Category: Success Unplugged

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Power: Leverage to Success

consistency of purpose

Power is your leverage to Success. I remembered vividly, an incident that took place during my childhood. A young girl and her mother were always physically molested by her male cousin. And a day came when her friend – a male, visited her home. That very day the incident happened again, and right in the presence of this young man the girl was beaten up by this bully of a cousin. For some seconds her friend was dumbfounded, and then suddenly came an outburst from him. He shouted, ‘’I have power; God has given me the power to beat this boy’’. Then, he rushed the young man and engaged him in a fight, but in a single swoop, the young man lifted him and threw him to the ground. What an error.

Inner Power

But truly I am full of power by the spirit of the Lord… (Micah 3:8).

Power is necessary if you must stand the test of times of adversity. Remember,’’ if you faint in the day of your adversity, then your strength(power) is small’’, (Proverbs 24:10). That is to say, for you to overcome challenges of adversity you don’t just need strength, but you need greater strength or power. You need an amazing great strength or power to overcome the challenges of adversity. Understand that power in this context is not the physical strength, rather it is the strength of your inner man.

that he would grant you … to be strengthened with might by his spirit in the inner man, (Ephesians 3:16).

The inner man talks about the heart of man. This power resides in the heart of man. The heart of man is the citadel of the spirit of God. There is a fellowship between the spirit of man and the spirit of God – spirit-to-spirit interaction. Like a phone battery connected to a power outlet when it is being charged, when the spirit of man is attuned to the spirit of God it draws a spiritual current (power) from the spirit of God. The strength you need for conquest is within your reach.

Spiritual Stamina

This strength is the spiritual stamina you need to withstand the hard times of adversity. In other words, this strength is not physical like the case of the young man that decided to fight for his friend; no it is spiritual, as the physical strength may suffer, “wear and tear” in the face of adversity like the physical strength of that young man failed him when it mattered most.

The power in question here is that turbo-like force generated in our hearts to propel us to conquest in times of adversity. And it makes men defiant in the face of fierce challenges of adversity. However, It lies within us, in our inner man and everyone has a measure of it. It is a gift from God via his spirit and lies deep within us. Most importantly, It is the hidden treasure of the heart. But the truth is that this power will lie fallow in us even in the face of adversity unless it is activated or stirred up. Moreover, if it is not activated but left to lie fallow, then we will be overtaken by challenges in times of adversity.

Knowledge Empowers

However, to stir up this power you need knowledge. The knowledge of who you are, vis-à-vis your makeup in God carries the potential to unlock this inner strength. You must understand that you have the wherewithal and all it takes to deal with every challenge of adversity. It is this kind of knowledge that activates this great strength for your conquest in adversity. It is this kind of power when stirred up that turns the ordinary man extraordinary. The same power sustains us in our most difficult and trying moments and spurs us to conquest in our times of adversity. This power keeps us afloat in our times of adversity. And in such times, there is no challenge, problem, mountain, or barrier that this inner strength cannot crush.

Power makes you Stand out

No matter how the sky is filled with stars the North Star by its position and brightness will always stand out. So is every one that explores this power. Like the North Star, there is a special space in the realm of greatness for them. It is the force behind every great and notable achievement. With this power, one can set and achieve targets and goals no matter how arduous and difficult the task might be. Moreso, it helps men confront their fears headlong. The inner strength is undaunted in the face of adversity as it lifts men out of mediocrity and inspires them to greatness. Also, it equips and braces men up for success in life. It is an antidote to defeat, failure, and mediocrity in life.

Finally, activate this power and assert your conquest. It is your leverage to Success in life.

Imagine, believe, and dare to succeed

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Law of Opposites

mystery of tomorrow

There are certain laws and principles governing the battles of life. This universal set of rules or principles is what I call laws of conquest. And if you must have conquest over adversity or challenges, and succeed in your life you must abide by these laws or principles. One of such laws is the law of opposites.

But I see another law in my members warring against the law of my mind, (Romans 7:23)

In the mind of every man are two opposite forces, at war against each other. Basically, these opposing forces are centrifugal in nature. There is a great dichotomy in the human mind between two opposing forces. A battle for supremacy rages between these two forces. Thus, the human mind becomes a battlefield for these two opposing forces. They strive and contend with each other for control and dominance of the human mind.

These forces have manipulative tendencies as the dominance of either of them influences our attitude and the way we respond to experiences of life. These two forces are the force of fear and the force of courage. And the dominance of any of them is a determinant of defeat or victory, failure or success in adversity as the case may be.

The mind is the central processing unit of life. It churns out fear or courage based on the prevailing experience. The mind is the drawing board from where you map out strategies for actions in life. These strategies influence your attitude and determine the outcome of the time of adversity. It is either the attitude of fear or the attitude of courage.

In addition, every battle of life is half-won or half-lost in the mind. And it is the prevailing force operating in the mind, by its influence on your attitude or disposition towards challenges of life that determines the outcome. This is to say that the outcome of the time of adversity is a fifty-fifty affair.

Law of Opposites in Action

This law of opposites was in operation in the minds of the twelve spies. They were divided between fear and courage in their hearts. This explains better why God did not carry the Israelites immediately into Canaan as he promised. Remember, the number of spies that had the force of fear operating in their minds was ten. Then only two out of them had the force of courage – Joshua and Caleb. Obviously, at the ratio of five to one (5:1), or 83.3% to 16.7%, the equation of the law of opposites did not balance. With this equation, the venture was a mission impossible. This buttresses the law of opposites or law of battles of life; it must be first won in the mind before any physical victory, or worse still, lost in the mind before any physical defeat as the case may be.

Moreover, to worsen the situation the ten spies infested the camp with fear. It spread like wildfire. The whole camp caught the fear fever except for Joshua and Caleb who had another spirit. Meanwhile, they are to contend for the Promise Land in battles. So, God in his wisdom knew that with the form of their spirit they would be defeated in battle because they were already defeated in their minds. And they remained in the wilderness for forty years until the generation who were self-defeated was eliminated except Joshua and Caleb. Then God raised a hybrid of Israelites devoid of fear in them to possess the Promised Land, (Numbers 13: 31-33; 14:1-6, 31, 32, 37).

The force of Fear Vs Courage

In the law of opposites, there are always two opposing and centrifugal forces contending against each other. For example, the forces of fear and of courage are two opposing forces. They are poles apart that is they cannot meet together. One cannot operate where the other exists. They are like light and darkness. Wherever light shines darkness disappears, but whenever light ceases to shine darkness takes over. You can also liken them to water and fire. Whereas the water of fear extinguishes the fire of courage in any mind. No one achieves victory or success in the atmosphere of fear. Note that going into battle at that initial tempo would amount to defeat because they were already defeated in their minds.

Conquest in Life

Furthermore, I will define conquest as a ‘spiritual phenomenon which is determined by the strength and character of the human spirit. Note that the form of your spirit matters most when it comes to the battles of life. It is the determinant of victory or defeat in adversity. Do you want to dominate and succeed in life? Do you want to rule your world? Then you must work on the form of your spirit. Your spirit must be in form.

Imagine, believe, and dare to succeed

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Infidelity of Fear: How to Mitigate the Demeaning Effect of Fear.

demystifying fear

Infidelity of fear is one major bane of success. Fear is the greatest enemy of success. The scourge of fear is in its torture. And fear has wreaked havoc and left unmitigated damages to the psyche of many individuals. Many dreams have been battered, many visions have been blighted and many destinies shattered, all because of the torture of fear. Fear has a subtle means of caging men in the dungeon of mediocrity by taming their potential. Its torture infringes on the freedom of people to express or unleash their potential. Hence we cannot succeed in the atmosphere of fear. This explicitly captures what I have termed the infidelity of fear.

Don’t let fear place a lid over the treasure box of your potential – Chidi O. Kalu

The infidelity of fear is a dangerous threat to success. By now, I know many of us are curious and eager to know what this infidelity of fear is all about, or what fear has to do with infidelity and vice versa. One danger of fear is that it turns men into infidels. Infidelity in this regard is not about unfaithfulness to one’s spouse or partner, rather infidelity in this context is about unfaithfulness to a moral obligation. Every one of us is under a moral obligation to succeed in life. Hence success is not the exclusive right of a certain class of people. It is open to all and sundry irrespective of their background provided they meet the requirements.

There is nothing we cannot achieve in life including fulfilling the moral obligation of success since we have the capacity to succeed. Not believing in your ability or in God the source of your ability will amount to the infidelity of fear. Fear strips us of all our abilities to succeed and confines us to the dungeon of mediocrity. Fear can turn you into an infidel, a situation where you begin to doubt your ability. It has a demeaning effect on the individual worldview. And looking through the prism of life tainted with fear all one could see is impossibilities, doubt, and unbelief.

Basically, you will not know what you are capable of until you give it a try. Infidelity of fear makes you ignorant of your self-worth. In other words, your capability defines your self-worth. However, when you are in doubt of your capabilities your self-worth will also be in doubt. Moreover, you cannot develop your potential without giving it a try. Fear makes you rusty. A life of fear is characterized by low self-esteem, self-pity, and self-defeat. Then a situation arises where you eventually lose faith in your abilities.

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

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels that the Excellency of power may be of God and not of us - 2 Corinthians 4: 7

Hence, to checkmate the incidence of the infidelity of fear, you must get rid of your fear. Don’t let your challenges intimidate you to the extent of throwing in the towel, rather do everything possible to overcome them. Remember your potentials are your asset in your quest to succeed. The ante dote to the poison of fear is your faith. Have faith in God and also believe in your abilities. You have all it takes to succeed.

Imagine, believe, and dare to succeed.

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Investment: A Viable Option to Security and Solid Future

Investment securing your future

Investment is a great option for securing the future. Securing a solid future is possible. In fact, imbibing the habit of saving and investing is a sure means to succeed and find fulfillment in life. Investment in this regard means trading something in exchange for a life of security and stability in the future. The main aim of the investment is productivity and profitability. All investments whether in financial, academic, business, or investment in your health and, children have one major purpose – a satisfactory future. By investing you are bracing up for the demands, pressure, and uncertainties of the future. There are lots of resources to invest with. You can invest your talents, time, strength, intellect, and money, for a life of stability and fulfillment.

Investment and the Propensity to Save

Any life without investment is an unproductive and unfulfilled one; a hotbed of failure, stagnation, and insecurity. However, for you to invest you must save. There is a high propensity to invest when people save. There are some contributory schemes or bank savings products that are tailored to meet the need for funding your investments. Subscribe to any of these products. You can start today by contributing and saving some percentage of your monthly earnings; say at least ten percent of it.

Investment entails Sacrifice.

Time of investment is usually a time of serious business. It is not a time for pleasure, nor is it time for merry-making. It is often said that business comes before pleasure, investment time is a time to be in the field working and preparing for a better future full of happiness. Such a time is a time to sow expecting to reap fulfillment in the future. It is a better option for you to succeed and live a fulfilled life. 

A farmer through seed sowing is investing his seed (lings) for a bumper harvest in the nearest future. Such time is a time of sacrifice. Investment is all about sacrificing the pleasures of today for the gains of the future. It remains a more viable option for laying a formidable foundation for your future. The extent to which you are able to invest determines how productive and fulfilled your future will be. Indeed it empowers you to take charge of your future.

Discipline and Prudence

For you to be a successful investor you must be disciplined, and prudent with your spending. Some years ago I met a young man while I was merchandising and developing supply or distribution channels for one of the multinationals. This young man had a shop and one could easily count all the goods in his shop. But he was very determined and diligent; working hard to make sure this business grows. He chose a life of prudence and modesty rather than the psychedelic and flamboyant lifestyle of young men of his generation.

The young man sacrificed a lot on the altar of investment just to secure his future. Obviously, he was at the building level, throwing back all his earnings and profits just to make sure his business stands. When I saw what he was doing I encouraged him to keep it up, assuring him that he will not regret his actions.

Howbeit, I visited him just six months after our encounter, and behold there was an amazing transformation in his business. His shop was filled with goods, even the extension outside was filled up. Now that this young man is established and his business enjoying a certain level of stability he can enjoy all the good things of life he denied himself without stressing his business. Understand this, If you cannot deny yourself of some certain good things in life then you cannot make a good investor; neither can you find fulfillment.

Investment is not without Risks

We should understand that investment is not without risks. There are risks associated with an investment that one must look out for when investing to have a fulfilled life. Be careful as many have lost their livelihood all because of one bad investment. Consequently, the knowledge of risk control management is very crucial as this mitigates the loss of investment. Always have a blueprint of every investment plan you want to make, this will afford you the opportunity to know the risks involved. Acquaint yourself with risk control measures in order to protect your investments. Always have a look before you leap, as most investment opportunities are not what they seem on the surface. Please don’t assume anything when it comes to investment. An assumption is a dangerous option, and it is inimical to your success.

Imagine, believe, dare to succeed