Dear Destiny Friends,

Knowledge, without an iota of doubt, is very critical to success. This concept is backed by the Holy Book, which states that ‘my people perish for lack of knowledge”.

One of the major reasons people pay for services, or products is simply because someone has invested knowledge to solve a problem. The constant use of this knowledge, therefore, can metamorphose into vision.

Note that one of the ways knowledge works is through vision. Did you know that understanding leads to vision, and vision leads to realization. When you understand what you want in life, you will know how to get there. This is because vision paves the way to clarity.

Vision is not about having ‘eyes’, because many people have eyes, but can’t see.

Vision is the ability to use your eyes to see and interpret the world around you.

As a Human Capacity Coach, one of the key areas of my training is focus on vision for every progressive company and individual. Any company, business, family, relationship, or association without vision is merely existing as opposed to living. It is the vision that sustains the company.

But what is vision? It is rather unfortunate that many people don’t understand what vision is. Vision can mean several things to several people. Some see vision as what they want to be in the nearest future; some see it as the change they would like to implement in the world, while others might see it from the angle of prophecy.

Just like every organization, company, government has a vision, every human being has a vision. It is the vision that separates every organization and human being. This vision is encapsulated in the values they hold dear to the heart. The vision of Mr. A is quite different from the vision of Mr. B. When you have a vision, it’s important for you to hold it close to your heart. Your vision is meant for you to implement. If you share it with the wrong person, you might get discouraged or the vision might be stolen from you, and implemented in a different way.

This is how the dynamic aspect of vision works. Every leader works differently and many have different visions for their citizens. In school, all students might be in the classroom, but their learning and understanding might be different, and a group of people might be walking, but what they are seeing might be different.

The power of faith works with vision. According to Dr. Yomi Garnett, “to really succeed, you need real faith, which is simply an inner vison of great spiritual laws. This faith allows you to see what you desire even before attaining it, much like the farmer who holds seeds in his hands and sees the stalks of corn that fill his fields at harvest time. All great men and women have this type of faith”.

This simply tells you vision works with the principle and spiritual laws of success. If the farmer don’t see hope in harvesting, he/she won’t bother to plant crops.

Again, if Martin Luther King Jnr, Nelson Mandela, Barak Obama, Henry Ukazu and other great visionary leaders, who have make great impact in the world didn’t see ahead and believe in the vison they imagined, they wouldn’t have been able make great impacts in the world.

Vision comes in different ways; it can come directly from God, via inspiration; it can also come due to the prevailing societal ills you’ll like to change. It can also be because of an impact one would like to see in the world.

When God gives you a vision, that vision is for you to implement, it’s not meant for another person. If it’s meant for another person, it will be revealed to that person. That’s why vision is not meant to be shared to everyone. This is how vision works. God might show you a vision, but he won’t give you everything you need to fulfil it. He also needs your input to bring it into existence. That input might be faith, understanding and skills/talent to execute it. For instance, God will give you wood, and you will use the wood to manufacture a chair or furniture.

Furthermore, vision is the difference between where you are and where you want to be. In between where you are and where you want to be, you must have a plan. This plan doesn’t have to be figured out. All you need is to believe in the vision and what you are feeling and seeing. This plan comes with a process. This process is what will lead you to your destination. It is during the planning that one’s faith is tested, and skills harnessed. Your plan must come with preparation, it must be concise, clear, and compelling. The plan is the process that will take you to your destination.

In conclusion, if you have a vision, believe in it, and get back to work to fulfil it by preparing for it. The world is rooting for you.

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

Dear Destiny Friends,

The test of character is having the ability to meet challenges – Walter Anneberg

In life, one test everyone will surely experience, is the test of character. Our character will surely be tested. It is therefore, instructive to note that circumstances don’t say who we are, they reveal who we are. The character of a human being is manifested when they face challenges. This is why the best qualities of strength, courage, love, persistence, and loyalty are manifested when one faces betrayals, disappointments, failures, and challenges of life whether it is small or big.

When you face challenges, it is advisable to respond positively and constructively. When you react negatively, it shows how your mindset works, knowing that according to Walter Annenberg, “The test of character is having the ability to meet challenges”.

It is easy for people to say, I will do this, I will do that, I won’t do this, I won’t do that etc., when they have power, but when they are faced with trials or opportunities, their true being will manifest.

Some schools of thought opine that one can hardly advise these four sets of people: a woman in love, a rich man, a religious bigot and a member of a political party.

Do you know your character can manifest when you experience challenges? To show you how character works, imagine that as a driver, a passenger or stranger forgets a million dollars in your car, what would you do in such a situation? Again, imagine when you see a million dollars on the ground, and no one is there around to claim the money. What will you do  in such a situation? Will you return the money or give it to the appropriate authorities? If you decide to return the money, that again, is the test of your character. When you keep the money, that shows how your mindset works. Again, circumstances don’t say who you are, it reveals who you are.

Furthermore, one of the ways to know a great man is by looking at how he treats those who can do nothing to him. The true being of the man will be shown via his humility, kindness, respect, and more importantly, his understanding of life. This is because, according to Charles Beard, “the two great tests of character are wealth and poverty. How you act when you have money is quite different from how you act when you are poor.

Ultimately in my humble opinion, the three tests of character are” adversity, temptation, and power. As human beings, we’ll surely have one form of adversity or the other, and this adversity can come in the form of various temptations. Our prayer should be, God, grant me the grace to overcome the temptations and adversity of life.

Furthermore, a man can’t say he’s strong until he’s able to withstand the temptations of a woman in addition to being able to control his anger when his wife annoys him.

According to Abraham Lincoln, “any man can stand adversity, but if you really want to test his character, give him power.” I will add money and women. If he’s able to control and manage them very well without them managing and overpowering him, he is a man of repute and influence.

It’s one thing to be generous, loving, compassionate, etc. when life is rosy for us, but quite another to maintain noble attitudes when things are no longer going our way. Adversity, it seems, has the power to bring out the best or the worst in us because circumstances don’t say who we are, rather, they reveal who we are.

In conclusion, if you are passionate about a cause, one of the ways to determine if you will be successful about the project is through your ability to forge ahead with the right attitude and character when adversity and temptations bring up their ugly heads, and I pray when you finally get to the top, may God grant you the grace to bring up a virtuous character that will attract and humble the world.

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

Dear Destiny Friends,

Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value – Albert Einstein

Every man craves attention, approval, appreciation, and admiration. However, if these four cravings of man are to see the light of the day, one must be a person of value. It is the value you offer to the world that makes you get approval; your value will make the world to appreciate you; your value will make you to be admired. Even your enemy will seek for you.

Imagine a sick person, who needs to undergo a surgery, is told, that only Mr. A or B has the expertise to execute such surgery. If the person wants to be alive, he or she will have to seek the services of that person.

The word value means several things to several people. For a real estate agent, it means the price one can pay for a property; to an employer, it means the service an employee or contractor can offer; to a mentor or mentee, it means the skills or achievement they can offer or their achievement; to a married partner or someone in a relation, it can be what makes them unique because relationship comes with value, and to a company or an individual, it can mean that which they stand for.

For this article, we shall focus on how progressive minds can attract opportunities into their lives. It is worthy of note tha the surest way to be rich or wealthy is to have a product or service. Don’t get me wrong, you can be successful with a regular 9-5 job, but when wealth is in the picture, one must have a product or service. Just to reinforce this point, all the billionaires on Forbes magazine have a product or service. None of them have a regular 9-5 job. It’s unfortunate to note that many people want to be rich or known in the world, but they don’t have any product or service to offer the world.

Value comes in different ways. Your value can be because of academic excellence, political relevance, influence, goodwill or social currency. In some cases, value can be the estimate of the monetary worth of (something). It can also be your opinion of someone or how beneficial a person or something is to you.

Value works in dynamic ways. What is valuable to someone might not be valuable to another person. If something is important to you, you will create time for it, just like one cannot be too busy for their family and friends. If someone is important to you, you will make an attempt to meet the person. There have been occasions where people travel thousands of miles to meet people, attend events, and buy clothes, or electronics, and even pay for first class treatment when traveling. The list can be endless. All these are intended to show the value they place on the person, product, or event. If you don’t like something, you won’t invest time and resources on it.

The word value cannot be overemphasized. Do you know that all the money one needs is in the hands and pockets of people and organizations that are around you or far from you. To make value work for you, you must offer your product or service to the right people. One may be wondering how this works. When you have value, the right people and even the world will seek you. Once you can locate your customers, you will be appreciated for the great work you are doing.

The surest way one can get these people is by giving them something of value and they will be compensated for the service or product they offer. For instance, as a Human Capacity coach, I am the author of several published books, I offer training on self-discovery, mindset training, youth development, and career and professional development.

When you offer people and organizations great value, you will be recommended and appreciated in addition to attracting better opportunities. Most people and organizations love to see value for the money they give out.

In conclusion, resolve today to discover what product you should sell or what service you should offer to the world to access their money. Your value must have a positive effect on the world as opposed to being negative. Your value must come with principles, ideologies, and most importantly, must solve problems.

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