it is imperative to note that what most people see as success is actually money or wealth on display. When you don’t have money to show the world, most people don’t see you as successful. But what they fail to understand is that success is relative. You can be successful in any sphere of life including business, academics, politics, spirituality, family, career, entertainment or art.

If you ask me, the first foundational principle of success is knowing yourself. Knowing who you are is a key ingredient for success. As mentioned earlier, all those who have been able to succeed either in business, academic, spirituality, entertainment, art, politics, and family identified themselves. They didn’t copy anyone. They know what they carry is unique and the only way they can make an impact in the world in an efficient manner is to be the best version of themselves.

This is the reason my organisation, Global Empowerment and Mentoring Initiative Inc, (Gloemi.com) focuses on Human Capacity Development. We help youths and career professionals to unleash their potential. We do this by using our self-discovery programme to inquire into the latent gifts and talents which are lying fallow in our clients. We take the client throigh the rudiments of discovering their inept qualities because it is not what we don’t know that makes us fail, but we are not aware that is inside of us.

In Gloemi, we know that everyone is destined to succeed. But this success comes at a price which an individual must be willing to pay. A key component of our training is focused on Mindset transformation. We do this because we success and failure start from the mind, and the fact that many youths lack the right information to succeed. Some youths are mostly influenced by what they see on the internet and social media. For instance, some believe that education is a scam having not come to terms with why one would invest so much money in acquiring a formal education and then find it difficult to get a job commensurate to the money and time invested in formal education. They fail to understand that education itself is a training and opportunity to broaden one’s mind and expose them to the world through enlightenment.

Again, some believe that money is the prize tag when they have come of age. And so, when they are done with High School or College, the next thing is to look for money, they fail to realize that life is very dynamic. You need mentors who can guide you on the right path of life, depending on your interest. That’s why it is important to instill in the minds of youths the relativity of success. You can get all the money in the world and still be poor because there’s more to life than money. These are some of the information and training we offer at Gloemi.

When I say success is inside of you, trust me, it’s real. Success is inside everyone of us. I want you to join me in a little exercise now and say to yourself, success is inside of me. Yes, say it loud to yourself. You may be wondering, where is the success? The answer simply lies in asking yourself, what’s the one thing I can do for free without anyone paying me? Again, you can ask yourself, what’s the one thing I love to do that makes me happy? By the time you answer these question(s), you have solved 50% of your life challenges.

The challenge most people have is that sometimes, they wait for other people to believe in them or give them an opportunity before they can hit the ground running. The world doesn’t need to give you permission, you have what it takes to make the world to go round. If you wait for the world to give you permission, you might be heading for a disaster because the world is filled with jealousy. According to Ray Goforth,  “There are two types of people who will tell you that you cannot make a difference in this world: those who are afraid to try and those who are afraid you will succeed.”

If you care to know to know how success is deposited inside of you, consider the likes of Aliko Dangote, Bill gate, Ben Carson, Barack Obama, Peter Obi, Donald Trump, Cristiano Ronaldo, Albert Einstein, Dr. Yomi Garnett, Steve Jobs, Mother Theresa, Mike Tyson, and Henry Ukazu, just to mention a few. All these great world leaders have distinguished themselves in their respective fields. They are known for one thing or another. For instance, Dangote is regarded as the richest Black man in the world, but he can’t cure himself if he is sick, he will have to consult a medical doctor like Ben Carson to operate on him depending on the medical treatment he needs. In the same vein, Bill Gates is so wealthy that he can fund any business he has interest in, but if he wants to write a book about himself, he will have to engage Dr. Yomi Garnett who is one of the best if not the best Ghost writers the world has produced to write his book.

The same principle is applicable if Cristiano Ronaldo, Barack Obama and Bill Gates want to inspire the youths, there’s no other person best suited to train and empower the youths than Henry Ukazu, who has written a trailblazer book on youths’ empowerment and has been globally celebrated and profiled by world leaders, New York Times, United Nations, News12 just to mention a few. The point I am trying to make here is that one has to know himself and what’s unique about him for the world to take him serious. That on its own is success.

In the journey of life, it is important to note that you will have to believe in yourself before others can believe in you. You will have to begin the race or journey before others can join you. According to Chuck Norris “Always remember that your success is inside you, if you can’t see it first, no one can see it”. When you become a man of success, you’ll attract value to yourself. It’s your value that will bring the success that’s inside of you.

According to Albert Einstein, “Try not to become a man of success. Rather become a man of value.”

In conclusion, take a moment self-examination, and then ask yourself, what’s unique about me, what are my gifts, talents and what skills do I have that makes me unique to help other people? When you correctly answer the questions, you are gradually heading to success if only you can develop and multiply it to help other people solve their problems.

Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator.  He’s a Human Capacity and mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate and creative writer. He’s the author of the acclaimed book Design Your Destiny – Actualizing Your Birthright to Success. He can be reached info@gloemi.com

Dear Destiny Friends,

Everyone of us has an inert gift. However, many of us don’t seem to make use of our gifts. You may be wondering how one can know his gift. It is rather very easy to discover gifts if one is intentional on the purpose. One of the many ways of discovering your gift is by looking inwards to know that thing you can do with relative ease, and without stress. For instance, if you see yourself singing with a unique voice which receives adulation from people, it’s a sign you are gifted in singing; if you see yourself dancing, writing creatively, speaking intuitively, prophesying, cooking etc. with little or no effort, and to the admiration of a lot of people, who feel blessed and reach out to you spontaneously, you have a gift. It is therefore up to you to develop it.

It is imperative to state that the art of self-discovery is truly lacking in our society. Most people don’t really know themselves and this singular fact limits their capabilities. When you know yourself, you won’t need to beg or struggle to get certain things. You will have self-confidence, and equally understand the process. When you know your gift, you’ll know the right people who need your gift, and you will offer it to them. The world is in dire need of people who are gifted and talented in their craft. Knowing and representing your gift make the world a happy place to live in. When you see people who are gifted, there are certain levels of grace and joy that radiate in your heart.

As a human capacity coach, my business is focused on developing human beings to reach their highest level of human potential. One of the best ways of unleashing your potential is by tapping into the power of your gift. Your gift is your blessing to the world. Many of us have gifts but have failed to open them.

Gifts come with value. Your gift is not for fun or a hobby. Your gift is a service and currency for the world to appreciate. When you have discovered your gift, the next step is to find people who need it, and offer it to them. Your gift comes with value which needs to be appreciated. Your job is to horn your gift by cultivating it so you can perform at optimal capacity.

The problem with most people is that they don’t know how to develop their gifts. The creator of heaven and earth has given you a gift; he won’t develop it for you. It’s up to you to horn it by getting training, going to school, or cultivating it one way or another. That’s why God gave us common sense and understanding in addition to making us superior among other creatures on earth.

Gifts work in all places. It is a universal principle that can attract opportunities to whoever activated them properly. Regardless of the hardship prevailing in life, if you know your gift, people will borrow money to have you around them. You will be blessed with so much favour which ordinarily you won’t be able to access. That’s why the book of life, says “a man’s gift opens doors for him”.

The process of employment, we all can agree, sometimes requires employers to hire individuals with gifts/talents rather than those with theoretical knowledge but little or no practicable knowledge. When your gift is properly activated, it normally receives grace and favour at the place of assignment. You won’t stress yourself to succeed. The universe will make humanity feel attracted to come to you.

Let me share a short story with you; just last week, while listening to a gospel artist, Panam Percy Paul on YouTube, I was inspired to reach out to my social media network to find him. As expected, lots of recommendations came through, and I was able to connect with him and his daughter. And to the glory of God, I was able to bless him as led by the spirit. What’s the moral of this story? This is a song I have been listening to for many years yet didn’t get the inspiration to reach out to him. But when the spirit came through, I had to act, and he was very grateful at how his song blessed me. That’s the power of a gift.

Again, as an author of a trailblazer book, I was surprised to see the royalties I got for December and January; it was really a fortune to me to say the least. This is a book that I promote heavily, and which has announced me to world leaders, as well as given me audience in television in New York, New York Times, schools etc. The hundreds of copies that were sold in December and January really humbled me. As a matter of fact, it was competing with my monthly salary. Again, this is the power of gift at work.

Furthermore, most of the times, we look for jobs, but fail to understand that God has given us opportunities if only we think out of the box. Your gift is your blessing. Your gift is your job. The simple reason why most skillful entrepreneurs succeed is because they have not only known themselves, but they have also known how to convert their talent to their profession, vocation, and ministry. For clarification on how self-discovery works, you must understand the difference between your profession, vocation, and ministry. Your profession is what you are trained to do, for example as an attorney, medical doctor, pastor etc.; your vocation is what you are paid to do such as a skill job or 9-5 career job, and your ministry is your calling, like what you are called to do. This is where you find your talent and gift. It is through your gift or talent that self-discovery evolves.

Just like life is a journey, we must continually develop ourselves by learning, relearning, and unlearning certain things about ourselves. That’s exactly how the gift principle works. You must endeavor to develop your gift otherwise, it will remain redundant. You must make an effort to discover what’s unique about you. Nobody will do it for you.

Most times, we think when we get a good paying job we are made for life; sometimes, we think when we marry a good spouse we are settled for life; other times we think when we have reached certain heights politically, academically, professionally etc., we are accomplished. While all these might be great attributes, what we fail to ask ourselves is whether we are fulfilled. Fulfilment is the hallmark of success. Regardless of how much money you have, if you are not fulfilled, you are empty. No matter who you marry, if the person is not supporting you to reach your purpose, you are leaning on the wrong ladder of success. No matter the height you attain in life, if you get to the peak without being fulfilled, trust me, you are a victim of defective success.

You will know your gift is working when you have little or no concern with the money you are paid; you can even do the job/work for free simply because it makes you happy. It’s just like a lady who is truly and genuinely in love, she won’t be materialistic about her partner’s support. All she might care for might be the guy’s attention which can be the way he speaks affirming his love for her, the small gifts he buys for her, the little services he performs for her, the little touches he gives to her and the time he spends for her. This might be all the lady needs. A man who is not able to decipher the lady’s “gift” might be busy buying or investing in other things that don’t appeal to her as opposed to what turns her on.

In summary, take time to ask yourself what’s my gift and talent? By the time you figure it out, you will know how wealthy you are. If you have a hard time knowing your gift or who you are, feel free to reach out with the email below and I will be glad to work with you with my Self- Discovery training manual.

Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He’s a Human Capacity & mindset coach. He’s also a public speaker, youth advocate and creative writer. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the author of the acclaimed book Design Your Destiny – Actualizing Your Birthright To Success