Category: Success Unplugged

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How to Maintain Healthy Lifestyle

healthy lifestyle

I guess you have heard of this popular phrase that ‘health is wealth. One of the indices of success that people often overlook is a healthy lifestyle. So in this post, I will look at the subject of good health as a priority of success. I will beam my searchlight on a good healthy lifestyle as leverage to success.

Now let me begin with this assertion that if we cannot take care of our health then we cannot be successful in any venture. To put it straight, a healthy lifestyle births a successful lifestyle. Hence, if we must be successful in life we must prioritize our health. We must all give our health a place of pride in our scheme of things.

Success is not only about wealth or value creation. It is also about taking care of the mechanism of success. Success is a process and there are so many factors to put into consideration in the process. One such prime factor is human health. The industrial revolution of the eighteenth century resulted in a paradigm shift, from what used to be labor-oriented production to machine-powered production. Hence, the focus and attention shifted from human health to machine maintenance.

Presently, there is a new surge in ‘artificial intelligence’ technology where machines now perform most of the functions performed by humans. The human relevance in the success process tends to have been winding down. However, no matter the sophistication of artificial intelligence technology humans are still hyper-relevant in the process. Good health is of utmost importance since the entire process of success depends solely on human ideas and innovations.

The human body is a ‘sophisticated physical machine’ which requires absolute maintenance to avoid systemic breakdown or knock. Obviously, whenever there is a systemic breakdown healthwise the process of success suffers a negative impact. Hence, the panacea for a successful lifestyle is good health. Now let’s try to understand what maintaining a healthy lifestyle is all about.

I wish above all things that thou may prosper and be in health even as thy soul prospers-3John:2.

From the above scripture it is evidently clear that good health is not necessarily the absence of sickness or disease, nor is it necessarily the well-being of the body. Good health transcends this. It is an encompassing phenomenon. It includes the well-being of your body as well as your soul. Hence, if you are not sick in your body and yet your soul or inner man exudes fear or depression, this may not translate to good health.

Good health in this regard means you are able to think straight in order to generate ideas and innovations. There must be a connection, an agreement between the human body and the soul. Like I said earlier the human body is a sophisticated ‘physical machine’ made up of different parts and components, driven or controlled by ‘software’ in the form of thoughts, ideas, innovations, etc. seated in the soul of man. And when the software is corrupted as it were, it will send the wrong signal to the different parts and this will result in the malfunctioning of the body. Under such circumstances, you cannot generate ideas or plan freely to drive your success. If you have been sick or depressed in life before you can attest to the fact that it is the lowest ebb of life. And under such circumstances, you cannot maximize success.

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is a success essential. In fact, a healthy lifestyle and a successful lifestyle are two sides of the same coin. Hence, for one to be successful in life one must maintain a healthy lifestyle

Steps to Maintaining Healthy lifestyles

Good health as a success essential is akin to a healthy lifestyle. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle suggests that all our actions, thoughts, and ideas must tilt toward promoting healthy living. Some of these healthy lifestyles include

Regular and periodic Medical checks

There is an assertion that prevention is less expensive than cure. Hence, to ensure this you must always ascertain your health status. Regular and periodic medical checks will improve your health status. Don’t be too busy or too engrossed to examine or check your health. Once detected treat every health symptom as soon as possible. Note, every symptom is a signal of a health issue. Don’t assume any symptom, assumption might be costly. Always carry out a medical diagnostic test to ascertain the sickness. And when diagnosed always expedite actions to treat yourself in order to forestall or avert health complications. Above all never indulge in self-medication, it is very delicate.

Don’t indulge in harmful substances or lifestyle

There are some practices that can harm or destroy your health. Don’t indulge in activities like intake and abuse of harmful substances like illicit drugs, narcotics, and alcohol. Also don’t indulge in nefarious lifestyles like illicit and unprotected sex escapades. These will do you more harm than good. Many glorious destinies and futures have come to an abrupt end and many have also derailed from the course of success.

Moreover, overindulgence in these harmful substances and lifestyles has put many in serious and critical health conditions. Many have suffered organ failure and others have contracted deadly and incurable diseases like HIV and STDs. And no one has ever succeeded with such an obnoxious lifestyle.

Learn to manage stress

One of the ways to maintain a healthy lifestyle is to learn the act of stress management. Stress management is very important in the process of success. It is a deciding factor as to whether we can live a successful lifestyle or not. Stress is a very subtle yet deadly phenomenon. It can scuttle the success process. However, a stress-free life ensures success.

Rise above depression

Do everything possible to rise above depression. Depression is a killer and it arises when we allow our challenges to overwhelm us. It always has a fatal impact on success. When depression sets in, the inability to unleash one’s potential becomes a reality.

Are you under the scourge of a terminal illness or a victim of a brutal assault by circumstances of life? Have you looked around and there is no tangible reason for you to live? The positive news is that you can bounce back to life. You can stand to yourself once again. I know you can rise above that depression. Many have threaded on the same path as you, and they were able to overcome depression. Read my post, conquest in adversity to see those that rose above depression.

Understand that cancer, diabetes, HIV, and other health challenges are not death sentences. You can still make something meaningful out of life. Don’t give room to depression; it is a high mark of unfulfillment. It is fatal, it is suicidal.

Routine healthy lifestyles

In maintaining a healthy lifestyle there are some routine lifestyles you must indulge in to maintain good health. These are lifestyles that cost little or nothing to live. These lifestyles include drinking enough clean water, good eating habits, and eating more of organic food like fresh fruits, vegetables, and wholesome grains. Also lifestyle exercises like skipping, walking, and jogging help you to keep your body and soul fit and in good shape too. These are daily routine healthy lifestyles that will cost little or nothing but are very instrumental to maintaining good health. From all indications, good health is synonymous with success. In fact, they are two sides of the same coin. Hence, if you want to maximize your success then you must take good care of your health. Remember that maintaining a healthy lifestyle is a priority of success.

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Time Management Skill: A Crucial Success Essential

Time management

Good time management is an essential skill every success-minded person must acquire. How well do you manage time?  It may interest you to know that how well you manage time determines your impact in any space you are operating in. Time is of great essence in life. It is one invaluable asset that is instrumental to success. It is too precious to be wasted. So a good time management skill seeks to eliminate time wastage to the barest minimum. Time is what life is made up of and when we waste time we are wasting our life. 

If you love life, don’t waste time, for time is what life is made up of – Bruce Lee.

Interestingly, you can always leverage time, riding on its wings to the realm of success. How well do you manage time? Your answer to this fundamental question is a clue as to whether you are successful or not. So, I want to reiterate here that time management is one of the determinants of success. Good time management is a very important habit we must all cultivate whereas poor time management is one bad habit we must get rid of. If it is not taken care of could eventually lead to a life of failure and unfulfillment in the long run. For us to understand time management we must understand three attributes of time;

  • Time controls and regulates all the activities of man. Time determines every event and occurrence in life.
  • Time is no respecter of a person, every one of us under the sun has an equal number of time, 24 hours in a day.
  • Time is irreversible, once mismanaged it cannot be reversed or regained. No one can turn back the hand of time.

These attributes are reasons why we must manage time well. However, to evaluate your time management skill you must possess these five essential habits. These are five sterling qualities of highly fulfilled persons


Have a blueprint

A blueprint is like a road map to guide you in accomplishing your set objectives. A blueprint helps you to be organized in any project. Having a blueprint for every project is one of the surest ways to achieve set goals. It helps you to manage time well by allotting time to all your activities. A blueprint also helps us to carefully plan out our activities as it helps us to prioritize our activities. Hence, without a blueprint, your day will be a boring, dull, disorganized, and disjointed venture. Plan your life, and have a blueprint for each day. What is your blueprint for today?

Prioritize your activities

By prioritizing, I mean itemizing your ‘to dos’ or activities for the day, week, or month according to their order of importance. Ask yourself, what are those tasks that are very important to me? List them down; let them come first in the order of preference. You need to allot more time to very important ones.

On a scale of one to ten (1-10), what are the ten most important goals you want to achieve? Write them down according to their importance, starting with the most important ones. The idea is prioritizing your activities will enable you to give more time to your most important tasks. It will help you stay focused and improve your time management skill.

Stay Focused

It would help if you stayed focused to improve your time management skills. If you are not focused then you are distracted. Distraction aborts dreams and truncates destinies. Distraction is a loss of focus and it can lead to poor time management. It is all about losing focus on your priorities. Note that you must focus on your priorities, not on your trivialities. You cannot manage your time well when you focus on trivial issues. So don’t be engrossed in trivialities to the extent that you will neglect your priorities. 

For instance, if your study is more important to you don’t use the time for your studies to watch movies. Or if you have an appointment to keep don’t postpone it because you want to entertain visitors. These are all distractions. And whatsoever is not part of your blueprint is not a priority but a distraction.

Do not procrastinate.

Never put off for tomorrow, what you can do today – Thomas Jefferson

Procrastination is the avoidance of doing a task that needs to be accomplished. In other words, procrastination is the deferment of responsibilities for no tangible reasons. One universal attribute of procrastination is that it can take place in any area of an individual’s life. Procrastination is the thief of time. It robs us of our precious time. The truth is that if we keep on deferring tasks time will come when we will find it difficult to achieve our goals and we cannot beat the dateline because of pressures. And you cannot manage time well with this attitude of procrastination. 

Invest in time

Your time management skill is also measured by what you have achieved within a certain time frame. The extent to which you are able to invest determines how productive and secured your life will become over time. Investment empowers you to take charge of your future. Such a time is a time to sow expecting to reap in the future. A farmer through seed planting is investing his seed (lings) for a bumper harvest in the nearest future. If he or she refuses to sow during the planting season then he will have nothing to reap and the entire season would have been wasted. Don’t waste your time, manage it well by investing your time in something worthwhile. Invest in your health, self-development, education, and business projects, and acquire specialized skills that will help you find fulfillment in life.

Benefits of time management

 The way you manage time will determine whether you will be successful or not. There is time for every activity, so good time management entails doing the right thing at the right time. It also entails the speedy execution of projects when opportunities come. There are so many competitors lurking around to take advantage of your ineptitude if, and when you fail to deliver. Speedy response to these opportunities as they beckon with time is a veritable asset you must subscribe to.

Develop a culture of good time management. You must sharpen your time management skill. Time management skill helps us to work smart by bringing to bear our efficiency and organizational skills. It helps us meet the dateline of projects and to achieve our set goals and objectives. In other words, it enhances performance and productivity. Moreover, it helps in capacity-building as one becomes better in a specialized area over time. It is often said that time is money; hence, time management will help us to minimize waste and increase our net worth.

Final Note

What are you doing with your time today?  Manage your time well because time will tell whether you will succeed and find fulfillment in life, or not. Remember, time determines every event in life; time is no respecter of any individual; and you cannot turn back the hand of time. Utilize your time well if you want fulfillment in life. Be wise.

Imagine, believe, dare the impossible

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Unleash Your Talent: How to Explore Your Most Treasured Asset.

unleash your talent

One major way to open up the gateway to success and have a fulfilled life is to unleash your talent. Understand that your talent is your asset as long as success is concerned. It is common to hear people talk about a talented musician, actor, singer, speaker, writer or what have you. But the truth of the matter is that each and every one of us is endowed with at least a talent. We are all talented.

I remember vividly, a song we used to sing way back in Primary school. It goes like this;

One talent have I,
to take to the world;
While others are blessed
with ten of the best;
why should I complain
from duty refrain;
No never, no never,
Not I.

The above song captures the very nitty-gritty of this phenomenon called talent. We can understand from the song that we are all endowed with talents. However, while some are multi-talented, others can boast of just one talent. But we are all loaded with talents.

And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey – Matthew 25:15.

Furthermore, this scripture verse buttresses the fact that we are carriers of certain talents. Hence, we can invade the infinite realm and succeed in life with a little creativity. Talent in this regard, is that special (unique) skill or quality that is divinely endowed on people that makes them do things with ease and very well. Talents are special gifts that help people in fulfilling destiny. One universal truth about talent is that it is for the public good. It is for positive impact. An endowment or a gift becomes a talent only when it is beneficial to the general public.

Understanding Talent

Talent is of great importance to human existence. One importance of talent is that it opens, and ushers men into the realm of greatness.

A man’s gift (talent) makes room for him, and brings him before great men – Proverbs 18:16

People with talents are ‘a greatness time bomb waiting to explode. So, your talent becomes a vehicle you ride in to achieve success, fame, and greatness. Understand that the tendency to unleash your talent depends so much on your ability. That is why even though we are all endowed with talents, some are ‘not talented’ because they lack the ability to unleash their talents. The ability here is the capacity to harness and express your talent. You must have the capacity to harness and unleash these special skills or gifts for maximum global impact.

Discover yourself

Taking the path to self-discovery is unarguably a window to capacity building. You must take the journey inward to discover yourself. Until you discover yourself you cannot live life to its fullest. It helps you to know your self-worth and unleash your talents. You must look inward to discover your strength, passion, and talents, and harness them for maximum impact in life.

By doing this you will build the capacity, and acquire the ability to unleash your talent. Have you discovered yourself? Do you have an insight into your own nature and character? Not until you do that you can ever unleash your talent.

You need a Push.

You need a push in life in order to build the capacity you need to unleash your talent. Note that for you to have the ability to unleash your talent you must be pushed beyond your limit. You must go the extra mile to build the capacity. For instance, an elastic band when pressured or overstretched does not return to its original state. In the same way, your talent when stretched beyond the limit does not remain the same. The elasticity of talent sets in. Each time you go beyond your limit there is improvisation to your talent. You will learn new ways of doing things with ease, and very well. That is innovation and creativity.

I remember vividly the time I wrote my thesis and each time I submitted my work for supervision. My supervisor then will ask me to elaborate on my work. Each time he will always tells me to write and expand my work. And it paid off as I got the best grade in my project work. My ability was overstretched beyond the limit and I build the capacity for writing. Today, I can write with ease, and I have so much developed my writing skill, such that I can write a script ten times, and each time develops new content is it.

You need Mentoring

Another way you can build the capacity to unleash your talent is through mentoring. You need to be mentored, trained, and facilitated by someone who is well-grounded in such a field for you to acquire the ability. You need someone who takes a personal interest in your success and is committed to helping you reach your full potential. Also, it must be someone who inspires you to succeed, someone who has done what you want to do and you aspire to be like him.

Mentorship encourages capacity building through the impartation of specialized skills and knowledge, and the wealth of experience of your mentor. It is your connecting bridge to fame and stardom.

Banish Fear

Let’s say your mind is a treasure box, and inside it is great potential, (talents) that you must freely express or unleash for you to be successful in life. Now, what fear does is that it closes this treasure box and buries these wonderful talents, and makes sure you don’t unleash them. This is one major reason why many are unsuccessful today. Not that they don’t have talents but because of fear of expressing their talents.

Fear strips you of all your abilities to unleash your talent by making you doubt your ability. However, you cannot develop your talents without taking responsibility to unleash your talent. Banish that fear now and give it a try. 

Finally, what are you good at? What is your passion in life? Or what do you feel so excited about? Chances are that this is your talent. And to unleash your talent you must go beyond your limit to build the capacity and acquire the ability. Do more if you must achieve more.

Imagine it, believe it, and dare to succeed.

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Mystery of Tomorrow

mystery of tomorrow

Unraveling the mystery of tomorrow is an arduous task for anyone who envisages a blissful and rewarding future. All through human existence the ‘concept of tomorrow’ seems to have always remained a mystery. There are myriads of popular parlances pointing to the mystery of tomorrow. For example, ‘no one knows tomorrow’, and ‘tomorrow is pregnant and no one knows what it will give birth to.

Tomorrow holds a lot for mankind – either good or bad. The mystery of tomorrow is that it is bloated with some elements of uncertainty. Interestingly, many are sorely afraid of tomorrow. They are afraid of what lies ahead of them i.e. fear of the unknown syndrome. This suggests why many would rather feel helpless at the thought of tomorrow because they don’t know what it holds for them. Even today many are still skeptical about tomorrow because of the uncertainties surrounding it but no matter our feelings about tomorrow, it will always come.

In fact, the entire human race is living in view of tomorrow. All our efforts and activities today point towards a better tomorrow.

There is an inextricable relationship between our yesterday and today, and also between our today and tomorrow. Whereas our today is rooted in our yesterday, our tomorrow will be determined by the activities of today. More so, today is a bridge connecting our yesterday with our tomorrow. Hence, yesterday is a lesson, today is a challenge, and tomorrow is a mystery. It is a time when we shall sit back to analyze and assess how we have fared in life. Hence, our success today determines whether we will have a fulfilling tomorrow.

Furthermore, tomorrow is the time when we shall take cognizance of all the decisions we made, and the daring risks and, or responsibilities we took, to ascertain their effectiveness. Such a time to some will be a time to celebrate their success in life, and to some, it will be a time to lament and regret their failure in life. There is a thin divide between our today and tomorrow. It is called the night.

…weeping may endure for a night but joy cometh in the morning, (Psalm 30:5).

Are you in your night of adversity as it were? Are you enmeshed in bitterness and weeping? Hold on, soon you will step into your tomorrow. Nevertheless, you must possess an element of hope in your heart. It is very important to note that no matter how long or how dark your night (adversity) may be the bright dawn of tomorrow (your success) will always emerge.

Most importantly, you can decide how your tomorrow will be. You can dictate to which direction the pendulum of tomorrow will swing. Hence you can lay formidable foundations for a better tomorrow today. Sincerely speaking, you can allay the fears of the unknown, and avert the cry of had I known tomorrow. Yes, you can but you must secure your tomorrow today. Now I will present to you the bouquet of life-lines that will help you secure your tomorrow, as well as demystify the mystery of tomorrow.

Salvation


Your salvation is the most superior of all the lifelines. It is the spiritual aspect of your quest to secure your tomorrow. As we will all know, the spiritual controls both the physical and the material. It is the surest mean to secure your tomorrow because when the spiritual aspect is secured virtually all other aspects of tomorrow is secured. It goes without saying that when you are saved your tomorrow is secured, but when you are not saved your tomorrow is not safe.

For God, so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.
For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world: but that the world through him might be saved, (John 3: 16, 17).

This is the good news, the whole message of salvation. And it is the only escape route from all the fear of the unknown, and fear of judgment, and of eternal damnation. Salvation confers on you the status of a hybrid personality whose tomorrow is intact and not in doubt.

Positive Imagination


One of the greatest gifts of God to mankind is the gift of imagination. Imagination per se is forming an image about a particular thing in your mind. It is painting mental pictures about something. Imagination has with it the power or force that can transform such mental pictures or images into reality. And as such the power of imagination cannot be underestimated, even God himself, confirms the audacity of imagination.

… And now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined, (Genesis 11:6).

What do you imagine about your tomorrow? What picture do you paint about your tomorrow? You must understand that the power of imagination will propel you to actualize that which you have painted.
When a man has a positive imagination, he has everything it takes to actualize his tomorrow. Imagination helps you see vividly your tomorrow today. Imagination consists of hope, optimism, and enthusiasm. And these three elements turn your imagination into reality. Watch out for my post on the power of imagination.

Preparation

The place of preparation in securing your tomorrow cannot is unfathomable. It is of utmost importance. A wise man once asserted that ‘’preparation brings manifestation’’, there is no doubt about this assertion. Hence, if we dream about a blissful tomorrow then it is necessary we prepare today. Adequate preparation is one factor you need to unravel the mystery of tomorrow, as failure to prepare for tomorrow means you are preparing for your failure today. Indeed, it is very needful we are fully prepared so that we will not be overtaken by the events of tomorrow. You must also brace up for the challenges and the demands of tomorrow. Prepare today to avoid the embarrassment of failure tomorrow. Thus, preparation entails planning for a better tomorrow.

Preparation entails intense planning, as you must take a feasibility study of your situation. Plan how you can rise above the challenges of such situations and secure your tomorrow. You must also take into consideration how you want your tomorrow to look. In addition, you must weigh every possible option needed to actualize your ideal tomorrow. Note, that the more prepared you are the more secured your tomorrow will be.

Investment


An adage says you must ‘’save for the rainy day’’. But I say let it not end with savings, you must go beyond savings, you must also invest for the rainy day. There is a connection between savings and investment; there is a high propensity that a good saver can become a good investor. But there is a massive difference between the gains of savings and that of investment. The gain of investment is profit, and it pours in a torrent; whereas, that of savings is interest and it trickles in drops. Note that when you invest, your resources or money will work for you. In other words, you are sending your money on errands to fetch more money.

There are investment opportunities everywhere but look out for the one that is most likely to yield a high return on your investment. However, I will advise you to be wary of all these get-rich opportunities lurking around. In the words of John Wesley;

Make all you can, save all you can, give all you can – John Wesley.

In the meantime, I will further advise you to invest all you can. Invest your money, time, talent, strength, etc and the returns on your investments will accrue to you tomorrow. And with all these returns on your investments, you will secure your tomorrow and will never be in doubt. Moreover, you must diversify your investments as every opportunity to invest is a quantum leap towards a better tomorrow.

Finally, for you to have a blissful and rewarding tomorrow you must unravel the mystery of tomorrow.

Imagine it, believe it, and dare to succeed.